Heartbreak [zjm]

7. Christmas

It was finally Christmas Eve and my mother and I were cleaning the house up. All of our Christmas decorations were placed perfectly and the house smelled of a warm ginger scent.

A few years ago we decided to each open one gift on Christmas Eve as a little preview to what Christmas morning would be like. Kacin opened his first, considering he was the most excited out of us and he received Melissa's present which was a bow with nerf arrows that lit up when you shot them.

I received Kacin's present and it was a painting of our family, which was adorable. Melissa opened Kacin and I's present which was the painting of our family plus a $25 gift card to Starbucks. 

The morning of Christmas was interesting. Kacin woke me up at around 7:30 in the morning just to open presents.

"Merry Christmas!" He cheered.

"Merry Christmas to you too. Alright Kacin, go wake mom up," I pointed downstairs and I walked to the kitchen to make some coffee. Normally I don't drink coffee but I made Melissa's because it was Christmas morning. She walked into the kitchen and smiled whenever I handed her the coffee mug. 

"Thank you, merry Christmas," she smiled and looked at Kacin staring at all of the presents under the tree. I grabbed the family camera and started taking pictures and videos when Kacin ripped open all of his presents.

"Now it's Melissa's turn," I smiled at her and after she opened them, she thanked us. I gave her the camera and she recorded me opening them. The last present was a small box with white ribbon attached.

When I opened it, it was a sparkly necklace with very pretty crystals. The box said it was from Zayn.

"He wanted me to put it under our tree," Melissa smiled. 

"But he's going to be here in a few hours-"

"Don't question, just take it darling."

After we were done cleaning up it was about 8 in the morning and Melissa decided to cook some pancakes for us on this nice day. Since we lived in New York it was lightly snowing outside, which was nice. I took a shower and picked out a fuzzy grey sweater, black jeans, black boots with a heel, and the necklace Zayn gave me.

I assumed that he would want me to wear it whenever he saw me. I dried my hair and straightened it, something that I normally do. My hair was pretty long whenever it was straightened and not a frizzy mess. 

"The Malik's are going to be here in about an hour, eat up!" Melissa said when she handed me my plate of pancakes.

"Are all of them coming?" Kacin asked as he stuffed his mouth with pancake bites.

"I think just Waliyha, Zayn, Trisha, and Mark, if I'm not mistaken." 

"I like Zayn," Kacin said smiling at me. "So does Belle." 

I dropped my fork and stared at him with wide eyes. "I mean, we're only friends Kacin, how could you say that?" I laughed.

"Because it's so obvious you two are in l-o-v-e," he laughed loudly.

"Kacin, that's enough." Melissa said breaking the tension.

"It's alright mom, he's only joking." I instantly regretted calling her mom because she smiled so big at me. It's not that I wasn't warming up to her or anything, but I just don't want to give her a sense of false hope that I really do think she's my mother.

She will never come close to act like my mother, or the way that my father treated me. They were so kind and loving, and when Melissa came into the picture she sort of ruined it. She was very rude, from what I remember as a small child.