Merry
Building with snow was harder than it looked. I stumbled to my knees trying to pick up the torso.
Mom dusted the misshapen lump. “They’re heavy, aren’t they?”
“Yeah,” I laughed, “But we’ll get it. I’m not giving up.”
Zack hurried over to us. “I’ve got it."
A few people hollered that they'd be happy for his help too. He was probably overcompensating for the driveway gift. Thankfully, everyone was watching their own kids for the most part. No one threw carrot sticks or snow. Zack and I managed to steady three spheres on top of each other, whereas most of our family stuck to two tiny ones.
Mom kept trying to shape the head. “It’s not symmetrical.”
“It’s not supposed to be. Here.” I stuck one grape in the lopsided oval and handed her the other one.
Breathing deeply, she placed her grape diagonal to mine.
I sighed and clasped my hands. “She's beautiful."
“Just like you,” a familiar voice said from behind us.
I shrieked and rushed towards him. “Harvey."
He swept me up and kissed my cheek. “Merry Christmas, Shelby.”
I nuzzled my face against his chest for that glorious combination of laundry detergent and cinnamon. “Mm, this is the best present ever.”
“Shelby,” Mom called, wiping her hands.
I fell back on my heels, then tucked myself under Harvey’s arm. “You all remember my boyfriend.”
“Yep.” Zack eyed him without enthusiasm, so I shot him a firm look to remind him to be nice.
“Merry Christmas, everyone.” Harvey shook the hands of whoever came up, then sucked in a small breath. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound like Tiny Tim.”
“This would be the day for it.” I patted his chest. “How was your family?”
“Fine. They’re napping off the carb-fest from lunch and watching holiday specials on TV. You’re all making an army to take over the neighborhood, I see.” He jerked his chin at our snow people.
I giggled and knocked his hip. “We had to find some way to burn off our energy.”
“Getting into trouble?” He smirked, staring at me under soft, pretty lashes.
I swayed a little, fighting the heat in my cheeks. “Not really.”
“Mmhmm.” He squeezed my shoulder and turned to my mother. “How can I help?”
***
Hours of family bonding later, my tummy was full of ham and mashed potatoes. I held Harvey’s hand under the table. Part ofme was tempted to scoot closer and lay my head on his shoulder, but I wasn’t sure if that was too much PDA for my family.
Mom waved me up from my seat. “Come on. We need you to hand out presents.”
Why? Everyone here had legs. Mine felt like cement after all the standing I’d done recently: work, shoveling, shelter shift, and babysitting. Still, it was Christmas. That was kind of my thing. I sighed and got up, my knees wiggling.
“I can help,” Harvey said, steadying my waist.
Aunt Coral grabbed my shoulders and led me down the hall. “No, she’s got it. We even made a special outfit.”
