A Clause Journey (The Santa Clause story) 🎅🏻

chapter 11= never lose hope!

Y/n's POV

I searched the workshop, trying to find the E.L.F.S department. When I finally found it, I could hear sounds of Jack Frost's terrible voice in the show growing muffled the further I went. I stepped inside the E.L.F.S department and gasped as I looked around and saw the E.L.F.S jetpacks, covered in dust, helmets infested with Spiders, and a row of empty prison cells.
Then, the end cell made my heart light up with relief. It was Bernard. His head was bowed, his clothes shrivelled, and torn, his shoes dusty, and his hands in shackles.
I ran over to the cell and knelt down in front of the bars. I gasped. I could see his body slowly dissolving into dust. He was losing his hope.
"Take my hand!" I said, reaching through a gap in the bars.
He looked up.
"Who are you?" He asked.
"That doesn't matter. Take my hand! You can never lose hope!" I said.
"I should just close my eyes and go! No one will care!" He muttered, looking at the floor with tears welling up in his eyes.
"I care!" I said.
He looked up at me with slight hope in my eyes. He hesitantly took my hand and smiled.
"What's your name?" He asked.
"Y/n, Y/n Calvin!"
"Nice to meet you! My name's Bernard!" He shook my hand, and the fading ceased to exist.
"Why would you care about me?" He asked.
"Because.... You're very special to me! And I don't wanna lose you because of some stupid new santa clause!" I said.
"But.... I barely know you!" He said.
"We only just met!..... Are you even real?" He said. I chuckled.
"Of course.... Why don't you kiss me and find out?" I said.
He chuckled and then started to slowly lean in towards me, and then, I felt his cold lips touch my warm ones.
He pulled away, and his cheeks turned the infamous shade of cherry red that I always saw when Bernard had kissed me.
"Wow..... I haven't kissed someone in 10,000 years!" He said.
"You'll get used to it!" I said.
"What do you say we get you outta here?" I asked.
"How?" He asked.
I ran over to the desk in the E.L.F.S department and searched the draws until I found 5 keys in the bottom draw. I sighed in relief. I took all 5 keys over to the cell and tried the
first one.
Nothing.
Second one.
Nothing.
Third one.
Still nothing.
Fourth one.
Nothing.
Fith one.
EUREKA!!!
The cell was unlocked, and I attacked Bernard with a massive hug.
I grabbed the key and unlocked the shackles, and I held his hands in mine.
"How about another kiss?" He asked.
"You know it!" I said.
"Hang on, my mistake! How about kisses?" He corrected himself.
"Oh, now you're talking!" I said. We started to make out-ish for about 5 minutes.
Bernard pulled away, out of breath.
"Alright, we need to get outta here!" He said.
"Yeah, let's go!" I said. I grabbed Bernard's hand and pulled him down the hallways until we were met with Lucy, who had just come out of the snow globe room.
"Hey, Luce!" I said.
"Y/n? Who's this?" Lucy said.
"I'm Bernard!" He said, holding his hand out. She shook it and smiled.
"Is that THE snowglobe?" I said, pointing to the globe in her hands. She nodded.
"Let's go! Follow us!" I said. We all ran until we came on a staircase leading down to the stage where Scott, Jack, and a group of security guards gathered.
"Hey, how about a game of catch? Lucy, toss it!" My uncle said.
Lucy threw the snowglobe to my uncle, but it landed in Jack's grip. Jack chuckled and turned to my uncle and said, "Nice try, compadre. And lovely teamwork. Y/n, I see you've found Bernard! How romantic! But, there's only one problem... You're never gonna get me to say -"
"I wish I'd never become santa at all!" Jack's voice came through the pen. Jack suddenly realised and widened his eyes. What a genius idea.
"Now, who said that? Rudolph? Rudolph's mamma?" My uncle said, mocking Jack's words.
My uncle held onto Jack.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!" Jack yelled as they both disappeared. I started to disappear.
"Wait! Will I ever see you again?" Bernard said.
"Don't worry! You will!" I said before disappearing.
I felt myself falling back in time, yet again!

*Christmas Eve, 1994*

I fell into the front yard of my uncles house again, and Jack and Scott fell down after me.
"Here we go again!" I muttered.
Santa was, again, on the roof. "I gotta get my coat back!" Jack said.
Jack tried to go to get the coat, and I joined my uncle and stopped him, squirming.
HEY, Y-!" Jack was about to yell, but my uncle covered his mouth.
Then, my uncle from 12 years ago came out of the front door in his underwear, coat, and snow boots.
"Whoa. Freaky!" I said.
"Hey, you!" 1994 uncle Scott said.
"Ho, ho, uh-oh!" Santa said as he slipped and fell off of the roof.
"Let me go! That coat belongs to me!" Jack squirmed.
"No, that coat belongs to him!" Scott said.
"You got him!" 1994 Charlie said.
"This guy was huge!" 1994 Scott said.
"Yeah, well, I'm santa now, okay?" Jack said.
"You don't look like santa!" I said.
"You killed him!" 1994 Charlie said.
"Did not! And he's not santa!" 1994 Scott said.
"Well, he was Santa! And just think, would an average mall santa be on our roof about to go down our chimney?" 1994 me said.
"I want my coat!" Jack said.
"Dad, you gotta see this!" 1994 Charlie said.
"Why was Charlie so cute back then, and I looked like a piglet on steroids?" I said.
"Charlie, Y/n! Get down from there!" 1994 Scott said.
"I want the coat!" Jack continued to protest.
"Why? Cause you make such a good Santa? Cause all the elves love ya?" My uncle started to ramble. Then, I cut in, "All those people you took money from, they love ya?" I said.
"Listen to me, listen to me!" My uncle said, thrusting Jack onto his back to look at him and me.
"Being Santa's not something you could take! It's something that chooses you!" I said.
Then, 1994 Scott put on the coat.
"Well, how do I look? Nice?" 1994 Scott said.
"And you're too late!" My uncle said, standing up in front of Jack and me joining him at his side.
"NOOOOOO!!!" Jack screamed as he faded into gold dust.
I dissolved into dust as I gave my uncle a nod and a two fingered salute.
He, then, dissolved, and we made our back to the present.