Hatchetfield.

Spankoffski bros

Ted Spankoffski was good at adapting.

He had spent the last 5 years doing so — starting with when his parents kicked him out when he came out as trans to them. He was only 16, and he was forced to take care of himself. Thank the Eldritch Horrors that not everyone in Hatchetfield was as ignorant as his parents.

He was thankful that the Houston's took him in. He was thankful that he was able to get to college, to meet Jenny, the only girl he believed he'd ever love. He was even thankful that a chance encounter with Bill Woodward got him a job at CCRP.

Little did he know, he would have one more thing to be thankful for.

It was Christmas, 2005. He wasn't looking forward to it. He hadn't been looking forward to anything, not since Jenny moved to fuckin' Clivesdale . If he had it his way, it would just be another day. He wanted to stay at home and eat Chinese food and drink himself into Oblivion. Unfortunately, this was going to be one of the first Christmases Alice could remember, so Bill had invited a bunch of people over, including his most recent coworker, Paul. Paul Matthews was 19, 2 years younger than Ted, and currently an intern at CCRP. When he said he was going, Ted knew he was stuck joining. He wasn't going to be the one person who wouldn't go, he would look like an asshole.

He was just finishing up getting ready when his doorbell rang. That's strange , he thought to himself. People usually don't come to my house. Especially on a holiday. He made his way to the front door, trying to determine who could be at his house.

Maybe it was Paul, offering to carpool. Or maybe it was Charlotte, finally coming to her senses that Sam Sweetly was not the love of her life and that she shouldn't marry him. (He could always fantasize!)

What he opened the door to was something he could never, ever predict.

A little boy, no older than 3, was at his front door. His hair was a mess of brown curls, matching the biggest brown eyes Ted had ever seen. The boy stared at Ted, as if he was trying to read his soul. It was... unnerving, to say the least.

Ted stepped outside, looking to and fro. There were no adults to be seen anywhere. He looked back down at the little boy, still staring at him curiously. Then he noticed the kid didn't have a coat on. All he had was the clothes on his back, and a backpack. He was shivering.

"Come on, kid," Ted sighed, grabbing the little boy's hand and bringing him inside.

Ted was good at adapting, but he didn't know anything about kids. He tried to think about what would've helped him in this moment. A poor little kid, lost and scared. What if he had been wandering for hours, and Ted was the first person who answered their door? That thought made his stomach drop.

He decided to start by making the kid hot chocolate. While it was heating up, he gave Bill a call.

"Hey, Bill, it's Ted... No, I'm not flaking out! I'm, uh," He looked back at the little boy, his eyes never leaving Ted. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm going to be a little late. Something came up... You wouldn't believe me even if I told you. I'll be there as soon as I can. Yep. Bye, Bill." He hung up the phone, and brought the hot chocolate over to the little boy.