Monday Evening, November 30

Oliver set the last bag on the table and removed his coat. He and Shane had purchased much more than a tree and decorations for it. A large wreath for the front door. Lengths of pre-lit garland for the fireplace mantle and the staircase. A manger scene for the small table that sat in front of the large window overlooking the street. A tree skirt. A tablecloth. Table runners. Doilies for the coffee tables. All made from poinsettia printed material edged with red and green lace. And evergreen scented candles. Shane's compromise for not having a real tree. "At least the house will smell like evergreen," she'd said.

Shane came in from the kitchen, carrying a bottle of YooHoo and a can of Kombucha. She handed the YooHoo to Oliver.

"Do you want to start with the tree, or the 'embellishments'?" Shane asked.

"The tree, I believe," Oliver said. He took off his suit coat and tie and then rolled up his shirt sleeves. Pulling his keys from his pocket, he took his pocket knife and cut the box open. The instructions lay on top. Oliver carried them to the sofa and sat down. Shane joined him, leaning against his shoulder so she could read the instructions, too.

Selecting the tree had required some compromise between Oliver and Shane. Shane had wanted a tree with individual branches. Oliver leaned towards a tree with several large sections, declaring it 'efficient'. Shane wanted large, multi-colored lights. Oliver preferred small, white, LED lights that were 'cost-effective'. They finally agreed on a pre-lit tree with only three sections that featured white and multi-colored lights. The tree came with a remote that would change the lights from multi- to white, or both.

"The assembly appears uncomplicated," Oliver said a few minutes later. "Simply put the sections together and plug in the lights."

Shane got up, went over to the table that stood in front of the window, and picked up one side.

Oliver rushed over to her. "Please put that down! It is too heavy for you to lift alone. What are you trying to do with it?"

"Move it over behind the sofa."

"May I ask why?"

"The tree belongs in front of the window."

"So everyone on the street can see it?"

Shane smiled, nodded, and picked up the side again.

Oliver laid his hand on her arm. "I will do it."

Shane set the table down. Oliver picked it up, carried it over, and set it in position.

"Is there any additional furniture you would like moved to another location?" Oliver asked.

"No," Shane said, digging through the bags.

"We don't need anything from the packages until the tree is up," Oliver said.

"Yes, we do," Shane said. She pulled out two of the evergreen scented candles and set one on each of the coffee tables. Oliver lit a match and touched it to the wicks.

Shane leaned over and breathed in the scent from the candles. "Perfect. Just one more thing." She walked to the phonograph, selected a Christmas record, and put it on to play. "Now we can start."

Oliver lifted the tree sections, laid them on the floor, and took the stand pieces from the box. He snapped them together, put the stand by the window, and plugged in the power cord.

"Do you want to lay the skirt around the stand before we start the assembly?" Oliver asked.

"Yes," Shane said. She took it from the bag, shook it out, and frowned. "It's all wrinkled. I need to iron it first."

Oliver couldn't see that it would make much difference if the tree skirt was wrinkled or smooth. It would be almost hidden by the lower branches, but he indulged Shane without comment and brought the iron and ironing board from the hall closet, setting the board up in the kitchen.

A few minutes later, a wrinkle-free tree skirt lay draped around the stand. Shane carried the tree sections to Oliver. In less than five minutes, the tree stood assembled. Oliver touched the remote for both types of lights. Brilliance filled the room and flung itself into the night through the window.

Shane handed the tree topper to Oliver. A starfish. The one thing Oliver had insisted on. When Shane asked him why he just smiled. "I'll tell you about it sometime," he had said.

Shane opened the box of ornaments while Oliver positioned the starfish and plugged it in. She set the box on the coffee table nearest the tree.

"I've been thinking, . . ." Shane said as she hung one of the snowflakes on the tree.

"About what?" Oliver asked.

"More ornaments like these. We could make this our 'family' tree. Covered with family photos." Shane looked over at the pictures spread across the mantle. "We could take all those pictures to Photography by Phil. I remember seeing a page with Christmas ornaments when we were looking through the frames catalog. As I recall, there was a snowflake. Phil could scan the photos, resize them, and fit them to the ornaments."

Shane went over to Oliver and placed her arms around him. "Please, Oliver," she said, laying her head on his shoulder.

Oliver took Shane's face in his hands and tipped it up so she could look at him. "Very well," he said, lightly touching her nose with his several times.

"We need one more picture," Shane said. "You, me and Joe. Do you think he would be amenable?"

Oliver smiled. "I believe he will." He looked at the clock and was shocked by the lateness of the hour. "Perhaps I should take you home now. We can finish decorating tomorrow."

"No. I want to finish tonight. Tell you what, I'll iron the linens while you put the garlands up."

Shane picked up the bag of linens and went back to the ironing board. Oliver sighed and shook his head slightly, but he took the garlands from the bag and went to hang them.

By the time Oliver finished, Shane had put the table cloth on the kitchen table, the runners across the coffee and decorative tables, and the doilies on the end tables under the lamps. She opened the box that held the manger scene and began unwrapping the figures.

"Can I help with those?" Oliver asked her.

Shane shook her head. "Hang the wreath." Oliver picked it up and went to the hallway.

Oliver returned to the living room. Shane gathered the empty bags. The manger scene was complete. Two large candles surrounded by a decorative candle ring sat on the coffee and kitchen tables. Oliver took the bags from Shane and put them into the recycle bin.

Oliver looked over at Shane. She stood there watching him, her eyes shining as brightly as the lights on the tree. She held out her hand. Oliver walked over and took it. Shane turned them around to face the living room.

"Isn't it beautiful?" she asked Oliver.

Oliver smiled. "It's perfect." He took Shane into his arms and kissed her.