A/N: Just thought I'd write one for the holidays! Hope you like it! R&R.

Day Five

I could practically hear the bells chime when my sister arrived. Don't get me wrong, I love my sister. She isn't one of those sisters who has it out for me or makes my life a living hell. She doesn't make me look bad or put me down. She's actually quite tolerable for an older sister. But there's one thing about Susan that I never have nor ever will be fond of.

Her knack for putting me in uncomfortable or embarrassing situations. And her not knowing she's doing it.

Like when I was nine, I had a crush on the cutest boy in school. He could climb the slide sideways and all of the second graders, and rumored, a few third graders too, either wanted to be his girlfriend or be his best friend. And lucky me, I was chosen to be his partner on a collecting leaves project. So he came over to my house and everything was going good, and in popped my sixth grade sister with a smile on. "Isn't this that boy you told mom you liked?" The embarrassment was horrible, seeing as it was the first embarrassing moment I could remember, and Timmy Peters ran out of my house quicker than a squirrell whose tail was on fire down to his house, three houses away. It didn't matter that Timmy Peters turned out to be a dweeb in Junior High with glasses thicker than Grandma Betty's toenails. There were possibilities...kind of.

She's just always done it, done something, everytime I see her. Never has a day gone by where she hasn't embarrassed me. And I doubted today would be any different.

People were arriving, slowly but surely. Every year, at precisely four to five days before Christmas, the family arrived. It was a promising time, promising that is, that Aunt Beatrice and Uncle Frank would get into a World War III argument and threaten of divorce, Uncle Louie would gather us all up for about a hundred photos, my mother would be cooking something wonderful in the kitchen that was sure to put a few pounds on everyone, except me(thank god for teenage metabolism!), my father would be out on the porch with 'the men', guzzling beer and talking about 'men stuff', my sister visiting with my mother, helping her cook and talking about the joys of life or putting me on the spot, my grandparents being the wise folks they were and asking me personal questions in hope of shedding some of their wise-ness on me, my older brother secretly scheming a prank that was specialized for different people and done for his own sadistic humor, and my other brother, his twin, bringing home his latest flame to introduce to the family. So far it was only me, my mother, my father, Aunt Beatrice and Uncle Frank, and the loving grandparents that I'd managed to avoid for the most part.

But now it was all of us, well, except Uncle Louie. Hearing the commotion from downstairs I groaned, biting off a peice of duct tape to continue with the horrible wrapping of my brother's present. He was going to get it good after super glueing the wrapping paper to my present last year which took me forever to open. Sick puppy. So with all my brilliance, I'd come up with the perfect technique of layering his gift from yours truly with duct tape at just the right spot so one had to peel layer after layer off until you could get at it. I thank the many hours of scheming against my sister with him and his sick mind rubbing off on me.

I smiled down at the glory of what he'd soon be proud of me for. It was a gorgeous box, a duct tape covered box, an empty box. I figured I'd give him his real present after he'd finally gotten the fake one open. He was so going to kill me...

And he was home. My favorite person in the whole world and my partner in crime was back along with the rest of the troop and a few extras they'd brought along. Mitch was, of course, bringing home his latest, and god only knew what to expect. Every year he had a different one, always claiming that his significant other was the one. And every year he'd come back telling us it didn't work out between them, and we'd all roll our eyes and laugh. And to add to the joy that was to be the holiday, my sister was bringing home the fiance whose name began with a 'c', who was the gem in her lit. class, accidently bumping into each other in the hallway, her forgetting her journal and him returning it. Sure. I reckon she met him at an all night party-hearty and just didn't wanna tell mom and dad that was where she met her soulmate. And to add to the joy, his little brother was tagging along as well seeing as he was going to be his best-whatever, and wanted him to meet the family. I don't mind kids, really, as long as I don't have to take care of them I'm good. And if they asked me to babysit so they could go off and do whatever...no.

But all in all, I was glad to see the family.

"Anna banana!"

Shit, I smiled wickedly. Three, two, one...

My door burst open and before I had a chance to smile I was being picked up and spun around on the shoulders of my favorite sibling. The room moved quickly as I laughed joyously. "Hey big brother!"

"My Anna banana." He screamed wildly before setting my feet on the floor once again to look me over. "Still as skinny as always, I see." I grinned up at him before punching him hard in the arm.

"I took up anorexia." I joked and he chuckled.

"I heard about the boyfriend. What happened kid?"

I shrugged carelessly, meaning my actions. "We broke up." I supplied with a carefree smile. He shook his brown locks with a small smile.

"Whatever, baby sis." He grinned, wrapping an arm around my shoulders before guiding me to the door with a deliberate change of subject. "Let's go introduce you to the pack. I think your gonna like them."

I smiled happily before skipping ahead of him, and down the stairs. Suddenly I felt something holding me back before I fell. And fell fast. I felt the world slip out from beneath my feet, no longer in control of my own body. My eyes shut before I felt my stomache stop doing that flippy thing.

"Anna!" I heard my brother screech before I was being pulled slowly to my feet.

"Ugh," I groaned, kneading my fingers into my temple in hopes of dulling the sudden pain in my head, "shit." I opened my eyes and glared with all my might at the stairs that always seemed to hurt me. I either tripped going down or going up which I never believed possible. But I was used to it by now. "Loser stairs." I let go of my head and ran a hand through my blonde hair. "Get me every time." I heard my brother laugh and couldn't help but to let a smile slip onto my face.

"Let's go get you some ice." I groaned when I took a step and felt my head throb. I walked with Jim to the deserted kitchen and grabbed a bag of corn from the freezer, holding it steadily on my head before following him towards the family room, a painful expression on my face. "You ready, kiddo?" I shrugged and grunted before he opened the door to the room and I stepped ahead of him before I was announced to the world. "Everyone give a round of applause to Anna banana for once again tripping over her own feet and falling down the stairs." I glared at him before diverting my eyes to the everyone there.

My mother sat, her body turned towards Susan who was looking at me with a smile. I returned it before skimming my eyes over the guy next to her, appearing to be about the same age as her with dark hair and eyes who smiled shyly at me. Next to him was Mitch, the twin of Jim, features the same except for their hair and eye color, who was holding the hand of his latest. I caught the next movement out of the corner of my eye to see a stunningly bright blue pair of eyes staring intensly into mine from where he stood by the window. I guess I wouldn't be babysitting his little brother after all.

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Mitch's latest flame was a tall surfer dude named Michael. He'd met him at a coffee bar down in Florida, and insisted they got out sometime. I didn't blame him. Michael was hot. Uber hot. So hot that if he was straight...I'd be all over that. And what a shame, he was an only child. No little brothers my age for me.

And I'd gathered this information when my other favorite sibling ushered me out into the kitchen to inform me on Mr. Michael, thankfully postponing the introductions for a minnie or two.

"He's so friggin' hot." I whispered, downing a glass of water. "Nice call on this one, slick."

Mitch chuckled, holding out a hand for my glass and veggies, rinsing it out before putting it into the strainer and returning the corn to it's rightful place. "Your tellin' me." He replied with his back turned. "He's fuckin' gorgeous."

I smiled at my brother. He sure wasn't flamin', and refused to date any guy that was. He was manly, and not knowing him, you'd have no reason to expect of his gay behaviors and preferences. That was Mitch for you, and I loved him for it.

"So what do you think of Susie's fiance?" I inquired and he chuckled.

"Oh, he's cute. Didn't blink an eye when I introduced Mike as my boyfriend." He turned to me with a mischevious smile. "His little brother seems like a cool person too."

I shrugged. "I thought he was gonna be some little sticky fingered kid. Guess not."

He chuckled slightly, leaning back onto the counter. "Yea, I'm just warning you in case, but stay away from the guy, okay?"

I looked at him with confusion. "Is he like...a psycho or something?"

"No," he laughed, smiling, "I just think Jim's gonna involve him in your prank this year, thats all. He was eyeing him up in the car, like thoughtfully."

I grinned mischeviously. "Maybe he likes him."

"Ha. There's about as much chance of Jim turning gay as me turning straight." He shook his head in an identical way to his twin. My head snapped to the right, as did Mitch's when the door to the family room opened up and everyone spilled out. I laughed as Jim hopped up onto the counter next to me with a boyish grin and Michael walked over to Mitch who kissed his cheek in a cute way.

"Anna."

Dun, dun, dun...

I smiled when Susan walked over to our foursome and smiled at me. "I'd like to introduce you to my fiance, Carter." I smiled at the nervous looking guy who's hand my sister was holding. "Carter, Anna."

I gave him a small wave and smile. "What's up?"

He laughed. "Nice to meet you." I nodded once at him, about to reply the same when she spoke up again.

"And his brother and best man, James."

I watched as the guy walked over to the counter opposite me with cool ease. He leaned up against it, resting his elbows on the cool marble. "Hey." He offered and I nodded once with a small smile.

"Hey."

I didn't miss the mischevious glint in Jim's eyes a second after.

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Timmy Peters lived three houses down the street, a blue house with blue shutters and two blue cars. And how did I know this? Every year my mother sent me down to their house to deliver a freshly baked pie as a Merry Christmas present. It'd taken mother dearest minutes after everyone filed out of the kitchen, well, almost everyone, to set me out on the horrible task. James had stayed put, in the exact spot, confidence radiating off of him. And so I remained when Susie had suggested we get to know each other a bit. I wasn't going to be rude.

I was nervous, and a little unsure of what to do. I had nothing to say, there was nothing to say. So we sat like that, me seemingly being the only one aware of the awkward situation that had been forced upon us as he only stared at me.

I could feel his eyes on me, tracing over me, and I bit my lip. God, this was idiotic. Put two people who don't know each other together and tell them to get to know each other. Who does that?

I lifted my eyes, about to excuse myself to find his eyes traveling slowly up my legs until they met my own. I saw him smirk, an evil twist to his eyes that I couldn't seem to look away from...

"Anna!"

I jumped into the air, and turned my head to find my mother coming through the door and opening the refridgerator, hearing a deep chuckle from behind me. "Run this down to the Peters, will you?" I welcomed the excuse to leave and hopped off the counter, making sure not to give him a view up my skirt as I did so and grabbed the pie from my mothers hands.

I could feel him smirking as I walked out of the house.

And here I was, passing the second house in my skirt, winter coat, and boots. It was surprisingly warm for December. The sun had come out today, and I had taken it in with joy. The weather had more mood swings than Aunt Beatrice when she went through meno. Hot today and tomorrow called for two feet of snow.

I looked up at the familair blue house and winced inwardly, walking up the stone steps and knocking on the wooden door. It swung open quickly to reveal a man that looked to be in his 80's, in a pair of tighty whities, a toothbrush hanging out of his mouth. I was instantly scarred for life. "Who'sit?" He asked, spitting a bit of paste out onto the ground before my feet. I looked down, disgusted, and back up to the man. I'd never seen him before. Maybe they moved...

"I got it grandpa." I heard a scratchy voice say before the old man disappeared muttering and Tiny Tim appeared in the doorway, a smile he must have thought seductive spread across his face. "Hello there. What brings you to my house, Miss Anna." He spoke as if I wanted to come, just to see him. As if.

"Pie." I answered shoving it into his arms before a shocked expression overcame his face. "Merry Christmas." And with that I left his presence and headed for home, the image of an old, wrinkly, hairy man in my head.

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