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Sorry this one took a bit, I've been sick so I started this chapter late. It's not COVID, thankfully. I'm still not fully better but I'm finally able to type!
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Weeks passed by and winter was here. The cold breezes chilled your insides, kids played innocently in the fluffy snow, and school was out. Jake summed up the perfect idea to "win" Rose back. A present.
Unfortunately, the boy did not have a clue what to get her.
He overthought about if her taste in things changed, if he had enough money, or what girls from China liked. It was very frustrating but fortunately, his friends were there to help, even though they were not good at helping. They all seemed to extremely calm and laid back as the four walked to Jake's grandfather's shop in hopes of finding a gift.
"So, Ci Ci," Trixie began, "what about your dad? If you don't mind me askin'. You never mentioned him."
"Oh. I don't have one," she answered casually.
Spud commented, "Aw, what a jerk."
"No literally," Alicia stepped over a hurdle of snow, "he doesn't exist."
"I'm confused," Trixie said. "Are you just bein' dramatic or . . . ?"
"What I mean is, I wasn't conceived or anything. Mom made me."
Spud nodded, "Ohh, one of those thingies where they get someone's sper-"
"No, I literally was not conceived. My mom used a spell to make me."
Everyone was shocked. Even Jake, who once was deep into his own thoughts. "That's possible?" he asked.
"Yeah, witches do that all the time. In order to avoid the pain of birth or the mom bod they'll make spells for making their children. It involves your DNA and stuff."
"Like the Powerpuff Girls?" Spud asked.
"Uh, I guess. But you can't choose personalities."
"Yo," Jake interrupted, "not to stop your little conversation, but there's bigger things to talk about. What can I get Rose for Christmas?"
"A necklace! Girls love that," Spud suggested.
"Or a teddy bear and some chocolates," Alicia added.
Trixie laughed, "Girl, this ain't Valentine's Day. And Jakey," she turned to her friend, "you should talk to her instead. Not bribe her with some materialistic gift."
"Nah. See, that's lame-" he stopped himself. He didn't want to disheartened Trixie anymore after what happened a few weeks ago, so he was working on how he put his thoughts into words. He corrected, "No, Trix- I mean, you're probably right. Well, you always seem to be right. But this time, let me do my thing."
She rolled her eyes. "I always let you do your thing."
Jake ordered, "Cia, Spud, keep hitting me with ideas."
"You should get her a Rose because her name's Rose! Get it?" Alicia gushed.
Spud shook his head no to her idea. "I'm telling you Jake, that necklace idea is spot on."
"And where am I gonna get the money for an actual good quality necklace? Plus, it should have sedimental value, not just market value."
Trixie put her hands on her hips. "Now you wanna focus on what's sedimental?"
Jake ignored her good point and opened the door to his grandfather's shop. "Hey, G!" Jake greeted.
His grandfather grinned ear to ear behind his desk. He walked across the empty store and to Jake's surprise, he hugged his grandson. After letting go, he slapped him across the face.
The man scolded, "Where have you been? You think you're all grown now you can't visit your grandpa anymore?"
Jake rubbed his cheek. "Ow! A bit much?"
His friends tried not to laugh at the fact Jake got slapped by the short man, but Fu Dog sure didn't hold his laugh in. "Agoo agoo! Ah, Jake! Made my day."
Alicia winced. "Did that dog just . . . ?"
"Oh, yeah," Jake scratched the back of his head sheepishly, the other hand still on his cheek, "you haven't met Fu Dog."
"Wait, so he actually talked?!" she asked again in astonishment, knees shaking a bit.
"Yes? That's what I said, right?"
"Why you so damn shocked?" Trixie cackled at her expression. "Don't witches see animals talk all the time?"
"Yeah, but not dogs! Maybe frogs, the occasional bunny out of a hat. Cats talk a ton. People get cursed into cats a lot." She bent down in front of Fu Dog and took his saggy cheeks in her hands. "Incredible," she mumbled.
"I guess there's a first time for everything," Spud stated.
The four searched the store head to toe looking for a gift for Rose. Most things in the store were junk. No surprise; that's why there's never any customers. Still, there were some good items. Jake on the other hand, would turn them down whenever a friend showed him their decent discovery. He'd complain about everything "not being enough". Too small, too big, too flashy, too childish, too predictable- you name it. There was always an excuse.
An hour or more of straight searching had passed and the teens were extremely exhausted.
Spud huffed, "Looking for something is mentally draining. Like trying to find the remote."
"You said it, Spud," Trixie heaved.
"But Christmas is in 3 days, what can I do?"
"How about this?" Alicia held up her hand. "My last idea. After this I'm out."
Jake looked at it. A beautiful snow globe of a snowman. It was so wholesome, simple, and cute. Jake smiled. "It's perfect!" Everyone sighed heavily, happy and relieved. "But is it perfect enough?" Jake asked himself.
All his friends sighed. Alicia put the globe down hopelessly. "You are the most indecisive person I have ever met," she told him. "Are you perhaps a Libra?"
"A what?"
"Let's go home, I'm starving!" Spud yelled.
Jake hung his head down, disappointed. Trixie patted him on the shoulder. "Sorry, Jakey." She walked out the door.
"Good luck, Jake!" Alicia called.
"Yeah, never gift up!" Spud added.
Trixie put on a disgusted expression and commented, "Corny as fuck."
Jake didn't want to annoy his friends or abuse their kindness, but he just couldn't settle on a gift. He knew there was something better.
Alicia began her walk home shortly before Spud stopped her. "Hold on, Cia."
"Hm?"
He dug into his coat pocket and took out a pretty little velvet box. "You for-"
"Spud!" she gasped, bringing her hands to her mouth. "You shouldn't have!" She took the box and hugged it against her chest. "Thank you."
"It was really no problem because-"
"Nope!" She put her finger to her lips. "Shh. I'll wait 'til Christmas to open it."
"Um, okay? If you want." He was confused on why she was so happy about him returning something.
"Of course. I want it to be a surprise." Her mind raced on what it could be.
"Cia, I don't think we're on the same page-"
"Shh!" She put her finger on his lips this time. "I said I want to be surprised."
Spud's shoulders slumped as he gave up. "Okay, okay."
The girl waved goodbye and skipped on the snowy ground home. She mentally decided it was going to be a necklace, since he was talking about how girls love necklaces so much earlier. She imagined Spud putting the pearly necklace around her neck with a heart charm dangling. In her vision, she would open the necklace and it would have their initials, then he would ask her to be his girlfriend.
She shook her head out of these thoughts. What was she thinking? She could feel her cheeks' temperature rise with heat, embarrassed at the fact she was fantasizing about Spud. Her mind was afraid to come to terms or admit she had a serious crush on the skater boy.
Jake walked home slowly, taking his time and feeling sorry for himself after every step. He missed Rose. Longed to see her smile; longed to spend their first Christmas as a couple in New York City together. It was all a far away daydream for him, unfortunately.
He ran his fingers through his snowy hair. How could he have messed up so badly! This was the worst he could ever fathom doing. Trixie's idea of talking to her came across his mind, still, he easily debunked the solution. His way seemed better to him. He needed to decide on the perfect gift for the perfect girl.
Trixie came home to an empty house. Zero Christmas decorations, zero spirit. It looked so dull: the same as its always been. She remembered the one and only Christmas both of her parents were home. Her dad held her high to put a star on the tree. It even lit up. 7-year-old Trixie found it so exhilarating to see the house light up with not only the decor but the love the three shared.
Her mom was genuinely happy. No wrinkles, no yelling or drinking, and most importantly, she always had on a smile. Her grandmother lived with her grandfather during those times. He was alive back then, so it was just the three of them, parents taking turns to watch Trixie because of their hectic careers.
That Christmas Eve Trixie attempted staying up to see if this Santa guy was real, yet fell asleep immediately. She curled up on the couch in her Princess Tiana pajamas. Her father scooped her up and took her to bed. The next morning she had the best day. But the day after Christmas, her dad was gone. Back to the army.
Trixie grew sad. Those memories always made her sad. She made up her mind not to mope around and went to the basement. She found all her old ornaments and decorated the house herself. In the end, it looked amazing, especially for someone who did it alone. It took an hour or so and sure, there was no tree, but it finally felt ten times more like Christmas than it did before.
Jake was almost home when the snow ended. The path ahead of him was full of fresh, bright white snow. He looked around. The day was actually beautiful. The sky was full of clouds, houses had colorful, festive lights lighting up the way, kids were playing around. Giggling. Dancing. Making snow angels. Throwing snowballs. Building a snowman.
Jake reminisced when he built a snowman for Rose before they dated. It was close by their school skiing trip back in middle school. She was amazed by his snowman and they almost kissed. Of course, the two got interrupted.
Jake actually laughed to himself. He wasn't that much different from then: he still made rookie dragon mess-ups, still gets bashful just thinking about the girl he liked, and still makes stupid mistakes like he did to Rose. Other than those and a few other things, Jake grew a lot since then and he was proud of himself. Middle school continued to have good memories, though.
Jake kept looking at the snowman the kids were making in progress. Then, it hit him. The snow globe at his grandfather's shop was the perfect gift for her after all! He ran back like a madman. Like his life depended on it. Kids stared at him. He knew the shop was going to close soon. He had to give it to Rose by at most tomorrow.
He huffed and puffed the cold, raw air, finally making it to the store. Fu Dog was closing up shop, just about to lock up once he saw the exhausted boy sprinting to the door. "What'dya doing here, kid? Forgot something?"
"That's one way to put it." He ran through the opened door and took the snow globe off the shelf. He was so happy to see it. Contentment rushed through his body. He was so glad to see that object, it might as well had been glowing to him.
Fu Dog looked at him confused. "What's that?"
"Just something I want. Do I pay for it or . . . ?" He looked around for his grandfather.
"No, just take it. I wanna go to sleep, hurry it up."
Jake nodded with a smile and made his way back home again. His fingertips were cold as he held the snow globe, but nothing kept him warm more than the relief of having his gift.
That night, he wrote his soul into a letter to pair with Rose's gift. He threw away plenty of other letters. They didn't "sound right" to him. Now they were just crumpled up pieces of paper in his bin. Tired, he wrote his last note. Whether it was written well or not he did not care anymore, it only now depended on if he could put all his thoughts into a short, non intimidating note.
He tried to briefly and romantically explain the nostalgia the snowman gave him of when they were younger, then say how he is deeply sorry without sounding desperate. He also mentioned to have a great Christmas and focus on having a great time.
He sighed and folded the note neatly, sticking it on the wrapped present. He got his perfectionist of a sister to wrap it aesthetically for him. He texted her, apologizing for the late text and politely asking if she could meet him in the skatepark briefly the next day at 3. Anxiously, he collapsed in bed, quickly falling asleep only to hope she'd give him the time of day.
The next morning was a success, she reluctantly said yes. Jake sped through neighborhoods on his skateboard, being punctual for meeting with her. He arrived at 2:49.
Rose got there at 3:10 in a pink coat that came down to her knees. She had on maroon mittens and a matching hat with a cute puff on top. Her tan boots were thick and warm. Jake smiled and waved at the beautiful girl. She waved back, but did not smile. Her blonde hair was in her eyes and over her red, runny nose. She looked miserable. Jake couldn't tell if it was because of the freezing weather or the fact she had to meet up with the guy she was currently pissed at. Probably both.
Jake stammered, "H-Hey, Rose. Thank y-you for actually com-coming."
He growled internally, Get it together!
His teeth chattered. He sounded like a broken record. With shaky hands, he took out the lovely wrapped gift. "I just wanted to give you this. Marry Christmas, girl."
Just like that, Jake turned back on his cool guy persona that Rose adored. Right now, she didn't feel like admiring anything. Her heart was frozen, like having an ice wall surrounding it, blocking any affection from anyone named Jacob Long.
She went to open her mouth, but he interrupted, "Don't open it yet. Open it on Christmas day."
Rose was ready to curse him out but him interrupting her made her lose her drive. She hesitantly received it. "Thanks, I guess." She turned around. The sooner she leaves, the sooner she's out of this awful outdoor cold weather. "If that's all, I'm leaving."
"Stay safe!" he told her. She didn't respond, which Jake expected. He was just feeling blessed she didn't stand him up.
The night of Christmas Eve fell onto New York City. Alicia was watching TV by herself in the living room. The fireplace was lit and warm. The shows were interesting, showing Christmas specials per usual. Yet all the girl could think about was that gift Spud gave her under the tree.
"Well, people do open one present on Christmas Eve," she mumbled to herself.
The witch practically dove for the gift and opened it. Her smile fell. There, in the box, was a butterfly clip that belonged to her. A note floated to the ground. She picked it up. It read, You left this at Trixie's the other day. Thought you'd might want it back.
She sighed. Not even a smiley face? She realized she couldn't even get mad about it either. Spud and her weren't dating. She wasn't owed any Christmas gift from him. Still, it would have been nice.
Christmas day was sunny. Snow melted quickly. Thankfully, a white Christmas managed to remain due to there being too much snow to melt that fast.
As mature as Haley puts herself out to be, she ran down the stairs like the child she is, excited to open presents. Jake was happy to see his sister unwrapping gifts faster than the speed of light. It got his mind off of Rose.
Meanwhile, Rose was having her first Christmas without her father. Her and her mother sat at the small kitchen table. Her mother slid over a small gift during breakfast.
Rose was surprised. "Mom, you didn't have to."
"Yes," she insisted, "I did. Go on, open it."
Rose neatly opened the recycled Bath and Bodyworks bag and pulled out oven mits, the same Chinese brand her father used.
"I know it's not much, but-"
"But nothing," Rose blinked back tears, "it's perfect. Brings me right back home." She gave a tiny gasp. "I didn't get you anything!"
"It's fine. You smiling is the perfect gift."
"I'm gonna start looking for a part-time, Mom. Then I'll get you the best Valentine's and Mother's Day gift!"
"Oh, Rose, you don't have to."
"I want to!"
"Okay, okay. As long as you keep your grades up. Did anyone give you any other gifts?"
Rose shrugged. "Nope." She stood and took her mother's hands. "Come on, let's bake something with my knew mits!"
Alicia woke up late in the day to knocking. She turned over, ignoring it. There was another knock. Her mom yelled, "Alicia, go get it!"
The girl groaned and rolled out of bed. The chill of the winter day struck her. She took a robe and slid on her bunny slippers.
Groggily, she opened the front door to Spud. It took her an extra few seconds to realize it was him. "Ah, Spud!" She tried covering her face. "Sorry, I didn't know you'd come!"
He tilted his head. "Did you just wake up?" She nodded. To him, she looked so cute with her fluffy white robe and bunny slippers, they even had cute little buttons for eyes. To him, she looked absolutely gorgeous. "I didn't know I'd wake you. I thought anyone would be awake at 12 on Christmas."
"It's 12?" she yawned. "Didn't notice."
"You do like to sleep in."
The two looked at each other for awhile. Alicia still covered some of her face, embarrassing he'd see her morning face. You never want a boy seeing the crust in your eyes.
Spud then realized why he was there. "Oh, right! I have something for you." He took a box out of his pocket. This box was slightly bigger than the last and this one had wrapping.
"Let me guess, another butterfly clip I lost?" Alicia asked monotonously.
"Just take it," he told her with his hand held out.
She sighed and stopped covering her face, taking the box. Spud was still staring at her. She stood there in the door, awkwardly holding the box. "Am I suppose to open it right now?"
"Uh-huh. It's Christmas day, so there's no rules broken."
She shrugged, not wanting to get her hopes high as she undid the wrapping. The box underneath was fancy-looking. She looked at Spud with her mouth partly open, then looked back. Delicately, she opened the box. A bracelet was in there. It shimmered in the sunlight, reflecting many colors on the white piece of jewelry.
"Spud, I . . ." She held it up. "Wow."
"See, I know you girls love your jewelry."
Alicia continued to stare at it. "But if must've costed you an arm and a leg. And I didn't even get you anything. I can't accept this-"
Spud put his finger on her lips like she did to him the other day. "Shh. It was my choice to get you this."
"Okay," she said softly.
Spud took it and rolled it down her slim wrist. A perfect fit. "It looks beautiful. Not as beautiful as you, of course."
She blushed. "I just woke up, I don't look all that great-"
He brought his finger up to her lips again. "You always have so much to say but you can't say thank you?"
"Thank you," she said automatically. It's like whenever he did that with his finger she was under a spell. She held his wrist with her hand and gently removed his finger away from her face. Not letting go of him, she asked, "Do you wanna, um," she didn't know what to say. She just needed an excuse to be with him a bit more. "Do you want to help me with breakfast?"
"Sure?" Spud answered more like a question. He looked away in thought, finally using his brain. His eyes widened. "Ah, I'll 'help' you with breakfast." He wiggled his eyebrows.
Alicia blushed even more. "No! Not like that!" She flicked him on the head.
Trixie and her grandmother went out shopping for Christmas. Before, Trixie didn't care much for clothes; her mom always gave her enough. But as she grew older she didn't mind looking cute, as long as it was followed by comfort.
"Thank you, Grandma," she said with a smile, holding all the bags on the way home.
"Of course, baby. It's my gift to you. Especially after what you've done with the place! The house has never looked so alive."
Trixie saw a car in the driveway. It was black with tinted windows. To be honest, she was a bit scared. Her grandmother didn't question it, so that put her at ease.
Her grandma opened the door and held it for her granddaughter since her hands were full. She thanked her and walked in, putting down the bags shortly after. The girl stood up and brushed herself off. In her vision, there was a man in the living room, sitting comfortably on their couch.
She screeched, "Grandma! Call 911!" She peered at the elderly woman who wasn't in an ounce of shock. Trixie looked back and saw his face as he stood up. His kind brown eyes and inviting smile flooded memories into her brain. Even uttering the words felt so unreal, "Daddy?"
"Is that my babygirl? Grown all big now."
Tears streamed out her eyes. No way. "Daddy!" She ran into his arms like a she was a little girl again. He picked her up and spun her around in his arms like she was weightless. If this was a dream, she never ever wanted to wake up.
He put her down and knelt to her height, staring at her. Taking it all in. All those years he missed seeing her grow up. He held her crying face. "I can't believe you're here," she said through sniffles and sobs. She looked back at her grandmother who had a heartwarming smiling painted across her face. "You knew about this?" Trixie asked. She nodded. Trixie looked back at her father. "I've miss you so much."
"I've missed you, too, babygirl. Everyday. Every single day."
She hugged him again. "Please don't leave for so long again."
"You won't have to worry about that," he said.
She released him and gave him a funny look. It quickly clicked in her head. "Did you . . . ? Uh-uh, don't play with me. Please don't be playin' around, that's not funny."
"I'm not. I'm retiring."
Trixie never in her life thought she'd hear those words. She took it back, the Christmas when she was 7 years old was not the best Christmas. On that Christmas her father left without saying goodbye the second the holiday ended. No, this was her best Christmas.
Rose woke up on Christmas day from a nap. Her mom was still sleeping from her's, so she tiptoed into the main room for a cookie her and her mom made earlier. It was still messy with unpacked boxes and scattered things. She figured the least she could do was tidy what she could.
After a few items, the place was looking good. She picked up a wrapped box. "I forgot about this," she said to herself. She twirled the gift in her hand. She had to give it to Jake, this looked very well put together.
She saw the letter taped to the present. Rose opened it carefully, attempting not to rip the paper.
Dear Rose,
This reminded me of you and I when we were younger, building a snowman. I know you're upset with me and I'm deeply sorry, but I won't burden you with that right now. Hope your Christmas is magical.
The girl couldn't deny that was cute. She never saw a guy be so sedimental, especially one her age. She hated that she loved the note. She hated that she loved the gift before she even opened it. But it was Jake. He had that affect on her
She tried unwrapping the gift carefully since she felt bad for messing up the nice wrapping paper, but quickly gave up and realized that was a bit foolish. The snow globe rested in her small hands. Pretty, glittery snow swarmed once she shook it. Then, gently fell to the bottom.
Memories of Jake building her a snowman fell gently to the bottom of her mind as the snow did in the globe. His cute 14-year-old face faded into her head, smiling at her. It was like she was reliving the moment. Looking down at the boy she liked, who at the time was iconically shorter, as he presented her a beautiful snow sculpting. Eyes closed, their lips almost touching, until she snapped back into reality. She sat on the floor, still staring at the globe.
Rose sighed, pouting her flushed lips slightly at the thought.
This is a little longer than I expected and I love that. That's what I owe for taking awhile, anyway. I hope everyone's enjoying their summer and I hope everyone enjoyed this Christmas-themed chapter in the middle of June lol. Also, as fans, I hope you understood the flashbacks with Jake building Rose a snowman back in season 1. Anyways, have a wonderful night/morning/afternoon! It's 2:38AM right now, no surprise. This is when the ideas generate apparently.