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But our options have run out. I stand on the edge of the circular stairwell and assess which angle to drop at.

“You want to do the honors?” I start to say to Scarlett.

She doesn’t hesitate when she says, “I know you got this.”

I nod. I do. I got this. One last throw. One last mission.

I drop the box, angling it away from the staircase.

It falls…

And falls…

And then the electric guitar notes of “Run Rudolph Run” begin to fade away.

The song’s about to end.

I tuck Scarlett into the far corner and drape my body over hers, bracing for the blast. There isn’t one.

Instead, there’s a loud boom and an explosion so bright outside the windows it nearly takes my breath away.

Holly got the “present” outside—and chucked it into the water—just in time. Everyone’s safe.

Scarlett looks out of the glass of the crown, her face lit up in gold. It’s when her wide eyes meet mine that we start laughing, mostly in disbelief. It’s a relief after all that pent-up anxiety.

“Holy shit,” Scarlett says.

“Christmas language,” I mutter.

“Did we just… save Christmas?”

I started this day off skeptical of Christmas, of Santa, of anyone who celebrated it. But beside the actual bad Santa coming after us, this day has been filled with surprises. I’ve been immersed in festive settings that shockingly looked kind of nice. I got to hand-deliver toys to children who wouldn’t have gotten a visit from Santa otherwise. After everything I’ve seen in my life, I didn’t think it was possible, but maybe there is some magic left in this world after all. If only you believe in it.

Scarlett pulls me in for a hug, and in this moment, I choose to believe.

“It’s not over yet,” I remind her. “There’s still a tiebreak to finish.”

Her eyes flutter open. They’re wet with tears. “One second longer and that would’ve been it. We don’t get second takes, Lambros.”

I wrap my arms around her tighter. “The way I see it, we’re getting our second take. And this time, I’m not wasting the opportunity. I let you go once. It was the biggest mistake I’ve ever made. I’ve learned not to make the same mistakes twice.”

“Good,” she says. “Because I’m all out of confetti markers.” Her breathing steadies as the waves of Upper New York Bay crash against the island’s stone walls. “Can’t say you didn’t go out with a bang.”

Sometimes our jobs are dark. Sometimes they’re filled with bright explosions. We never know which way it’s going to go, but there’s always been one constant. I’m looking right at her.

“This job takes so much from us,” I say. “But sometimes it gives. It gave me you. I’ll never take that for granted.”

“You’re the gift that keeps on giving,” she says, taking my hand in hers.

“Hey, next Christmas, I’m deciding it now,” I say. “No vengeful Santas, no bombs, and no Cons, okay? Just you and me, somewhere warm, with something pineapple-y.”

Scarlett nuzzles closer. “Is that a promise?”

I gently tug her to me and whisper, “You bet your sparkly ass it is.”

And then I kiss her. In that kiss are a hundred more unspoken promises.

I intend to keep each one.