Seeing Michael moping at a table alone, Lauren approached him and sat down. She commented that he looked terrible and mentioned Christine and her absence. He told her it had been weeks since he had heard from Christine, and Lauren told him she was sure Paul was probably looking for her. With that, Michael let her in on his hunch that Paul had done something to hurt her. She told him he was Christine's fiancé and not Paul's and assured him that Christine would call during the holidays. He sadly told her Christine was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and he hoped aloud that Paul hadn't done anything to screw that up.
At Paul and Isabella's, they were spending family time together, talking about wrapping gifts and Ricky's first Christmas. Isabella expressed her happiness and didn't notice the sad look on Paul's face. She did, however, tell him she thought his behavior had been different since the christening, and he told her he was trying not to dwell on it. He tried to assure her by telling her she was his future, and his life with her and Ricky was what mattered most in the world to him. He encouraged her to try to put Christine out of her mind. Then, he told her he had to go to the store to pick up a last-minute present for someone, and he left the house.
Instead of going to a store, Paul went over to his and Christine's old apartment. Looking sad, he immediately went and poured himself a drink. He settled down on the couch and found a photo of him and Christine together stuffed underneath a pillow. He started reminiscing about past Christmases with her but was interrupted by someone entering the apartment -- Michael. Paul asked Michael what he was doing there, and Michael replied he could ask Paul the same question. Paul said he had stopped by to pick something up.
On his way over to get a drink himself, Michael asked if Paul had heard from Christine, and Paul sadly said he hadn't. Michael told Paul he wasn't sure why he was there; he just missed her, and the last few days had been especially difficult for him. He raised his glass and proposed a toast: that she knew people at home loved and missed her. Paul sadly raised his glass, too.
At the homeless shelter, Brittany approached Jill, saying how she noticed the two of them were out of place. Jill told her she wanted to be there, and furthermore, it was to help people, not to have fun. She asked Brittany how her parents were, and Brittany replied they were quite disappointed in her at that moment. Jill expressed her surprise at Brittany's statement, and mentioned that she had met them at social functions. She told her to be sure to say hello to her father, and added, "from Jabot," when Brittany looked at her strangely. Raul walked over and teased Jill, saying how he had noticed Santa had a crush on her.
Mac entered, and she and Jill had a pleasant conversation. They both talked about missing Billy, but looking around the room, Mac pointed out how fortunate they really were. "Santa" walked over, and Katherine smirked in the background. After Jill realized who it really was, they ended up in the back room together, getting friendly and kissing one another.
A homeless woman approached Brittany, saying she'd overheard her conversation with "that Abbott woman." She told Brittany she had lost her daughter in a car accident, and the worst part was that they hadn't been speaking at the time. She told Brittany it was obvious that she missed her parents, and perhaps they were missing her in the exact same way. Before leaving, she encouraged Brittany to consider calling them. Brittany took the advice quietly.
Wes returned home early from Lily's shopping trip, telling Dru he'd told her it was all right to go home in a cab. He told her how excited Lily was and how nice it was to see her so happy. Dru stopped him and told him they needed to talk. She gently told him she had changed her mind -- the trip to Paris was off. Surprised, Wes asked what was going on and guessed it had something to do with Neil and his drinking problems.
Dru admitted that was partially it, but more than that, Neil was really looking forward to spending time with Lily. She ended her explanation by telling Wes she just had to stay, and he agreed. She began to cry because he was so understanding, and she cried even more once he continued. He told her he wanted to be the one to tell Lily, since he was only slightly less crushed than she would be. Touched, she agreed, and she told him what a great guy he was.
While Dru went to Neil's apartment to tell him about her decision, Lily returned home. Wes immediately sat her down and explained that the trip was off. When she started going ballistic, screaming she'd convince her mother otherwise, he decided to take the blame for the situation. He told her he had screwed up the airplane reservations online and had accidentally booked for the wrong month. He told her all reservations for the holidays were taken and how sorry he was about it. He completed the lie by saying he hoped she could forgive him, and she fell into his arms, crying.
Downstairs, Dru broke the news to Neil that they were staying home, and much to her surprise, he was not happy. He told her there was no reason to stay, especially since he knew it was because she was worried about him drinking again. She asked incredulously if he'd rather they go. He told her yes and that they had his blessing.
Then, the conversation took a turn, and Neil told Dru he had just figured out the real reason she was staying. He surmised out loud that she really just wanted to spend the time with him. With that, he grabbed her and kissed her. She strongly pulled away to stop the kiss. She yelled that she should slap him for that and stormed out.
Phyllis smiled and looked out the window. She sat down at her vanity table, and Jack walked over and surprised her by placing a lovely diamond necklace around her neck. He wished her happy holidays and also a happy anniversary. They reminisced about their wedding one year to the day earlier and talked about continuing the tradition of reading the Christmas story from the Bible. Meanwhile, over at Diane's hotel suite, she read a story to Kyle and looked sadly over at the gift under the tree to Jack from Kyle.
At the ranch, Nikki mentioned to Victor that the children would likely be up soon. Victor looked sad and admitted he wished Victoria and Nick were attending, too. Nikki did her best to cheer him up, even laughingly offering to do a strip tease, but he assured her he would be all right once Noah and Cassie got there.
Noah and Cassie were pouting, angry that Nick was not there with them. Sharon tried to put on a happy face, saying she knew that he would be there soon, and she was certain he would have a very good reason. Cassie got mad, saying Sharon shouldn't try to keep acting like everything was normal because it just wasn't. With perfect timing, Nick walked in with a bunch of packages, which sent everyone, including Sharon, into gales of laughter. They decided to let the children open their gifts, and Nick shyly told Sharon he had something for her, too. He had some of Sharon's special chicken and dumplings and also agreed to have some wine.
The kids were ecstatic over their presents, and Cassie led Noah away for a minute so their parents could be alone. Sharon told Nick how grateful she was that he had stopped by, and he told her of course he wouldn't miss it. He began to ask if the children had doubted that, and she quickly told him she had reassured them. Cassie and Noah reentered the room, and when they asked if Nick could spend the night, he agreed if it was all right with Sharon. Sharon quickly agreed, and everyone was all smiles again.
Victoria and Diego were talking about the Christmas holiday in their motel room, and Victoria started to look sad. He told her the true meaning of Christmas was to be "with the ones you love," and with that, encouraged her to go to the ranch. Nikki and Victor were delighted to see Victoria walk in with bags of presents. She told them she couldn't stay long but did agree to stay until Cassie and Noah got there. Nikki excused herself to leave Victor and Victoria alone. They had an uncomfortable silence and small-talked a bit about work.
When Victoria commented on the tree, she shared with Victor a very special childhood memory of when she'd cut down the tree herself. Seeing her tears, he told her he appreciated her dropping by, and she told him Diego was the one who had insisted she go. At that point, the children arrived, and Victoria was convinced to stay.
Brittany and Raul were spending some tender moments on a park bench in the snow, when a homeless man walked near them. Raul immediately jumped up and said he was going to give the man all his money, and Brittany snidely said, "What are we, the Rockefellers?" Ignoring her, he approached the man and apologized that he only had that small amount of money to offer. The man was extremely grateful, and seeing that, Brittany was touched and gave him her stack of cash as well.
Impressed with Brittany's change in attitude, Raul praised her for her actions. When they sat back down, Brittany told him she was really broke, but she was going to cook a wonderful dinner for him when they got home. She really wanted to do it, not only as a gift to him, but to make things more festive. He told her how happy he was just to be together.
When Brittany and Raul went home, the door was ajar, and they realized someone had broken in. Much to their surprise and chagrin, the thieves had stolen their television, boom box, leather coat, and Raul's cell phone. While both were angry, Brittany suggested they just try to cheer up because she didn't want to spend Christmas -- and their first Christmas together -- filling out a police report. She told Raul they should just count their blessings and went into the kitchen to cook her holiday dinner. When she opened the refrigerator, she realized their food had been stolen, as well. She was especially sad because it was the only thing she had to give Raul for Christmas.
Just then, there was a knock on their door, and it was Raul's parents, armed with gifts and food. When Mrs. Gutierrez said she hoped they weren't overstepping, Brittany jumped up and gave her a very sincere hug. Just a moment later, there was another knock on the door -- this time, it was Brittany's mom. Brittany's first reaction was to ask if her mother was there to rub in the fact that she wasn't in their nice house, but that wasn't the case. Her father walked up with gifts and food, as well, saying her mom had cooked her a special dinner.
Mrs. Hodges commented that Brittany was, as usual, biting the hand that fed her, and Brittany immediately apologized, saying she didn't mean to seem like a brat. Raul was inviting to her parents, and they all decided to eat together. After eating together and joining in pleasant conversation, they all sang Christmas carols.
Due to the Christmas holiday, The Young and the Restless did not air an original episode this day. Instead, an episode from Christmas 1992 aired.
The show resumed Thursday, December 26, where Tuesday's show concluded.
The Abbott family surprised Colleen on her 16th birthday. Traci revealed that they had one other surprise guest, and Billy entered. Colleen was grateful her whole family was there on her account. J.T. called Colleen on her cell phone to wish her a happy birthday. Billy was happy to be home, and all he wanted to do was focus on Mac.
Brittany admitted to Raul that she had changed because of him. Colleen tagged along with Billy and Mac to the coffeehouse, in hopes of running into J.T. J.T. wanted to see Colleen for her birthday, but Brittany advised him to stay away.
Jack noticed something was bothering Ashley, but she told him to focus on his wife and son. Diane refused to let Jack and Phyllis spend the day with Kyle. Jack reminded her of their arrangement and realized Diane was playing hardball. Isabella advised Diane to spend less time worrying about revenge and more time worrying about the strong case the D.A. had against her. She suggested Diane get a good lawyer, and Diane ordered her to leave. Detective Weber arrived, suspecting Diane had set the fire and tried to frame Phyllis.
Nick and Sharon discussed how difficult it was to spend the night in the same house. Sharon threw herself at Nick, but he rejected her. Nikki realized Diego was not a man they approved of but suggested that they mold Diego into someone else. Victor was against Nikki's suggestion that he hire Diego. Sharon ran to Victor and explained that Nick had left again, and her only option was divorce.
Phyllis and Diane bickered after Phyllis showed up at Diane's hotel room to take Kyle for a day of sledding with her and Jack. Diane refused, saying she and her son had other plans. Phyllis warned her that, with the police breathing down her neck to prove that Diane had set the pool house fire, Diane couldn't afford to "play it" that way. She needed to stop using her son to manipulate them and focus on keeping herself out of trouble. She then chided Diane for still wearing the cast on her leg, and Diane challenged her to remove it herself.
Phyllis reminded Diane that she wasn't someone to mess around with and said that Jack was even then meeting with John Silva to see about custody of Kyle. Diane insisted she was innocent of arson and had nothing to worry about. Furthermore, she had no intention of letting her son spend time with a lunatic like Phyllis. Phyllis laughed and said that Diane was the pot calling the kettle black.
Diane said that she hadn't even begun to fight. Phyllis said that one day, when she was Kyle's new mommy and Diane was in prison, she might just be too busy to take Kyle to see his mother. After Phyllis left without Kyle, Diane looked worried and frustrated.
Jack expressed his disbelief to John Silva that Diane wasn't in jail. John pointed out that the evidence against Diane was as circumstantial and risky as it had been against Phyllis. Although he doubted Diane's innocence, he pointed out that the police were not likely to make the same mistake again. They wanted the truth. There was no confirmation that it was Diane on the video buying the paint thinner. She might have been so distraught the night of the fire that she'd thought she had taken a sleeping pill. And she might have been wearing the cast as a ploy to get Jack's sympathy.
John Silva reminded Jack that another custody battle would mean dredging up Phyllis' past and warned him not to take matters into his own hands. Jack insisted that he would do anything to protect his son.
Victor was dismayed when Sharon told him she was considering filing for divorce, since Nick had rejected and humiliated her. He told her it was too soon to give up and comforted her with an embrace. As he left Sharon's house, Nikki was lurking outside and saw him. She then confronted Sharon, questioning her suspiciously about how long Victor had been there and accusing Sharon of playing on his sympathy.
Sharon responded furiously to Nikki's accusations and said Nikki was talking like a woman who'd never made a mistake. Nikki said that she'd never claimed to be perfect, but the disappointment in Sharon's life was of her own creation. Sharon told Nikki that Nikki would no doubt be happy to hear that Sharon and Nick were on the verge of divorce.
Victor went to Nick's office and told him he was taking him off of a high-pressure project because Nick needed to get his priorities straight. Putting his marriage back together should be his primary focus. Nick told his father that he wasn't going to be forced back home by either Sharon or his father. He was sure he understood Sharon better than Victor did, regardless of what Sharon had told Victor about considering divorce.
Victor warned Nick that unless he found it in his heart to forgive Sharon and move on, his family was going to slip away from him. Nick said that his difficulty in accepting the mistakes Sharon had made were no different from Victor's refusal to get past what Diego had done, but Victor disagreed.
J.T. went to Brad and Ashley's house, hoping to get Brad's permission to wish Colleen a happy birthday. Brad wasn't there, but Ashley told him that she couldn't permit it. J.T. had agreed to stay away from Colleen for two weeks to allow Brad to help her settle into her new home. J.T. told Ashley that everyone had the wrong impression of him. He was not interested in Colleen for sex, and most of the college girls he knew were less mature than Colleen. He simply wanted to give Colleen a gift for her sixteenth birthday.
Ashley said J.T. could leave the gift, and she and Brad would discuss it. J.T. said it wasn't something he could leave, although he tried to get Ashley to take a birthday card. Ashley refused and went upstairs to check on Abby after J.T. told her he could let himself out.
At Crimson Lights, Brittany and Raul decided to go home and let Raul catch up with Billy later. Billy and Mac talked to Colleen, who was angry that Billy had warned J.T. to stay away from the coffee shop. She'd merely wanted to see him on her birthday. Billy reminded her that J.T. had made a promise to Brad and needed to keep it. Besides, J.T. was not the kind of guy his niece needed to get involved with. Colleen decided to return home, and Mac left to drive her there.
J.T. showed up at the coffeehouse, which made Billy, who had told him to stay away, angry. The two exchanged harsh words that escalated into a fight. Cody broke them up just as Mac returned. She reminded them that they weren't kids anymore and needed to stop acting like it. While Billy glared at J.T., J.T. left the coffee shop.
Colleen told Ashley how miserable her birthday had been because she'd only wanted to see J.T. She knew they all expected her to be grateful for being there instead of in boarding school, but thanks to their rules, her birthday had been ruined. Ashley urged her to be patient.
When Ashley went upstairs, Colleen found the birthday card from J.T., hidden inside her book. After Ashley left to take Abby to a doctor's appointment, Colleen went outside and read the card. Her misery changed to happiness when J.T. showed up with a guitar to serenade her on her birthday. She was touched by his actions and begged him to stay a little longer, but J.T. said they shouldn't risk it. He kissed her goodbye and left.
