Chapter Fifteen

Bobby

It was my last day at the mall—the last day Santa would be there, taking pictures, listening to lists, and…getting grumpy. Santa had been so jolly at the start of the month, but now that it was Christmas Eve, his jolliness had been depleted. He was done. D-O-N-E.

I didn’t think the kids noticed. Most of them were so sugared up and excited about Santa that they barely stuck around long enough to give him their entire list. But I sure noticed, and I was ready to take off my uniform costume for the last time—at least for this year. Even if the money situation for me was better next year, I probably would do this gig again.

It had been fun and, when all was said and done, it was the reason I found Nick. What was not to love? Maybe I’d even get a promotion to Elf. That could be fun.

When I got to the parking lot, Nick was pulling in, too. We walked in together. He was carrying a large take-out bag with our dinner, and I was there for it. My stomach had been growling for the past hour. Best of all, the bag was nondescript, with no restaurant name on it, which meant it was Chinese—my favorite.

“How was work?” He held the outside door open for me.

“I don’t know, really. It was wild and chaotic because Christmas Eve, but also…I kind of wish it wasn’t over just yet.”

I unlocked my door, and we went inside. Not for the first time, I was sad at how tiny my shower was. I needed to get clean, but I didn’t want to leave Nick long enough to do so. In the end, there wasn’t an option. I was stinky, and I wanted to be all cuddled up with Papa. A shower was my only option.

When I came out, Nick had set the food containers on the counter. He’d even taken out a plate for him, and it was sitting beside a dish I didn’t recognize. When I looked more closely, I realized why—it was Christmas-themed divided dish, and I loved it.

“Papa, did you get me a new plate?” I bounced on my toes.

“I did. And there’s a matching sippy cup.”

I squealed and hugged him tight. “I’m gonna go real fast and get my clothes on!”

“Okay, you do that,” he said with a quick peck on my lips.

I ran off to change into my raccoon pajamas—the ones he’d given me. We didn’t have any real Christmas Eve plans, deciding that Christmas would be our day to do the celebrating. But that didn’t mean we weren’t going to spend some time together tonight and have fun. And if that meant Christmas jammies, then that meant Christmas jammies.

“Did you get chicken nuggies?” I walked over to the counter.

They weren’t really chicken nuggets—they were sweet-and-sour chicken without the sauce—but he knew what I meant.

“Of course I did. And I got you crab rangoons and noodles.” Noodles being the pork lo mein I loved. He’d really gone out of his way to get the perfect dinner, and I was there for it.

We ate standing by the counter. There wasn’t really enough space to eat anywhere else unless one of us sat on the bed, which was hardly ideal.

I was in a weird spot as far as my apartment went. I hadn’t handed my paperwork to the landlord, but I also hadn’t told them no. Someone down the hall did the same thing last month, and when they didn’t sign, they were offered a three-month lease at the same price. I was kind of holding out for that. It would be easier than needing to move right at the New Year and much better than paying so much more in rent. And I hadn’t found anything worth taking that wasn’t more expensive than I wanted. A three-month lease was perfection. Maybe I should’ve asked Santa for that before he got all grumpy.

“Papa, this is the perfect dinner.” I grabbed another piece of chicken.

“I’m glad you like it. I brought some other things for you for after dinner too.”

“How did you do that? You only had the takeaway bag.” I was there. I watched him come all the way in.

“That’s where you’re wrong.” He pointed to his backpack against the wall.

I hadn’t even seen him wearing it. He wasn’t a backpack kind of guy, so I probably should have noticed. I was too busy drooling over the Chinese food, I guessed.

“Were you being tricky, Papa?”

“Tricky or filled with the Christmas spirit. One of the two.”

“It was Christmas spirit.”

I set my now-empty plate in the sink. I was eager to see what else he’d brought but clung to my Christmas sippy cup. He asked me three times if I was sure I was done eating and not stopping because I was worried about prezzies. I promised him I was. Besides, there was plenty of food to go back to later, including the more traditional Chinese dishes I hadn’t touched yet.

“Well, go sit down on your bed or your beanbag chair, then.” He ruffled my hair.

More than once, Papa had told me I needed to get a couch, but there wasn’t room for it. We went to his place sometimes, but with my schedule, this apartment tended to be easier with that one caveat. Either we were sitting on the bed together, or we were sitting on the bed together. If I stayed here, I needed to reevaluate the furniture situation. Maybe a lounge chair would do?

I grabbed Rooney and plopped into my chair, which was angled more like a bed currently. Papa pulled out a box wrapped in paper covered with tiny Rudolphs.

“Now, I know we’re doing presents tomorrow, but this is a Christmas Eve present. Which means, you can open it today.”

I wasn’t sure where that logic came from, but I wasn’t going to argue with it if it meant I got to open my gift now. I took a long sip from my cup, set it down, and grabbed the present. The paper was almost too adorable to rip, but my excitement made the decision for me. I tore it open with abandon.

Inside the box was a movie, some microwave popcorn, folded-up popcorn boxes, a box of my favorite candy, and a little stuffed popcorn box from my favorite stuffie company. I’d seen them in bookstores, hugged them, and wanted to take them home, but I could never justify the price.

Now, not only did I have one, but it was the cutest thing I’d ever seen.

“Are we having a movie night, Papa?”

“We are.” He took the DVD collection out of the box.

I was probably one of the only people in the city who still had a DVD player, but of course, Papa knew that and planned accordingly.

“This is a collection of all the Christmas ‘classics,’” he said, putting the word all in quotes. “There are some cute ones missing, but there’s a lot here. We can watch movies all night long if we wanted to.”

I had other things I’d rather do if we were staying up all night, but movies sounded fun…at least for a little while.

“Do you want your snacks now?”

I shook my head. “My tummy’s still full from dinner. Can we watch on the bed so I can snuggle you, Papa?”

“Yeah, I’d like that a lot.”

He turned off the light over the stove, put the DVD in the player, and climbed into bed with me. I snuggled up close, hugging him tightly as the opening credits rolled.

I wasn’t sure what it was about the moment—all the sweet planning that went into it, the feel of his arms around me after a long, hectic season, knowing this was the first Christmas I’d had any joy in years, or what.

But as I looked up at him, the words flowed from my mouth. “I love you, Papa.” They felt natural and true and perfect.

When he met my eyes, he said, “I love you, my sweet Bobby, so very much.”

I snuggled back into him as The Night Before Christmas filled the screen. It was officially Christmas, and I was spending it with Papa. What more could a little ask for?