“Like, okay lose it then,” Sandy cut Ralphie off and then added, “Ralphie!”
“Ms. Baker, she's making fun of my name again!” Ralphie yelled.
“Sandy...Ralphie—”
“Like, what kind of name is Ralphie anyway?” Sandy continued to tease. “You're, like, from Brooklyn. Shouldn't your name bePaulieor, like, maybeJoeyorVinnie? I, like, don't think the nameRalphieis too threatening. Maybe for a pizza delivery guy, but like, not for a mafia guy.”
“Ayo, so maybe my old lady didn't have good sense. At least I'm not named after something I walk on when I go to the beach! I said what I said!”
“Moron!”
“Dimwit!” Ralphie fired back.
Chris and Peppermint grinned. “Uh...the coffee and donuts are waiting,” Peppermint quickly announced. “Maybe we should go to the kitchen before a war starts, huh?”
“You got any of them donuts with the sprinkles on top? I like those kinds. I said what I said.”
“Peppermint, will you show these two to their rooms?” Betty groaned. “I need some aspirin.”
“In the kitchen, second shelf above the coffee maker.” Peppermint grinned again. Betty nodded her head and wandered off. Chris smiled and followed after his aunt.
“Come on, you two.” Peppermint laughed. “Let's get you settled in, and then we'll have some coffee and donuts.”
“I'll be in the kitchen if you need me,” Candy told Sandy and Ralphie.
“Don't eat all the donuts!” Ralphie picked up his black suitcase.
Sandy picked up a blue suitcase and her backpack. She would eventually need more clothes and other items, but for the time being, she had enough to get by on, and so did Ralphie. “Is your name really Peppermint...like that comic book girl...Peppermint Patty?” Sandy asked him.
“Yep...only I'm not named after Peppermint Patty. However, Peppermint Patty is a great pitcher.” Peppermint tipped Sandy and Ralphie a wink. “Come on, guys, let's go upstairs. Blizzard, you better come to.”
Blizzard and Snowball both hurried off after Peppermint. Sandy and Ralphie followed. Sandy shot Candy a quick eye. “It's okay, honey. Go see your room, get settled in, and then come down for some coffee and donuts,” Candy urged in a gentle voice. Sandy nodded and left the foyer. Candy whispered a prayer for Sandy and Ralphie and then journeyed to the kitchen.
“I found the aspirin,” Betty told Candy.
Chris laughed. “Sandy and Ralphie are certainly...colorful,” he had to admit.
Candy watched Chris fold his arms over his sweater that had a snowman on the front of it. Chris truly did resemble a young and handsome Santa Claus. The man's eyes glowed with love and kindness. “Yes, Sandy and Ralphie are colorful,” Candy admitted as she removed her coat. A wooden coat rack was perched next to the kitchen’s back door. Candy hung her coat up, brushed at a lovely pink sweater that made her look jolly and cheerful, and then took a seat at the lovely kitchen table covered with donuts. “Peppermint really loves donuts.”
“He fries up a mean breakfast, but yeah, I think Peppermint would refuse to get out of bed if the world ran out of donuts.” Chris poured Candy a cup of coffee. “Hot...”
Candy gratefully accepted her coffee with a tender smile that Betty took notice of. “Where is my coffee?” she asked.
“Coming up, Aunt Betty.” Chris hurried and prepared Betty a cup of coffee. “I figured you wanted to wash your aspirin down with water before you had any coffee.”
Betty removed her coat. “Hang up my coat, honey,” she told Chris. Chris sat a coffee cup full of hot coffee down in front of her and then went to hang up her coat. Betty glanced down at the sweater that she had bought many years before. The sweater always seemed to push bad days away. “So...when Peppermint’s friend arrives, we'll be all set...for the time being. I think between the six of us, we'll be able to start work. In time, we'll need to hire more people.”
“Everything at the toy factory back in town is going great,” Candy pointed out. She took a sip of coffee and then continued. “Fran is going to be just fine. Everyone loves and respects her. That's a huge plus.”
“It is,” Betty agreed. “Because everyone who works at the toy factory loves Fran, they'll work hard for her. Not that working at the toy factory is hard work...the work is joyful...but still, work is work.” Betty went for her coffee. “Chris, did you manage to start on any designs yet?”
Chris sat down across from Candy and Betty. “Not yet, Aunt Betty. I've been taking walks around the island with Peppermint. I wanted to create a solid layout in my mind.”
Something in Chris' voice caught Betty's attention. “And?” she asked.
Chris reached for a coffee donut. “I think, Aunt Betty, we should put an outdoor Carousel in front of the airplane hangar that we're going to turn into the toy factory. I also think we should build whatever supply and storage buildings will be needed in another area I’ll mention in a second and turn the two buildings that stand in front of the airplane hangar into a Christmas village for the children. We can build a few more buildings and attach each building to indoor walkways. Kind of like...” Chris put down his donut and made a circular loop in the air with his right hand. “We can design a Christmas village that forms a smile connected to the toy factory. The toy factory will be the face, the Carousel will be the nose, and all the play buildings...the Christmas buildings...will form the smiley face.”
“A smiley face?” Betty wasn't so certain she liked the idea.
