as it is || harry styles au

twenty-six

h a r r y

She loved me.

Those were the words that I kept with me through the night.

Jamie got a whopping eight presents from everyone in the room while the adults were required to play a white elephant game—a game of drawing names to pick a mystery gift.

Just from watching Jamie open all of his gifts with such excitement and gratitude, I knew this Christmas Eve was the most memorable of all I'd ever lived through. He received a handheld gaming device from Alden and Lena, paired with a new game from Will and a few knickknacks from Mum. Then, he received several small gifts from Santa's Elves (me) which included a Powerpuff Girls t-shirt, a bookcase that we'd later construct that he could fill with books, and other miscellaneous items. From myself (Harry), he received a deck of cards that I'd promised him weeks before that I'd teach him about and new shoes I knew he would love.

While I knew Alden and Lena were getting him the Nintendo DS, selfishly and confidently, I knew that Jamie would love my gifts more. He ooh'ed and ahh'ed over the gaming system and new game, but he immediately put on the new shoes and demanded I show him how to play a game with the cards.

From watching her throughout the gift-opening session, I knew Ivy was blown away by the gifts her son received. She and Dena had their own gifts they'd be giving Jamie tomorrow morning on Christmas Day, but she was still astonished by how hard the Styles' family went for her son.

Mum and Dena parked themselves on the loveseat with cups of coffee, talking lowly to each other. The two used to be the best of friends, but had ceased contact after Dena refused to answer any questions about Ivory on our behalf when she'd left for Boston.

     "One more game, and then we should head home so you can go to sleep," Ivy told Jamie. "The sooner you sleep, the sooner Santa comes."

     I reshuffled the cards for one last game of War, then dealt the cards between him, Will, and I.

     Alden, Will, and I used to play it all the time when we were kids. It required no skill, only luck, which Mum was always a fan of since we fought a lot less than when we played Slap Jack or Solitaire.

     Jamie picked up on it with ease. He was quick and confident with his moves—even as repetitious as they were. The fire in his bright brown eyes was so eerily similar to Ivy's, I almost couldn't believe it.

"War!" we all shouted. When each of us threw down a seven, it was a three-way war, where we had to lay down a couple cards facedown before revealing our next.

"Will, I see you shuffling around there," Alden instigated on faux pretenses.

"I am not!"

Jamie pointed a finger in his face. "Will, you can't cheat!"

     "He's lying I swear! Here, Jamie, pick my card for me." Will closed his eyes and shoved his deck to Jamie.

     Jamie picked one and slammed it down.

     I had a five, Jamie a Queen, and Will ended up with a two.

     "Yes!" As the winner, Jamie collected his loot.

     Our final game lasted about 10 more minutes. Jamie ended up winning and the house erupted in cheers. Anne and Dena packed each of us leftovers in muffin tins to take home.