“Those were some of Andy’s favorites,” Ella said.
“Well, he shared,” Dalton said, shaking his head in amazement at his new friend’s generosity the year they met. “So now they’re my favorites too.”
“We’ll make them this year,” Ella said. “We can teach you how.”
“That sounds great,” he told her, meaning it. “So, Andy had his treats, but there was something else wrapped up in there—a Christmas present, he figured. He decided to save it for the actual day.”
“Okay,” Ella said, nodding, but narrowing her eyes.
“Well, that night I couldn’t sleep and I woke up to see Andy in his bunk, opening up that other package even though it was still a couple of days before Christmas,” Dalton said, already smiling at what came next.
“Oh, that sounds just like him,” Ella laughed. “He used to shake all the gifts under the tree and write down his guesses. He always loved presents.”
“He had the biggest smile on his face,” Dalton remembered. “So that checks out.
Ella smiled at that, and he felt another tug at his heartstrings.
“Anyway,” Dalton said. “He caught me watching him and gestured for me to come on over and see. So I climbed out of bed as quietly as I could. You weren’t allowed to be up in the wee hours during basic training—no bathroom breaks, no food in the barracks, things werevery regimented. But poor Andy just couldn’t wait to see his present.”
“Oh, Andy,” Ella murmured.
“He got another package the next day,” Dalton said. “And he had a pretty good haul in there. Two brand new paperbacks, and a blue-striped sweater that someone had knit for him. That was his favorite.”
Ella smiled sadly and nodded.
“That was you, wasn’t it?” Dalton asked.
“Yes,” she said. “I can still see the pattern in my mind. It took forever to make. I’m so glad he really liked it.”
“Oh, yeah,” Dalton said. “He loved it. Well, like I said, all that stuff came the next day. When he went to open this package though, it was just in cardboard with packing tape all around it.”
“Oh dear,” Ella murmured, in a way that made Dalton think she had probably guessed what happened next.
“Well, Andy’s trying to unroll that tape quietly, and the more he gets off, the more there seems to be,” Dalton said. “Finally, after about a thousand years, he gets it all off and he opens the cardboard, and his mouth just drops open.”
Ella put a hand over her mouth, but her eyes were dancing. Yup, she knew.
“It was a dozen frosted sugar cookies,” Dalton said. “I guess you guys wrapped them up super carefully so the frosting wouldn’t be ruined. But here he is with a lap full of contraband, andimmediatelywe hear footsteps outside.”
“No,” Ella breathed, leaning further forward.
“It was the DI,” he said, shaking his head. “You wouldknow the sound of those boots anywhere. Andy’s eyes went wide as saucers. He was looking around, trying to think of where he could hide those cookies, but there weren’t exactly a lot of places.”
“Oh dear,” Ella said, shaking her head.
“He looked at me and I looked at him,” Dalton said. “And then without a word, both of us started shoving sugar cookies in our mouths as fast as we could.”
“No,” Ella giggled.
“What else could we do?” Dalton said. “Your brother looked like a chipmunk. His cheeks were absolutely full of cookies, and he was chewing like crazy. I took the cardboard and stuffed it under my pillow as I scrambled up in my bunk. But when the drill instructor got to our beds, I still had a mouthful of sugar cookies. I just froze and pretended to be asleep, hoping he wouldn’t notice my face was all puffed up.”
“Wow,” Ella said, still giggling as she shook her head in disbelief.
“I don’t know if he noticed anything or not, but he didn’t say a word,” Dalton said. “And from then on, Andy and I were best friends.”
“That’s amazing,” Ella said. “You saved him. You could have gotten into trouble yourself.”
“Those cookies were worth it,” Dalton said, meaning it. “Even after I half choked to death on them, do you know I started craving them all the time?”
