""You're kidding right?" I asked Jean.

"No, you and Jubilee need to clean up the kitchen from all the decorations."

"Awww, Come on Alex. Lets do the right thing." Jubilee said to me and walked to the kitchen.

"Okay," Jubilee said pulling her dark hair behind her ear. "It looks like you've got this under control." And she walked to the living room.

"What?!" I said shocked. "Wait, Jubilee!" I called after her, I sighed she is so annoying!

I rolled my eyes, how did I end up getting stuck doing chores on my second day in Bayville?

For the kitchen Jean sure did decorate it a lot. Who decorates a kitchen anyway? I pulled down out a box from under the cabinet and started to take down the tinsel and placed it in the box.

Mentally I made a list of the ways Scott would owe me:

1. No danger-room sessions. This was supposed to be a vacation after all.

2. Borrow his car. He'd really like that one.

3. 20 dollars.

I looked up from taking down oversized Christmas lights and saw a hot dark haired girl walk into the kitchen and sit on a barstool.

"Hey." I said to her.

"Hi." She said back.

"You wanna give me a hand?" I asked her.

She looked around, "You seem capable of doing it."

What? Who does she think she is? Jubilee? What kind of girl replied like that?

I was not sure what to say, I mean, what do you say when someone says that?

I decided I'd just not reply. I kept on taking down the lights and half-heartedly ignored her. Half-heartedly because I'd really like to talk to her.

The girl walked by the sink where I was standing and taking down more tinsel. Gosh, how much Christmas decorations did Jean put up?

I was about to take down the mistletoe when I realized something:

"We're standing under the mistletoe you know."

"What's mistletoe?" She asked.

Gosh, who doesn't know what mistletoe was?! I reached up and took down the mistletoe. "This is. You know, at like, Christmas time people hang it over door frames, or in this case taped on the kitchen ceiling." I paused, what else was there to say about mistletoe, besides the obvious. And since I didn't know what else to say I said the obvious, "Usually when a guy and a girl are standing under it they..." I trailed off, sure I wanted to kiss her, but I did not really know her. Plus, she probably had a boyfriend, I did not want to make any enemies here.

"They what?" Her voice woke me up out of my dazed and hurried thinking.

There sure was something cute about her when she did not know what was going on.

"They... kiss." I told her honestly. "I think it all started more then a hundred years ago. Something about Mistletoe being some kind of fruit of a love god... And then later on people would hang it on roofs to um," Wow, who knew I knew so much about mistletoe? I picked up a lot from Christmas specials, I guess. "I think it was to make the house smell good or something. And so forth; now like, everyone puts it up at Christmas time. In Hawaii, we had to put up plastic mistletoe since no one can find the real kind..." I rambled nervously. What more was there to say about mistletoe?

"Oh," the girl replied. "Thanks. I didn't know that."

She did not move and neither did I.

I just looked at her, and for the first time I noticed how beautiful she was.

I slightly leaned in to kiss her, after all were standing under the mistletoe.

She flinched, that's when I realized she did not want to kiss me. So I leaned back slightly. And then she leaned a teeny bit forward.

This was very confusing, she kept on changing her mind, but I leaned forward too.

Our lips touched for a mere second before my brother burst through the door.

And she ran away.

"Sorry for interrupting anything Alex." Scott said, he stepped closer and placed a hand on my shoulder. "X-23's pretty but—"

"Her name's 'X-23'?" That sure is a weird name, but then the girl is unique too. I spent only a short time with 'X-23' and I already knew I liked her.

"No she's Logan's clone, number 23. But I think Logan calls her Laura now."

"Oh." I replied confused. Laura who's X-23 is a clone? Of Logan? Danger-room danger?

"Yeah, but-she's one of the toughest-no-nonsense-girl/clone." My brother went on. "I don't know if you really want to get involved with something like that."

Something? I was getting the feeling that Scott did not like her. "Oh." I told him. "She seemed a little-" I looked for the word: weird? No. Confusing? Maybe. Unique? "Clonish, I guess. I had to explain the tradition of mistletoe to her. Who doesn't know about that?" I asked him the question I'd asked my self many times.

"Obviously she doesn't." Scott took a sip of his soda. "I wanted to apologize for Jean putting you to work."

I thought about the list of ways he owed me, and instead said. "Nah, its okay bro-" And got a soda from the fridge. As I held the cold can I remembered X-23's face, and just the way she talked. The way she was. "I met her." And the list of ways he owed me flew out of my head.

We just drank our soda for a minute, not saying anything.

"Alex, I've got to go."

I nodded in reply. And took another sip.

"Don't forget you have Danger Room with Logan in 30." I heard Scott yell. I groaned. Great! Danger room, in 30 minutes.

The danger room simulation started and I shot a smile at Laura before I ducked a laser. She shot a look of contempt at me.

I saw X-23 make it to the 'finish line' after slicing through everything that came her way. She had two claws just like Wolverine, and the healing factor. I watched in wonder when she retracted her claws- the skin quickly healed over. She then exited leaving the rest of us to suck it out for another 30 minutes

That night I soon realized that some of the guys were still sore since I chose not to be a full time x-man. It was pretty easy to tell since I was only one ignored from the busy conversation during dinner.

"Scott?" I knocked on his door.

No answer.

I opened the door to see if he was just ignoring me.

That's when I walked into my brother and Jean 'coupling' on his bed.

I fake coughed.

Embarrassed they quickly broke apart.

"Alex, what are you doing here?"

"I live here."

"Not in my room."

Jean shifted uncomfortably and an awkward silence resonated in the room.

"I'm gonna go." Jean said as she exited before ruffling my hair. "Bye Alex." I knew she did that just to annoy me. She might have acted all nice when I interrupted her making out with my brother at the airport. (a/n see 'A not so perfect christmas story.' Alex is describing what happened after I stopped writing.) And Scott told her I was staying for a week. But then today she forgot this was a vacation and listed me to take down the decorations and now she's ruffling my hair as if I'm seven.

"What do you want, Alex?" Scott asked me.

I was just gonna come out and say it, "Can I borrow your car tomorrow?"

"No."

"But, I'm just really bored, not to complain or anything, but the guys don't really like me and Laura's gone psycho, as if we never kissed or anything. I think she hates me." I wasn't one to whine, but you can do that to your brother. I mean, he's the one who wanted me here for a week, leaving my friends behind.

"I don't let anyone use my car—"

I cut him off, "Not even Jean?"

"Not even Jean. So go ask Wolverine if you can use the van, it's communal, so if no ones signed up for it you can use it. Kay?"

I sighed, some van, lame. "Whatever." And I walked out of his room.

This was a great start to a horrible vacation, filled with boredom and confusion. Fun! NOT!

Thanks allyg1990 for beta-ing this chapter!! Your the best!!