The Christmas Shoes (Sealand x Reader)

The snow was falling down slowly. It was just enough to be beautiful yet not so much that it made driving impossible. (Y/N) was silently cursing to herself as her old car barely trudged along.

“Why did I decide to take a short cut?” The young woman asked herself as she kept her eyes on the road.

(Y/n) (L/N) had unfortunately been stuck working out of town on Christmas Eve. When her boss had allowed her to leave early she was more than grateful. But now she had to brave the trip home. She had already made it into town but she could feel her car giving out. Worst of all, there seemed to be nobody around; surely everyone was home spending the day with their family.

“NO! NO! NO!” (Y/N) shouted as she felt her car begin to slow until it came to a dead halt. “Great! Just my luck! All I wanted is to go home with my family but that apparently won’t happen.”

(Y/N) placed her gloves on her hands as she stepped out of her car. The winter wind swirled around her giving her a chill. Her trembling form walked over to the hood of the car. As she popped it open a puff of gray smoke hit her face.

“Now let’s see…this piece is the…” (Y/N) said to herself as she attempted to examine her car. To be honest she didn’t know the first thing about fixing this thing. With a sigh the (H/C) haired woman pulled out her phone and dialed in the town mechanic. It rang for several minutes before a tired voice answered.

“Hello?”

“Yes, hello! My car broke down and I need to know if someone could come out here and fix it.”

“I sent home my last mechanic already.”

“Well can someone at least tow  me home? I’m just on the edge of town.”

“You want someone to go out there on Christmas Eve? Is it an emergency? Can’t you walk home? A family member can’t go and get you?”

“N-no. I am the only one with a car and I live too far to walk. Please can you just try?”

“You said you were on the edge of town? Maybe I can call up a smaller car shop hear you and see if they have someone but no promises!”

“Thank you, sir! Merry Christmas!” (Y/N) shouted into the receiver as she hung up. He sure did seem grumpy but then again he was probably upset to have to spend today at work. (Y/N) looked at the snow falling around her. It had begun to come down heavier. Had she been home she would have found it pretty but being stuck outside was a completely different story.

The young woman decided to sit in her car as she waited for someone to come along.

“Well it could be worse. I’m not injured and everyone important to me is home safe and sound. Honestly people could be having a worse day.” (Y/N) gave herself a quick pep talk. She felt her brow furrow as she spoke. This day always brought back one single memory. It was something that had stayed with her all these years and something she was sure would be with her until she died.

A small knock on her window caused her to jump. Her thoughts quickly vanished as a young man smiled and waved at her. Opening her door, (Y/N) got out of her car to speak with the young man.

“You called for a tow truck?” The guy asked with a small smile.

“Yea, I’m sorry I know it’s Christmas Eve and-”

“Don’t worry about it. Let’s get you home okay?”

In no time at all (Y/N)’s car was hooked onto the back of the tow truck as she waited in the passenger seat. She was immensely grateful to have someone come out here on a day like this, let alone someone with a good attitude about it.

“All ready to go?” The guy asked as he climbed into the driver’s seat. (Y/N) nodded as they began their journey. She thought it would be a ride filled with awkward silence but was pleasantly surprised when the young man decided to make conversation with her.

“It must be rough having your car break down like that.”

“Tell me about it. But I’m just glad no one got hurt or anything. If it had stopped like that in a busy street I would have caused a big problem.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why weren’t you home already? It’s nearly dark; most people are already with their families.”

“I was working out of town today. I wasn’t due to get back until tomorrow morning. My boss decided to let me off earlier and now here we are.”

“You don’t seem all that upset.”

“Well things could be worse.”

“I suppose that is true. I couldn’t help but notice all the gifts you had in the backseat. Is that why you are anxious to get home?”

“No, don’t get me wrong I love to give my family gifts but more than anything I just want to see them.”

“You know not a lot of people feel that way about Christmas anymore. They find it more important to buy their loved ones the most expensive gifts than to just be thankful to spend the holidays with them. It’s all about what you give and get but never stopping to think why you do it.”

“Well, I won’t lie…I wasn’t always like this.” (Y/N) said as she gazed out the window. “In fact I was the exact opposite but things changed about ten years ago today.

~Flashback~
(Y/N) eyed two jackets up and down. The teenager just needed one more gift. It was her gift to her boyfriend and she wanted it to be absolutely perfect.

Christmas carols played over the intercom but were drowned out by the voices of every shopping. Customers were arguing with each other over items and with employees over prices. (Y/N) rolled her (E/C) eyes.

“Why did I have to wait until Christmas Eve to go shopping?” The girl mumbled under breath as she put both shirts back. She had never seen the department store so crowded with people and to be honest it was getting on her nerves. Her search paused when her phone vibrated in her pocket. Pulling out her cell phone she saw her boyfriend’s name cross the screen.

Flipping it open she read his text.

‘Where are you? I thought we were going to spend today together?’

‘I had to stop by the store to pick up some things.’

‘Can’t it wait? I really wanted to see you.’

‘I promise as soon as I’m done here I’ll go over.’

‘fine’

(Y/N) shoved her phone back into her pocket, angry at his response. It was obvious he was upset but that’s only because he didn’t realize that she was only out here for him. The girl stomped through the clothing isle when something caught her eye.

There on the shelf sat a black polo with red dots. Upon closer inspection (Y/N) saw the spots were actually a tiny tomato pattern all over the fabric. She just knew her boyfriend was going to love this! She crossed her fingers as she read the price tag, seeing as she only had a limited amount to spend. Relief flooded her body when she saw that she had just enough.

The young girl ran to the check-out line with the perfect gift. Luckily there were several lanes open and they didn’t appear to be too long. (Y/N) rushed into the shortest line as she waited to pay.

She looked at the item in her hands. It had taken her days to find a gift that she felt really confident about giving to her boyfriend. She was sure he would be happy with this. Of course he had given her the whole cliché “all I need for Christmas is you” line but (Y/N) didn’t buy a word of it. (Y/N) wasn’t a selfish person and didn’t feel that she should receive tons of gifts. However she always placed the highest importance on getting everyone important to her the best gifts. If she didn’t get them something great than how would they know that she cared?

The girl was snapped out of her thoughts when the person in front of her knocked into her hands. She looked up with a small scowl on her face only to meet a pair of big innocent blue eyes.

“Oh! I’m sorry, I was so excited I didn’t see you there!” The child, in front of her, exclaimed with an adorable little accent.

(Y/N) looked at him curiously. He couldn’t be old enough to go off shopping by himself. The more the young girl eyed the boy the more curious she grew. His blue sailor outfit seemed a bit worn, with the blue fading away. He even had a bit of dirt smeared on his face and slightly thick eyebrows. In his hands he held onto a shoe box. (Y/N) realized that the boy was still waiting for her to say something.

“No problem.” (Y/N) mumbled as she averted her attention back to the shirt she was holding. The little boy continued to move around back and forth, unable to keep still.

“I’m Peter Oxenstierna by the way!” The kid shouted out with a smile. (Y/N) gave him an awkward forced smile.

“I’m (Y/N) (L/N). Hey shouldn’t you be with your mom or something?” (Y/N) asked seeing as it was nearly his turn in line and nobody had shown up.

“Nope! I am paying for these shoes by myself! I’ve been saving for a long time!” (Y/N) raised an eyebrow at the kids before the cashier motioned for the child to put his item on the conveyor belt.

“So, dude, will that be all for today?!” The loud cashier said as he looked down at the short boy.

“Yes, sir!” The kid said before pulling out a jar of change. OH. HELL. NO!!! He expected to pay for the whole thing in coins?! Even the cashier looked a bit exasperated but nevertheless got to counting.

“I can’t believe it’s already Christmas Eve! I’ve been waiting to buy these shoes for a long time.” Peter said to the cashier as he tried hard not to lose count. (Y/N) continued to listen to the exchange between the two.

“Oh really? Why is that dude?”

“They are for my Daddy Tino! Can you believe this was the only pair you had? And guess what, they were exactly his size!” The kid rambled on as the cashier continued to add up pennies. The young boy glanced down at a small wrist watch and began to bounce a bit impatiently. “Mister? I know you are trying your hardest but can you hurry?”

“What’s the rush kid?”

“Well I don’t have much time! Daddy Berwald said it could be any day now and I want to get home before it’s too late!”

“Before what’s too late?”

“You see…my Daddy Tino has been sick for a long time now. And I mean really sick. He was in the hospital forever but yesterday the doctors told us to bring him home. Only…it wasn’t because he was better. It was because they can’t do anything for him anymore. Daddy Berwald was able to buy him a nice new suit for Christmas but he doesn’t have any nice shoes to go with it! We don’t have a lot of money so all his shoes look really old and torn. I want my dad to look his best if he meets any angels soon!”

(Y/N) couldn’t believe her ears. This poor kid was obviously going through things way too harsh for someone his age. The girl looked up at cashier who continued counting but subtly wiped his eyes a bit. Peter didn’t seem to let this tragedy falter him in the slightest. He was still smiling as the cashier counted the last of the change.

“Umm…dude you’re about five dollars short.” The cashier said with a guilty look in his eyes. Peter’s eyes grew wide as he processed what the man just told him.

“No. I came in last week and checked the price! I should have enough! Count it again!”

“Last week we had a sale going on. I’m sorry to tell you this but the price on these went back up.”

“It’s only five dollars!” (Y/N) said, intervening into the conversation.

“I know. I feel bad; I really do but there’s nothing I can do. My boss would never allow it and I don’t really have five dollars to give away on a holiday.”

(Y/N) looked towards the young boy who was digging into all his pockets, turning them inside out, hoping to find even a few more cents. When he turned up empty handed he appeared as if he was going to cry. Slowly he turned to (Y/N).

“My Daddy Tino was always the best at Christmas time. He would dress up like Santa and no matter how much money we had he managed to get me everything I wanted. Most years we couldn’t afford to get anything for him but he always said all he wanted was to be surrounded by family. These were the cheapest pair of shoes but I still can’t afford them. Miss, what am I going to do? I just have to buy them for him.” A single tear ran off the boy’s face.

(Y/N) too felt on the verge of tears. For Peter it wasn’t about the most expensive or elaborate gift but simply a gift that would show his father that he was thankful for everything he had given him. The girl looked from the shirt in her hands and back to the boy. Without another thought she placed a five on the counter.

“I’ll pay the rest.” (Y/N) said, surprising the cashier who smiled at her. Before she could do anything else the child wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Thank you, miss! I promise I can come and pay you back when I earn the rest.”

“No need. Just make sure to tell me if he liked the shoes or not, okay?” (Y/N) as she ruffled is hair. The young boy nodded before releasing her and grabbing the bag, the cashier handed him. His eyes shone with what could only be described as hope in its purest form.

“Thank you so much! I’m afraid I need to head home now! Thank you again! My dad is going to look great in these!” With that the young boy ran out of the store, rushing home to his parents.

“So, are you going to take that?” The cashier asked with a smile, as he pointed to the shirt in her hands. (Y/N) sighed but didn’t allow her smile to diminish. She couldn’t afford the shirt now but she felt that her money was better spent elsewhere. Looking around quickly she grabbed a tiny stuffed tomato that fell into her price range.

“I’ll just take this instead.” She said with a small giggle.

~EndFlashback~
“So you gave up the perfect Christmas present for a total stranger?” The man asked as he continued to drive (Y/N) home.

“No, I just helped buy the perfect gift for someone else.”

“I’m sure the kid didn’t even realize that you were giving up so much.”

“Probably not but looking back on it, it wasn’t all that much. It was just a material thing.”

“So what did your boyfriend say when you showed up with a small stuffed tomato?”

“Honestly he was just glad that I was with him, spending time together. He actually really loved the damned thing and when I told him the story he treasured it even more. To be honest…he still has it.” (Y/N) said letting out a chuckle. The man smiled at her.

“So I take it you two are still together?”

“Just recently engaged, actually.” (Y/N) said as she toyed with the ring on her finger.

“And the kid’s dad? Did you ever find out what happened to him?” (Y/N) face grew a bit sad at the question.

“I did. A few days later there was an obituary in the paper for a Tino Oxenstierna. Peter was briefly mentioned in it as well. I suppose I was put at ease by the fact that the date of his death was listed as the day after Christmas, meaning Peter got to him in time. I’m sure he looked great for any angels he met that night.” (Y/N) smiled at that thought.

“Did you ever see him again? The little boy?”

“No, but I expected as much. Still I went back to that same department every day, until I moved away for college, just hoping to see him again. I never did though.”

“Well seeing as what you did for him I’m sure you were expecting a bit more gratitude from the kid huh?”

“Not at all. In fact, I wish I could tell him ‘thank you’.”

“What do you mean?”

“I always thought that Christmas was a time when you show someone how much you love them by how much you spend on them. But Peter showed me differently. He didn’t care if he was buying his dad a ten dollar pair of shoes or fifty dollar shirt. He just wanted a small way to show that he cared about him. It truly changed me after that and it was all for the better. Though, sometimes I wonder if his father liked the shoes.” (Y/N) said dreamily as she tried to picture a face she had never seen, contouring in happiness and thanks as he received a gift from his son.

The tow truck came to a stop and (Y/N) could see her house standing there, looking warm and inviting.

“Well there you go, miss! Now you can be with your family!”

“Thank you so much! I didn’t think I’d be able to get anyone out there today.” (Y/N) said as she stepped out of the truck and watched as the man unlatched her car. When her car was finally set in place she reached into her purse to take her wallet. “Now, how much do I owe you?”

“No need. We can just consider ourselves even…though I think I would owe you much more than that.” The blonde man said as he winked a blue eye before hoping back in the truck. (Y/N) stood there dumbfounded, trying to understand what he just said. “Oh and (Y/N)?” The young man said looking back at her. “He did like them, a lot. Merry Christmas!” With that he gave her a small wave and began to drive off.

The wheels in (Y/N)’s head finally clicked as she called out to the truck. “Wait, Peter!” But it had already disappeared down her street. She smiled brightly as she held her hands to her heart.

“Merry Christmas, Peter.