#i enjoyed putting them in a santa/reindeer themed version of their usual fits

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

a merry Between Week to everyone! rest well!

extra layers:

[gilmores-glorious-blog]

think of all the fun i´ve missed (think of all the fellas that i haven’t kissed)

-

merry (early) christmas @leifdonnellies! i was your secret santa and i had a lot of fun writing this fic for you :D i hope you enjoy it and have a great holiday season! (the title is from santa baby and really doesn’t fit with the fic all that well but i thought it was funny...)

-

Tobin Batra knew every word in the English dictionary, and yet he still didn’t know the right words to describe the chaos that was SPRQ Point holiday parties. 

After going to one for this first time, Tobin immediately knew why STEM kids and queer kids were never the people throwing parties in high school. When you combined those groups into the group that was the fourth floor of SPRQ Point, the result was a drunken mess of a gathering. 

The floor was cleared off as it would be for any business-related gala, but instead of tasteful lighting and tech speeches, there were tacky Christmas lights strung up and shitty music blasting from every speaker. 

And yet, Tobin loved them. He loved his oddball group of friends and colleagues, and it was fun to hang out with them without any pressure of deadlines and CEO visits, and instead just a week-long break to look forward to. At recent parties, Zoey’s DJ friend Mo provided the music, and he did have objectively better music taste than anyone else there. Tobin liked Mo, and liked getting to chat with him at parties, mostly about music and queer stuff. Another plus of parties was seeing who gave the most outrageous white elephant gifts- Tobin was currently winning that competition ever since he gifted Max a live chinchilla a year ago. (Max still had the chinchilla. He named it Joan after their former boss, and it was beloved by everyone.) Yet another great thing about it was that it was the one night that they finally could replace the bread bar or oatmeal bar or whatever bar with an open bar, because apparently it was legal if it was for a party. But Tobin’s favorite thing about the holiday parties was the fact that it was the one night a year that his boyfriend let Tobin kiss him in front of their colleagues. 

Leif was surprisingly shy about PDA, and had been as long as Tobin had known him. His parents weren’t exactly the most touchy-feely people, with each other or with their children, and it had clearly rubbed off on Leif. Tobin was fine with this, of course, he’d never want to make his boyfriend uncomfortable. Plus the two lived together, and Leif was incredibly touch starved at home, so it wasn’t really a big deal that they never did more than very occasionally hold hands at work. That being said, Tobin discovered recently that Leif found it “morally wrong”- Leif’s words, not Tobin’s- to disobey the laws of mistletoe, and he planned to fully exploit that fact at the party.

Mistletoe was a big thing at these parties- because obviously it was, what chaotic Christmas party was complete without a tiny, slightly-poisonous plant that required you to kiss whoever’s nearest to you if you found yourself under it? When they arrived at the party, Tobin snatched a cluster of mistletoe that was hanging right outside the elevators. He figured that was a fair place to steal it from, because as much as he loved the tradition, it was a bit of a cruel place to hang it, catching people off guard like that. Leif glanced over and saw him grab it, but just rolled his eyes as Tobin winked at him and smirked. 

“Hey guys!” Zoey greeted as they joined the group. “You can put your gifts over there…” She pointed to a small pile before glancing at the package in Tobin’s arms with concern. “I do not want to know what’s in there this year.” 

Tobin smiled wide. “Well, I tried hard to top Joan the chinchilla, but I think it was my peak.” 

Leif and Zoey rolled their eyes in unison as Leif gave Tobin a shove towards the stack of gifts. 

Tobin soon joined the rest of the party, dragging Leif with him and forcing him to dance to the loud music with him. As per usual, Mo had created a killer playlist, albeit a bit of a weird conglomeration of songs. Any playlist that went from a stunning, slow cover of Someday At Christmas (that seemed to have been sung by the DJ himself) immediately into the original version of Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer had to be made by someone at least a little bit high. 

About an hour into the party, Tobin could tell that Leif was getting overwhelmed by all the people and the sounds, so he silently took his hand and pulled him into the nest. 

“Thanks,” Leif said once they were out of earshot of others. He rubbed his neck awkwardly as he sat down on the conference table. “Sorry, I don’t know what was happening back there, I’ve been better with social stuff for a while, I guess it just… I dunno… it’s still hard sometimes.”

“Bro, it’s okay, I get it. You never need to apologize about anxiety stuff. And it’s not going to be all better, all the time, and that’s okay. You’ve been doing so good lately, Leif, and you deserve to celebrate that.” Tobin sat next to Leif and put his hand over Leif’s. 

Leif turned to him and smiled softly. “Thank you, babe.” 

Tobin lay his head on Leif’s shoulder and began rubbing gentle circles on Leif’s hand with his thumb. “You’re welcome.” 

Neither man spoke for a few minutes, and Tobin could hear Leif doing some deep breathing, something he often did as a way to calm his anxiety. 

Eventually, when Leif seemed to have fully relaxed, he turned towards Tobin and smiled at him again. “Have I mentioned that you look really nice tonight?” 

Tobin laughed. “A few times. But you can tell me again.”

“Well you do. Really nice.” 

Leif leaned forward and kissed Tobin, and Tobin counted it a win that his boyfriend kissed him at work with no mistletoe involved. 

Tobin pulled away much sooner than he wanted to, because they were still at a party after all. “Hey, you ready to go back?”

Leif squeezed his hand before standing up. “Yeah. I think so.”

  The two of them left the conference room, and only got a few strange looks from the other party-goers as they made their way back to the group. 

“There you are!” Zoey said as she and Simon made their way over. “We were waiting for you to start gifts.” 

The next half-hour was spent in a flurry of white elephant chaos, filled with plenty of cursing and sighing and coming close to tears begging someone to please steal their gift because they don’t even play an instrument, why do they need sheet music for the wii theme?! Although none of the gifts came close to the glory of Tobin’s chinchilla, it was unanimously decided that Leif won this year’s most outrageous gift with the collection of small cowboy hats that Simon ended up with (something Simon was weirdly pleased with receiving.) Tobin had pouted about this decision, seeing as the hats had originally been his idea, but his boyfriend looked so pleased about winning such a stupid contest that Tobin let him take the win without too much complaining. 

It was getting late, and the party would likely be wearing to a close soon. People were still dancing, however- Leif being one of them. He and Zoey and Simon were in the middle of the floor, moving in a way that they must have considered “dancing” (but was really just a weird movement of limbs all over the place). 

The red and green lights were reflecting in Leif’s hair, making the blond curls glow in a way that could only be described as magical. His suit jacket had been abandoned at some point in the evening, so he was wearing only a deep red short sleeve dress shirt with a green vest over it. Despite the cliche color scheme, the outfit looked great on Leif. Tobin watched as Leif threw his head back in laughter at something Simon said, and felt a weird flutter in his heart at the sight. Even after nearly two years of dating Leif, and nearly twelve years of being in love with him, the other man never failed to make Tobin feel like he was fifteen again, looking over at the boy playing video games on the couch next to him, and being hit with a rush of feelings so sudden and so strong that Tobin thought he was dying. 

Tobin moved suddenly from where he’d been standing next to George, asking his friend to hold his drink for a moment. He joined Leif on the dance floor right as Santa Baby faded out (the dance moves done for that song did not bear repeating, to say the least), and faintly processed Mo announcing that their final song of the night was White Christmas because it had just started snowing in San Francisco, so of course it was. 

“Hey.” Tobin announced his presence as he sidled up next to Leif, swaying slightly to the melody. 

“Hi!” Leif turned around so quickly that he needed to steady himself by grabbing on to Tobin’s waist (nothing Tobin was complaining about), his face flushed from dancing. 

“Care to dance?” Tobin put his arms up and around Leif’s shoulders, noticing out of the corner of his eye that Zoey and Simon had begun to slow dance away from them, seemingly lost in each other. 

Leif just smiled in response and began leading Tobin slowly around the floor. Neither one of them were particularly great at dancing, but it didn’t matter. As Tobin heard the song drawing to a close, he fumbled in his jacket pocket for the mistletoe he had grabbed earlier. Upon finding it, he raised his arm above both him and Leif’s heads so that the mistletoe hung above them.

“Hey L.” Tobin said to get his boyfriend’s attention, because he’d somehow not noticed the commotion.

“Yeah?”

“Look up.” Tobin smirked.

Leif did so and immediately rolled his eyes and blushed.

“Well?” Tobin knew he was being obnoxious but didn’t care. “I seem to recall someone here saying that it was wrong to not follow the rules of mistletoe. Are you really gonna go back on your word now-”

Leif shut Tobin up by kissing him. 

Tobin smiled into the kiss, moving his non-mistletoe hand to cradle Leif’s face. People were probably staring at them, but he didn’t care. It’s not like no one knew they were together. 

Leif pulled back after a minute, slapping the mistletoe with indignance until Tobin lowered his arm. Their faces were still close, foreheads resting together.

“Merry Christmas Tobes.” 

Tobin gave Leif another quick kiss and smiled at him. “Merry Christmas Leif.” 

[mikkomacko]

Christmas Magic 1

It was still crisp and bright outside the day the form came home. The balcony outside their apartment was littered with crunchy leaves of browns and yellows and reds, all different shades even if they all fell from the same cottonwood tree growing right outside. The one Kevin The Tenant swears needs to be cut down before it falls on the complex or its strong roots ruin the foundations. Every spring he swears it's coming down, and every spring Ophelia's pretty green eyes well with tears at the thought of her tree coming down, and yet every spring it's still there, the thick branches and leaves casting shadows on the tiny hall of their home.

They sat in the window ledge by the balcony where the tree had shaken leaves off, Harry humming quietly as he unlaced Ophelia's little brown boots, tossing them into the doorway of her room to trip over later.

"It's a carnival daddy," Ophelia spoke, voice always so soft and feathery, even when she was so unbearably excited about this carnival that her toes wiggled in her socks. "a Christmas one. Mrs. Frank said Mr. Clause might be there!"

"Mr. Clause, huh?" Harry hummed, pretending to be very thoughtful over this class trip. It really wasn't much of a big deal. The carnival was in the city, set up in the park with ice skating and music and games and lights and a Christmas parade. Mrs. Frank picked a weekday to attend so the crowd wouldn't be too rowdy for a group of four and five year olds. Harry himself was even invited to attend, like all the other class trips, because Ophelia is quite awful at going anywhere without her dad.

Ophelia nodded, her brown curls bouncing and a begging smile splitting her face. Harry smiled too, falling onto his butt on the wood floor, and admiring the beautiful girl sitting before him. He had no reason to say no and even if he did, how could he? He'd bestowed an unfathomably huge love for Christmas time in his daughter as well as a good heart and kind soul. There was nothing Ophelia could've possibly done in her whole life that would constitute a no from Harry.

"Tell you what," He climbed up from the floor, helping her down from the windowsill and leading her to the little dining table that's sat in the corner of the kitchen, right next to the bulletin that's always overflowing with pictures and doodles of their family. "I'll sign this for ya but you gotta promise me you won't have a cry if I can't go with ya, ok?"

Harry's sure he'll be able to go but he'd hate for his girl to get her hopes up and then have them cut down.

Ophelia eyed the form apprehensively, pink lips pursed to the right as she mulled over the idea of Harry not going to the carnival with her. He sighed softly and lifted Ophelia up onto the table top, hands cupping her little face.

"Ya know that whether I'm there or not you'll be perfectly safe." He whispered as if sharing the most illuminating secret ever spoken. "I'd never send ya anywhere that I wouldn't go myself and I'd never expose ya to people that would purposely hurt ya, ok?"

Ophelia blinked at him nervously, fiddling the little fingers that barely fit around Harry's thumb. "What if they accidentally hurt me?"

"Accidents happen, but I promise I'll send your card with ya and I'll always go save ya."

Her fingers stilled, one hand reaching out to fist the edge of his shirt. "Really promise?"

"Really promise."

"Okay daddy."

"Ya still wanna go?"

"Yes please."

He grinned. "Then you got it baby. I'll sign it and send it with ya Monday."

Ophelia beamed and Harry removed his hands so he could see the dimples sinking into her soft cheeks. Her hand tugged on his shirt, and her head tilted up, long eyelashes kissing her cheeks and Harry knew what was she requesting. He always knows.

"Love ya nipper." He murmured, hunching over to kiss her forehead even though it makes his back ache.

"Love ya daddy."

~

The leaves blew away days ago, the balcony outside their little home now weighed down with piles of snow that have Ophelia giddily smiling every time Harry carries her past the window. The hand turkeys on the fridge, one the size of Harry's palm and one the size of Ophelia's have been replaced by drawings of reindeers and Santa Claus, and Ophelia's ever growing Christmas list that will be mailed to the North Pole by the end of the week. Multicolored lights wrapped around false green garland have been tacked around all the windows of the apartment with a matching set on the mantel above the electric fireplace. A little pink stocking with her name stitched in cursive letters hangs next to the bigger blue one that's labeled with Harry's name, both of them swaying as the vent above releases warm air. The holiday advent calendar on the coffee table has six of its doors open, each one containing a different piece of SpongeBob themed candy. Yesterday Harry had gotten one of those gummy patties that only tastes good if you eat it one layer at a time. The toy nativity set that usually goes on the coffee table is missing the donkey but Harry doesn't have much time to worry about it before he's stepping on it, the donkeys pointy ears prickling the bottom of his foot.

"Bloody f-"

"Daddy!" Ophelia squeaks, eyes wide as Harry hops on one foot and rubs the bottom of the other, glaring down at the offender. He can't blame the donkey too much, after all Ophelia is the one that left him on the floor.

He huffs, returning to two feet and bending over to pick up the little barn animal. He holds it out to Ophelia, eyebrows raised expectantly and her little eyes widen, chin tucking down to hide behind the scarf around her neck. "Sorry daddy," she says shamefully, twisting her sock clad toes into the wooden floor.

Harry nods, shoulders sagging as he places the donkey among the other toy creatures. "S'ok pet just try to remember next time. Don't need ya killing daddy, huh?"

She grins, relieved that Harry's not upset with her, and skips to him, leaping up with just enough time for Harry to hook his arms around her before she goes crashing at his feet. "Don't want that 'cause then I'd have no daddy to make dinner or go on class trips with."

He chuckles, setting her on his hip and adjusting her scarf. "Speaking of class trip, let's get going. Don't want to be late." Ophelia nods eagerly, wiggling to be set down. Harry tugs his waterproof boots on, helping Ophelia tie hers because she still struggles with it no matter how many times she practices bunny ears.

Harry got Ophelia tucked into her wool coat, zipping it up to her neck and pulling her scarf out so she's not suffocating. She requests her earmuffs, watching him with stars in her eyes as he kneels down to adjust them on her head, the pink fabric getting lost in her wild mane of curls.

"Gloves daddy?"

Harry grins, nodding proudly. They've had this routine for years but it's still nice being reminded that she pays attention to him. He pulls yellow mittens over her little hands, kissing both of her fabric covered palms when he's finished. Ophelia tugs her backpack over her shoulders while Harry pulls on his own coat, buttoning it up to his chin since he hasn't got a scarf. He puts on a beanie of the same shade of pink as Ophelia’s earmuffs and some black gloves.

He unlocks the front door, peering down at Ophelia and asking, "Ready to go bubba?" She nods eagerly, latching get fingers around his gloved thumb. Harry grabs his keys off the hook, double checking that the fireplace hadn't been left on or the fridge open. When he's sure everything is settled, he pulls open the door, allowing Ophelia to hop over the edging of the door, a habit she's had ever since she started walking. He shuts and locks the door behind them, dropping his keys to his pocket.

"Right then," Ophelia bounces on her toes. "let's go have us some fun."

~

The entire park, covered in snow from the storm last week, has been turned into a winter wonderland. Paths lined by candy cane lights lead to all the different areas: Santa's Shopping Center lined with Christmas stores, Character Circle where you can meet Santa and other winter holiday icons, the ice skating rink, the North Pole, and Wonder Park which is basically a little pavilion that always has live music surrounded by a frosty wishing moat.

The rest of Ophelia's class really enjoys Character Circle, all of them happily sitting with Santa for photos or building a toy with the elves. Ophelia, however, was insistent on staying in Wonder Park, forcing Harry to sign her out early so she doesn't have to go to the other areas with her class. She managed to pull Harry to the front of the crowd, right next to the wishing moat and within ten feet of the band currently playing.

Harry sits her on his hip, swaying them back and forth as a girl dressed as Mrs. Clause sings a bouncy version of Jingle Bells. She follows a simple dance routine with backup dancers dressed as candy canes and Ophelia is looking at her with such fond eyes Harry wonders what she sees in the girl.

Yeah, she's got a lovely voice, soft and smooth with just a bit of rasp on drawn out notes. And she's quite a cute dancer, tripping over her black heels a couple of times, never actually falling but flushing pink with embarrassment. Also, well, she's cute. She's really cute. The kind of girl that draws more attention with her personality rather than her looks but, is still breath-taking due to the aura around her.

Harry may or may not have the same loving look in his eyes as Ophelia, only looking away to give his girl a quarter for a wish. When her set ends, Harry and Ophelia holler as if she were a Grammy winner, both of them deflating when she leaves the stage.

"Alright nipper," he puffs, bouncing Ophelia to his front so he can look at her. "what do ya say to a photo with Santa? Need to send one to Nana for her fridge."

Ophelia shrugs but the droop of her smile and shoulders tells Harry all he needs to know. He wipes under her red nose with his sleeve. "If ya take a photo we'll come back to hear more music?"

"I only want to come back if she's singing daddy."

"The girl that just sang?"

Ophelia nods, wrapping a lock of his hair around her finger. "I want to see her again. She feels magic."

"Magic?" Harry murmurs, confused as to what Ophelia means by that.

She just nods, laying her head on Harry's shoulder. He decides to just let it be, pushing his way through the crowd and towards Character Circle. His head feels a bit swirly as he walks and his stomach so full it almost hurts, and Harry wonders if that girl really was magic.

~

Running the pads of her pointer fingers under her eyes, y/n shakes her head in disappoinment. Every year the radio station puts on this carnival and every year she swears she'll buy waterproof mascara to keep her makeup from running down her cheeks after the snows got caught in her eyelashes. Yet every year she ends up in the restroom after every little performance, wiping mascara clumps off her frost bitten cheeks.

Y/n throws her bag over her shoulder, the bells attached to her Mrs. Clause outfit jingling. No matter how many different ways she tries to fold that darn costume, the bells always break free. Jingling with each step, she exits the restroom, ready to find her car and get home. Not that she doesn't love Christmas, it's her favorite time of year, and working the carnival was one of the best things about her job, but after hours of standing on a stage in a dress and tights (that don't do much to keep out the cold) and singing Christmas carols, she's ready to get home.

"'Scuse me?"

Y/n jumps when something taps on her arm, the scared voice immediately rising panic in her chest. And standing by her leg, shivering in the cold with tear tracks on her red cheeks stands a little girl. Y/n notices her big green eyes full of unshed tears and the way her bottom lip trembles and she realizes that something is wrong and the girl is absolutely terrified. Something hot, like a fire in her belly, stirs up and y/n ushers the girl to the side of the snow covered path, standing between her and the crowd of people.

She crouches down, not caring that the knees of her jeans are getting wet. "What's the matter sweets?"

The girls little lip trembles even more, a few tears trickling down her cheeks. Without thinking y/n reaches out to wipe her face, soaking up the tears in her gloves. "I lost my d-daddy."

Y/n coos, pushing the messy baby hairs off her face and smiling encouragingly. "Don't worry sweets, we'll find your daddy. Can you tell me the last place you saw him so we can go look for him?"

The girl blinks her doe eyes, a tear running down her cheek. She sniffles, lifting her hands up to hand y/n something. Y/n takes it from her, realizing it's a homemade identification card. She reads it over, smiling at all the little hearts on the card obviously drawn on by whoever made the card for her.

Hello! My name is Ophelia Styles and if you have this card it's because I misplaced my daddy (or he misplaced me). I tend to be very scared without my daddy because I love him so much and I know he'll be scared without me too. Please call the number below and tell my daddy that I'm found and safe and not crying too much (even if I am) so that he doesn't worry. Thanks for your help!

Listed below is a phone number, one that y/n punches into her phone as fast as she can with her cold fingers. She hits call, holding the phone up to her ear as it rings. Not even two rings later does a man answer, a rushed "'ello!" coming through the speaker.

"Hi, is this Ophelia's father?"

Something like a gasp and sob leave the man's mouth, and y/n notices Ophelia inching closer to her. Her Bambi eyes are searching y/n's face for any sign of comfort so she smiles.

"You've got her? Is she ok? She hurt?" The man asks hurriedly, obviously still panicking from the disappearance of his daughter.

"She's just fine," y/n soothes. "She's found, safe, and not crying too much."

A relieved sigh comes from the other side and y/n takes that as her chance to let him know where they are. "We're over by the shops and cafe's, right next to the restrooms and concert pavilion."

"That's on the other bloody side of the park!" He squawks. "Lost her over by the Christmas characters!"

Y/n gawks, looking at Ophelia curiously. Somehow she managed to cross the whole park without getting hurt, finding solace in what's probably the busiest area of the carnival. "Oh, would you like me to take her over there or wait here?"

It's a silly question to ask because she can already hear him pushing through the crowd, definitely trying to get to Ophelia as quickly as possible.

"Could you just stay there for me? M'already on my way."

Y/n nods, forgetting that he can't see her. "Absolutely," she agrees, looking over Ophelia as she trembles and tucks her red nose into her scarf. The poor thing is freezing. "Actually would it be okay if I took her into the Cocoa Cafe? She just looks like she's freezing and it might take you a bit to get over here."

He hums, seeming to contemplate the idea. Y/n hopes he agrees because Ophelia really looks like she could use a warm drink. "May I speak with her real quick?"

Y/n hands the phone over to Ophelia, finding it funny that he even asked. Of course he can speak to his daughter, she's his baby after all. Ophelia clutches the phone in her mitten covered hand, bringing it up to her ear and murmuring a little "hi Daddy."

Y/n waits patiently for a few minutes, trying not to look like she's prying as Ophelia seems to be answering random questions about food. It's not until her green eyes meet y/n's and she says firmly, "I really like carrots daddy," that she realizes her father must have set up a series of coded questions that'll let him know if she's ok and comfortable. Y/n wonders if he's lost her a few too many times or if he's just a protective dad.

"Ok. Bye daddy."

The phone gets handed back to y/n. "We okay, sir?"

"The Cocoa Cafe you say?"

Y/n hums an affirmation.

"That sounds good. Thank you for all your help."

Warmth swirls in her gut, a lot more peaceful and welcome then the burning heat from before, and she can't help but grin at how genuinely grateful the man sounds.

They exchange good byes, y/n promising to call him if Ophelia needs anything before hanging up. She tucks her phone in her bag, looking up to be met with a warm gaze and a dimpled smile that makes her heart ache. "What do ya say we go warm up while we wait for your daddy, huh?"

Ophelia nods, reaching for y/n's hand when she climbs to her feet. She doesn't hesitate to hold her little hand in hers, swearing to keep her next to her and safe until her father gets here.

~

Y/n can't help but fawn over Ophelia. The girl is just so cute, especially when y/n asks if she wants extra whipped cream on her cocoa and she just looks up through her eyelashes, nodding gently with her little dimples sinking into her cheeks.

They receive their mugs of cocoa, y/n having ordered one for Ophelia's dad that has extra marshmallows because "daddy loves marshies," and she finds a booth that's fairly close to the entrance, offering to let Ophelia sit facing the door so she'll be able to see when her dad gets here. She nods at that, tip toeing in her boots to place her mug on the table next to the other two.

"Can you help me with my coat please?" She asks, holding her arms out wide to expose the zip of her jacket.

"Sure thing sweets." Y/n unzips her coat, hanging it by the hood on the edge of the booth so it can dry and won't be wrinkled. Ophelia tugs off her earmuffs, shaking out her frizzy head of curls like a lion waking up from a nap. She hands them to y/n without a word, only giving her enough time to place them on the table before she's asking for help pulling off her mittens.

The fabric is soggy and cold, making her wince as she peels them off to reveal Ophelia's angry red fingers. Y/n lies them on the table to dry, taking both of Ophelia's hands in hers and gently rubbing them back and forth. She even goes as far as blowing hot air on her little digits, smiling when she notices the smiley faces drawn on her yellow polished nails.

"My daddy does that before bed," Ophelia says, removing her hands to do the same to y/n's. "He warms my hands because they're always cold and then he presses kisses," she pecks her chapped lips against the back of y/n's hand. "like that."

Y/n, glowing from how endearing she finds Ophelia, squeezes her little hand just once and nods towards the booth. "Why don't we drink our cocoa and you can tell me more about your daddy, if you'd like?"

Ophelia nods excitedly, clambering into the booth across from y/n. She sips her hot cocoa, whipped cream sticking to her upper lip. Before y/n can suggest she wipe it off, Ophelia's launching into a story of her father stepping on a donkey every morning and that he almost uses a no-no word but she manages to stop him. And for some reason unknown to y/n, he always has Ophelia apologize for the donkey leading her to believe this is some kind of toy.

"Ophelia!"

In the blink of an eye Ophelia is standing on the booth seat, beaming the happiest smile y/n's ever seen in her life and waving towards a man that's rushing (and stumbling) to their booth.

"Daddy!" Ophelia squeals, launching herself into the air. The man leaps forward, yelping as he manages to catch her against his chest. Y/n, feeling like she's intruding on a personal moment, turns her attention to her hot chocolate, stirring the cinnamon stick around until it's blending brown into the whipped cream. She tries not to listen to the two talk, but it's hard when she can hear how utterly relieved they are to be reunited and it warms her chest more than the drink ever could. Especially when her father's voice, deep and raspy croaks out, "missed ya so much. Ya scared the life out of me Babycakes," and she can hear him sniffle when Ophelia whimpers a quiet little, "missed you daddy. Sorry for scaring you."

The people in the cafe are watching the scene with an air of confusion, one lady seeming to pick up on the fact that the man had lost his child because she's shaking her head at them. Y/n catches her eye, glaring at her until she returns to her drink.

"We got you cocoa daddy," Ophelia squirms in his arms until he sets her on the booth. "with extra marshies!"

He chuckles, a nice raspy laugh that makes y/n's stomach stir. It flips upside down when he finally looks at her, bright green eyes and dimples that he clearly passed onto his daughter. And if y/n thought the features were cute on Ophelia, she can't even describe how good they look on him (even if his eyes are a little red and puffy as if he'd been crying).

"You must be our hero!" He greets, looking between her starstruck gaze with such intensity she wants to giggle but also cry a little.

"I wouldn't say hero," y/n shrugs, trying to keep her smile from growing too big.

"No?" The man hums, sitting in the booth next to his daughter. She attaches herself to his bicep, rubbing her cheek against the fabric of his coat and y/n can't stop the little coo that leaves her lips. "Just a super star singer with pretty sweet dance moves?"

Her cheeks flush, eyes widening a bit because she'd seen them! They watched her perform, they were the ones that had cheered stupidly at the end. Despite her shyness, she shrugs and says teasingly, "I'd say a super star dancer with a pretty sweet voice."

"Think ya mixed them up," he laughs. "spent too much time out in the cold in stockings and a dress."

Y/n laughs, maybe a bit too much considering it was a mediocre joke but he's awful charming, she just can't help it. "It was a bit cold. Still trying to get feeling to my toes."

"I warmed her hands daddy." Ophelia pipes up, smiling proudly at y/n.

"You did?" He gasps excitedly.

She nods. "Just like you do! And she did it to me too because you got me gloves that stay wet daddy."

He frowns a bit guilty, pecking the top of her head in apology. "S'good thing we were lucky enough to stumble upon-" he looks at her expectingly.

"y/n,"

"y/n." She likes the way he says her name. "She saved the day, huh?"

"I came to find her daddy."

They both freeze at her words, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "What's tha' love?"

"I got scared. You were going to the Grinch and my fingers were cold so I ran back here to find her. She can make the Grinch nice."

Y/n flushes at Ophelia's words. She left her father because she wanted y/n to make the Grinch a better person in her eyes. She ran away from man that's probably protected her her whole life to come back to y/n? Someone she didn't know?

Y/n sips her hot cocoa, trying not to appear too concerned as he firmly scolds Ophelia for doing such a dangerous thing. He makes a point of reminding her that it terrifies him to think he's lost her because he loves her more than anything (y/n almost tears up at that) and to just tell him next time she's scared. Ophelia, pouting, nods shamefully in a way that has y/n feeling a little guilty. She wonders how he ever manages to scold her.

"M'sorry for all the trouble." He apologizes to y/n, rubbing Ophelia's arm as if trying to tell her he's not mad just upset. "Can't thank ya enough for taking care of her and being so sweet, 'specially on the phone. Don't think it's very fun speaking with a hysterical father."

Y/n shrugs, blushing under his thanks. "It was no problem. She's really sweet and adorable. I enjoyed chatting with her."

He seems a bit surprised at her words but doesn't common on it. Instead he chuckles, shaking his head embarrassedly. "I just realized I never introduced myself. M'Harry, Ophelia's dad."

Harry. Such a simple and common name but something about it being tacked onto him feels special, unique. Y/n smiles, endeared by the feeling radiating off of him. Harry.

"Nice to meet you."

Harry returns the sentiment, thanking her for the warm drink and asking if it's alright for them to stay and warm up a bit. Y/n agrees, not able to hide her excitement. She can't help but love Ophelia and Harry, both of them creating this comforting giddiness in her chest. She can't stop blushing every time tells her something remotely sweet and complimentary, dimples sinking into his cheeks as if trying to pull her into them. Harry's handsome, so handsome it's almost unbearable, and he's charming. Enough to have her giggling like a school girl. So when he thanks her for everything again, offering to make up for it with a date on Saturday, she happily agrees, and well, who can really blame her.