<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a little town called Christmas. As the snowfall intensified, adding another layer of white to the already blanketed stretch of country road, Christmas slipped on her gloves, her hat, and opened the car door with a frustrated sigh. Her sneakers were not meant for the sudden cold, wet crunch of the snow that they sank into when she stepped out of the car. It was bitter, biting through her thin socks as she trudged to the back of the vehicle and looked at the flat tire. Fuck.<\/p>\n Glancing both ways down the road, she saw only a stretch of white as far as the limited visibility allowed. Despairing, she got back into the car, cranked the heat, and pulled out her phone. No signal. Fuck. It was just her luck, she thought, a goddamned flat just a few miles out of town.<\/p>\n She turned on the hazard lights and watched the snow fall, scanning the road, hoping that someone would see her and stop. She should have known better, should have been prepared. All those times, those lessons, growing up in the harsh winters of the Upper Peninsula, came back to her, and she felt stupid.<\/p>\n \u201cAlways have an emergency kit, a spare, and a jack,\u201d her father\u2019s voice said. \u201cYou\u2019re going to get stranded at some point. It\u2019s inevitable.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas, though, had been away for a while, living in the warmer climate of the south and attending school. She hadn\u2019t been prepared and the long drive back up north had been such smooth sailing. Naturally, her luck would run out just an hour from town.<\/p>\n Headlights broke the swirling snow, heading toward town. Christmas quickly leapt from the car, soaking her feet again and waving her arms at the oncoming truck, shouting into the wind. The truck began to slow, then stopped. She thanked the small town kindness of strangers and crunched through the snow. The truck\u2019s door opened and a tightly bundled man stepped out, better prepared, wearing heavy snow boots. He started toward her.<\/p>\n When he was close enough, he tugged down his scarf and said, \u201cChris? That you?\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas felt relief. Not a stranger. Even better.<\/p>\n \u201cTommy!\u201d she exclaimed and hugged him. \u201cThank God!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHaving some trouble, huh?\u201d Tommy said, returning the embrace.<\/p>\n \u201cFlat tire.\u201d<\/p>\n Tommy shook his head and said, \u201cBeen away too long. Should have had a spare.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas rolled her eyes and said, \u201cThink you can take me into town?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHop in,\u201d Tommy said. \u201cI\u2019ll call Hank when we get close and he can tow you in.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThank you!\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas returned to the car and retrieved her bag, locked it, and walked to the truck. The heated cabin was a welcome feeling. Tommy opened his side, got in, closed it, and removed his scarf. The truck rumbled back onto the road.<\/p>\n \u201cHeaded home?\u201d Tommy asked, hesitantly.<\/p>\n Christmas nodded and said, \u201cYeah. First time in four years. How have you been?\u201d<\/p>\n Tommy shrugged, \u201cGood, I suppose. Can\u2019t complain. You talked to your brother?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll the time,\u201d Christmas replied, \u201cHe came down to see me at school, once.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGlad to see you back,\u201d Tommy grinned, \u201cTown just ain\u2019t been the same without a Christmas dance at The North Pole from the town mascot!\u201d<\/p>\n She punched his shoulder and laughed. \u201cWell don\u2019t count on that again. It\u2019s Lester\u2019s fault for spiking the egg nog.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about the next year?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPeer pressure.\u201d Christmas shrugged again.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, consider this your first dose of peer pressure upon your return,\u201d he said, laughing back.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t count on it.\u201d<\/p>\n As they drove into town, they caught up over the four years. Town life hadn\u2019t changed much, as life in small towns is wont to do. The same familiar names and places were all there, still doing the same things they\u2019d been about four years ago. They passed a sign reading, \u201cWelcome to Christmas! Where every day is Christmas!\u201d<\/p>\n It was ridiculous, she thought, but there was always a little glow of satisfaction when she saw the name of the town she\u2019d been named after, born on the day that the town was named after. It was one of life\u2019s little oddities, but it was her oddity. The town, likewise, loved that little oddity and loved her for it.<\/p>\n Tommy dropped her off at the door to her home, the home where her brother lived, alone.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll get Hank out to get your car. Keys?\u201d Tommy said.<\/p>\n Christmas fished in her coat pocket and handed him the key to the car.<\/p>\n \u201cThanks again, Tommy. Tell Hank I\u2019ll settle up with him tomorrow, if that\u2019s alright.\u201d<\/p>\n Tommy shook his head and said, \u201cYou know what he\u2019s gonna say.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas knew. Hank would say, \u201cI can\u2019t be chargin\u2019 the town mascot for that,\u201d but Christmas would insist and pay him anyway.<\/p>\n \u201cThen just tell him I said thanks,\u201d she said and stepped out of the truck.<\/p>\n Tommy gave her a little salute and drove away. Christmas walked up to the house and let herself in. The house seemed dark and quiet.<\/p>\n \u201cBrad?\u201d she called out.<\/p>\n No answer. She hung her coat in the entryway and walked into the dark living room. The curtains were drawn, and the room was nearly pitch black, but the filtered light was just enough that she could see, and sense, people in the room. A Christmas tree suddenly burst into lighted life, casting a multicolored splash across the room. The sounds of carols blared from the speakers, stopping her in her tracks.<\/p>\n There was Brad, on the couch, along with the two neighbors, the Blakley\u2019s, while her two old besties, Leah and Sasha, stood behind the couch. All of them smiled widely as they shouted, \u201cMerry Christmas!\u201d<\/p>\n Brad stood up from the couch as Christmas broke into a grin, her throat tightening. Her brother swept her up and twirled her around as she shrieked, then set her on her feet and put a kiss on her cheek, hugging her tightly.<\/p>\n \u201cWelcome home,\u201d he whispered, his hand drifting to touch her ass, just out of sight of the gathering.<\/p>\n She blushed at the touch and felt a little hot thrill. It had been a while. Brad let her go and each of the neighbors, then her friends, greeted her with hugs. It was good to be home.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n With fresh socks on and slippers on her feet, Christmas sat with Sasha and Leah on the couch, while Brad chatted with Mr. Blakley. Mrs. Blakley, meanwhile, served cookies and punch.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re going to stay through the new year, right?\u201d Leah asked.<\/p>\n Christmas nodded and said, \u201cYeah. Probably longer. I\u2019m all graduated, so I have to start looking for work now. I only stayed long enough to run out my lease, so the other girls wouldn\u2019t have to pick up the rent.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you gonna do with that fancy degree?\u201d Sasha asked.<\/p>\n \u201cNot so fancy,\u201d Christmas said, shrugging. \u201cI guess I\u2019ll write some more. Maybe try to get a job at the paper? I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe you can write me a love poem,\u201d Sasha said, glancing toward Brad, \u201cHelp me win a certain heart?\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas laughed and said, \u201cThat\u2019s an icy heart. I don\u2019t think there are words in any language that are going to win it.\u201d<\/p>\n Inwardly, there was just a little jealous rush, but that was her secret, hers and Brad\u2019s.<\/p>\n \u201cGuess so,\u201d Sasha said. \u201cYou sure he\u2019s not gay? He doesn\u2019t even look at me.\u201d<\/p>\n She primped her hair and bounced her tits with a saucy grin as Brad looked their way. He didn\u2019t even acknowledge the flirtation.<\/p>\n \u201cPretty sure,\u201d Christmas said. \u201cWhy don\u2019t you ask him?\u201d<\/p>\n Sasha shook her head and said, \u201cProbably not polite.\u201d<\/p>\n The little party wore on for a few hours, but eventually Brad showed the neighbors out and the girls all exchanged further hugs. Finally, she was alone with her brother.<\/p>\n \u201cPopcorn and cheesy holiday flicks?\u201d she asked, giving him a sly smile.<\/p>\n \u201cAbsolutely!\u201d Brad agreed.<\/p>\n Before long, the fireplace was roaring and Christmas was wrapped in a blanket, wearing a set of ridiculous holiday pajamas. The only light came from the twinkling tree and the TV. Brad lay behind her on the couch, his arm around her waist and the blanket over the two of them. His face was buried in her hair and she could feel his cock, hard, against her ass.<\/p>\n \u201cMiss me?\u201d Christmas asked, breathily, as her hand moved to touch his cock.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have no idea,\u201d he said, kissing her neck.<\/p>\n \u201cMy roommates all asked about you,\u201d she said, as Brad\u2019s hand moved from her waist to her breast, palming it through her top. \u201cThey were so curious about my boyfriend only visiting once.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad growled and said, \u201cI\u2019d have come more often, if you\u2019d let me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey all made jokes about how hard you fucked me,\u201d she whispered, moving her hand up to cup his cheek as he nuzzled against her neck. \u201cThey wanted to borrow you.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad groaned and rubbed his erection against her, squeezed her breast.<\/p>\n \u201cI know why you did it,\u201d he said, \u201ckept me away. I missed you, Chris.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI missed you, too,\u201d she said, and turned, putting her hand on his neck and drawing him in, pressing her lips softly to his.<\/p>\n The heat of his kiss melted her, the longing for him rising, hot, the intensity of it bringing tears to her eyes as their lips met, melded. Brad brushed her hair back, just as eager for her, but he stopped and wiped at a tear with his finger.<\/p>\n \u201cI just\u2026 I needed time away, you know? To think it all through. I wasn\u2019t in a good place back then.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad nodded and said, \u201cNeither of us were. I\u2019m sorry if I\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n She stopped him, shaking her head, \u201cYou didn\u2019t. I wanted it. I still do. I just had to work it out for myself.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd?\u201d he asked, his hand moving back to her hip, toying with the pajama bottoms.<\/p>\n She kissed him again, more passionately, eager, the long pent-up desire conveyed in the hunger of the simple action. There wasn\u2019t a need for words. No words could say what she meant. For now, there wasn\u2019t a need. For now, there was only the popping of the fire and the low drone of carols on the TV, just the feel of his lips and the closeness of him, tender. It would be so easy, right now, she thought, to surrender to him, to give herself. She wanted to. God, how she wanted to, but it wasn\u2019t time.<\/p>\n She broke away and stroked his cheek, studied his eyes, dark and soft, the reflected firelight dancing in them, like the flames of desire that she knew were just waiting for her word, any agreement that he could take her. He would, too, she knew. He\u2019d have her right here, and she was wet for it, practically salivating to feel it, but she didn\u2019t give him that agreement. Instead, she gave him a teasing smirk.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d he asked at the look.<\/p>\n \u201cReady for your first gift?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I can unwrap the one in front of me, it\u2019s the only gift I need.\u201d<\/p>\n She shook her head and said, \u201cNot yet,\u201d and watched his slightly frustrated expression, poorly hidden, then continued, \u201cI\u2019m going to make it special for you. We\u2019re going to play a little game.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cStrip poker?\u201d he asked, grinning.<\/p>\n She rolled her eyes and explained, \u201cNo. I\u2019m going to give you a present, each day until Christmas. This game is called Twelve Days in Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n His grin widened, and he said, \u201cThis sounds much better than strip poker.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDay one,\u201d she said, and her hand slid into his pajama pants, where she found his cock and began to stroke it.<\/p>\n Brad groaned, and half shut his eyes. Christmas slid from the couch, leaving the warmth of the blanket, and pulled the pants down. Her brother\u2019s cock came free, twitching and bobbing in the firelight. Giggling, she picked up the silly Christmas hat from the end table, put it on her head, and looked up at him from her kneeling position.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been very naughty,\u201d she whispered, \u201cand I don\u2019t intend to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPlease don\u2019t,\u201d Brad breathed.<\/p>\n She licked up the length of his cock, making him groan delightedly as her tongue coated the underside of it, tickling his cockhead with the tip. Christmas put her lips around it and slowly, lovingly, suckled on the head of it as she watched him. She could see the vacant look in his eyes as he surrendered to the pleasure, and she loved it. For a long moment she nursed on his cock, massaging that sensitive head with her lips, allowing rivulets of saliva to drool down the shaft of it.<\/p>\n When she felt his cock jerk, she slowly swallowed his length, gliding her lips wetly down it, coating it, until her lips touched his crotch. Brad groaned, shook, and put his hand on her head, careful not to dislodge the hat.<\/p>\n \u201cOh my God,\u201d he breathed, \u201cI missed this so much.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas moaned around his cock and continued to slowly, lovingly worship it. Each time she felt it twitch and jerk, she released the suction around his shaft and let the feeling pass. Satisfied that he was not going to cum, she went back to work on it, licking, sucking, intent on giving him the longest, wettest blowjob that she could, before he no longer had the stamina to last a moment longer. Her knees were sore and George Bailey was about to deliver the perfect line on the TV. Christmas suddenly kicked up her sucking to hungry, desperate slut level and Brad held on.<\/p>\n \u201cFuck!\u201d he gasped, and Christmas knew she\u2019d timed it perfectly.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, then you can swallow it, and it\u2019ll all dissolve\u2026\u201d The TV said, and Christmas began to swallow her brother\u2019s gift.<\/p>\n She hummed and gulped, moaned and sucked, extracting every drop that she could from his edged cock.<\/p>\n \u201cFuck\u2026 fuck\u2026 fuck\u2026\u201d Brad panted, writhing in pleasurable torment as his sister drained his cock.<\/p>\n She held him and sucked him until his balls were empty, then came up for air, took a drink, and then began to suck again.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, fuck,\u201d Brad groaned and said, \u201cI\u2026 Jesus I can\u2019t\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas looked up at him with his half-erect cock in her mouth and raised one eyebrow as she swallowed his length again.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, fuck it,\u201d Brad sighed and relaxed into the couch. \u201cKeep going.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas smiled around his cock.<\/p>\n Waking up with her brother\u2019s tongue stroking wetly through her pussy was, possibly, the best way Christmas could think of. She played at sleep and let him lick and suck at her, while his hands slid beneath the pajama top to touch her breasts. When he sealed his lips around her button, though, and began to flick his tongue around it in little circles, there was no more playing. She ground her pussy against him and sighed happily, giggling as he worked her toward the perfect morning orgasm. Then it came, and she shuddered, her legs giving small kicks as the pleasure brought her around.<\/p>\n Her hand found his, still beneath her shirt, and covered it. There was something so erotic about feeling his hand on her breasts, covering it with her own through the layer of cloth, resting it there as he gently squeezed her. He continued licking slowly up and down her slit, apparently in a mood to return the long and luxurious oral pleasure she\u2019d given him the night before. The moment was perfect and she couldn\u2019t break it with words, so she only moaned softly and enjoyed the long, thorough tongue fucking.<\/p>\n After bringing her off again, Brad moved up her body and kissed her, sharing the reward he\u2019d extracted from her. His naked cock, hard and hot, pressed against her pussy. Just the slightest inkling of consent and he\u2019d push it into her, fill her up and fuck her. He\u2019d make slow love to her, she knew, feeling the mood. It was torture on herself not to give him the go ahead, but it wasn\u2019t time. That would ruin the build-up and then she\u2019d let him fuck her every day. Instead, she broke the kiss and cupped his cheek, closing her legs.<\/p>\n \u201cI loved that,\u201d she said. \u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAny time,\u201d he said, his voice gruff, excited, but a bit annoyed at having been denied.<\/p>\n \u201cI need to shower,\u201d she said, \u201cand I\u2019m going to do it alone. I need to go out with the girls today.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad let her go, looking down at his hardon, then at her with a pleading look.<\/p>\n She shook her head teasingly and said, \u201cI like you this way. My game, my rules. Don\u2019t you dare empty those balls on your own.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad groaned as she stood up and stretched, shaking her hair and giving him an enticing view of her ass as she bent over to retrieve the pajama bottoms. She tossed them to him, then stripped off the shirt, standing naked in front of him, then tossed him the clothes.<\/p>\n \u201cDo some laundry for me, will you?\u201d she asked, and ran for the shower.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n When she was dressed, Christmas crept into the laundry room, where Brad was putting clothes into the washer. She glided in behind him and slid her arms around his waist, nuzzling the back of his neck. Her hand snaked downward, into his pajama pants, and found his half-hard cock.<\/p>\n Brad groaned as she stroked it for him, getting it hard again in moments. She continued to stroke him, her fist around his length, jerking him delicately.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I come home, I could suck it for you again,\u201d she whispered. \u201cYou could let your little sister suck your cock, like a filthy little pervert. Would you like that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYeah\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou could put me on my knees and push your big cock right into my mouth again.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes!\u201d<\/p>\n She stroked him faster. \u201cYou could fuck my mouth really hard, like a pussy, since I\u2019m teasing you so bad. Do you want that? Do you want to choke me with it and make me do it for you until you cum?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFuck!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCum for me,\u201d she begged, her tits pressed into his back. \u201cCum for your little sister and you can do it. You can use my mouth like a wet little hole for your cock.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad\u2019s penis jerked, and he groaned, cumming into her hand, his pants, as he leaned against the washer. Christmas withdrew her hand and licked it, watching him as he slowly turned around.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have some more laundry to do,\u201d she said, sucking on her finger. \u201cI\u2019ll be home later.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad gasped and then said, \u201cWhat\u2026 about your car?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m taking yours,\u201d she said, grinning. \u201cYou don\u2019t mind, right?\u201d<\/p>\n He shook his head. She leaned up and kissed him on the mouth.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t you go getting yourself on the \u2018good\u2019 list. I need you to be really naughty, alright?\u201d<\/p>\n He nodded, swallowing, and watched her walk out the door, his keys jingling in her hand.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The town\u2019s main street had grown over the last four years, Christmas noted, as she strolled down the sidewalk with Sasha and Leah. Many of the same old businesses, town staples that had been installed for decades, stood alongside newer ones. Some of these, she noted, were familiar corporate names that had been present in the big city. Ella\u2019s Homespun Fashions stood next to a Gap store, and a Starbucks sat across the street from The Roost, a family-owned cafe and coffee bar. The two of them seemed to have a healthy rivalry going, too, as each store had their own sign claiming to be able to produce their own \u201ctwist\u201d on the other\u2019s favorite drinks.<\/p>\n On every other lamppost, Christmas saw, were signs advertising this year\u2019s holiday activities. The middle school would be putting on a performance of A Christmas Carol, while the dance school that Christmas had attended was doing The Nutcracker. Then, there was the annual pageant, a fundraiser for the benefit of the Christmas Scholars Program, which provided scholarships for college.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you going to wear for the pageant?\u201d Sasha asked as they passed by a Columbia store and pushed through the doors of Dressed by Diane.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t know I signed up,\u201d Christmas answered.<\/p>\n Diane Sansbury, still making the clothes, and with her daughter at the register, scurried around the counter to wrap Christmas in a hug.<\/p>\n \u201cI heard you were back,\u201d she said, kissing her on each cheek, \u201cand I\u2019ve already got your dress!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMy dress?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the pageant,\u201d Diane explained. \u201cI\u2019ll tailor it in a bit if I need to, but you\u2019re going to knock them dead this year!\u201d<\/p>\n She looked from Sasha to Leah, then back to Diane and said, again, \u201cI didn\u2019t know I signed up.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI signed you up when you told me you were coming back,\u201d Leah said, grinning.<\/p>\n \u201cHow\u2026 thoughtful of you,\u201d Christmas said, grimacing.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, it\u2019s a foregone conclusion that you\u2019re going to do it. How could you not?\u201d Sasha asked.<\/p>\n Christmas sighed and said, \u201cI guess I know what I\u2019m wearing. Can I see it?\u201d<\/p>\n Diane took her by the arm and dragged her into the back, where racks of clothes, finished and in production, stood. She passed the racks and opened a cabinet in the back, then returned with a dress on a hanger and laid it out on the table. The dress was a gorgeous thing of shimmery green that looked like satin. Christmas could tell that it would be form-fitting and the neckline was perilously low.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a bit\u2026 sexy. Isn\u2019t it?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n Diane beamed and nodded her head, saying, \u201cLike I said. You\u2019re going to knock them dead!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShould I try it on?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOf course!\u201d Diane crowed and handed her the dress, then indicated a changing room in the back.<\/p>\n Christmas took the dress to the room and changed. In the mirror, she blushed at how sexy it was. The backless dress had an asymmetrical neck, with one side held up by a thin strap. Each side was attached to a satin choker that fit around her neck. It adhered tightly to her form, showing off luscious cleavage, and was long on one side, while her right leg was bare from the hip down. little sequins glittered under the light. She had to admit, it really was gorgeous.<\/p>\n She stepped out of the dressing room to a whistle of approval from Diane, who immediately set about taking measurements, intent on getting it perfect. Once she was satisfied, Christmas returned and changed again, then brought the dress back.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s beautiful,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat do I owe you for it?\u201d<\/p>\n Diane scoffed and said, \u201cI can\u2019t charge you for showing off my work. How does someone bill a girl named Christmas in a town named Christmas, during Christmas. It\u2019s unholy.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas, used to this line of reasoning from the town, asked, \u201cWhat would be an appropriate donation to make?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe shelter always needs a hand,\u201d Diane said, \u201call those little homeless dogs, and at this time of year.\u201d<\/p>\n She shook her head sadly.<\/p>\n \u201cDone,\u201d Christmas agreed.<\/p>\n Diane showed her back out, where she found Sasha and Leah browsing the racks.<\/p>\n \u201cDid it meet with your approval, Mrs. Claus?\u201d Sasha jested.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, I didn\u2019t ask for this,\u201d Christmas said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy couldn\u2019t my parents have named me Rudolph?\u201d Leah asked wistfully.<\/p>\n \u201cIt wouldn\u2019t have resulted in dresses,\u201d Christmas said. \u201cThe town would have just hitched you to the sleigh and made you pull Santa down Main on Christmas Eve.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIs it weird that I find that a little exciting?\u201d Leah asked.<\/p>\n \u201cThat depends. Are you wearing a red nose in that fantasy? If so, then it\u2019s completely legit,\u201d Sasha added.<\/p>\n Leah held up a yellow dress and raised her eyebrows.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you want to look like a banana,\u201d Sasha said, and Leah sighed, placing the dress back on the rack.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are we even bothering?\u201d she asked. \u201cIt\u2019s not like any of us are going to bring in more donations than Christmas, anyway. The town mascot\u2019s first pageant? It\u2019s hopeless.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t count on that,\u201d came a snide voice from behind.<\/p>\n The three of them whipped around to face a tall blonde. Her green eyes glittered, a match for the small, twinkling Christmas wreath earrings she wore. Her coat was a Burberry in the classic check, which matched her handbag, and her winter boots were black Prada padded nylon booties. Christmas couldn\u2019t help feeling somewhat offended that a person would wear a pair of $1,300 boots in the snow, but then, that was just Marcy.<\/p>\n \u201cHello, Marcy,\u201d Christmas said, coldly.<\/p>\n \u201cMascot,\u201d Marcy said derisively.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t buy the pageant, Marcy,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnything can be bought,\u201d Marcy shot back, smirking.<\/p>\n \u201cExcept Brad,\u201d Leah said, and Christmas felt pleased when the comment brought an embarrassed flush to Marcy\u2019s cheeks.<\/p>\n Marcy recovered and waved her hand, dismissing the jab, and said, \u201cYou three can just bow out now. Once everyone gets a look at what CJ made for me, it\u2019ll be lights out.\u201d<\/p>\n She gave them a devilish wink.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, you went to the most expensive tailor in town,\u201d Sasha said, \u201cand that\u2019s going to guarantee you a win? You do remember that who is actually in the dress matters, too, right?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019m a lock for it,\u201d Marcy said, flipping her hair.<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever,\u201d Leah shot back, \u201cChristmas is gonna stuff your stocking!\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the rivalry, the four of them all had to laugh at the absurd joke.<\/p>\n \u201cToo bad jokes aren\u2019t going to help you get donations,\u201d Marcy said, pasting her bitch face back on.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you doing down here with us peasants, anyway?\u201d Sasha asked, \u201cIsn\u2019t this place a little low-rent for the likes of you?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcy shrugged and said, \u201cCJ doesn\u2019t do gloves and Diane\u2019s are super cute. I\u2019m buying them all to donate them to St. Mary\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGenerosity, or a tax write off?\u201d Sasha asked.<\/p>\n Marcy ignored her and said, \u201cJust don\u2019t get your hopes up, mascot. I would so hate for you to be disappointed.\u201d<\/p>\n She stalked away toward the counter, a nearly visible cloud of bitchiness trailing behind.<\/p>\n \u201cThe true embodiment of Christmas cheer, that one,\u201d Leah said.<\/p>\n Christmas shrugged and said, \u201cLet her have her fun.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Christmas returned home with numerous shopping bags to find her car in the driveway. On her way in, she noted that the wiper blades had been replaced, and new tires added all around. It was washed and a fresh oil change sticker showed in the corner of the window. She shook her head and walked inside.<\/p>\n She found Brad in his office, the same one that had previously been their father\u2019s, going over statements for what looked like investments. He was on his feet and kissing her the moment she walked through the door. Christmas melted into it, purring softly as his tongue probed her mouth. As wonderful as it was, she pulled herself away.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore you get all hard again, could you help me bring in some bags?\u201d she asked, flushed.<\/p>\n \u201cToo late,\u201d Brad said. \u201cI\u2019ve been hard for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n He reached for her again but she danced away, laughing, and said, \u201cNo! Bags first and then I need to work for a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh? Got a brilliant idea?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI always have a brilliant idea,\u201d she said, walking back toward the car.<\/p>\n Brad helped her lug the bags into the house, then carried them up the stairs to her unused bedroom. Once he set them down, he was on her again, but she wiggled away.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re not to defile me,\u201d she said, \u201cNot until after the lighting festival tonight. And then, only if you\u2019re a perfect gentleman.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat seems doomed to failure,\u201d he said, frowning. \u201cI thought you knew me better.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGet out,\u201d she ordered, \u201cI have words in my head that need to come out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDirty words?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat other kind do I write?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs you wish, m\u2019lady,\u201d he said, doffing an imaginary cap with a bow.<\/p>\n \u201cNot that gentlemanly,\u201d she said, rolling her eyes.<\/p>\n Brad shut the door. Christmas took her laptop to the bed and rested back against the pillows, breathing in and letting her imagination run. The fact that she did want him to pin her down to the bed and fuck her was perfect for the tale she had in her head. She gave the piece the tentative title that she already knew would stick. Twelve Days in Christmas<\/em>, she typed and giggled.<\/p>\n The writing was a joy. It was both her confessional and her fantasies, giving her a little thrill as she chronicled her own seduction. To her readers, of course, this was an erotic fantasy, like all of her stories. The knowledge that it was true, she kept to herself, but it was the truth of it that made it generate sales. The other work, while still sexy, never did as well as the romanticized publication of her own sibling seduction.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n It was the secret that made it fun, Christmas thought, as she held Brad\u2019s hand and walked toward the Christmas Green for the lighting of the tree and town square. No one gave a second thought to Brad, holding his younger sister\u2019s hand. To them, it was sweet, familial, the kind of gesture one expected from two orphaned siblings that had grown up close and bonded further over an untimely loss. With their fingers intertwined through the gloves, though, Christmas could feel it for what it was, and it was romantic.<\/p>\n She casually swung her arm, hand-in-hand with her brother, while they walked down the snow-dusted sidewalk toward the Green. To the rest of the town, they were still those two sad kids, Brad just nineteen and Christmas seventeen, tearful and afraid after the boating accident that had taken their parents. They saw cute, but Christmas knew that when the door was shut, it wouldn\u2019t be her own bed she slept in.<\/p>\n It was sexy, and it was naughty, but it was also something deeper. She\u2019d spent four years thinking about it, away from Brad, away from the town, sorting out the confusion. She\u2019d dated boys, slept with them, looked into their eyes and tried to probe their souls, but there was no real depth, not like this. She clung to Brad\u2019s arm and gave him a little wink, which he returned.<\/p>\n Sasha and Leah were already waiting on the edge of Christmas Green, where the big tree stood, waiting to be turned on and kick off the two weeks of merriment. Over those weeks, there would be an influx of visitors, out-of-towners looking to share in the spirit of the season that the town was named for. They would shop and drink, ice fish or sleigh ride. They would sled down the steep hills and fill the pockets of the local businesses. A few days before Christmas eve, most of them would be gone, though.<\/p>\n The three girls all exchanged customary cheek kisses, and then Sasha and Leah blushingly planted one each on Brad. Together, bundled in hats and coats, scarves around their necks, they looked up at the giant tree.<\/p>\n \u201cWho are you going to donate to in the pageant, Brad?\u201d Sasha asked, with a hint of hope in her voice.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, I suppose I\u2019ll just have to see the line-up,\u201d he said, noncommittally.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t just give it to your sister. That\u2019s, like, cheating. Right?\u201d Leah asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t know you\u2019d signed up,\u201d Brad said to Christmas.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t know until today,\u201d she said, giving Leah a glare that contained a grin.<\/p>\n \u201cJust as long as you aren\u2019t donating to that\u2026 bitch,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n Brad narrowed his eyes and Sasha said, \u201cNot Chris, you dork. Marcy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh,\u201d Brad said, rolling his eyes, \u201cI wouldn\u2019t piss on Marcy if she was on fire.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI would kind of like to see someone piss on Marcy. If she was on fire, that would just be a bonus,\u201d Leah said.<\/p>\n \u201cReally feeling that Christmas spirit, huh?\u201d Brad joked.<\/p>\n \u201cGuess that was kinda mean, huh? Sorry, Mr. Santa,\u201d Leah retracted.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat would the world do without rich bitches?\u201d Christmas asked. \u201cWe\u2019d have no one to lord our own superiority over.\u201d<\/p>\n She pulled her arm from Brad\u2019s and said, \u201cI\u2019ll be right back.\u201d<\/p>\n Sasha quickly took her place, sliding her arm into Brad\u2019s and saying, \u201cHer loss!\u201d<\/p>\n She batted her eyes at Brad, who only shook his head.<\/p>\n Christmas crossed the edge of the Green and flung her arms around Hank, wrapped in a plaid coat.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, kiddo,\u201d he said, happily, chuckling, \u201cGood to have you back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThanks for fixing the car,\u201d she said, \u201cand all the other stuff. That was too nice.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWasn\u2019t nothing at all,\u201d Hank said, \u201cand don\u2019t even think about settling the bill.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t fucking say it,\u201d she said, breaking away with a laugh, \u201cIf I have to hear Christmas in Christmas at Christmas one more time, I\u2019m going to\u2026 I guess I\u2019m going to live with it. That doesn\u2019t mean I have to like it, though.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhoa! The mouth on you, girl!\u201d Hank chastised her kindly, \u201cYour daddy would\u2019a swatted you good for talk like that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll stop in at St. Mary\u2019s and ask for forgiveness,\u201d she said, then added, \u201cI just wanted to thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n Hank nodded, tilted his hat, then said, \u201cI got my money on you in the pageant this year. Looking forward to seeing that dress that Diane\u2019s been on about.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDid everyone but me know that I was doing this?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cSurely did,\u201d Hank said, chuckling, \u201cYou shoulda known better, what with those two harpies you associate with.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going back to my harpies. See you at The Pole?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll be in for a drink after, yup.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas kissed his cheek and walked back to her friends.<\/p>\n \u201cYou want him back?\u201d Sasha asked, offering her Brad.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can keep him,\u201d Christmas said. \u201cHe\u2019s a little young for me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou hear that lover boy?\u201d Sasha said. \u201cThe town mascot just gave you to me for Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad only chuckled and said, \u201cI think the town abolished indentured servitude quite some time ago.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPity,\u201d Sasha grumbled, \u201cI\u2019d let you unwrap me every night.\u201d<\/p>\n She winked up at him. Brad did not reply to the invitation, but he allowed her to continue clinging to his arm.<\/p>\n A loudspeaker cut through the air announcing loudly, \u201cMerry Christmas!\u201d<\/p>\n A responding answer went up from the assembled crowd, in kind. From down the street came the sound of carolers. All eyes turned toward the sound. In the distance, a procession approached, the children\u2019s choir from St. Mary\u2019s, each of them holding a candle. Behind them came a sleigh, red and lit up, pulled by a team of reindeer. Children in the crowd, many hoisted on the shoulders of adults, clapped or cheered excitedly. Further to the rear were the drum line from the high school, beating time for the carolers, marching in step.<\/p>\n A sheriff\u2019s car rolled slowly behind, the lights having been swapped out for red and green. The procession slowly made its way onto the Green, stopping in front of the dark tree. The lights of the car switched off and Mayor Tinsley, dressed in his Santa suit, dismounted the sleigh with a jolly, \u201cHo, ho, ho!\u201d<\/p>\n He made a show of strutting about, carrying a sack, which he set beneath the tree. The carolers filed off to either side of the tree, finishing their song. When it had died away, Santa took up a remote in his hand, showed it to the crowd, and declared, \u201cChristmas time\u2026 is here!\u201d<\/p>\n He clicked the remote, and the tree flared to life, filling the Green with brilliant color. All along the Green, string lights winked on in soft white, and then down the streets, more lights filled the night, draped between lampposts, hanging from the frontage of the shops. The town hall at the head of the Green glowed with a gigantic wreath. A cheer went up from the crowd. Christmas hooked her hand into Brad\u2019s free one and then took Leah\u2019s in her other. They shared a quick look that, for some reason, made Christmas blush.<\/p>\n As the carolers sang, parents with small children came forward in a line and Santa handed out a present to each child. Every adult in attendance could recall when it had once been them, standing in that line, holding a parent\u2019s hand, being given a gift. The years would go by and those children that stayed would one day stand in line with their own. That was the way of things in Christmas at Christmas. Brad squeezed his sister\u2019s hand with meaning and she felt tears in her eyes, wondering if she would one day stand in that line again.<\/p>\n It didn\u2019t seem possible. The secret wouldn\u2019t allow for it. But as she glanced up at Brad and saw the mirrored mist in his own eyes, she knew that she would not trade standing in the line for him. She squeezed his hand back, knowing he\u2019d get the message. As tradition would have it, they waited until the line was empty. At this point, normally, the Mayor would wish them all a good night. However, the voice over the speakers happily asked, \u201cAnd where is our holiday mascot? Christmas Carol?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh my God,\u201d Christmas groaned, as everyone looked around for her.<\/p>\n Leah dragged her away from Brad, who only gave her a stupid grin, rather than sweeping her away from the embarrassment. Laughing, Leah pulled her to the front, where Santa took her hand and once more announced, \u201cChristmas\u2026 is here!\u201d<\/p>\n She gave the crowd a reluctant wave as they cheered for her. Standing to the side, silently killing her with her eyes, she saw Marcy. She was not cheering.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The North Pole, known to the locals as simply The Pole, was not the only bar in town. It had the distinction, though, of having the largest open area and an excellent stage for holding events. This made it ideal for hosting the annual pageant, as well as dances, costume balls, and spring flings. The ladies, along with Brad, pushed through the doors to find the place already filling with other locals and visitors.<\/p>\n Lively country blasted from the modern surround setup and Sasha began to dance toward the bar with Leah and Christmas in tow, leaving Brad behind. He seated himself with some of the locals and quickly fell into conversation. Christmas stood in line at the bar, watching the excited holiday crowd. The last time she\u2019d been in, she wasn\u2019t legally allowed to drink. The atmosphere had seemed different.<\/p>\n At twenty-four, now, and having lived on a college campus in the south, the bar scene was familiar. Just like in college, the locals gathered together, while the visitors sat apart in smaller groups. There were couples, too, dotting the place in pairs. Some of them she did recognize as annual visitors, who were welcomed in warmly. In a corner of the place, with a dark cloud brooding over them, sat Marcy, Julia, Carry, and Jason. Christmas nodded politely to the little group of the town\u2019s well-off, but received only a sneer in reply.<\/p>\n Despite having done nothing to her, and being gone for four years, Marcy still held onto that lifelong hate. Some things never changed. Their turn at the bar came and Christmas turned from the glaring group of stuck ups to find Keller Miller behind the bar.<\/p>\n \u201cChris?\u201d he asked. \u201cHeard you were back in. Merry\u2026 you know.\u201d he grinned.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, Kel. Your dad retire?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n He shook his head, \u201cNah. He\u2019ll never retire. He just gives me the bartending more often now. He\u2019s out on the floor with Pat Mitchum.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas looked over her shoulder, scanned, and found the elder Miller out on the dance floor, swaying with the ten-year widower.<\/p>\n \u201cNo shit?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n Keller nodded, saying, \u201cWhat\u2019ll you have?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSomething festive. Your call. Just don\u2019t give me any of that \u2018your money\u2019s no good here, mascot\u2019 bullshit,\u201d she said, pulling out her wallet.<\/p>\n \u201cYou kidding? I\u2019d get disowned for skipping the check, even for you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThanks, Kel.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOne Red-Nosed Reindeer coming up,\u201d Keller said, and started mixing.<\/p>\n A few moments later, drink in hand, Christmas found herself making the rounds, being hugged, kissed, and occasionally groped by townsfolk. She watched Sasha try again to get Brad to dance with her. Eventually, he gave in on a slow song. Sasha practically glowed, but as they swayed, she could see Brad\u2019s eyes on her and she gave him a wink. Let Sasha have her dance.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The flames from the fireplace casting flickering shadows across the living room, Christmas drew the curtains. Brad set aside the poker and beckoned her over to the couch, where he wrapped them in the blanket and put his arm around her. Their noses touched, nuzzling in the firelight and the glow of the tree.<\/p>\n \u201cWas I gentlemanly enough for you?\u201d Brad asked.<\/p>\n \u201cSingle minded, aren\u2019t you?\u201d she jested and stroked his cheek.<\/p>\n \u201cHard not to be. You\u2019re too gorgeous.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas was silent as he kissed her softly, then broke away and asked, \u201cDo you ever want to stand in the line?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn the line? Like, the gift line at the festival?\u2019 he asked.<\/p>\n She nodded, saying, \u201cYou were thinking it, too, weren\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n He paused, nodded, and said, \u201cJust remembering when it was us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDid we lose some of that fascination with Christmas?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cMy fascination with Christmas is still going strong,\u201d he said, and slid his hand into her waistband, teasing her skin.<\/p>\n \u201cThe holiday.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo way. It\u2019s pretty impossible when you, literally, live in Christmas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cDo you think you want kids?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n He shrugged and answered, \u201cIf I had to choose between kids and you, then no.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re sweet,\u201d she said and kissed him again, her hand moving up his cheek to slide through his dark hair.<\/p>\n Brad\u2019s own hand moved again, pushing down her pajama pants and sliding between her legs, his fingers tracing the warmth of her sex as she parted her legs for him. She purred softly into his mouth at the delicate touch, teasing the back of his neck, toying with the little hairs as their tongues played.<\/p>\n \u201cYou should take me upstairs,\u201d she said, breathily.<\/p>\n Brad adjusted, putting his arms around her waist and, as he stood, she wrapped her legs around him. Christmas planted small kisses on his neck as he carried her, hands on her bottom, up the steps to the bedroom. The strength of him, to be able to carry her that distance, made her wet thinking about that same strength being used to pin her and fuck her. God, why did she insist on teasing them both? For a silly Christmas game?<\/p>\n No, not just that. It was still the small, nagging hint of uncertainty. Even as hot as he made her, knowing what he could do to her, the pleasure of it, she had to be sure it was right for both of them. There was that 1% of uncertainty, and it felt as though playing out the game would resolve it. That, and the game itself was tremendously hot.<\/p>\n Brad laid her down on the bed and aggressively yanked down her bottoms. She yelped at it and felt of flush of desire at the little show of animal dominance. As much as she wanted to play out the game, she found the display so goddamned sexy that if he\u2019d simply pulled her panties aside and taken her, she would have made no objection. He didn\u2019t, though. She could see the same want in him, but he wouldn\u2019t do it, wouldn\u2019t push past that barrier without her say so.<\/p>\n That did not stop him from pulling off her panties and pressing his mouth between her legs, though. Ravenous, he sucked and licked at her, drinking from her like she was life itself. She shuddered, arched her back and squeaked as he hit the perfect spot. He felt it in her, knew it was right, and kept at it. His hands gripped her hips, held her in place as she wriggled against his tongue and it felt right, so right and perfect.<\/p>\n Her fists gripped the sheets as he growled into her, sending pleasant vibrations into the little bundle of nerves. The sound of the wet squishing, and not just from his tongue, sounded sexy in the darkness. She gasped as his work on her sent her up the peak, over, and then there was that spectacular, carnal explosion that made her squeeze her own breast as her mind shattered with the intensity of it. Lost in the wave, she tugged at him, pulling him up with her.<\/p>\n Christmas pushed him onto his back and put her mouth around his cock, his groan of pleasure only spurring her on. His head on the pillow, he breathed deeply as she put all her effort into making it as good for him as he\u2019d done for her. When she deemed him sufficiently hard and wet for her purpose, she climbed on top of him. She tugged her shirt up and over her head, tossing it aside as she spread her knees to either side of his hips. His hands rested on her, guiding her toward his cock, the need to be inside of her almost painful on his face.<\/p>\n That was not the game, though, as much as she wanted it herself. Instead, she trapped his cock between the lips of her pussy, sliding it back and forth along his length, coating his shaft in her arousal. She tossed back her head and rode him this way, rocking back and forth slowly along his cock, giving a small sigh each time his cockhead bumped against her clit. Fuck! It was torture of the most pleasant kind. One of his hands slid up her belly, palm flat, slowly creeping, until it held her breast.<\/p>\n Back and forth, back and forth, rhythmically she slid until she felt his aching cock jerking and ready to cum. His grip became tighter, and she looked down on him, with only the moonlight to show her his face, his need for her. She could have been blind and still felt it as powerfully, she thought, and then it happened. Her rhythm, her dance on his lap, pushed him over the edge and he groaned as he came, splashing her sex and his belly with his seed. Still she rode it, milking him, and a moment later she followed with her own pleasure. Her hips rocked, bucked, and her body trembled as he held her in the dark.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n \u2026 He had me in his arms the moment my besties walked out the door. No, that wasn\u2019t quite right. He was a fucking animal. My brother pinned me against the door so hard that I gasped. His big hands clawed at my jeans, tearing them open and popping the button. I heard it skid away across the floor.<\/em><\/p>\n Fuck! It was carnal, and it had my pussy gushing. His mouth pressed against mine, his tongue demanding that I reciprocate, and I did. Only too happily. He broke away only long enough to yank my torn jeans down. I hadn\u2019t worn panties. Yes, I was fucking ready for it, ready for him. They couldn\u2019t have left soon enough.<\/em><\/p>\n He pulled his own pants off as he stood. And then we were entangled again, our lips locked. His hands went to my ass, and I moaned into his kiss as he picked me up and impaled me on his cock. They were barely into their car and already he was balls deep in my pussy, fucking me against the door so hard that I heard the wreath fall to the porch. That just made it hotter.<\/em><\/p>\n My arms around his neck, I held on through the vigorous fucking, my brother\u2019s fat cock plundering my treasure as I panted like a thirsty dog. That\u2019s what I felt like. A dog. A bitch that he\u2019d forced himself into, to satisfy the years of hunger I\u2019d put him through. All those nights of dirty photos by text, the sexting, the phone sex, while I was away in school. The teasing had done exactly what I\u2019d intended.<\/em><\/p>\n The entire drive home I\u2019d thought about it, fantasized about it, and now it was everything I\u2019d rubbed my pussy to for so many nights. Bodily, he lifted me up and down on his cock, taking his pleasure for all that teasing. But the pleasure was mine, as well, just as necessary. My pussy longed for it, ached to feel his body against mine, the strength and vigor that I\u2019d come to crave.<\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019d fucked boys in college, had a few that were fun. I\u2019ve even told you about some of them. Nothing, though, was like this. None of them could match the ferocity with which my own brother fucked me. Not one of them was made for me, like he was made for me. His thrusting began to slow, even while his breathing increased, hot and ragged against my neck now. He was going to cum. My brother was going to cum in me.<\/em><\/p>\n It happened, quick as lightning, the first hot blast of his incestuous cream flooding my welcoming pussy. I gasped, bit at his neck playfully, and then the second shot triggered the full realization of what was happening. It was hot, and it was filthy. It made me cum so fucking hard. How he managed to hold on to me through the spasming, jerking of my body was lost on me. The only thing I could think about was the taboo ejaculation spilling into me, seeding me, maybe even impregnating me.<\/em><\/p>\n The idea was both terrifying and exciting. I\u2019d given myself to him, unprotected, let him fill me. Soon, I could be walking around our hometown, carrying his child. What would I say? That I\u2019d gotten knocked up in college, most likely. I\u2019d raise my own brother\u2019s child, all the while knowing exactly who it was, living a lie, even as I allowed him to continue to fuck me at his whim. Then what would I tell them the next time it happened? Because, as he grunted and pumped his cream into me, I knew that there would be a next time, and a next, and a next. I belonged to my hot brother.<\/em><\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Christmas saved the document and took a deep breath, resisting the urge to touch herself. Alright, so her homecoming hadn\u2019t exactly happened that way, but she felt sure that her readers would well receive her indulgence. They always did. Typically, she was a rather linear writer, going from start to finish. This time, though, she was allowing her imagination to skip around, following her own fantasies. It wasn\u2019t usual, but it felt right to do it this way.<\/p>\n She checked the time on the laptop. She\u2019d been at it all morning and it was inching into the afternoon. Her stint in the workshop was in just two hours. That was more than enough time. She set the laptop aside and stripped off her clothes, then threw on a fuzzy robe.<\/p>\n Padding quietly from her room, she listened, then followed the sound of the TV to the living room, where she spied Brad on the couch, half-dozing. He was the perfect victim. She crept to the couch and reached for his shorts. Before he could come around and realize what was happening, she\u2019d yanked them down and plunged her mouth down around his cock.<\/p>\n \u201cHuh? What the\u2014\u201c he stammered and nearly sat up.<\/p>\n The sight of his sister rabidly devouring his cock quickly relaxed him back into the couch with a groan, though, and his hand came to rest on her head.<\/p>\n \u201cGod,\u201d he breathed, \u201cI guess you were writing something kind of hot?\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas purred around his cock, which was quickly hardening under her skillful ministrations.<\/p>\n \u201cGuess I need to make sure you get in some writing every day,\u201d he said, then sighed and enjoyed the fantastic dick sucking.<\/p>\n She licked and sucked, coating his cock in a wet sheen as her hand gently squeezed his balls. Her little fantasy, still playing over in her head, had her pussy desperate for him. Still, she teased herself, waiting for the right time. It couldn\u2019t come soon enough. Brad, though, was cumming, and fast. She buried his cock in her throat, sealing her lips tight around his base, taking his first shot directly into her belly.<\/p>\n Brad quaked on the couch as he filled her up, firing off spurt after spurt of his cum into her. Christmas wondered when she\u2019d become such a cumslut, because she was loving it. The feel of those hot blasts of incestuous seed coating her throat only made her hotter, naughtier, and she found herself eager to get back to the keys and write up an intense blowjob scene. Maybe something with a facial.<\/p>\n It was then that she decided she wanted one herself. She\u2019d never done it for him, after all, and the idea was sexy and slutty. What would that be like? How hot and dirty would it be to take her brother\u2019s full load to the face, maybe even let him take a video of it? She could suck his cock again later, while he watched himself plaster her face with his semen. Damn it, she was hot! Maybe teasing herself for days was a failing proposition. She wanted it. Badly.<\/p>\n Brad\u2019s cock was spent now, but she continued sucking at it, intent on getting everything she could. There were still a few drops left. She made short work of those, finally releasing him and fighting the urge, again, to touch herself. She wanted to stay on this high, to be keyed up for tonight\u2019s gift.<\/p>\n She rose, shrugged off the robe to further tease Brad, and was delighted by his open-mouthed stare. She stretched loudly, cocking her hips from side-to-side playfully. He reached for her, but she batted his hand away and then threw the robe over his head. By the time he pulled it off, she was gone.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The workshop was actually a barn on the outskirts of the town, where each year volunteers gathered to assemble gift packages. All year, the townsfolk and charitable people from all over sent in gifts that would be assembled into packages that were, then, shipped back out to families in neighboring towns and cities. The entire effort took the kind of logistical planning and organization that required someone with money and sense. That person was Ernest Gale, Marcy\u2019s father.<\/p>\n Gale had earned his wealth through his trucking company, which later diversified into regional shipping across the Northeastern United States. Christmas, as with everyone in town, knew him on sight. The old man had nothing but a nice word to say to anyone and was, himself, in the workshop each day, right alongside the volunteers. How he\u2019d managed to raise a brat of a girl like Marcy was beyond Christmas\u2019 guess, but she supposed that Marcy was just his little girl. He had a hug for Christmas when she arrived.<\/p>\n \u201cHow are you, girl?\u201d he asked in his deep, gruff tone.<\/p>\n \u201cGreat, Mr. Gale.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRemind me to thank that brother of yours for the trading advice. He set me up pretty good.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas nodded, agreeing, though she didn\u2019t really know what he was on about. Brad\u2019s head for money and numbers was not something she\u2019d gotten. That had been their mother\u2019s thing. She\u2019d gotten the words from their father.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere can I pitch in?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n The old man looked around, spotted Marcy, and called her over. The rich girl finished packing a box, obviously displeased by the menial work, but ensnared in it by her sire, and walked over.<\/p>\n \u201cChris here needs a place to fill in. Why don\u2019t you set her up?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcy nodded and said, \u201cCome, mascot,\u201d snapping her fingers.<\/p>\n Christmas gritted her teeth and followed. Marcy walked her over to a large pile of merchandise, divided into two piles.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the pet toys will be perfect for you,\u201d Marcy said, grinning. \u201cThere are far more human toys, so this section is languishing. Now, there are two piles,\u201d she said, her pitch rising, as though instructing a child, \u201cOne is for kitties and one is for doggies. Just put one toy and one treat for each into the box, seal it up, and then put a little sticker with the right animal on it. Can you do that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt seems very complex, but I think I\u2019ll manage.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGood girl,\u201d Marcy said, and patted her head.<\/p>\n Christmas picked up a dog toy in the shape of a bone, handed it to her, and said, \u201cThis looks like an appropriate gift for a bitch. You seem like you could use a good bone.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcy scowled, reddened, then tightened her lips and stalked away. Pleased with herself, Christmas began packing the small boxes. It was boring work, but gratifying. Homeless pets needed Christmas cheer, too, after all.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n After four hours of packing the boxes, she felt like she\u2019d barely made a dent in the big piles. The two big stacks of finished packages, though, said otherwise. She gave a long stretch and then found Earnest.<\/p>\n \u201cMr. Gale,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n He turned.<\/p>\n \u201cCould I buy a small stack of the gifts for the shelter? I owe Diane a favor for making my dress,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n \u201cRight enough, honey,\u201d the big man said, nodding, \u201cTell you what. Do another hour and whatever you pack up in that time, you can haul over to the shelter. That good?\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cThank you,\u201d she said, and returned to the piles.<\/p>\n At the end of the hour, Kellen Miller helped her pack up her finished packages and put them into one of Mr. Gale\u2019s waiting semi trucks. Then they loaded the remainder she\u2019d done into her car.<\/p>\n \u201cSay, Chris,\u201d Kellen said, rubbing awkwardly at the back of his neck. Christmas knew what was coming. Inevitably, it was going to happen.<\/p>\n \u201cDo you suppose, I mean, if you aren\u2019t already going with someone,\u201d Kellen stammered, \u201cMaybe you\u2019d like to be my partner for the dance?\u201d<\/p>\n She leaned up and kissed his cheek, saying, \u201cYou\u2019re a sweetheart, Kel. If I was going with anyone, It\u2019d be you. I just\u2014\u201c she paused.<\/p>\n What was she? What was the right way to say no?\u2019<\/p>\n She resumed, \u201cI left some pretty complicated feelings back at school. I don\u2019t really want to get anymore right now. You understand, right?\u201d<\/p>\n Kellen nodded, blushing cutely, and said, \u201cYeah. Oh, yeah. I get you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou can have the first one, though,\u201d she added quickly, \u201cafter the pageant.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYeah! That\u2019s a deal, Chris,\u201d he agreed.<\/p>\n \u201cThanks for the hand with the boxes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n He nodded, and Christmas got into the car. She made the drive over to the shelter, which also served as the veterinarian\u2019s office. Inside, she found Mrs. Winslow at the desk. The veterinarian\u2019s wife looked up and smiled at her when she walked in.<\/p>\n \u201cLook at you all grown up,\u201d the woman said, rounding the desk and hugging her. \u201cWhat brings you in? Looking to adopt?\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas returned the embrace and said, \u201cNo. I brought some gifts by for the shelter. From Mr. Gale.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBless the man, but that\u2019s kind,\u201d the woman said, touched, \u201cLet me help you get them in. Dale\u2019s making the rounds and feeding right now.\u201d<\/p>\n The two of them hauled in the boxes and set them in the little lobby.<\/p>\n \u201cWill you stop in and help give them out when we do the Pick-a-Pet?\u201d Mrs. Winslow asked.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course!\u201d Christmas agreed.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n While she drove home, she called Brad.<\/p>\n \u201cGot any plans for dinner?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cNone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll stop in town and bring something back. Alright?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re the best!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know. Maybe you can thank me later?\u201d she teased.<\/p>\n \u201cGladly.\u201d<\/p>\n She brought home dinner, and they ate it in the little dining room, but as they dined Christmas looked at the empty chairs and remembered. Seven years, but not one of them passed without that feeling of missing pieces, the others that should have been around that table. It was never so obvious as at this time of year, when so many others were gathering with families, that she and Brad no longer had one. They had each other and two empty seats at a table.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is it?\u201d Brad asked, setting his food aside, intuiting her feeling from her expression.<\/p>\n \u201cCan we go visit them tomorrow?\u201d she asked, looking at the chairs.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course,\u201d he said and rounded the table, kissing her head. \u201cLet\u2019s grab a wreath in town and we can go whenever you want.\u201d<\/p>\n She nodded, squeezing his hand.<\/p>\n \u201cI think I\u2019m finished,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n She cleared the remains of the meal away quietly with Brad\u2019s help and, for a while, they lay on the couch together watching the holiday shows. As the evening wore on, she finally broke the silence.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know,\u201d she said, \u201cI had this really awesome gift for you tonight. If it\u2019s okay with you, though, I think I\u2019d just like you to hold me a while longer.\u201d<\/p>\n He held her tighter and said, \u201cAll you want. If you want to stay like this until we\u2019re old and gray, that\u2019s just fine with me.\u201d<\/p>\n In silence, they lay by the light of the fire, but the silence was not an awkward thing, she thought. It was perfect.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The drive out to the town cemetery was not a long one, and Hank\u2019s plows had kept the road free of snow. That was just like Hank, she thought, as Brad drove. Even though the road was rarely used, he considered the fact that people might want to drive out to look at headstones. She considered that, while the city had been a nice adventure, there really was nothing like a small town community. Even if it had a Marcy Gale.<\/p>\n Brad eased the car to the cemetery gates, where the plows had stopped, and the two of them left the heat of the vehicle. The cold seemed appropriate for such a place, Christmas thought, as she held Brad\u2019s hand and tromped through the snow. You wanted your loved ones to be resting in warmth and comfort, somewhere, but when you visited, you wanted it to feel miserable. At least, that was how she felt it should be.<\/p>\n She carried a Christmas wreath in one hand and they walked among the snow-capped tombstones, a hundred and more years of stories, those that had built the town into what it was today. Each of them, like her and Brad, was a piece of that workshop. It was like the barn, only they were giving the world their work and their words, the kind of gifts that would succeed them, like all those here, in the cold ground.<\/p>\n They found their parent\u2019s plots, side-by-side.<\/p>\n \u201cEileen and Mark Carol,\u201d they read, \u201cNever forgotten and always cherished in Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n On the top of the shared headstone, not quite as worn as all the rest, sat a poinsettia, fresh, green and red. Their mother\u2019s favorite. Christmas wondered who had put it there. She placed the wreath at the base of the stone and stood with Brad, hands intertwined, silently.<\/p>\n \u201cMerry Christmas dad, mom,\u201d she said to the stillness, \u201cI just got home from school. I wish you could have come down to see it. The south is a lot different from up here. Most of them haven\u2019t even seen snow. Christmas without snow? It wasn\u2019t even Christmas. Not the same, anyway. I got stranded on the road coming back, but Tommy Miller stopped and helped me make it home. I know that you\u2019re probably disappointed that I wasn\u2019t prepared, but Hank made sure I have a new spare and a jack in the trunk now. Brad\u2019s still taking good care of me. I\u2019m really grateful for him.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad put his arm around her shoulder and held her as she sniffled, wiped at her eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s never quite the same without you guys. You know, Christmas. I just hope that they have a huge tree in heaven, like the one here, and that it\u2019s\u2026\u201d she struggled, choked, \u201cand that it\u2019s like Christmas all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n The tears broke, cooling quickly in the wind\u2019s whip. She buried her face in Brad\u2019s chest and her heart swelled at the rush of gratitude for his arms around her, holding her like safety. He didn\u2019t say a word, which is exactly what she needed.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Though her passions had been cool throughout the day, after visiting their parents\u2019 graves, Christmas was running hot again by the next morning. She awoke before Brad, reluctant to leave the warmth of the blankets. The clock on the bedside table showed just after eight. With no urgent need to get up and around, she let herself enjoy Brad\u2019s arms around her and the soft sigh of his breath against her neck.<\/p>\n Not for the first time, she wanted nothing about this to be taboo. If two people were consenting, happy in their relationship, what was the harm in it? Alternative lifestyles were gaining support and acceptance all over the world. Familial relations, though? That was still a dirty thing.<\/p>\n Herself, she found nothing all that dirty about the feel of his bare chest against her, or anything wrong with his arm around her, holding her close and making her feel safe and loved. It was beautiful, and it was sweet. Had he been anyone else, no one observing the two of them in this moment would have given it a second thought. Instead, it was a secret that could ruin their lives.<\/p>\n That same secret, the nature of it, also made it hot and sexy. It was a weird dichotomy. The thing she wanted to be seen as normal would lose some of what made it erotic, if it had been normal. That was her life, though. Nothing about it was normal. They did not hold normal people up as the living embodiment of a town\u2019s spirit, just because of their name. Normal people didn\u2019t fall for their brother. Normal people didn\u2019t write erotic fantasies about it to sell to strangers while masquerading under an assumed name.<\/p>\n She shifted, turning over and dislodging Brad\u2019s hand, waking him in the process. Sleepily, he gave her a tired smile, which she kissed and snuggled closer. His hand went back around her and she enjoyed the moment, softly kissing him in the silence of the morning. Eventually, though, they had to go out and pretend.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to shower,\u201d she whispered, as though a normal voice would somehow break the magic.<\/p>\n \u201cYou want some company?\u201d Brad asked, sliding his hand down her back.<\/p>\n \u201cI do, but I won\u2019t have it. If you get in there with me, we\u2019re going to end up late. Tonight,\u201d she said, \u201cI owe you some gifts, since I was kind of a bummer the last few nights.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re never a bummer,\u201d Brad said. \u201cYou have a heart, and it\u2019s only part of what makes you beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n She kissed him again and flung back the blanket, groaning at the chill. While the cold was just part of being home, she thought that living in the south certainly had its perks.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Christmas Tree Grove was a cleared plot of land in the town\u2019s heart, nearby Christmas Green. Anyone who wanted to participate in the annual tree festival was welcome, paying a fee to the town, and then being provided with a tree to decorate. Tomorrow night, all those trees would be lit up and on display, like a forest of light and cheer.<\/p>\n The St. Mary\u2019s choir would sing, and visitors would cast their votes for a winner. That winner would have their photo taken with their tree, which would then be added to the town\u2019s records. The photos, going back a hundred years, were displayed in the Hall of Records, which sat next to City Hall. It was a point of local pride, one which was slowly being digitized and added to the town\u2019s website to share with the world. On New Year\u2019s Eve, they would burn the trees in yet another annual tradition, just one of those many days that made the town of Christmas what it was.<\/p>\n Brad pulled a sled, stacked with boxes of decorations and lights, along the snow toward their plot. Sasha, Leah, and Christmas all carried a box. After parking the sled by their bare tree, Brad went for a ladder, leaving the girls to unpack boxes and lay things out on a nearby tarp.<\/p>\n A few plots away, Christmas spied Marcy and her friends, who were already busy with their own. Mainly, their efforts comprised Jason decorating their tree, while the three girls gossiped, and occasionally handed him something. Christmas shook her head and wondered at Jason\u2019s fealty to the bitchy girls. She hoped he was at least getting laid by one of them for all the effort he put into them.<\/p>\n Naturally, Marcy\u2019s tree was topped with a gorgeous (and likely expensive) ivory angel that would certainly put her own trusty, weathered, golden star to shame. Of course, Marcy\u2019s tree was also the tallest.<\/p>\n \u201cProbably had Jason go out and chop that big fucker down all by himself,\u201d Leah said, following her gaze as she looked up at the ivory angel.<\/p>\n \u201cI imagine they tied a harness to him and made him drag it back, while Marcy whipped him like a reindeer,\u201d Sasha added.<\/p>\n Marcy noticed them staring and flashed them a superior smirk, leaned down, made a snowball, and then tossed it. It fell a little short. Christmas quickly made her own, launched it, and Marcy had to duck out of the way. A third struck Sasha on the shoulder, thrown by Julia. Leah gave Carry one that hit her square in the chest.<\/p>\n Within seconds, they were embroiled in a snowball fight that had them all ducking behind trees and shouting. Christmas dodged, ducked, and threw, pelting Julia in the back, but caught one from Carry on the shoulder, while she was distracted. She shrieked as the attention of all three opponents turned on her. Dodging skillfully, she heard Brad cry out in surprise as Marcy\u2019s snowball hit him in the face.<\/p>\n The flurry of snow stopped at once and Marcy looked embarrassed, shouting, \u201cSorry, Brad!\u201d from across the distance. Brad set the ladder down and wiped at his face, but waved back without a reply.<\/p>\n \u201cDamn it,\u201d he said, laughing, \u201cI leave you three alone for ten minutes and you start a war.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMarcy started it,\u201d Leah whined, \u201cWe were just defending our castle.\u201d<\/p>\n Brad opened the ladder and said, \u201cLet\u2019s get started!\u201d<\/p>\n Leah held the ladder for him as he climbed, and Sasha passed the first string of lights upward. He fastened the end on the top of the tree. Christmas looped it around the tree until the string ran out. She clipped the end, and then Brad moved the ladder around, attached a second string to the first, and continued the process.<\/p>\n The entire process took a couple of hours to complete, but Brad was finally satisfied that all the lighting was spaced correctly and secure. While the girls went to work on the lower part of the tree, hanging decorations, Brad worked on the top, while each of them took turns holding the ladder steady for him. At last, he topped it with the old, golden star. This little piece went back to the first years their family had moved into the town, and it was just as much a tradition as the rest of them.<\/p>\n Once it was finished, Brad plugged the lights into the outlet stand on their plot and watched it all come to life. He stood back, holding hands with Christmas and Sasha, while Leah held Sasha\u2019s other. In silence, they took in the finished project, pleased. Of course, Marcy\u2019s gorgeous tree seemed to outshine all the others. Christmas couldn\u2019t help but think their own looked like a Charlie Brown Christmas special next to it.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Brad\u2019s cock jumped at the sight of his sister in a set of Christmas red lingerie, crawling across the living room floor like a cat, while the fire danced behind her. After the whole day outside, decorating their tree and taking in the town with Sasha and Leah, that heat was more than welcome. Hotter still was the girl in red, who was now sliding her hands up his legs toward the waistband of his lounge pants.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, that is a gift I\u2019d like to unwrap every day,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n Christmas tugged at the pants and got them down. Brad stepped out of them and watched her as she stroked his cock with wide eyes. The lingerie had been a purchase before leaving school, and it made Christmas feel ridiculously sexy. By the reaction from her brother\u2019s cock, she could tell he felt the same.<\/p>\n \u201cDo you have your phone?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n He leaned over to the couch and picked it up.<\/p>\n \u201cI want you to record this,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cYou sure? That\u2019s\u2026 dangerous ground,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cHow many naked pictures of me do you have on it?\u201d she asked, grinning.<\/p>\n \u201cNone. I keep those on a drive on the computer. You know, for\u2026 posterity.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI sincerely doubt that our descendants will be interested in naked photos of me,\u201d she laughed. \u201cJust admit that you jerk off to them. That\u2019s way hotter.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOkay,\u201d he said, \u201cI jerked off to them. A lot.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRecord it,\u201d she said again.<\/p>\n He nodded and started. Christmas licked the length of his cock, staring up at the camera. She planted small kisses on it, toying with every inch with her lips. Brad held the phone steady, angled down at her, while she slowly licked and kissed it. Before long, she was sucking on the head, and then swallowing it, slowly swirling her tongue around it as she looked into the camera.<\/p>\n With only her mouth, she worshipped it like it was her God, making love to his erection with everything she had. Her half-lidded eyes showed pure joy at the action, as well as a barely concealed lust for him. She took him deep, held him there, massaged his cockhead with her throat, making his penis jerk. She wasn\u2019t counting the time, just enjoying pleasing him, the feel of his hot, hard length sexy. His growls and groans were like a dirty music, somehow hypnotic, tapping into that primal urge to satisfy him.<\/p>\n Her skillful sucking went on for a long while, while Brad recorded it, until she could feel him holding back his need. She increased her effort, sucking him faster, moaning around it like a hungry slut. The wet sound of her mouth around his cock seemed loud in the otherwise quiet room. Finally, he couldn\u2019t hold it back. Christmas pulled his cock from her mouth and stroked it wetly, and then he gasped as the first explosion of cum streaked across her face. She flinched at the blast and moaned hotly, then took the second on her tongue. A third coated her lips.<\/p>\n \u201cSo sexy,\u201d Brad sighed, \u201cFuck, you\u2019re so hot, Chris!\u201d<\/p>\n She let him empty himself onto her face, flushed and hot at taking her first incestuous facial. She sealed her lips around his cock again and drained him, polishing it clean as she looked into the camera with ropes of cum decorating her face.<\/p>\n Once she had him drained, she scooped the cum from her face with her fingers and sucked them noisily for the camera, saying, breathily, between sucks, \u201cI love my brother\u2019s cum. I want to suck my brother\u2019s cock for him every day.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n For a town with a population just over 5,000, Christmas had a surprising number of homeless animals. Christmas, Sasha, and Leah were wet and dirty in the back of the shelter, helping to wash and dry dogs. It was like an assembly line. While Christmas and Leah bathed the dogs, Sasha dried off a finished one with a towel, then passed it along to Mrs. Winslow who went at the excited animals with a hair dryer. That done, they moved along to Mr. Winslow, who gave them each a bow.<\/p>\n As she washed the dogs, Christmas got a small twinge of satisfaction at watching Marcy struggle with putting bows on the cats. The rich girl, obviously disgusted at having to do this year after year, fortunately had little say in the matter. Mr. Gale wouldn\u2019t hear of her skipping out on it. Christmas knew Marcy had also gone away to school in Northern Michigan, and she wondered why she didn\u2019t just come after all the jobs she hated doing were over. Likely, this too had something to do with her father.<\/p>\n Right now, Marcy was having particular trouble with a feisty cat, who was not at all happy about the bow and was hissing his displeasure at Marcy for her repeated attempts to put it around his neck. Christmas finished rinsing her current dog, a friendly little thing, and passed him along to Sasha. The cheerful dog wagged his tail as she toweled him off, then sent him on to the hair dryer, which he was not as fond of.<\/p>\n The entire process took up the morning, after which the four girls finished decorating the shelter for the coming visitors. Christmas set a stack of animal gifts next to the front door, through which people would file, and then take the gifts to give to the animals. It was silly, and it was cute, just as most things were in Christmas at Christmas.<\/p>\n The pick-a-pet was another well-known tradition and was just as popular in the area. For a month before the event, Mrs. Winslow was advertising it on the town\u2019s website, and even traveling to nearby towns and cities to post flyers. The woman\u2019s dedication to placing pets in homes was admirable, she thought. Christmas, herself, had resisted the repeated attempts of Mrs. Winslow to get her to adopt for many years.<\/p>\n Just after nine, the doors of the shelter opened to the public and Christmas could already tell that Mrs. Winslow\u2019s advertising had been successful. At least two dozen vehicles were already outside, waiting. Leah and Christmas stood by the doors and welcomed in singles, couples, and parents with children, both local and out-of-towners. Each of them received a present, and either Marcy, Julia, or Carry would show them toward the back of the shelter.<\/p>\n The sounds of happy dogs barking reached them at the front throughout the day. Mrs. Winslow would occasionally fill out paperwork at the desk with an adoptee, and then the new owner would leave with a rescued pet. Each time it happened, Christmas felt a small glow and a brief pang of sadness. Having spent the entire morning around all the dogs, it was difficult not to like them all. Each year she\u2019d done this, it was also a struggle not to take one home. The happy tails wagging as the dogs were carried out or walked away on leashes, wearing the bows and carrying a toy in their mouths, or the meowing of cheerful cats, was just another little reason that she found to love her home.<\/p>\n The event lasted into the early evening, before the influx of people had died away. The shelter had sent thirty animals to new homes and Mrs. Winslow was ebullient. Even Marcy looked happy about the result. Mrs. Winslow, before closing the shelter for the night, signed papers for one further adoption, and Christmas watched as Marcy left with the troublesome cat.<\/p>\n \u201cI guess troublesome pussy attracts troublesome pussy,\u201d Leah muttered and Sasha giggled.<\/p>\n The three of them left together and drove back into town. They met Brad in town for a quick dinner, before walking down Main to Christmas Tree Grove to light their tree. A light snow fell as they chattered and nodded to passersby along the sidewalks. The entire town was alight with color and life. Visitors and locals both, old friends and new, strolled the sidewalks and dined in the restaurants. Through the shop windows, she saw lines of gift buyers supporting the town with purchases.<\/p>\n No matter how many times she walked down this street, in the heat of summer, the rain of spring, the chill of autumn, or the cold of winter, there was a feeling of warmth and invitation. There might be chaos in the rest of the world, just as there had been chaos and distance in the big city, but here in Christmas there was friendship and\u2026 family.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know I love you guys, right?\u201d she blurted, and took Sasha and Leah\u2019s hands, then looked over her shoulder at Brad and said, \u201cYou\u2019re alright, too.\u201d<\/p>\n He grinned. The three of them swung their hands back and forth.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah,\u201d Sasha said, \u201cThere\u2019s nothing like Christmas in Christmas, especially when you get to spend it with Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAre we, like, gonna go lez out together now?\u201d Leah asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t love you that much,\u201d Christmas said, \u201cBut I\u2019d totally let you do me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou three are gonna melt the snow with that talk,\u201d Brad cut in.<\/p>\n Christmas stuck out her tongue at him. They entered Christmas Tree Grove, where Brad refused to light their tree without a proper drumroll. They relented and watched him plug in the lights, then clapped as it lit up in the dark, alongside the others.<\/p>\n They walked among the trees, looking at the work of all the other participants. The Tree Festival had drawn quite a crowd and continued to attract more passersby as they walked through the town and enjoyed the holiday atmosphere. Each of the trees had a ticket dispenser planted in the ground. As they walked, each of them picked their favorite. Finally, they came to Marcy\u2019s tree. Christmas supposed it was actually Jason\u2019s tree, seeing as he\u2019d done most of the work, but the result was gorgeous. She peeled off a ticket, noting that many had already been taken.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re not!\u201d Sasha gasped.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d she said, \u201cI mean, look at it. It\u2019s like a rocket flame next to a candle!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re going to make Marcy\u2019s head bigger than her boobs,\u201d Leah whined.<\/p>\n \u201cHer boobs aren\u2019t that big,\u201d Christmas said. \u201cI\u2019m pretty sure her ego is already bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut, like, her stupid face is going to hang in the Hall of Records for a million years. Do you really want that to be your contribution to history?\u201d Leah asked.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it\u2019s an honest one, then she deserves it,\u201d Christmas said, shrugging.<\/p>\n They continued walking, dropping their tickets in the box for tallying. Finally, they parted ways for the night and Christmas rode home with Brad. Dealing with the animals most of the day had taken her energy, and she dozed on Brad\u2019s shoulder, in the bench seat of his truck. At home, he carried her up the walk as she giggled tiredly, and even up the stairs, where he put her into bed. She was asleep before he even turned out the lights.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Brad stood in front of the bedroom door, blocking her way in the morning.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re not leaving this room until you\u2019ve ridden my face to an orgasm,\u201d he said, smirking.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a hell of a demand,\u201d she said, grinning back, \u201cAlright, but you better be very skillful with that tongue. I need to help decorate the float.\u201d<\/p>\n She squeaked as he lifted her over his shoulder and deposited her back on the bed. Unnecessary, she thought, but fun. Brad lay on his back while Christmas climbed on top of him and pressed her hot pussy to his mouth. His hands covered her bottom, gripping her cheeks and pulling her down. His tongue slipped easily through the moistness of her slit, making her gasp at the pleasure of it.<\/p>\n \u201cDoes your little sister taste sexy?\u201d she teased as she slowly rocked herself on his tongue.<\/p>\n Brad hummed into her as she used him, cupping her breast in one hand and putting her other against the wall for balance. Her legs shook as she held herself up and closed her eyes, focusing on the rhythm, letting the pleasure build. Goddamn, his tongue was fucking magic. He held her and ground it against her clit, drawing out her orgasm in a furious rush of panting ecstasy that had her quaking with the release. Even after it was over, he kept at her and she didn\u2019t have the will to deny him a second one.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n In just two days, the town would hold the Christmas parade, a showy display of floats and music. While Christmas parades were a common thing, the town drew quite a crowd purely from its name. The influx of visitors would nearly double on this day alone, before it thinned in the days leading up to Christmas Eve. Christmas herself, along with the other girls taking part in the pageant, would find themselves on the floats in their dresses, a sort of preview before the pageant itself.<\/p>\n Other volunteers had been making headway on the floats over the last week, but the work never seemed to end. Christmas found Sasha and Leah already at work on one of the floats. Sasha was stapling a length of long tinsel down the edge of one float, which sat atop a flat trailer. Leah, meanwhile, stood on the top of the float, attaching glittering stars. To the side stood a display of nativity figurines that would be mounted on the top at the end.<\/p>\n \u201cLook who decided to show up!\u201d Sasha said, standing and popping her back.<\/p>\n \u201cSorry,\u201d Christmas apologized, \u201cI overslept.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou can help me layer this tinsel,\u201d Sasha said, handing her a staple gun and a length of tinsel.<\/p>\n Across the barn, Christmas saw Marcy and her friends working on a massive, glowing monument to holiday cheer. The gigantic float was built on top of a long trailer, likely provided by Mr. Gale for his little girl. They\u2019d covered the huge thing in glittering red and green, streaked with gold and silver. Waiting to be mounted on top were three chairs, which Christmas could only have described as thrones. One of these, naturally, was far more elaborate than the other two.<\/p>\n Christmas could already guess who would be seated on that throne. She did not see one for Jason, though, and imagined him standing at the side of the three women, waiting to serve. Around the barn were two other floats for the other pageant girls, each of them equipped for three women.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you performing for the pageant?\u201d Sasha asked as they worked.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing special,\u201d Christmas answered.<\/p>\n \u201cDancing? Singing? You don\u2019t play an instrument.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChris doesn\u2019t have to dance or sing,\u201d Leah called down. \u201cShe just gets to wave and win.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI wrote a poem,\u201d she said, \u201cand I\u2019m not some guaranteed win. You two need to stop that. You have a long line of admirers. It\u2019s your own fault for fixating on the ones you can\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s with your brother, anyway?\u201d Sasha asked. \u201cHe\u2019s a super hunk, but he doesn\u2019t even show the slightest interest in anyone. Woman or man.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas shrugged, fired a staple into the float, and said, \u201cDiscussing my brother\u2019s sex life isn\u2019t high on my list of priorities.\u201d<\/p>\n She felt a hot flush as she said it, remembering the feel of his tongue making her cum only a short time ago.<\/p>\n \u201cI heard Kellen Miller asked you to the dance,\u201d Sasha said, \u201cand that you turned him down.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow did you hear that?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s been moping about it for a couple days,\u201d Sasha explained.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not ready to jump in and get involved with anyone, and that\u2019s what Kellen\u2019s after,\u201d Christmas said, then asked, \u201cWho are you going with?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going solo,\u201d Sasha said sadly. \u201cIf it\u2019s not Brad, then I\u2019ll just die alone. Woe is me,\u201d she lamented.<\/p>\n The words stung Christmas. It was not as though she could change her own feelings, or Brad\u2019s, nor Sasha\u2019s. It was just\u2026 hurtful, she guessed, to be something that stood in the way of her friend being happy.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about you?\u201d Sasha called up to Leah.<\/p>\n \u201cKristine Marks,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cReally?\u201d Christmas said. \u201cI thought she and Liz were a thing?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot for, like, over a year. Us lesbos are a pretty small pool in Christmas, so I do not<\/em> have a long line of admirers.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about Megan?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n Leah shook her head. \u201cMoved to New York. You know,\u201d she mused, \u201cmaybe we should just start a little femme commune. Since there\u2019s only five of us and we\u2019ve all been with each other anyway, it wouldn\u2019t be too weird. Would it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEverything you do is weird,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing weird about what this tongue can do,\u201d Leah said, grinning.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll take your word for it,\u201d Sasha said, laughing.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about you, Chris? Wanna stretch your lesbian legs?\u201d Leah joked.<\/p>\n \u201cSorry, honey. I like my lovers gruff, muscular, dark-haired and with different plumbing,\u201d Christmas said.<\/p>\n \u201cLike Brad,\u201d Sasha sighed, wistfully.<\/p>\n How right you are, Christmas thought, hiding a blush.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n With only a stop for lunch, the girls finished their float late in the afternoon. Once again, they met with Brad for dinner in town before the announcement of the Tree Festival winner. The streets were even more packed than the previous night, as were the shops and restaurants. They managed to get a table for the four of them at Lexington\u2019s, an upscale Italian place that had become a town favorite since Bruce Lexington and his wife had moved in a decade ago.<\/p>\n While they waited for their food, Christmas felt Brad\u2019s hand on her leg beneath the table. Sasha and Leah bantered about their guesses for the Tree Festival winner, but Christmas suddenly felt very hot. Brad\u2019s hand crept between her legs, boldly, and she parted them, giving him a glare but doing nothing to stop him. Quite the opposite. Her body seemed to want to encourage him to touch her dangerously.<\/p>\n His fingers pressed against her pussy through her jeans, and she felt a flush in her cheeks. Damn it! She\u2019d been teasing them both for too long. He was getting impatient and in a risky way. She tried to ignore him and pretended to listen to Sasha and Leah, but the distraction of her brother rubbing her pussy in public wasn\u2019t making it easy. Finally, she had to stand and excuse herself.<\/p>\n \u201cYou okay?\u201d Brad asked, a hint of a smile on his face. \u201cYou look a little flushed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m fine. Just a little warm.\u201d<\/p>\n She splashed cold water on her face in the restroom and took a minute to breathe. Damn him, she thought. It was wicked, and it was cruel, but she couldn\u2019t deny the flutter in her stomach at the risk. Too risky, though. Composed, she returned to the table. Brad did not attempt to tease her again.<\/p>\n After dinner, and with the sun going down, the four of them stood in Christmas Green. The town\u2019s massive tree was alight and beautiful, with carolers singing as people assembled for the results. Nearby, Christmas spotted Marcy, who was holding and stroking the cat in her arms. The animal was wearing a little sweater. Apparently, they\u2019d gotten over their differences.<\/p>\n On his way to the tree, Mayor Tinsley, dressed in his Santa costume, stopped next to Christmas. She sighed, already knowing what was coming. It was time for him to trot out the mascot.<\/p>\n \u201cCould father Christmas convince you to read the results?\u201d he asked, grinning.<\/p>\n \u201cHow could I refuse?\u201d she asked sarcastically.<\/p>\n Tinsley took her hand in his mitten, and they walked to the front of the crowd, who clapped for her and whistled. Marcy did not.<\/p>\n \u201cHo, ho, ho!\u201d Tinsley laughed, \u201cMerry Christmas!\u201d<\/p>\n The crowd made the customary reply.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Tree Festival,\u201d he said, \u201chas its roots in the town\u2019s founding,\u201d he paused to allow for the obligatory chuckle at the pun, \u201cThis year, I am pleased to announce that we\u2019ve received a record donation of $9,800!\u201d<\/p>\n The crowd clapped again, and Christmas joined them.<\/p>\n \u201cFor over one hundred years, the town of Christmas has celebrated the holiday with a festival of light. We\u2019re blessed to be a town of tradition, and to have neighbors that love it almost as much as the people who live here. Every entrant has put love and care into their tree, adding their unique light to that of the others. To announce the winning entry, we have our own town\u2019s namesake, Christmas Carol!\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas gave the crowd a wave and received a further round of applause. How quickly, she wondered, would those claps turn to jeers, had they only known the truth? She dismissed the thought and held up the envelope containing the entry. Tinsley unclipped his microphone and clipped it to her coat.<\/p>\n \u201cThe winner of this year\u2019s Tree Festival is\u2026\u201d she paused and opened the envelope, read it, and announced excitedly, \u201cMarcy Gale!\u201d<\/p>\n The assembled crowd applauded, and Marcy turned to wave, holding the cat in one arm. Christmas handed the microphone back to the mayor.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you, Christmas,\u201d he said, \u201cand congratulations Marcy! If you\u2019ll join your tree, we\u2019ll have it recorded for the Hall of Records. As long as Christmas stands, your effort will light the holidays.\u201d<\/p>\n More like Jason\u2019s effort, Christmas thought, but did not voice it. Instead, she slunk away to rejoin Brad and the girls.<\/p>\n \u201cWell done,\u201d Brad said.<\/p>\n \u201cInspiring,\u201d Sasha remarked.<\/p>\n \u201cBrought a tear to my eye,\u201d Leah added.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, be quiet,\u201d Christmas said.<\/p>\n Together, they watched Marcy depart to have her photo taken with the tree.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Christmas came to bed naked, watching Brad\u2019s eyes watch her as she slid beneath the covers. She yawned and spooned into him, wiggling her ass against his cock teasingly.<\/p>\n \u201cGood night,\u201d she said and shut her eyes.<\/p>\n A moment later, the light clicked off and Brad\u2019s hand went around her. A second later, the hand was roaming across her skin.<\/p>\n \u201cYou were very naughty tonight,\u201d she said into the dark.<\/p>\n He chuckled and continued roaming until he found one of her breasts and cupped it.<\/p>\n \u201cThat was dangerous,\u201d she said. \u201cWe can\u2019t do that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes it\u2019s hard to help myself,\u201d he said into her ear, kissing her neck.<\/p>\n \u201cI can forgive you, because you\u2019re sweet,\u201d she said and turned over to kiss him.<\/p>\n The remembered feeling of his fingers pressing into her sex so brazenly in the restaurant had kept her hot all evening. She took his hand from her hip and moved it to her pussy, parting her legs for him, encouraging him to touch it. His fingers caressed her folds, found them wet and warm. The sensation made him growl into her mouth as he rubbed her slit.<\/p>\n Christmas purred happily and ran her fingers into his hair. His touch was skillful and soft, drawing forth her arousal and making her push her pussy against his fingers. Her slick honey coated them, made it easy for him to push them into her. She squeaked pleasantly at their entry and arched her back. Releasing his mouth, she lay back and let him play with her.<\/p>\n Brad\u2019s mouth found her breast and his tongue flicked one of her nipples lightly, then beat a rhythm on it that made her tingle. Occasionally, he\u2019d suck it into his mouth, while his fingers sawed into her sex, pushing upwards and against her spot, making her buck with the sensation. Then, he\u2019d pull them back out and rub her clit while he continued to toy with her breast.<\/p>\n \u201cYes\u2026\u201d she moaned quietly, as his fingers pushed back into her, filling her up, opening her to his touch.<\/p>\n Brad worked them easily in and out of her now, the friction building her up. His hand rubbed firmly against her clit as he moved them in and out of her faster, harder, all the while keeping time on her nipple. Her breath came in soft gasps, punctuated with delirious giggles as the pleasure intensified, until it was a wave of ardent desire that she couldn\u2019t fight.<\/p>\n Her hand released the grip on the sheet and found his cock, held it, stroked it, and then gripped it as she came. He kissed her again, hard, as if sucking the pleasure out of her as her body jerked, all the while keeping that pleasurable stroke up on her pussy. Damn him for being so good at it, she thought. How was she going to hold out for four more nights of this?<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Brad and Christmas arrived at the carefully laid out Christmas Olympic Grounds just outside of town, early in the morning. The silly competition benefited both the locals and the visitors. For the locals, the prizes were purely for esteem. The town\u2019s standings and records went back just over fifty years, cataloging the winners of such events as sledding, ski races, ice skating races, snowman building contests, and other silly sports. For the visitors, they gave prizes out as gift certificates for local businesses, an encouragement to spend further dollars in the local economy.<\/p>\n Christmas signed herself up for a sled race and ice skating race, then accepted hot chocolate from Harry Linkman, who had set up a table with snacks and hot drinks. The first round of racers trudged up the steep slope of Mount Christmas, little more than a high hill, but the largest one around town. Taking up her saucer sled, she paired off against one of Marcy\u2019s cohorts, Julia, for the first race. They settled in at the starting line. At the bottom of the hill, she could see Brad and Mayor Tinsley, stopwatches in hand.<\/p>\n Tommy Miller, the youngest of the Miller boys and her roadside savior, stood ready to count down. The Mayor waved a red flag, showing readiness. Christmas pulled her scarf tight over her face and cinched down her hat, then placed her gloved hands in the snow. Tommy counted down from five and then blew on his whistle. The racers shoved off, rocketing down the slope with a whoop. Legs first, Christmas leaned back, and the sled picked up speed. The meltwater was perfect today, and the lubricated bottom of the saucer slid easily over it, bouncing over the bumps as she held the straps.<\/p>\n Julia\u2019s sled did a spin as it leapt over a large mound of tightly packed snow, but she recovered, and they were nearly even a second later. Christmas leaned further, but misjudged just how far. The sled hit another large bump, and she shrieked as it flipped backward, sending her rolling a few feet down the hill as the saucer sped away, riderless. She heard Julia cackle at her misfortune. A series of groans reached her from top and bottom, then a chorus of cheers as she got to her feet and waved.<\/p>\n A further round of cheers accompanied Julia\u2019s crossing of the finish line. Marcy, Jason, and Carry surrounded her, all of them congratulating her on the win. Christmas trudged down the rest of the hill, retrieved the sled, and then made her way over. Grudgingly, she put out her hand.<\/p>\n \u201cNice finish,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Julia looked at her hand, then took it, but said nothing. Honor satisfied, Christmas trudged back to stand with the rest of the observers. Sasha handed her cocoa.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re not going down?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m up at the end.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas walked away and, for a while, watched the children building snowmen, then caught the second round of ice skaters, then returned to the sleds. Leah had won the second round. The competition dwindled down until Julia ended with the prize, beating out Marcy and cementing her place in the town\u2019s rankings for the year.<\/p>\n Just after snacks for lunch, Christmas faced off against Marcy in an ice skating race across the lake. This heat would put one of them in the semi-finals. They shook hands at the starting bank and waited. The whistle blew, and the two of them pushed off. Knees bent and leaning forward, Christmas stroked across the frozen lake. She already knew, from previous years, that Marcy\u2019s victory was practically assured. While a competent skater herself, she\u2019d never had the knack for it that Marcy had.<\/p>\n Marcy quickly took a lead on her, then pulled ahead. She stroked and Marcy swizzled, just for show, casting a quick glance back at her and smirking beneath her helmet. Christmas cringed and pushed harder, gaining, but still behind. Overcome with her superiority, Marcy then made a flourish that Christmas knew was potentially disastrous from the moment she saw it coming. Marcy should have known better, but she was feeling arrogant and untouchable.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t!\u201d she shouted, but Marcy had already done it.<\/p>\n She did a Salchow, taking off from the back inside edge of one skate, intending to land on the back outside edge of the other. It was showy, and it was stupid. It was Marcy. Marcy completed the jump perfectly, and if this had been a figure skating competition, she\u2019d have earned some marks. The landing, though, resulted in a loud crack that made Christmas skid to a stop. Marcy shrieked, and then Marcy was gone.<\/p>\n Christmas had only time to blink as the girl went through the ice. She heard shouts and cries from either bank. Quickly, she sat, tugged at her laces, and tossed the skates. She crawled on her belly toward the hole that Marcy had vanished through.<\/p>\n \u201cChris!\u201d she heard Brad, Sasha, and Leah all shouting.<\/p>\n She approached the hole, her heart hammering, looked about quickly, then sucked in a breath. You didn\u2019t live in a winter town and not get lessons in what to do when you fell through ice, but it hadn\u2019t happened as long as she\u2019d been alive. Still, the old lessons came back, the same lessons that Marcy should have known. She only hoped that Marcy had remembered the ones about cold shock better than the one about not jumping on an icy lake while wearing heavy skates.<\/p>\n Bracing herself for the shock, she went through the hole. The frozen water was an immediate and paralyzing thing, her body telling her to breathe rapidly as her blood pressure and adrenaline surged. She fought the reaction with a mental effort, looked up to where the sunlight fell through the hole in the ice. Marcy, to her credit, hadn\u2019t panicked as badly as Christmas thought. She was kicking her way up, but the skates were making it difficult, nearly impossible. Getting them off, though, was equally impossible.<\/p>\n Christmas gauged that about a minute had passed since she went under, meaning the cold shock was just beginning to wear off. Still, there wasn\u2019t much time. Just a small drop in body temperature and they were in real danger. She kicked down, reached for Marcy, and grabbed her hand, yanking her up. Together, they kicked toward the surface until they reached it. Submerged, she pushed Marcy upward, her muscles wanting to seize up. Marcy scrabbled up and over the ice, rolling away, shaking.<\/p>\n Christmas broke the surface and gasped, clawed at the ice, and then Marcy was helping to drag her over. Marcy\u2019s entire body trembled. Christmas, not much better off, pushed her away from the hole until she felt confident that they were out of danger from falling back through. She gathered the other girl up, hauled her to her feet, and dragged her toward the bank, where paramedics were already making their own way out onto the ice.<\/p>\n Two of them each took one girl and threw blankets around them, hurrying them toward an ambulance to get them out of their clothes and start warming them up. Brad and her friends were jabbering, but it was just noise. Goddamn it but she\u2019d never felt so cold. A moment later, she was in an ambulance and they were both being stripped of their clothes. The vehicle began to move, sirens blaring, speeding away.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Christmas thought that just about anything, even being in a frozen lake, was preferable to laying in a bed, silently, next to Marcy. The upside, and it was a big upside, was that she was finally, blessedly warm. Having successfully staved off hypothermia, she was now sharing a room with Marcy, whose teeth were still chattering from reflex. It was the only sound in the room and had been for several minutes now that the nurses were gone.<\/p>\n \u201cChris,\u201d Marcy finally said.<\/p>\n \u201cDid you actually just use my name?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2026 know I can be kind of a bitch,\u201d Marcy said quietly.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t say it,\u201d Christmas replied.<\/p>\n \u201cJust\u2026 thanks,\u201d Marcy said.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I couldn\u2019t exactly claim victory by default,\u201d Christmas said. \u201cYou\u2019re welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ll probably pin a fucking medal on you for this,\u201d Marcy said bitterly.<\/p>\n Christmas fumed, then snapped.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the fuck is your deal, anyway?\u201d she spat.<\/p>\n \u201cLike I said, I can be kind of a bitch. You\u2019re just\u2026 everyone loves you,\u201d Marcy said. \u201cThey love you because of your name, and because you\u2019re\u2013\u2013\u201d she stopped, shut her mouth.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m what? The poor little orphan girl? I don\u2019t have money and they still like me?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n Marcy stayed quiet.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know,\u201d Christmas said, \u201cI did not ask to be named fucking Christmas Carol. What a stupid name. Especially in a town obsessed with Christmas. No one asked my opinion about being some informal town mascot, just because of a dumb name. Yeah, I get treated special because of it, but do you ever see me trying to get recognition for it? I avoid it. Whatever your jealousy or\u2026 I don\u2019t know what it is. It\u2019s not because of me. That\u2019s all you, honey.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcy remained quiet for a minute as Christmas stewed, her brief anger cooling.<\/p>\n \u201cI deserve that,\u201d Marcy said, finally. \u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cApology fucking accepted,\u201d Christmas said.<\/p>\n A moment later, Marcy laughed, and then Christmas joined in.<\/p>\n \u201cNice Salchow, by the way,\u201d Christmas said, as the giggles died.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n On leaving the little town hospital, Sasha, Leah, and Brad met Christmas. Julia, Jason and Carry were, likewise, waiting for Marcy. Each of them was embraced by their band, but by some unspoken agreement, they faced each other down. Christmas took the first step, Marcy the second, and then they hugged each other. Astonished looks showed on the faces of everyone else.<\/p>\n \u201cMerry Christmas, Chris,\u201d Marcy said as they broke away.<\/p>\n \u201cDid she just use her name?\u201d Leah whispered and caught an elbow from Sasha.<\/p>\n \u201cYou, too,\u201d Christmas said, and they parted ways.<\/p>\n As she rejoined Brad and the girls, he said, \u201cI guess Christmas miracles really do happen.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI suppose they do,\u201d Christmas agreed.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, you\u2019re not gonna go all icicle on us?\u201d Sasha asked.<\/p>\n \u201cWarm and friendly as ever,\u201d Christmas remarked, \u201cbut if you don\u2019t mind, I\u2019m going to spend the entire night in front of the fucking fireplace.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll be right there, too,\u201d Leah said, brooking no argument.<\/p>\n \u201cThat was the stupidest, bravest thing I\u2019ve ever seen,\u201d Sasha said. \u201cYou\u2019re the talk of the town once again.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFantastic,\u201d she said, grimacing.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The last thing that Christmas wanted was to be cold again, but since she and Marcy had made it through their swim without ill effects, she supposed that a few hours on a float would not kill her. It had been strange, sleeping in her own bed, alone. What felt stranger, though, was going into her parents\u2019 old room to wake Sasha and Leah, who had insisted on staying the entire night.<\/p>\n It was convenient, in a way, as the three of them were due to get their hair done for the parade and for the following night\u2019s pageant. She\u2019d missed the feeling of sleeping next to Brad\u2019s warmth, though, and not just because of the cold. Now, she crept into the room in the pre-dawn and slipped under the covers between the two of them. Both of them groaned at the disturbance and then shrieked when she yanked back the blanket, and the chill of the morning forced them into wakefulness.<\/p>\n \u201cNo!\u201d Sasha cried, \u201cToo early!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJust five more minutes,\u201d Leah mumbled, groping blindly for the blanket.<\/p>\n \u201cGet up,\u201d Christmas demanded, \u201cquick showers and then it\u2019s time to get gorgeous.\u201d<\/p>\n The two of them sighed dramatically but slowly got out of the bed.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The atmosphere of getting ready for the morning with her two friends brought back memories of the house she\u2019d shared with the girls in college. There was pleasant banter and too many bodies in the bathroom. Even though it was early, there seemed to be no time to get ready. While Leah and Sasha made coffee, Christmas snuck quietly into Brad\u2019s room and kissed him.<\/p>\n He tugged her down into bed with him and, for a moment, she let him hold her there and kiss her again. His hands wandered over her body, though, and she knew that if he continued, she\u2019d be sucking him off, with her friends waiting downstairs. Also, she would be late for their appointment.<\/p>\n \u201cStop it!\u201d she said, breaking away, \u201clater! I have to go make myself pretty.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cToo late for that. You were born that way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cFlattery will get you everywhere. I\u2019ll see you in town, from atop a float.\u201d<\/p>\n She quickly shut the door, went down, and accepted hot coffee from Leah.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Every hairdresser in town had a full morning, with twelve pageant girls to work on. While she had hers styled, Christmas wondered if Marcy had her own stylist, or used someone in town. At the end of the affair, she was in love with the results. Her black hair looked shinier than ever, smooth like silk. Sasha\u2019s golden locks were curled cutely all the way down, while Leah\u2019s fiery red was straightened, but ended in bouncy curls that were adorable.<\/p>\n The three of them braved the cold and walked down Main to Dressed by Diane, where they took their finished dresses, before driving over to the barn containing the parade floats. The place was a bustle of activity, all the floats having been pulled out of the barn and lined up, attached to trucks. They indulged in quick snacks and hot drinks before getting prepared.<\/p>\n While the three of them ate, Marcy, along with Julia and Carry, approached. Even bitchy girls could look amazing with the right styling, Christmas thought, taking in Marcy\u2019s blonde, Julia\u2019s brown, and Carry\u2019s black. Christmas set her plate aside.<\/p>\n \u201cChris,\u201d Marcy said meekly, \u201cI\u2026 I want you to take our float. The three of you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d Christmas asked, genuinely curious.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat you did for me,\u201d Marcy said, \u201cthose skates were weighing me down. If you hadn\u2019t come in, I don\u2019t know that I would have made it out. I was showing off, and I was stupid. I just think\u2026 you know,\u201d she smiled, but warmly, \u201cthe town mascot should be on that float.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas shook her head and said, \u201cThank you, but I can\u2019t. You guys put in the work on that thing. It\u2019s not about who\u2019s on the best float. And it is the best one. It\u2019s about the town and season. I don\u2019t care what float I\u2019m riding. I just want to be part of what we all have here.\u201d<\/p>\n There was silence for a moment and then Carry asked, \u201cWhy are you just so goddamned\u2026 good?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a gift,\u201d Leah cut in.<\/p>\n \u201cA Christmas gift,\u201d Sasha added.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you,\u201d Marcy said, and it was the most genuine thing Christmas had ever heard from her.<\/p>\n The three of them walked away.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if I like this,\u201d Sasha said. \u201cI can\u2019t get used to a nice Marcy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI almost hope it doesn\u2019t last,\u201d Leah said. \u201cIf Marcy can turn into a nice girl, it means I might end up straight someday. It doesn\u2019t bode well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAll those years,\u201d Christmas said, \u201cand all we had to do was rescue her from the brink of death to earn her approval. Life could have been so much easier had we only known.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n All her life, Christmas had stood next to Sasha and Leah in the streets. She\u2019d been part of the crowd, watching the parade floats go by, looking up at the girls on top of them as they waved to the crowd. They wore gorgeous dresses of red, green and gold. They had jewelry that glittered in the winter sun. All that time, she\u2019d waited for her own chance to be one of them.<\/p>\n Then she\u2019d gone away. Sasha and Leah had been part of it during the years she\u2019d been gone. They\u2019d sent her pictures. Sasha had been pageant queen for one of those years. Today, it was her turn to ride a float. Wearing the sexy, glittering green dress, and with a fur wrap around her, Christmas mounted the steps to the top of the float to join Leah and Sasha.<\/p>\n They sat on the top as the truck rumbled across the grass, pulling out onto the main road and creeping its way down the street to its starting position in the line. They watched the others do likewise, Marcy\u2019s big float bringing up the rear. Once all the vehicles were in line, the various sections of the high school band filed in between them. At the head of the procession, Mayor Tinsley, in his sleigh, waited for the signal.<\/p>\n From somewhere within the workings of the line, the signal came. The beating of drums from up ahead reached them on top of the float, and Christmas watched as the Santa\u2019s sleigh moved. The driver urged the reindeer on; the drums beat time, and a moment later their float crept slowly forward. In the distance, Christmas could see the streets lined with spectators, both townsfolk and visitors.<\/p>\n Their job was not a difficult one. The three of them simply stood and waved to the crowds, who cheered, whistled, and clapped. The floats rolled slowly through the streets, while Tinsley bellowed out his silly laughter from ahead. Christmas couldn\u2019t help but feel a bit like a princess, standing high above the crowds, fulfilling that childhood fantasy. Below, she could see the many little girls where she\u2019d once stood, looking up at her with that same dream in their eyes, their mouths wide and smiling as they waved back to her.<\/p>\n The procession wound through the streets, packed on all sides. From her vantage, it seemed like everyone in the surrounding five towns had come out for the little parade, and perhaps they had. When the float finally pulled away from the last street and began the return journey to the barn, the top of it was covered in poinsettias, tossed by the bystanders. Christmas bent and picked two of them up. The first, she tucked into Sasha\u2019s neckline.<\/p>\n \u201cI wish your mom could have seen how incredibly gorgeous you look up here,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n There were tears in her friend\u2019s eyes as she said, \u201cYours, too.\u201d<\/p>\n She turned to Leah, tucked the second flower into her dress and said, \u201cI hope you find the love you deserve, and that they never forget what a beautiful human you are.\u201d<\/p>\n Leah pulled her close and hugged her, saying, \u201cWhy are you just so goddamned good?\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas laughed and hugged her back.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n They returned their dresses to Diane after the parade before walking down to The North Pole. There, they met Brad, who was already helping to prepare for the pageant the next evening. Carols played on the speaker system and the doors were locked. Inside, the atmosphere was busy, but festive. Kellen and Tommy Miller were with them, under the watchful eye of their father, who directed the work from the comfort of a table.<\/p>\n While they worked together hanging a string of lights around a doorway, Christmas muttered to Brad, \u201cDo you mind if the girls stay again? I\u2019d just really like to have everyone I love with me tonight. I\u2019ll make it up to you soon, I promise.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChris, it\u2019s our home, not mine. You don\u2019t need my permission,\u201d he said, grinning.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re the best.\u201d<\/p>\n The decorating lasted for several hours, made even longer by the distractions of dancing and drinking. When they returned home, Christmas was again transported back through the years, as they sat by the fire watching holiday shows under the glow of the tree lights. On the mantel, a photo of her family, all of them, sat next to a poinsettia. Tonight, she didn\u2019t feel alone.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The childhood fantasies of being a pageant queen came rushing back, just as those of being on the float had the day before. Twelve women, representing the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas, and each one of them shared the dream. Some of them, like Sasha and Marcy, had been the queen already. It was one more silly tradition and more reason that there was no place like Christmas at Christmas.<\/p>\n With her hair styled and wearing the gorgeous dress, Christmas added a small red bow to her hair. She was not one to fixate on her looks. She was pretty, she knew, maybe even beautiful. Tonight, though, as she looked at herself in the dress, she was hot. She left the dressing room and joined the other girls, each of them just as gorgeous, and probably more so, she thought.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly,\u201d Marcy said, looking her over, \u201cDiane killed it with that. Jesus, I\u2019m asking CJ for my money back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t be too hasty,\u201d Christmas said, smiling. \u201cAll he did is make a dress. It\u2019s who is in the dress that really matters, and you look like queen material.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEvery one of us does,\u201d Leah said, eyeing the other girls.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are people, Leah,\u201d Sasha said, \u201cNot an all you can eat buffet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLet a girl have her Christmas dream,\u201d Leah said, pouting.<\/p>\n They milled about behind the stage until Kellen Miller appeared from around the corner.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone ready?\u201d he asked, and received a dozen nods.<\/p>\n Holiday music played from the speakers and the girls entered. Whistles and applause, a standing ovation from the crowd greeted the line of a dozen women. The North Pole was a large place, but still only fit just over two hundred. Cameras placed around the room were also streaming the event to others who wanted to watch, while Tommy Miller operated a donation website for the Scholars Fund. Christmas had moved into the digital age.<\/p>\n The previous year\u2019s queen, Marcy, led the girls out and across the stage. They gave a curtsy and posed cutely for the crowd while they cheered. Then, they broke apart, six to a side, and Sasha took the stage.<\/p>\n She opened with a sexy rendition of \u201cI Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,\u201d which was sultry enough to melt the icicles over the doorway outside. Christmas loved the voice. Sasha was always the musical one, while Leah was their artist and Christmas the writer. The three of them fed off of each other\u2019s creativity, and she figured that they always would.<\/p>\n Marcy was up next, wearing her expensive velvet dress. The form-fitting sheath was a mermaid in Christmas red, laced with white fur. The dress pressed her breasts together in a delightful, provocative valley that was likely making mouths water all over the room. She looked like she should be on a national stage, not one in some Podunk town like this.<\/p>\n While violin music played, Marcy danced and twirled, heating up the night with long-practiced moves. Christmas had not kept up her childhood dance lessons, which Marcy had attended alongside her. Clearly, the other girl had. How she managed those moves in a dress that tight was a Christmas miracle all on its own, let alone in heels. Marcy, though, felt the music like she was part of it, and at the end of the performance, there was raucous applause.<\/p>\n Leah came after, surprising everyone with an incredible act of artistic magic. There were gasps in the crowd and on the stage as she did it. Seemingly from nowhere, she produced a rolled-up poster, which showed City Hall in the summer. She shook the paper, and it ignited in a ball of fire that made them all step back.<\/p>\n The paper was unharmed, though, and now showed the same locale in spring. She flipped it again and in a fiery burst it turned to autumn, and again into winter. She snapped it, rolled it back into a tube, and then they watched as she crumpled it into a ball and threw it into the air. The ball burst into a flurry of snowflakes and she bowed to the crowd. There were shocked murmurs and then a loud round of applause. Christmas couldn\u2019t explain a single minute of how it had been done.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re full of surprises,\u201d she muttered, as Leah stood next to her.<\/p>\n With a satisfied grin, Leah only winked at her. Julia took to the piano next, while Carry joined her to sing. The two of them looked at Sasha and motioned her to join them. Confused, blushing, Sasha came out to stand with them. Carry spoke quietly to her for a moment, Sasha nodding, and then Julia began to play. Sasha\u2019s contralto took up Elvis Presley\u2019s Blue Christmas<\/em> and feet tapped in the audience. Carry came in on the chorus for Martina Mcbride, her Mezzo-Soprano hitting the middle and high-middle notes in a way that had the crowd clapping in time.<\/p>\n The two of them followed it with a rendition of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas<\/em>, which left not a dry eye in the house. Then, they brought them back up with a flirty duet of What are you Doing New Year\u2019s Eve?<\/em><\/p>\n Christmas almost didn\u2019t want to follow the performance, sure that she was going to crash and burn compared to that. Oddly enough, it was Marcy that came to her rescue, strutting out to the microphone like a true queen.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore we bring out the next entrant, I hope you\u2019ll all forgive me for taking a minute to say something,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n There were murmurs and nods from the crowd.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s someone that I owe a lot to tonight, someone that I haven\u2019t been kind to through the years. Despite that, she\u2019s someone that stepped up without a thought for herself when I put myself in trouble,\u201d She held out her hand to Christmas, who strode out on the stage, taking it, as Marcy continued, \u201cIf it weren\u2019t for Christmas Carol, I probably wouldn\u2019t be here tonight. I just wanted to say thank you in front of everyone here. Thank you for being the selfless person that you are.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas hugged her, and the crowd applauded again. Then Marcy stepped aside, and Christmas took the microphone. She looked out over the crowd, now quiet, all of them watching her, waiting.<\/p>\n \u201cAlmost seven years ago,\u201d she began, \u201cEveryone here took us in, my brother and me. We were just two kids that had gone through something unthinkable, and when the goodness of small-town people was put to the test, you all came through for us. For that, I\u2019ll always be grateful. There\u2019s no way I can ever repay you for the kindness and for the beautiful hearts you have. The only thing I know how to do is write words so, tonight, I\u2019ve written a few for you.<\/p>\n There was attentive quiet from those assembled who shifted and waited. Then, Christmas began.<\/p>\n There\u2019s a little town called Christmas.<\/em><\/p>\n It\u2019s a place I love and know.<\/em><\/p>\n It\u2019s a place that\u2019s filled with warmth and mirth.<\/em><\/p>\n Especially when blanketed in snow.<\/em><\/p>\n She paused and beckoned off stage to Leah and Sasha, who came up to join her, holding her hands. She looked out across the faces in the crowd, packed so tightly, every one of them focused on her words. They were the faces of neighbors and friends. In those days, after the accident, every one of them had come to the house. They\u2019d brought meals and water, clothes and gifts. Sometimes it was just a kind word or a question. How are you doing? They\u2019d done it without thought and they\u2019d done it for a simple reason, and it was that reason that this place would always be home. They\u2019d done it because, in Christmas, that was just what people did. She continued.<\/p>\n Where friendships grow and last for life.<\/em><\/p>\n Where the spirit is always bright.<\/em><\/p>\n Like the lights that deck the street of Main.<\/em><\/p>\n Twinkling softly in the winter night.<\/em><\/p>\n In the town of Christmas, we don\u2019t have much.<\/em><\/p>\n But we give it and give it with pride.<\/em><\/p>\n Because that\u2019s what neighbors do, by God.<\/em><\/p>\n And we take each day in stride.<\/em><\/p>\n There were murmurs and a few chuckles in the crowd, agreement, but most were silent and their eyes were misty.<\/p>\n In Christmas, you\u2019re never an orphan.<\/em><\/p>\n In Christmas you\u2019ll always have care.<\/em><\/p>\n In a town like this, like nowhere else.<\/em><\/p>\n Your family will always be there.<\/em><\/p>\n Wherever I go and wherever I\u2019ll be.<\/em><\/p>\n No matter the path that I roam.<\/em><\/p>\n Whenever I\u2019m sad or I\u2019m lonely.<\/em><\/p>\n She stopped, looked down, and choked. Her friends squeezed her hands, and she found the strength to finish.<\/p>\n Whenever I\u2019m sad or I\u2019m lonely<\/em><\/p>\n Christmas will always be home.<\/em><\/p>\n The silence that followed was as deafening as the applause that came after. The words, given from her heart, delivered with the full weight of all she felt, the love and gratitude she had, had moved them all. Even Marcy, resplendent in her red dress, dabbed at her eyes.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n For an hour after the performance, Sasha and Carry wore out their voices, with Julia on the piano once again. At the end of it, the final results of the Christmas Scholars donations were totaled, and Mayor Tinsley took to the stage in his Santa costume to announce the result.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an honor, every year, to see the talents of all the beautiful ladies,\u201d he said, and paused for further applause. \u201cEach year, the donations you\u2019ve all made go toward sending our young people off into the world. Some of them bring their education back to the town, while others will go away and carry a little bit of Christmas into the rest of the world. No matter their path,\u201d and he looked toward Christmas, then corrected, \u201cNo matter the path they roam. Christmas will always be home.\u201d<\/p>\n More applause followed it, making Christmas blush as he repeated her words. The applause died down, and he continued, \u201cThe queen of this year\u2019s Christmas pageant is\u2026 Christmas Carol!\u201d<\/p>\n The applause sounded again, more loudly. Feet stamped on the floor, and they chanted her name, clapping, as she joined the mayor. Marcy joined her, too, removing her tiara and passing it on to Christmas. She hugged Marcy, hugged the mayor, and then curtsied for the crowd before stepping back to join the other girls.<\/p>\n The girls all congratulated her, then dispersed into the crowd as the music played over the speakers once more. True to her word, Christmas found Kellen Miller, who had a drink with her before taking her out for the first dance. Brad danced with Marcy and Leah with her date, while Sasha and Carry seemed to be quite friendly all of a sudden, twirling to the sounds of All I Want for Christmas is You.<\/em><\/p>\n She gave Kellen a kiss on the cheek and had another drink, before moving off to the side to catch her breath. She watched the partners change, Leah dancing with Tommy Miller, while Marcy and Kellen paired up, and Sasha swept Brad away. Mistletoe<\/em> played, and all the dancers slowly swayed to it. As the music played, Christmas observed Sasha gazing into Brad\u2019s eyes, the lifelong crush burning.<\/p>\n She had no right, she knew, to be jealous. Tonight, though, was supposed to be the night. Tonight, the tease would end and she\u2019d give in. It had all played out perfectly. She was the queen and tonight he\u2019d be her king. She was hot for him, so hot that she could hardly stand it. Now that the pageant was over, there was nothing more that she wanted than to go home with him.<\/p>\n Instead, she watched his hands on Sasha\u2019s hips, his smile as he looked into her eyes, feeling the mirth of the holiday. Sasha was gorgeous in her sexy dress, and Christmas couldn\u2019t blame anyone for looking. But then Sasha leaned up as the song ended. She leaned up, and she kissed him, pushing her lips against his and pressing her body tightly to him in invitation. Brad\u2019s face registered surprise, shock, but he didn\u2019t pull away.<\/p>\n Christmas choked. The moment lasted only a few seconds and then Brad pulled away, but in those seconds it felt like she\u2019d been slapped. Not by Brad and not by Sasha, but by the cold reality that for as long as they were here, in this place, that what they had would always be a secret. She backed up, hit the wall, looked around in a daze. Brad gently pushed Sasha away, and he looked in her direction. Christmas turned and ran through the back corridor.<\/p>\n \u201cChris!\u201d Brad\u2019s voice echoed down the hall, a loud whisper in the quiet of the place.<\/p>\n Christmas leaned against the wall, wondering what she was doing. Brad joined her, took her in his arms, held her.<\/p>\n \u201cHey, I\u2019m sorry,\u201d he said. \u201cI didn\u2019t know that she was going to do that. You know how she\u2019s always been.\u201d<\/p>\n She shook her head and said, \u201cI know. It isn\u2019t that. It\u2019s\u2026 it\u2019s us. It\u2019s this place. Brad, I don\u2019t know what to do. As long as we stay here, it can\u2019t ever be\u2026 it can\u2019t be like those days in the south, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n Brad was silent and then he said, \u201cI know. What do you want me to do, Chris? Whatever you need, I\u2019ll do it. Do you want me to go out there and tell the whole town that I love you? That I\u2019m in love with my sister?\u201d<\/p>\n They heard a sharp gasp from down at the end of the hall and, when they turned frightened faces in that direction, there was Sasha, her hand over her mouth and a look of complete shock on her face.<\/p>\n \u201cShit,\u201d Christmas hissed, and Sasha turned and ran.<\/p>\n \u201cSasha!\u201d she called after her and broke away, running after.<\/p>\n She caught up to her in the doorway, where her friend stood stock still, as though she\u2019d seen a ghost. She stared, sightlessly, into the crowded room, where the music played, and the people danced. They carried on, oblivious to how her entire world had just changed. Christmas took her arm and turned her around.<\/p>\n \u201cSasha,\u201d she hissed, the terror plain on her own face, \u201cWe should talk.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChris? What\u2026 what did I\u2026 what did you\u2026\u201d she stammered.<\/p>\n \u201cNot here. Please!\u201d<\/p>\n Sasha nodded, slowly.<\/p>\n \u201cTomorrow. You and Leah. I\u2019ll tell you everything. Please, just\u2026 don\u2019t say anything,\u201d Christmas pleaded.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2026 I won\u2019t,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Without saying goodbye to anyone, Sasha moved through the crowd and left the place, vanishing into the night.<\/p>\n \u201cShe okay?\u201d Leah asked, appearing at Christmas\u2019 side.<\/p>\n \u201cI hope so,\u201d Christmas said, \u201cHey. Tomorrow morning, I need you to bring her by, alright?\u201d<\/p>\n Leah shrugged and said, \u201cSure,\u201d then carried on dancing.<\/p>\n Brad joined her.<\/p>\n \u201cIs she going to be okay?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n Christmas shrugged and said, \u201cI think I\u2019m ready to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGood idea,\u201d Brad agreed.<\/p>\n They said their goodbyes, leaving together and arriving home in separate cars. Brad let them in, and Christmas changed out of the dress.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know,\u201d she said, sadly, \u201cI was really hoping that you\u2019d take this off me tonight, but I think I\u2019d rather just lay here in the dark and be miserable.\u201d<\/p>\n He smiled tiredly and said, \u201cYou can lie here in the dark, but I refuse to let you be miserable. Let\u2019s talk about it. No sense in pretending it isn\u2019t happening.\u201d<\/p>\n They did, lying awake in the dark and talking through the future. The first step, though, was to talk about the past.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Christmas sat between her two friends, on the couch in the living room. The fire crackled in the hearth.<\/p>\n \u201cI wanted to tell you both, because you mean more to me than anyone, aside from my brother. There\u2019s something I\u2019ve been hiding, a secret, that it\u2019s time for you to know. I don\u2019t know what my future will be like, and I don\u2019t know what you\u2019ll think of me after today, but it\u2019s important for me to tell you the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, you didn\u2019t treat me any different after I told you I was gay, so unless you\u2019re a serial killer, I think I can handle it,\u201d Leah said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s alright, Chris. Whatever the reason, I know that it\u2019s because it matters to you,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n Christmas paused, searched for the words, and then she began.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you grow up in a town like Christmas, you\u2019re raised with a sense of safety. Bad things rarely happen. Sometimes there\u2019s a minor accident and other times people get sick. That\u2019s life in a small town. You know that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen, something does<\/em> happen, something that no one expects. You were there with me, Sasha, the day that Sheriff Burke came to the door. He looked afraid, and he was crying. You looked at me and I could see that you knew, too, that one of those things had happened, and it had happened to me, just like it had happened to you. You hugged me, even before he\u2019d said a word, and I can remember what you said.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m here, and I love you,\u201d Sasha said, remembering, \u201cBecause you were there for me, when my mom\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRight,\u201d Christmas said, squeezing her hand, and then she continued, \u201cWhen someone dies in Christmas, it\u2019s because they\u2019re old or they got sick, like your mom. People don\u2019t die from horrible accidents, and they don\u2019t get murdered. Sherrif Burke had probably gone most of his career without having to deliver the kind of message he had that day.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRun on home, Sasha, he told me,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I remember you shook your head and told him, told the sheriff of all people, that you wouldn\u2019t do it,\u201d Christmas said, \u201cand you held my hand, just like now.\u201d<\/p>\n The entire pain of that day came back for them both, and though Leah hadn\u2019t been there, she could feel it coming off of them and it broke her heart.<\/p>\n \u201cI called Brad down,\u201d Christmas told her, as if she\u2019d never heard the story, but that was irrelevant. This was the kind of story that needed to be told from the beginning and from the heart. She went on, \u201cand when he was there, Burke told us about the accident.\u201d<\/p>\n She paused, her throat tightening at the memory of the pain, then said, \u201cI remembered what you said to me, when it happened to you, that in that moment nothing about it is real. It\u2019s words. You hear them, but the impact of them doesn\u2019t register. Not yet. You were right. It\u2019s strange that, rather than feeling anything when he said the words, I thought about that first, thought about what you said to me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen you put your arms around me, and I could hear you start to cry. You told me later that it hurt you, because you understood the way I was about to be hurt. I loved you for that, and I always will. Your own tears brought mine out. They made it real. And I think, truly, that it started my healing right then. If I\u2019d gone on, pretended it wasn\u2019t real, it might have taken longer. It might never have happened.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt never really happens,\u201d Sasha said quietly, \u201cIt\u2019s always there.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas nodded and said, \u201cI don\u2019t know, exactly, how long it was that I stayed in my room. I remember that when I was hungry, one of you was there. Brad, you, Leah. Something happens to you when you\u2019re grieving, especially when you\u2019re in denial. Everything is raw. All the filters that you build up in your life, those things that you learn about how to be polite, how to treat others, all of it just vanishes. All that matters is your selfish pain, the hurt, the anger.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was during those days that I wrote Losing Summer,<\/em> and I\u2019ve never been able to capture anything on a page like that again. It\u2019s because there\u2019s no other moment in your life when you\u2019ll feel that unbridled emotion, where you have no reservations.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLightning in a bottle,\u201d Leah said, and Christmas nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cWe skipped my birthday that year, even though you all wanted me to have one,\u201d Christmas continued, \u201cbut how can you celebrate a life, another year, when death is hanging over you and all you have in your heart is the anger? Then, the anger started to fade, and the sadness got me.\u201d<\/p>\n Sasha nodded understanding, and said, \u201cYou\u2019re never the same.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas agreed, nodding, continued, \u201cThe two strongest people in my life had been taken away. I thought that if it could happen to them, that it could happen to anyone. It could happen to me. It could happen to Brad. If it happened to him, then I\u2019d be alone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was innocent, the first time I went to his bed. I told him I didn\u2019t feel safe, that I was afraid. He held me and he told me it was alright, that he\u2019d take care of me. I felt safe. I was selfish, then, but that\u2019s what grief does to you. You become blind to other people. Your own pain is what matters, and you just don\u2019t think about what other people are going through.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t think about him and his pain. I didn\u2019t consider, then, that he was going through it the same way. He had his own anger, and he had his own hurt. On top of that, he had to find the strength to keep on going and to take care of his sister. An unkind reality had just dropped the responsibility of a parent, a sibling, and a guardian into the lap of a nineteen-year-old boy that had just graduated from high school.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe was, is, still stronger than I\u2019ll ever be in that way. Even through my tears and my tantrums, there was never a hint of anger. It was always safety, always confidence, even though I know, now, that he didn\u2019t feel it. He was scared shitless. But he never let me see that. He was safety, my safety. At the time, he was all I felt like I had left.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt night, I would come to him, and he\u2019d hold me. He\u2019d tell me, over and over, that we\u2019d be alright. Everything would be alright. He would never leave me. Nothing\u2026 different\u2026 happened for months. We were just a brother and a sister, each of us hurting, and both of us finding some measure of comfort in the other. It wasn\u2019t an equal measure, because I was selfish, but if you ask him, he\u2019ll deny it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was after we started back to school, during our senior year, when that sense of safety turned into a different feeling. He quickly moved to learning all he could about our mother\u2019s business, and before long he was getting licensed, picking up her clients, finding his own. I\u2019d begun to accept the reality that our parents were never coming home, but I was still afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think that by taking over her business, it was his way of showing me, concretely, that we were going to get through it. It worked. Every day, when I came home, he was busy studying, learning, losing himself in it. He always stopped for me, though. Nothing else became important. Just me and what I needed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was about that time that I started to feel guilty, I guess, for being selfish. I let him read Losing Summer<\/em> and watched him cry over it. It was the beauty, he said, all the things he wanted to know about what I was really feeling, that I\u2019d never told him, never told anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen he told me he was grateful for me. He\u2019d kept up the strength and facade, but something about that little story caused it all to fall away. My selfishness, my need for safety, had forced him to be the strong one. Now, it broke. I understood. Even as he wept, letting all that repressed emotion out, I felt safe. If he had the strength to hold that in, the kind of pain that I\u2019d felt over those months, then nothing would ever break him.\u201d<\/p>\n Leah was now openly crying as Christmas told them the story. Sasha was on the verge, but she understood and had coped with that loss herself.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was the first time I kissed him,\u201d Christmas whispered, the memory of his lips on hers so vivid, even through the years, \u201cIt wasn\u2019t his idea. He never made me do anything. It was me. I wanted to, I don\u2019t know, to comfort him. I was, again, selfish, too. I wanted to feel that comfort, to feel\u2026 anything, something. It wasn\u2019t passionate, and it wasn\u2019t sexy. It wasn\u2019t anything but a mutual need to feel loved, to have something in our hearts other than the hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe never spoke about it. We didn\u2019t ask each other the question, because it didn\u2019t feel like we needed it. It seemed\u2026 natural, right. From then on, a kiss in bed became a normal thing, but it still wasn\u2019t desire, at least, not a sexual one. The kisses never lasted more than a moment, until one night, they did. One night, he pulled away, but I wanted more.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cInside, I was still raw. I kissed him for a second time, and then for a third. I slid my hand under his shirt and just felt his heart in his chest. He didn\u2019t touch me, didn\u2019t make a single move. He just let me touch him, to feel him. The heartbeat was fast but steady, like him. That night, when we slept and his arm was around me, I think, was when that feeling of safety turned into something else.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBy the time I graduated, those nightly kisses had become hungry. To his credit, he never tried to touch me unless I came to him first. He never made a move until I physically put his hand on me and told him to touch me. When he did, it was electric. I could feel his own need in the way he touched me, the way we kissed. It wasn\u2019t like the sex stories that people write. It didn\u2019t happen over a period of hours or even days. At first, it wasn\u2019t even sexual.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t sure, at first, where I was going to college. I wasn\u2019t even sure if I wanted to go at all. Then, we got the letter. An English professor had somehow read Losing Summer<\/em> on one of the story sites I posted it to. He wanted to teach me. Leaving Christmas, leaving Brad, the two of you, was nearly as frightening an idea as losing our parents had been.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe night the letter came, the kissing and touching went further. I was hot, and I was on top of him in his bed. We didn\u2019t talk about it, didn\u2019t discuss it. One moment I was dressed and the next I was taking off my clothes, and then I was pulling at his. It was slow, and it was hot, everything about it just seeming natural and right. I felt like I belonged there, belonged to him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI felt beautiful and secure as he made love to me, and then again when it happened the next day. After the third time, I started to question myself. I\u2019d just had sex with my brother, and I\u2019d loved it. The feeling of selfishness came back to me, though. Had I seduced him? Was it my fault? What was I doing to him? It was then that I decided to take the offer and leave. Everything was confusing, and I didn\u2019t know what else to do. I only knew that, if I stayed, I\u2019d never be able to sort it out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt might have, actually, been my first clear and responsible thought since the accident. Only a few days later, I was packing things into a car and leaving. I was terrified, but I just couldn\u2019t shake the guilt of what I was doing to him, to the person who had given me that safety since the accident.\u201d<\/p>\n I spent four years away from here. He came to see me once, when I allowed him to. It was like no time had passed. Everything about him was just what I needed, wanted, and we spent those days together openly exploring a relationship that was completely taboo back home. On the campus, I passed him off as my boyfriend. Nothing in life had ever seemed so perfect as those few days. I was happy, truly happy, in a way I hadn\u2019t felt since our parents were alive.<\/p>\n \u201cI took the rest of school to be sure, and now I am. I do love him. I love him in a way that even at my best, I wouldn\u2019t be able to write down in words. I love him for his strength and for his kindness, for his tears and for his giant fucking heart. The rest of the world will say it\u2019s sick and that it\u2019s wrong, but to me, they\u2019re sick and wrong for thinking that what we have is unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know what the path out of this looks like, but I do know that I will give up anything in the world to keep him. I\u2019ll give up this town and even the two of you, though it would be as hard as losing them was. I\u2019m begging you, please, for now, to keep my secret. Will you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course,\u201d Leah agreed.<\/p>\n Christmas burst into tears.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n They made the plans all throughout the day and into Christmas Eve. There was life outside of Christmas, and it was a life that they wanted\u2026 needed to live. Sasha and Leah wouldn\u2019t let her do it alone, either.<\/p>\n \u201cReally, what do I have here without you guys?\u201d Leah asked. \u201cThere\u2019s love out there in the world for me, too. And there are lots of things to draw and paint.\u201d<\/p>\n Christmas looked at Sasha and she said, \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Sasha. I really am.\u201d<\/p>\n Sasha shook her head and smiled, saying, \u201cI can\u2019t blame you. Besides, now that I know, there\u2019s always the chance for a threesome, right?\u201d<\/p>\n She grinned seductively and in a way that made Christmas consider whether she might have some bisexual leanings, because that grin was making her hot.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are not going to lez off together and leave me out!\u201d Leah cut in, \u201cThat\u2019s so wrong!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, we\u2019re going to have to go somewhere that no one will know us, so I suppose anything is possible,\u201d Christmas said, returning the grin.<\/p>\n Brad walked into the room, and the three of them turned their predatory grins on him.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n \u201cJust planning your next heart attack,\u201d Sasha said, winking.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just gonna\u2026 go this way,\u201d he said, and retreated from the room.<\/p>\n Sasha and Leah rose to leave, sharing another hug.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ll be by tomorrow for Christmas?\u201d Christmas asked.<\/p>\n \u201cDuh,\u201d Sasha said.<\/p>\n Christmas showed them to the door and watched them go, then shut it and locked it. She found Brad in his bedroom, mundanely folding laundry. She leaned in the doorway and watched.<\/p>\n \u201cI could get used to this,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWatching me fold clothes?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo,\u201d she said, approaching, \u201cHaving you in a room that\u2019s ours and a house that\u2019s ours.\u201d<\/p>\n She put her arms around his waist and kissed him.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was this game that we were playing. You remember?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \u201cTwelve Days in Christmas,\u201d he said, grinning.<\/p>\n \u201cBy my count, I owe you a few days. I didn\u2019t expect that I would be drowned in a frozen lake, overcome by grief, too tired to move, or suddenly have Sasha discover that I\u2019m in love with my brother.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t owe me anything,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you never wanted me to touch you again, I would still love you just the same.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s precisely why I do want you to touch me again. A lot. Let\u2019s put this game to bed, shall we?\u201d she said teasingly, tugging his shirt up and over his head.<\/p>\n He picked her up and set her on the bed, then pulled her shirt off and hurled it, like it offended him. Christmas pulled at his jeans, fumbled with the button as she suddenly grew desperate. She\u2019d teased herself for too long. Now, it was a need.<\/p>\n She watched him remove his pants as she wiggled out of hers, and then he was crawling over her as she scooted up the bed. She moaned with hungry desire as he kissed her, the days of pent-up arousal making his muscles vibrate as he held himself up on his fists and devoured her lips.<\/p>\n \u201cI need you,\u201d she hissed. \u201cGod, I fucking need you!\u201d<\/p>\n He was ready, and she\u2019d been ready for days. She parted her legs, surrendering at last to her own desire. Brad sucked on her breast and fisted his cock, running the hot head of it along her dripping slit, coating himself and further teasing her. Now it was her turn to feel what he\u2019d felt, all those nights, her body next to him, but unable to satiate his incestuous lust.<\/p>\n Only, it wasn\u2019t just lust, but deeper. He moved his mouth back up to her ear, kissed her neck, then slid his arms around her and held her. His cock pressed into her sex, slowly parting her delicate folds and making her gasp. She shut her eyes, gasped again as he slid into her, the feeling of his hot, hard length such a perfect fit for her.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you,\u201d he whispered into her ear, and pushed deeper.<\/p>\n Christmas shook, jerked against his cock as the feeling of her pussy opening up for him sent a surge of delirious pleasure through her body. Two years, she thought. Two years since he\u2019d come to the school, since he\u2019d last been in her. It was every bit as beautiful as she remembered. The heat of him against her as he began to move slowly, deeply, his length buried inside of her, made her heart swell.<\/p>\n This was right. She kissed him again, a hot tear rolling down her cheek as her arms encircled his neck and drew him in. She gave herself over, submitting utterly to him, body and heart. She\u2019d been right. The wait, the game, it had all been right. She was certain.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you,\u201d she hissed.<\/p>\n Brad gave her deep, slow thrusts, his hips rocking gently, matching the movement of her body. Christmas clung to him, their tongues playing, his arms holding her in that embrace of safety. She knew that this is where she belonged. Not in the town, but with him. The place didn\u2019t matter, only the man, her man. Her safety. After all the years of doubt and worry, wondering what her future would hold, now she knew.<\/p>\n Her future was with him, with Sasha, with Leah. It was a future where the love mattered more than who it was with, and more than where it was. It was a future of friendship, where each of them was free to be who they were, her and Brad most of all. His pace increased and Christmas dug her nails into his shoulder, tossing her head back, her back arching as he took her.<\/p>\n \u201cMore\u2026\u201d she hissed.<\/p>\n He gave it to her, pulling back and feeding her his cock in long, deep strokes that had her panting and fireworks going off in her head with every deep thrust. One of his hands went to her ass, and then he was holding her, pulling her body into him as though he couldn\u2019t get deep enough. She trembled, shook, came for him, but he was relentless.<\/p>\n His grip was firm on her, like he was afraid she\u2019d disappear, as though holding her to him would truly make them one. She wanted that, wanted him, more certain of it than of anything in her life. I belong to my hot brother, she thought, and came for him again.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The house had sold quickly, despite the season, and now it was time to go. Sasha, Leah, and Christmas walked along Main Street one last time, quietly taking it in, burning that place that would always be home into their memories. They\u2019d be back, she knew, because it was<\/em> home. None of them could resist the pull of the snow-covered streets and the traditions. Leah and Sasha still had real family to come back to, after all. And her parents were here. Her mother would need fresh poinsettias.<\/p>\n Christmas herself, though she wouldn\u2019t ever tell the town the secret, would be happy to put on the mask and pretend for a little while, maybe once a year. She\u2019d never really leave the town she\u2019d been named after, born on the day that the town was named after. Because it was one of life\u2019s little oddities, but it was her oddity, and the town loved it, and loved her for it.<\/p>\n The three of them passed City Hall, where Jerry, the maintenance man, who despite all the years she\u2019d known him, did not have a last name, screwed a new plaque next to the doors. They climbed the steps as he finished mounting it and he gave them a polite nod.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a sound piece of work, Chris,\u201d he said and walked inside.<\/p>\n They stepped up and read the plaque. In carefully sculpted bronze, the script flowing, and now a permanent part of the town were the words, her words.<\/p>\n There\u2019s a little town called Christmas.<\/em><\/p>\n It\u2019s a place I love and know…<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There\u2019s a little town called Christmas.It\u2019s a place I love and know.It\u2019s a place that\u2019s filled with warmth and mirth.Especially when blanketed in snow.Where…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,23,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-erotica","category-free-to-read","category-romance"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=800"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":808,"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800\/revisions\/808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eroticfantasies.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/em>It\u2019s a place I love and know.
<\/em>It\u2019s a place that\u2019s filled with warmth and mirth.
<\/em>Especially when blanketed in snow.
<\/em>Where friendships grow and last for life.
<\/em>Where the spirit is always bright.
<\/em>Like the lights that deck the street of Main.
<\/em>Twinkling softly in the winter night.
<\/em>In the town of Christmas, we don\u2019t have much.
<\/em>But we give it and give it with pride.
<\/em>Because that\u2019s what neighbors do, by God.
<\/em>And we take each day in stride.
<\/em>In Christmas, you\u2019re never an orphan.
<\/em>In Christmas you\u2019ll always have care.
<\/em>In a town like this, like nowhere else.
<\/em>Your family will always be there.
<\/em>Wherever I go and wherever I\u2019ll be.
<\/em>No matter the path that I roam.
<\/em>Whenever I\u2019m sad or I\u2019m lonely.
<\/em>Christmas will always be home.<\/em><\/p>\nDecember 13th: Coming Home<\/h2>\n
December 14th: Marcy<\/h2>\n
December 15th: Workshop<\/h2>\n
December 16th: Visitation<\/h2>\n
December 17th: Tree Festival<\/h2>\n
December 18th: Pick-a-Pet<\/h2>\n
December 19th: Float Decoration<\/h2>\n
December 20th: Christmas Olympics<\/h2>\n
December 21st: Christmas Parade<\/h2>\n
December 22nd: The Pageant<\/h2>\n
December 23rd: Safety<\/h2>\n
December 24th: A Hot Night in Christmas<\/h2>\n
The New Year<\/h2>\n