Beth loathed the office Christmas parties, their hollow cheer, stale garlands, and forced laughter that echoed too sharply off sterile walls. 

But this year, something felt off. Shadows seemed to pool deeper in the corners, the flicker of the fluorescent lights casting uneasy movements against the cheaply adorned tree. Beth sipped her spiked eggnog and stared at the mistletoe that hung from a crooked beam, its green so vivid it seemed almost alive.

And then Alex appeared.

He was the only reason she hadn’t slipped into the cold night. With his dark, tousled hair and sharp features, he seemed cut from another world entirely—too magnetic for this drab corporate setting. 

Tonight, there was something in his smile, a glint that sent a chill racing down her spine even as it made her pulse quicken.

“Mistletoe,” he said softly, stepping close. He held a sprig of it above her head, his fingers brushing hers. “Thought we might make this party a little less tedious.”

Beth laughed nervously, though the sound seemed swallowed by the air between them. She glanced at the others in the room, but their faces were oddly blurred, their movements sluggish, as if they weren’t there. 

Her world had narrowed to Alex, the smell of pine on his clothes, the way his breath frosted in the cold air that had inexplicably seeped into the room.

“Are you serious?” she whispered, unsure whether to lean in or step away. Her heart beat like the wings of a trapped bird.

He didn’t answer, just tilted his head and closed the distance between them. His lips were cool against hers, yet the touch sent a searing heat through her body. Cheers erupted around them, but the sound was distant, like the roar of a storm outside closed windows.

When Alex pulled back, his smile was no longer shy. There was a hunger in his eyes, a longing that felt both thrilling and terrifying.

“I’ve been waiting all year for this,” he said.

Before Beth could reply, the lights dimmed, plunging the room into near-darkness. The mistletoe above them glowed faintly, its leaves shimmering like spun glass. Beth’s breath hitched as she realized the crowd had stilled completely, their cheers silenced, their forms eerily statuesque.

“Alex,” she began, but he placed a finger to her lips.

“Trust me,” he said. “This is only the beginning.”

And as the clock struck midnight, the world outside the office seemed to dissolve, replaced by something vast, ancient, and wild. The air hummed with the promise of something beyond comprehension. Beth clung to Alex’s hand, torn between the thrill of adventure and the dread of what lay ahead.

For the first time, Christmas wasn’t just her favorite holiday—it was a gateway, and Alex, the keeper of its secrets.

The End