Cape High Christmas: A Side Story (Cape High Series)
Read Cape High Christmas: A Side Story (Cape High Series) Online
Authors: R.J. Ross
CAPE HIGH CHRISTMAS
A SIDE STORY
by
R. J. Ross
Cape High Christmas
A Side Story
Amazon Edition
Published by Book Candy Publishing
Copyright © 2016 by R. J. Ross
All Rights Reserved
Cover design by 336Love Books
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
~Other works by R.J. Ross~
Sundance's Syn
The Winstead Files Series
Courting the Beast * Snow White, Snow White
Seasons of the Fae Series
Raven's Return * Death of a Dryad * Water Wielder
Cape High Series
Super Villain Dad * America's Grandson * Hello Kitty * Don't Know Jack * Daddy's Girl * Aces Wild * Steampunk Time * Fire Hazard * Ditto Ditto * Sunny Daze * Life Light * Guitar Hero * Super Girls * Shadow Boy
Cape High Side Stories
Cape High Christmas
Cape High Series Side Stories
Cape High Christmas
Advent Calendar - Day Thirteen
Advent Calendar - Day Fourteen
Advent Calendar - Day Seventeen
Advent Calendar - Day Eighteen
Advent Calendar - Day Nineteen
Advent Calendar - Day Twenty-One
Advent Calendar - Day Twenty-Two
Advent Calendar - Day Twenty-Three
Advent Calendar - Day Twenty-Four
Advent Calendar - Day Twenty Five
~A Note From the Author~
Hi, everyone! I promised a few people I'd put out the Advent Calendar I did last Christmas on my blog, and here it is! But I've added to a few scenes and tacked on a few short stories at the end that I think you'll enjoy--I really enjoyed writing them! In fact, this entire book (which is pretty much a book of bonus chapters) made me extremely happy. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
I'd like to take the time to say thank you to a few people, here, as well. Thank you, Brett and Bob for your constant hard work as my betas, you guys are amazing! Thank you, Nathan, for the awesome tech suggestions, I'm using one in Deadly Darlin's! Thank you, Chey, for all the support and book covers you've made for me! And thank you, everyone that's bought this book--a Christmas Story in May is a bit ridiculous, I know.
Also! For those of you that'll wonder where this fits in the series timeline--I think it's safest to say that it takes place towards the middle, or even the end of the Cape Cells Arc, which is about to begin with my next book. Why am I putting it out now? Because those that follow my blog have already read some sixty percent of this, and wanted it in ebook form, and nothing in this will affect the main storyline much at all^^
Now, on to the show!
Advent Calendar - Day Zero
The entire school sits in the main dorms' den room--at least all of the students that Nico could drag into it. He's sitting on the couch, looking them over with a slightly evil grin. "Hello, boys and girls," he says.
"Okay, I'm officially freaked out," Jack says from where he's lounging on the ground next to his brother with a massive bowl of popcorn.
"Absolutely," Trent agrees. "Whenever he takes that tone you know you're in trouble."
"I am hurt that you feel that way," Nico says, lying blatantly. "But since I've been called out, I might as well get to the facts. Tomorrow is the first day of December, and since you're such a close-knit little group, we're going to do a special activity. Consider it training for your future in the limelight."
"I'm not going into the limelight," Morgan says, raising a hand.
"But you ARE going to act as a teacher for pre-teens, so you're perfect for this idea," Nico says.
"What IS the idea?" Sunny asks, lounging against his girlfriend and playing on his phone. "'Danna, think Cubby would like this?" he asks, turning the phone to her.
"You aren't buying Cubby a playhouse sized gingerbread house," Adanna scolds him, barely glancing at the picture. "He'd make himself sick."
"But he'd LIKE it!"
"Sunny," Nico says. "Do your Christmas shopping AFTER the meeting. This involves you, too." He waves a hand at the wall behind him, bringing up a large calendar on the wall. The 25th is circled in bright red, but they don't even notice. Each of the days, 1-25, have a name written on them. "This is an Advent Calendar," Nico says. "For the next twenty-five days, one of you will do something as a surprise for the school. Vinny, for obvious reasons, you get the big day."
"What obvious reasons?" Vinny asks, looking up from his newest cookbook. "Wait, what's going on?"
"You're cooking Christmas dinner," Lance says as everyone else starts laughing.
"The rest of you, well, I just tossed you onto random days," Nico says, shrugging. "You can ask for help, as long as you keep it to two people or less, and pay them back in return. If you ask an adult, you can only have that one adult, and you owe them a favor of equal size. That means no asking me to make the entire school new computers--you can't afford to pay me back. Don't ask Zoe for that, either, because she will have you as an indentured slave until they're paid off."
"I wouldn't--" Zoe protests. "Well, no more than a year, at most," she adds thoughtfully. Every single kid in the room silently swears not to ask at that statement.
"So, this calendar can be found on your phones--you'll each get an alert the day before your day, as well--"
A bell rings and Adanna almost jumps, pulling her phone out of her pocket and looking at it. "Like that," Nico finishes, motioning to her. "Try not to repeat things too often--a movie once in a while is acceptable, but not every night, and ONLY if you make enough snacks for everyone. The more creative you get, the better I make your Christmas present, though, so I suggest you take this seriously."
Adanna hesitates for a moment before raising a hand. "Nico? Can we arrange for the class to GO somewhere for our day?"
"If you can follow the rules and run it by me and Mastermental, sure," he agrees.
She nods, looking serious, but a little smile pulls at her lips. "Then I need to go--I have a call to make," she says, getting up when he nods and racing away with her phone in her hand.
"Now, if there aren't any other questions, I'll leave you all to get started," Nico says, standing.
"Hey, Dad, whose idea WAS this, anyway?" Sunny asks curiously. "It doesn't seem like one of yours."
"Well, if I have to be honest," Nico admits, "I can't tell. But it seemed entertaining, so I went along with it. Now I've got my own Christmas plans to put together, so have fun, and make sure nobody dies, got it?"
"Got it!" the group says, far too used to that statement by now. They all rush off, their minds racing with ideas--and wondering what Adanna will do.
Advent Calendar - Day One
"Okay, we've put the chairs back in the bus, we've made the cookies and decorated the cat's areas," Adanna says, looking at her clipboard, "and--am I forgetting anything?" she asks her mom, looking vulnerable. "Do you think this is too obvious?" she adds.
"They will love it, I promise," Amara says, trying not to laugh. She'd been flattered beyond belief that her daughter had come to HER and not her husband for this. In fact, she's even pulled a few strings that Adanna doesn't know about, just because she can. "But you will have to explain the claw marks in the bus--we don't want them freaking out on us, right?" she says as she straightens her "Mrs. Claus" outfit.
"You look so beautiful," Adanna says, drawn by the little self-conscious movement. "You're the best Mrs. Claus EVER," she declares, hugging her with a wide smile.
"I have to agree," Pan says. "Which is why I'm still a bit offended that I don't get to wear the Santa Claus outfit," he complains as Adanna turns to him.
"Nico says I can only ask for ONE adult's help, and I asked Mama," their daughter lectures, holding up a finger. "And Sunny kept trying to sneak in while we were decorating, but I can't have him helping, either. This is just me and Mama, got it? I'll ask for your help next year," she promises when she sees his face. "But this year I really want to show everyone the cats--and I wanted to make treats for after the tour--you can't cook, Papa," she explains.
"It's true," he admits, "but I can still complain to Nico about being left out."
"Of course," Adanna says, heading into their bus. It's not a full length one, and most of the time it's converted to move large cats across the country, but when you have super strength turning it back to a short bus for kids isn't that big of a deal. "Mama, are we ready?" she calls out to Amara.
"Absolutely!" Amara says, heading into the bus and taking the wheel.
"Thank you for doing this," Adanna says earnestly. "I only had the one day, you know? Which I really am irritated about--"
"But you pulled it off wonderfully," Amara says. "Obviously Nico knows when to NOT underestimate us!"
"Exactly!" Adanna says, her worried look changing to a proud expression. They head out, Amara silently grateful that she has her license to drive the bus--of course she does, she thinks, it's an important part of their life, but never before has she been so grateful for that fact. She pulls to a stop in front of the school, swinging the door open to the crowd of teenagers standing there.
"Merry Christmas!" she says with a brilliant smile.
Adanna gets out, moving to the side with her clipboard in her hands. "Okay, everyone, one at a time! Keep your hands and other body parts in the bus at all times, and don't worry about any claw marks you might see--we usually use this to transport our cats," she explains, checking off names as each of the students climb in. "Everyone that hasn't met her already, this is my mama, Amara Panterus," she adds as she sees them look at her with hints of worry--at least the zoo kids do. "She's the one I chose to be my helper."
"This should be entertaining," Nico says as he climbs in last, looking around the bus. "Amara, nice to see you again," he says. "You do realize she has to pay you back for this, right?"
"My daughter owes me nothing, Nico," Amara says sharply.