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Ivy's Perspective:

The weather today was inclement, with snow falling at an unexpectedly rapid pace. This made it difficult for me to visit Cooper's house to discuss matters. I resigned myself to staying home, as Connie was out with her new boyfriend named Dale. This left me alone with my dog, Bear, who was lying on my lap and watching the news. We were both aware that heavy snow was accumulating on the roofs and the ground outside.

Feeling bored, I turned off the television and leaned my head against the couch back. I was too lazy to make lunch for myself, and I didn't want to wake Bear, who was sleeping soundly on my lap. Suddenly, I flinched, causing Bear to wake up when an abrupt knock sounded at the door. Bear jumped off my lap, and I stood up, nearly tripping over the couch.

As I opened the door, I was shocked to see Lee standing outside, covered in snow particles from head to toe. "Lee?!" I exclaimed in surprise.

"Hello, I was wondering if Meemaw is here," he said calmly, unfazed by the heavy snowfall.

I gasped. "Do you think today is the best day to ask when she is not here?!" I yelled as the snow and wind were strong.

He squinted his eyes and replied calmly, "Yes, I suppose. Wait, did you say she isn't here?"

"Come inside!" I pulled him by the arm and shut the door. After gasping for some air, I saw a few snow particles on the floor and Bear sitting on the sofa. I realized that if Sheldon found out that a puppy was living here, he would be extremely upset. So, before Lee could sit down, I quickly took the seat where Bear was hiding, and Lee raised his eyebrows at me and sat down in another position.

"So where is meemaw?"

"She's out. With her boyfriend, Dale, you probably know already." I chuckle awkwardly.

"I'm aware," he said.

Out of the blue, the phone rang, Sheldon picked it up, while I waited for him to respond to the phone. "Hey, mom," he answered. "Yes, I'm alright," he replied. "I'm here with Ivy, don't worry. And the weather's pretty rough today so Ivy told me I should stay here for a while, alright." he placed the phone down.

"I never told you anything about the 'you can stay here' part," I answer.

"Well, do you want me to go out in the heavy, cold wind with snow?" he asked me. I shook my head, and pursued his lips, "Just as what I was expecting," he said.

Unexpectedly, Bear woofed, and Lee's head turned out to me, "Was that a 'woof'?"

"No?" I lied awkwardly, a small smile appearing on my lips. Then Bear went off the sofa, and Sheldon's eyes widened, my heart suddenly raced, oh gosh, he saw Bear, what was I supposed to do now?

"I-is that a p-puppy?!"

"Lee, don't freak out! It doesn't bite nor is dirty! I showered it just yesterday and it is kind -- " I tried to calm him. 

"It's gonna bite me! It's going to eat me alive!"

When the puppy was grabbed and Sheldon became calm, he descended from the couch he had been standing on earlier and asked, "May I inquire as to why there is a brown, adorable puppy in Meemaw's residence?"

I heaved a sigh and responded, "While you were attending your classes, the puppy was outside in the backyard, and I brought it inside, cleaned it up, and hid it in a small box under Missy's bed. Do you think it would have been preferable if a puppy had entered your room without your permission?" I asked, annoyed and using sarcasm.

Sheldon shook his head in disagreement and replied, "Certainly not."

"Then it's settled. The puppy's name is Bear," I said through gritted teeth. Soon after, we heard the door open, and Mrs. Cooper appeared, wearing her winter coat. Behind her were Meemaw and Dale, her current boyfriend.

"Sheldon, return home right away!" Mrs Cooper demanded, pointing to the door.

"Yes, ma'am," Sheldon responded before leaving.

Third Person Perspective:

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The protagonist, Ivy, had recently settled into her new bed and was enjoying the company of her pet Bear, who was also comfortably settled in his new bed, courtesy of Meemaw. She felt an unprecedented sense of relaxation during this winter break, which she desperately needed. As she was engrossed in her reading, she heard some moaning sounds emanating from the adjacent room. The sounds were coming from Dale, who was engaging in some amorous activities. Ivy was repulsed by the noise and tried to muffle it with her old headphones but to no avail. Eventually, she managed to get some sleep by covering her ears with a pillow. However, her peace was short-lived, as she was awakened by a beeping sound from the phone that Lee had given her. 

Annoyed by the untimely intrusion, she answered the phone, only to be asked an unusual question by Sheldon: "Does zero exist?" After expressing her displeasure at being disturbed, Ivy reluctantly responded to Sheldon's query by admitting that she did not know the answer. Sensing that something was amiss, Sheldon inquired about Ivy's mood, to which she initially responded with irritation. However, Sheldon persisted, reminding her that he was her boyfriend and that he cared about her well-being. Ivy finally relented and shared her feelings with him.

Ivy slightly smiled, and looked down at her feet, "Nothing much, feeling desolate on breaks like this, whatever else." she replied, fidgeting with her hair. "Look, Lee. I apologize about Bear a while ago, this afternoon, if he disturbed you, maybe it's most suitable if I give him someplace so you won't get terrified anymore when you penetrate your Meemaw's house,"

Silence came through the phone, Ivy was nervous, and she could feel the tension in her heart. What would he respond? Was it going to be a big, fat no? Or even a bigger no??

"No, you don't have to give it away, you can keep Bear."

"Seriously?" 

"Well, don't make me change my mind."

It was silence, again, they couldn't help themselves from speaking anymore, they were just ... negligibly reddening. "Was that all?" Ivy questioned.

"Y-yeah! Goodnight to you!"

🐚

It was Christmas Eve, the most awaited day of the year. For Ivy, it was going to be a unique experience as she was going to celebrate it with the Coopers. However, the thought of not being able to celebrate it with her family left her with a tinge of sadness. But she knew she had to stay strong, and the Coopers, especially Lee, gave her the strength to do so. 

As Ivy made her way down the stairs, she was greeted by a mesmerizing sight. The living room was adorned with beautiful Christmas decorations, each piece carefully selected to add to the festive cheer. The Christmas tree was the centrepiece of the room, adorned with cute, dangling ornaments, each one telling a story of its own. The windows were decorated with Christmas lights, casting a warm glow around the room. Ivy couldn't help but gasp in awe as she took in the sublime decorations. It was an enchanting sight, and she couldn't resist a broad grin that spread across her face.

"Looks great, took me hours to do," said Connie, as she appeared from the kitchen, a few coloured icing from her cheeks.

Ivy nods and gazes at her, she notices icing on her face and slightly chuckles.

"What's so funny?"

"Connie, your cheek is kind of filled with icing," she said, trying not to laugh.

Connie reached her cheek using her hand, brushed her cheek, and looked at her fingers to see some icing on her fingertips, "Be right back!"Ivy slightly giggles and goes to the door as she puts on her winter coat and goes outside to see snow falling. She was so excited for Christmas, even though she was a teenager, she always loved Christmas, and always will.

Afar from Cooper's house, Lee exited, who was teased by Missy to take out the trash, and he saw Ivy from afar. After he takes out the trash, he then approaches her and tries to scare her from behind as a joke. Once he went behind her, he instantly said boo, causing her to flinch, and turned around to see who it was, Lee couldn't help but laugh slightly, Ivy blushing and embarrassed at this point.

"That was not funny at all, Lee," she said, her voice sounding embarrassed and crossing her arms, her cheeks going slightly red.

"It was a joke, Ivy," he said, slightly chuckling, as they started walking.

"Well, next time, I'll ask Billy to see if he'd let me borrow his chicken and put it in your closet then," Ivy smirked at her idea, and Lee got frightened too, his eyes widened. Ivy then laughed too, because she was joking. "It was a joke, dummy!" she said, laughing.

"Okay, your idea was not funny to me at all," he said truthfully, his hands deep in his pockets. (leather jacket)

While walking, Ivy and Lee chanced upon a small vendor selling ice cream. Ivy searched her pocket for a dollar to buy some ice cream but found only 50 cents. Lee offered to buy her some with his two dollars, and Ivy agreed. Lee purchased vanilla and strawberry ice cream with a berry on top for Ivy. Ivy questioned Lee about his choice of vanilla, to which he responded by asking if she didn't like strawberries. Ivy explained that she found the flavour childish and preferred vanilla. They then switched ice cream, and Ivy placed the berry on top of the vanilla. Ivy tried to bite the ice cream but found it too cold and exclaimed, "Too cold!" Lee slightly chuckled and advised Ivy to use her tongue instead of her teeth to avoid discomfort. Ivy acknowledged the advice, stating that she was merely testing it out.

"I think we should go home, Ivy. My mom must be worried about me now." Sheldon replied with anxiety in his voice.

"Sure, right after I'm done eating this cone," she said, eating it as fast as she could, they were both sitting on a bench. Lee patiently waited for her, not until he saw a familiar blonde girl from afar, and was approaching them.

The figure emerged, showing Paige as a result, in her winter coat outside, alone.

"Paige?" Lee stands up, Paige is no longer foggy in his sight. Ivy was confused and noticed a blonde girl who was named Paige. 

"Sheldon? It's been a while!" she then reluctantly hugged him, causing Ivy's heart to get slightly twisted, what the hell was she (Paige) doing?

"I thought you don't like hugging me?" he said, struggling to let go of the hug.

"Well, it's been a while, so why not?" she lets go, only to keep her hands from his shoulders. She then looks over to Ivy, who is still sitting down from the bench, utterly confused. "Sheldon, I didn't know you had such a pretty friend,"

Sheldon looked at her with some slight blush on his cheeks, "W-what?!"

"Name's Ivy," she greeted, and smiled awkwardly, trying to not make eye contact with Paige.

"Your name is way cooler than mine, I'm already jealous!" Paige chuckled, causing Ivy to get quite uncomfortable with the conversation.

Sheldon notices her face, and he frowns, "Paige, why don't we go celebrate a Christmas feast together? My mom would be happy again to see you all grown up!"

Ivy cools down, and they go back home, Ivy and Sheldon not saying a word to each other but to Paige instead.

🐚

The Coopers prepared an extensive meal consisting of pasta, brisket made from Connie, baked sweets, and iced tea. Ivy was overwhelmed with gratitude since her parents had never prepared such a masterpiece. During dinner, Ivy sat between Missy and Mrs Cooper, while Paige sat on the other side of the table between Sheldon and Georgie.

Mrs. Cooper announced the commencement of the meal, and everyone took their seats. Before they began eating, Mrs. Cooper led them in prayer, thanking the Lord for the fantastic meal and expressing gratitude for Paige's presence at the Christmas Eve celebration.

Following the prayer, they all ate heartily, enjoying the delicious food. Ivy ate to her heart's content, and Paige, who had come with Sheldon and Ivy, found herself eating more than she had anticipated.

After finishing their meal, Paige and Ivy sat on the couch, feeling full and satisfied. Paige remarked that she could not eat another bite.

"I can agree with you," Ivy sighed, brushing her hair using her hand as they both sat down properly. Maybe talking to each other wasn't such a bad idea, even though they infrequently knew each other, making new friends was Ivy's desire, and so she started to express her feelings and thoughts to Paige. Coincidentally, Paige did the same, and now they were having a blast in their conversation.

It was nearly Christmas Eve, and 11:46 was being shown on the clock, all the Christmas decorations inside Cooper's house were mesmerising, looking stunning and sublime, the same as Meemaw's house, they both shone beautifully from the outside of their home. Ivy lies down just in time for 00:00, which is already Christmas. The favourite holiday that anyone would love so much.

Ivy was about to doze off to sleep, but then an alarm came from her phone, she groaned to pick it up and put it from her ear to listen to who was calling her at this hour.

"Hey, Ivy. Guess what today is?" Lee asked her.

Ivy scratched her head in misery, "I don't know, Christmas morning?" she muttered since she was fatigued.

"Well, Merry Christmas, Ivy."

Ivy gasped, today was Christmas, and only knowing it now, she slightly grins, and was the same thing back to him.

"A Merry Christmas To You Too,"

she replied softly.