“I’ll be here as much as I can,” Mrs.Madelyn offered hoping to cheer her up a bit.
“The problem is bigger than staffing, and I can’t let you work yourself to death like I’m doing.”Noel paused for a moment to let her thoughts settle.“If a miracle doesn’t happen between now and Christmas, I think I will be forced to close the store at the beginning of the New Year,” Noel disclosed.She couldn’t help but wonder if that was the big news her dad mentioned sharing on their family trip that she missed, and he didn’t make it home from.
“Oh, darling.”
“Levi and Laney will be devastated,” Noel voiced.“I’ll be devastated,” she cried.“I am devastated.”
Beneath the counter, worry crept onto Levi’s and Laney’s little faces.Neither needed to hold a finger to their mouth to remind the other to remain quiet.Each realized the words shared were not intended for their ears.
“Black Friday isn’t just one day of sales, it’s a predictor for the rest of the Christmas season,” Noel reminded Mrs.Madelyn.
Mrs.Madelyn knew that all too well from many years of experience.“Let’s just take it one day at a time, sweet girl, and see what God has in store.”
Eventually Noel and Mrs.Madelyn busied themselves tidying up the shop, and Laney and Levi snuck back upstairs like little elves just in time for Noel to call them down.
“Who wants to sweep?”
“I’ll get the broom,” Laney shouted quickly.
Laney’s enthusiasm after such a long day surprised Noel and actually brought a smirk to her face even after the bad news she discovered at the register.
“Levi, will you help replenish the candy bins?”
“Of course, Mom.”
Noel appreciated her son’s positive response as well.“Thank you both.”
Standing near the Christmas tree, a smile traveled across Mrs.Madelyn’s face as she straightened several branches and ornaments tainted by little hands.She wondered if Laney and Levi could sense Noel’s sadness knowing children had a way of humbling their hearts when adults needed them the most.
By the time cleanup and restocking finished, everyone was zonked, and Noel ended up putting the kids to bed around eight thirty because she knew that Shop Small Saturday would bring in a crowd of locals.The year-over-year customer count had been down some today, but the average ticket decline worried Noel the most.People seemed to be holding on to their money a little tighter this year or spending it somewhere else.These thoughts became front and center in Noel’s mind again as she walked out of the kids’ bedroom.
“What are we going to do to help Mom keep the candy shop open?”Levi whispered from his pillow after his mother disappeared.
An inch of light filtered through a small sliver between the door and the frame into the otherwise dark room.
Lying still on the adjacent pillow while facing her cousin, Laney reminded Levi of what the two of them quietly talked about earlier after overhearing the news and scurrying upstairs into this very room.“We have to work harder,” she murmured.
“Maybe if we help enough, the store will stay open.”
“We need to make some money, too,” Laney suggested.
“What if we have a bake sale like the one at school?”Levi considered remembering their school hosting a bake sale to raise funds for new playground equipment.
Laney scrunched her nose.“I think we should do something different than treats since the candy shop already has so many.”
“How about lemonade?”Levi proposed.“Everybody loves lemonade.”
Laney could make out the whites of her cousin’s eyes as they talked between pillows.“Yeah, we can make a lemonade stand in front of the candy shop!”
“Actually, I think I have an even better idea,” Levi decided with extra enthusiasm as he recalled what Kevin brought them earlier.“Since it’s Christmastime, we should have a hot chocolate stand instead of lemonade.”
“Yeah, that’s the best idea.Lemonade tastes better in the summertime, but hot chocolate is best when it’s cold.The cocoa Cavin brought us this morning warmed up my bones.”
“It was so good,” Levi agreed.“We can sell lots of hot chocolate and give Mom all the money to keep the candy shop open.”
“We can charge one dollar for every cup.If we sell 100 cups, we would make $100,” Laney predicted excitedly.
“We need to make a poster that shows the price,” Levi suggested, recalling one he helped create during art class.
