A/N: Merry Christmas, everybody! I planned this chapter a while ago, so now I'm posting it! This is basically a "if the apocalypse never happened" AU. There are some small changes I made. Lee and Christa aren't the grandparents, but Y/N's REAL parents are. AJ isn't adopted by Clem and Y/N. Y/N still loses an eye, but you'll see how. Anyways, enjoy.
You're chopping wood outside.
Clem: Y/N? You out here?
You look behind you to see Clementine looking for you. She's wearing a knitted coat and a pair of boots.
You: I'm over here, babe!
She looks at you and smiles, so you smile back. She walks up to you
Clem: Hi.
You: Hi. You say, setting the axe down.
She kisses you, so you kiss back.
Clem: It's almost time for bed--what're you doing out here?
You: Thought we could have a fire in the morning while the kids unwrap presents.
Clem: Well, that's a nice thing to do.
You: Yeah, well, it's what my parents used to do when I was a kid.
Clem: You never told me that.
You: Well, I guess you learn something new every day, huh?
Clem: Speakin' of which, are your parents and Jack still gonna be able to make it tomorrow?
You: Yeah, I called them. They said they're all set.
Clem: Great. It'll be a good Christmas this year.
You: You bet it will. I've worked too hard for it not to.
Clem: No need to stress. You're a planner. You plan everything beforehand.
You: I know that. But plans don't always work out.
Clem: You need to stop worrying.
You sigh.
Clem: Look, let's just head to bed.
You: Alright. Lemme get this wood inside, and I'll be right in.
Clem smiles.
Clem: 'Kay.
You smile. She kisses you, so you kiss back. She pulls out of the hug, turns around, and starts walking back to the house. She looks back at you with a smile. She walks inside.
You pick up the firewood and you walk inside the house. You walk over to the fireplace and you set the wood down.
You start walking over to the stairs, but you stop when you see something on the dining table. A drawing with a letter on it next to a glass of milk and a plate with cookies on it.
Letter: for Santa! I hope yuo make all mi famli hapy this Christmas! Love ~Madison
You smile at the letter. You make sure that Madison isn't watching. You take a bite out of one of the cookies and a sip of milk.
You write on the letter.
Note: Dear, Madison. I will personally be making sure that each and every one of your family members are happy this Christmas. And also, I just want to tell you how proud I am that you've been a good girl all year long. The elves and I always love it when you make the nice list.
Love ~Santa Claus
You walk away from the dining table. You head upstairs to see Clem waiting at Madison's door.
Clem whisper: Can you help me with this?
You playfully roll your eyes.
You whisper: I got it. You just sit here and do your nails. You say, walking over to Madison's door.
Clem playfully hits you as you walk into Madison's room. You see Madison awake in bed.
You whisper: What's wrong, peanut?
Madison whisper: I can't sleep, daddy.
You walk over to her bed.
You whisper: Well, you know what that means.
You sit on her bed.
You whisper: Santa can't come if you aren't asleep.
Madison whisper: But I wanna see him!
You whisper: I know you do, sweetheart. But Santa's got a big night ahead of him. If he talks to you, it'll throw him off schedule. You wouldn't want that, would you?
Madison whisper: No...
You whisper: Hey, come on. Just think about it. When you wake up, you'll see a BUNCH of presents left under the tree. That means Santa thought you really deserved some good gifts this year.
Madison whisper: He did?
You whisper: Oh, he most certainly did.
Clem leans on the doorframe with her arms crossed. She smiles.
You whisper: And when he comes, he's gonna be so thankful for the cookies you made just for him. And he's gonna be so proud of you for making the nice list.
Madison smiles. You smile and kiss her on the forehead.
Madison whisper: Thanks, daddy. I love you.
You smile wider.
You whisper: I love you, too, peanut.
She closes her eyes and drifts off to sleep. You look at the door to see Clem smiling at you. You smile back at her.
You turn off Madison's lamp, stand up from her bed, and you walk over to Clementine.
Clem whisper: You are the master.
You whisper: Oh, I know.
You grab her hand and you both walk out of Madison's room. You slowly close the door.
[Small Time Skip]
You're in front of your mirror with your shirt off. You put on your eyepatch. You look at the photo on your dresser to see the picture of you and Louis in your marine uniforms.
You whisper: Merry Christmas, brother. I wish you could be here to see it.
You look behind you to see Clementine in bed. You turn around and you walk over to bed. You get in next to Clementine and she snuggles onto your chest.
Clem: Goodnight.
You: Goodnight, hon. I love you.
Clem: I love you, Y/N.
She pecks you on the lips and rests her head on your shoulder. You both drift of to sleep.
[Four Years Earlier]
You're in Iraq. You still have both eyes. You and your buddy, Louis, are sitting in cover. Louis is sitting next to you, shuffling his deck of cards. You sigh.
You: You and your fucking cards.
Louis: What's wrong with the cards?
You: You bring those things everywhere, man.
Louis: This was my entertainment in Ericson's.
You: I know. You've told me that same story since you got out of there.
He chuckles.
Louis: Well, as I recall it, you found the cards "interesting" when you first saw me with them.
You: Yeah, but now they're just...fucking annoying.
Louis laughs.
You: The story used to be interesting, but now every time I see you shuffling them, I know you're tryna make me play a game.
Louis: Well, what else are we supposed to do, pal?
You: Uh, wait like a normal person?
Louis: God, you scare me sometimes.
You both laugh.
Louis sighs.
Louis: ...So how's Clem been?
You: She's been alright. She tells me Madison's been a handful lately.
Louis: How old is she now?
You: Three.
Louis: Jesus... Time flies, huh?
You: Yeah, you're tellin' me. I thought that it would be easier now that we knew what we were doing. It seems like every kid is different. On one hand, you got a kid who wouldn't do THAT much crying, now we got another that does nothing but cry and whine.
Louis: Yeah... Connor just started high school.
You: Really?
Louis: Sure did.
You: How's he doin' with that?
Louis: Good so far. I mean, first trimester's probably the easiest part. I just hope he can keep it up.
You: He's a smart kid. He's got it.
Louis: I appreciate that. What about Shaun? What's he been up to lately?
You: Well, my dad got him a bow for his birthday, so he hasn't stopped using that for a while. He isn't doing TOO bad in school, but his History teacher thinks he can put in a little more effort. Man, I wish he had my history teacher. Mr. Everett was a goddamn legend. Everything he did was fun. But then he got arrested in the middle of the last semester.
Louis: What for?
You: Not sure. No one would let us know.
Your radio goes off.
Captain: Wolf team, we've spotted Iraqis headed towards your coordinates from the Northeast side of the field.
You: Roger that.
You and Louis both peek over cover. You both take out your snipers and you look through the scope. You look Northeast.
You whisper: You got anything, Loui?
Louis whisper: Negative.
You whisper: Keep your eyes peeled.
Louis whisper: Yes, sir.
You keep looking around. You stop when you see movement from over at a bush.
You whisper: There!
Louis turns his scope to where you're looking.
Louis whisper: We've got eyes on them.
Captain: You are clear to engage.
You start squeezing the trigger, when suddenly, you hear something rolling. Your right knee bone shakes. A grenade rolls by your cover.
You: Grenade!
You grab onto Louis and you dive away from the blast.
*BOOM!*
The grenade explodes. Luckily, you're both okay.
Everyone starts shooting. You both pick up your snipers and start picking off the Iraqis.
Louis: Christ, these guys saw us comin' from half a mile!
You: Just keep. Shooting!
You all continue firing. You see a tank start rolling in.
Louis: Well, shit.
You get an idea.
You: Keep me covered.
Louis: What?!
You run out of cover and you sneak over to another cover area. An Iraqi nearly makes it over to you, but you pull them over to your cover and stab them in the neck, killing them instantly.
You peek over cover to see the tank still rolling in.
*BOOM!*
The tank shoots a missile at the building, blowing off chunks of it.
You take out a grenade and you pull the pin. You run up to the barrel of the tank and you roll it inside. You run.
*BOOM!*
The tank explodes. An Iraqi comes at you, screaming.
*BANG!*
Louis shoots him in the head. You run back over to cover with him.
You: Nice shot.
Louis: Thanks.
Iraqi soldier: Cerdevanan!
Louis: What the hell does that mean?!
You: It doesn't sound like "surrender".
*BOOM!*
A grenade blows up some of the soldiers.
You: Fuck! It means "grenades"!
A grenade rolls near you and Louis. You can't dive him and you out of the way this time. You and Louis both lunge at the grenade with your hands out, face first.
*BOOM!*
[Now]
You jerk up in your bed, sweating bullets. You look to your left to see Clementine still asleep. You rub the sweat off your forehead. You lay your head back down on the pillow. You close your eye.
[The Next Morning]
Madison: Mommy! Daddy! Santa came!
You and Clem both wake up to see Madison on top of both of you. You both groan.
Madison: There's presents under the tree, and Santa ate the cookies I made! C'mon!
She jumps off the bed and runs out of yours and Clem's room.
Clem groans.
Clem: I remember when Christmas was fun.
You yawn.
You: Mm-hmm.
You stretch your arms out with a groan.
You: Well, let's get this started.
You hop out of bed and so does Clem. You and Clem walk out of your room to see Madison waiting at the top of the stairs.
Madison: Come on!
She runs downstairs. You and Clem walk downstairs and over to the dining table, where Madison waits.
Madison: Look!
You look at what's on the table.
Madison: He wrote back!
You yawn.
You: He sure did.
Madison: What does it say?
You pick up the letter and you read it out loud.
You: "Dear, Madison. I will personally be making sure that each and every one of your family members are happy this Christmas. And also, I just want to tell you how proud I am that you've been a good girl all year long. The elves and I always love it when you make the nice list. Love, Santa Claus".
Madison gasps.
Madison: I AM on the nice list! You said I was!
You: What I did I tell ya?
Madison smiles. She grabs Clem's hand.
Madison: Mommy, look at all the presents!
Clem smiles.
Clem: I know, I see them! Pretty cool, huh?
Madison nods. She rushes over to the stockings over the fireplace and starts looking inside.
Madison: Can we open presents?
You: When Shaun gets down here.
Madison: Okay.
You: Speaking of which, is he still asleep?
Clem: I think so.
You: Alright, I'll get him.
Clem: Want me to start the fire?
You: That'd be great.
Clem: 'Kay.
She kisses you and you kiss back. You walk over to the stairs and you walk up the staircase. You walk over to Shaun's door and you open it. You see him still asleep in bed.
You: Shaun.
He groans.
You: Gotta wake up, bud.
He groans again. He looks back at you.
You: C'mon, don't you wanna see what Santa got you?
Shaun: That joke is getting really old...
He gets out of bed. He walks up to the door and out of his room.
You: God, when's the last time you showered?
Shaun: Two days ago I think.
You both walk downstairs. You both walk into the living room to see the fire started.
Clem: Morning, sleepyhead. Merry Christmas.
Shaun: Merry Christmas.
He sits on a foot rest in front of a chair.
You sit down next to Clem on the couch. She hands you your mug of coffee.
You: Thanks.
You take a sip.
You: Alright, let's get started.
[Time Skip]
You all finished unwrapping gifts. Madison got a lot of dolls, toys, candy in her stocking, and things like that. Shaun got some video games, archery things, and some things for his room. You and Clem have each other thoughtful things, like warm clothes, gift cards, and things that you both needed to replace.
You and Clem made a big breakfast with cinnamon rolls, eggs, bacon, and toast. After the kids ate, they started using their new gifts. Shaun's outside shooting the bow, and Madison's assembling a Barbie house in the middle of the living room. You and Clem are cleaning up the wrapping paper and the breakfast supplies.
The doorbell rings.
Madison: I'll get it!
Madison stands up and runs over to the door. She opens it to see your parents.
Mom: Hi, sweetheart!
Madison: Grandma!
Madison hugs her waist, so your mom hugs here as best she can without bending over too much so she doesn't hurt her back.
Madison pulls out of the hug and hugs your dad. He does what your mom did.
Madison: Hi, grandpa!
Dad: Hello, babygirl!
They pull out of the hug as you walk up.
Dad: Hey, son.
You: Hey, guys.
You hug them both and they return the hug. You all pull out of the hug.
You: How was the ride?
Mom: Oh, same old, same old. Long.
You: Alright, well, come on in.
You move out of the way so they can walk in. You close the door once they come in. They walk into the kitchen, where Clementine is. She looks at them with a smile.
Clem: Hi, guys.
She walks up and hugs your mom first. She returns the embrace.
Mom: Hello, darling.
They pull out of the hug and she hugs your dad next, so he hugs back.
Dad: Good to see you.
Clem: You too.
She kisses him on the cheek and pulls out of the hug. Your dad looks at you as your mom sets her stuff down.
Dad: Where's Shaun?
You: Oh, he's outside shooting.
Dad: Mind if I pay him a visit.
You: Not at all, go ahead.
Your dad walks off.
Mom: So Jack's not here yet, huh?
You: Nope, not yet. But if I remember him, he should be here pretty soon. He never misses these things.
[With Shaun]
Your dad walks out of the back door to see Shaun outside in warm clothes. He's using his compound bow to aim at a target on a tree. He gets close to a bullseye. He sighs.
Dad: You're arm is too shaky.
Shaun looks back and sees your dad. He smiles.
Shaun: Hey, grandpa.
He walks over and gives him a hug, so he hugs back. They pull out of the hug.
Shaun: Uh, what were you saying?
Dad: I said your arm is too shaky. Here.
Shaun gets back into his stance. Your dad stands at his side and helps line it up.
Dad: Remember what I said about breathing?
Shaun: Yup.
He inhales as he pulls the string.
Dad: Now, when you exhale, let go of the string, but only at the point where your arms are steady.
Shaun exhales slowly. Once his arms calm down, he fires. He hits the bullseye.
Shaun chuckles.
Shaun: Thanks.
Dad: 'Course.
Shaun and your dad turn around and start walking back inside.
Dad: Ya know, I taught your dad how to shoot when he was a kid.
Shaun: He told me. He also told me about the possible virus scare.
Dad: Oh, yes, the virus. That was a little scary, but it turned out to be like a cold. Nothin' too bad. Your dad used to ask for my hat so he could sleep with it.
Shaun: Why?
Dad: Well, he wanted to be a sheriff, like me. But the only thing he knew about sheriff's was from cartoons. So he thought we slept with the hats on with our feet on the desk.
Shaun and your dad chuckle.
Dad: But...I'm proud that he was able to pursue his career.
They both walk inside.
[Your POV]
You're sitting on a chair, looking at the fire. You start remembering something.
[Four Years Earlier]
You feel your face being burnt. You can feel someone dragging you away. You close your eye and you pass out.
You slowly wake up in a medical tent with a bandage over the right side of your face. You see your sergeant walk up. He sits down next to you.
Sergeant: Hey, kid.
You: ...Hey, serge...
Sergeant: Do you remember what happened?
You: I, I remember...the...grenades. I remember one of them thrown at Louis and I... We both tried, serge... We tried.
Sergeant: I know.
You: ...Is he okay...? Is Louis...he is alright?
Sergeant: ...He, uh...
He looks down.
Sergeant: You weren't both gonna make it. We found you with nearly half your face blown off. You...lost your right eye. But you're in good condition, considering... Louis was...the shrapnel hit him in the jugular, the jaw, and the temple... He wasn't breathing. But you're very lucky to be alive, son. He says as you turn your head to the right, away from serge... You're goin' home soon. Back to America.
You close your eye as a tear flows down your face.
[Now]
You feel someone put their hand on your shoulder. You look up to see Clem.
Clem: Hey. You okay?
You: Y--yeah, I'm good. What's up?
Clem: Your brother's here.
You: Oh, alright. You say as you stand up.
You both walk up to the door to see Jack, his wife, Sophia, and his son, John, greeting everyone.
A/N: No. Not THAT Sophia.
Jack sees you.
Jack: What's goin' on, brother? He says, hugging you.
You hug him back.
You: Hey, man. Merry Christmas.
Jack: Merry Christmas.
You pull out of the hug and turn to Sophia.
Sophia: Hi, Y/N, how are ya?
She kisses you on the cheek.
You: I'm good; Merry Christmas.
Sophia: Merry Christmas.
You look at John, who's about fourteen now.
You: What's up, John?
You give him a fist bump.
John: Hey, uncle Y/N.
They take their coats and boots off as the rest of you head back into the living room.
[Time Skip]
The dining table is all set up with a bunch of food that Clem, Sophia, and your mom prepared. You've all sat down and said grace, and you're all eating.
Jack was talking about how he almost wasn't able to make it because there was an outage at his job, and if they didn't fix it on time, they would've had to work on Christmas. They managed to fix it and he made it back home on time.
Your mom had Clem eat her tomato salad because she thought she'd like it. Clem ate it and said it was good, but your knee bone, Jack's knee bone, your dad's knee bone, Shaun's knee bone, and John's knee bone all shook.
Your dad was talking about his retirement plans and how he and your mom are considering selling the house and moving to Florida.
Jack and Sophia were telling everyone that they're trying to have another baby. You all hugged and continued eating afterwards.
After everything is eaten, you all disperse around the house. You and your dad are walking outside.
Dad: You gonna miss the house?
You: I dunno. It was a nice place to grow up. I mean, it had anything a kid could ever ask for. I still don't know how you and mom were able to keep it after all my medical bills.
Dad: Well, we weren't the only ones contributing. Your grandma helped with a lot of the payments. Your grandpa had life insurance, so that helped.
You: Didn't know that.
Dad: Well...I guess you learn somethin' new every day, huh?
You chuckle.
You: Guess so.
Dad: What's funny?
You: It's just I said that to Clem last night out here.
Dad: Really? What were you talkin' about?
You: Ah, I don't remember.
Your mom opens the back door and hollers to your dad.
Mom: Y/D/N!
Your dad looks at your mom.
Dad: What?
Mom: C'mon, it's getting late.
Your dad sighs as your mom gets back inside.
Dad: Oh, well.
Your dad looks at you.
Dad: Well...I guess I'll see you later.
You smile.
You: Yep.
Your dad smiles.
Dad: Merry Christmas.
You: Merry Christmas, dad. You say as you hug him and he hugs back.
You both pull out of the hug after a few seconds.
Dad: I love you.
You: Love you, too.
He walks off. You turn around and you look at the backyard. You sigh. You see a man teaching his son how to shoot in the backyard.
Man: Squeeze the trigger smooth, always remember: squeeze not pull.
Boy: Squeeze, not pull...
*BANG!*
The boy hits the bottle perfectly! The man pats his son on the back.
Man: Nice shot, kiddo!
Boy: Thanks, dad!
They both hug in excitement.
You smile.
[Time Skip]
You're walking through a graveyard, looking for a particular tombstone. You see the tombstone and you walk over.
You: Hey, Louis. You say as you sit down on the grass.
You notice some snow on his tombstone.
You: Let me get that for ya, buddy.
You rub the snow off of his tombstone. You sit back down.
You: I just wanted to come and tell you "Merry Christmas"... Ya know, usually, you'd be the one visiting me at my house this time of year. You'd come over, we'd have a beer when I put the kids to sleep, you always made me play the same card game. I wish I got the pleasure of burning those cards. You say, laughing. Man, that would be the REAL Christmas miracle, ya know? Man...you loved those cards more than anything, bro. I could've sworn I saw Samantha a little jealous every now and then.
You sigh.
You: ...I should probably check in on her, see how she's doin'. I bet you'd appreciate that. You remember that one time Clem and I visited, and you asked if we should all play some poker? Samantha said "Oh, no, I think I need to put away my Lord of Rings books!"
You start laughing.
You: I cannot, for the life of me, remember a single time she's talked about Lord of the Rings!
You laugh a little longer, until it fades away. You look at the tombstone and your smile disappears. Your lip quivers.
You: ...I really miss you, man.
You start crying.
You: I should be the one in the ground right now. Not you... Why'd you have to fucking dive with me, man? You could've been here, but now you're just... It's just sad to think about, ya know...? Ya know, when my parents sent me to Ericson's, not a single fucker would even give me the time of day. But then you saw that Gabe guy givin' me a hard time and you just decked him right then and there. The headmaster was pissed 'cause his dad was one of their biggest investors... Always steppin' in to help, huh...? Blessing and a curse if you ask me...
You reach into your back pocket and you pull out a whiskey bottle. You take a sip. You hold it over the grass and you pour it down onto Louis' spot.
You: Not too much, now. You say as you stop pouring. You don't got anyone to give you a ride home. You say as you stand up.
You walk up to the tombstone and you put your hand on the top of it.
You: Merry Christmas, brother.
You turn around and you walk away from the tombstone.
[Time Skip]
You make it back to your house. You turn off the car and you get out. You close the door and you lock it.
You walk over to the front steps and you walk up. You unlock the front door and you quietly walk inside. You slowly close the door. You take off your boots and your coat and you put them away.
You slowly walk up the steps, trying not to make too much noise. You make it to your door and you quietly walk inside. You see Clem asleep in bed. She doesn't know you left.
You walk over to the dresser and you take off your watch. You place it one the dresser and you rub your wrist. You see something poking out of the drawer. You pull out the drawer, revealing a black box with a red ribbon wrapped around it. It has a not on it.
You take it out and you read the note.
Note: Every kid needs a good home to grow up in.
You pull off the ribbon and you open the box, revealing a key inside. You take it out. It's a custom house key that looks just like your dads.
You look at it with confusion. You realize what this means. You look at Clem to see her still asleep. You smile.
You: Best Christmas ever...
A/N: Alright, that's the end! I hope you all enjoyed it. I've been working on this chapter for a very long time now, so I hope it meets your expectations. I just want to say, Merry Christmas to all of you. I hope you guys have a good Christmas and a happy New Year. Love you guys!