For what may have been the first time in her life, Emma woke before the sun was in the sky. She didn't pull the covers over her head or try and fall back asleep. She got up and ran down the stairs. The living room was quiet, the only light coming from the twinkling lights of the tree. Emma's eyes went wide at the stack of presents that spilled out from underneath. There was a fleeting thought of letting her parent's sleep, but the waiting presents pushed it quickly from her head.
She tiptoed quietly down the downstairs hall to the master bedroom to wake her father. She knocked and the not quite closed door pushed open.
"David," She said just above a whisper as she peeked into the room.
"Emma? Is something wrong?"
Hearing his voice, Emma's excitement carried her fully into the room.
"It's morning, and there are presents. Loads of them."
There was a rustling of blankets and whispering as the table lamp next to the bed came on. Emma stopped in surprise as her mother's face peered sheepishly out from behind David's shoulder. It took only a moment for Emma to realize the implication. The couple expected her to shy away in embarrassment from the childhood trauma of discovering your parents in bed together, but instead she jumped up on the bed, even more ecstatic than she had been about the gifts under the tree.
"It worked; the mistletoe worked. I knew it would."
David laughed as he pecked the cheek of the woman next to him. "Yes, I suppose it did work."
Mary Margaret sat up and took the girl's hand. "Are you okay with that, Emma?"
"Oh yes, very much." The girl said, "but can we open presents now?"
David grabbed up Emma and began to tickle her as Mary Margaret's melodic laughter filled the room.
"You want to open presents? How do I know you're even my daughter? She never opens her eyes before the sun rises."
"Stop," Emma giggled as she rolled and tried to push his hands away from her belly.
"I'll stop when you admit you're an impostor. Those presents are for my sleepyhead princess. What did you do with her?"
"I'm her, I promise," she replied, barely able to breathe through the laughter.
"David stop, she's had enough," Mary Margaret pleaded playfully.
David relented at her request. He sat on the edge of the bed and his little blonde monkey jumped on his back.
"Let's go open presents then," he said as he piggy-backed her to the family room.
Mary Margaret opened the curtains. A hint of snow covered the tree branches from last night's snowfall. The dark sky was beginning to see a sprinkling of pink and gray as the sun rose. Emma dance around impatiently while David started a blaze in the fireplace to take the chill from the room. The trio sat together on the carpet in front of the dazzling tree as Mary Margaret took the job of passing out the gifts one at a time.
She started by handing Emma a stocking full of chocolate candies, stickers, colored pencils, drawing paper, and fruit-flavored lip gloss before moving on to the wrapped boxes. Emma got a scrabble game and a dictionary from Mary Margaret and a Karaoke machine from David. There was a bright red snow jacket and black leather lace-up boots in packages labeled, from Santa.
"He must want me to look like him," she commented with an amused chuckle, but she loved the boots. She remembered eying them on the shopping trip with Mary Margaret, but they'd been so expensive she hadn't even dared touch them. Somehow, Mary Margaret must have noticed.
Mary Margaret handed her and David boxes wrapped in matching paper.
"These are from me."
They ripped them open at the same time and pulled out matching blue stocking caps. David's had Sheriff embroidered in yellow on it and Emma's said Deputy.
"I love it," David commented as he tried it on.
"Did you make these yourself?" Emma asked.
"Yes. I taught myself years ago how to knit, but I haven't done it in forever and I needed to practice so I made those."
Mary Margaret reached under the tree for a square box wrapped in shiny silver foil with a soft pink ribbon. She handed it to Emma.
"This is why I needed to practice."
There was a small card attached written in Mary Margaret's elegant penmanship.
To remind you that you carry my love with you always. Mom.
Emma shyly kept her head down so the emotion wouldn't overwhelm her as she opened the gift. Inside was her baby blanket. The hole Emma had ripped in it was repaired. You couldn't even tell it had ever been there. The girl brought it to her face, inhaling the scent that brought her comfort, and encouraged her throughout the years.
"You fixed it. I thought it was ruined forever Thank you."
"You're welcome," Mary Margaret said, hoping the girl would recognize it as a symbol Mary Margaret intended. Of her mother re-stitching the hole which life had torn in Emma's heart.
"I think it's time for Mary Margaret to open one," David said before the sentiment got too much for everyone.
He picked up a small gift bag from under the tree.
"This is from me."
Mary Margaret pushed aside the tissue paper to discover a white glass ornament with three gold interconnected hearts painted on it. It was engraved with the year and the words: Our First Christmas.
"It's beautiful, David." She leaned over to kiss him before standing to place it on the tree.
While Mary Margaret and Emma were admiring the new ornament, David snuck out to the garage. He returned carrying the brand-new sled tied with a big red ribbon.
"This one was too big to wrap," he announced as he set it down.
"Are you serious?" Emma said incredulous. "You got me a sled after I crashed the last one?"
She ran to David and wrapped her arms around him. People rarely trusted Emma the first time around, much less willing to give her a second chance.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you," she squealed in delight. "I promise I won't crash it or ride it without your permission."
"You are very welcome, Princess." He kissed the top of her head. "And do try not to crash it," he added with a smile and a wink, "or I'm afraid we will both be in the doghouse with your mother."
Emma looked nervously over at Mary Margaret, but to her relief she was smiling. She playfully pointed her finger at David.
"I would never blame, Emma, but you would most certainly be in trouble."
The floor was littered with torn Christmas wrapping, but there was one more slim gift under the tree. Mary Margaret picked it up.
"This is the last one, Sweetheart. It's from your father and I together."
This time Emma opened the gift slowly, wanting to savor the last moments of Christmas morning gifts.
"Holy crap, it's a phone." Emma's hand slapped over her mouth the moment the words left it.
"Emma, language." Her stunned mother light-heartedly admonished her, while her father tried to hide his grin.
"I'm sorry." Emma looked at her sheepishly. "It's just this is so awesome. No one I know has a phone, not even the older kids."
Emma touched the screen and it lit up with the family photo David had taken at last night's Christmas festival.
"I set that as your lock screen," David told her. "And I saved mine and Mary Margaret's phone numbers in your contacts."
Her mother scooted next to her so their shoulders touched. "You can call us anytime you want to, day or night."
"Yes," David agreed, "So that even if we have to separate for a little while, we never lose each other again."
"And you'll call me too?"
"Every day," David assured her.
"I'll probably call you so much that you'll want to block my number," Mary Margaret teased.
All the presents opened, the brunette began to gather up the discarded wrapping paper and David went to get a trash bag.
"Wait, we're not finished," Emma said.
"I'm sorry Sweetheart, we've opened all the gifts."
"Not the ones from me."
"Emma, you didn't have to get us anything."
"Of course, I did. I wanted to, it's our first Christmas."
She hoped up and went to the foyer where her backpack hung on the coat rack. She unzipped it and retrieved a manila envelope she had gotten from the sheriff station. She brought it to David.
"This is for you."
He opened the metal brads and pulled out a drawing of the two of them together. David had his arm around her. They were leaning against the patrol car. She had drawn him in a red shirt wearing his holster with his badge clipped to his belt. Emma had yellow hair that framed her face in gentle curls. She wore her own badge pinned on her shirt. Handcuffs dangled from her waist.
"Your eyes are a little crooked, and my head is too big," Emma said a little self-consciously.
"It's absolutely perfect. I'm going to frame it and put it on my desk."
Emma smiled, happy at the thought of that.
"Mary Margaret's present is upstairs. It might take me a bit, but don't come up, you two have to wait down here, okay."
Emma ran up the stairs. Mary Margaret admired the drawing she had done for David while she was gone.
"This is really special, David."
"I know. We have a really great kid, don't we?"
"The greatest, she agreed."
They finished cleaning the paper mess while Emma was still upstairs.
"I wonder what's taking so long?" Mary Margaret commented.
"I don't know, but I know what to do while we wait."
He took her by the shoulders and moved her until she was under the mistletoe and leaned in to kiss her. As the kiss ended, he opened his eyes and noticed Emma standing at the top of the stairs.
"Mary Margaret, look," he whispered.
The woman turned and lost her breath at the sight before her. Her beautiful daughter looked like a fairytale princess awaiting her entrance to a ball standing there Tears filled the mother's eyes and she was completely speechless as her daughter slowly descended down the steps. She was wearing the raspberry-colored dress that Mary Margaret had tried to talk her into buying during their recent shopping trip. At the time the girl had refused any suggestion of a dress. It was paired with silver sandals with a small heel. Her hair had been brushed until it was shiny and curled in loose ringlets. A light pink blush had been applied to her cheeks with a matching hint of color on her lips.
"Oh, baby, you're so beautiful," Mary Margaret finally managed to rasp out as Emma reached the bottom of the stairs. "Did you know about this?" she asked David.
"Not at all."
"Ruby helped me with it. I told her what I wanted to do, and she bought the dress and shoes. She and Granny said I could help out at the diner to pay for it. The she loaned me the makeup and her curling iron. She showed me how to do it all."
Mary Margaret touched the back of her hand to the girl's rosy cheeks and ran it gently through the radiant curls.
"You did this all for me?"
"I knew how much you wanted it. How sad you were that you never got the chance to dress me up in fancy clothes."
"Oh Emma, my sweet girl, this is such a special gift. I love that you were willing to do this to make me happy, but I need you to know that you never have to change who you are or how you dress to please me. I love you, Emma, just the way you are."
"I don't mind dressing up, it's kind of nice…every once in a while."
"I can live with that."
"How about I take a picture of you two?" David questioned.
"I'd love that," Mary Margaret said. "Let me go get dressed really quick."
"No way," Emma said with delight. "I'll probably never get another chance for a photo with you in pajamas and me all dressed up."
Mary Margaret smirked, but she allowed the picture and then suggested a portrait of Emma alone, already planning where she would hang it in her home. Then both she and David got dressed so they could take a family shot in front of the Christmas tree.
The rest of Christmas passed like a blur as the family ticked off all the things on Mary Margaret's perfect Christmas list trying to make each one last, but the more they tried the faster time seemed to move in the awareness that tomorrow was a day none of them wanted to face.
After breakfast they attended Christmas service. Everyone stared when they entered. Gossip and rumors had been going around non-stop about the three of them since Emma got to town. Normally Emma would glare back, but with David's arm around her and her hand in Mary Margaret's, all those curious stares couldn't hurt her. Her parent's love was stronger than any walls Emma had placed around her own heart.
When they returned to the farm, Mary Margaret busied herself in the kitchen preparing food to bring to Granny's later. David and Emma took her new sled out for a test run. It was big enough that he could sit behind her and help her learn to steer. They stayed far away from any trees. The funniest sight was Wilby running behind them, kicking up snow in every direction as he chased the sled down the hill.
When they were cold and hungry, they returned to the house. Mary Margaret had hot chocolate and sandwiches waiting. They sat by the warm fire and ate their lunch. In the afternoon, they watched Mary Margaret's favorite classic Christmas movies. Well Mary Margaret watched them, David and Emma napped on the sofa.
Around six o'clock they left for Granny's. All the tables had been pushed together to form one long table. More than a dozen people showed up. Emma learned that Granny hosted this party every year for people in town who were alone on Christmas. Emma recognized a few of them, and Mary Margaret introduced her to the rest. Ruby was there of course, and Graham had come. There was a man named Leroy whose name she recognized from talk at the sheriff station. Belle, the town librarian, Tink, who owned the dance studio, Tom Clark, Doctor Hopper, Marco…Emma would never remember all these names. There was one other child present, a girl named Paige and her father Jefferson. Together, the group formed an odd family of sorts, and they had taken Mary Margaret in after her father had died six years ago.
The table was covered with food. The smell of fresh baked pies permeated the room. The meal was full of jokes and laughter. They were a jovial bunch, enjoying the blessings they had, instead of bemoaning what they were missing. They reminded Emma of some of the kids in the group home. The ones for whom the system, with all its flaws, was better than the home they'd been born into. Those kids created a family for themselves with others like them, family whose bond was stronger than blood. These people had that, and Emma felt like she belonged.
After dinner, when all of them were too stuffed to even think of dessert, they moved the tables and turned on the jukebox. Marco had changed out the recordings to that it played Christmas music. There was a gift exchange game where one gift at a time was opened and people could steal gifts from each other to try and get the one they wanted. Then there was dancing.
The whole group laughed as they formed a dance line to the song Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree. When the song ended some continued dancing, while others headed to replenish their drinks, or chat in small groups. Mary Margaret was admiring the new wolf charm that Graham had given Ruby for her bracelet when she felt arms go around her from behind.
"Mind if I steal her away for a dance, Ruby?" David asked.
"No, you two go ahead," Ruby said as she retreated to a booth where Belle and Dr. Hopper were talking.
David twirled her around and took her hand in his, swaying her to the sounds of Nat King Cole's, The Christmas Song. Mary Margaret leaned in and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Tired?"
"Just a little," she hummed.
"Should we go home?"
"I don't want this night to end."
Mary Margaret snuggled in closer. David stopped dancing and put both his arms around her, his cheek resting on the top of her head.
"I know, Darling, I know."
He squeezed her tight and kissed the top of her head and then stepped back and placed a hand on her cheek.
"How about we take our daughter home and spend our last few moments just the three of us?"
Mary Margaret agreed. They found Emma seated at a table with Leroy and his buddies.
"Hey Monkey, ready to go?"
"They're teaching me how to play poker. They let me play with candy because I didn't have any real money and look," Emma pointedly excitedly at the pile of chocolate candy and coins in front of her, "I'm winning."
"That's great, but it's time to go."
"No fair, you can't take her when she's winning," complained Leroy. "You have to give us a chance to get back what we've lost."
David raised his eyebrows at the gruff man and picked up Emma's winnings, stuffing them into his jacket pockets.
"I'm the Sheriff and you're teaching my daughter to gamble. You're lucky I don't arrest you."
Leroy threw his cards on the table. "Yeah, well I think your kid is really a card shark and she's been playing us this whole time."
Emma smiled, "it's called a hustle."
David burst out laughing and took Emma's hand. The three of them walked out the door as Leroy muttered curses under his breath, but he had to admit he liked that kid.
Back at the farm they had cocoa and cookies and laughed until their sides hurt as they watched Elf on TV. Emma fell asleep on the sofa with her head on Mary Margaret's lap. David got up and carried the mugs to the kitchen, then came back. He bent down to pick up Emma, but Mary Margaret stopped him.
"Not just yet, I want to sit here awhile and hold her."
Mary Margaret was running her hand along Emma's back and through her soft hair. David sat down on the coffee table next to where Mary Margaret's feet were propped up. He lifted her feet onto his lap.
"I think we did it," he said as he massaged her socked feet. "It's been the perfect Christmas don't you think?"
"It's been pretty great. How are we going to top it next year?" she laughed.
"I don't think we have to. Emma doesn't need some perfect Christmas like you read about in storybooks, she just needs love. That's what makes it perfect, more than the lights, and the tree, and the gifts, it's us being together."
"And you think we'll be together next Christmas?"
He reached out and gently touched the top of Emma's head.
"I'm sure of it."