I motioned to the seating in front of my desk before plopping into my office chair. Kris remained standing, forcing me to crane my neck to look him in the eyes. “Kris, here at Pavilion Grand Mall we are known for a level of excellence and while I’m sure you’d make a great Santa, I don’t think you fit into our overall aesthetic.” I was trying my best to choose my words wisely. I’d never had to fire someone before.
The phone on my desk rang. It was Chloe.
Holding up a silencing finger, I smiled apologetically before answering the phone. “Hello,” I said, pressing the receiver to my ear.
“I spoke with the guy from Let Us Entertain You and he said they don’t have any replacement Santas.” Chloe announced from the other end.
“What?”
“He said it’s the start of the Christmas season and finding a Santa this late in the game would be damn near impossible.”
My face was lined with concern. We open in three hours; there was no way I could wrangle an alternate Santa in time. “Thank you for checking.”
“Operation replace a brother not going so well?” Kris asked.
I released a nervous laugh. “Replace? No. We are so excited to have you onboard as our jolly big guy. The kids are going to love you.” If I was being honest so would most of the moms. This man was unlike any Santa Claus I’d ever visited. He was mountainous and with his strong upper body, he looked like he could spend hours wrangling reindeers or carry a sack filled with elf-made toys from home to home without breaking a sweat. He had a warm smile that caused his eyes to crinkle at the corners, which the kids would appreciate.
Last year’s Santa was a bit of a dud. He liked to nick a sip from his flask at the most inopportune moments. So this year was all about redeeming myself. Baby-faced Santa needed to bring it or I’d never hear the end of it.
“Shall I give you a tour?” I popped up from my seat and headed out of my office with Kris close on my heels.
“So how long have youbeen with Pavilion Grand?” I asked, as I tried my best to keep up with Belen, who was practically power walking through the empty mall.
“This is my third year.”
“How do you like it?”
“Well enough, people are nice. What about you? How long have you been dressing up as the big guy?”
“This is my first time, actually.”
Belen stopped in her tracks, her eyes narrowing to a glare. I sensed she was none too thrilled with my response. Clearly, she was hoping for someone older and plumper, but she was stuck with me.
“I mean … I dressed up as Santa for an office Christmas party once.”
“Oh yeah, how did that go?”
I scratched at my thick beard. “Uhm … a lot of intoxicated women confessing they wanted me under their Christmas tree. And someone threw up in my shoe.”
“In your shoe?” Belen asked, resuming her Olympic lap around the mall.
“Basically, I took off my shoes and someone barfed in it.”
“Well here at Pavilion Grand, we ask that you keep your shoes on at all times.”
“Got it, the Grand doesn’t support bohemian lifestyles.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, why a mall Santa? Doesn’t that contribute to the bastardization of the holiday season?”
“No not at all. Santa is synonymous with Christmas. Dating all the way back to what we now consider Turkey. We’re talking fourth century. And believe it or not some scientists think he looked more like me than the chubby-cheeked dude we are familiar with today.”
“Why do you know that?” Her brows knitted together.
“I have a lot of free time and I like to read.”
“So the concept of Santa, whose only purpose is consumerism, you’re okay with?”
“That’s a popular misconception. Santa made homemade toys for the children in the village out of wood and burlap.”
