Stodax

Why?

Why must we have these silly small lights on the wall? It is probably part of the decoration for that Christmas thing, but...

Why?

Maybe I'm not happy that she took the risk. She could have fallen, and that's not good.

I stick the lights onto the wall the way she has been doing it. I shiver when music comes from the broadcaster in the bakery. Usually, that's only when we're open for customers, but...

Stupid Christmas thing. There are jingling bells in the music, and it sounds like it's for kids. Why does someone like her enjoy a holiday like that?

I take a breath to calm myself. Maybe it helps sales. Then it will make a lot of sense to be decorating. I need this place to stay in business so she can keep hiring me.

There are low clanging noises from the kitchen from time to time, she should be working, not checking on me. I wonder... She can't be dead or something, otherwise, I'd be in big trouble.

I pinch the bridge of my nose, chanting for me to calm down. It's going to be fine, probably. She told me more than once on multiple occasions that everything's going to be fine, but it still feels like something's going to go wrong.

Even though I remind myself that I'm safe and no one is coming after me, I still can't shake the thought.

Outside the window, it is dark. There are beings on the streets, probably getting off work or heading for dinner. I'm hungry too, but not too hungry to stay working for longer.

I can only hope that she's really fine.

No... I'm a big male and should hold my ground. Except everything I've got is given to me by her.

I could be sleeping in the streets if she didn't hire me.

Logically, I should be able to find another job, but who will hire a ricod like me, after all?

I tape the last inch of the lights, returning my hands to my side. It's going to be fine... After working for her, even if something goes wrong, it will be easier to switch over.

My heartbeat races again, so much so that it feels like I should get off the ladders before I hurt myself.

I do that, and right when I can relax, Zoe shows up behind me. I force a smile, trying to look normal. "Here, I've done as you wanted."

She grins, seemingly oblivious to my thoughts. She checks the lights with the smile remaining on her beautiful face. "Good. Come here, let's turn it on."

I follow her. She is a lot more excited about this than I can ever be.

We arrive at the corner, where the sockets are. There's a button along the wire for the lights. She gestures for me to get closer. "Here, I'll let you light this while I get to light the Christmas tree."

So... There's supposed to be a tree, too?

I don't care for the lights and the tree, but since she's this excited about it... I press the button and the lights on the wall are up. Those are a mix of red and green lights. Along with the warm yellow lighting in the bakery, it looks fine.

"Yes! The bakery is so ready! Come here!" She hurries to the storage room now, not even waiting for me. Maybe we're supposed to get the tree now.

When I'm at the door of the storage room, she's already inside. I look into the room, but she's nowhere to be seen. There are shuffling noises and footsteps, but there are only shelves around me.

"Boss?"

"Yes, I'm here!"

"Where?"

"Come on... Behind the shelf."

"Which shelf?" I try to find her among the tall piles and shelves, but there are things everywhere.

She peeks out of a random shelf. "Here, silly."

"Oh, there you are."

I guess this is the problem with a smaller being.

She rolls her eyes. "Geez, I'm not that short. You're not too tall to see me, huh?"

I resist the urge to hug her. We may have fucked each other, but it doesn't mean we're that close. I want to be closer to her, but not this quickly. I don't want to scare her with my past.

She points at a tall box in the corner. "That's the tree. I'll take it out."

"No, let me." The box is almost taller than her. She may be able to move it, but she doesn't have to do that.

I move through the stacks and piles, making my way over to the box. We don't frequent the shelves when ingredients are stored in the kitchen, within the cupboards and the chambers. This place is such a mess. Now that I think about it, if that box is the tree, maybe the other boxes are decorations for different holidays. I wonder... I've been here for a while, but not the whole year, so...

As long as she is happy, I guess.

I reach the box in the back and lift it. it is heavier than I expected and thicker than it looks from a distance. She would struggle to carry it.

"Yes, that one." She's at the door now, leaving room for me to move the box. "I can't wait to check it out."

I head to the door when she goes to the table in the center, taking one of the boxes she brought in yesterday. She lifts it over her head with a bounce in her steps. I don't get it... The box may be light, but there's no reason to lift it like that. Silly human.

She is at the corner of the storefront, pulling the plug of the smaller fridge that used to stock cold drinks in the summertime. We haven't been restocking it when the main fridge is sufficient now that beings prefer room temperature or warm drinks. She tilts the small fridge to the side and pushes it away. "Here, put the tree here."

I set the box near the corner and open it. The tree is inside a plastic bag. I pull the bag out to reveal the tree itself. There are ropes on it, making it like a giant umbrella.

Zoe says, "Be careful, it may bounce."

"Bounce?" I loosen the ropes and the tree opens. Its branches spread and one almost slaps my face.

She chuckles. "Like this."

"This isn't bouncing, though. It's just... spread."

"Whatever. Now we need the stand for its base." She pulls out a stand from the box and I set that up, too. She picks up the tree, but before she does something silly, I step in and take the tree from her.

She rolls her eyes with her arms folded. "Come on... I can do that myself. I've been doing that all the time before you showed up."

Except I don't care. Even though she probably doesn't need my help, I want to help her, regardless. I put the base of the tree into the stand. It clicks and the tree looks pretty good.

She stands on her tiptoe and fixes the branches. "This looks perfect."

It is a dark green tree with pointy needle-like leaves. There's nothing special about it.

She goes to the other box. "Here, let's get the tree ready."

I thought she said the tree looked perfect.

She pulls out ornament balls that are of various colors, then fluffy bands with different colors, too. There are also small red and white socks with a piece of string on the top. Maybe these are meant to be hung on the tree. Then, there are also the same lights she used for the wall. She rubs her hands together. "Let's get going."

She grabs a chair. I stop her. She groans. "Stop it. I know what you are trying to do, but I have to decorate the tree myself. It's the tradition."

"I'll decorate what should go up there."

She sneers at me. "No."

I take a step back. I suppose I can catch her if she falls... It's not worth it if she kicks me out of the door over a silly tree. "Fine."

"Good." She stands on the chair and gestures for me to hand her the fluffy strands. "Give me the blue one."

"Yes, boss."

She chuckles as she takes the strand from me. She pats my head. This may be the only time she's tall enough to do that. I don't mind. I like it when she smiles.

She says, "Your horns look pretty cool."

I lean forward and tap her hand with my horn. "Don't be silly. Horns are dangerous."

She taps the pointy tip of my horn. My horns are strong and nice ones. While ricods have moved on from fighting or hunting with horns, they are still pointy and sharp. There's a glint of something in her eyes, but before I'm certain that it's there, it fades.

She says, "Good horns, huh?" She wraps the fluffy Christmas band around the tree as if it's a scarf. "Looking nice, huh? Next one."

I give her the red one. These are glittery under the light. It does look joyful. Maybe that's what Christmas means, for beings to be happy and celebrate.

A warmth creeps up in my stomach as I watch her decorate the tree. It... It'll be great to be here working with her. It may be even better if... she's mine.

No. I should stop even thinking about that. She has already given me a lot and I shouldn't want more.

"!"

"Yes, boss." I shudder. Maybe I've missed something.

She lifts her brows at me. "Is everything fine?"

"Yes."

She frowns. "You're worrying me. Are you sick?" She puts the back of her hand on my forehead. "Hm... I've never checked on a ricod, so I won't know if you have a fever."

I shake my head. "I'm perfectly fine. What are you looking to put on the tree?"

"The lights."

"Okay." I pick up the strand of lights and hand her the start of it.

She wraps up the tree too, along with a smile. She's standing on a chair, but we're so close that her sweet scent wraps me up. It must be dumb to keep thinking about that, but I can't stop myself. What if I'm going to ruin everything?

I wince when something taps my forehead.

"Knock knock. Is someone home?"

I rub my temple. What am I even doing?

She says, "Just tell me. What's on your mind?"

"Nothing."

She hisses. "Do I look that dumb?"

"No..." Fuck, I better find a good excuse. "I was thinking about this Christmas thing. What is it for?"

"Oh, I see. It's a human holiday. On that day, we gather with friends and family. Though it's pretty much a time for beings to spend money too. Who doesn't like gifts?"

"I see." Now that I think about it...

I ask, "Are you going to gather with your family on that day?"

Her hand with the lights pauses. "Maybe. I'm not sure."

I thought...

She continues, "They don't live in this city."

"You can just fly there."

"Yeah... I can."

She doesn't seem excited about that, though. Maybe all she likes is to decorate the shop.

She says, "I've been on my own for a while now. Since this bakery opened. Sometimes, they visit me, but not a lot."

"I can take care of the bakery."

She shakes her head. "All is fine. Don't worry about that. How about ricods? Is there a holiday for everyone to visit one another?"

"I think there is."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

I shrug. Even though I look like a ricod, and I am a ricod, part of me doesn't feel like a real ricod. "We don't celebrate anything."

"Okay... But you do visit your family, right?"

Maybe other ricods do, but someone like me... "At times."

She narrows her eyes on me once again. Maybe I'm not that smart, or she's that good at catching my lies.

I shrug. "It's not that important."

She nods. "It's okay if you don't want to tell me. I just want you to know that I'll be there for you if you need help, okay?"

"I'll make sure to show up for work."

"No, that's not what I mean. I care about you, okay?"

I don't understand. "Yeah, I mean, I'd still put out good work."

"No." She stops decorating the tree and turns to me. "I mean, I want to make sure you feel good."

Like... "I said I'll be here for work."

"I don't mean work. Are you playing dumb or something? I mean you, not your work or your job."

What does that even mean? Me, as in... "If you want to get bent over—"

She grunts. "No, not your fucking cock. Geez, what's wrong with you? I mean, I care about you, the ricod, not stuff you do, not your cock, not what the bakery will earn, not all that silly stuff."

I stare at her. I... Like, she cares about me? Me?

She pokes my chest. "This one. I worry about how your heart feels, okay? Do ricods have a word for that? You don't ever talk about something like that. Life's not just about work, okay?"

Oh... Is that a thing? No one cared about how I felt back there, so... I guess it's a thing most beings know about, just not someone like me.

She sighs. "Yeah, looks like you're catching on. While you may think that we're just employer and employee, I care about you more than that. At least like a friend, okay?"

A friend? My heart skips a beat with a surge of warmth inside me. I like that. I've never felt something like that before. "Thank you."

She nods and gets back to putting things on the tree. "Good. Now hand me the stockings."

"Stocks?"

"Well, the red and white socks."

"Ah, okay." I give her a handful. She puts a few on the tree, where she can reach, then she turns around and hangs one on my horn.

She chuckles. "Don't stand here like a statue, put some up on the other side of the tree, make it even everywhere. The stocking and the ornaments, everything but the gold star."

I point at the stocking dangling in front of me. "What's this supposed to mean?"

"It is rumored that Santa will come on the night of Christmas and put your present into the stockings. Kids put one above their bed."

"No way, that Santa guy can't be traveling all the places in a night."

She shrugs. "That's the story about the holiday."

I won't mind if the story is real. I like gifts. Before she can roll her eyes at me, I pick up some of the ornaments and head to the other side of the tree, putting those onto the branches.

If I want her as my gift, I'll need a big stocking.

I want her to be more than friends, but being friends isn't that bad. She's so nice to me that it feels unreal at times. But I try to remind myself that beings here are different and they may not be lying to me just to get me to cooperate.

I peek at her. She's humming a song as she puts up decorations.

Is it wrong to want to be the one making her smile?