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chapter fifteen, joyeux noël
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TO SAY THE VERY LEAST, DAPHNE wouldn't use'overjoyed' to describe how she's currently feeling.
Don't get her wrong — she adores Christmas! It's one of her favourite holidays, adorned in twinkling lights, sparkly baubles and scratchy tinsel ( the feeling of it makes her skin crawl, but she likes it all the same. ) In her opinion, the world always seems a little bit brighter around Christmas, despite the shorter days and bitter cold. Nothing beats the night sky during winter, alight with all the constellations that hide away when summer is blanketing the earth. Really, she adores the holidays.
She's just not too keen on spending it with her dad, of all people.
Atlas has been treading on eggshells around her, just like he has been ever since they moved in with him. He's said a whopping two proper sentences to her — which is progress, believe it or not! Since those groundbreaking moments, Daphne's been holed up in her room to spite him, listening to record after record as the world passes by and before she knows it, it's already Christmas Eve. Yet, in their tiny house with the rain and sleet pouring outside, she hardly feels festive at all.
Romeo lifts his head from where it's resting on her ribcage, his ears perking up at the sound of footsteps in the hall, wagging his tails in delight. She knows that her sister's come to be a mediator, but she'd rather sit and stare at the glow in the dark stars on her ceiling than do any more communication with her dad.
Stevie raps the door with her fist, her rings scraping against the wood. "Dad says dinner's almost ready."
"Why can't he come and tell me himself?"
She hesitates. "He didn't think you'd want to speak to him."
"Ding, ding, ding! Congratulations," Daphne says with a taxidermy smile. It sours as she drops her head back down on her pillow. "He finally guessed correctly."
