summary: in which the murphys celebrate christmas, some things go well and other things... don't
thank you to everyone who commented, i love you all
here's an early christmas chapter to everyone who celebrates it :)
tw: toxic masculinity
.
.
.
Connor and Zoe were so excited they struggled to fall asleep on the night of Christmas Eve. Cynthia had agreed to let Connor sleep over in Zoe's room for the night, and the two of them chatted excitedly for over an hour after bedtime before tiring themselves out and finally drifting off.
In the middle of the night, Connor woke up. The room was lit by the soft purple glow of Zoe's lava lamp, which also doubled as her night light. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. Zoe's clock read three forty-five in the morning. That was past midnight, which meant that it was Christmas!
He nudged Zoe, who was still fast asleep. "Zo, it's Christmas," he whispered.
"Hmm…?" She rolled over, sleepy eyes blinking up at him but not really focusing.
"It's Christmas," he repeated in excitement. She didn't respond, and he realized she had fallen back to sleep. He thought that she looked a little bit like an angel, with her wavy brown hair all over the pillow, and her pretty white nightgown against the lavender bedsheets.
He slid off the bed and crept to the window. He wanted to see what Christmas morning looked like. It was too dark to really see anything properly, but he could make out some light snow falling, illuminated by the light of a full moon. The floor was cool against his bare feet as he crept back into bed.
"Merry Christmas, Zo-zo," he murmured, snuggling up next to her before drawing up the covers and drifting off to sleep.
The clock read six twenty-five when Zoe woke up.
"Connor!" she squealed. "Wake up! It's Christmas!"
Connor's eyes shot open. "Merry Christmas, Zo!" He exclaimed, sitting up in bed so quickly he nearly rolled off it.
"Merry Christmas, Connor!" Zoe grinned.
"Let's go downstairs and see if Santa left us our presents!" Connor looked ready to burst from all the excitement.
Zoe tugged on his sleeve to stop him. "No, Daddy said we can only go out of our room after seven o'clock."
Connor's face fell. "Oh, right." He flopped back onto the bed. "I guess we'll have to wait then."
Zoe grabbed her hairbrush and began brushing her hair in front of the mirror. "What do you think you're getting for presents?"
"Uh…" He considered the question for a while. "Toys, candy… Oh! I asked Mummy for a remote-controlled car last week, and she said 'maybe', so I hope I get that!"
She nodded. "And I want new dresses!"
Presents were always a surprise, and Connor and Zoe loved guessing what they might be. They exchanged several more thoughts pertaining to the aspects of their presents, when Connor—whose gaze kept drifting back towards the clock—cheered, "It's seven!"
They raced out of the bedroom, down the corridor, and into their parents' room. "It's Christmas!" Zoe shrieked, the two of them leaping onto the bed. Larry grunted as she slammed into his side with an apologetic squeak.
"What time is it?" Cynthia groaned from under the covers.
"It's seven, Mum!" Connor exclaimed, bouncing on his knees and making the whole bed bounce along. "Can you guys hurry up and wake up?"
"Yeah! We want presents!" Zoe added.
Larry finally sat up, the kids laughing at his messy bed head. "Mummy and I are going to brush our teeth and get dressed, why don't you two do that, too?"
"Okay!" They dashed into the bathroom, agreeing to share the sink for once. While getting dressed, Connor was so excited he wore his shirt inside-out while Zoe got tangled up in her long-sleeved cardigan. But they were soon at the bottom of the stairs, hollering for their parents to hurry up and join them. At last, Larry and Cynthia came downstairs and gave them permission to open their stockings. With an ecstatic whoop, they grabbed their stockings from the hooks above the fireplace. Larry's mother had knitted the stockings for each of the kids with their names monogrammed on them shortly after they were born.
"Ooh! I got a new teddy bear!" Connor exclaimed, pulling a small stuffed toy out and hugging it to his chest.
Zoe pulled out a Barbie. "And I got a doll! Oh, see, I got hairclips, sticker earrings, and bracelets!"
"I got a firetruck! And… what's this?" Connor held up a small packet.
"Those are glow stars!" Cynthia smiled, she loved seeing the pure joy on her children's faces as they received their gifts.
"What can they do?"
"Well, you can stick them on your bedroom walls or ceiling, and at night they glow in the dark."
Connor's smile broadened. "Cool!"
They emptied out the rest of the contents of their stockings—candy, stationery, flashlights, hair accessories, and more.
"Okay," Larry finally interrupted their delighted chatter. "Why don't we have breakfast, and then you can open the presents that are under the tree?"
"What's for breakfast?" Connor asked with a sniff. "It smells good." Christmas breakfasts were another special tradition in their family, and Cynthia had spent the past week browsing cookbooks to make something unique yet delicious.
"You'll have to wait and see," Larry said, as he honestly did not know either. "Why don't we go sit at the table?"
They quickly obeyed as Cynthia emerged from the kitchen, and their eyes grew wide as they saw what was on the plates. "Oh wow!" She had made pancakes in the shape of a snowman, with a bacon scarf and chocolate chip eyes, topped with a strawberry hat.
"That's so cute, Mum!" Connor commented as he drizzled maple syrup over it and took a large bite. "And yummy!"
"Oh, that's awesome! I'm so glad you like it," she said, nearly giddy from joy.
Connor and Zoe scarfed down their breakfast, eager to get to the rest of their presents. There were two boxes sitting under the large Christmas tree, each with a bow and their respective names handwritten in Cynthia's neat cursive.
"May we open them please?" Zoe begged.
"Yes, you may, since both of you look ready to explode!" Cynthia laughed. Before she could even finish the sentence, they had ripped off the wrapping paper.
"My remote-controlled car!" Connor whooped with glee. "Can I play with it now?"
"I'll need to put in the batteries for you first," Larry said, taking it from him. "You can play with it once I'm done, but why don't you clean up the mess on the floor?"
"Look, Con! I got nail polish!" Zoe exclaimed, holding up a manicure and makeup kit. "And lipstick! And makeup!"
"Wow!" Connor replied, as he gathered up the wrapping paper to throw into the trashcan.
"Can I play with them later?" Zoe asked, as she helped Connor to dispose of the paper.
"Of course, sweetie," Cynthia said. "We can go upstairs and paint your nails after this."
"I'm going to play with my car!" Connor reminded them. "Do you want to watch?"
"Right, the batteries, let me get them and we'll take it for a spin, alright?" Larry headed down to the basement to get his screwdriver and several batteries. He came back up, sat down at the dining table, and proceeded to place the batteries into the car and the controller, while Connor stood on the side, wiggling in anticipation. Larry flicked the switch at last, and the car lit up, wheels spinning furiously as it lay on its roof.
"There you go," Larry said, handing the remote and the car to Connor.
He grabbed it, calling out, "Thanks, Daddy!" as he bounded up the stairs to his room.
Zoe, who had been standing nearby, rushed after him. "Wait for me! I want to watch, too!"
A moment later, Connor came down the stairs to sheepishly inquire, "Actually, how do I drive this?"
Larry laughed. "Come, I'll show you."
They returned to his room, and Larry showed him how to control the car. "Here, give it a try now." He handed the remote to Connor.
Connor pushed down hard on one of the buttons. The car roared forward and slammed into his bookshelf. "Oops."
Zoe giggled.
"Don't worry, just reverse it," Larry said. Connor did, and the car ran over his toe. He yelped in surprise and took a step back.
"You're a very bad driver," Zoe commented as the car haphazardly veered around the room, occasionally ramming into the wall or table leg. "If anyone was in the car, they would be dead." She continued seriously.
He threw his head back and laughed. "I know! But it's so hard to control!"
"Let me try," she said, grabbing the remote from his hands. He stepped back and let her have it, folding his arms as he watched her figure out the controls. On her first try, she crashed the car into the wall.
"You're a very bad driver too, Zo-zo," he teased, and they both giggled.
.
.
.
"What are you doing?" Connor asked, appearing in Zoe's doorway.
"We're painting nails! See?" Zoe held up her left hand, fingernails sparkling with green nail polish.
"Be careful," Cynthia warned, as she sat cross-legged on the rug, bent over Zoe's other hand. "You don't want to smudge it—it's not dry yet."
"Oh, right," she quickly placed her hand flat down on the floor.
Connor sat down on the rug next to them. "You're doing green?"
"Yes!" Zoe enthusiastically answered. "Because it's like the Christmas tree leaves!"
He dug through the bag of other colors before holding up a bottle. "Can I have blue?"
"Let me finish Zoe's nails first, then I'll get to you," Cynthia said.
"How much longer?"
"Maybe five minutes? Just be patient, I'm almost done—no Zoe, please sit still," she turned her attention back to Zoe's fingernails.
Connor shook the bottle as he waited; he liked the sound of the little metal ball inside. "Why is there a ball inside?"
"To stop the polish from drying out," Cynthia replied, without looking up.
"What happens if it dries up?"
"Connor, wait, not now please, I'm trying to concentrate!" Cynthia complained as the brush slipped and some polish got onto Zoe's fingertip. Connor gave a dramatic sigh, rolling over onto his back, humming a tune and shaking the bottle until she announced that she was done.
"My turn now?" he asked eagerly, sitting back up.
"Yep, blue, right?" She said, taking the bottle from him and unscrewing the lid.
"Yup," he nodded, popping the 'p'.
She began on his right hand, and Zoe hung around to watch, occasionally blowing on her own nails in an attempt to hasten the drying.
"This is so cool," he commented about halfway through.
"It's pretty," Zoe agreed, admiring her own fingers.
When Cynthia was done, he began waving his hands around, laughing as he did so. "Look! So blue!" However, she warned him not to touch his nails until they were dry. "How long will it take?"
"About ten minutes," she replied.
"That's so long," he pouted.
"Just be patient," she admonished. "If not you're going to smudge it and it won't look nice. Oh, right, we're going to the Harrises' later for a Christmas dinner, so make sure you're dressed and ready in an hour's time, okay?"
"Will we get lots of yummy food there?" Zoe asked.
"I'm sure there will be lots of yummy food—we're bringing a ham."
"Yay! Ham is my favorite!" Connor cheered.
"Zoe, you have a new dress, later can you come to my room and we'll see if it fits you?" Cynthia reminded her.
"Okay, sure!" Zoe said excitedly, clapping her hands at the prospect of a new outfit.
.
.
.
"Are you guys ready? We're leaving in fifteen minutes," Larry called. Fortunately, the Harrises lived just down the street, which meant they were just a five-minute walk away.
"I'm ready!" Connor said, pouring himself a glass of water in the kitchen.
"Connor, did you get something on your hand?" Larry asked as he happened to glance over and caught a glimpse of blue on Connor's fingers.
"No?" He replied, checking his hands for a stain.
"Wait, let me see," Larry frowned, coming up and taking a look at his hands. "Is that nail polish, Connor?"
"Yeah! Zoe shared it with me!"
"Can you… why don't you take it off before we go out?"
"What? No! Why?" Connor exclaimed in dismay.
"It doesn't—nail polish is not for boys. Go, ask Mummy to help you remove it." Larry braced himself for Connor's reaction.
"No! I like it! I don't want to take it off, I just got it on today and it's pretty!"
"Connor, we're going out soon, don't make us late please, just do it," he sighed, clearly not in the mood to argue.
"No! I don't want to!" Connor yelled.
Cynthia appeared, her curler still in her hand and her hair half-done. "What is going on?"
"Cynthia, could you help Connor to take off his nail polish?" Larry asked as Connor burst into tears.
"But we're going out soon and I still need to do Zoe's hair for her, just let him wear it for once," she protested.
"Could you just do it real quick?" he pressed.
"No! But I like it! Don't take it off, Mummy, please!" Connor begged.
"Connor, listen to me, you can't wear nail polish out, everyone will laugh at you," Larry argued, gently brushing away his son's tears with a tissue. "Just go take it off now like a good boy, okay?"
Cynthia bit her lip, forgetting she had already applied her lipstick. "Come on, Connor, let's take it off. You can paint it another day. Today is not a good day for nail polish and I'm sorry." She led him upstairs and into the bathroom.
"But I don't want to take it off," Connor wailed.
"Connor, please stop crying, your face is all red, how are you going to go out looking like that?" she sighed, grabbing a washcloth and running it under the cold tap. She handed it to him, and he pressed it to his face, as she dug around in the drawer under the sink for cotton pads and her nail polish remover.
"Why must I take it off?" he demanded, his sadness beginning to turn into anger.
"Just… do what Daddy says, okay? We're going to be late, I still need to do your sister's hair and get her ready," Cynthia said, frantically wiping polish off his nails.
"It smells gross," he almost gagged. "And why doesn't Zoe have to take it off?"
"She's a girl, people don't have a problem with it. Now go! I need to get dressed myself," she shooed him out of the room.
"Stupid people," he muttered, heading downstairs to sulk on the couch until it was time to go.
.
.
.
It was nearly eleven at night when they finally returned home from the party, Connor asleep in Cynthia's arms and Zoe in Larry's.
"Goodnight, Connor," Cynthia murmured as she tucked him into bed.
His eyelids fluttered as he curled up under the duvet. "Goodnight," he responded sleepily.
"Merry Christmas," she kissed his head and left the room, turning off the lights.
"Goodnight," he whispered to himself, taking one last look at the glow stars scattered on his ceiling and walls before drifting back to sleep.
.
.
.
guysguysguys im going to see the last jedi today i am soooooo hyped omggg
anyway, just to let y'all know, i try to post every wednesday (where i live) but because next wednesday is near christmas i have several other activities going on and i'm not sure if i'll be able to stick to the schedule. i'll try my best, but the next chapter may be a little late...
please like/comment, i love hearing from you! and merry christmas! (or happy holidays if you don't celebrate xmas :D)