Page 84 of Pining for You

“Okay, last one. For all the marbles. In the category of Christmas music, can someone tell me what Frosty’s nose is made out of?”

I’m so impressed with the question, so tricky that it’s almost playing dirty, that I don’t get to the buzzer fast enough. Cash whacks the red button and shouts, “Carrot!”

My stomach drops. I know he’s wrong, but I don’t want to make him feel bad. It is a tough one.

“That is incorrect!” DeSantos says, and Krista smirks. It is so maddening.

“If the Vixens can nail this one, they will have the victory.”

Cash apologizes and Izaac rubs his back.

But then the Vixens look at one another, and to my great delight, Krista’s smug expression disappears, because it appears that they’re stumped too. The timer ticks down and before they can respond, it hits zero.

“No one? Okay. The correct answer is… a button! A corn cob pipe and a button nose.”

Cash slaps his forehead.

“It’s okay, my friend. Honest mistake,” I tell him. “We’re still tied!”

“Okay, everyone, this is the one for all the marbles. Or, probably more appropriately here, the pinballs. Which, incidentally, sounds like a very painful infection. But I digress. The final category is… Christmas movies.”

“Yesssss, you got this!” Izaac whisper-shouts to me.

I’ve already answered questions related to Christmas in Connecticut, Santa Claus: The Movie (not to be confused with The Santa Clause), and the little-known Star Wars Holiday Special. But now the stakes are profoundly serious.

I take a breath and look out at the crowd. I’m painfully aware of Eve watching me. Not to mention her brother, her cousin, and an entire bar full of strangers. Plus, my own camera is still rolling on the table, recording my success or failure for posterity.

DeSantos lowers their voice for dramatic effect. “Okay, folks. In the 1992 feature-length classic The Muppet Christmas Carol, what does one Mister Kermit the Frog say is standing between him and Christmas?”

I can picture the scene, hear the opening bars of the song. I can practically smell the winter air that surrounded Kermit and those ice-skating penguins that night. But everyone looks to me and when I try to conjure up those lyrics… I freeze.

It feels just like my applications—when the pressure is on, something that should come so easily completely eludes me. Like when it really counts, for some reason I can’t seem to pull it together. My pulse quickens as I try to think. Because that just means you have to find another way, right? Or… learn to ask for help…

The air is thick with the pressure of the crowd’s gaze. The spotlights are white-hot. And ticktocking is drowning out my own thoughts. At any moment, the Vixens could buzz and Eve’s ex could run away with the crown. I feel beads of sweat form on my forehead.

“I should know this,” Eve hisses. “We’ve watched that movie literally a million times!”

I see Hugo in the crowd, eyes glued to his sister, like he’s trying to transmit the answer into her mind. Maybe she got the message, because she starts to reach for the red button, but before she can press, the buzzer sounds from across the stage.

“Krista,” DeSantos says, their focus shifting to the Vixens’ table. “Do you have the correct answer for us?”

Eve sits back and runs a hand through her hair. I can’t tell if she’s relieved that she doesn’t have to try, or furious with herself for not acting faster.

Cash is tapping his foot like a rabbit on a sugar high and I’m holding my breath.

Krista nods proudly, then takes a deep, dramatic breath before leaning into the microphone.

“What is a visit from three spirits?”

“No,” I say, at the same time as Eve shouts, “No! That’s wrong!”

“Of course she thinks I’m wrong,” Krista says. “Next she’ll say I’m cheating.”

“Well, it wouldn’t be the first time,” Eve says now, loud enough for the mic to pick it up, and the crowd reacts with oooohhhhhs.

I feel extra motivated to snatch that crown if the implication is true.

“Okay, things are getting spicy!” DeSantos says, and looks between them, intentionally drawing out the suspense. Then, very slowly they give a verdict.