16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Walter

Something odd was going on with Shimmersnap. I could have sworn those kids shouted out his name long before they were ever introduced to him, and it was like he knew all of them. They accepted him as someone safe, comfortable, and fun. He was all of those things. But how did they know? How did they all know?

And Santa—Santa had known him, too. Not to mention the bags of goodies that seemed to self-replenish. Just as I was thinking we were running out of gift bags, more would show up. And everywhere Shimmersnap went, sparkles followed like a faint mist, bringing glimmer and glam everywhere he went.

The man couldn’t carry that much glitter around. Well, I supposed he could, but still, it was odd. And now we were driving home together. He had just naturally followed me to my car and gotten in. I didn’t question it. We had to talk more than just the conversation we had had in my office that morning.

Once we were at my house, my gaze immediately went to my mantle. I shook my head. I still couldn’t believe my elf was missing. I really thought I might file a police report, even if they did laugh me out of their office.

“I’m positive that he’ll turn up,” Shimmersnap said as he hung up his coat on the hook as if it belonged there, his shoes—the curly-toed boots made of what had to be real leather—sitting right next to mine. It was cozy. Like this place was just as much his as it was mine.

I liked it.

“Where did you find an elf costume on such short notice?” I asked. He looked down at himself and the boots. “Those look so genuine. Are they real leather?”

“They are standard issue at the North Pole. Well, depending on which Santa you work for.”

“What?” I said, then waved my hand in the air. “I’m not really in the mood for jokes tonight, Shimmersnap. I’m still annoyed about this elf, and I don’t understand how all of the gifts kept replenishing. Can you explain that? It was like there were suddenly more of them each time I turned around. Every time you passed out a bag, two more appeared like some sort of Santa gift hydra.”

“Come to the couch.” He gripped my hand and pulled me along. The two of us sat down on my sofa. It felt comfortable, like something we’d done a bunch of times before, but I was pretty sure that Shimmersnap hadn’t spent that much time in my living room. Yet, this was familiar.

“I’m an elf, Walter. There’s no other easy way to say it. I work for Santa—one of them. There are a hundred or so, something like that. I worked for Santa number fifty-six. In the past I’ve worked for Santa forty-eight and thirty-six. I’m friends with a reindeer. Dancer. He also works for Santa. But he’s mated now. He doesn’t live far from here actually, I think you’d really like him. I’m hoping you can meet him someday.”

I stared at him blankly. “What?”

“Your elf on your mantle. He’s not missing. He’s me. I am him. I was fired from the North Pole for... well, for making things sparkle too much. Not everyone has your appreciation for my glitz and glam. In fact, most of the elves I worked with avoided me, and they never wanted me to build any toys cause they didn’t think I did it right. They said kids didn’t need that much glitter. But everyone needs glitter and sparkle in their life, Walter. Right?”

I laughed. “Okay, that’s a good one, because that definitely fits. Sparkle follows you everywhere. Or maybe that’s just what I see when I look at you. I like your sparkle, Shimmersnap.”

“Thanks, Walter. That means a lot. I made a glittered baseball bat, and Santa wasn’t impressed.”

“Just a glittered baseball bat?”

“Well, I had done a glittered race car, catcher’s mitt, doll with a ton of glittered accessories, play kitchen, and glittered dinosaurs. In my defense, a lot of the kids liked their glittered stuff quite a bit, but still, it was getting messy. Santa told me to stop, but I just can’t.”

“You should never dull your sparkle, Shimmersnap, and that’s why I love you,” I said.

He smiled. “You would never dull my shine. I know that. That’s why you’re perfect.”

I snorted. “I’m far from perfect, Shimmersnap. I’m grumpy and I like to stay home. I have the most boring job, but I actually like it. I go to estate sales for fun.”

“I love all of that. I think you’d like the North Pole. There’s a lot of business stuff that you’d be interested in. It’s not all fun and games.”

“Shimmersnap, let’s be serious. I mean, I do want to know more about you, but this North Pole nonsense is a little over the top.”

His brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

I squeezed his hand. “I appreciate you trying to cheer me up. But claiming to my elf and that you work at the North Pole is a little extreme. It sort of feels like you’re teasing me about the elf.”

“I don’t work at the North Pole. I was fired for being too sparkly. You don’t believe me?”

I laughed. “I believe that you could be fired for being too sparkly—not that I agree with that, I love your sparkle. But the North Pole? Shimmersnap, be serious.”

“I am.” He pulled his hand away. “I’m an elf from the North Pole. I worked with Santa.”

My irritation rose and my cheeks heated. This wasn’t funny, and it had the feeling of a high school prank. “Cut it out, Shimmersnap. If you’re making fun of the fact that I like my elf figurine, that’s just not nice.”

“I’m not. I am the elf figurine.” His face contorted with sorrow, and I began to second-guess what I knew as fact.

There was no North Pole. No Santas. Elves weren’t real. I dug in my heels. Who knew that Shimmersnap was such a good actor. “Sure. Listen, if you’re just going to make fun of me, you can go.”

“What?” The sadness in his voice tugged at my heart.

“You can go. Leave. I’m not in the mood to be teased about my elf.”

“Walter. I’m not teasing! I am your elf. We watched movies together. You got me at an estate sale. Your friend thought you were crazy because you don’t like knick-knacks. You brought me home and put me on the mantle. In July there was a holiday movie marathon and you and I sat together and watched Elf. You talked to me!”

I stood up, putting some distance between us. His touch was a distraction I didn’t need right now.

“How did you learn all that? Did you spy on me? Am I on some sort of prank show? Seriously, Shimmersnap, this isn’t funny.” I ran a hand through my hair. “I really think you should go. I… I need to think and... I don’t really know what I need actually.”

Shimmersnap curled in on himself, and I felt like the lowest of life forms.

“Shimmersnap—”

“I’ll go,” he said. “I should have found a better way to explain all of this. But I swear to you I am not lying. I meant what I said earlier, I want to be with you. You’re… You’re it for me. The one I’ve been looking for for a long time. No one else has ever just accepted me, sparkles and all.”

I stood in silence as he stood. He gave me one last, sorrowful look, then he disappeared into thin air. Leaving just a cloud of glitter where he once stood in front of me.

I didn’t see him put on his shoes, but they were no longer at the door, as if they had disappeared with him.

Magic.