Red, green, olive, crimson, pine, scarlet... So many shades of red and green seemed to adorn the streets lately. Strings of colorful lights draped almost every house, inflatable bearded men in jolly red suits smiling at passerbies with gloved hand raised in a warm greeting as they stood next to simple snowmen dressed in scarves and hats. Pine trees and candelabras could be seen in windows of houses, warm fires no doubt crackling in the fireplaces as the aroma of fresh hot chocolate drifted from kitchens.
Sappy as it sounds, this time of year always makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Having spent most of my life living in the mountains, I was used to cold and very white winters. Winter could get very monotonous there, and the colorful strings of lights hanging from our house always brightened it up, even if only for a little bit of time. So seeing all this color and holiday cheer down in the suburbs, even in the rundown parts of town, warmed me up quite a bit.
Jack had a different view of things, though.
"I just don't get the whole tradition about cutting down trees and taking them indoors," Jack complained as he sorted his latest outing's gains into the fridge. "Needles fall all over the floor, sometimes branches break from heavy ornaments—heck, sometimes the trees even catch on fire and burn down the entire house! Have you seen the news? There was one just last night!"
"Yes, Jack, I have," I muttered, rolling my eyes as I turned a page in my book as I laid on the couch.
"And the ornaments people use are so weird!" he continued, ignoring me. "One house I went to had apples on the tree! Not the actual fruit, but ornaments shaped like apples. What's the point of it?"
"Maybe they just like apples?"
"Then just get an apple tree!"
"Apple trees aren't very festive," I countered calmly. Pausing, I added as an afterthought, "Also, I don't think apple trees grow apples during winter, so it's kinda moot anyway."
"That's beside the point!" Jack growled irritably. Slamming the fridge shut, he stalked over to the living room and plopped into the armchair, folding his arms. "I just don't get these holidays! What's the point of Kannuza or Kismisuh?" I vaguely registered Jack butchering Kwanza, Hanukah, and Christmas into two jumbo-holidays again, but didn't bother to correct him. I gave up after the thirty-seventh time.
"Someone's acting like a scrooge," I remarked nonchalantly. Jack's exasperation was perfectly visible without his trademark blue mask, his face scrunched up with a perfect blend of confusion and disgust.
"What the hell's a scrooge!?" Sighing, I set my book on my lap so I could pick up another book from the coffee table, and then threw it right at Jack's head. It harmlessly bounced off his arms as he reflexively raised them to shield his face, falling to the ground with a small thump. Frowning, he picked up the fallen book and examined the cover thoughtfully. "'A Christmas Carol'? What is this?"
"Remember how I asked you to pick up that book for me earlier this month?"
"Yeah...?"
"It was so you could understand the scrooge reference. (Happy Holiday), Jack." I playfully stuck out my tongue at him. He just returned my playful display of tongue with a sour look.
"I still don't get the appeal of these holidays," he muttered, putting the book on the end table. "It's just so weird. I guess it's a religion thing?" Religion was yet another thing Jack didn't fully understand. Being an inhuman monster, it was pretty easy for him to take an outsider view on religion, and apparently it left him with a bad view of the practices. Not that I could necessarily blame him, since most religions would declare him to be some kind of demon and try to exorcise and/or execute him.
Holidays were a different matter, though. "I can see the appeal outside of religion," I said, lifting my book from my lap to resume reading. "I mean, yeah, religion plays a big part for some of it, but the rest of it is just being with people you care about. It's a time for family and friends to get together, you know?"
"...I guess." There was a tinge of uncertainty in Jack's voice that made me pause and glance at him. He had a strange expression on his face, not exactly frowning but still looking distant. Studying him curiously, I wondered what was on his mind when a thought suddenly occurred to me.
"You don't really remember anything about holidays, do you?" Jack had told me before that he didn't really remember much of his "previous" life except for the fact he was apparently in medical school before he lost his humanity. That little piece of knowledge had been at the back of my mind whenever he complained about the holidays, but this was the first time I'd really thought about it.
In reply to my question, Jack just slowly shook his head, his eyeless gaze focused on his hands as he fiddled with the zipper of his hoodie. "I can remember that some of these traditions are linked to certain holidays at this time of year, like the lights and candles, but I don't remember any of the specifics. I can't tell you what holiday we celebrated, if we even celebrated one. I can't even tell you if there was a 'we', or if it was just me."
There was a distant note to his voice as he spoke, sounding almost... lonely? He continued to avoid my gaze as my frown grew, and silence fell over us. "Do you ever wonder about your family?" I asked quietly after a while. He just shrugged, still not looking at me.
"A couple times," he admitted softly. "I don't even know if I have one, for all I know I'm an orphan. But it's probably better I don't remember them."
"It is?"
"Yeah. I mean, imagine if I met them again. Last time they saw me, I was probably human. Would they even be able to recognize me?" Sighing, he answered his own question and said, "I doubt it. They'd just call me a monster. And if they DID recognize me, that'd probably be even worse. I mean, how would you feel if you found someone you knew became a monster? Would you still be able to love them?"
"Jack, you're asking the girl who fell in love with a kidney-eating monster if she'd still love you as a kidney-eating monster. I am the single most biased person to ask." I couldn't keep the smirk off my face as I replied. Jack, however, just sighed and shrugged.
"I guess," he muttered, but then paused and finally raised his head to look at me in confusion. "Wait, what did you just say?"
"Nothing, nothing." I smirked slightly as I turned my attention back to my book, leaving Jack to stare at me in confusion. After a while, I heard him shift in his seat and pick up another book, probably A Christmas Carol since it was the closest after throwing it at him. As we both began reading in silence, my mind soon wandered from my own book and an idea suddenly occurred to me. "Hey, Jack?"
"Yeah, (Name)?" he asked, not looking up from his book.
"Want to learn about a really fun holiday tradition?" If he had eyes I imagined he would have rolled them, but he gave a small nod.
"Sure, why not?" he said almost dismissively, as if he were humoring a child. "What is it?"
"Hang on." Jumping up from the couch, I dashed off and headed to the backyard, soon returning with my arms behind my back. "Stand up and come here." Curiosity clearly piqued, Jack set his book down on the table and rose from the chair, walking over to stand in front of me.
"Okay, I'm standing. Now what?" Smiling, I moved my hand from behind my back to reveal a small twig with a couple leaves on it, holding it above our heads. Jack raised an eyebrow at it and remarked, "A twig from one of the bushes in the backyard?"
"Well, technically we're supposed to use mistletoe, but this is close enough." Without giving him a chance to respond I quickly pecked his cheek, and as I pulled away I saw his ashy gray skin had a decidedly red tint.
"(Happy Holiday), Jack," I said with a smile, and nonchalantly returned to the couch to resume reading while he stood with his face as red as Rudolph's nose.
Winter holiday traditions definitely had their perks.