Starry Night Pt. 02

Nicole rolled her eyes and shivered "Also I can't believe the crap rules here you can't smoke where you like." She teasily pulled again on the filter.

"Come on you two, we all had a reason to come here, need to find where this Mark is?" Jess suggested patting the bag between her and Butterscotch trying to change topic.

"Let's hope he is here somewhere near; I haven't walked that far in ages!" Nicole replied as she exhales drifted off with the breeze towards the road. "At least its downhill on the way back!" she smiled.

Butterscotch huffed the smoke out of her nose as her cigarette bounced between her teeth, she opened the bag and with a bit of effort wiggled out the tablet.

"He has got to be here still?" Jess suggested.

Butterscotch nodded "I am sure he is." She stated as she studied the screen.

"I hope he is?" Nicole bit her bottom lip, before pulling again on her cigarette.

"Yes, he is within three square metres of us. Probably inside?" Butterscotch looked up and the three of them swivelled their heads to try and find him.

Nicole looked at her hand and the burning cigarette and then to her full glass "He might come out here for a ciggy?" Nicole suggested before her cheeks collapsed around her cigarette, she exhaled then smiled.

Jess rolled her eyes brought the lager to her lips and took a gulp, "He should do...if the Santa data is correct" she ginned her frothy moustache before suggestively licking it clean.

"Well, maybe even if does, Ladies, after these we please go inside?" Butterscotch suggested holding her burning cigarette up and then looking across at the large black rain cloud looming on the horizon.

***

"It's almost like home...except I can't smoke." Nicole stated as she tapped her pack on the dark wooden varnished tabletop as the three of them huddled now around the small wooden corner table next to the brick fireplace with the logs spitting and burning away.

"Come on Nicole, its pouring with rain, we've got beer, wine, and crisps, stop whinging, it won't hurt for a few minutes. He will go out eventually as well..." Jess tried to be positive as she swirled her nearly empty wine glass.

"I guess so, anyway, Butters which one is he?" Nicole attempted to loudly whisper.

Butterscotch balanced the tablet on her lap and studied the screen, and then looked around, and then looked at the screen again. "He is the dark haired one in the corner over there!" she pointed almost thumping the barmaid in the hip as she came around collecting empties.

Nicole instantly took in the barmaid "Oh, she is nice...hmmm...let me think, yes, Vicky...yes, that's her I think." Nicole stated watching at the back of the slim blonde girl in tight black work trousers that were disappearing snugly up between her obviously thong split buttocks and white shirt as she made her way around the bar area bending over to pick up a couple of empty glasses.

"Oh, come on Nic." Jess sternly replied. "Focus on this situation."

"I am." Nicole blinked from the dreamy state she was in studying the girl, snapping her head back and looked at Jess, "What? Go on, how do I get to talk to him, what's his name again Butters, Mark?"

The three of them looked at each other bemused before all picking up their glasses and taking a gulp. "You could go and talk to him?" Butterscotch replied to her mater of factly.

Nicole's blue eyes widened with fear "God no..."

Jess chuckled, "You could just go over an introduce yourself as Santa?"

Nicole flicked her hair from her face and chuckled and then all three heartily and loudly laughed at that idea.

"Wait, he will go out for cigarette, and you can join him the rain...ask for a light?" Butterscotch shrugged her shoulders.

"Please just for the next five minutes for god's sake, don't mention smoking..." Nicole grizzled and rotated her pack with anticipation between her fingers.

***

Nicole had disappeared off to the toilets tag teaming with Jess who was now at the bar getting another round in, hoping that they could get Mark and Nicole to collide with each other eventually.

Butterscotch sat there tapping her fingers patiently looking across the room, smiled as she stared at the jeans pocket of Mark. She pouted her lips and wiggled her nose, and then stared long and hard across the room and eventually got the lighter to start wiggling slowly up, and until the metal top of the lighter was poking free of his pocket. He was busy in conversation with his friends and noticed the moment and instantly pushed it back in. She sighed overly loudly in frustration and looked to the wood panelled ceiling in desperation before trying again.

With another wiggle of her nose and stare the lighter wiggled and almost fell to the ground as it popped out of his pocket, she got it to hover, and then move slowly through the air until it was firmly in her grasp. She looked back across the room, and he was still patting his now empty pocket. She smiled to herself as the placed the lighter inside the rucksack for later.

***

Nicole sighed and watched Mark as he made his way across the bar to the other corner, she then giggled as she sat her bottom back on the little stool next to the table, put down her green pack, adjusted her clothes and then and picked up her glass of wine and gulped a couple of fingers down.

Jess leaned forward, "Go on."

Nicole smiled "Well, I played forgetful, and he offered me a light..."

"And, he should have done!" Jess nodded encouragingly and smiled.

"But..."

"What?" Jess questioned.

Nicole chuckled "You will never believe me?"

"What?"

"Well, he couldn't find his lighter."

Butterscotch nodded and smirked "Oh, really what happened, I guess you still managed to have a cigarette?"

"Yes silly, of course Butters, I wasn't going to miss out, I used mine and then he used mine."

"Oh great, what did you talk about then?"

"Yeah...well, we talked about the weather...Jess, why are you Brits so wanting to talk about the weather?"

Jess ran her hands through her hair in frustration, "Very simply, unlike at the North Pole where its cold or very cold, snowing or not snowing, every. Single. Day., it likes to change a bit more by the hour, anyway what's he like?"

"He doesn't like the rain..."

"None of us do." Butterscotch said with exasperation.

"What's his plans for later?" Jess asked.

"He didn't say. As I didn't ask."

"Did you explain who you were?" Jess asked.

"No?"

Jess slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand in frustration "Come on girls, we are trying to save Christmas here, not talk weather, right, hell, I need a ciggy myself now, I will be back in bit." She huffed and extracted herself from the bench seat and headed outside leaving Butterscotch and Nicole alone.

"Butters please wiggle your nose and make something happen?"

Butterscotch looked uncomfortable and shook her head, "Elf magic only goes so far, it certainly can't do romance!"

Nicole scowled "I will wait for him to go out again?"

"You need to ask him out for a meal, or a drink, just the two of you...like tonight!" Butterscotch encouraged.

"But I am a couple of glasses of wine to the good already?"

"Don't worry, so is he!"

Chapter 12

"Ohh Butters how could she actually and easily go off with a strange man..." Jess sighed despondently as she lay back on the bed, she breathed her stomach tight and fiddled with her jeans button eventually it popped open and with a deep sigh she let her belly flop out as she lay with her feet on the floor and then flung her arms stretching towards the bedstead. "How could she?"

"Because she needs to, we need her too!" Butterscotch replied.

"But you know, we, me and her, are a couple."

"You were, yes."

Jess lifted her head squishing her double chin against her chest "Were?" Jess blinked her long dark eye lashes a couple of times, the mattress squeaked as she then walked her body up on her elbows so she could look across the room at Butterscotch who was humming Christmas songs to herself as she sat crossed legged on the pull-out bed on the floor, before Jess fell back down giggling in the process and slowly worked herself up again. "We are?"

"We shall see." Butterscotch said calmly.

"Oh, Butters we are!"

"Hmmm,"

"But will she be able to do the deed with a man, she doesn't have a clue?"

"Nicole will do what Nicole wants to do and in a way that she knows best."

Butterscotch replied blankly looking down on the tablet. "Ah, yes, they are heading to another bar now." Changing the topic.

"Butters, if this the case, she can't get too drunk; she won't be able to do the thing she needs to do..." Jess winced.

"After drinking, you two never seem to struggle to do what you need to do to each other... from what we hear..." Butterscotch stated with a raised eyebrow looking up from the tablet.

Jess's cheeks went bright red and then she naughtily and tipsily giggled "True, but I know exactly what Nicole needs...she has it written down...oh, Butters, do you know what I need? Can you boil the kettle? I need a hot chocolate or something...do we have any Baileys?" she mooted before falling back on to the bed with a tired groan.

"No more drink for you, but I guess we have hot chocolate!" Butterscotch huffed and with roll of her eyes, looked across at the little white kettle on the desk right in front of Jess and Nicole's bed, wiggled her nose as she stared, and the lever clicked.

"Thanks..." Jess said whilst sprawled out on the bed and the growl of the kettle started to grow.

"Nicole, she will be fine!" Butterscotch called out across the kettle noise. "I am keeping an eye on her."

"Great..." Jess shouted back over the hissing kettle. "We will go down for food in a bit, I am starving." And then fell back on to the bed. "I am thinking of a cigarette, followed by fish and chips...and a pint of cider..." She said dreamily.

"I think you're got to realise things are going to change in the coming days and weeks Miss Jess."

"Pardon?" Jess called over the bubbling noise as she raised her head and looked across again.

"For starters Alabaster has determined that there will be a lot less drinking and smoking!" Butterscotch nodded, licked her lips and she then dropped her head as she stared at the screen.

***

"Welcome to the News at 10, we first start with the breaking news of freak weather being reported all over the world this evening. We have got reports of snow in the Sahara, rain in the Atacama, and blistering heat in the South Pole, along with several large earthquakes around the ring of fire, with general upthrust in activity, which is threatening volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis. The last time this happened with such violence was over 34 years ago.

As soon we get more information from our global reporters, we will of course be the first to update you on this.

On with the news. The latest cabinet minister to be caught with their trousers around their ankles by his wife whilst apparently giving his secretary a stern talking to, has with deep regret offered his resignation to the prime minister...."

***

Butterscotch and Jess were huddled close together leaning their backs against the red brick wall of the hotel, sheltering from the wind whilst watching the heavy rain drops drip off the roof and splatter on to the concrete tiles as the rain pelted the slate tiles of varnished redwood undercover gangway leading to the next-door branded restaurant. Jess pulled on cigarette, as Butterscotch stood there with her arms folded under her chest as Jess exhaled a billowing cloud of smoke, they then looked at each other and then across the carpark a grey taxi drove up, the breaks squealed as it came to a stop in the disabled carparking pace right in at the front, after a bit of a consternation as she fished twenty pound note from inside her bra, the grey door finally opened and out appeared the bedraggled, very sleepy and hungover Nicole just about still in yesterday's clothes.

"Morning Jess, Butters." She smiled sweetly but spoke with the tell-tale coarse croaky voice.

"Afternoon!" Jess giggled as Nicole grizzled as she made her way towards them trying to avoid getting her shoes into the large puddles, Jess licked her lip and pulled on her cigarette, before letting the exhale drift away. "Have fun?"

Nicole smiled as neared them "Yeah," she shrugged her shoulders and the giggled "he was huge...hung like a horse" she grinned "and I am starving, and could probably eat one, a horse that is, are you going for breakfast?"

"Yeah, we were just on our way." Butterscotch butted in. "Will we be going home now?"

"What you mean is, did I do the deed with him?"

"Yeah?" Jess asked impatiently.

"I have no idea!" she giggled gleefully. "I drank far too much, but I think so." She winked as she wiped her hands down her inner thighs "I need a cigarette before I do anything else, and then let's eat."

"Sorry Miss Claus, you promised to cut down." Butterscotch said firmly her arms still crossed under her chest.

Nicole glared as she stared "Oh, Butters, I will, shush now. I will when we get back. I promise!"

"Hmmm, Okay Miss Claus, in that case shall I arrange check out after breakfast?"

Jess instantly coughed "Wait, what, am I not going to see my parents?" she asked looking side to side at both of them, and then brought her hand hurriedly back to her face as she pulled on her cigarette.

"Oh, sorry, Miss Claus what do you think, I don't think we have time, Alabaster wanted us back as soon as the deed was done." Butterscotch stated.

Chapter 13

The next month was painful and stressful for both Nicole and Jess at the North Pole, with several compounding issues that hadn't been resolved and were steadily building. Firstly, Jess hadn't gone home to see her parents, and as they were highly likely not to be heading south for the sun this year. Nicole was adamant that she was not going south if she couldn't drink, smoke, have fun and sleep. This meant both were grumpy with each other. Along with both girls being catty with each other, it was further ramped up as Alabaster clamping down on the availability of cigarettes and alcohol. Both girls were rationed, both girls were ragged with each other especially by lunchtime as their only pack for the day dwindled in contents and by the evening, they were unbearable with everyone else as they desperately wanted more than their limited supply of cigarettes.

Routine developed and eventually things calmed down, a little. Until the nervous trepidation increased again when finally. Nicole was encouraged and then plucked up the courage to try one of the pregnancy tests, there was even more anxious excitement that spread around the site when it was announced that she was, surprisingly but properly pregnant.

With that announcement almost instantly the remaining cigarette packs and bottles of Port and wine were squirrelled away by Alabaster Snowball. All hidden from sight the girls and elves and they all had to get on with life without their survival props.

Nicole replaced her desperate need for nicotine with comfort food, saying she was eating for two.

Jess reverted, as with the last time she gave up smoking, and she headed to gym and pool. The long daylight evening hours were killed by going up and down the warm pool, length after length. It did take her several weeks for her not to be completely out of breath after first two lengths, but she eventually got there. If she had been wearing a swimsuit, it would have been baggy on her over time. She did however manage to fit into some of her older clothes when not in the pool, she was rather proud of herself. They joked the weight was transferring from her to Nicole as her belly steadily grew. After three months Jess even gave the running and bike machines in the gym a go. She was feeling better in herself and could even eat plenty of donuts and not break the crutch of her leggings.

Meanwhile Nicole more often than not, sat alone in the office, watched Santa Cam, and eat. This was an easy task as Butterscotch distracted herself from the lack of nicotine with baking more and more cakes for everyone.

Time went on, Nicole grew, larger and larger, waddling slowly around the buildings in ever stretcher clothing as Jess slowly got a little trimmer. Life was relatively calm, they effectively lived their separate lives, because Nicole was very busy nesting, getting everything and anything, baby related she could find in the warehouse and filling the bedroom and nursery room with things. Monitors, toys, games, wall art, and blankets the lot. They had no idea of the gender, so everything was in duplicate.

Everyone on site was nervously excited.

October arrived, and on the 25th of the month with great triumph a 9lb 4oz chubby, healthy, loud screaming baby boy- swiftly named Nicolas Mark Claus, was born.

Both Jess and Nicole doted over the baby, playing, feeding, and changing the explosive and dreaded nappies. For the next month life was hard but rewarding, as they worked around the clock as a couple looking after the baby.

One Thursday afternoon a tired Nicole in her overly stretched red tracksuit bottoms, was dutifully sitting in Alabaster's office, getting her weekly update, her right breast popped out of her matching red maternity top, the nipple hidden as it was attached to the plastic pump and bottle as she expressed as both baby and Jess snoozed down the hallway.

"I not sure I can this year, I am, as you might have seen, I have been a little busy!" she exclaimed tutting over the whirring noise of the pump, gently waving the half-filled bottle that was attached to her breast as the white breast milk was spurting down the side. "I am either expressing or feeding, or sleeping myself how am I meant to sort the presents and elves out this year?"

Alabaster looked down over his glasses and winced, "Jess will need to look after little Nicolas for the next month or so, we elves need your help. We need our Santa." He sniffed and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Your dad would understand."

Nicole sighed loudly "I can't leave Jess on her own with Nicolas, it would be unfair?" she looked to the door

"Why not, she is his other mum, or nanny or whatever you have decided? She will be feeding him those bottles, whilst you sleep?"

Nicole sighed into herself "Yeah, I know, oh, nanny...but..."

"Come on Nicole, you know, as we all do, that this is the most important month now, we can't have a year without Santa now, can we?"

Nicole fidgeted in her weight around in her seat and nodded, reluctantly accepting her destined role. "Yeah, I know..."

"I am sure Jess will love it; she adores Nicolas, and it will only be a month?"

Nicole rearranged the pump slightly and looked up, nodded, and tapped her finger on her knee and focused her tired eyes on Alabaster and smiled as she licked her lips as she tilted her head questioningly. "Alabaster, I will, on one condition!"

Alabaster thoughtfully stroked his long beard and looked back over the metallic rim of his glasses and raised his greying bushy eyebrow. "Yes?"

Chapter 14

As November huffed and puffed with bottles of milk and burps into December as the annual Christmas excitement and energy was building throughout the North Pole site, the elves were all extremely busy shuttling to and fro packing, wrapping, and stacking ensuring that the lists cross referenced with the stacks, those who were being naughty. Their stacks being appropriately reduced, and the presents moved to those who were being good. It was highly stressful situation, with parents continuously writing, emailing, and even sending smoke signals like their grandparents used to do, there was a continuous project updating the Santa database on a daily basis.

Activity was crunching up through the gears, the drive for perfection and getting everything ready for the big day.