Chapter 10- Christmas:
Danny:
I scowled. If there was one holiday that I hated- it was Christmas. I hated it. I despised it. Even the Lane's knew I hated Christmas. It wasn't Christmas yet, but it was close. Charlie had the decorations all up. Luckily for us, it was going to be Christmas break soon- no more college, no more books, no more professor's dirty looks….scratch that. After break, we had some tests and finals.
Charlie walked by carrying yet another box of decorations while whistling a carol. He set the box down and started to decorate the mini-Christmas tree he set up in the room. I sat at the desk on the computer- doing my best to ignore him. I entertained myself by going on to Facebook and looking at my notifications. I don't get why Gear got me into this- but now I am addicted to FarmVille. I wasn't an idiot- my name on there was Danny Lane and I didn't have a real picture of me because I don't know want anyone to recognize me. That insures that only my friends are my friends on Facebook. Though I did have a few photos- only visible to people who were my friends- and some photos only visible to me. I scowled as I heard Charlie playing It's Christmas Charlie Brown.
"Oh, come on," Charlie said as he threw a piece of popcorn at my head, "You need to get into the Christmas spirit."
"I don't like Christmas," I muttered.
Charlie sighed and turned back to his movie. I continued on my laptop to check my e-mail. Before I could though, an annoying tune of Ghostbusters came on. Staying here for over a month, I knew that it was Charlie's phone.
"Hey," he answered, "really? Sure. Sounds good! No, it's okay I don't have plans anyway, but my family- really? Cool! I'll let him know."
He hung up and I turned.
"What," I said. Charlie had a mile grin on his face.
"Kevin said that his folks' own this hotel in nearby and invited all of the Soul Finders, and their families to come spend the holidays there."
I raised an eyebrow,
"Uh, okay."
Charlie hit me on the arm. I glared,
"What was that for?!"
"Don't be such a scrooge."
I rolled my eyes.
Charlie:
I sighed knowing that when Danny got into one of his moods- he was impossible. Lately, I didn't know what was up with him. He was my best friend- so was Kevin, but Danny- he was….off. Not off in a bad way, just different. I could never put my finger on it. I snapped my fingers- his eyes. His eyes showed too much. They were cold like Bond's. They were wisdom filled like the Professor's. They were filled with life (sometimes) like Kevin's. They were filled with knowledge like Gear's. They looked sad like Nancy's. Bottom line- his eyes showed too much for a dude nearly twenty.
I shook my head, overthinking like I usually was. I left Danny- maybe then he'll be in not such a bad mood- and headed to Gear's dorm. I got her dorm number from Danny when I needed some help with my laptop. I knocked on the door.
"Gear," I called.
I heard the door turn and Gear stood in the doorway. She looked tired though- even if it was only noon. She was in a pair of warm-looking PJ's that were covered with mistletoe pictures. I raised an eyebrow and she scowled.
"It's the holiday, I don't get up until the night."
"It's about Danny."
She crossed her arms,
"What about him?"
"He's being such a…scrooge. Since you're his best friend for the past few years, I thought you might know why."
She shrugged,
"He's always been like that since I've known him- don't know why though."
I sighed,
"Dang. I was hoping-"
"You were hoping," she said, "That I might have some answers to the great Danny Mystery."
I flustered,
"Well, uhh…yeah."
Gear rolled her eyes,
"Is there any other reason you got me up this early?"
I looked at her, early, it's nearly noon. I shrugged,
"Well, Kevin's folks own the hotel nearby and invited the Soul Finders and their families to stay there."
She looked thoughtful and then shrugged,
"Eh, sure."
I fist pumped the air,
"Yeah!"
I left her dorm and grabbed my cell out of my pocket and texted Kevin,
'HyperChild,
Gear and Danny said sure. Can't wait, headed to Bond next.'
I started to head to the dorm when I got a text back,
'Ghostbuster,
Already talked to Bond- he said sure too. See ya'll at the hotel next week. Cant wait!'
I laughed at our nicknames. I had Kevin under HyperChild on my contacts list- Danny (Casper- because he keeps disappearing), Bond (ColdDude), Gear (Techy), Nancy (ShyLeaf- she liked plants and was shy).
Danny (Week later):
I helped Kelly and Aaron unload their bags and my bags from the back of their truck. It was rather funny that even after years living with them- I couldn't call them Mom and Dad.
"Oh, smile," Kelly said as she nudged me, "it's Christmas!"
Both Kelly and Aaron were thrilled to be invited to the McCains Hotel, free of charge thanks to Kevin. Currently, the two were really dressed in the holiday spirit. Kelly had an 'ugly Christmas sweater' and Aaron had a Christmas sweater on too- just not as bad as Kelly's that had a reindeer on it with a glowing red nose.
Kelly and Aaron went off to mingle while I carried the bags to their suite. As soon as I was done, I took my own bags to my small room. Kevin had told us that we could have two rooms- everyone on Soul Finders got two big bedrooms free of charge.
As soon as everything was settled, I headed back down to the lobby.
Third Person:
Bond, his parents, and his siblings all arrived at the hotel. Of course, the two five-year-old twins (Lacy and Madison) headed straight to the couches to try and jump on them. Luckily, his other sister and brother (Kaylee- 15, and Chris- 16) were more mature, but they also helped with the kids. Kaylee and Chris tried to calm down Lacy while Bond tried to calm down Madison. His parents (Kate Johnson and Lee Johnson) were just smiling and looking around.
Bond was relieved to see Danny- someone he knew.
"Danny," he called.
Danny nodded and headed to Bond.
"Hey Bond," Danny greeted.
Kate and Lee walked near Bond,
"Hello," Kate greeted.
"Hello," Danny said, "I'm Danny, Danny Lane."
"Danny," Bond said, "These are my parents, and this is Lacy, Madison, Kaylee, and Chris."
Danny raised an eyebrow- who would have thought Bond, of all people, comes from a large, preppy family. Bond did stand out from his family though. Despite being twenty, he still dressed dark and a bit Goth. He had his hair spiked, black pants with chains, and black turtleneck. Danny noticed that he even had one ear pierced. Though, Bond's family were all dressed in red and green.
"Please to meet you," Danny said as he shook hands with the Johnsons. His own adoptive parents walked up behind him and Danny waved to them,
"These are my adoptive parents, Kelly and Aaron."
Kelly and Aaron shook hands with Bond's parents. They both rolled our eyes- parents. As soon as Danny and his parents left, Bond's mom whispered to him,
"What happened to his parents?"
"They died."
***
Eventually, the Soul Finders met everyone: Kevin and his parents (Shawna and Grady); Charlie, his parents (Tammy and Lloyd); Gear (her parents had died, so she was alone); Bond and his family; Nancy, her mom (Shannon), and her little brother (James).
By the end of the Christmas Eve, the kids were all tucked in. All that was left was the parents and their eldest children (the Soul Finders).
"So," Shawna (Kevin's mom) started, "Danny, you're being a bit grumpy. It's the holidays!"
Danny scowled. Kelly and Aaron, luckily or unluckily, had already gone to bed. Kevin reddened from embassement by his mother. Danny shrugged,
"Never had a good Christmas."
Tammy (Charlie's mom) rolled her eyes,
"Now come on, dearie, I'm sure that's not true."
Danny scowled deeper,
"It's true. I have never had a good Christmas."
"How," Nancy asked softly.
Danny reddened,
"Uh…my real parents- may they rest in peace- sort of….they never exactly made Christmas fun when they were always arguing and fighting."
The parents paled. Danny's eyes widened,
"No! What I meant was….Dad believed in Santa and Mom didn't. They were scientists, but Dad- he was a bit of a goof and Mom was the brains and….every Christmas Dad argued that Santa was real…."
Danny couldn't help but laugh when everyone- even Bond- laughed and chuckled. Maybe this will be a good Christmas after all…
Danny:
I scowled. If there was one holiday that I hated- it was Christmas. I hated it. I despised it. Even the Lane's knew I hated Christmas. It wasn't Christmas yet, but it was close. Charlie had the decorations all up. Luckily for us, it was going to be Christmas break soon- no more college, no more books, no more professor's dirty looks….scratch that. After break, we had some tests and finals.
Charlie walked by carrying yet another box of decorations while whistling a carol. He set the box down and started to decorate the mini-Christmas tree he set up in the room. I sat at the desk on the computer- doing my best to ignore him. I entertained myself by going on to Facebook and looking at my notifications. I don't get why Gear got me into this- but now I am addicted to FarmVille. I wasn't an idiot- my name on there was Danny Lane and I didn't have a real picture of me because I don't know want anyone to recognize me. That insures that only my friends are my friends on Facebook. Though I did have a few photos- only visible to people who were my friends- and some photos only visible to me. I scowled as I heard Charlie playing It's Christmas Charlie Brown.
"Oh, come on," Charlie said as he threw a piece of popcorn at my head, "You need to get into the Christmas spirit."
"I don't like Christmas," I muttered.
Charlie sighed and turned back to his movie. I continued on my laptop to check my e-mail. Before I could though, an annoying tune of Ghostbusters came on. Staying here for over a month, I knew that it was Charlie's phone.
"Hey," he answered, "really? Sure. Sounds good! No, it's okay I don't have plans anyway, but my family- really? Cool! I'll let him know."
He hung up and I turned.
"What," I said. Charlie had a mile grin on his face.
"Kevin said that his folks' own this hotel in nearby and invited all of the Soul Finders, and their families to come spend the holidays there."
I raised an eyebrow,
"Uh, okay."
Charlie hit me on the arm. I glared,
"What was that for?!"
"Don't be such a scrooge."
I rolled my eyes.
Charlie:
I sighed knowing that when Danny got into one of his moods- he was impossible. Lately, I didn't know what was up with him. He was my best friend- so was Kevin, but Danny- he was….off. Not off in a bad way, just different. I could never put my finger on it. I snapped my fingers- his eyes. His eyes showed too much. They were cold like Bond's. They were wisdom filled like the Professor's. They were filled with life (sometimes) like Kevin's. They were filled with knowledge like Gear's. They looked sad like Nancy's. Bottom line- his eyes showed too much for a dude nearly twenty.
I shook my head, overthinking like I usually was. I left Danny- maybe then he'll be in not such a bad mood- and headed to Gear's dorm. I got her dorm number from Danny when I needed some help with my laptop. I knocked on the door.
"Gear," I called.
I heard the door turn and Gear stood in the doorway. She looked tired though- even if it was only noon. She was in a pair of warm-looking PJ's that were covered with mistletoe pictures. I raised an eyebrow and she scowled.
"It's the holiday, I don't get up until the night."
"It's about Danny."
She crossed her arms,
"What about him?"
"He's being such a…scrooge. Since you're his best friend for the past few years, I thought you might know why."
She shrugged,
"He's always been like that since I've known him- don't know why though."
I sighed,
"Dang. I was hoping-"
"You were hoping," she said, "That I might have some answers to the great Danny Mystery."
I flustered,
"Well, uhh…yeah."
Gear rolled her eyes,
"Is there any other reason you got me up this early?"
I looked at her, early, it's nearly noon. I shrugged,
"Well, Kevin's folks own the hotel nearby and invited the Soul Finders and their families to stay there."
She looked thoughtful and then shrugged,
"Eh, sure."
I fist pumped the air,
"Yeah!"
I left her dorm and grabbed my cell out of my pocket and texted Kevin,
'HyperChild,
Gear and Danny said sure. Can't wait, headed to Bond next.'
I started to head to the dorm when I got a text back,
'Ghostbuster,
Already talked to Bond- he said sure too. See ya'll at the hotel next week. Cant wait!'
I laughed at our nicknames. I had Kevin under HyperChild on my contacts list- Danny (Casper- because he keeps disappearing), Bond (ColdDude), Gear (Techy), Nancy (ShyLeaf- she liked plants and was shy).
Danny (Week later):
I helped Kelly and Aaron unload their bags and my bags from the back of their truck. It was rather funny that even after years living with them- I couldn't call them Mom and Dad.
"Oh, smile," Kelly said as she nudged me, "it's Christmas!"
Both Kelly and Aaron were thrilled to be invited to the McCains Hotel, free of charge thanks to Kevin. Currently, the two were really dressed in the holiday spirit. Kelly had an 'ugly Christmas sweater' and Aaron had a Christmas sweater on too- just not as bad as Kelly's that had a reindeer on it with a glowing red nose.
Kelly and Aaron went off to mingle while I carried the bags to their suite. As soon as I was done, I took my own bags to my small room. Kevin had told us that we could have two rooms- everyone on Soul Finders got two big bedrooms free of charge.
As soon as everything was settled, I headed back down to the lobby.
Third Person:
Bond, his parents, and his siblings all arrived at the hotel. Of course, the two five-year-old twins (Lacy and Madison) headed straight to the couches to try and jump on them. Luckily, his other sister and brother (Kaylee- 15, and Chris- 16) were more mature, but they also helped with the kids. Kaylee and Chris tried to calm down Lacy while Bond tried to calm down Madison. His parents (Kate Johnson and Lee Johnson) were just smiling and looking around.
Bond was relieved to see Danny- someone he knew.
"Danny," he called.
Danny nodded and headed to Bond.
"Hey Bond," Danny greeted.
Kate and Lee walked near Bond,
"Hello," Kate greeted.
"Hello," Danny said, "I'm Danny, Danny Lane."
"Danny," Bond said, "These are my parents, and this is Lacy, Madison, Kaylee, and Chris."
Danny raised an eyebrow- who would have thought Bond, of all people, comes from a large, preppy family. Bond did stand out from his family though. Despite being twenty, he still dressed dark and a bit Goth. He had his hair spiked, black pants with chains, and black turtleneck. Danny noticed that he even had one ear pierced. Though, Bond's family were all dressed in red and green.
"Please to meet you," Danny said as he shook hands with the Johnsons. His own adoptive parents walked up behind him and Danny waved to them,
"These are my adoptive parents, Kelly and Aaron."
Kelly and Aaron shook hands with Bond's parents. They both rolled our eyes- parents. As soon as Danny and his parents left, Bond's mom whispered to him,
"What happened to his parents?"
"They died."
***
Eventually, the Soul Finders met everyone: Kevin and his parents (Shawna and Grady); Charlie, his parents (Tammy and Lloyd); Gear (her parents had died, so she was alone); Bond and his family; Nancy, her mom (Shannon), and her little brother (James).
By the end of the Christmas Eve, the kids were all tucked in. All that was left was the parents and their eldest children (the Soul Finders).
"So," Shawna (Kevin's mom) started, "Danny, you're being a bit grumpy. It's the holidays!"
Danny scowled. Kelly and Aaron, luckily or unluckily, had already gone to bed. Kevin reddened from embassement by his mother. Danny shrugged,
"Never had a good Christmas."
Tammy (Charlie's mom) rolled her eyes,
"Now come on, dearie, I'm sure that's not true."
Danny scowled deeper,
"It's true. I have never had a good Christmas."
"How," Nancy asked softly.
Danny reddened,
"Uh…my real parents- may they rest in peace- sort of….they never exactly made Christmas fun when they were always arguing and fighting."
The parents paled. Danny's eyes widened,
"No! What I meant was….Dad believed in Santa and Mom didn't. They were scientists, but Dad- he was a bit of a goof and Mom was the brains and….every Christmas Dad argued that Santa was real…."
Danny couldn't help but laugh when everyone- even Bond- laughed and chuckled. Maybe this will be a good Christmas after all…