Chapter 84

Five hours had passed since daylight had broken over the small community of Peach Creek, ushering in the dawn of a new day. It was 11:30 a.m. and Christmas Eve, the night of legend in which Santa Claus is said to travel around the world, delivering presents, peace and good will, had finally arrived. Naturally, the excitement for the big day had reached it's proverbial peak; hordes of people flocked to the towns business district, taking their children to the department store for one last visit to Saint Nick, with many simultaneously searching for that last minute deal.

On the outskirts of the community, the Peach Creek mall was quite busy as well. In preparation for her families upcoming Christmas party, set to take place tonight, May had made her way to the mall to procure some last minute snacks, as well as heaters for the buffet table to be set up in the dining room. The ponytailed Kanker girl was not alone however, for she was accompanied by her ever-supportive yet somewhat clumsy boyfriend Ed, who's mother had offered to drive the group to the mall.

To their great pleasure, the duo was accompanied by their good natured friend Double Dee, who had decided to provide assistance in selecting healthy snacks, as well as carrying the goods out to the car. The trio had just exited the malls candy and snack store; Ed and May walked holding hands, as Ed cradled a paper bag in his opposite hand. Double Dee walked slightly behind the couple, carrying two additional bags full of food goods, while admiring his surroundings with a smile.

After around thirty seconds of walking, the group found themselves at the malls food court, where they decided to stop for a quick lunch. Ed and May had purchased a few hotdogs, and a couple of fountain sodas from the grill, while Double Dee opted for a modest-sized grilled chicken salad and a cup of water.

The three teenagers obtained their meals, after which they carried their trays to an empty table. As the group took their place, May decided to initiate a conversation.

"Thanks again for helping us shop for snacks Double Dee!" said May.

"Yeah," said Ed as he took a bite of his hotdog, "You're a pal."

"You are quite welcome," said Double Dee, "As you know, I am always willing to provide assistance to my friends. While I do miss Marie's unique sense of humor, I am glad that she has offered her help in baking the van Bartonschmeers famous Santa-shaped sugar cookies. I'm sure Nazz and Julia are quite excited about sharing their creations with all of our friends."

"Sugar Cookies!" yelled Ed and May simultaneously as they glanced toward each other, "YUM YUM YUM!"

Double Dee giggled slightly at his friends antics.

"I must admit," said Double Dee, "After all of the controversy and horrendous fighting that has occurred over the last few weeks, I did have my doubts that the spirit of this holiday season would be able to be preserved. However, seeing Eddy and Lee's beautiful relationship shine last night at the dance, as well as the enthusiasm emanating from the two of you have convinced me otherwise. I absolutely cannot wait to share the joy of the season with my family and closest friends at tonight's celebration."

At that point Double Dee's face turned to an expression of concern as he rose from his chair.

"Oh dear," said Double Dee as he searched one of the paper bags, "I believe we've forgotten the peppermint candy canes! No Christmas celebration is complete without candy canes."

"No problem," said May, "I'll go back and get em'!"

"Nonsense," said Double Dee as he rose out of his chair, "You and Ed finish up your hotdogs while I retrieve the missed goods, we wouldn't want your meals to become cold would we?"

"Thanks Double Dee," said Ed and May as Double Dee turned away from the couple with a smile. The intelligent adolescent lifted his fists to his chest, flared his elbows outward and began jogging briskly in the direction of the candy store, eventually disappearing from view.

As their sock headed friend disappeared around the corner, the somewhat goofy couple resumed enjoying their hotdogs. For around thirty seconds, neither boy nor girl said a word, each taking huge bites out if their hotdogs while staring in the direction of the far wall.

While it was clear that the two carefree teenagers were having the time of their lives, and more than happy to be sharing the holiday season together, there was no doubt that something seemed to be troubling he minds of both boy and girl. In lieu of smiles, both displayed expressions of doubt and uncertainty.

After a few seconds, May finished her second hotdog, took a swallow, and decided to awkwardly break the silence.

"These hot dogs sure are good huh Ed?" asked May.

"Yeah," said Ed, "They're the best."

As Ed took another bite of his hotdog, May let out a sigh.

"Um Ed," said May, as she stroked her right ponytail, "Can I tell you something?"

"Sure," said Ed.

"Well," said May in a rather awkward manner, "You know how tomorrow is Christmas, right?"

"Yeah," said Ed.

"I just wanted to tell you now that..." said May, "I wasn't able to get you anything for Christmas, and I'm sorry."

Ed swallowed his hotdog, after which he turned towards May with a neutral expression.

"You see," said May as she continued to stroke her ponytail, (a nervous tick of hers), "I know how much you love Slug-U-La, so I wanted to get you the new collectors edition. I got a job working at the Green Clover after school to try to save up money to get it. Please don't tell Double Dee about this, but Marie's been trying to earn money to surprise Double Dee with a hairpiece so that he can protect his brothers hat from getting destroyed and feel confident in himself at the same time. She got a job to help pay for her gift too, but the paycheck wasn't enough to cover the costs. It was such a heartfelt thought, and there was no way I would be able to see Marie upset when she found out she wouldn't be able to afford it. So I secretly gave Marie my share, and now I'm not gonna be able to buy you a Christmas present. You're the best boyfriend in the world, and you deserve an awesome gift, but I hope you can understand why I did what I did. I'm sorry..."

At the conclusion of her statement, May remained locked in her forward gaze, pondering how Ed would respond to her explanation for him not receiving a gift on their first Christmas together. Much to her surprise, Ed did not respond negatively; rather, the somewhat air headed boy giggled ever so slightly.

"It's funny" said Ed, "I've been thinking about how I was going to to tell you how I'm not gonna be able to get you a present. Double Dee really wanted to help pay for Marie's eye surgery, and I wanted to buy you a new pitching machine, so we got jobs with this guy selling trees. I got enough to pay for your gift, but Double Dee didn't have enough for Marie's gift, so I secretly gave him all of my money to help. Double Dee is a friend to all, and such a nice guy. He loves Christmas so much, and I would hate to see him sad knowing his special Marie wouldn't get what she truly wanted. After all, Marie and Double Dee getting together kind of got us together, and that makes them special!"

Ed giggled dopily at the conclusion of his statement, after which he turned back towards May. The two teenagers exchanged somber expressions, as May glanced back down towards the table as she twirled her thumbs.

"Well thankfully our friends are going to have a great Christmas," said May, "But I wasn't able to make yours a special one."

Ed stared at his girlfriend for a few seconds, his bottom lip puckered down as if he were upset. Slowly but surely, the eccentric boy lifted his hand, touched it to May's chin, and slowly guided her face towards his.

"Do not worry my Little May," said Ed, "This Christmas season was the best one I've had yet! I got to see Santa at the mall, work at a tree farm, and see Eddy dance ballet in tights! Think about how much fun we had painting the scenery for Lee, and eating snacks while we watched all the cool movies. I did it all with my Little May, and that is what makes Ed happy."

Ed's somewhat uncharacteristic motivational speech managed to draw a smile from the youngest Kanker girl, who decided to reply with a statement of her own.

"You're right," said May, "Not only were we able to help our friends, but we did it all together. Being your girlfriend was the best thing that ever happened to me this year, and I'm sooo glad we get to spend our Christmas together...it's the best gift ever, better than anything money can buy. You're the best!"

Before Ed could reply, May suddenly lunged forward, grabbing Ed in a bear hug while nearly knocking him off of his chair. At the same time, she gently touched her lips to his, initiating a passionate kiss that Ed did not hesitate to return.

As the two teenagers locked lips, a slight shadow began to overtake the duo, as if another individual was approaching the table.

"My oh my," said Double Dee who had finally returned from the candy store, "It seems that my insistence on retrieving the missing candy canes opened the proverbial door for a private amorous exchange."

Double Dee giggled as the two innocent goofballs quickly separated. Both teenagers are awkwardly blushing as Ed took a sip of his soda, and May shoved the remainder of her second hotdog into her mouth. Double Dee simply giggled as he placed the box of candy canes into one of the paper bags, and took his seat at the table to join his friends for lunch.

In contrast to the hustle and bustle of the Peach Creek Mall, the Rethink Avenue cul-de-sac was quite calm. Many of the driveways were vacant, the families having utilized their cars to make trips to the houses of their extended family, or to make final preparations for tonight's party. The weather seemed to be cooperating thus far; the sky was completely overcast with a blanket of gray clouds, and the air carried a heavy chill, indicative that snow may be on it's way in the near future.

In particular, the modest sized split level house acting as the Kankers residence was especially quiet. Rod had left early in the morning to assist his mother in preparing food for the party, and to pick up the Santa Claus costume he would be donning for the children later that night. That, coupled with the fact that all three of the Kanker girls were preoccupied with plans of their own, left Tabby alone to prepare the house for their party.

The relatively heavy set red-headed woman had spent all morning cleaning the house, while simultaneously baking several trays of her famous chocolate chip, snicker doodle, and oatmeal cookies. The dining room table had been moved from its usual place in the center of the room to a position against the wall; its wood surface had been covered with a red cloth, on top of which sat several trays of buffet food, paper plates, and plastic forks.

The Kankers Christmas tree, adorned with several ornaments old and new, sat in the corner near the wall acting as the interface between the living room and dining room. Next to the eight foot tall tree was a long wooden table, custom built by Rod in anticipation of the season, over which an ornate green cloth was placed. On top of the table were several feet of model train tracks, on which several models of Santa Fe railway locomotives pulled box cars decorated with the likeness of Santa Claus. Interspersed within the tracks were several houses, made of cigar boxes from the 1970's; houses carefully crafted by Tabby's father for the scenes he had displayed in their apartment when she was a little girl. Over top of the table was a large banner reading " Merry Christmas!", one of several banners and decorations hanging around the house.

The house was eerily quiet; the television had remained off for the entirety of the day and the low level of activity seemed to exacerbate the silence. Tabby herself was currently in the master bedroom, she had completed all of her tasks and had decided to shower prior to getting dressed for the day. She had slipped into a pair of dark blue jeans, and had picked out a green "Ugly Sweater" as part of her party attire. After donning a pair of black high heeled winter boots (purchased due to admiration of her eldest daughters boots) she turned her attention to her hair, which was easily styled into loose hanging red curls.

While she had been partially dressed for a half hour, Tabby had not yet left the bedroom; while her daughters enjoyed themselves at the dance, she had received an interesting phone call from an old friend she knew as a child from the city. She had not spoken to this particular individual for around fourteen years, and while hearing their voice felt quite welcome, it also seemed to bring disheartening memories to the freckle faced woman.

She had remained standing in front of her vanity mirror for fifteen minutes, seemingly paralyzed by her thoughts. The sweater she had chosen remained on her bed, waiting to be placed on her body, leaving a black bra as the only article of clothing on her upper body.

A few seconds passed, at which point Tabby began turning from side to side, examining her upper arms; areas of her body which had been covered by two large tattoos several years ago. She gradually lifted her right hand upwards, touching her red nailed fingertips to the pink ballet shoes adorning the freckled skin of her left arm, her eyes tearing up as she did so.

"Well, I always hated tattoos on women, and promised myself I'd never get any," said Tabby, "But a couple of cover-ups detailing my life's loves are better than the scars due to the infection from those dirty needles she used...plus they look way nicer than words like "loser" and "shit head",...she always did have a nice vocabulary."

At that moment, a tear began dripping down Tabby's cheeks as she gazed toward the ceiling.

"Please God," said Tabby, "Please don't let her be hurting that beautiful little girl. For her sake, and his. He's too hurt to deal with anything happening to his little girl, and I don't know how he'll react if I told him that that could be happening."

Tabby paused, and swallowed prior to continuing.

"I know you're up there watching down on us too," said Tabby, "You're probably sick to your stomach, powerless to protect her, but I know you understand why I'm just as powerless. Don't you worry, I'm trusting in my faith...our girls are back together, my little saving grace never gave up on trying to help her and never will...just like you never did for me."

At that moment, the sound of the doorbell ringing filled the air, a soothing version of Westminster Chimes in the key of b flat. This sound broke Tabby away from her thoughts, at which point she dried her tears and slid her green Christmas sweater over her head. Lastly, she retrieved a moderately sized shoe box from the surface of her bed, a box that had remained buried within the closet until today, and made her way to the stairs while carrying it under her arm.