"Have a good break, Mav." Sandy, the nice woman that worked with Mav smiled. The pink locks hanging down the girls back bounced slightly when she turned her head back. The same lopsided smile, pearly whites, scar on her cheek, dark eyed girl that all of Hawkins knew, smiled back at her.

"You too, Sandy. I'll see you in two weeks." Mav smiled again. Her voice had deepened some, a slight husky tone to it from the cold weather. She held the pink leather jacket in her arms, the red waitress uniform clashing with her pink hair, yet she pulled it off perfectly. Mavis had scored herself the part time, two days a week, two hour job at the local diner when she was trying to show the new police chief, who had a stern talk to her about her record and how they weren't gonna go easy on her, that she was trying to better herself.

"Hey, Mav." the middle aged man that owned the book store next to the diner waved her way. "Got any plans for Christmas?"

"Nothing too wild." she called back, pulling her jacket on as the little snow flakes fell onto her skin. "You?"

"Heading up state to see my sister. She's on husband four and says this one's the one." the man gave a knowing look. "Heard that about three times before."

The pink haired girl snorted, throwing her leg over her bike. "Maybe this one will stick."

"Maybe." he shrugged. "Have a good Christmas."

She kicked off the small side walk, peddling away and waving over her shoulder. "You too!"

The diner wasn't too far from the Sinclair home. It's the only reason Mavis' mom agreed to let her have the two day job, knowing she was close. The car was in the drive way, the few christmas lights they'd hung up lighting up her eyes as she parked her bike on the side of the house. Her skin was prickly from the cold, mainly her exposed legs, that had grown an inch since summer. She's written pretty much an essay to El about how excited she was that she was staring to grow, the constant aching in her legs letting her know it was still happening.

"Whoop." Mavis spoke to herself as she nearly slipped on the icy drive way. "Carful, Mav. You weirdo."

She held the mailbox to keep herself up, looking through the mail. She tossed the bills over her shoulder, finally setting her eyes on the pink envelope that smelt like El's perfume. It was a little trick Mav had taught her without trying. When El received her first letter, she'd noticed how the envelope smelt like cherries and vanilla cupcakes. The same way Mav smelt. She figured it out after the second letter, spraying the envelope with her own perfume before sending it.

Mavis smiled down at it. Despite getting a chance to talk to each other over the phone every day, it was, as Mavis said, romantic and totally 'old school' to mail letters to each other. The girl hurried to break the opening, pulling the notebook paper out with a grin. El wrote to her about how she wished they got to spend Christmas together again, like they had at the Snowball last December. She said how she missed her and hopes she gets to see her soon since she wasn't able to make it down for Christmas this time.

"You're gonna get sick out there!" Erica yelled from the front door. "Get your butt in this house!"

Mavis picked the bills up, putting them under her arm as she began to hurry toward the house. Lucas looked out the window, wincing as Mavis slipped and went face first on the ground. Erica cringed. "That's what you get, butt head."

"Erica." their dad scolded her, walking out. "Oh, lord. You alright, sweetheart?"

Mavis looked up, her nose bleeding. When she smiled, the blood stained her teeth. "Fabulous."

"No, i'm fine, it's just a little bruise." Mav said over the phone, leaning against the wall as she held the land line to her ear.

"Still bleeding?" El asked from the other line, sitting on her counter and snacking at some Christmas cookies Joyce had brought home.

"Nope, a little sore though." she said back, removing the ice pack from her nose when it began to hurt. "Wish you were here to make it better."

El gave a small laugh from the other line. "Wish you were here always."

Mav frowned. "Aw, I know. Spring Break will be here before we know it though and we'll get to see each other again."

"But we promised Christmas." El sighed through the line.

"Well, that was before I knew my parents still had to work. They don't get this time off like we do." the pink haired girl slipped down on the floor, the curly string coming with her. "I totally miss you though. The girls and I made cookies with Student Council today and I put an eleven on mine. It ended up running together and looking a little line an N, but you get it."

El smiled on the other line. "How's the team?"

"Stressful." Mav said honestly. "I feel like they keep watching me, waiting for me to screw it all up."

"Just mad you got captain and they didn't." El reassured her, which she found Mav really needed a lot of the time. "I know you're doing good."

Mavis gave a half grin at her voice. "What would I do without you?"

"Cry." El said, making Mav laugh. "Wish I could watch you."

"I'd put you on the team with me. You wouldn't even have to try out." Mavis smiled as she held the phone between her ear and shoulder. "How's stuff there? People being mean to you still?"

"No, i've got a bunch of friends." El lied, but because it was over the phone, Mav wouldn't be able to tell. "No one's mean to me anymore."

"They better not be, i'd kick their asses." she said confidently, remembering how angry she was when El called, saying how people at her new school weren't nice to her when she tried to be their friend. "Got a new girlfriend yet?"

"Mav." El huffed. "I've told you so many times already."

"I'm just making sure no one's stolen you from my clutches." she said dramatically, smiling slightly. "What do you want for Christmas? I've saved all my tips from the diner and i've got enough to get you something super sweet. Like, more then that bookmark I sent you for the first day of school."

El smiled at the memory of the pink book mark, it still being tucked away in her chemistry book. "I don't know."

"Come on, you gotta know." Mav rolled her eyes slightly. "How else am I gonna be a super rad girlfriend if I don't even get my lovely lady what she wants most?"

El sat there a second. "Just one thing on my list."

"Yeah?" Mav smirked knowingly, already imagining being able to ship it to El and then hearing her overjoyed voice over the phone. "What is it?"

"You." El frowned. Mavis' face fell.

"Hey, Butthead." Erica came around the corner with a raise of her eyebrows. "Wrap up your booty call, i'm expecting a call from Tina."

Mav flipped her off, getting it right back.

"Hey, I gotta go." Mav spoke over the phone, always the worst part of the night. "I miss you."

"I miss you." El frowned, wanting her to stay on the phone a little longer. "Love you."

"I love you too." the pink haired girl frowned, sitting there a second before studding up to put the phone on the rack again. She sighed, standing there a second and leaning her forehead against the phone, her eyes threatening to spill salty tears any second now.

"You d-" Erica came around the corner again.

"Jesus, give me a break!" Mav yelled as her, storming down the hall, slamming the bedroom door. She ignored her mom calling down the hall to stop slamming doors, something Mav did a lot. They didn't get it, but it was actually good she was. Slamming doors stopped her from taking her anger out elsewhere, pretty much the only thing that kept her from frighting at school, which would lead to loosing the cheer team, her job, and having to be seen in court.

But they didn't get it, no one did except one person.

Mav fell on her bed with a sigh, the pink comforter comforting from the cold. She dumped the little purse on the bed, watching her tips and all the money she'd saved bunch up by her legs. Mav counted it, then one more time, then one last time. She had a sudden idea, a dangerous and reckless idea that came from her rebelling past, the Mav she was trying not to be.

But who was she to deny the inner rebel that still begged to come out everyday.

The note was left on the table, the window shut and secure tightly. All the money she had got her a bus ticket to the Byers, but not one back. She knew Jonathan and Joyce would take care of her, even though she felt slightly guilty for making them pay for her to ride back. Mavis sat in the first seat, leaning back in the chair as she held her bag close to her, the jacket not applying much heat at all. The snow poured outside, the windows fogged.

The girl rose her hand, drawing a smily face on the window.

By the time Mav had arrived, she had to walk quite a while. In a town she hadn't known, in the freezing snow, all alone. Was it worth it? In her head, it was. In reality? It definitely wasn't. She knew the address from Will telling her when they talked on the phone in the morning, him and Carrie both always having to get their time in together because El strictly wanted to talk to Mav alone at night.

Jonathan never got a turn on the phone anymore.

"Oh my shit." Mav spoke to herself, rubbing her arms. "I'm a great girlfriend. I'm a great girlfriend. I'm a great girlfriend."

When she came into the Byers home view, she was practically sprinting. It was the middle of the night, no one would be awake. The little string of christmas lights lit up the house enough for Mav to sneak around. She peaked through the first window, smiling as she saw Carrie fast asleep in her bed. She was such a heavy sleeper, she'd never head Mav if she knocked. As the pink haired girl went toward the next window, she noticed the blinds were shut on this one.

Taking her chances, and hoping it wasn't Joyce because she'd definitely call her parents back home this late, she knocked on the window. Standing in the cold, the snow falling all along her pink hair, Mav hoped that her knock was loud enough. Little did she knew that she was naturally a very loud person and wouldn't know what quite was if it slapped her in the face.

The window opened, and Mav sighed in relief at Jonathan. "Hey, man."

"Mav?" he asked. She shhed him quickly. "What are you- how'd you even get here?"

"Got on the bus." she nodded.

He looked around, seeing no one with her. "Alone? Do you have any clue how dangerous that is?"

"Are you trying to be my dad? Because if so, you're doing a shitty job. Who leaves their kid in the snow?" Mav motioned toward herself with a look of disbelief. Jonathan backed up, going to help her before her hands grabbed the window ceil, pulling herself in with ease. "Damn, I still got it."

"Does anyone know you're here?" he gave a look of disbelief at her, shutting the window back before the snow could come in.

"Nope. And we gotta keep it that way." Mav nodded her head, looking at him sternly. "I left a note saying I had to do a toy drive with the cheer team and I'll be home tomorrow night. Obviously, that was a lie."

"Didn't notice." Jonathan gave a sarcastic look.

"If your mom ask, you picked me up early in the morning as a surprise gift and my family totallyyyyy knows i'm here." Mav grinned as she nodded her head. "We gotta deal? One lesbian to another?"

"I'm not-" he began.

"We got a deal?" Mav repeated herself, holding her hand out. "Cmon, you know I'm a genius."

Jonathan sighed, shaking her hand. "How are you getting home?"

"You're paying." she pointed at him, leaving the room as she walked down the small hall. She found the door with an E on it, grinning. As she opened it, Mav sighed in relief when it didn't creek. Shutting it back, she slowly walked toward El's bed. Her room was warm and welcoming, making Mavis feel more at home then she ever did anywhere else. Seeing El asleep made her happy. Just seeing her again made her happy.

"El." Mav whispered, sitting next to her. "Hey, it's me. Santa Clause."

El's eyes fluttered, staring at Mav. She didn't moved at first, truthfully thinking she was dreaming. "Mav?"

"Told you I had to be a rad girlfriend." Mav grinned. El sat up quickly and threw her arm around her. Mav held her tightly as they sat there, in the middle of the night, hugged for the first time since the end of summer. The pink haired girl pushed her head into El's neck. "I missed you seriously more then anything."

"I missed you more." El squeezed her tightly, the two tumbling down with a quiet giggle.

"I don't really know if I should answer her." Mav said honestly. Neither of them wanted to sleep after Mav arrived, El sneaking into the kitchen and coming back with frosting, graham crackers, and different candy. Sitting on her floor making their houses, the two talked like they usually would. "I mean, I haven't talk to her since she sent me away."

"You write your dad still?" El asked, placing a jelly bean on the graham cracked as a door knob.

"Yeah, sometimes." Mav nodded her head, picking her fingers. "He's not like my mom. He's a criminal, but he's not like her."

"If you're gonna get sad writing her back then don't." El shook her head, her hand grasping Mavs ankle with a knowing look. "Only if you want to."

Mav stared at El before she smiled. "I miss getting to talk to your face."

"Me too." El said back, throwing a jelly bean her way as Mav grinned when it bounced off her nose and onto the floor. "Joyce says we might be going down for Spring Break."

"To Hawkins?" Mav smiled at her, making El nod. "No way, seriously?"

"Yes. Probably tired of me always asking when we're going back." she cracked a side grin toward the pink haired girl. "You're legs have gotten longer. I didn't believe you."

"You better believe it. Guess my moms drugs finally wore off." Mav made the joke, though it really wasn't funny considering her mom using drugs while she was pregnant with Mavis was why her growing rate wasn't as quick as the other kids. But, she joked about it a lot, and it wasn't like anyone could tell her not to. "I'll catch up to you soon."

"Okay." El said sarcastically, also growing a inch herself so their three inch height difference still stood. "Still can't believe you're here."

"Is it everything you hoped for?" Mav gave a teasing grin, stretching her legs out.

El rose an eyebrow her way knowingly. "All I hoped for."

Mav gave her a faint grin, looking at her horrible graham cracked house. She leaned upwards, on her knees to lean over the two houses. "Have you heard about my new super powers?"

El gave her a weird look. "What?"

"I can see things that no one else can." Mav gave a raise of her eyebrows, hiding her smile. "Like right now. Even though you can't see it, there's 100% mistletoe hanging right above us."

El grinned when she realized Mavis was joking. "Liar."

"I never lie." she shook her head with a cheeky grin. "It's bad luck not to kiss under mistletoe, El. Are you trying to give me the worst year of my life?"

El rolled her eyes playfully. "You are a liar."

But she grabbed her face anyways, planting her lips on hers sternly but sweetly all at once. Mav smiled into their kiss, El gave a small giggle as she attempted to pull her girlfriend closer, making her stumble forward and crash down onto the two graham cracker houses. El began to laugh as Mav gave a look of disbelief, rolling off them as icing and candy stuck for her shirt. "Oh my god."

El laughed even harder, leaning over Mav to kiss her again. Pulling back, the pink haired girl grinned up at her. El whipped a little bit of frosting off her face. "I'll get you a new shirt."

•

kylie speaks

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHH
OKAY FIRST OFF MARRY
CHRISTMAS TO ALL THAT
CELEBRATE IT, THIS IS MY
CHRISTMAS GIFT TO YOU
UNTIL SEASON FOUR DROPS
AND SECOND OFF, IM SCREAMING BC ITS BEEN
ALMSKT TWO YEARS SINCE
IVE WRITTEN IN THIS BOOK
AND I MISS MY GF MAV AND
MY FAVORITE LESBOS SM
I LOVD YOU GUYS AND I'LL
SEE YOU SOON
ALSO LISTEN TO MAVS
PLAYLIST IF YOU WANT!