Finding The Five || FNAF Movie

Epilogue, Part One: Christmas

(Unedited, Not Proofread, 3666 words)
Trigger Warnings: None <3

Christmas. A holiday I never thought I'd celebrate again; one I haven't celebrated in a long time. A holiday I always expected to work through. One with little significance, one I could not afford. A day that wasn't made for people like me; people with no extra money to spend on gifts and no one to spend it on. A holiday I could never enjoy.

Or so I thought.

Jonah and I woke up at six in the morning and got his mom and her husband— his name is Todd, for future reference— up so the four of us could pull the trampoline out of their garage and into their backyard before the girls all woke up. We tried to be quiet, but we were all laughing like little kids and once we got it into place, Jonah hopped up onto it to "test it out", and suddenly he and I were trying to figure out how to front flip and his mother was trying desperately to make sure we didn't break anything.

We ran back inside by six fifteen and Jonah, Todd, and I started working on getting all the presents ready by the tree, including the little basket with a two— yes, two— kittens snoozing inside. His mother— her name is Amber, by the way— works on getting breakfast ready, hoping to wake the girls with the smell of hot chocolate and cinnamon rolls.

Amber is two years sober today, and even though she does still keep cigarettes around, she hasn't smoked in a few months either. She was so excited to meet me that night two weeks ago when Jonah brought me to his house. I assume Jonah told her about my situation behind closed doors, because when news slipped that my heat wasn't on at breakfast the next morning, she immediately offered to house me until it was.

I refused at first, in true Josephine Sterling fashion, but there were six little voices and Jonah's very influential one asking me to stay until the heat came on at least. I ended up saying yes because, in all honesty, my house is cold. And I don't want to be cold. And Amber has put me to work doing house chores with the girls and outside work with Jonah and I couldn't be happier.

It's not a long-term fix— after all, I am sleeping on the couch—, but until my heat is on, it works. My landlord promised it would be up by mid-January, and Amber and Todd agreed to let me stay until then. Jonah did most of the negotiations, which led to the agreement that I would help around the house while I'm here. It feels good to have things to do, and I'm in a warm house, so I have absolutely nothing to complain about.

Take last night for example. I sleep on the loveseat because I always sleep curled into a ball and I feel like I don't take up enough space to warrant me sleeping on the full couch. So, when Jonah came out into the living room half-asleep with his blanket over his head and sleepily asked me if I wanted company, he laid down on the couch and we fell asleep watching Christmas cartoon movies on the TV on a low volume setting.

How can I complain when this is what I get to experience?

Anyway, when Jonah and I finish arranging the presents, he and I sit down on the loveseat and watch Rudolph, which is playing on repeat, until the smell of cinnamon and sugar fills the house.

The twins are the first ones in the living room, their Christmas pajamas crinkled from hours of restful sleep and their hair twisted into wild tangles. They gawk at the presents and give Jonah and I good morning hugs before heading in to see their parents and get large Christmas mugs filled with hot coco topped with whipped cream and marshmallows.

All the other girls hit the bathroom first before heading over, but once they arrive, at least one of them immediately bursts into tears.

As soon as Jessie sees the kittens in the basket, she walks over to it and sits down right in front of it. Amber and Todd watch from the kitchen, and Jonah shifts in excitement as Jessie looks at her new pets.