Christmas Gifts & Mistletoe (Chapter 5)

Later, the girls called their parents and asked them to come over the Dunn house. Luckily, they all agreed and made their way over. (Lizzie changed her provocative clothing before her parents arrived.) The families were so happy to be united again, especially for a significant occasion. They even got know the Dunn family who were more than thrilled to have company over. Everyone spent most of their time in the smallish living room since the food was served in the kitchen. Madeline also invited her male friend, Guy, someone who she occasionally sees at the mall when she works. He arrived to the house last and Madeline was excited to open the door for him.
There he stood, his blond, hunky self with a long wrapped box in his hands.
"Hi, Guy," Madeline greeted him in a flirtatious voice, positioning herself in a sultry stance.
He smiled sexily. "Hi, Madeline." He stepped inside. "I got this for you."
Madeline took the box out of his hands. "Oh, for me? Why, you shouldn't have."
She closed her eyes, puckered her lips and leaned forward, insinuating that she wanted a kiss. But Guy ignored the hint, walking past her. Madeline heard his footsteps and opened her eyes to make sure. She acted natural again and closed the door with her eyebrows furrowed. She relaxed her face and swayed to Guy who stood in the center of the lounge.
"You know, I helped redecorate this place," she mentioned.
"Wow, you did?"
"Yep 'cause I'm charitable. That's just the kind of girl I am. I even helped hang up the mistletoe. See?" She gestured over to the suspended plastic mistletoe above the doorway to the living room.
Guy observed the group of plastic leaves and berries. "Oh, that's nice. Is there food?"
Madeline dropped her smile. "Yeah, there's plenty in the kitchen right beside you."
"Cool. Thanks."
He made no hurry but was pleased to go inside the kitchen to satisfy his hunger. Madeline just stared into the space, building with frustration.
Meanwhile, Alaska drooped down the sofa next to Skye who was biting a tough piece of chicken.
"Hi," Alaska said.
Skye ripped part of the meat off the warm bone. "Hi," she said back, chewing it all.
"Have I told you how thankful I am for you helping Lizzie with everything in my house?"
"Yeah, a few times."
"Oh, I'm so sorry."
"It's okay. It's Christmas, ain't it?"
"You girls are so different. How are you friends?"
Skye swallowed her food. "I don't really remember. We just sort of found each other. You got to have friends who are little different from you."
"Not really. I mean I have friends but they wouldn't do this for me if I had to think about it. I don't even know you guys and you did everything."
"Yeah, I don't know if I would have done 'everything' if it wasn't for Lizzie. When she asked us to help her, I sorta said no."
"Oh."
"But I don't regret this. I mean this is a good experience for me. I honestly wish that I had more experiences like this. Someone like me wouldn't normally be friends with someone like Lizzie. But I need a friend like her. I got a friend like her and I am thankful because I need people like her in my life to change my perspective on life. Christmas is a day of realizing how much people care about you and Lizzie cares about me very much because she is a good person. And she cares about doing things like this for other people. I'm lucky I have the friends that I have. I'm glad to have met you."
"Aw, the same for you."
"Don't tell anyone I said anything of that."
"Sure. You got it."
Madeline followed Guy out of the kitchen until they both stopped in front of the living room.
"I love the bread maker that you got me," she told him. "Maybe you can come by and we can make bread together."
"Sure, Madeline. You smell good."
"Thanks. It's my new lip balm." Madeline stepped closer to Guy and looked up into his eyes. "It's grapefruit flavored. Want a better look?"
"No thank you. I smell just fine. Where's the bathroom?"
Madeline looked away and scowled. "It's upstairs to your right."
Guy walked away, going upstairs, leaving Madeline in the lounge to sigh and shrug. When Skye got up to throw her trash away, Madeline marched into the living room and sat down on the sofa. Alaska saw Madeline and bounced on the sofa until she was an inch away. She reached down and grabbed a red bag from the floor.
"This is for you," Alaska said.
Madeline received the bag with a smile. She reached into the bag and pulled out a black headband with a wire on top hanging a parasitic plant. "What is this?"
"Toe-on-the-go. I made it last minute. I saw you chasing that guy so I thought this would come in handy."
"Um, I don't chase guys."
"Seriously?"
"Okay, maybe I chase them a little bit but only Guy. I was actually thinking of making something like this so thank you."
"You're welcome."
Madeline reached down and grabbed a small white box. "Here you go."
Alaska opened the box and was almost blinded by the sparkling crystals stuck on the silver watch. "Oh, my God! It's a watch! How much did this cost?"
"More than you can afford. I got one for my mom at 'Jewels R U' and I went back to get you something. It's cheaper than my mom's watch so I still have money in my wallet. I was going to get you gum but I thought if I'm going to give you something, it was going to be special."
"Oh, my gosh. I never had anything like this."
"Just don't get it stolen. The receipt is folded under the watch in case you want to return it. You know, get some money and spend it on something else, like a bread maker."
"Oh, I can't return this. It's too special."
"Good. I know your mother called me and my girls 'Christmas angels' but you're the angel. Well, now if you excuse me..." Madeline put on the handmade headband, "... I'm gonna chase a guy down hard because I get what I want on Christmas."
Alaska giggled as Madeline got up with mistletoe hanging over her face and headed for the stairs.

Everyone was all smiles and giggles at the Dunn house
The married men were tickling and kissing their spouse
The girls did not forget to exchange gifts
As Debra gave Andrea a box with a weird sweater in it
Andrea asked if there's a receipt, Debra said no
Through a fake smile, Andrea said, "Oh!"
But as time passed, she grew to love the sweater
Because it was a sign they were going to be friends forever
Alaska asked her mom why she was called the real angel
Her mom replied, "Because you're heavenly, true and graceful."
Alaska was all smiles which would have been impossible
If it wasn't for those girls who made it plausible
Everyone basked in the warmth of the Christmas tree lights
Madeline said, "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. Except for Guy 'cause you're not gonna leave without my kiss."
Madeline chased frantic Guy like a cheetah after a deer
He had no idea--

Aw, it doesn't matter. You get the gist of it.

Christmas Gifts & Mistletoe (Chapter 4)

During Christmas break, the girls spent most of it buying and gathering materials that would make good Christmas decorations. They collected the usual: a wreath, lights, ornaments. They even handcrafted some items like ribbons, customized flowers and paper cranes. When the shopping was all done, they put everything they had in boxes and placed them in Madeline's vehicle.
On Christmas morning, the girls woke up to their families' warm embrace and indulged themselves in gift-giving. After they felt that their annual tradition was fulfilled, Madeline put on clothes and head out to pick up her girlfriends. They made their way to Alaska's home address which Lizzie received. Once they made it, the five got out of the car and hoisted as many boxes as they could. They trudged to the door with Madeline in front so she rang the doorbell. After a few seconds, a gentleman in his early forties, good-looking with light brown long hair combed back, answered the door.
"Hello, Mister Dunn," Madeline greeted, poking her head out of the boxes.
"Hello," the man said back. "Who are all of you?"
"We're the girls who promised to give you Christmas," said Lizzie.
"Actually, Lizzie promised you Christmas," corrected Andrea. "We just got sucked in."
"Oh, you're the one who promised to give us Christmas," said Mr. Dunn to Lizzie.
"Is that Lizzie?" Alaska's sweet voice was heard. She revealed herself by the door, wearing baby blue pajamas.
"Hi, Alaska!" Lizzie said.
"Come on, girls," commanded Madeline. "Let's bring this Christmas crap in before our arms fall of and a girl like me needs her arms."
The quintet walked themselves in and dropped their boxes once they entered the lounge of the house.
"Oh, you girls don't have to give us Christmas," said Mr. Dunn.
"But we want to, Mister Dunn," said Madeline.
"Oh, no. I can't possibly let you do this. It's nice and all but I think we're fine."
"It's okay, Mister Dunn."
"But no, I--"
"Shut up!" Skye ordered, sticking a large plastic candy cane in Mr. Dunn's face. He leaned back, staring cross-eyed at the end of the cane. "We spent our entire break buying all of this for you," she continued. "So we're going to give you Christmas whether you like it or not. But you're gonna like it, okay?" Skye put down the cane, allowing Mr. Dunn to stand up straight. "Geez, ungrateful," she murmured to herself.
"Where should we put the decorations?" asked Debra.
"The living room," answered Alaska. "We were going to celebrate Christmas in the living room."
The living room was right by so the girls entered it to take a better look. It was the average living room; it had a couple of sofas, a chair, a television and a coffee table. But it was very plain. The walls were white and naked. Everything else was a solid color, especially the plain Christmas tree standing in the corner.
"Dang, you got to cleaned out!" said Andrea.
"Shhh!" Debra hushed her.
"We got a lot of work to do," said Lizzie.
"That's what we came here to do," said Skye.
"Gosh, I feel like the host of a house-decorating show," shared Madeline.
So the girls began to open all of the boxes and take out all the items in them. Together, they hung stuff up, stapled things into the wall and placed things on the floor. They also worked on the tree, hanging on the branches bulbs, beads, ribbons, and lights. They even helped Alaska place a golden star on the top of the tree. It took them almost two hours, with the help of the Dunns, to embellish the living room. When they were finished, they all stood by the doorway and looked at the results.
"Sorry if it seems a bit mismatched," apologized Madeline. "We all have different tastes."
Later, Alaska's mother, early forties with glasses and long caramel-colored hair, walked downstairs and ran up to the gang when her eye got caught on the decor. She stood there with a stunned look on her face.
"What happened here?" she asked with astonishment in her voice.
"We filled your living room with the Christmas spirit," answered Lizzie.
"Why did you do this on Christmas day?"
"In case your home got robbed again," replied Andrea. "Now you can enjoy Christmas on the day of."
Mrs. Dunn walked closer into the living room slowly. "Oh, my God. I love it. I love it!"
The girls smiled as Mr. Dunn walked towards his wife and put his arm around her. They turned around to face the girls.
Mrs. Dunn continued, "It's as if you gave us..."
"Christmas?" guessed Lizzie.
"Yes, exactly. Thank you. Who are you girls?"
"We're your Christmas angels," Debra responded.
"Ugh, I don't want to be an angel," Skye muttered.
"They go to my school, mom," said Alaska. "They heard that we were robbed so they decided to help us."
Mrs. Dunn put her hand on her chest. "Oh, thank you, girls."
"No problem, Missus Dunn," said Madeline. "So I guess we'll just head on out."
"Where are you going?"
"Back home," answered Andrea.
"Oh, please stay. You got to. You can invite your families over."
"I don't know about that," said Skye.
"Please? I'll make dinner. It would be an honor to have our angels for Christmas."
The girls glanced at each other until they all smiled.
"Sure, why not?" smiled Madeline.
"Yay!" Alaska grinned. She zipped towards Lizzie and gave her a big hug.
"Hey, we did the work, too," Andrea mentioned to Alaska.

Christmas Gifts & Mistletoe (Chapter 3)

Later that day, all of the girls chilled at Andrea's house, mainly in the living room. They watched Christmas specials and indulged in tortilla chips and guacamole dip. After Madeline arrived, she sat down on the couch with Andrea while everyone else sat on the floor.
"What are all the reindeers' names?" asked Debra.
"I know all of them," admitted Madeline.
"Of course you do, know-it-all," commented Skye.
"I think a normal person would know."
"Well, I guess I'm not normal."
"That's fine with me. I like being the only person who knows everything."
"That's what makes you a perfect liar."
"Why does Rudolph have a red nose?" Debra asked another question.
"Drugs," answered Andrea.
Skye high-fived Andrea as Madeline scoffed.
"What reindeer takes drugs?" she asked.
"Rudolph, that's who," responded Andrea.
"He was probably messing with Tinker Bell or something," said Skye.
Andrea shook, hiding a laugh, but her smile kind of gave that away.
"Can we enjoy a cartoon without asking questions?" Madeline inquired.
"I have a question," spilled Lizzie, "but it doesn't involve cartoons."
"What's up, Doll?" inquired Andrea.
"How do you guys feel about giving your Christmas to someone else?"
"The same way I feel about Cris Angel doing magic," responded Skye. "Ain't no freakin' way."
"How do you mean, Liz'?" asked Madeline.
"Well, I met this girl at the office," Lizzie started, "and she told me that her house was robbed of Christmas stuff. So I told her that I was going to give the best Christmas she ever had."
"Why give a girl hope?" asked Andrea. "You're no worse than Madeline."
"I am not a liar," Madeline almost shouted.
"Lies!"
"What is this girl's name?" asked Debra.
"Alaska," answered Lizzie.
"Ew, who would do that to their child?" Skye questioned.
"Alaska Dunn," said Andrea. "Sophomore, really cute and benevolent. She chews a lot of gum though."
"See, I already know what to get her," said Lizzie.
"Lizzie, why do you want to 'give' Christmas to some girl you just met?" asked Skye.
"Because I want someone to do the same for me if a burglar robbed my house. But my family prays too much for something like that to happen."
"Lizzie, I know you mean well," started Madeline, "but like Skye said, ain't no freakin' way."
"You know what, guys?" Lizzie stood up. "I'm very disappointed in you all. One of the reasons I'm friends with you all is because you were the nicest people I could find. I thought you guys had hearts. There is a girl who is going to cry all day for Christmas because she has nothing to get and nothing to give. And what we're going to do is stay at home and open presents and spend time with our families? Uh, no thank you! I would rather make a stranger happy then make myself happy because that is how the world going to change: with smiles."
"You know, a wise man once told me that I should let out the good in me more."
"You spoke to one of the men who brought baby Jesus a birthday gift?"
"Yeah... that's who I spoke to. Lizzie, if you're really doing this, then so am I."
"Me, too," Debra jumped in. "Every day for Christmas, I wish for world peace. But I think we would get a step closer if I saw peace in someone who really needs it."
Lizzie bounced with a grin on her face.
"Hey, I've been on the naughty list for too long," said Andrea. "It wouldn't hurt to be on the nice list."
Skye groaned. "Fine, you losers. I'll do it, too."
"Yay!" cheered Lizzie. "This is going to be great! I'm telling you, you won't have any regrets."
"I'm not so sure about that. Eighty percent of my life I've been full of regret so we'll wait and see, shall we?"

Christmas Gifts & Mistletoe (Chapter 2)

On the last day of school before Christmas break
The clock was on 2:29 and the teens couldn't wait
Soon the bell rang and they ran out with jolly
They flooded the halls which were decorated with holly
The girls found each other and walked together slowly
Andy asked, "Do you wanna come over for chips and guacamole?"
Madeline said, "I can't. I have to work.
"Hopefully, I'll see Guy and with him, I will flirt."
Lizzie said, "I'm confused. Is Guy your man?"
"No, he's not but I do have a plan.
"I've tried to get him to kiss me for the past few weeks.
"But the only place on my face he kissed are my cheeks.
"So on Christmas, I will see him and bring mistletoe.
"So he'll be forced to kiss me and then I will know."
After the girls made faces of dissent, Skye urged,
"Will you quit it with the rhyming? It's getting on my nerves!"

Whatever.

"Anyway, I was thinking about having him come over and when my parents aren't looking, I'll give him a smack on the lips," pondered Madeline.
"What happens if you kiss him and you feel nothing?" queried Debra.
"Then I'll kick him out."
"That ain't right," said Andrea.
"Well, I'm not gonna spend time with a guy I don't like. I'd be wasting his time. We'll keep texting though. His compliments are sublime."
"You like every compliment someone gives you," noted Skye.
"That's because compliments are my friends."
"Does that make us a compliment?" asked Lizzie.
"Sure 'cause ya like me. I can't come over your house, Andy, right now but I can surely make it after work. Do you think after 6:30 is good enough?"
"Sure," answered Andrea. "It don't matter. As long as it's before ten. I slow down around ten."
"I have to pick up something from the office," mentioned Lizzie. "Don't wait up for me."
"I don't think we were," Skye joked.
Lizzie rolled her eyes with a smile before leaving her girls who went outside to enter the office in the lounge. She walked up to the desk, eyeing an angry-looking, old woman, wearing the glasses with beads on them.
"Hello," Lizzie greeted, "can I check your lost-and-found? I lost a hair-clip."
"You came here for just a hair-clip?" asked the old woman.
"Uh, it was a special hair-clip. It had a ladybug on it."
"Alright. I'll go get the box of junk out for you."
"Thank you very much."
The old woman went into the door behind the desk which led to a long hallway. Lizzie sat down in one of the waiting chairs next to a girl and was happily patient. Yet she noticed the girl next to her, a short brunette, crying into the palms of her hands. Lizzie felt like she had to say something.
"Are you alright?" she asked into the girl's ear.
The brunette improved her posture and wiped her wet, red eyes. "Uh, yeah, I'm alright," she said after a sniffle in a quivering voice.
"You don't look alright to me. Are you sad? Having an allergic reaction? Or could those be tears of joy?"
"No, they're tears of sadness."
"What's wrong, girl-I-don't-know-whose-name?"
The girl wiped her nose. "Well, this morning, my parents and I woke up to our house robbed."
"Oh no! What did they take?"
"Not much. Just ninety percent of our Christmas decorations. They took the wreath, the presents, the ornaments. All we have is a naked tree."
"Who would just steal the ornaments off the tree?"
"I don't know! Someone who doesn't have ornaments on their tree?" The blue-eyed brunette buried her head into her hands again. "Now because of those horrible burglars, we won't have a Christmas. So I'm here in this office, waiting to see my counselor so I can cry some more since that's all I'm gonna do this Christmas."
The girl wept harder than she did before. Lizzie comforted her by patting her on the back.
"Aw, don't cry. You can always spend Christmas at another family member's house."
"It won't be the same!"
"You're right; I have some family members that I'm currently avoiding. Why don't you buy some more decorations and presents?"
"We don't have enough money. We spent it all on the ones we had."
"That's a bummer. What if I bring Christmas to your house?"
The brunette sat up straight and wiped her nose with her index finger. "No, I can't possibly ask you to."
"But I want to. I bet it'll fun for me but most importantly, fun for you. I know I'll have Christmas and I want to make sure you have Christmas."
The girl sniffled. "You really want to?"
"Yeah. What's your name?"
"Alaska."
"Alaska? Alaska. I'm Lizzie, although my real name is Elizabeth, but you can call me Lizzie. I promise you that I will give you the best Christmas that you ever had."
"Gee, thanks, Lizzie."
Alaska spread out her arms and attempted to squeeze Lizzie. Lizzie wanted to hug her but couldn't help but resist after sighting the yellowish mucous running down Alaska's nostrils.
"You don't have to hug me," said Lizzie, trying to be polite.

Christmas Gifts & Mistletoe (Chapter 1)

'Twas a week before Christmas, during a warm weekend
At the mall were Madeline and her four girlfriends
They walked pass stores of games and apparel
And a group of people singing Christmas carols
The girls sang along off-key which was okay
"Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh!"
The girls entered a shop called "Jewels R U"
Where the sparkly jewelry can make a girl go, "Ooh!"
Lizzie asked, "Can you afford any of this?"
Madeline said, "Relax, my parents are rich."
The employee said, "Hi, can I help you?"
Andrea replied, "Do you have anything worth dollars of two?"
"Of course not, silly, this is a jewelry store."
"Well, there is nothing I am looking for."
Lizzie asked, "Don't you wanna give your mom something special?"
Andrea said, "Yeah, I could give her a pretzel.
The way my wallet looks says I can't afford nothing."
Maddie said, "Come on, you can afford something."
"Not in here. All I can do is look around."
Skye said, "I agree. I'm almost cleaned out."
Madeline said, "Fine, we'll go to another store.
But wait for me; I think I know what to look for."
Debra asked Madeline, "What does your mom want?"
Madeline answered, "Something she can flaunt."
The employee said, "What you think you're gonna buy?"
"I think I'll get that watch. It looks super fly!"
The employee looked at the watch studded with diamonds
She said, "Wow, this one is worth more than an island."
Maddie said, "What?!"; the girl said, "Just kidding.
"This is what you wear when you're good at winning."
Madeline said, "My mom is always a winner.
"Everything she wears makes her look thinner.
"How much is this watch? I don't care how much you say."
The employee said, "Thirteen thousand. That and some change."
Skye uttered, "Dang! I can barely buy lunch."
Madeline shrugged, "Heh, I had a hunch."
Debra questioned, "Are you going to still buy it?"
Skye said, "You know, people save money. You should try it."
Madeline said, "No, this is not about me today.
"I'm gonna buy this watch and ask my boss for a raise."
Lizzie cooed, "Aw, Maddie, that's so sweet."
Maddie said, "Well, I'm the sweetest girl you'll ever meet."
Debra asked, "Since you got your mom something, what about your dad?"
"Well, my dad didn't ask for anything which makes me very glad."
Andy asked, "Can you buy a sister some earrings?"
"Oh, please, Andrea, you have enough bling."
Lizzie said, "I don't know what I should get my brother today.
"I also wonder when was Jesus born. Probably in May."
After the girls ignored Lizzie's confusing statement
Madeline received the watch with good money spent
The girls head out and could still hear the songbirds
And they sung along again, reciting every single word