Work Text:
I'm not gonna lie
Christmas really hurts this time
Cause you're not here to celebrate with me
Tears fill my eyes
The memories flood my mind
As I place your ornament upon our tree
Tommy blinked away the tears that threatened to fall down his cheeks as he opened the large chest that had been left at the base of his Christmas tree.
“Since you can’t come home, I figured I’d bring some home to you :)” read the note, it had been signed by Phil and upon reading it, Tommy let a few of the tears fall. He missed everyone so, so much. He missed listening to his friends singing Christmas carols around a warm campfire, he missed helping Niki bake Christmas treats, he missed laughing along with everyone after a poorly made joke. Tommy missed laughing.
Inside the chest rested a large pile of ornaments, fresh garlands, and many strings of lights. Tommy was excited to put them up, but at the same time, he didn’t want to do anything without his family and friends around.
He pulled out a homemade ornament from each and every one of his friends. Some of the ornaments were easy to figure out where they came from, such as the clear bauble with a small clay sculpture of one of the many Christmas goodies that Niki’s bakery sold. Or the fake fox tail ornament from Fundy. Others were a bit more difficult to decipher.
Such as when Tommy pulled out a bauble stuffed with a simple piece of red fabric. If there hadn’t been a note, Tommy didn’t think he ever would have figured it out.
“Hey, Tommy. I was told to make you an ornament, but I didn’t really know what to do. Or if you even still liked me. In the end, I settled with a piece of my cape, I hope you don’t think that’s too stupid, but I like the thought of you having a piece of me to remember whenever you look at your tree.
Merry Christmas,
~Techno”
Tommy let out a harsh sob as he quickly created some scaffolding in order to climb to the top of the tree. He held the ornament close to his chest for a second longer before placing it at the top of the tree, where the light from the star would shine and reflect on the glass of the bauble
He scurried down the scaffolding and took out some of the fresh garlands, and a couple strands of lights. He wiped away the tears on his face as he wandered down the path to Logstedshire, he figured that since Ghostbur had done so much around Logsted, Tommy could decorate the quaint cabin for the ghost.
Sure, it was hard and cold for Tommy to string lights and garlands alone outside, but when Ghostbur had appeared that night, and saw the beautiful sight, he looked even happier than Tommy had ever seen him, which was saying a lot considering Ghostbur always seemed to be happy.
After decorating the cabin, Tommy finished going through his new ornaments, shocked at just how many had been tucked inside the chest.
There were a bunch of ornaments that had clearly just been bought from a store, which Tommy didn’t mind at all, but his favorite ones were the ones that had been made. He loved gently touching each one, imagining what his friends and family had been thinking as they created it for him.
He found himself crying again as he let his hands wander the remaining ornaments. There were only a few left, making the tree look more full then he had ever seen any Christmas tree.
It was amazing how the tree could look so full, and yet he could still feel so empty.
“Tommy?” Ghostbur called, hurrying to Tommy’s side.
The boy wiped at his face quickly not wanting anyone to see because big men didn't cry. “Yes?”
“Well, Phil said everyone was pitching in to give you a bunch of ornaments but I couldn’t manage to come up with something to give you. I didn’t know what you would like. I finally thought of something though, which is why I haven’t been around much today. I’m sorry for being so late.”
The ghost held out his hand, revealing a chunk of plank, the word “home” etched clearly into the wood. A bright red ribbon created a way to hang the wood on the tree.
“It’s a piece of the Prime Path. I figured maybe you’d just want something from home while you’re away on vacation.”
Tommy let the tears come back, dripping off his cheeks and creating tear tracks along his cold face.
“Thank you, Wil. I love it.”
Ghostbur gave a smile, his gray complexion looking seemingly brighter.
“You’re welcome, Tommy. Merry Christmas.”
Tommy still felt alone, still felt sad at the thought of Christmas without his family, but at least he had his tree. At least he had a piece of them with him, shining brightly with the reflection of the twinkling lights.
Maybe he wasn’t entirely alone.