God, he fucking loved Christmas.
Not for all that Jingle Bell merriment, those silver bell decorations and sweet treats, and certainly not for the Christmas carols. Growing up Manticore meant none of that.
This year, he loved Christmas because of peppermint.
It all started one week ago.
Jam Pony, decorated sparsely with whatever ornaments, garlands and tinsel employees brought in, was always busy this time of year. Though Christmas was not something with which Alec had been much acquainted.
The allure of Christmas enticed him, though. This year, someone had brought in a real tree from who knew where, and everyone brought in a little something to help decorate it. Original Cindy brought in tinsel. Sketchy brought in a tree skirt his girlfriend found at a secondhand shop. Someone brought in light strands (he suspected Normal, but Normal would deny it until his dying day).
And Max? Well, she brought in candy canes. Peppermint ones. With half a curved stick hanging out of her mouth, the wily woman in question draped her arms over the dispatch station and tried to convince the cantankerous Normal to have Jam Pony close early for a Christmas party next week.
Alec figured she'd be barking up the wrong Tannenbaum, but he admired her tenacity. Imagine his surprise, then, when Normal said the words he thought he'd never hear: "Closing early for a Christmas party and Secret Santa gift exchange next Friday."
By some stroke of luck, he pulled her name. What to get the girl who steals everything? Motor oil? A working water heater? A better sense of humor?
He settled on the perfect seasonal gift: peppermint spa basket. He trotted out of work that day and called a guy he knew who could procure some peppermint oils. He snatched up every little thing he could find to put in that basket, from shampoo and conditioner to bath bombs and oils, even peppermint sugar scrub and shaving cream. A white satin kimono and little penguin slippers propped up some of the items. He stuck a few more candy canes in it, as well as a candy peppermint white rose, pulled cellophane around it haphazardly, and then tied a thin, red ribbon around it and tagged the gift with her name.
The woman herself seemed to be in a perpetual good mood. It was almost as if all their troubles had taken Christmas vacation, which was fine by them. Max had even flirted with him a little. It started as a quick banter about how Alec could dress as Santa, and then he invited her to go ahead and sit on his lap, and her eyes glazed over like a shiny chocolate donut and she responded, Are you going to ask me what I want? And then his eyelids weighed down a little with lust as he said, Depends on whether you've been naughty or nice. Max's pupils dilated a fraction when she answered, I can be both. He hardened a little under that promise and said, We'll see if it comes up.
He'd spent the better part of that night accessing the memory of the wanton look on her face when she'd glanced down to his pants and then right back up to his eyes, thinking she was just flirting and that none of it was real. A cold shower in the middle of an already cold December night did little to calm him down.
Max pestered him, trying to find out whose name he pulled for the exchange, but he proclaimed that "No power on this Earth could unlock this secret. Besides," he smiled, "kinda defeats the purpose of being secret, doesn't it?"
Max pouted playfully, which drew his attention back to her full lips and yet another candy cane, this one white with rainbow colored stripes. He panicked, wondering if he'd put together a basket full of the wrong flavor.
"What flavor is that?"
She slipped the end from her mouth and answered, "Cherry."
"The sexiest of all the fruits," he educated.
"Is that right?" She licked her lips and offered the end of the stick to him. "Want a taste?"
Do I want to taste your cherry? Fuck, yes. He was almost certain she was flirting this time, and he leaned in to suck on the candy.
"Hard to beat peppermint, but not bad," Max assessed, watching his lips pull off of the cane. She met his eyes, mouth still slightly agape from having peeked at his probing tongue.
"I wouldn't know," he admitted.
"You've never had a peppermint candy cane?"
Max wedged the stick in her cheek nonchalantly, and Alec's breath hitched up. Sharing the Christmas treat was almost like kissing - without the fun part. "Until just now, I've never had any kind of candy cane."
"Well, we're going to have to remedy that," she stated.
The next day, she brought him a watermelon one, soft red with a green stripe winding through it. When he tried it, he immediately began constructing a list. Cherry was better than watermelon so far. He'd seen how Max ate them: teething the wrapper at the far end and bringing it down a few inches. She'd suck on it until it was so thin it would break. Sometimes, she would pull the wrapper back around it, put it in her pocket and save it for later.
It took him thirty minutes to eat his first real candy cane, the first one that was solely his. When he got to the point where the top part of the sweet circled around his mouth, he asked, "Why do they make them like this? I feel like I'm on the end of some fisherman's line."
Max chuckled, pulled a second watermelon candy cane from her pocket, and walked over to the tree. "Because we hang them on the tree," she answered, reaching up to hook it on a high bough.
The next day, she brought him blueberry. This one was light blue with a dark blue stripe twisting through it. It was good, but not as good as watermelon or cherry. He'd finished it right after returning from his last delivery of the day, and Max patted him on the back. "What's up, Hefty Smurf?"
He didn't understand her comment until he saw himself in the mirror. Partially blue lips smiled back at him, and when he opened his mouth, he saw his tongue was tinged, too. Belatedly, he wondered why she'd picked Hefty Smurf. He searched online and found out that Hefty Smurf wasn't heavy; he was very strong, and apparently was the only Smurf with a tattoo. Hefty's was a heart though, not a barcode. And Alec's barcode wasn't a tattoo per se, but he got the gist.
The next morning, he and Max rode together for their deliveries. Normal had dispatched them to the same two sectors, and since it was getting closer and closer to Christmas Day, Jam Pony was in full swing and busier than ever delivering Christmas packages.
Out at a high rise building near Alec's apartment, Max handed over another candy cane, this one yellow with white lines. "Banana?" he guessed.
"Lemon," she said, unwrapping a lemon one herself and starting in on it.
"I'm not used to having this much candy." He smiled and opened his. He liked lemon. He would put it above blueberry.
And so it went for another couple of days, even on their day off. She brought him chocolate, fruit punch, and cinnamon. From best to just okay, his list went in order: cherry, watermelon, lemon, fruit punch, blueberry, cinnamon and chocolate. He had yet to taste peppermint, and considered nabbing one from the secret Santa gift basket he'd prepared for Max, but he had already wrapped it in cellophane, and it had been a bit of a hassle the first time around, so he wasn't keen on the idea of re-wrapping.
After work the day before Secret Santa, Alec, OC, Sketchy and Max huddled around a table at Crash, sipping on beers and unwinding from a busy day.
"Tomorrow's the day," Sketchy said. "Everyone ready for a 'Normal Christmas Party'?"
None of the friends knew what it would entail. Would Normal wear a Santa hat? Would they gather around the tree and butcher some Christmas Carols?
"I'm ready," Max said, smiling down into her beer. The amber ale swirled as she moved her glass in small circles.
"Who did you get, baby boo?" asked OC.
"No power on this earth would unlock the secret," Max echoed Alec's words from before, and he found himself wondering if she pulled his name and was giving him a monster of a clue. But that wasn't really her style. She continued, "Let's just say, they'll never expect the gift I got."
Alec's ears perked up. "You got Normal, didn't you?"
Max made a sour face. "No."
"How about you, hot boy?" OC poured another pint for herself.
He mimed zipping his mouth shut and tried not to peer at Max, lest he give it away.
"Y'all are no fun," she pouted. "Sketch?"
"Sorry, your Originalness... can't. It is a secret, after all."
The night of the gift exchange, Alec made sure the spa basket had been added to the gifts table discreetly. Normal closed the doors at 6pm and proclaimed that the festivities could begin. He'd had the event catered with many holiday themed appetizers and seasonal drinks. Someone had busted out the booze and turned up the music, so as the night progressed, everyone fell into an easy party with friends and coworkers, relaxing and talking.
Alec began to get nervous about what Max would say about her gift. He hoped she liked it.
Finally it was time for the exchange. Normal put on the Santa hat and started pulling presents off the table and reading the names aloud almost like he was dispatching them. Out of their group of friends, Sketchy was called first.
Excitedly, he opened his gift and discovered a digital camera with a set of new memory cards. "Sweet! Just what I needed to help get my journalism gig off the ground," he boasted. "Thank you to whoever had me."
Original Cindy raised her hand in a mock salute, admitting she had picked his name. "Gotta chase them dreams, Sketchy."
The next gift was for Original Cindy. She opened a small, silvery bag that had an envelope and a silk pink rose in it. She tore open the envelope. "Wow, it's a gift certificate for the nail salon by that hotel in sector two, the one that has the fancy restaurant in it, and a note asking if I'll go to that restaurant with them."
"What? Who gave you that?" Max asked, looking around.
Alec followed suit and caught sight of Little Suki over by the entrance, looking nervous as hell, wringing her fingers while she waited for OC to notice her.
OC read from the card further. "Meet me by the mistletoe with your answer." Her dark eyes snapped to the entrance and she looked up toward the ceiling where mistletoe hung directly over her.
The group of friends waited quietly.
"Alec, didn't you date Little Suki for a hot minute back in the day?" asked Sketchy.
The blond transgenic hit his friend lightly in the arm as a warning.
"What?!" Sketchy rubbed his arm as OC stood up, sauntered over to her secret Santa, and pressed her lips to Suki's.
"Aww..." Max cooed, smiling.
Finally, Normal picked up the basket and read Max's name. She nearly skipped to pick it up and bring it back to the table. "Ooh," she started, unwrapping the ribbon and pulling the cellophane open to display the contents. Her eyes ghosted over all the items with curiosity. "It's a peppermint basket with everything I need for a winter wonderland soak. Plus more candy canes."
She looked around to see if she could tell who had pulled her name, but only Alec was giving her that hopeful smile. "This is so thoughtful, thank you so much."
His smile grew. "Merry Christmas, Max."
Normal finally called his own name and ripped open his gift box. His eyes shined bright as he held up his present, a beautiful argyle cashmere sweater. "That's really nice," he said. "Thank you, whoever pulled my name."
Max stood up. "You're welcome. Merry Christmas, boss."
"You picked Normal?!" Alec was taken aback. Her poker face at Crash was on point; he had believed her.
The exchange went on for several more gifts, and then before they knew it, it was time to go home. Alec, however, was a little dejected, not having received a gift. He had waited patiently during the exchange, hoping his name would be called at any moment, but it didn't happen. And worse, everyone seemed blind to it, wrapped up in merriment. Had there been some kind of mixup with the names and his wasn't included?
He grabbed his jacket and prepared to leave. At least Max liked her gift, and her genuine gratitude showed all over her face.
As Max pulled on her leather coat, her smile faded when she saw her X5 counterpart. "What did you get?"
He shook his head. "I think there was a mistake and my name wasn't in it," he speculated.
Her face fell at the sadness on his. "Oh no, Alec... I'm so sorry."
He shrugged. "I never really celebrated it before, so I guess it's not that different. But I did enjoy putting your gift together."
"Speaking of," she began. "I love peppermint, and I cannot wait to have a bubble bath with it. Oh, but I promised I'd stay out of the apartment tonight while OC and Suki talk."
"Right, talk..." Alec smirked and Max cuffed him on the arm. "If you want, you can come to my place and get a hot bath in. My water heater works well, and I don't have any roommates to kick out for the night."
"Really? Would that be okay?"
"Of course, I'll just be watching TV and probably drinking."
"Okay," she agreed.
He carried the basket for her all the way back to his apartment as they talked about Christmas and the different places he'd found peppermint stuff for her basket, and what the best Christmas movies were. In no great surprise, Max hadn't seen very many. But Alec liked White Christmas and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. And then Max divulged that she had seen one - Die Hard.
"Most people think Die Hard's not a Christmas movie, it just takes place at Christmastime."
"Why wouldn't it be? One man, fighting terrorists in order to save the woman he loves - at a Christmas party." Max stuffed her hands into her pockets. "It's got a little something for everyone."
Alec nodded. "I'm sure we can find another Christmas movie to watch. You need some culture, woman! How have you been out ten years longer than me but I've seen way more movies than you?"
Laughing, the easygoing brunette led the way up his stairs and accepted the basket from him so he could unlock his door. Once the door swung open, he saw something he didn't expect.
Right there in his living room was a 9' tall Douglas fir, with golden string lights coiled around it from the bottom all the way up to the angel on top. Dozens of candy canes hung on the tree - some he thought may have been repeat flavors, and some looked wild and fun and new.
He drifted into the living room and basked in the light from the tree. There were even a few little ornaments hanging from a couple of boughs. One was a boxing glove. Another was Santa riding a motorcycle. Another was a cat-mermaid wearing a Santa hat.
Down at the bottom of the tree sat two presents, each wrapped in glittery golden paper and shiny bows.
"Go ahead, open them," Max urged, breaking the silence.
The first one was light, and when he opened it, he read the box aloud. "Liquor and cocktail flavored candy canes. That sounds pretty sweet." He inspected the package to discover the flavors: scotch, coconut rum, mojito, screwdriver, old fashioned, and Kahlua.
Max joined him next to the tree and picked up the other gift. She handed it to him.
The box was small, but heavier than the candy canes. As he unwrapped it, Max watched for his reaction.
"Whoa. Cobalt titanium knuckles?" He slipped the enhancement weapons onto his fingers and held his hands out in front of him, admiring them as if they were rings. "Awesome."
The brunette X5 smiled wide. "Do you like it? I figured you probably never had a real Christmas before-"
"You drew my name," he finally realized with a sly smile. "Wait, who drew Normal's?"
"No one," she divulged. "He forgot to put his own name in, but he agreed to pretend since I told him I had something special planned for you, plus he didn't want to have everyone redraw names."
"Wow." He glanced at his tree and presents. "And Normal gave me deliveries farther away so I would be gone from my apartment all day, all so you could..." he waved at the Christmas setup.
She nodded.
After a few more moments, he met her stare. "Thank you, Max. I don't know what else to say."
"Merry Christmas, Alec." She reached up to put her arms around his neck for a hug.
"Merry Christmas, Max." Still wearing his knuckles, he circled his arms around her and gave her a sincere hug. As they started to come apart, he kissed her on the cheek once, then a second time just a little closer to her luscious lips.
She didn't immediately let go of his shoulders, instead, lingering onto the last vestiges of their embrace as if allowing herself some real connection. The air was heavy between them, and the silence started to weigh on the moment.
Alec cleared his throat gently. "So... uh, your bath...?"
"Right. I'll just..." she gestured to the bathroom and then grabbed the basket.
Sitting quietly on his couch with a Scotch candy cane hanging out of the left side of his mouth, Alec watched White Christmas, trying to tune out the sounds of swishing water in the bathroom, and imagining how the peppermint bubbles blanketed Max's body like new fallen snow.
She hadn't let go of his shoulders, nor raised any hell when he'd kissed her cheek. She actually looked kind of flushed, like maybe she'd thought about kissing him back. Maybe their friendship was blossoming into something new?
And then he'd reminded her about that bath, instead of taking a leap into the romantic unknown.
Wafts of peppermint floated on the air and he tried not to get distracted by his evolving thoughts of Max. She'd given him his first real Christmas, and as he looked at the beautiful tree, he heard the bathroom door open.
"This robe is so smooth on my skin," she said.
He stood up, turning to face her. She'd finished her bath and redressed in the white satin kimono and the fuzzy penguin slippers. She slinked into the room, bringing with her the scent that was quickly becoming associated with her. That fresh, crisp peppermint made everything lighter.
He was at a loss for words, his scotch candy cane slipping from his lips. He caught it and finally took a good look at her. The kimono was tied loosely and floated over her, leaving very little to his imagination, since he could see the peaks of her breasts. She had to have seen that in the mirror before she came out of the bathroom, so he could only assume she wanted him to see that, too.
"You look..." he paused to clear the saliva from his mouth. "Delicious."
Max took a few coy steps toward him and pinned him with a confident stare. "Why don't you give me a taste?"
He bent down and scooped his hand into her wavy hair and just under her ear, and kissed her tentatively. Her hands posted up to his shoulders and pulled him further toward her, and she rose up on her tiptoes to hug his body closer.
His heart felt like it soared up into his throat while her hands drifted to the nape of his neck. He expected her lips to be soft, and his expectation was obliterated.
Max stroked his neck and tilted her head, deepening the kiss until it just made more sense to haul her up against him. He backed up until his calves hit the couch, and then he sat down with Max straddling him.
Immediately, she stood up, and he wondered what went wrong. But she picked at the belt of the kimono and spread it open to show him a stripe of bare skin right down the center of her chest, ending in snow white panties. He was surprised at the sight, but even more at the sharp peppermint scent that had just unfolded.
She must have deciphered the confused look on his face. "These were in the basket. It wasn't a peppermint candy rose..."
His eyes lit up and he chuckled. "They're edible underwear?"
Max nodded and hummed in affirmation.
"You know, I still haven't tried the peppermint."
The brunette beauty kicked off her penguin slippers and settled back into his lap. "Well, now's your chance."
God, he fucking loved Christmas.
