Title: Present on the PillowAuthor: ElvenAvari
Summary: Spending the holidays alone can be very saddening as Elise finds out this Christmas. But a present on the pillow may make her feel all the better.
Rating: PG
Warning: Shoujo-ai

Present on the Pillow

“Your child is a joy to have in class, she loves to read which is wonderful although I would like for her not to hide books in her desk while I’m teaching and she should be paying attention,” Elise Reynolds, 3rd grade teacher, told the parents of her student. The parents laughed and nodded.

“We’ll have a talk with her this weekend.”

“I appreciate it. The only other concern I have are her math scores. She seems to struggle with this subject quite badly. I would advise working with her at home if you are able, as well as letting her stay at school in the afternoon for an hour of tutoring. It is very important to give a child a good foundation for them to build on later, and this school has a very good peer tutoring program.”

“I’ll work with her at home, if there is no improvement then we’ll look into the tutoring,” the mother said. Elise nodded and made note to send the parents a note on their child’s progress after Christmas break. When she looked up again she gave them a smile.

“I thank you for coming tonight. If there are no other questions, I’m sure we’re all ready to get home.” The parents nodded in agreement, thanked for her time, and then left.

Once the door had closed Elise yawned and stretched. She always enjoyed speaking with her students parents but it was tiring after putting in a full day with 3rd graders. Her stomach complained softly as she started to pack up. It was about two hours past her normal supper time. Elise wondered if Heather was home yet, if she had already eaten or if they would be able to eat together.

Elise had met Heather almost ten years ago in college, the day they moved in across the hall from one another. If someone had told her that eight years later they would be living together, sharing a bed, she would have laughed. She thought back on Heather and how she had been then.

Heather came from a well to do family, not really rich but then they didn’t want for anything either. She had long brown hair that came down to her lower back; she normally wore her hair back in a low ponytail. She wore mostly earth tones, something that hadn’t changed, and glasses over her blue eyes when she was reading. She had been a third year pre-med student and Elise was a second year Elementary Education major, even now the two seemed so different but they had one thing in common, they both loved children.

In the beginning they had said “hi” to each other in passing and then didn’t give the other another thought until the next “hi” came. That had changed the day Heather was struggling with about fifteen thick medical texts up the stairs to their floor when the weight of the books had made her lose her balance. Halfway up the stairs she could only let out a soft scream of fright as she started to fall backwards, at least until someone caught her and struggled to help her regain her balance. Once her feet were firmly planted on the stairs again she could look back at who had most likely saved her life.

Light brownish red hair that fell in waves to slim shoulders, framing a pretty face that had two of the biggest brown eyes she had ever seen. Those eyes caught her attention right off because they were full of concern.

“How could a complete stranger worry?” Heather wondered as she stared.

“Are you alright?” Elise questioned. Heather nodded, she knew that voice.

“Now I am, thanks to you,” she answered with a smile. Elise laughed softly, a light blush decorating her cheeks.

“Well I couldn’t let you fall. Here let me help you,” she offered and took half of the stack before Heather could object. For the first time they made small talk on the way to their rooms. Heather fumbled with her keys and unlocked the door before walking in and setting her stack of books down on the desk, Elise followed her example.

“Thank you,” Heather said. Elise smiled.

“Not a problem, see you later.” Heather nodded and then watched her walk across the hall to her room until she disappeared into the room. From that moment a friendship formed between the two. It was no longer just causal “hi’s” but joining each other for lunch, and occasionally studying together.

Over the next year and a half they became very good friends. Christmas came that year and with it heavy snowfall. The airports were closed and Elise couldn’t get home to be with her family. Heather had been on her way out the dorms when she found her friend in tears on the stairs.

“What’s wrong?” She asked concerned.

“The airports are closed… and I can’t… get home,” Elise sniffed wiping her nose on her sleeve. Heather thought for a moment and then smiled.

“Come home with me.” Elise looked up in confusion.

“What?”

“Come home with me. I know the weather in this area; the airports are going to stay closed for the next three days. There’s no use in you spending your Christmas alone in the dorms, so come home with me. My family would be more than happy to have you,” Heather explained. Elise wiped her tears away.

“But… I couldn’t just show up with you,” she said. Heather just snorted softly.

“They really won’t mind, especially when they find out your flight was cancelled. Come on, grab your bag and come with me.” Elise could not say no to Heather’s offer after it being put that way so she nodded with a smile. Standing she picked up her bag that lay at her feet and followed Heather out the door.

That Christmas morning Elise found a peppermint on the pillow beside the one her own head was resting on. She blinked at the red and white swirls for a moment wondering how it had gotten there, for it certainly had not been there the night before. Slowly sitting up she picked up the piece of candy and without another thought took the wrapping off and placed it in her mouth. The sweet taste made her smile as she climbed out of the guest bed in Heather’s house and stretched. She went to wash her face and then wondered out of the room.

Laughter came from downstairs and she followed the voices. Soon she found everyone in the living room sitting around a warm fire, the Christmas tree lit in the corner, and the delicious smell of apple cider filling the space. Heather’s mother was the first to notice her standing there and quickly got her a cup of cider leading her to a seat.

“Good morning dear, we were all just sharing stories before passing out the presents,” she told her. Heather smiled from where she sat on the floor near the tree.

“Did you like your peppermint?” Heather questioned.

“You left that?” Elise questioned. Heather nodded.

“It’s a little bit of a tradition,” she replied. Elise smiled thinking about how nice the tradition was. She sipped at her cider missing the look that Heather’s parents gave her or the shrug and innocent smile she gave in return. The tradition in the family was for the person who woke first to leave a peppermint for the person they loved on the empty pillow.

Now eight years later Elise knew that and the thought still made her smile. Elise locked the door to her room and then left the school. The streets were dark and quiet, lit gently by the street lamps that lined them. Elise pulled into the driveway of a quaint brick house, a silver Toyota Rav-4 also sat in the drive way, meaning that Heather was home. Elise got out and locked her car before walking up to the front door, opening it and then locking it behind her.

“I’m home,” she called. Her stomach growled again before there was any reply. The house smelled wonderful… Italian, her favorite. Elise sat her purse and school bag down before entering the kitchen. She leaned against the door frame and smiled watching Heather stir the sauce for spaghetti with one hand, a glass of wine in the other. Heather loved to have two glasses of wine each night, one with supper and the other while they sat and read.

“Welcome home babe,” Heather greeted with a smile. “How were the parent/teacher conferences?”

“Hopefully effective, most parents are concerned for their children and how they do in school,” Elise answered coming over to taste the sauce.

“That’s always a good thing. It will be ready soon, you have just enough time to change into something more comfortable,” Heather told her, giving Elise a brief kiss on the lips. Elise hummed softly as she licked her lips taking in the sweet taste of the wine that was on Heather’s lips. Heather laughed softly. “Go on you silly girl.”

Ten minutes later they were sitting at the table eating supper. Elise listened to Heather talk about her patients; sometimes the children could be so funny. After she finished Heather listened to the details of the conferences. She added in her opinion when she felt it was needed but other than that left it up to Elise, she was the teacher not herself.

“I have a bit of bad news,” Heather told her quietly as they washed the dishes.

“What?” Elise questioned.

“The hospital is sending me to a conference in Washington D.C. for the next two weeks,” Heather told her. Elise didn’t understand for a moment but then the dates ran down in her mind.

“You’ll be gone for Christmas?” She asked softly.

“I would be flying back on Christmas Eve, but I wouldn’t be here to help decorate, or wrap presents,” Heather answered.

“When do you leave?”

“Two days.”

“That’s so soon!”

“I know babe, they just told me at a staff meeting this morning. The doctor that was originally scheduled to go couldn’t because his wife went into labor and it would be wrong for him to be away for the baby’s first Christmas,” Heather explained. Elise nodded, Heather had such a kind heart… although she did hate it that Heather wouldn’t be there for the majority of the fun before Christmas. “Elsa… what are you thinking?”

Elise looked up into Heather’s eyes sadly for a moment before she smiled and grabbed the front of her shirt. She felt Heather smile more than saw it. Then Elise kissed her.

“I was just thinking about how much I will miss you, but I’ll deal. But, you’re going to have to make it up to me… starting now,” she stated pulling Heather back to their bedroom.

Two weeks later…

“T’was the night before Christmas and I’m all alone…” Elise murmured as she wiped a tear away. This was the first Christmas she had spent entirely alone in ten years. The house was silent; the clock had stopped chiming at ten. Now just the glow from the multi-colored lights on the tree and the white lights on the mantel lit the room. She had hoped that Heather would be home by tonight but a snow storm in Washington had grounded her flight.

Wiping another tear away she got to her feet taking her tea cup into the kitchen. Coming back to the living room she turned off the lights. Her eyes went to the window hoping to see any sign of life out in that winter wonderland. There was none however, only the Christmas lights their neighbors left on at night. Elise sighed and went to bed.

The next morning came with the hall clock chiming eight. Elise groaned softly not wanting to wake just yet. Slowly she blinked, her eyes meeting the dark blue, red and white that was Heather’s pillow. The second and third colors woke her more than anything; Heather’s pillow was normally a solid color. She sat up and stared in shock.

There on Heather’s pillow lay a single peppermint candy. It had not been there the night before. Footsteps coming down the hall brought her attention to the door. The smile started and the tears followed.

“Do you like your peppermint?” Heather questioned with a smile. Elise let out a cry of delight as she threw the covers back and jumped from the bed. She ran to Heather, wrapping her arms around her neck as their lips met. “Merry Christmas babe,” Heather whispered once the kiss broke.