31 days of ficmas

Hope (Nine/Rose)

Hope warmed his heart as he watched the two women running from one part of the house to the other. He was sat on a step of the staircase going to the first floor and observing them. It was the beginning of December, and both Rose and Liv had woken up completely excited about the idea of a Christmas under the snow. Some snowflakes had started to fall that morning and that had brightened their day. They had run to the closest mall to buy Christmas stuff. They had offered him to come with them, but he had politely declined the offer by shaking his head. He still wasn't talking to any of them, but he felt more comfortable around them now. They had been living together for a few months in the family house he used to share with his mother and brother, and he hadn't realised how lively it had become with the two women.

Rose and Olivia reminded him a lot of his brother. He was always so full of life, jumping and running everywhere. And now, where was he? What was he doing? Did he know Christmas time was coming? Maxence sighed. That house had seemed so empty, so dull last time he had come there. With the death of his mother and his brother reported missing on the battlefield, he had neglected it by refusing to even come back and living in the streets. So, when he had decided to rent the house to the women who were making her best to drag him out of his vicious circle, it had been the best decision he had taken in a while. Maybe that Christmas would be a great one. Maybe he would have some fun. He would miss his family for sure, but he just hoped that everything would get better now. Christmas was the season of miracles after all.

The house was quickly being coated with the colours of the holiday, and the good mood was contagious. He found himself smiling at his friends' enthusiasm. They were doing a nice job. He liked it all. And now that he was thinking of it, maybe he should buy them a gift or two for Christmas. They deserved it after all for all they had done for him. He wasn't an easy man to live with and his PTSD and nightmares were often ruining their days and nights. Living around them was helping him. He hadn't thought that would be possible. The two women were his new family now, but he would never tell them. If he did, they would think he was going all sentimental and they would hug him and tell him that it was the same for them, who never had any family before. It was clearly too soon for those effusions of love. He wasn't ready to go back into it.

He got surprised by Liv who was happily coming upstairs to decorate the rest of the house. She was carrying a box full of balls and tinsels and fairy lights. There also were little Christmas trees. Three. One for each bedroom, he guessed. He gave her a shy smile, and she replied to it with a grin.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't know you were there." She looked back downstairs at all the ornaments. "Rose loves Christmas. We never really had the chance to embellish a house before since, you know, we're both from the system. I hope it's not too much. Do you like it?"

Maxence nodded. He really liked it. He used to be the one doing it with his brother. Their mother was helping them when they were little and was just watching them when they got older – and taller – than her. The result had never been as beautiful as it was now.

"We didn't know if you'd like to have one of these," she pointed to the box with the little Christmas trees and ornaments, "in your room, but we bought one for you. Just in case."

She smiled at him again, more shyly that time. His lips twitched. They were adorable. Thinking about him even when they were doing something as simple as embellishing the house. They were roommates. It was a good house share with good people. He slowly got up and stretched his body. He was gonna help her decorating. Even if he was the owner of the place, even if they were his tenants, he could muck in and participate to the festivities. He took the box from Liv with his only hand, and was relieved the woman said nothing about him not wearing his prosthetic. She just followed him upstairs and they both embellished the rooms and corridors. Liv was the only one talking, but it didn't matter. When they were done, they looked at their work, content of what they had done.

"Rose is gonna love it. We did a great job."

Maxence acquiesced. He agreed totally. They did an amazing job. Much better than what he used to do when he was younger. Too bad they hadn't done any tinsel in crepe-paper though. It was always fun. Tegan had always been so good in paper folding.

"She didn't want me to show you this," admitted Liv. She was biting her bottom lip anxiously as she pulled something out of her pocket. "But I've found this in the letter box this morning."

She opened her hand and revealed a small paper rose in her palm. Tegan's signature. He had found some others to the places they used to go together. He had thought that someone was just having fun, that it was someone else doing it. Well, he had tried to convinced himself that it was, but the paper flowers were all made the way Tegan was making them in the past. There was that little detail that told Maxence that his brother was somewhere and was sending him a message he couldn't understand yet. He was trying not to have his hopes really high, but he couldn't help himself. He wanted his brother back. The last member of his family. Maybe it would be his Christmas' miracle. He took the rose and put it in his pocket, just when Rose joined them.

"What are you up to?"

"We were admiring our work," lied Liv, smiling at Rose. "Maxence helped me. He's very good at decorating."

"I can see that."

Rose was smiling too. As a therapist, she washappy to see her patient making more progress. But she wasn't acting like atherapist with Maxence, she was acting as his friend, and it was working muchbetter. He had made a new step forward. He wasn't a lost cause. There was stillwas hope to bring him back completely into society.