Page 1 of Mechanic’s Christmas Match

1

ANA

Ana drove through the suburbs, as bare trees danced and shivered against a gray sky.

It was the day before Thanksgiving, and all but the most determined of leaves had blushed and drifted to the ground. But a recent rain brought some of those colors back to life on lawns, and deepened the greens of the pines that dotted the hillside.

Checking the backseat, Ana saw that her nephew Theo was still hard at work, his eyes narrowed in thought and his lips pursed with concentration as he traced his little hand. The four-year-old had learned to use his hand to draw a turkey at preschool earlier in the week, and had been producing them industriously ever since on every scrap of paper he could find around the apartment.

Right now, he was using a magnetic drawing board that was perfect for car trips. Ana’s mom had bought it for him at the toy store just down the street from their dress shop.

“What’s it for, Grandma Mari?” Theo had asked, hopping up and down with excitement when she gave it to him.

Ana’s mom wasn’t technically Theo’s grandmother, any more than Ana herself was his aunt. Theo was the child of Ana’s cousin Trish, on her dad’s side. And when Trish tragically passed earlier this year, Theo had come to Trinity Falls to live with Ana and her mom. Ana had grown up very close with her cousin, and from the time he could talk, Theo had always just called them Aunt Ana and Grandma Mari. It was easier for the little guy than first cousin once removed Ana and Great-aunt Mariangel.

“It’s for drawing in the car,” Mari had answered the boy with a smile.

“Why?” Theo asked, his brown eyes widening.

“Because sometimes you get bored in the car,” Mari said. “Right?”

“Yes,” Theo admitted with an adorably dimpled smile.

“This way you can draw,” she told him. “And you won’t feel bored even when you keep Aunt Ana company. And that will make her feel happy.”

“Why?” Theo asked, his eyes dancing.

“Because your Aunt Ana and I love you so much,” Mari told him, which had him hugging her, and stopped the barrage of questions, for the moment at least.

Ana’s mom never lost her patience when Theo asked why, which he did almost constantly these days. Mari said it was a phase of childhood, one Ana had gone through herself.

But sometimes Ana wondered if he was somehow reflecting back the anguished question she’d asked inwardly so many nights after putting him to bed back in the spring when he had first come to live with them.

Why was his mother taken from him so young?

Why is a toddler allowed to experience such sorrow and confusion?

Why can’t I bring her back to him?

It had been tough, for sure. But over time, Theo had adapted to his new life. Those difficult early days had shifted slowly into a haze of happier ones spent playing in the park and exploring the town.

Ana never realized how much downtime she had until Theo came along to help her fill every moment. She had probably built more memories in the last eight months than she had over the past five years.

Together, they learned what time the library opened and closed, what kind of birds were eating from the feeder her mom had hung on the fire escape of their apartment, and the life stories of all the neighbors Ana had never said more than a polite hello to over the years. They knew what time Mr. Boskins walked his beagle, Clive, when each train would pull into the station in the evening, and the meanings behind the different chimes of the church bells.

Theo’s boundless curiosity had opened up previously hidden facets of Ana’s beloved small town, as if a secret and smaller world existed within the mundane one—a world where you could be surprised when the usual chickadees at the bird feeder were joined by a big blue jay, or where you noticed if Jonah and Martha Kahn didn’t go on their daily walk all week and you wondered where they went and hoped they were okay.

Even the weekly car trip to Philadelphia to buy dressmaking supplies was less of a tiresome chore now, and more like a daring voyage to an unknown land filled with exciting people and things to marvel over.

Just today, they had seen a car pulling another car, a woman in a minivan with three small dogs wearing sweaters, and even a gigantic cement mixer that mesmerized Theo with its ponderous gyrations.

In the city, he had eaten a hot dog from a cart, saying yes to so many toppings that some of them dripped out onto the sidewalk while Ana tried to help him eat it. Why was the relish so tasty, and the sauerkraut so sour, and the ketchup so red? Why was the hot dog wrapped in shiny paper that made a funny, crinkling sound? And why did the man say Howdy there, partner instead of hello? Did he think they were cowboys?

It turned out the world was full of mysteries to explore and Ana had been missing out on most of them until Theo had come along.

Now, they were on the way home. The sun was going down and the car was laden with fabric along with packets of zippers, hooks, eyes, and buttons, big and small.

Ana was looking forward to a home-cooked meal when they got back to the apartment. And she knew her mom would be pleased with her purchases. The change of season meant she could pick up a few bargains on leftover materials they would need for next spring and summer.