Stay With Me ✔

35.

I can't contain my laughter as Rave stands before me in the matching pajama's Ever picked out for the four of us to wear on Christmas Eve. Every time he moves, the bells that are sewn on to the shirt as part of the elf's hat jingle, causing him to grimace. "You think this is funny?" He takes a step towards me, the bells jingling with every small step he takes. 

I nod my head, still laughing at his reaction, "I really do." 

"Why doesn't your have bells?" He asks, his eyes moving to my own shirt - which does have a matching elf on the front, just minus the annoying jingle bells. 

"They didn't have my size." 

"I don't believe you." His green eyes seem brighter, amused and happy. 

I shrug, "You don't have to believe me." 

This is the first Christmas that Rave and Ever have celebrated in years, and even though he won't admit it, Rave is just as excited as his sister. Earlier, when we were baking cookies, Rave couldn't keep his hands out of the icing and when we were decorating the tree, I caught him smiling as he hung the ornaments where the rest of us couldn't reach. 

The sound of jingle bells and Ever's running feet can be heard above us, as Ever runs from her room to the living area downstairs. Like Rave, her pajamas are musical. "Are you ready to watch the movie?" She asks when she comes to a halt in front of her brother and I.

"Definitely." I smile down at the excited little girl, her curls pulled up into a messy bun, making her look younger than usual. Like Rave, Ever also looks brighter, happy and content. She no longer crawls into bed with me or Rave, or both on nights when my mom is at work. She no longer thinks that her bed is too comfy, instead we have to drag her out of it most mornings or else she would sleep all day. 

The day that I took Rave and Ever shopping, we bought Ever a whole new wardrobe - mostly from the clearance sections because her brother refused to let my mom spend a ton of money on the two of them- and we also got her some things to decorate and make the room her own. Once she put her new purple comforter set on the bed and framed some pictures we took at the zoo - especially the one of her and Rave - she felt more at home in the bedroom and now loves it.

"Do we have to watch this movie?" Rave asks, bored and still annoyed that he has to wear elf pajamas. 

"Yes." Ever and I reply in unison, something we do a lot that also annoys Rave - which is a plus for us. 

My mom comes walking into the room, a tray of cookies and milk in hand, "Who's ready to watch The Polar Express?" 

"Wait." I look over at Rave, who is staring at my mom as he speaks, "They didn't have your size in this either?" He pulls at the shirt he's wearing, causing the bells to rattle and the three of us laugh at his expression, causing him to roll his eyes and fall to the couch. 

I take a seat beside him as my mom and Ever sit on the other couch in the room. Ever grabs a blanket and snuggles closer to my mom, causing my mom to smile brighter than I've seen her smile in a long time. She and Ever have really taken a liking to each other, and both Rave and I couldn't be happier about that.

Ever needed a mother figure and my mom needed someone to remind her that there's more to life than work and pushing away bad memories. I wish I could have been the one to remind her of those things, but I understand why I wasn't. I was too involved - I was the memories, or at least the remains of them. 

Rave drapes an arm around my shoulder and pulls me into his side as the movie begins. Placing a kiss on the top of my head, he whispers, "Thanks for giving us a Christmas, Princess." 

"It's not Christmas yet, Ravey."