under the mistletoe

all i want for christmas is you

🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁

I stumble downstairs and rub my eyes. Merry mother fucking Christmas. Knowing my boy is at home with his family, not thinking twice about me.

Odds are, Luke's at home and opening gifts with his family. His sisters laughing as they simultaneously celebrate Noëls birthday.

"Merry Christmas guys" I mumble as I see my father and brother on the couch along with Reggie sitting on the ground.

They all exchange glances with raised eyebrows, "Who are you and what have you done with Julie Molina?" Reggie asks.

"She dated Mister Claus for a week" Carlos laughs as my father shoots him a death glare, scolding him without words. "What! She did"

I shake my head and walk over to the kitchen to see an ice coffee sitting on the counter, "Made it for you" Reggie says as he sneaks up behind me.

I smile and pull him into a small hug, "When did you get here?" I ask softly as I pull away and grab the caffeine.

"An hour ago. Figured I wanted to be with my real family for the holidays" This makes me really smile for the first time since that night in Luke's kitchen.

"Hey, let's go open some presents ok?" I look up and smile softly, resting my cheek against his plain black tee.

"Allez! Let's go" Reggie takes my hand and drags me to the living room with our sad tree, still not decorated.

"Was that French?" I laugh as I see Carlos sorting the gifts into piles for each person.

Reggie nods as he sits on the ground next to Carlos, me taking the seat next to my father, "How're you doing niña?"

I purse my lips and lean my body into him, curling up my feet and sighing, "I miss her. Mama. She'd know what to do in this situation"

WELL maybe she wouldn't know what to do in a fake dating kinda way but in the break up sense-

"You know, your old man still knows how to give advice. Especially when it comes to love" Dad presses his finger onto my nose, making me giggle. "What's on your mind?"

"I want Luke back" I sigh, "I miss him, a lot"

Dad brushes a piece of hair back behind my ear and smiles, "Who ended things?"

"He did"

"And did he seem happy to do so?"

I think back to that night. Seeing how broken he appeared to end things. Seeing his quivering lip, the hint of remorse in his eye, all of it. "No, he didn't"

"Then who's to say he wanted to end things? What if there was just some miscommunication? Luke stood up to your Abuelo Micha, that's not a simple task to do. He's a scary man I will agree. He was in love with you one day then twenty four hours later he's not?" His words hit me like a load of bricks, "Hija, that boy loves you"

"Hey Julie?" I hear Carlos stress his words from the ground.

"Yeah?" I look over and wipe the small stream of tears under my eye.

"There's something for you, from.... Mama?"

I look over at dad and he smiles, gesturing forward, "Go on"

I reach forward and force a smile. The paper wrapped around it a design I remember from my childhood. How young I was when I last saw it, "But how?" I ask as I pull the bow off the top.

"Just open it Julie" My father laughs and I comply.

Inside is a small bouquet of dried out Dahlias. Ones I recognize from the vases my father keeps filled year round, "There's a letter" Papa points to the side of the box.