Always There

Chapter Twenty-Six

I sigh, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Her eyes open and she glances up to me for just a moment, smiling sweetly before shutting her eyes once more.

"Sure, you can take a nap. Can I ask you a question first, though?" I reply softly.

Blossom let's out a quiet yawn before she nods against my chest.

I take a minute to look at the room around us, so festive that it almost hurts. I know that she's always loved Christmas, but lately, she seems to fucking adore the holiday. I found it slightly bizarre how upset she got yesterday when she was talking about how she felt as though she was missing out on Christmas this year, and after I slept on that thought, I wanted to know if there really was a reason why she appears to be so attached to this holiday.

"Why do you love Christmas so much?" I ask her, seemingly an easy question to answer.

Apparently it isn't an easy answer for her, though, as her whole body tenses and her eyes fly open.

She makes eye contact with me, and it's as though I can see the gears turning in her head. She shudders in my arms, and I watch as tears well up in her eyes as she opens her mouth to speak.

Shit. I've made her upset yet again.

"Christmas is the one day of the year where my mom was nice to me," she eventually replies in a whisper.

It certainly was not the response that I had expected.

She remains silent for a little while, a few tears falling down her cheeks. She sniffles, pursing her lips together before continuing by saying, "Christmas was always the only time where I could just breathe. My mom has loved Christmas for as long as I can remember, and so she would put the disgust that she had for me aside just for a little while. I know that her and I are on better terms now, but I guess that Christmas is just special to me because of that."

She unwraps her arms from around me, burying her face into her hands as though she's ashamed of her words.

She lets out a sob.

Just one sob before she tries to calm herself down by breathing deeply. I watch her helplessly as she wipes her tears away with the sleeves of her sweater and then attempts to move out of my lap.

I stop her from moving before she can get far, drawing her back towards me. She stares at me with wide eyes before I pull her close to my chest, bringing her head to my shoulder again as her arms and legs wrap back around me.

"Fuck, Blossom. I didn't realise. I shouldn't have asked. I'm so damn sorry," I murmur, pressing my lips to the top of her head.

She shakes her head against me, and I can feel her warm tears on my neck. "It's not your fault. I'm sorry for always getting so emotional. I'm just going to go to sleep now."

I frown, feeling my eyebrows furrow. "Don't say that," I whisper. "I don't want you to go to sleep upset."

She shakes her head once more, but I continue to talk by telling her, "I love you. So much. I'm sorry about your mom. I'm so fucking glad that things are better between you two now. You deserve a family who loves you and treats you well."

Blossom's response is so quiet that it's barely audible. "I love you too. So much. Your mom is worse than mine and so you shouldn't feel bad for me anyway."

I sigh, letting my hands slip up under the material of her sweater. She shivers under my touch as I allow my hands to roam her back, hoping that my hands on her bare skin will help soothe her.

"Don't worry about my mom. My dad and I are happier without her in our lives, and it's a blessing in a way considering that my dad is able to be with the woman he actually loves now," I tell her, hoping to be reassuring.