Twas The Night Before Christmas Novels & Stories

The night before our big offline meetup, my roommate took one look at my internet boyfriend's photo and declared it was a fake. "Using a stolen photo for an online romance? He's definitely insecure and too ugly to show his real face!" The next day, my boyfriend texted: [Sorry, something came up at the last minute. Can you wait half an hour?] I breathed a sigh of relief because I had just been notified about an exclusive expert lecture on campus. Word was, the speaker was an academic powerhouse, and the university had paid a fortune to secure him. I snagged a seat in the front row. But the moment I looked up at the podium, my stomach dropped. Why did this famous scholar look so much like

Under the dark sky, a burst of colorful fireworks suddenly lit up, making even the dark rooms in the house bright. I looked at the clock and saw that it was past midnight. It was a new year. Watching the fireworks, I felt happier than I ever had before. The fireworks kept going, lighting up the sky as if they were showing us the way for the year ahead. I smiled, went back to my room, and snuggled into my cozy bed.

He said as he clapped his hands, looking at his mother's face as she cleared her throat. "It was a beautiful December day" She began, "with clear blue sky and snow-covered treetops. Christmas was in the air but up in Santa’s lodge, all was quiet. The usual hustle and bustle of preparing Christmas presents had gone for Santa had fallen ill. “Oh dear, what will the children say when they don’t receive presents this year,” Santa wondered sadly as he lay on his bed.

He smirked as we finally reached the kitchen. The next few days passed by in a blur and before I knew it, it was the morning of Christmas Eve. The house was buzzing with energy, something I felt come alive within the pack bond. People were scurrying around, decorating the house with various assortments of winter-themed trinkets. We had put the tree up the night before last; a huge eight-foot-tall monstrosity that Sean claims he can get back in the ground before it dies. That was currently sat in the main living area, covered in white fairy lights and red and green baubles and beadings.

He’d have to do that when he got home from here and then keep a very close eye on everyone. What he found was a memory of the past ringing with a lilting voice of his mother as she read a new poem, she had found but fit so well into their lives. It was as if they had made it for this moment. Max had missed most of the opening refrains of the poem. But it was as if it spoke to him, and his mother claimed the title was, ‘Twas the Night Before Yuletide’ by C. C. Williford. It spoke of everything thing they were doing and what made it special. Why it’s done and reminded everyone that rebirth was here in the strengthening of the very sunlight.

Just… miss talking to you. I stared at the message so long the screen went dark. Tomorrow? Christmas… Only then did it hit me that today was December 24th. Tomorrow was indeed Christmas. I hadn’t even registered it. Not even the strings of lights blinking in every goddamn window I’d driven past. I’d been so deep in the wreckage of my life that the entire holiday had slipped by like background noise. I looked up. And the street was suddenly alive with it. Christmas lights draped across lampposts in looping with Inflatable Santas waving from front yards. A group of kids running down the sidewalk in puffy coats, laughing, dragging a sled behind them and a man in a Santa hat handing out candy ca

KIMANI The plan was simple. Spend New Year’s Eve with family. Count down to midnight. Leave immediately for our honeymoon. Clean. Organized. Efficient. Very Alaric. It was the evening of December 31st, and once again the mansion was full. The Christmas decorations were still up, lights glowing warmly against the tall windows. Music hummed softly in the background, glasses clinked occasionally, and the energy in the room was restless—the kind that builds when everyone is waiting for midnight.

"Here, to our family's future success. Cheers!" I crouched in front of the fireplace, staring at the cheap nylon scarf that had already been reduced to ashes. The fire was already beginning to die down, leaving behind just a pile of black ash in its place. Soon, it was midnight, and fireworks exploded in the sky outside the window, the multicolored lights penetrating through my transparent body as people on the streets cheered and wished each other a "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Holidays". I just continued crouching in my corner, facing Mom and Dad who were still making plans about the future, and said lightly, "Merry Christmas."

teemed the streets – a few adults dressed in Santa's costumes while the kids that really did look like they had just arrived from the North Pole were dressed in green; Santa's elves, sharing gifts to all houses. Now! That was the kind of aura I loved waking up to meet after spending half my night wrapping gifts; a chevron necklace and a trinket dish for Madison, a Virtual Reality headset for Mason, a moonlight pyjamas for my mum and a wine subscription for my dad and even something for Sal, my best friend; a Phone Wooden Docking Station and AirPods leather case. It was a perfect Christmas but little did I know that it was to be a very horrible new year with tons of... **

“Christmas pajamas are a must for presents. So, no getting dressed yet.” “Okay.” Shiloh conceded with a smile as she slid out of the bed. She wore pajamas with Oogie Boogie and the kids from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Pagan had explained that it was their tradition that everyone got new Christmas pajamas as their Christmas Eve present. They all changed into their new pajamas and snuggled up with hot cocoa and cookies to watch movies until the girls went to bed.