Chapter 2
Christmas Eve
The Christmas Song by Nat "King" Cole
Chestnuts roasting, on an open fire,
Jack Frost nippin' at your nose,
Yule tide carols, being sung by a choir,
And folks dressed up like Eskimo's, everybody knows,
A turkey, and some mistletoe,
Will help to make the spirit bright,
Tiny tots, with their eyes all aglow, will find it hard to sleep, tonight,
They know that Santa's on his way,
He's loaded lots of toys, and goodies on his sleigh,
And every mother's child, is gonna spy,
To see if reindeer really know how to fly,
And so I'm offering this simple phrase,
To kids from one, to ninety-two,
Although it's been said, many times, many ways,
Merry Christmas, to you,
And so I'm offering this simple phrase,
To kids from one, to ninety-two,
Although it's been said, many times, many ways,
Merry Christmas . . . to . . . you .
The next morning, Ron was frantic with worry, it was Christmas Eve, and he still hadn't found a gift for Kim, and the bad part was there were no stores open today,
'Great, out of the frying pan, and into the fire,' Ron thought savagely, as he walked through the snow covered streets of Middleton, hoping to find something open today, 'KP's gonna have my head on a pike for procrastinating again .'
As Ron walked slowly up Main Street, he saw a small corner jewelry shop, he looked up, and read the sign :
T.J.'s Jeweler's, since 1900, the best in Middleton
As Ron looked further, he couldn't believe his luck,
'They're open, slammin' !' he thought as he walked in, and brushed the snow off his peacoat,
"Good morning, young man, may I help you ?" asked an elderly gentleman behind the counter,
"Please tell me you can help me, I'm looking for a special gift for a special woman ." Ron said, desperation in his voice,
"I'll try my best . . . now tell me . . . just what is it you want to find this special woman ?" the jeweler asked,
"Hang on a sec," Ron said, reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out a picture of Kim that she had given him the other day, "this is the woman, and I'm looking for something that will tell her how much I love her ."
"She is a very beautiful young woman . . . now, let's see if we can find something ." The jeweler said, disappearing behind a curtain, and returning s few seconds later with a white jewelry box, when he opened it, Ron's mouth flew open, inside it was a stunning platinum and emerald necklace,
"I made this necklace several years ago, but I never found someone it would work for, I think you'll find it'll go with your girl quite nicely ." the jeweler said, a smile tracing his wizened features,
"It's beautiful, I'll take it," Ron said, as his eyes scanned the cabinet in front of him, they fell upon a beautiful diamond ring, sitting high above a stunning wedding set, "what about this ?" he asked suddenly, the jeweler let out a soft chuckle, and smiled,
"Ah, yes, that would actually be the ring this necklace was designed to go with." the jeweler said, his smile still firmly in place,
"That's an engagement ring, isn't it ?" Ron asked, his eyes never leaving the beautiful ring,
"Yes, it is," the jeweler said, "I designed it when I made this necklace ."
"Do you have this in a set, with the wedding band, and the men's ring ?" Ron asked, his interest piqued,
"Not originally . . . but for you, my boy, I can work something out, which one's would you like ?" the jeweler said, his smile never leaving his face,
"I'd like the engagement ring in a size 4 if you got it, and I'd like that band there," Ron said, pointing to a beautiful platinum band below it, with a matching men's band next to it, "in a 4, and the men's ring in a size 9."
I happen to have those in stock, I'll get them right away ." the jeweler said, once again disappearing back behind the black curtain again, and coming out with two more boxes in his hand,
"Thanks, now, about the price ?" Ron asked, looking at the jeweler, expecting these to cost him most of his Naco royalties,
"Not a problem, dear boy . . . for the price, shall we say . . . fifty dollars ?" the jeweler said, this had the effect of sending Ron's brain reeling, he knew that platinum was far from cheap, and here, this gentleman was practically giving it away,
"For the whole thing !" Ron asked, hardly believing his own ears,
"Why not, it's Christmas, dear boy, and I make all of these by hand . . . it costs very little to make, and I do enjoy seeing young couples having a happy holiday ." the jeweler said,
"You got a deal, sir ." Ron said, laying a one hundred dollar bill on the counter,
"Why thank you, and good luck to you with your girl ." the jeweler said, preparing to hand the boxes to Ron, who stopped the gentleman,
"If it's not too much trouble, could I get the necklace gift wrapped, her favorite color is green . . . but only if it isn't too much trouble ." Ron said, looking at the jeweler, expectantly,
"No trouble at all ." the jeweler said, taking back the largest of the boxes, and pulling out a beautiful emerald green piece of wrapping paper, he quickly, and expertly wrapped the gift, and tied it all up in red ribbon, he took out a blank card, and looked at Ron, waiting for him to say what the card should read,
"I'd like the tag to read; To Kim, from Ron, Merry Christmas, sweetheart ." Ron said, reality dawning on him,
"You wouldn't by chance happen to be Ronald Stoppable, would you ?" the jeweler asked, sudden comprehension coming over his face,
"Yeah, I am, I'm not in trouble, am I ?" Ron asked nervously, the jeweler laughed at the nervousness of his client,
"Hardly, my boy . . . I just wanted to know if a true hero was in my humble shop, that is all ." the jeweler said, smiling as he handed the wrapped package back to Ron,
"Well, Kim's more of a hero than I am, I tend to shy away from the publicity, not much for it ." Ron said, tucking the package into a small bag under his arm,
"It's the ones that do good deeds without thanks that are the heroes, my boy," the jeweler said, his tone a little more serious that before, "Ms. Possible does great things, and I can tell that she is uncomfortable about the publicity she gets, but you have always been there with her, every step of the way . . . cherish what you both have ."
"Thanks, by the way, how long have you been here ?" Ron asked, forgetting the sign outside of the shop,
"We have been here for over a century now . . . your Great Grandfather was helped by mine for the very same thing . . . it's a shame that nothing ever came of it, that necklace and ring were designed after the ones that Jonathon Stoppable bought for Miriam Possible ." the jeweler said,
"Wow, talk about deja-vu ." Ron said, looking amazed at this startling piece of information,
"Indeed . . .I wish you better luck than those two poor souls had ." the jeweler said, his face showing traces of sadness,
"Out of curiosity, were the originals ever given to Mim, or are they still here ?" Ron asked, thinking about the sad tale of Kim's great aunt, and how she left Middleton, shamed, and alone .
"Sadly, Jonathon was never able to give them to her, he was a friend of the family, they were buried with him when he passed away, I was a child when he died ." the jeweler said,
"How well did you know Grandpa Jon, I never saw him, outside of some pictures in the family album, and he was always sad, that the pictures were from much later in his life ." Ron said, looking at the jeweler with interest,
"I knew him quiet well as a child, he was a wonderful man, and he would be very proud of you . Just to let you know, even after he married, his heart always remained with Miriam, he loved her . . . more than life itself ." the jeweler said, his face still showing sadness,
"Thanks, here." Ron said, handing the elderly man a personalized Christmas card, with Kim and Ron's picture on the front of it, and inside if it, was a simple greeting; Merry Christmas from Kim and Ron,
"Thank you, Mr. Stoppable . . . have a wonderful holiday, and best of luck finishing what should've happened all those years ago ." the jeweler said, as Ron waved goodbye, and walked out the door.
The elderly man placed the card near an aged old portrait of Jonathon Stoppable, standing by his lost love, Miriam Possible, at the 1904 World's Fair,
"Well, Grandpa Jon, looks like you finally got your second chance . . . best of luck to you ." the jeweler said, as a sad tear trickled down his weathered cheek, his eyes traveling from the portrait, to the card .
At the Possible home :
Ron slipped in a few hours before Kim, and her family were to go caroling,
"Ron, we weren't expecting you ." Mrs. Possible said, looking at Ron, who smiled, and waved, this was a prepared signal they had worked out, in case Ron had found a gift for Kim,
"Kimmie, can you come into the kitchen, and give me a hand ." Mrs. Possible said,
"Sure thing, mom ." Kim said, letting go of Ron, and taking off to help her mother, this gave Ron the extra few seconds he needed .
Quick as a cat, Ron placed the necklace under the tree without the knowledge of his girlfriend,
"Are you coming with us, Ron ?" Kim asked as she bounded out of the kitchen,
"Anything for you, sweetheart ." Ron said, placing a kiss on Kim's cheek, as they walked out the door, and down the street, Ron's dilemma had been resolved, tonight, he would sleep at Kim's house, in the guest room, just so he could see the look on her face in the morning, when she opened up the present he gave her, and he really couldn't wait to lay his 'other' surprise on her .