A/N - Day 5 of 12 Days of Ficmas

This started off as a great idea and now I am stressed so this one is a little shorter I’m sorry. Follow @Elcten on twitter to see the past few days.

Merry Elfin’ Christmas (MoTzu)

“You cannot be serious.”

“C’mon Sana,” Mina smiled, “Just let the woman live.”

Sana rolled her eyes, “Momo you’re twenty three!”

“So?”

“You’re too old to sit on Santa’s lap!”

Momo pouted, arms crossed as she refused to move out of the line. The trio had been shopping for Christmas presents at the mall when Momo had spotted the line for Santa where loads of parents and children were stood waiting. Immediately, the eldest of the three had sprinted to join the line forcing the other two girls to follow begrudgingly. Sometimes Momo could be their silent caretaker, almost a motherly figure who made sure they ate and slept well. However, other times she was just a big kid! She got a photo with Santa every year and would send it to her mother in Japan, it was a tradition be it as immature as it was.

“Nobody told you to stay!” Momo snapped bitterly,

“Nah,” Sana smirked, “I wanna watch you make a fool of yourself.”

“Oh bite me!”

“Come on guys it’s Christmas,” Mina complained, “Stop bickering.”

“Fine.” Both girls agreed,

An upset penguin was good for no one.

Momo couldn’t hide her excitement as they stood in the cue, ignoring the odd looks from mothers around them. The eldest girl was vibrating with excitement, she loved Christmas time. The lights, the decorations, the presents - everything! She didn’t care if it made her look immature, she was a hard working college student and if she wanted to see Santa and get a stupid photo she bloody well could! So they cued for nearly an hour before finding themselves at the front of the line. The actual part with Santa in was inside a giant snow globe with a curtain in the doorway. A pale girl dressed as an elf was stood telling people when to go in. Her name tag said Dahyun The Door Elf and Momo squealed.

Dahyun raised an eyebrow but kept the very fake smile on her face - she’d been here for hours and wasn’t even halfway through her shift so she was well and truly over Christmas. She looked to the exit on the other side of the snow globe in time to see the previous group leaving, she poked her head in to get the okay before letting Momo, Sana and Mina through. Momo was practically vibrating as they walked into the giant snow-globe. Santa (who if Mina didn’t know any better was definitely a woman) waved at them from his big red chair, there was a tree next to him with hundreds of presents underneath. Everywhere was covered in fake snow and a few automatronic reindeer’s grazed nearby.

Momo ran in taking “Santa” by surprise.

“Ho, ho, ho!” Santa…um…hoed, “Merry Christmas! Young--OOOF!”

Momo may be skinny but she was still a bit heavier than a toddler and the running jump didn’t help.

“Sorry!” She cried,

“It’s….ugh….okay!” Santa grunted before snapping back into character, “And what would you like for Christmas?”

Momo looked up when she saw the flash of the camera in front of them and felt her mind go blank as she met the doe-eyes of a beautiful woman, “Her…”

The woman was tall, quite ironic seeing as she was dressed as an elf but even funnier with the elf stood next to her (name tag said Chaeyoung) was a head shorter making the height difference noticeable. The camerawoman smiled at her before looking through the lens of the camera again, Momo felt her face heat up and she got nervous. The woman was really pretty and Momo had a habit of being easily flustered by pretty women.

“Smile!” The girl’s voice was smooth and soft,

Momo smiled just hearing it, not even minding that the flash almost blinded her. “Santa” handed her a present and as Momo stood the bearded woman pulled her back down, “Her name’s Tzuyu and she’s single!”

Was…was Santa trying to get her laid?

Momo shyly approached the camera woman who was typing on a laptop to print the photos.

“Would you like to pay extra for a frame?” Tzuyu asked looking up,

Momo went even redder, “I…umm…frame…”

“Yeah!” Mina intervened as Sana cackled in the distance, “We’ll take the frame too.”

Tzuyu smiled, taking the printed photos and slipping them into the frame.

“What colour?”

“Pink.” Momo said immediately, trying to force herself to start conversation, “Very pretty are you!”

What the is wrong with me?

Tzuyu giggled shyly as her co-worker looked horrified.

Momo just kept her head down, unable to see Tzuyu’s own cheeks go red when their hands brushed as Momo took the frame from her. The trio made their exit and almost immediately Momo lay on the ground to wallow in self-hatred as Sana laughed hysterically and Mina tried to hide her giggling with a cough. Her life was over, Momo was going to die single and alone with a dozen cats all named Adam. She didn’t know why she would call them all Adam - it just felt like the right choice.

“That was…rough.” Mina commented,

“You did a Yoda impression.” Sana had finally calmed down, “There’s no going back from that.”

“I blame God,” Momo whined, “If he didn’t hate the gays maybe I would be better with women!”

“Don’t blame God, he’s cool with the agenda.” Mina sighed, “Now get up.”

They dragged Momo to her feet and with her new found vertical-ness she had a newly found enthusiasm to try once again and get the number of the camera-elf. She declared she was going to get back in line and try again, though once Sana and Mina had seen how the queue had doubled in size since they went round the first time they declined and said they were going to get something to eat. This was fine, Momo was a big girl - she could do this without them!

She rejoined the line, ignoring the staring of the surrounding mothers again. Seriously, what was so strange about a grown woman wanting to go an see Santa Claus for the second time in a day!? As she followed the queue along once more she began planning her words, hoping to think up the perfect thing to say before she got in there - especially to justify why she had gone round again. Momo had this, she could do it! Or at least she thought she could right up until she was in front of the curtain again.

“You’re back!” Dahyun the Elf commented,

“I’m back,” Momo said, feeling embarrassed, “I err…like queuing for things.”

“What are you, British?”

“No, Japanese!”

Dahyun blinked.

“Wait, excuse me!” A shrill voice called from behind them,

Momo turned to see a cross looking woman with her crotch-goblin.

“Yes?” Momo asked politely, she was of course a polite girl,

“You’ve already seen Santa today?”

“Well yeah but--”

“Well that’s ridiculous! People without children should not be allowed to see Santa Claus especially more than once! I’ve been in this queue two hours--”

“With all due respect ma’am,” Dahyun intervened, “So has she, there are no rules for who can see Santa.”

“She should let us go ahead!”

“But then I would have to let everyone go ahead.” Momo said confused, “I wont be long.”

“That’s not the point!”

“Then what is the point?”

The woman glared before suddenly shoving Momo hard, she wasn’t prepared and so went careening backwards through the curtain. Her back hit the big red chair Santa had been sat on as she failed to regain her balance and it tipped back. With a yelp Santa tumbled backwards smacking their head on the mall floor. Dahyun put a red rope across the curtain and told the woman to leave before running into the snow globe where Chaeyoung and Tzuyu stood over the fallen figures.

Momo blinked as she opened her eyes, her vision was blurry as she stared up at the figure above her.

“Angel…”

She blinked again and when her vision cleared she could see Tzuyu standing over her, arm outstretched to help her up, “Not quite.”

Momo was blushing again but took the hand so that she could (for the second time that day) be pulled to her feet.

“Jeongyeon? Dude, you okay?” Chaeyoung asked, “Guys she’s out cold, what do we do?”

Santa was laid passed out on the floor, the beard and hat had been removed showing it was indeed a woman. She was indeed out cold.

“We can’t carry on without a Santa!” Tzuyu complained looking sad,

“Why don’t we make her wear the costume?” Dahyun asked pointing at Momo, “We’ve only got an hour left.”

“Yeah, it doesn’t matter who does it as long as someone is in that chair.” Chaeyoung agreed,

“Me? I don’t know…”

“Please?” Tzuyu stared at her,

This was unfair, her stupid beautiful doe-eyes were eating away at Momo’s soul. How could she refuse when a goddamn angel was the one asking her!?

And that ladies and gentleman and everyone in between is why when walking back to the centre of the mall, clutching soft pretzels, Mina and Sana spotted Momo inside the big snow globe dressed as Santa. They were going to question it but then they remembered Momo’s inability around pretty women and decided this was definitely something to do with that Tzuyu chick. Rather than investigate further they chose to finish their pretzels and continue shopping.

Momo on the other had was in hell.

Hundreds of snot nosed little brats sat on her lap, they pulled on her beard, they screamed, they cried. The worst part was she was one hundred percent sure at least three of them peed on her lap and one went the other direction. But it was all fine, because every time one child left Tzuyu would send her a big smile from where she stood by the camera. Chaeyoung also kept teasing the both of them but that went over Momo’s head as she tried her best not to gay panic. Soon the final child came and went, finally freeing the group from their festive workload.

Chaeyoung excused herself to help Dahyun close and clean up the entryway as Tzuyu began packing up her camera. Momo took off her Santa suit, minus the hat because she wanted to keep it as a memory, and approached her, it really was now or never.

“So it’s your camera?”

Good job, Momo! Nice start!

“Yeah,” Tzuyu smiled, “I’m studying photography at college, when Chae told me they needed a camera elf I thought it’d be good for experience.”

Momo nodded, “I liked my picture so you must be good.”

Tzuyu blushed, “I’m okay.”

Awkward silence.

“What’s your name by the way?” Tzuyu asked,

“Momo…y’know like peach in Japanese!”

Tzuyu thought a moment, “Like that lemur thing in Avatar!?”

Momo froze. That was a new one.

“Uh yeah, I guess.” Momo took a deep breath, “Look I actually came round again because I…err…”

“You?” Tzuyu stepped towards her,

“I….iwantedtoaskyouout.”

“Huh?”

“I wanted to ask you out.” Momo was beet red, shyly staring at the floor with her arm rubbing the back of her neck,

“Well,” Tzuyu smiled, “You did save us from having to close early. It’s the least I could do to repay you!”

“Oh you don’t owe me---”

“Momo, I’m saying yes.” Tzuyu giggled,

The Japanese girl went red again, “Oh okay…great!”

Who knew flattening Santa would work?

Tzuyu smiled again before her eyes suddenly drifted upwards, Momo followed her gaze curiously and blanched at the sight of mistletoe hanging from one of the decorations. It was directly above them and when they locked eyes again they both looked away awkwardly.

“We don’t have--”

“Don’t feel you need---”

They laughed, allowing some of the awkwardness to disappear. Tzuyu stepped closer, hand reaching out to tilt Momo’s head up via her chin. Then leaned forward and closed the gap. Momo hummed and her eyes fluttered closed, this wasn’t where she’d though she’d be but she wasn’t about to complain.

The duo didn’t notice the curtain open as two elves walked in, pausing at the sight.

Chaeyoung tutted before singing the well known carol, “I saw Tzuyu kissing Santa Claus~”

Dahyun laughed as the duo sprang apart.

“Soo I’ll pick you up tonight?”

Tzuyu nodded, staring at her shoes, “Tonight sounds good.”

And all seemed right with the world.

“Y’all can barely look at each other without blushing how the hell are you going to get through a date!?”

“Shh Dahyun let the babies live.”