The Christmas Decree
[Jay's POV]
If the exam hall was a battlefield of ice and logic, the Watson Estate for Christmas was a kingdom of gold and warmth.
The five-day holiday break felt like a gift from the universe itself. The university had gone quiet, the "Squad" had scattered to their respective provinces with promises of a massive New Year's party, and for the first time in my life, the end of the year didn't feel like a countdown to another year of loneliness.
"Jay, look up," Keifer whispered.
We were standing in the grand foyer of the estate. A twenty-foot pine tree stood in the center, dripping in silver ribbons, crystal ornaments, and thousands of twinkling fairy lights. But Keifer wasn't pointing at the tree. He was pointing at the archway above us.
Mistletoe.
"That's statistically inevitable in this house during December," I teased, though my heart did that familiar, fluttering skip.
"I don't care about the statistics," Keifer murmured, pulling me into the circle of his arms. "I only care about the tradition."
He leaned down, and the kiss tasted like peppermint and the sheer, unadulterated relief of being home. No textbooks. No Marianos. Just us.
The Christmas Eve Feast
Mamma Serina had outdone herself. The dining table was a masterpiece of crimson silk and white roses.
"Tonight," Pappa Keizer announced, raising a crystal flute of vintage champagne, "we celebrate more than just the end of the year. We celebrate the addition of a daughter to this table. To Jay—the woman who reminded us that the best engineering project is the one that builds a home."
"To Jay!" Mamma and Keifer echoed.
I sat there, looking at the three of them. Two years ago, I was eating a solitary dinner in a cold study room, double-checking my brothers' homework. Tonight, I was being toasted by a legend of industry and the man who held my heart.
"I have something for you," Mamma Serina said after dinner, her eyes glowing with that familiar mischievous light. She handed me a small, flat box wrapped in midnight-blue velvet.
I opened it. Inside was a delicate, antique brooch in the shape of a gear, encrusted with tiny diamonds.
"It belonged to the first Watson woman to ever graduate from engineering," Mamma whispered. "She was a rebel, a genius, and a fighter. Just like you. It's time it came back to a woman who deserves to wear it."
I couldn't help it; the tears finally spilled over. This wasn't a "variable" gift. This was a legacy.
Midnight at the Boathouse
[Keifer's POV]
As the clock neared midnight, marking the start of Christmas Day, the estate fell into a peaceful hush. Mamma and Pappa had retired to their wing, but Jay and I weren't ready for the night to end.
We walked down to the boathouse—our project. Over the last few days, we'd already started cleaning it out, turning the upper loft into a cozy sanctuary. We had dragged a thick rug, a pile of cushions, and a small space heater up there.
"It's perfect," Jay whispered, looking out the large window at the moonlight reflecting off the lake.
I sat on the rug and pulled her back into my lap, wrapping a thick wool blanket around both of us. The air was crisp, but the heat between us was more than enough.
"Merry Christmas, Jay," I whispered, resting my chin on her shoulder.
"Merry Christmas, Keif," she replied, her hand reaching up to touch the diamond brooch pinned to her sweater, then moving down to lace her fingers with mine.
"You know," I said, my voice low and serious. "Next Christmas, we'll be halfway to the wedding. And the Christmas after that... you'll be waking up as Mrs. Watson."
Jay turned in my arms, her eyes searching mine in the dim light. "I don't think I need to wait for a ceremony to feel like I belong to you, Keifer. This year... the exams, the room, the way your parents look at me... I've already realized that I'm not just a visitor in your life."
I leaned in, my nose brushing hers. "You're the center of it, Jay. The gravity, the constant, the reason the equations work."
We stayed there for hours, talking about the year ahead—the internships we'd take, the way we'd lead the Squad through junior year, and the house we'd eventually build together.
For the first time in nineteen years, Jay didn't have a nightmare about her father. For the first time, she didn't dream of equations she couldn't solve. She fell asleep in the boathouse, wrapped in a Watson blanket, dreaming of a future that was finally, legally, and emotionally hers.
New Year's Eve: The Squad's Return
The five days flew by in a blur of laughter, hot chocolate, and the quiet joy of being together. But on the fifth day—New Year's Eve—the quiet ended.
A fleet of cars pulled up to the estate. Rory, Freya, Erdix, and the entire twelve-person Squad piled out, armed with fireworks, party hats, and an insatiable hunger for Mamma Serina's cooking.
"WE'RE BACK!" Rory bellowed, immediately trying to hug both Keifer and me at the same time. "The exams are graded, the holidays are here, and I heard there's a New Year's party that requires my specific brand of chaos!"
As the countdown to the New Year began, the estate was filled with the sounds of our friends laughing and the distant pop of fireworks over Manila.
I stood on the balcony with Jay, my arm around her waist.
"10! 9! 8!" the Squad shouted from the garden below.
I looked at Jay. She looked radiant—strong, loved, and free.
"3! 2! 1! HAPPY NEW YEAR!"
As the sky exploded in colors of gold and blue, I kissed my fiancée. The year of the "Burdened Genius" was over. The year of the "Watson Empress" had begun.