Niki !!

“She’s doing it again.”

“Who?”

“Y/N. She’s flirting with him again.”

“Your obsession with Y/N is becoming a problem.”

This wasn’t the first conversation Curtis and Bernard had had with each other about Y/N. This topic specifically. It was known by the other elves that she was confident, and very blunt when talking to others. That also didn’t stop in the romantic sense. And Bernard knew that. She wasn’t afraid to flirt with him in front of others, and that’s why he loved it so much. It made him feel good. And also slightly embarrassed. Only because he wasn’t used to that sort of attention, especially from a very beautiful girl. He wasn’t great at reciprocating her advances, but he hoped she wouldn’t stop. So far she hadn’t. But a new ‘suitor’ had entered the picture, and Bernard was not happy. Some tall, blue eyed elf that he hadn’t bothered learning the name of was also receiving the flirtatious attention from Y/N, and unfortunately he was much better at dishing it back than Bernard was.

“I’m not obsessed with Y/N,” Curtis rolled his eyes at that remark, “I’m just curious to know why she thinks it’s okay to talk with that guy when they both have a lot of work to do.”

The younger elf snorted. “You don’t seem to have an issue when she’s talking to you and wasting precious work time.”

“You’re not helping,” Bernard huffed, walking away from Curtis and towards the workshop, trying to get the image of Y/N and the tall, blue eyed elf out of his head.

**************************************************************************************

It had been a few hours since his last conversation with Curtis, and Bernard had quickly calmed down, busying himself with tasks he had yet completed for the holiday season. However, it hadn’t helped him get Y/N out of his head. From the constant flirting, to seeing her using that charm on someone else, Bernard was unsure where the relationship stood. Was it all a big joke to her? Had she been leading him on the last few months to mess with him? Before he could dive deeper into his existential dread, a soft voice sounded from behind him.

“Hey handsome.”

Bernard froze slightly, and looked over his shoulder to see Y/N walk through the door, a stack of paperwork in her hands and a bright smile on her face. Glitter on her cheeks and nose, sporting a new dress that glimmered in the light, Bernard thought she looked like an angel ready to be set atop the Christmas tree. He shook himself out of his trance, and smiled tightly back at her, unable to form any words. He quickly turned back around, continuing his sort out of different coloured wrapping paper. It wasn’t usually Bernard’s job, but he needed the distraction, and the wrapping room was a quiet place to come in the evenings.

“Curtis told me you’d be in here and I need you to sign these papers for Santa.”

Y/N held the paperwork out towards Bernard, their fingers touching briefly once he reached out to grab them. He placed them on the side of the desk and mumbled a ‘thanks’ under his breath, barely audible. Y/N let out a small huff and strolled around Bernard, taking in his tense form.

She smiled again. “So. How’s my favourite elf doing?”

Bernard didn’t bother looking up from his work. “He’s very busy at the moment,” his tone dull and unwavering.

A hand suddenly came into the head elf’s view, and hit the desk hard, jolting everything laying on top. Bernard jumped back and looked to the side where Y/N stood with eyebrows raised and her mouth pursed.

“Have I done something to upset you?” She asked, crossing her arms and popping her hip to the side.

Bernard wasn’t sure what to say, nor how Y/N might react. He’d never been great at showcasing his feelings, especially in the romantic sense. But this wasn’t just some random girl he’d found cute once and never interacted with. This was Y/N. One of his closest friends, someone he cared deeply for. Who seemed to care deeply about him too. She was also someone he worked with. The possibility of admitting how he felt, and for her to not feel the same, it would no doubt make things awkward. And he’d hate to ruin what they already have. Even if it killed him to see her flirting with someone else.

“You’ve done nothing, I’ve just had a lot on my plate and I can’t handle any distractions at the moment,” Bernard finally replied, trying to keep his voice level.

“Really?” Y/N bit back, “because I feel like you’ve been avoiding me all day. And since when do you spend time in the wrapping paper room? When Curtis told me you were here, I was worried you might be having a mental breakdown.” She ended with a joke, but part of Bernard knew there was truth behind her words.

The head elf felt himself boiling over. His temper was short, and everyone knew that, but when it came to Y/N he was unusually chill. Her presence was good for him. Not at this moment though. He could feel himself ready to lash out, and he was worried what could be said.

“Do I have to explain everything to you? Can I not spend time alone without you knowing where and what I’m doing every second of every day?”

“I’m sorry I care about you and want to know what you’re up to! Sure you can have all the time you want alone, I just don’t like it when you avoid me completely,” by now, both of their voices were shaking and getting louder.

“I thought you’d want to spend more time with your new tall, blue eyed friend,” Bernard instantly regretted his words.

Y/N opened her mouth but closed it almost instantly, her brow furrowed and confusion clear on her face. “What are you talking about?” her voice now considerably calmer.

Bernard could feel the embarrassment wash over him, desperate to think of some excuse, but coming up short. “This morning, I saw you talking to someone. It looked like he was flirting, and you seemed to be doing the same back,” Y/N’s face softened as she begun to realise what and who the older elf was talking about. “It got to me, okay? It bothered me that you were talking to him in that way when,” a slight pause, “you usually only talk to me that way.”

Y/N shook her head, a confused look returning briefly. “I don’t understand, you never showed any interest in my flirting, why is it bothering you when I do it to someone else.”

“Because I like you!” There it was. That barrier Bernard built high for years, keeping relationships at bay, had just been broken. And he didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing. “I’m not the best at showing my emotions. Romantically speaking, I’m an amateur at it. And I’m sorry I was never good at reciprocating your advances. I guess it doesn’t matter if it was just a joke to you.”

Y/N reached out quickly, grabbing Bernard’s hand and holding it close to her. “It was never a joke to me. I just didn’t think you liked me in that way so I stopped. Thought I’d try with someone else to help me move on from you.” She moved a step forward, standing toe to toe. “I knew it would never work. You’re the only person I truly care about, in that way.”

Bernard was speechless. He couldn’t stop staring into her eyes, brimmed with emotion but full of love. He mostly felt like an idiot. Never taking the chance before now to make a move or admit how he felt. He finally felt at peace. Like everything had finally worked out.

“What now?” Bernard awkwardly questioned, placing his hands on Y/N’s hips.

“I think you should probably kiss me before someone else does,” She jested back.

They both laugh and lean in, Y/N’s hands going to hold the head elf’s face. The kiss deepened, Y/N moving her left hand to the back of Bernard’s head, tugging slightly at his curls. This elicited a deep moan from Bernard’s throat, his pants growing tighter, as he tugged Y/N somehow closer to him and towards the desk still covered with wrapping paper.

“Why did we wait so long to do this?” Y/N mumbled out between wet kisses.

Bernard moved to sucking her neck, most definitely leaving bruises. “I don’t know. But I never want to stop.”

They continued making out, Y/N feeling the desk behind her and sliding on top, pulling Bernard in between her legs. She felt him growing harder, and slowly moved her hand down, palming at the front of his pants. Bernard couldn’t help but whimper slightly, gripping the side of the desk as well as Y/N’s thigh. Keeping one hand on his hard on, she moved her other back up and unbuttoned his shirt, rubbing her hand in circular motions on his chest. Bernard followed soon after, taking hold of the bottom of her shirt and lifting it over her head. The couple continued kissing and touching anywhere they could reach, seeming to care little to none about the door still being open, or whether someone walked by and found them in their current predicament. They were just glad to have finally admitted how they felt. In the back of his head, Bernard reminded himself to thank that tall, blue eyed elf for bringing out the jealousy in him.

He stared down at the new-born infant in absolute awe, gently leaning against the custom special-made crib that the child was provided with but being careful as to not make any sudden movements. Bernard had seen many a new-born babies before, he was the head elf after all, nothing too knew. But the way her eyes sparkled when she’d stare back at him curiously, and the way she’d adorably nibble on her finger as if it were a habit…it was absolutely breath-taking in the elf’s opinion.

The daughter of Scott and Carol Calvin was special to say the least, there was no other simple way to put it. Bernard could see the magic in those big (e/c) eyes of hers, it was swirling about elegantly around her pupils and through the little random specks present around them, it was a lively and playful magic which was clearly fitting for the way she began giggling.

Bernard couldn’t help the smile that played at his lips as he reached out carefully, placing a gentle boop on her nose which caused another fit of childish laughter. She truly was a treasure, one that he could’ve sworn was almost too good for this world. That was why he gave her such a valuable gift. Something he hoped she’d hold onto for her entire life.

Slowly, Bernard lowered something beautiful onto the blanket the baby girl was under. It was a music box, shaped like a castle with a lady in a white dress with brown hair in the centre. It had belonged to someone who was important to Bernard prior to this, but that’s another story, it now belonged to baby (Y/n) Calvin.

“…This is a music box, it plays a song that means a lot to me, and I’m hoping it’ll mean something to you one day,” he whispered as if the child could understand him, having finished as soft chimes of a song began playing, “there’s words to it too, maybe you could learn them when you grow up.”

What the boy hadn’t noticed was the two figures standing at the door behind him. The father of the child and another elf, Curtis. They were dumbfounded by what they were witnessing, it wasn’t like Bernard to be so soft towards an individual, it simply wasn’t in his personality. They became even more dumbfounded when he began singing.

“There’s such a sad love. Deep in your eyes, a kind of Pale jewel. Open and closed, within your eyes. I’ll place the sky, within your eyes.”

His voice was soft and smooth, not to mention beautiful. The two couldn’t help but smile as they stepped into the room quietly, Bernard immediately stopping as he looked up.

“Wow Bernard, I didn’t know you could sing,” Scott whispered, the elf blushing a little in embarrassment. “I can’t, it’s just speaking with melody,” he tried brushing off, the big man in red chuckling as he hit Bernard’s shoulder softly. “Whatever, tough guy,” he said before everyone’s attention returned to the little girl in the pretty crib.

All was quiet for a moment, the eyes of the older males dancing over the beautiful infant in happiness, barely being able to believe that such an angel could’ve been born into this world. Bernard was clearly the most awestruck by her, and Scott seemed to notice, so he nudged him.

“Do you wanna hold her?” He asked, the elf immediately whipping his head to him and giving him the look a puppy would give you if you were holding a treat. “I-is that alright?” Bernard asked softly, the man smiling as he leaned into the crib.

Carefully, Scott lifted the infant out of her sleeping quarters and held her for Bernard to take. With little hesitation Bernard wrapped his arms around the little child and rested her on his hip so they were both comfortable, leaning her back a little so he could look into those dazzling eyes. When (Y/n) gave him a toothless smile, he laughed and rocked her a little playfully. With consideration, Bernard rubbed his finger and thumb together and sparked a little magic before placing another gentle boop on her nose. This time, the glitter-like particles of magic soaked into her skin, and sparkles like his own appeared on her cheeks.

He had only noticed now that the music box was still playing, he couldn’t stop himself from cooing more of the beautiful lyrics at her.

“There’s such a fooled heart, beating so fast. In search of new dreams, a love that will last, within your heart. I’ll place the moon, within your heart.”

The way she smiled melted his heart, and he knew from that moment that he wanted to keep her close forever.

~

Today was the day that the second in command elf, Curtis, was supposed to be babysitting the year old (Y/n) Calvin considering that the Calvin’s were going on a date and Bernard was extremely busy. However, it wasn’t going so well considering the fact that he couldn’t stop her from screaming and crying, no matter what he did. He tried almost everything, feeding her, playing with her, even trying to burp her, but nothing would work. She just, kept on screaming at the top of her lungs.

With nothing else left to do, Curtis lifted the crying baby off of her play mat in his office and began his way through the factory, causing disruption and desperately trying to find Bernard, he knew he’d know what to do. Many heads turned to stare, irritated at the cries of the baby but also sympathetic toward the little child considering Curtis was the one caring for her.

Curtis felt the biggest sense of relief when he saw Bernard over at a machine in the stuffed animal factory, immediately rushing over to the black-haired elf. Before Curtis even reached him, Bernard spun around at the childish screams he heard.

“Oh thank god, Bernard! I need help!” Curtis said, Bernard giving him a strange look. “Curtis, what the heck??” He asked, the boy holding the crying infant in front of him. “She won’t stop crying! I tried everything but she won’t stop!” He exclaimed, Bernard quickly taking (Y/n) from the smaller elf as he rested her on his hip and bounced her up and down. “Where’s her music box?” Bernard asked, Curtis shrugging. “I don’t know, it wasn’t with her toys. Maybe Santa forgot to bring it,” he explained, the black-ette sighing loudly in frustration as the little girl on his hip gripped his sleeve tightly. “Jesus Christ, are you serious?” He asked, clearly frustrated. “It’s not my fault!” Curtis screeched, upset that Bernard was placing the blame on him.

Sighing loudly, Bernard returned his attention to the child in his arms, knowing that there was only one thing he could do.

Gracing a small smile on his lips, he held (Y/n) against his chest and rocked her back and forth gently, the lyrics of a distinct song swirling about his mind as his lips parted slightly.

“As the pain sweeps through, makes no sense for you. Every thrill is gone, wasn’t too much fun at all.”

(Y/n) slowly began calming down at the sound of his soothing voice while the other elves in the factory watched in awe, the way he could bring such serenity to an unhappy infant was amazing.

“But I’ll be there for you....As the world falls down,” Bernard spun around with (Y/n) in his arms, the girl completely calming as the glitter on her still wet cheeks gleamed with the happiness now present in her eyes.

“You’re ok sweetheart, you’re ok,” he cooed to the little girl, (Y/n) giggling tiredly.

Curtis looked at the taller elf absolutely dumbfounded.

“H...how??” He asked in a whisper yell, Bernard looking between the child and Curtis before shrugging.

“What can I say? I’m good with kids,” Bernard whispered, bouncing (Y/n) gently as she began slowly falling into a childish sleep.

When she did eventually fall asleep, Bernard sighed softly as he leaned down to speak to Curtis.

“Can you grab her little bedding set and toys? I’ll look after her in the factory and you can get some work done,” he asked, the little elf nodding as he rushed off to where he had left everything.

In the mean time, Bernard scolded everyone who wasn’t quiet enough in the factory so they wouldn’t wake up baby (Y/n), the child he cared so much for. And when Curtis came back with the required equipment, Bernard set it up in a suitable place in the factory while he told everyone to keep it the sound level of a library.

Curtis never babysat again.

~

A crash of thunder rang out aggressively as Bernard searched desperately through his quite big house for a certain 4 year old who was terrified of storms, more than worried about her. He was once again babysitting Baby (Y/n), except she wasn’t much of a baby physically anymore, she had grown into a lively little girl, except for the fact that she was more than afraid of thunder. Now, in quite different clothes than he’d wear for work, a warm coat with a simple white shirt and some jeans, he went for an adventure to find who he sought.

At the sound of small muffled cries coming from his bedroom, Bernard quietly creaked the door open and entered, the cries only becoming louder and more distinct. It was (Y/n), and he knew exactly where she was. Kneeling down, The elf lifted the covers of his bed and looked under, finding the likes of a sobbing toddler curled up as far away from him as she could get. The sight broke his heart, but he managed a small comforting smile because he knew it’d help, reaching out to her slowly.

“C’mon (Y/n), there’s nothing to be scared of, it’s just sounds,” he said softly, the girl shaking her head as she continued to cry and convulse.

Bernard frowned a little, clearly upset about the state little (Y/n) was in but he was determined to stay happy for her. Crawling under the bed slightly, he rubbed the top of her head comfortingly.

“I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise,” he cooed, the girl sniffling as she wiped her messy red face, her tears never smudging the beautiful glitter present.

“P-pinky promise?” She asked in a shaky voice as she held out her tiny pinky for the boy to shake.

With a playful smile, Bernard connected his pinky with hers, holding it tightly in his grip as he shook it.

“Of course Sweetheart, pinky promise.”

She wiped her face once more before gripping his hand tightly with her tiny hand, slowly crawling out from her hiding place and stumbling into Bernard’s open arms.

As another crash of thunder rang out, she screamed and buried her face into the elf’s chest, wrapping her arms tightly around him and once again beginning to cry. Bernard immediately responded to this by engulfing her in his own arms, gently rocking the child back and forth in an attempt to calm her down. But she only continued sobbing, shaking, while she hid within his arms. His hands gently caressed her small head of soft (h/c) hair, he wanted to comfort the little girl but he was at a loss when it came to her fears.

That was when his eyes wondered around the room, and he spotted her music box sitting upon his bedside table. The light in his head turned on as he remembered that she’d left it there for safe keeping while the two played only a few hours ago. This sparked an idea in his mind, as he scooped up the child and carried her over so he could pick up the music box before finally sitting down on the little windowsill bed he had in his room, his knees up so he acted as a sort of hammock for her. Bernard’s fingers found the little wind up nob and he began winding up the little princess themed music box. And when it began playing, (Y/n)’s breath hitched slightly, since she recognized it’s melody her sobs softening slightly as the elf began singing.

"I’ll paint you mornings of gold, I’ll spin you valentine evenings though we’re strangers til now. We’re choosing the path between the stars. I’ll leave my love, between the stars...”

Once her crying was reduced to small sniffles and hiccups, Bernard left a gentle kiss upon the top of her head, the two listening as the music box continued playing.

“Everything’s gonna be okay (Y/n)...I’ll protect you no matter what, even if it’s just from loud noises and flashing lights...” he sighed, (Y/n) sniffling once more as she snuggled up closer to him tiredly.

“You promise?” She asked quietly.

“Yes sweetheart, I promise.”

And with that, they both drifted off to sleep. However, it seemed that the thunder and lightning was what had lulled the dear child to sleep that night. Never again, though, never again.

~

“Hip Hip, Hooray!!”

Everyone clapped and cheered as they watched the now eleven year old (Y/n) blow out the candles of her (f/f) birthday cake, celebrating the fact that she’d managed to grow another year older. Her mother, Carol stood to one side of her, Bernard stood to the other side, Scott was across the table with a camera, and Curtis was beside the jolly man. They were all present in the Calvin’s household at the North Pole, making sure (Y/n) got to celebrate her eleventh birthday around the main people she had known her entire life, the ones who held the most significance. She was beyond ecstatic, and it sure did show with that bright smile of hers.

“Alright Dear, would you like me to cut the cake?” Carol asked, the little lady straightening up confidently as she crossed her arms. “As much as I appreciate the offer mother, I’m a big girl now. I think this is my year to cut the cake,” (Y/n) had picked up her wonderful vocabulary from Bernard and his tutoring, she couldn’t very well go uneducated just because she lived away from human civilization.

Carol chuckled as she picked up the knife from the table,

“Make sure you’re careful, we don’t need any fingers in that cake,” She said as she carefully handed the knife to her daughter, the girl giggling as she nodded in understanding before she put the knife to the cake.

The cut was slightly off in proportion, but (Y/n) had managed to get the knife all the way to the bottom.

“Did you touch the bottom (N/n)-Bear?” Scott asked, the little girl looking up and nodding proudly, “do you know what you have to do when you touch the bottom?”

(Y/n) shook her head, clueless as to what he was about to say.

“Well, the rule is: If the knife touches the bottom, then you have to kiss the nearest boy,” he giggled, the (h/c)-ette’s face flushing beet red as she stiffened up on the spot, “and by the looks of it, Bernard is the nearest boy to you.”

“Oh Scott,” Carol scoffed as she rolled her eyes, the man chuckling at her annoyance. “But dad, that’s cootie sharing,” (Y/n) whisper yelled, Curtis shaking his head. “(Y/n), cooties aren’t real. Take it from me, I’ve only been around for 900 years,” he brushed off. “You’re sure?” She asked softly, the little elven boy nodding confidently.

Bernard was really just sitting back and enjoying the fuss that was brought about. Sure, he didn’t have a problem with (Y/n) kissing him on the cheek, she was like a little sister to him. But the way she got all ‘cooties!’ on everyone was just too adorable, and the smile was evident on his lips.

“F-fine! I’ll do it...” (Y/n) sighed, everyone cheering quietly at her words.

Shyly, she looked up at the Head elf. She was more than terrified of cooties, which was common in all children her age. But hearing the fact that cooties didn’t exist from Curtis, who was 900 years old, gave her a little bit of confidence. So, without another word, she stood on her tip toes, and pressed a short, but sweet kiss to Bernard’s cheek. There was a series of ‘awes’ and even more cheering, but when (Y/n) had pulled away and felt fine, she giggled in a dorky manner and twirled a strand of hair around her finger. Bernard smiled and ruffled her hair.

“Happy Birthday Kiddo.”

~

“Present time!!” Scott announced excitedly, everyone cheering loudly in excitement as they all rushed to the living room, presents for (Y/n) ready and wrapped.

Once you had all taken a seat, Carol on the sofa and everyone else on the carpeted floor, they started going through it all.

“You can open mine and Mommy’s gifts to you first,” Scott said as he handed the first wrapped gift to the little girl, herself taking it gratefully and beginning to unwrap it.

There was two things in there, the first thing a book. The Enchanted Forest.

“The book that I asked for! Oh thank you mother!” (Y/n) said happily, the woman smiling as she watched her unveil the second part.

It was certainly questionable.

“Gee, thanks Dad. I’ve always wanted a pillow printed with a close up of you making a stupid face,” she said almost sarcastically, the man chuckling as he nodded. “Glad I could make your dreams come true,” he said, (Y/n) rolling her eyes as she placed it down.

Curtis passed her her next gift.

“Here, I made these myself,” he said, (Y/n) smiling as she took the gift and unwrapped it.

Inside, was a pair of ice skates, white ice skates with pastel blue embroidery and laces. They were covered in silver glitter, and the blades were so shiny it was like looking into a mirror.

“Oh wow Curtis! These are beautiful! You’ve really outdone yourself,” (Y/n) expressed sincerely, the elf smiling proudly.

“I’m glad you like them.”

(Y/n) giggled as she leaned over and gave Curtis a small but meaningful hug. And when she returned to her original position, it was time for her to open Bernard’s gifts to her. He’d spent every second of his free time working on these gifts, he wanted to make sure every perspective was perfected, and he sure as hell did.

“Now, I’ve made you two gifts. A big one and a small one. Which one would you like to open first?” He asked. “I’d like to open the big one first, thank you,” she almost immediately responded, the blackette chuckling softly as he grabbed the gift from behind him and placed it in front of her, considering she wouldn’t be able to unwrap it in her arms.

So, she got to work, tearing off the wrapping excitedly. And as she did, she began piecing together what she had in front of her. Hollow body, fret-board neck, strings, tuning pegs...it was a beautiful acoustic guitar in the design of a Fender brand Malibu Player, except it had no brand labels. It was painted in a matte ice blue, and had a carving down the bottom of it.

Don’t let your dreams die, sweetheart.  ~Bernard

Bernard could see that she was speechless, so he decided to speak up.

“I’ve been seeing you hanging around the music department in the factory lately, watching the elves make instruments, especially guitars. I figured...maybe you wanted your own. I hope you like it,” he explained, the girl looking up at the elf with a few small tears in her eyes as she smiled and nodded.

“I love it,” She reached over and wrapped her arms around the elf lovingly, “thank you, Bernard.”

With a small smile, he returned the embrace, one which they held for almost a minute before (Y/n) leaned back and sat down again, examining the guitar further. She let her hands trace the matte ice blue paint of the body, then the clean cut marble wood of the neck, up the strings and to the tuning pegs. She was truly bewildered, so bewildered she’d forgotten about her second gift.

“Would you like to open your last gift?” Bernard asked softly as he held the small box out for the girl.

She was still a little stunned from receiving her guitar, but managed to nod and smile as she took the gift with care and also unwrapped it with care. First there was a box, but she was quick to pull the lid off. And the little item that was inside took her breath away. Delicately placed upon a satin pillow was a necklace, one that had cute little snowflake charm with a small diamond dangling from the bottom of it. It was beyond beautiful, and again was she dazed.

“I...I don’t even know what to say...This is really beautiful,” (Y/n) sighed as she pulled it out of the box, “could you please help me put it on?”

With a smile and a nod, Bernard instructed her to spin around as he took the necklace from her and wrapped it loosely around her neck. Within a second, he’d clipped the chain together, (Y/n) spinning back around as she held the charm in her hand.

For the remainder of the evening, they watched whatever movies the girl requested they’d watch, which in turn turned out to be a lot. While the two adults were awake after the final movie, the elves and girl had drifted off to sleep, in probably one of the cutest positions in the world. In centre was Bernard while leaning against either side of him was (Y/n) and Curtis. It was just too adorable, and Scott couldn’t help but snap a photo. Once he had done that, he draped a large blanket over the three and he and his wife retired to their bedroom.

Happy Birthday, (Y/n).

~

“Oh dear...” Bernard sighed softly, humoured at the current situation.

He, Curtis and the now 14 year old (Y/n) were on the permanently frozen over lake that had been turned into an open ice rink for the small North Pole town, preparing themselves for the lessons they were to give to the tiny school elves that were probably about five minutes from arriving. Except, (Y/n) technically wasn’t on the ice in that moment. She’d just been dared by Curtis to race him across the ice, and she did alright. (Y/n) had beaten him by a mile, but she just happened to be going so fast that simply stopping wasn’t an option. So when she tried to break, it didn’t go as planned. And that’s how she managed to fling herself into a large pile of snow, one which buried her to the point that her hands and legs were the only things sticking out. While Curtis was in hysterics, Bernard skated over to the girl, taking a hold of her hand and pulling her out of the pile of snow.

“If you’re gonna race, then remember to ease onto your break if you wanna stop,” Bernard sighed as he brushed the snow from the girl’s hair, “otherwise, you’ll projectile fling yourself into whatever direction you’re heading. You’re lucky there was snow there.”

“What if I told you that I’m a stunt-woman and I did that on purpose?” (Y/n) asked with a small smirk, wiping her now red nose. “And would you look at that, your terrible immune system has already given you a cold from it,” he said, ignoring the girl’s question as he brushed the snow from her shoulders, “you’re gonna set such a great example for all those children.” “I’ll be teaching them the stunting ways in no time!” She said confidently, sneezing shortly after she did. “If I see kids being flung into that pile of snow, I’ll throw you in there myself and I won’t help you back out,” he finished brushing enough snow from her clothes, “now c’mon, they’ll be here soon.”

“aye aye captain,” (Y/n) said as she did a joking salute, the two skating over to where Curtis was, just in time for the bus of little school elves to arrive.

Out they all hopped, one by one, lining up in the bleachers off to the side for when people would come to watch ice hockey games. They all laced up and stayed sat on the bleachers, awaiting instructions from the three who would be teaching them.

“Alrighty, who’s ready to skate?”

~

“That’s right kiddies, outward motion, slowly, slowly,” These instructions came from (Y/n), who was gracefully floating around on the ice, helping to supervise the many little school elves alongside the two leading elves. 

They were doing really well, only a few minor slip ups but that was always expected. Bernard was slightly surprised at the progress they were making, some were even already racing around the rink clumsily. It never happened this fast when it was just him and Curtis doing classes, so he pinpointed that (Y/n) had bettered the lessons, not that he knew of how, but he did know of why.

Bernard watched from a distance as a child near (Y/n) was about to slip and fall. He would’ve raced over there himself to save the little elf, but soon found out that he didn’t have to when (Y/n) swooped down and balanced the child by holding them under the armpits. There were a few words spoken that he obviously couldn’t hear, but he knew that the girl was giving friendly tips to the little elf, telling them how they could improve their balance, no doubt that she was taking the instructions that were handed down to her by Bernard himself. He felt a sense of pride knowing that she really did take in the lessons he gave her when she was around the same age as the little elves (physically).

But he hadn’t had time to think about all that, considering a child had just fallen in front of him and he’d been so deep in thought that he didn’t realize until she was on the floor, in tears. Bernard froze for a moment, it happened so suddenly that he was slightly stunned. But when he came back to, he knelt down beside the little girl.

“Oh dear, are you okay?” He asked softly, soon being joined by the two other supervisors plus a small crowd of students around the scene.

She shook her head as she lifted her hands to reveal the freeze burn across her palms from scraping it across the ice. Bernard carefully held her hands to take a closer look, and once he’d examined them, he looked up at Curtis.

“Curtis, would you like to take this little lady to the side and fix her freeze burn?” He asked, the second in command elf nodding as he and Bernard switched places and he helped her to her feet before carefully skating her off to the side.

Bernard and (Y/n) watched as he did, (Y/n) crossing her arms as she sighed.

“Good job Bernard, you made a child cry,” she teased, the boy rolling his eyes as he too crossed his arms. “Hey, to be fair, I used to be the only one who could make you stop crying when you were her age,” he defended, “even your mom and dad struggled to hush you.” “Hm, touché,” (Y/n) sighed, the boy chuckling as he pat her back. “C’mon, we better get back to work.”

~

The three who were still on ice skates waved the bus goodbye as it left, satisfied with their day of work and the progress they made with the new batch of little school elves. Even though an injury had occurred, Bernard found it a satisfactory day. However, (Y/n) wasn’t done teasing him on the factor.

“Alright, so the stats of the day. (Y/n) Calvin, ten outta ten. Curtis the doof, nine outta ten. And Bernard Noel Evergreen."

When (Y/n) said his name so dauntingly, he crossed his arms and gave her a look that said ‘really? This again?’

“Four outta ten.” “Oh really?” He asked in a flat tone as he looked through half lidded eyes. “Yeah,” she responded. “Really?” “Yeah.” “Really?” “Yeah!”

After her last ‘yeah’, Bernard reached over and attacked her sides with his hands as to tickle her, the girl shrieking at the contact as she attempted to skate away from his grip. He had chased her around for only a few seconds before he caught her again, this time sending the two of the toppling to the ground. Bernard tickled her until tears began rolling down her cheeks, to which he leaned back and let her catch her breath. Once she had, he crossed his arms once again.

“Would you like to change my rating for the day now?” He asked, (Y/n) panting as she smiled. “No.”

So he went at it again, tickling her until she begged for mercy. All the while, Curtis stood in the background, still offended at the fact that (Y/n) had called him ‘Curtis the doof’.

~

Ooooh~ (Y/n) Likes Bernard~”

(Y/n) was an absolute blushing mess at that point. 15 and a half years old, and she was being accused of having a school girl crush on the head elf by stupid Curtis, and had all of the other elves in the baking department giggling and taunting her as well. Ok...maybe it was slightly true, maybe she had just started realizing she had feelings for him. But they really needed to give her a break, this girl had been raised by him as a big brother figure, and with all of this drastic change and for the fact that these were her first romantic feelings for a real person ever, she didn’t know what to do. That’s why she denied it.

“I think your accusations are a little far fetched Curtis. I never have liked Bernard romantically, and I never will. Period,” (Y/n) huffed as she crossed her arms, the matte blue acoustic guitar that hung around her back swaying slightly with her movement. “Then why is it that whenever he walks by, you get all bubbly and happy, and your cheeks turn red and you just become this whole sappy mess of love?” Curtis asked, the girl blushing a little. “Well, I’d like to think that I’m happy and bubbly all the time,” she said as she leaned against one of the counters. “I don’t know (Y/n), I mean, you get extra happy and bubbly when he’s around,” one of the little baker elves said, placing her mixing bowl of cookie dough onto the table, “and clumsy.”  “I do not get clumsy in the slightest!” (Y/n) exclaimed, her redness spreading from her cheeks to the rest of her face as everyone in the room giggled at her reaction.

“Hello all.”

As soon as she heard that voice, (Y/n) slipped off of the counter and could’ve easily fallen to the ground, but managed to hold her ground as she straightened herself up and turned to the elf. 

“Good day, Bernard,” she giggled out, becoming the flustered mess that Curtis had only described moments ago. 

When Bernard heard (Y/n), he smiled as he ruffled the girl’s hair.

“Where have you been, kid? I haven’t seen you since last week,” he asked, the girl sighing softly as she looked down and grabbed her arm shyly. “I’ve um...I’ve been helping out in the jewellery department. Their hands are getting sore.” 

That was only partially true. She’d actually been trying to avoid Bernard as best she could due to these new feelings she’d get when even seeing him. But on the other hand, she did feel rather bad for the poor elves fingers that were starting to become sore from the non stop work they’d have to do to please millions of kids around the world. 

“I’ll have to issue them a break soon, they honestly work way too hard. But in the mean time, would you like to come have lunch with me? They’ve opened a new bakery downtown and I feel like you’re a good food critic for that kind of stuff.” 

(Y/n) almost immediately jumped at the opportunity to hang out with Bernard once again, but then she remembered that she was trying to keep her feelings for Bernard on the down low, considering the fact that a) she was much much much much much younger than him, at least by a thousand and a half years, and b) he saw her as only a younger sister. She really wanted to, but she knew she couldn’t, it’d only cause trouble for the both of them.

“I-I’m sorry, Bernard...I, uh...I promised I’d spend time with the tinsel boys today,” she sighed, quite regretfully.

The disappointment was very evident on his face for a few seconds, not that (Y/n) had noticed. But very soon did he fix his composure and nod slightly.

“That’s alright, maybe tomorrow?” He asked.  “We’ll see,” she replied in a very unsure tone, and that only caused another flicker of disappointment to go off in his eyes.

Then, slowly, (Y/n) began backing out of the room, very much wanting to escape the awkward atmosphere and all of the eyes that were on her.

“I’m uh...” she had began, but then accidentally backed into the wall beside the door, “I’m gonna go,” She then corrected her mistake, and moved so that she was in the opening of the door, “I’ll catch you all later.”

Everyone waved her quiet and slightly awkward goodbyes, and once they had, she practically dashed out of the room, leaving an extremely uncomfortable atmosphere and a slightly confused and almost hurt head elf.

In all of his confusion, Bernard turned to Curtis with a bewildered yet concerned look.

“Did I do something to upset her?” He asked, Curtis showing the smallest bit of cringe upon his face as he tried to figure out a response that wouldn’t completely expose (Y/n)’s unconfirmed secret. “No...no I wouldn’t say that. Uh...” Curtis couldn’t exactly find the right words. “Then what would you say?” Bernard asked, persistent considering he cared very much for the girl and wanted to know if he’d done anything to upset her. “Well, I mean...this isn’t really confirmed but uh...” he continued to try to find the correct terminology, “...(Y/n)’s been here her entire life and uh...well, it’s around this age that the uh...the hormones start kicking in and human teenagers desire a...connection with another person,” Bernard could see where he was getting at, but he allowed him to continue, “now, considering the circumstances...the fact that there are no other guys in this factory that look to be around her age physically...uh, but you...I’d say that she’s developed romantic feelings for you.”

Bernard simply stared at the younger elf in shock. He didn’t know why he didn’t expect this turn of events, it was bound to happen eventually. But he was so focused on raising her as a child that he forgot all about what would happen once she became a teenager.

“Oh dear...” Bernard sighed as he took his beret off and ran a hand through his bundle of black curls. “Now, don’t quote me on any of this, I could be wrong. It’s just she got really defensive when I asked her about it,” Curtis began, one of the baker elves scoffing before rolling her eyes. “Asked? You teased her, Curtis,” she said, Bernard’s look of shock turning into a glare. “Curtis, that’s horrible!” He scolded. “I’m sorry, I can’t help it!” Curtis defended, his boss’s glare deepening. “I’m sure you can. She’s probably upset now! It’s not like situations like these are controllable,” he chastised as he placed his beret back on his head. “Well, what’re you gonna do?” Curtis asked. “Something, I don’t know what, but I have to do something.”

~

With a quiet hoist and a quiet groan, (Y/n) had finally managed to get onto the roof of the factory, her favourite place in the entire North Pole on account of the view and the memories it held. The first time she had ever been up there was when she was a child, Bernard and Curtis had taken her there one night, and they looked over the colourful elven town that was lit up by all the Christmas lights while they sipped countless cups of cocoa.

Those were better times, in (Y/n)’s opinion. Times when she was too young to know what romantic love was, to understand what it was, to feel it. When she simply let loose and enjoyed simpler things, such as the view and the feeling of the warm cocoa that filled her belly. Those days were gone, however, she was well aware. But sometimes, she liked to go up there, and pretend like she was still a child, pretend that she didn’t have a crush on the head elf, pretend like she wasn’t growing up.

In her arms, sat the guitar she had received from Bernard for her 11th Birthday. It was still pretty much in the same condition as when she got it, of course there were a few string changes but...otherwise, it was the exact same guitar in every way. (Y/n) had started learning before she received the guitar, considering she spent a lot of her childhood hanging around the music department where some of the elves would sneak her short lessons on all of the instruments. She could play all of the instruments to an acceptable standard, but it was clear she favoured guitar. As soon as she received the guitar, Bernard began giving her proper lessons, and she almost immediately excelled, especially in the classical area. Guitar was pretty much her passion, and it was the one thing that was keeping her from crumbling at that point.

Running her fingers over the steel strings, (Y/n) allowed them to form a note. And with her other hand, they found the other end of the guitar, and soon a melody rang out in the air.

"As the pain sweeps through, makes no sense for you. Every thrill is gone, wasn't too much fun at all."

(Y/n) had a natural talent for singing, though Bernard did help her strengthen her voice and technique over the years. She knew that music was what she wanted to do in life, it was all she thought about, all she did. It was the only thing that made her feel like her genuine self.

"But I'll be there for you...As the world falls down..."

"Hey, I haven't heard that one in a while."

(Y/n) was startled at the sound of a familiar voice cutting through her melody, the twing of an off note ringing out as she whipped her head around to see who had interrupted her, though she already knew. It was Bernard, with two steaming hot cups of cocoa in his hands. She should've known better that if she wanted to hide somewhere away from him, the roof would be the worst place.

He knew her better than anyone did, after all.

"I thought you'd forgotten about it, I haven't sung it to you since you were eight," Bernard said as he took a seat beside her and handed her one of the cups. "No, I could never," she demurred, placing her guitar to her side and taking the cup from him, "It's our song, and you're my best friend. You also practically raised me. That song is burned into my mind forever." "You say that like it's a bad thing," Bernard pointed out, (Y/n) turning to face him as gave him a tired look. "Sorry, my tone's a little off," she sighed, rubbing her head, "I've had a long day." "Hey Kiddo, try not to think about it, alright?" he comforted as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, letting her rest her head on his shoulder, "I'm always here if you need me or if you wanna talk. I'm here to listen, not to judge. You can always count on me."

And just like that, they spent the rest of the evening in silence, watching the sun set like they did when (Y/n) was just a little girl.

~

“We’ve decided that we’re telling her today, before she turns sixteen next week. She...she needs the time to prepare.”

Scott was talking about the fact that he and Carol were sending (Y/n) to live with her half brother, Charlie, so she could be around other humans rather than live in the factory for the rest of her life. Bernard was understandably upset, but he couldn’t show it on the outside, he knew it was what had to be done in order for (Y/n) to live the rest of her life semi-normally, like a normal teenager with normal friends and interests. She should have that opportunity, so he stayed strong in the situation.

“Right now, actually...do you think you could go get her for me? I think she’s in the decoration division,” Scott said, almost sorrowfully. “Of course, sir,” Bernard responded, nodding at the Calvin’s before he turned around and began heading out of the big-man’s office.

As he walked through the factory, in search of the girl, he struggled to find within his mind the way he’d approach her. Sure, he wasn’t the one who was to give the news, but it didn’t make it any easier to grab her from whatever fun she may’ve been having in that moment and take her for news that’d break her heart. 

Speaking of... Bernard entered the decorations division of the factory, and immediately began searching for her. It was a huge area, filled with elves and their nimble fingers at work making various Christmas ornaments, so he thought it’d take him a while. He however, had thought wrong. 

He’d only had to search for maybe ten minutes before he found the lady. The strange thing was that she appeared to have a long piece of tinsel that bound her ankles together. And...she was hanging from the ceiling. The tinsel boys...of course. It certainly did startle him when out of no where, he was face to face with an upside down (Y/n), it was evident in his face.

She had become so beautiful over the years, and had certainly grown into herself as a young, mature woman.

When (Y/n) noticed his temporary fear, she broke out in a fit of giggles.

“Hi Bernard,” she greeted within her giggling, her rosy cheeks glinting with the unfaded glitter present upon them.

Bernard chuckled softly as he shook his head.

“What’re you doing?” He asked in a laugh. “Jeremiah and Harrison dared me to go bungee jumping, so...” (Y/n) explained, the elf once again shaking his head as he grabbed out a pair of fabric scissors from his pocket of many miscellaneous items before cutting the tinsel and catching the girl bridal style.  “Your dad wants to see you in his office, it’s important,” he said, placing her onto her feet. “Perhaps you’d care to give me a piggyback?” (Y/n) suggested mischievously, the head elf rolling his eyes and smiling. “Just hop on already.” 

(Y/n) giggled in excitement as she jumped onto Bernard’s back and allowed him to hook his arms underneath her knees while she wrapped her arms around his neck.

“I’ll seeya later guys!” she shouted up to the tinsel boys, who were on a platform above everyone else in the factory.

They all shouted a chorus of farewells before the two headed out of the decoration division.

Bernard felt more than on edge, in fact he was practically falling off the edge. He knew she wasn’t going to be too happy with the news, but it was for her own good that she got to experience a normal human life. Besides...she’d still get to visit the North Pole....right?

“Package delivery for Scott and Carol Calvin,” came a voice that the two addressed recognized as their daughter’s.

(Y/n) came into the room on Bernard’s back, and when he came to a stop in front Scott’s desk, he placed the girl onto her feet. She bounced slightly like the bubbly lady she was, pushing out the creases in her skirt and neatening herself for her parents.

“Hey, how’s my sugar-cookie doing?” Scott asked in a happy manner, the even happier girl giggling at the nickname. “I’m well. Tinsel boys had me hanging from the ceiling, but I’m well,” her explanation made Scott chuckle as he intertwined his own hands in front of him on the desk. “Well...we have some very important news for you, that might change that,” he said, his sudden mood change causing (Y/n)’s sudden mood change, “I’d like you to have a seat, dear.”

Carefully, (Y/n) took a seat in front of the man’s desk, a worried look upon her brow.

“D-did someone die or something?” she asked. “Oh, no, no...Nothing of the sort,” he clarified, the girl nodding slowly as she sat back to listen to whatever he had to say. “Uh...Your mother and I have decided, or actually have had decided for a while that...sometime after your 16th birthday next week, we’re...we’re sending you to live with Charlie so you can have a normal life, so you have the opportunity to live amongst other humans like your mom and I did,” Scott explained, (Y/n)’s face falling into one of shock as her eyes moved rapidly around the room. “...w...what?” She asked softly. "Look, sweetie, it's for your own good," Scott assured her, Bernard placing a hand on her shoulder comfortingly as her eyes welled up with tears. "I...I don't understand," (Y/n) quavered, looking down at her hands for a brief moment before looking back up at her parents, "...y-you can't do this to me. This is all I know." "Honey, that's the problem," Carol chimed in, giving her a sorry look, "we want you to have experience in both worlds, to be with your own kind for a while."

(Y/n) looked down again, taking everything in and processing it all for a moment. She couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe this was happening to her. She'd only been outside the North Pole a few times, and she didn't mind it, as long as she always got to come back home.

"Will I..." she sniffled, looking back up at her parents again, "...will I get to come back and visit?" "Of course, darling. We wouldn't have it any other way," Scott nodded, (Y/n) taking a deep breath as she stood up and wiped the tears away from her face, leaving the room with Bernard at her side.

Once they had gotten out, they stood just outside the door, staring at each other with sad eyes.

Without even thinking, (Y/n) crashed herself into Bernard and began sobbing loudly, to which Bernard was quick to wrap her up in his arms and quietly begin to cry as well.

~

Today was the day.

(Y/n)'s 16th birthday had been a week ago, and in that birthday her parents combined a goodbye party as well, for obvious reasons.

At her birthday, she'd had a slow dance with Bernard, just the two of them in the centre of the dance floor, while 'As the world falls down' played and they both tried their hardest not to cry.

And while there was a lot of platonic feeling attached to that song, Bernard began to see another side of it.

He was starting to think that maybe he loved her.

She had grown into such a mature young lady, one who was capable of understanding big concepts and was so incredibly smart. He was honestly just awestruck by her, and it pained him to see her leave before he could do anything about it.

Every elf in the factory was gathered around the sleigh, which would be (Y/n)'s ride to her new life in the human world. (Y/n) was at the sleigh, and pushing through the crowd was the head elf himself, clearly needing to be somewhere.

(Y/n) could see him in the distance, so she obviously waited for him.

But as he did finally get to her, something completely out of the ordinary happened.

He grabbed her waist, and he kissed her.

He kissed her like his life depended on it.

She was stunned to say the very least, and it took her a few moments to snap out of her daze. But once she had, she happily kissed back with her arms snaked around his neck.

Curtis gagged, and Scott and Carol watched endearingly, having known that something like this would happen. The elves around them were cheering, and even when they pulled apart they still cheered.

"...wait for me..." (Y/n) whispered, looking into his chocolate brown eyes as he nodded.

And so he did. He would wait as long as he had to on her return. And no matter how old she grew, he'd always love her just the same.

Smiles all around, smiles for days.

It was always a sight for sore eyes walking into the factory from his office, away from the stresses of being stuck in his own mind and absorbing the contagious joy of his dear underlings. Even when he was so stressed, gazing upon his hard work never failed to put a smile on his face.

He'd stroll through the factory, checking in on everyone in their respective departments, giving a 'hello' and 'howdy' where necessary, making sure things were running smoothly, and overall completing this ritual minor maintenance with a bounce in his step.

That was until he reached the mechanics department.

He had nothing wrong with the department itself, since he had only the most talented elves put into each department and overall he was pleased with it's progress.

It was the elf he'd assigned at the head of that department who posed a personal issue.

(Y/n) (L/n), head of the mechanics department. They're an elf about his age, extremely talented in their area of work. They were efficient, fast working, and always produced top notch items when it came to little robotic toys and what not.

It was just their attitude that Bernard didn't like.

But he always did try to be polite.

"Hey (Y/n)! How's the work coming along?"

His greeting was met with silence. This wasn't unexpected though, they were much less likely to respond when they were working on something, as at that moment they had a little robotic chicken in their hand that they were tweaking.

"(Y/n)?" he'd ask a little louder, though still to no response.

He decided to move in a little closer to their desk, and speak louder.

"(Y/n)!-"

"Get out of my space, I can hear you!"

Ah, there it was.

"Well, (Y/n), usually when someone greets you, you acknowledge them," Bernard replied snarkily, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're insufferable, Bernard," (Y/n) scoffed, shaking their head as they refused to look up at him. "I'm just trying to be polite!" he exasperated, offended that they'd say that to him of all people. "Yeah, well you're doing it wrong," they uttered sharply, followed by a click of their tongue as well as a short whistle.

He didn't know why they did that - clicking their tongue or making a popping sound with their lips followed by a short whistle. It was a strange quirk in their character, but it was quite distinguishing and unique. He didn't ask though, it wasn't his place.

"Alright, fine, whatever, sorry," he huffed, taking a step back from their desk, "just make sure you meet you quota by the end of the week." "I always do," they assured him, and he simply huffed again and stomped away, his mood now bitter for the rest of the day.

Even after these confrontations, he tried to reset himself each day, hoping one after the other that he'd figure out just what their problem was.

Nevertheless, his attempts at any sort of help were in vain.

It was in the next few days when he had seem them walking amongst the crowded walkways of the factory, their head down as all they seemed focused on doing was getting by. He couldn't exactly read their face, since it always seemed blank, but he figured it was worth a shot to try and talk to them.

"Hey (Y/n)-"

As he greeted the elf, they seemed to be startled at this sudden communication, jumping back and tripping over a toy which had been laying on the floor - not uncommon for this section of the department, where all the action figures are made.

They looked stunned, so Bernard knelt down and tried to help them up.

"Uh-are you okay?" he asked, grabbing their arm.

The second he touched them, they ripped their arm away from his grip, shuffling away from him.

"Don't touch me," they snarled, quickly getting up off of the floor and rushing the opposite way.

He just didn't get it. All he was doing was trying to help.

Perhaps they were a lost cause. Perhaps they didn't want to get along with anyone.

So, eventually, he just stopped trying.

Every time he saw them, it just made him mad. He was so very bitter to them, and did anything he could to avoid. Realistically, he wasn't mad at them - not at all.

He was hurt, because he really liked them.

So, to remove this pain, he'd feign anger.

This would have dire consequences in his future.

It was a few weeks later when Bernard would find himself unable to absorb the sweet spirit of his factory. This week, he was grumpier than usual. He was not happy, and everyone was about to know about it.

This mood was the consequence of a minor inconvenience - a mistake in his statistics that he mailed off to the higher ups which would cost him more time than he could afford. Yes, this mistake was his fault, but he was too upset to care about how taking it out on others would affect them.

With everyone else, he wasn't too bad. Just a few snarky comments here and there and a little bit of grumbling and groaning.

He was saving hell for (Y/n).

As he stomped up to their desk in the mechanics department, he called their name like usual.

"(Y/n)," he growled, to which he got no response.

This time, he didn't repeat himself as usual. Instead, he slammed his fist against the desk, and they looked up, startled, afraid, and cradling their fragile work in their hands.

"I'm not in the mood for your silly little games, (Y/n)," he growled, towering over them from his place on the other side of their desk, "when I call your name, you respond!"

In his rage he couldn't see the fear in their eyes, he couldn't see the way their body trembled, the way they were trying to maintain their composure though it was slipping away by the second. They couldn't speak, and this only made him madder.

"What did I do to you?? Why do act like this around me??" he asked, his voice trembling with rage, "all I've ever done is be nice to you and you can't even muster a simple hello?"

Everyone around them was staring. Everyone.

(Y/n) felt like they were suffocating, like they couldn't breathe, like their whole world around them was crumbling.

So, they did all they could think of doing. They got up, and removed themselves from the situation.

Bernard was stunned by their silent exit, not noticing until after they left that everyone around them was also silent and watching everything unfold.

The head elf flinched when he felt a hand come to his shoulder, spinning around only to see that it was his second in command, Curtis. He looked a little disappointed.

"Bernard, that was really uncalled for," Curtis said, his voice echoing in the silent factory, "I really think you should apologise to them."

Bernard felt himself gradually cooling down, though he wasn't ready to admit that he was in the wrong in this situation. After all, he wouldn't of snapped had they been polite to him, right?

With a huff, he stomped back off toward his office, hollering a brief 'get back to work' as he retreated to his hidey hole.

However, on his way, he was caught off guard by the echoing whimpers which lured him from nearby. Even in his sour mood, he wasn't one to ignore sorrowful cries.

It wasn't difficult to track the sound to the end of a long hallway, in a tiny, dark, cramped janitors closet.

On the floor, was (Y/n). They were curled up and crying, and all of a sudden Bernard felt his world flip upside down.

Perhaps he wasn't being polite correctly, as (Y/n) said.

"Oh, (Y/n)," he whispered, his aspect softening as he crouched down on the ground and got a little closer to them, "I'm sorry...I shouldn't of yelled at you like that, I didn't mean it-" "No, Bernard, you don't get it," (Y/n) sobbed, sniffling and hiccupping through all their tears as they shook their head and curled up tighter, "you d-don't get it." "Hey, hey. It's okay, I see you, (Y/n)," Bernard assured the elf, though they were quick to snap back. "No, you don't understand!" They snapped, their demeanour angry though in their eyes Bernard could see nothing but despair.

Bernard leaned back a moment - he didn't want to smother them, and he didn't want to pretend that he understood what they were trying to say to him. He'd already done enough of that.

"You’re looking at me, but you’re not seeing me. Do you know how that feels?" (Y/n) cried, shuddering in their own anxieties as they pleaded, "Just see me. Please."

In all of their beseeching, Bernard took a moment to simply take them in. Outwardly, they seemed to off standish, so harsh and cold like they didn't want to get along with anyone. Though, perhaps he was reading into it the wrong way. Perhaps they couldn't get along with anyone.

Like their brain was wired differently.

"...are you...?" Bernard began to ask the question, but he had no idea how to go about it. He didn't want to harm them any further.

They nodded, and sighed a shaky breath.

"...I'm autistic. I know it seems like I don't wanna try and get by in this environment," (Y/n) began, the tears in their eyes topping up once again and spilling back over, "...the truth is, all my energy is just going toward coping without having a meltdown."

Just like that, every interaction Bernard had had with (Y/n) had began to make so much more sense.

Every time they snapped at him when he touched them, was simply because they didn't like it. Every time he tried to talk to them and they looked at him without saying a word, they were likely mute or unable to speak.

And now...with the fast paced environment and his yelling, he likely overstimulated them into meltdown.

"Oh, (Y/n), I'm so sorry," he apologised, his shoulders sagging in guilt, "I must've come off way too strong, I should've given you more space and time and patience."

They sniffled again and shook their head, trying to wipe their tears away.

"N-no, it's okay...it's not your fault," they snivelled, trembling out of instinct, "you didn't know." "Is there anything I can do for you?"

He asked this, but they didn't respond. He wasn't angry this time, he understood now.

"Can I touch your hand?"

They looked over at him, reluctance and caution in their eyes as they were still afraid of being yelled at. They knew he was sorry, but even so fear was evident.

Though, when they locked eyes with their head elf, they couldn't help but feel a subtle sense of genuinity. I daresay, they even saw safety in those big chocolate eyes of his.

Hesitantly, they nodded, loosening their grip around themselves as they relaxed their muscles and all. Bernard took this as his green light, and slowly he'd reach over and touch their hand.

His touch was soothing, and something about it made them wish they hadn't denied it, or him, in the first place.

In a sudden swift movement, (Y/n) threw themselves at Bernard, into his body, wrapping their arms around his lanky body. At first, he was taken a back, considering the kind of relationship they'd just had beforehand. However, he finally felt at peace knowing that it wasn't really a personal issue, and that they could talk about it, and he returned their embrace.

(Y/n)'s sudden need for affection would attribute to this first acceptance. They didn't know what would become of them had they told anyone this, afraid that they would be shunned or bullied like in the past. But this time it was different.

They had found their favourite person.

"No one is meant to be all alone. That’s not how humans are built. You don’t need to do all this on your own. I'll be here for you from here on out, okay?"

"...okay."