2010-12-03 20:38![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
thewatchmaker
thewatchmakerCharacter: Kid Gabriel and Martin Gray
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
thewatchmaker
Fandom: Heroes
Word count: 669
Rating: G
Prompts: On the Third Day of Sylar, my true love gave to me – Three Books. for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
heroes_sylar
Gabe rolled over onto his stomach, letting the book he’d been reading fall down and hit the floor. He’d read it so many times before that he had it memorized, and he wasn’t in the mood to read the Dragonriders of Pern. He knew there were new books under the Christmas tree. He put books on his Christmas list, and mom always bought him books. Sure there were usually boring books that weren’t on his list, and that he only read because he was desperate. But he always managed to trade them in at the used bookstore across the street from the shop for something he wanted.
His father had come home with wrapped gifts this year. He’d never done that before. It was different, and Gabe’s curiosity was getting the better of him. They were asleep. They must be. It was after 3 in the morning. It wasn’t Christmas Eve. There was no reason for them to be up late pretending to be Santa Claus. He’d outgrown Santa a couple of years ago, even if Mom still liked to pretend.
Climbing out of his bed, he put on his glasses first and then his slippers. He left his light off to sneak into the living room. He could still smell the tuna casserole they’d had for dinner, and the room was lit from the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree. Gabe knew the pattern by heart red, green, blue and then yellow. It blinked faster on one strand of lights than the other, and that bothered him. Mom had given him a lecture on the dangers of electrocution when he’d tried to fix them, so he’d promised never to try again. But it still annoyed him that they were broken.
The box he wanted to see the most was the size of a paperback book, but thicker than one book. He hoped it was one of those boxed sets he saw at Walden Books when they’d gone shopping. More than anything he hoped his father had listened, and it was a set of the Lord of the Rings or the Dune Trilogy.
The box was brightly wrapped in red paper with white snowflakes. When Gabriel brushed his fingers over the paper, little bits of glitter stuck to them. Glancing back toward the door that led to his mother’s bedroom, he listened carefully, watching to make sure that no light was shining under the door. With his lower lip caught between his teeth, he pulled it into his lap, and carefully peeled back the Scotch tape to find out what books were inside.
“Gabe.” He jumped at the sound of his father’s voice, tearing the paper, but he managed not to yelp. Gabe realized that his father had been sitting in the dark when he came out to rifle through the gifts. “Your mother wouldn’t be happy about that.”
Gabe tried to smooth over the tear and tape. The guilt making his face grow warm. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
“It’ll be our secret. Take ‘em back to your room. Make sure you mother doesn’t see the paper. She won’t know the difference,” he said, going into the kitchen to fill up a glass of water and light a cigarette. “Goodnight, Gabe.”
“Goodnight, dad. Thank you.” Gabe gathered up the books, then gave his father a quick hug. For a change the man didn’t fuss, and he patted his son’s shoulder.
Gabe rushed to his room, closing the door behind him, and ripped open the books. It was the Lord of the Rings. A brand new set, the pages crisp and clean, smelling of fresh ink, and they were all his. He was so entranced in the words on the page that he didn’t hear the front door open and close. It didn’t occur to him until the next day that he’s father had been dressed when he gave him permission to open the books early. It was another two days before he realized the books were his father’s goodbye gift to him.
The Twelve Days of Sylar
Author:
thewatchmaker Fandom: Heroes
Word count: 669
Rating: G
Prompts: On the Third Day of Sylar, my true love gave to me – Three Books. for
heroes_sylar Gabe rolled over onto his stomach, letting the book he’d been reading fall down and hit the floor. He’d read it so many times before that he had it memorized, and he wasn’t in the mood to read the Dragonriders of Pern. He knew there were new books under the Christmas tree. He put books on his Christmas list, and mom always bought him books. Sure there were usually boring books that weren’t on his list, and that he only read because he was desperate. But he always managed to trade them in at the used bookstore across the street from the shop for something he wanted.
His father had come home with wrapped gifts this year. He’d never done that before. It was different, and Gabe’s curiosity was getting the better of him. They were asleep. They must be. It was after 3 in the morning. It wasn’t Christmas Eve. There was no reason for them to be up late pretending to be Santa Claus. He’d outgrown Santa a couple of years ago, even if Mom still liked to pretend.
Climbing out of his bed, he put on his glasses first and then his slippers. He left his light off to sneak into the living room. He could still smell the tuna casserole they’d had for dinner, and the room was lit from the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree. Gabe knew the pattern by heart red, green, blue and then yellow. It blinked faster on one strand of lights than the other, and that bothered him. Mom had given him a lecture on the dangers of electrocution when he’d tried to fix them, so he’d promised never to try again. But it still annoyed him that they were broken.
The box he wanted to see the most was the size of a paperback book, but thicker than one book. He hoped it was one of those boxed sets he saw at Walden Books when they’d gone shopping. More than anything he hoped his father had listened, and it was a set of the Lord of the Rings or the Dune Trilogy.
The box was brightly wrapped in red paper with white snowflakes. When Gabriel brushed his fingers over the paper, little bits of glitter stuck to them. Glancing back toward the door that led to his mother’s bedroom, he listened carefully, watching to make sure that no light was shining under the door. With his lower lip caught between his teeth, he pulled it into his lap, and carefully peeled back the Scotch tape to find out what books were inside.
“Gabe.” He jumped at the sound of his father’s voice, tearing the paper, but he managed not to yelp. Gabe realized that his father had been sitting in the dark when he came out to rifle through the gifts. “Your mother wouldn’t be happy about that.”
Gabe tried to smooth over the tear and tape. The guilt making his face grow warm. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
“It’ll be our secret. Take ‘em back to your room. Make sure you mother doesn’t see the paper. She won’t know the difference,” he said, going into the kitchen to fill up a glass of water and light a cigarette. “Goodnight, Gabe.”
“Goodnight, dad. Thank you.” Gabe gathered up the books, then gave his father a quick hug. For a change the man didn’t fuss, and he patted his son’s shoulder.
Gabe rushed to his room, closing the door behind him, and ripped open the books. It was the Lord of the Rings. A brand new set, the pages crisp and clean, smelling of fresh ink, and they were all his. He was so entranced in the words on the page that he didn’t hear the front door open and close. It didn’t occur to him until the next day that he’s father had been dressed when he gave him permission to open the books early. It was another two days before he realized the books were his father’s goodbye gift to him.
The Twelve Days of Sylar
