Y/n's POV
I watched as Scott fiddled with the list.
"Scott? Tree topper, what do you say?" Jack said.
"Scott, honey?" Carol called. My uncle ignored.
"UNCLE SCOTT!!!" I yelled.
"Let's put the tree topper on! We can make a toast!" Carol suggested. Bud started rolling on the ladder again.
"Hey, hey! You built this place on a fault line!" He said, climbing down the ladder.
"Millions of kids in Australia will go without gifts this year. But, what can I do for you?" Scott said, walking over to us.
"Tree topper!" Carol said.
"Oh, yeah! Tree topper! Good!" Scott said.
"Uncle Scott? Toast?" I suggested, pouring everyone glasses of sparkling cider.
Then, Scott's jingle phone rang.
"Just a sec!" He picked up the phone, "Uh-huh!.....uh-huh, good! Bad....Well, good for goodness sakes! Yeah. Hey, Curtis, I can't talk right now," my uncle said. Carol clinked two glasses together, signalling a toast. My uncle continued, "I'm putting the tree topper on the tree! It's very important. Can't talk!" My uncle started to tilt to the side, and Carol and I followed his eyeline as he was still talking, "Please, please. Curtis, I gotta goooo- bye!" He finally hung up and I giggled.
The phone rang again. Carol and I stiffly nodded.
"Gonna put it in my pocket. I'm not answering that! I'm putting the phone in my pocket. Put it in my pocket. All done!" My uncle said, putting the phone in his pocket.
My uncle started to climb the ladder that led up to the top of the tree.
"Okay, everybody. As I climb up this beautiful tree, I know we've had our ups and downs! But as I place this tree topper in the traditional place, I just wanted to say..." Then, the tree started to tilt and then toppled over, smashing the tree topper into a million pieces. We all gasped.
Carol bent down to pick up the broken tree topper.
"Be careful, honey." Scott said as Carol picked up the tree topper and another glass shard plopped off.
"Honey, I think maybe I can fix that." My uncle said as Carol started to cry. She shook her head.
"I know you're upset!" My uncle said.
I rubbed Carol's shoulder.
"You picked up on that, did ya?" Bud said.
"Bud, what is that supposed to mean?" I asked, choking back tears.
"Well, maybe if you two weren't working all the time, you two might know!" Bud spat.
"Don't bring y/n into this!" My uncle said, placing two hands on my shoulders.
"Look, maybe you just don't understand the pressure we're under!" I said.
"Well, maybe it's not as bad as being ripped away from your family and told you can't see them anymore!" Bud said.
"Dad!" Carol said.
"Well, maybe that's why y/n and I invited you so Carol could be surrounded by family!" My uncle fought back.
"For love and support! While we try to do things you can't even imagine. Rather than try to make things work, it seems like you're trying to make things worse! And now, Bernard's missing, our facilitys are in ruin, and children might go without gifts this year!" I said.
"That's it! We're leaving!" Bud said, setting his cider to the side.
"What?" Carol said.
"Maybe we shouldn't have come!" Sylvia said.
"Maybe you're right. Maybe you shouldn't have come!" My uncle said.
"Maybe I should never have come either!" Carol said.
"Maybe neither should I have come! Charlie's now living a happy, stress-free life with his family and friends, and where am I?....a place where everything is in ruin!" I said, sobbing silently.
My uncle goes to say something until Jack stops him by saying, "Don't say anything you'll regret! I think we all need to cool down for a second," Jack suggested, "Why don't you and I take a walk? Come on!" Jack said, starting to lead my uncle out.
"No..no." my uncle muttered.
"Let's go. Let's just go!" Jack said. They walked out of the room, and I slowly followed behind. What was that Frost bite freak up to?
I followed them, and they came to a balcony overlooking the elf village. I hid behind a corner and eavesdropped.
"It's over!" I heard my uncle say.
"I thought I had a second chance at having a family, but I blew it again!" My uncle added.
"Hey, there's no one I know who could hold this all together but you." Jack said.
"But I didn't!" My uncle said, waving his hand in Jack's face.
"My in-laws resent me, Christmas is a disaster, my pregnant wife wishes she had never met me, my niece thinks this place is a ruin heaven, and Bernard, my head Elf, is missing!" My uncle said. I let the tears roll out as I listened in more.
"You know, I was gonna wait until tomorrow to give this to you, but I think you need a bit of a pick-me-up now!" Jack said, pulling out a blue bag from behind his back. I watched as he held the bag.
"I can't!" My uncle said.
"Come on. Open it." Jack insisted as he handed the little box he took out of the bag to my uncle.
"I don't feel like it, Jack!"
"Oh, come on! Go ahead. It'll make you feel better!" Jack said.
"I don't feel like it, Jack!"
"Oh, come on! Would you please just open it!"
"Thanks!" My uncle said, taking the box and looking at it.
"So, are there times when you wonder..." Jack trailed.
"Wonder what?" My uncle asked.
"If this was even..." Jack trailed again.
"Worth it?" My uncle scoffed, "more than you know!" My uncle added.
"This is one of those times, huh?" Jack asked.
"I wish I'd never put that red coat on!" My uncle said. He wasn't serious, was he...?
My uncle opened the box and didn't look inside.
"So, you wish you'd never become santa at all?" Jack asked. I gasped in realisation.
"I wish I'd never become santa." My uncle stated.
"At all?" Jack said.
"At all! At all! Yeah, at all!" My uncle took the present out of the box. It was the santa snowglobe! Oh no...
"I wished I'd never become santa at all. Happy?" My uncle said. Then, sparks started flying out of the snowglobe.
"I am now." Jack whispered.
"No!" My uncle yelled. The disappeared in a large puff of gold dust and Jack's cackle echoed in the streets. I went to go and get Carol until I looked down in horror as my feet and legs started to fade away.
"Oh no! It's the escape clause! BERNARD, WHERE ARE YOOOOUUUU!?!?!" I yelled just as I completely faded away. I, then, felt myself falling. Falling back in time, that is.