I don't own Home Alone

Enjoy!

He ran as quickly as his little legs could carry him. It was difficult seeing in the dark, but one way or another, he was able to see where he was going. His breath quickened with every step that he took but he needed to get away.

I'm not going to let them catch me he thought as he skidded to a halt when he came upon a chasm. Looking down at the chasm, all he saw was darkness. Pitch black and never ending, but he had to jump past it. Shutting his eyes and taking a deep breath, he took a couple of steps backwards and then made a run for it. Gaining speed and momentum, the moment he got to the edge of the chasm, his legs bent and he jumped. He saw his slippers flying beneath him and little by little, he was approaching the other end of the road.

Oh no! he mentally yelled when the chasm opened. He didn't make it.

Kevin bolted wide awake from his sleep and found himself safely on the bed. He turned his head and saw Becky who was sleeping soundly next to him. "What a nightmare," he spoke to himself and rubbed his eyes to wear away the sleep. At least he was home and safe. Dreams were a strange phenomena and each of them had a different interpretation to it. As for this one, Kevin didn't know where to start.

A dream is a dream, nothing else Megan had said to him once when he had a nightmare about the furnace chasing after him. At the thought of his sister, Kevin bolted out of bed and made his way downstairs. Did they leave without us again? he thought as he hurried into the upstairs hallway only to peek inside a bedroom. Right there, his parents were soundly asleep and Kevin let out a sigh of relief. The airport vans had not yet come and no one else but him was awake. He ran to the third floor and woke Becky up.

"Becky," Kevin whispered and gently shook her awake.

"Five more minutes," Becky mumbled.

"We don't have five more minutes," Kevin whispered to her, "come on. Let's get up and ready before we're left home alone again."

Why did their parents have to have an early flight? It's not like as if they had booked a restaurant at a certain time or if they were meeting someone there? Taking her pillow, Becky held it over her face and then decided to finally get up from bed. She still felt sleepy, but it was better to catch some sleep on the plane rather than miss it. "I'm up," she said as she staggered to her feet. "Is everyone else awake?" she asked Kevin.

Kevin shook his head. "Sleeping like a bunch of logs," he said and pulled onto his suitcase and backpack. "I'm going to get washed up and ready. Don't want to miss the airport vans."

Becky nodded her head. "I'll go change and make us some cereal. Here, give me that suitcase and backpack. I'll take it downstairs."

Giving his sister a nod of his head, Kevin left her and headed to the bathroom to freshen up. Even though his dream had been a nightmare, he was thankful that it had woken him at a decent hour before his family went into a frenzy. Once he finished freshening up, Kevin headed to the kitchen where he saw his sister making cereal. There were times when the whole kitchen was rambunctious but today Kevin appreciated the peace and quiet that surrounded them. "Thanks," he said to Becky and pulled the cereal bowl close to him and began eating.

Becky ate hers as she sat next to her brother. She looked over at the clock on the wall as it read 7:55 AM and yet, no one was awake. "I'm going to go and wake mom and dad," she said as she was about to go but Kevin grabbed her sleeve.

After the events of last night, Kevin wasn't feeling sympathetic towards his parents. So what if they missed the flight? They could wait and get on another one. "They're adults. They should be responsible to get up on their own."

Becky was taken aback at her brother's words. Wow she thought, he must be still raging mad. She slipped back into her seat and finished her cereal. Once they were done, she took the bowls and put them in the sink and at that moment, the doorbell rang. Kevin got up from his seat and looked out the window. "The vans are here," he said. "Come on Becky."

Becky looked over her shoulder and upstairs. There was not a single movement, but she had to eventually agree with Kevin's words. "Here let me help you with that," she said to her brother as she adjusted the backpack on his shoulders and then took a hold of their suitcases. When she opened the door, they were greeted by the drivers as they were courteous enough to take their suitcases and load them in the back of the van.

The morning air was cold but the sun made it pleasant enough to be outside.

"Is it just you two?" one of the drivers asked Kevin as he placed the suitcase in the back.

"No," Kevin said, "everyone is sound asleep at the moment." His eyes bounced over the house before looking at the driver, "ring the bell a couple of times. That ought to wake them up."

The driver let out a sigh of exasperation and shook his head. It was the repeat of last year and the last thing he needed was to be chastised by that old man that he wasn't going quick enough. He hoped that he would get the other McCallister family this time in his van. At least his fellow employee had a good experience with them last year. "Hey Bob," he yelled to his coworker, "ring that doorbell we gotta go."

Kevin surveyed the contents of his backpack and then looked up when he heard footsteps coming to their driveway. A slight smile came to his lips when he saw Lucas.

"Hey Kevin," Lucas greeted him, "getting ready for Florida?"

"Yeah," Kevin answered, "sorry but Linnie is not here. She hasn't gotten up yet."

Lucas chuckled and looked down at his shoes. From what he had heard from both Becky and Linnie was that their little brother was the impish one in the family. "That's fine," Lucas said, "my flight leaves later in the afternoon so I'm not in a rush to go yet. Is Becky here?" he asked.

"She's over there," Kevin said, "and am I glad that you two are friends again."

Another chuckle escaped from Lucas. "Yeah?" he asked him, "me too, kid." With a smile, he looked over and noticed Becky putting on her gloves. "Freckles!" he called over to her.

Becky closed her eyes at that nickname and chuckled. "What do you want Loser?" she asked as she turned on her heel.

Lucas held up his arms in the air. "Can't I come and say goodbye to my best girls?" he asked her, "I won't be seeing any of you for two weeks."

When Kevin heard 'two weeks' he tried his hardest not to roll his eyes. They would be practically starting the New Year at Florida with no snow and no Christmas trees. At least the holiday music would be making up a small percentage of it, but Kevin knew that it wouldn't be the same. He looked over at Lucas and Becky and decided to get in on their conversation. "Are you going anywhere for the holidays, Lucas?"

Lucas look over at Kevin who had decided to join in. "I'm going to visit my dad in New York," Lucas said to him.

Becky's smile faltered when he said that. The month where Becky had decided to not speak with Lucas or Linnie, she had missed out a lot on what had been happening with her best friend. After things had been patched up between them, Linnie had been very kind in speaking to Becky about what had happened. When his family were at Montréal for vacation last year, he had caught his mother cheating with one of the hotel staff. Becky never knew that her best friend was caught in the middle of a tumultuous family. From what Linnie had told her, the separation had been nasty and Lucas's mother had been adamant in having Lucas under her custody. His father had refused until it was decided by the lawyers that they could have joint custody. However, it was hard if his father was in a different state and Lucas had school.

"I bet you were looking forward to it," Becky said to him.

"Yeah," Lucas agreed with her. "I'm want to move there with him," he said to her before Becky shook her head, "but when I'm ready."

"You had better not leave you best friend and your girlfriend," Becky wagged her finger at him, causing her best friend to laugh.

"Not in a million years." He then looked up at the door as he saw the McCallister family scrambling outside. "Here comes your family," he said to her. "I'm gonna go and say goodbye to Linnie. I'll see you guys in two weeks."

"Have a Merry Christmas," Becky said as she wrapped her arms around Lucas and wished him a good trip. "Come on Kevin," she said to her brother as they got inside the van.

Craning his neck, Lucas caught sight on the young blond girl as she hurried down the stairs. "Linnie!" he called over to her as her eyes fell on him. A smile appeared on Linnie's lips as she launched herself into Lucas's arms and squeezed him tightly. "I'm gonna miss you," Lucas said to her.

"Me too," Linnie said as her feet touched the ground after they hugged. "But you're going to one of the biggest cities in the world!" she emphasized as her eyes brightened. "Take lots of pictures when you go there."

"I'm going to see my dad," Lucas said, "it's not like we are going to do anything fun."

"Then you need to get him out more," Linnie said to him, "go to Times Square, the museums, restaurants. I'm sure he is looking forward to seeing you for the holidays."

She did have a point about that. Lucas had been spending his holidays in his room and avoiding as much contact as he could with his mother. He couldn't face her the same way as he did before, regardless if she was his mother. "I'll try my best Linnie," he said to her, "and you have a great time in Florida."

"Can't wait," Linnie smiled to him. Before she could continue her conversation, she heard her mother calling over to her. "Gotta go," she said as she gave him one last hug and headed inside the van. "Sorry mom," she said, "I wanted to say goodbye to Lucas."

"That's fine," Kate nodded, out of breath from the hectic morning that they had. She looked behind her and then counted the tickets as she handed them over to her children and husband.

"How come none of us are sitting together?" Megan asked from the backseat.

"This time we were lucky to get on the same plane," Kate quickly answered her, "eleven, twelve, thirteen..." she trailed off and looked at the two tickets that were in her hand. "Where's Kevin and Becky?!"

Upon hearing their names, Kevin and Becky appeared from their seats. "Fourteen," Kevin said and took the ticket in his hand.

"And fifteen," Becky said as she did the same before facing the front. Her eyes were beginning to feel heavy. Perhaps if she took a nap, she would be wide awake for their marathon across the airport.

"It's a good thing I have my own ticket," she heard Kevin say to his parents, "just in case you guys try to ditch me." He faced the front before his parents said anything to him. When no one uttered a word, Kevin smirked. He was still upset with his family from last night and even though they were going to be one the same plane, he was going to try his best and get through it...but that didn't mean that he would be enjoying this vacation.