Hot Cocoa Hearts Read online

  My stomach dropped. I sat down beside him. “What are we going to do?” I figured he’d have a plan.

  I felt even worse when I heard his barely perceptible “Nothing.” The lines on his forehead deepened. “All the families who line up out there every year,” he mumbled. “The kids that look forward to this each Christmas. I hate disappointing them.”

  “I’m sure there are still some decorations up around town,” I tried. “The storm wouldn’t have destroyed all of them.”

  His eyes flicked to me, but I could see he was making an effort not to move his neck too much for fear of the pain. “It was never about the decorations,” he said. “It was about the magic of believing.” He sighed. “The sheer fun of giving the gift of that to other people, of sharing it with them. Like your grandma and I used to share it with you.”

  I bit my lip, feeling it threatening to tremble. I’d never seen Dad look so utterly defeated before. I felt responsible. Sure, I hadn’t had anything to do with the Holly Jolly House getting blown away, but how many times in the last couple of years had I wished it would disappear? I’d gotten exactly what I’d wanted, so why did I feel so lousy?

  “Em, could you please go ask your mom to make me another cup of coffee?” he asked, then sighed again. “It’s not the same drinking it through a straw, but she won’t let me try to sit up yet. I’m practically a hostage.”

  I laughed a little at that, then nodded. As I turned toward the door, I glanced back at him. “I’m really sorry, Dad,” I whispered. I didn’t know I had any inkling of sentimentality left for the Holly Jolly House, but here I was, with tears threatening my eyes. There was magic in believing. I’d felt it as a child. With Grandma, more than anyone else. Wanting to take away the Holly Jolly House from the town was like destroying a little bit of that magic. It was like taking away a part of Grandma, all over again. Who would wish for that?

  I stopped dead on the stairs. A scrooge, that’s who. A scrooge like … me.

  On shaking legs, I took the stairs two at a time back up to my bedroom, then flung open my closet door. Flinging piles of dirty clothes this way and that, I dug through the mess at the bottom of my closet until my hand brushed against the velvet jewelry box. It was still at the bottom of one of my coat pockets, just as I had left it.

  I set it in my lap and carefully opened the lid, then caught my breath. The locket was smaller than I remembered it being, but still just as lovely. With shaking fingers, I opened it and as soon as I did, a small slip of paper fluttered out. Picking it up, I read:

  Emery, my sweet girl,

  You’re upset with me for leaving, I know, but you must never lose faith. Each Christmas, in the lights, the singing, and the magic, look for me. I’ll be there, with you always. I love you.

  Grandma

  Tears trickled down my cheeks as I clutched the locket to my chest. The words settled over me, and suddenly I felt my heart softening. This was what I’d needed to hear. The promise from her, that she’d never left at all.

  I wiped my eyes, slipped the necklace over my head, then ran downstairs. I flung open the front door and stepped onto the porch. Dad was right. The Holly Jolly House lay scattered across the mountainous drifts in the yard.

  “What are you doing with the door wide open?” Mom stuck her head outside, surveying the damage again. “What a mess. It’s such a shame.” She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter anyway. The power’s still out in town. I’m sure the Holiday Stroll will be canceled.”

  “But what if it’s not?” I asked.

  “Your dad can’t put this place back together in time, and I don’t know anybody else who will.” She shrugged, then shivered. “Now come inside before you freeze.”

  I followed her in, telling her about Dad’s request for coffee. But I took one last look at the wreck outside as I shut the door, and suddenly I knew what I needed to do.

  A strange giddiness filled me as I scrambled into the kitchen.

  “Where’s Alex?” I asked, staring at the remains of two mostly eaten breakfasts on the table.

  “He and his grandfather left right before you came downstairs,” Mom said. “I thought he’d said good-bye to you.”

  I was already heading for the door, grabbing my coat and boots from the entryway as I went. “Gotta go, Mom!” I hollered as I yanked the door open. “Be back soon!”

  I didn’t wait for a response before I slammed the door shut and leapt off the porch, immediately sinking deep into the snow. They can’t have gotten far, I thought as I made my way through the drifts, which were so deep sometimes it felt more like wading than walking. When I reached the sidewalk, I turned in the direction of their house and, after rounding the corner onto their street, spotted them slowly moving through the drifts.

  “Alex! Wait!” I cried. He turned around, surprised and confused, and I doubled my pace, then laughed as I almost fell face-first into the snow in my rush to reach them. I caught myself, but not before I was up to my armpits in freshly fallen powder.

  “Need some help?” Alex asked.

  I wanted to be irritated at the laughter I heard rippling his voice, but mainly I was grateful.

  “Laugh it up, but I need help,” I said. “Lots of it.”

  His smile widened. “Tell me something I don’t already know.” He pulled me to my feet, and the feel of his hand on mine sent shivers through me.

  “Thanks,” I said, straightening. Then I grabbed him by the shoulders, and his eyebrows shot upward in surprise. “I need you.”

  “You. Need me?” Was it just me, or were his cheeks turning red. Was it from the cold?

  “Yes! I need your help.” I grabbed his hand and began dragging him in the direction of my house, waving to his grandfather as I went. “Alex is coming with me!” I called to Señor Perez over my shoulder. “He’ll be home later!”

  “Okay!” Señor Perez waved back. “Be careful!”

  “Where are we going?” Alex asked, peering at me curiously. “Wait a second, you look different. Weirdly … cheerful. What’s going on?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Isn’t it obvious? I’m going to fix the Holly Jolly House. And you’re going to help me.”

  Alex stopped in the snow, his mouth falling open. “But you … you hate that house.”

  I hesitated but then giggled, surprising even myself with the light, airy sound. “Not anymore. I can’t let our yard stand empty if the Holiday Stroll happens tonight. I have to fix everything. My grandma would’ve wanted me to, and … I want to make her proud again. I need to do this for her, for my dad.” I looked into his chocolate eyes and smiled. “And for me.”

  “I don’t believe it.” Alex shook his head, baffled. “Are you—are you de-Scrooged?”

  “I don’t know,” I admitted bashfully. “Maybe I am.” I shrugged, and my smile widened. “I guess Ebenezer wasn’t the only one haunted by pesky Christmas spirits.” I elbowed him.

  Alex grinned. “I bet his weren’t nearly as good-looking.”

  “Now you just sound arrogant,” I teased.

  I was so glad to see him acting normal after the awkwardness I’d felt between us last night. Still, though, I wanted to make sure we were okay. “Um, about our talk yesterday …”

  Alex waved the words away. “We have more important things to worry about.” A conflicted look crossed his face, and for a minute, it seemed like he had more to say. In the end, though, he shook his head, seeming to decide against it.

  “Um … we better get going,” I said slowly, unsure of what to make of his silence. “It’s already after ten. And we only have six hours until the stroll starts.”

  “If it starts,” Alex warned.

  “Hey! That’s the talk of skeptics.” I shot him a scolding glance. “Remember. There’s magic in believing.” I smiled. “And for once, I do.”

  Three hours later, I wondered when the magic would kick in. Tugging off my hat to wipe the perspiration off my forehead, I surveyed the headway we’d made. It wasn’t much. Using our
shovels, we’d dug out several buried reindeer and the candy cane trail that had once led to Santa’s workshop. When our backs and arms had gotten too tired, we took breaks to scour the neighborhood, searching for the decorations that had blown away. I’d found three penguins, and Alex discovered one of the singing polar bears dangling in a tree. Still, the front yard looked bare compared to what it had been only a day ago.

  “We’re not even close to ready,” I said as Alex struggled to untangle a ball of knotted Christmas lights.

  “One step at a time.” He glanced around, then gave me an encouraging smile. “We’ll get there.”

  “There you go with the never-ending optimism again.” I tossed a snowball halfheartedly in his direction. “We need more than optimism. We need a miracle.”

  Just then, there was a deep rumbling from down the street, and I turned my head to see one of Fairview’s Power & Light trucks rolling toward us. When it reached our house, the driver rolled down his window, shaking his head sadly at our front yard.

  “I hoped the storm might’ve gone easy on this part of town, but no such luck, huh?” he said. “What a shame. My kids love your house. We stop here every year during the Holiday Stroll. It’s one of our favorite traditions.”

  “Really?” I said, surprised. I mean, I’d seen the people lining up to see our house each year, but a tradition? That was different. That meant that our house wasn’t some oddity people came to stare at; it was part of the memories families in Fairview made each year. I felt a sudden rush of pride. “Well,” I said firmly, “I’ll see your family here tonight.”

  The driver’s brow furrowed. “Hate to say it, but there’s not a chance we’ll get all the town’s power up by then.” He rubbed his chin, thinking. “But … if you can promise me your house will be ready, I’ll see what I can do to get power back to your street in time.”

  I glanced at Alex and saw new determination dawning in his eyes, just as I was sure it was in mine. We grinned at each other, and then I turned back to the driver. “I promise. We’ll be ready.”

  The driver smiled. “Good. Nobody should miss out on the Holly Jolly House.” He waved, calling out, “See you later!” as he drove away.

  As soon as the truck turned the corner of our street, I swiveled on my heel and headed for the front door. I’d turned off my cell phone last night because the battery was critically low. But maybe, just maybe, I’d have enough juice left on the phone to send out some texts.

  “Hey, where are you going?” Alex asked. “We have serious work to do.”

  “I know!” I called out as I hurried through the door to find my phone. “That’s why we need some serious reinforcements.”

  Within a half hour of my text, Jez and about a dozen other friends of ours and Alex’s were spread across our front yard setting up decorations. Each of them had brought decorations from their own houses to contribute. Lyra had rescued Hector the Mouse from under someone’s car, and Rafael brought a large, ornate menorah that his parents let him borrow. Nyssa had rallied the glee club and they’d shown up in full force pushing a very large, very expensive-looking golden sleigh in front of them. It was piled high with red-and-gold-foil-wrapped fake presents.

  “This is amazing!” I cried. “We can put that front and center and harness the light-up reindeer to it.” I grinned at her. “Thanks, Nyssa.”

  Nyssa giggled. “I doubt my mom will even notice it’s missing from our front porch.” She then elbowed me, saying quietly, “I can’t believe you’re doing all this for your dad. You might actually make it off the naughty list this year, Em.”

  I snorted. “It’s not just for Dad. It’s for everyone in Fairview.”

  “Wow.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “Sounds like something melted your icy heart. Or maybe, somebody?” She smiled knowingly. “You and Sawyer were the last to leave the party yesterday. Was it true love’s kiss that did the trick?”

  “Nyssa!” I hissed, blushing. Alex, who was standing a few feet away hitching the reindeer to the sleigh, glanced up at hearing the question, and I felt his eyes on us. “Shhh! Yes, we kissed. Sort of. But you don’t need to announce it to everyone.”

  “Why not?” she asked. “That’s great!”

  “Because I’m—I’m not ready,” I stammered, feeling more flustered than ever. Suddenly, I didn’t want to talk about the kiss in front of Alex. Not now. Not ever.

  Nyssa blew out a breath. “That makes no sense. You got the guy you wanted. Why keep it a secret? Unless …” She studied my face until I had to drop my eyes. “He is the guy you want, right?”

  “Sure maybe,” I blurted, shaking my head. “I mean, I don’t know?”

  Nyssa glanced up at the sky in exasperation. “If you don’t know, then maybe you need to ask yourself what it is that’s holding you back. And you better make up your mind soon, because there are hearts on the line here—”

  “Hearts?” I repeated. “Plural? What do you mean—”

  “Oh, nothing!” she blurted. “Just a slip of the tongue. Never mind.” She glanced around, looking everywhere but at me. “Where is Sawyer, anyway? I thought for sure he’d be here.”

  I blushed again and shook my head, letting loose the sigh I’d been trying to hold in. “I don’t know if he’ll come.” I’d texted Sawyer along with everyone else, but my phone had died before I’d gotten a response from him. I’d been hoping he would show, and I’d even put a sprig of mistletoe in my pocket just in case, thinking that if I had the chance, I might be able to make up for our botched kiss. But each time I glanced down the street, all I saw was an empty sidewalk. I shrugged. “I guess I’d understand if he didn’t come. I mean, I know how he feels about the holidays. And he always stands by what he believes.”

  “It’s three o’ clock already,” Nyssa said, frowning.

  “Maybe he’ll still turn up,” I said. I laughed at Nyssa’s disgruntled look, and then a thought struck me. “Hey, did you have anything to do with the Secret Santa gifts I got from Sawyer? He told me somebody helped him, and I thought maybe you—”

  “No,” Nyssa said, a little too quickly, dropping her eyes. “It wasn’t me. Sorry.” She looked oddly sheepish.

  I felt a sudden rush of suspicion. “But you know who did, don’t you?”

  Her brow furrowed uncertainly and she glanced around, checking to see who might hear. “Maybe, but I can’t tell you!” She smiled apologetically. “I promised!”

  She did know! “Oh, come on, Nyssa,” I pleaded. “You love gossip.”

  She bit her lip and nodded. “I do. I really do. But this person. Well, they’re worried you wouldn’t like knowing. That it would make things … awkward.”

  “What? What do you mean?”

  At that moment, a bunch of kids brushed by us, chattering, and Nyssa clammed up. “Sorry. I’m going to help make some bows for the porch,” she said, then hurried away before I could say another word.

  I sighed in frustration, but decided to let it go for now, resolving to corner her after this was over and get an answer. I glanced around at the yard. Slowly, it was coming together. The lights were restrung across the front of the house, we’d salvaged most of the animals and arranged them in scenes in the yard.

  Alex and I started building an igloo to take the place of Santa’s workshop. Alex even had the great idea of sticking some of the lights inside of it, so that if the power came back on, color-changing lights would make the igloo glow from the inside out. We worked side by side, and we didn’t say much, but I felt Alex’s eyes studying me more than once. My heart sped up. Had he heard me and Nyssa talking? I was sure he wanted to say something about Sawyer, but each time I glanced his direction, he looked away, and the moment passed. Finally, we pushed the last block into place, and stood back to survey our work.

  “It’s even better than Santa’s workshop,” I said, and Alex grinned in agreement.

  “We make a good team,” he said quietly.

  The igloo was big enough for at least two people to stand
comfortably inside. We’d placed some of the penguins on the tiers of snow blocks, and made a sign to hang over the entrance that read: SANTA’S ICE PALACE. Around the edge of the igloo ran an electric train that glee-clubber Sam and his father had brought over. The light-up boxcars were all set to chug cheerily around the track once the electricity came on. If it came on.

  There was a tap on my shoulder, and I turned to see Jez beside me, nibbling on one of the cookies Mom had made to fortify us as we worked.

  “I think we’re done,” she said with a smile, and I nodded.

  “Everything looks terrific,” I said to our friends. “Thank you, guys, for all your help. Mom heated up some hot apple cider if you want to go inside for some while we wait. And hopefully, in about ten minutes, it’ll be showtime!”

  There were some claps and whoops from the kids scattered throughout the yard, and then Jez led them inside for cider.

  I glanced up at the sky, which was already purpling into dusk. “I’m going to grab my camera and take some pictures of this for Dad,” I said to Alex, “before I lose the light.”

  I went to my room for my camera. As I took it off my desk, my eyes fell on my elf costume from the mall, sitting in a pile in the corner. I smiled as an idea struck me, and in a moment of spontaneity or lunacy (I wasn’t sure which), I reached for it.

  When I came back outside, my heart stopped short at the sight of Sawyer standing in the yard with Alex. Both of them had their hands in their pockets and looked like they were straining for things to say.

  “Hey,” I said. They glanced up together, and I felt a wave of heat sweep my face. As their eyes focused on me, I had the sense that both of them seemed to be asking the same silent question, but I didn’t have a clue what it was.

  “What’s with the elf getup?” Sawyer said, his head tilting in confusion.

  “Oh, I …” My voice trailed off. “I—I’m getting in touch with my holiday spirit!”

  Sawyer’s brow crinkled in confusion. “I thought you hated Christmas.”

  I shrugged. “I had a change of heart,” I said softly.