“Wedoneed some help decorating,” I offered with a shrug.
Tiffany rolled her lips and nodded, a gentle laugh leaving her. Meanwhile, Maddie looked up at her mom with the biggest puppy dog eyes possible.
“Okay, ten minutes, and then we’re heading home. Do we have a deal?” Tiffany said to her daughter.
“Yes!” Maddie jumped, clapping her hands. She then turned her attention toward our house. “Can we add a unicorn? Oooh, what if we made the house into a unicorn!” she exclaimed with wide eyes.
Lily and I looked at each other with a grin. “That’s a wonderful idea, Maddie,” Lily said. “Where should we begin?”
I wasn’t sure how we were going to turn a gingerbread house into a unicorn, but luckily, Maddie had a vision. As a team, we frosted the sides of the house and added eyes to the front and a horn to the top that was decorated solely with pink M&Ms. Maddie’s hands got messy with frosting pretty quickly…which she then got on her face and hair, but hey, that didn’t stop her from directing us on what to do next.
“It looks soooo pretty!” Maddie beamed.
“You’re a good project manager, Maddie,” I complimented. “We couldn’t have done this without you.”
Maddie tilted her head to the side. “What’s a project…” She trailed off, twisting her lips as her brain worked on how to pronounce the word.
“A project manager is someone who plans and organizes how to do something. They assign tasks to other people on their team and make sure the project is done on time.”
Maddie nodded slowly, taking in the words but not quite understanding.
I tried again. “Like how you told me to work on the front of the house while you and Lily decorated the unicorn horn. Then we all worked on the roof together.”
Understanding dawned on Maddie’s face, and she nodded. “I liked how we all worked together! This is the most fun I’ve ever had building a gingerbread house.” Maddie looked between us. “Did you have fun, Gabe?”
“The most fun,” I responded without giving it a second thought, and it was true. There was something about the complete and utter joy on Maddie’s face as we brought her vision to life that warmed my heart. Not only that, but the screams and squeals from the surrounding kids warmed my heart, too. It was clear how much fun they were having.
I looked first at Maddie and then shifted my gaze to Lily, locking eyes with her, trying to convey without words that I had fun because ofher. As if she read my mind, Lily’s expression softened.
“What about you, Lily?” Maddie turned and gently tugged on Lily’s coat to get her attention.
Lily looked down at the little girl. “I had the most fun, too. I’m so glad you were able to help us. We wouldn’t have been able to do it without you, Maddie.”
“I heard there’s some gingerbread houses for me to take a look at,” a low, booming voice sounded from the entry way.
A chorus of “Santa!” and squeals rung through the room, bouncing off the walls.
In came Hal dressed in a classic crimson Santa suit with a hat, black boots, and beard.
I shook my head with an amused laugh, bringing my hand up to cover the shit-eating smile I had on my face. “Does he do this every year?” I asked Lily, keeping my voice low so none of the kids would hear.
“Duh, it’s Santa. That’s kind of his thing,” she teased with a twinkle in her eye but then shook her head. “Only for the last couple of years. He tries to keep busy during the holidays.” What Lily didn’t say but that was implied was that this had been since Vera’s passing. “Because he’s Hal, one of his favorite ways to stay busy is bringing a smile to people’s faces.”
I looked around, and that’s the only expression I saw. Kids, parents, and community members were grinning at the sight ofnot only Hal but how excited and happy the kids were, including Maddie, who had run up to Hal with her mom following behind.
When Hal looked out into the crowd and spotted me and Lily, his beard-covered smile only widened, followed by a wink.
“It means a lot to him that you’re here,” Lily said softly, and I nodded.
“It means a lot to me, too. It’s been”—I looked over at Lily, the corner of my mouth tipping up as I tried to diffuse some of the emotional tension that was building in my chest—“the most wonderful time of the year.”
She gasped, her eyes wide as she leaned over to grab my arm. “Did…did Mr. Grinch himself quote a classic Christmas song?”
“Maybe I did. What’re you gonna do about it?”
Lily didn’t need any time for her witty response. “Tease you incessantly.”
I playfully narrowed my eyes at her. “You were going to do that anyway.”
