Naughty or Nice

1. Maya

one

Maya

" M aya, when will the Christmas pastries begin coming out?" A small voice says to me from behind the counter.

I lean over and smile softly. Standing with their head barely reaching the top of the counter was Emmett, a young boy who is now seven years old and living at the local orphanage.

"Within the next week, honey," I say, handing him a small Christmas-shaped cookie from a nearby pan.

His eyes light up, and he greedily shoves the cookie in his mouth, leaving crumbs scattered all over the floor.

"Thank you," he says with a full mouth. He grabs his small baggie of pastries and his change and rushes out the door, bouncing happily.

Through the pillowing steam pouring from the fresh pies in the front window, two large chocolate-brown eyes glare just over the edge of the windowsill. I smile and wave. The eyes quickly dart down out of sight.

I open the door, peeking my head out into the cold. There, crouched down and gripping a large scarf around her, is a young girl, no older than five. She has chestnut-colored hair braided into pigtails that fall to the ground around her.

"Hello," I say to her softly. "Would you like to come in and get warm?"

Her eyes reach me, and a slight glint of curiosity crosses them. She nods her head, and I reach out to her.

"What's your name? I ask her softly. I hoist her on my hip and walk back into the warm shop.

"Emery," she says softly, hiding her face behind her scarf. Her nose and the tips of her ears are red from the cold. Her eyes light up as soon as her eyes land on the bright Christmas lights strung across the shop's ceiling. Emery gasps when a small automatic train rides past us on the wall.

"Would you like to see them?" I smile warmly.

She nodded at me and smiled, pointing to the large Christmas tree in the shop's back corner.

Next to it was a display of freshly baked autumn cookies. Most were in the shape of leaves, others of pumpkins. Now that Christmas is officially here, I had to start selling out my autumn cookies before they went bad.

I set Emery down, and she rushes over to the Christmas tree and begins looking at all the ornaments, turning them over with her tiny red-tipped fingers.

"Have you ever thought of adopting one of your own?" a voice comes behind me. I spin around quickly, only to find Margaret standing behind me with her hands on her hips, smiling brightly at the young girl.

"Maybe one day, but I can't do it alone." I walk behind my counter to pull more cookies from the small oven.

"Sure you can. Plenty of women do it themselves all the time." She gives a hearty laugh.

"By choice or circumstance?" I say with an eyebrow raised.

Margaret shrugs her shoulders and makes her way over to the fresh display of cherry pies.

"How are you holding up dear?" She looks back at me from over her shoulder.

"Oh, you know. Same as always. With the busyness of the holidays coming up, I'm definitely running thin, but it's worth it in the end." I swing the door open, and black clouds billow into my face, burning my eyes. I wave my hand, trying to divert the fog and cough.

Margaret chuckles and makes her way around the counter to help me.

"If you ever need an extra set of hands, I'm always here, dear," Margaret says sweetly. She puts the pan on the counter with her apron and quickly shuts the oven off.

"I appreciate that, Margaret, I do. Running the whole place alone has been quite a hassle, but

I wouldn't feel right asking everyone else to carry that burden with me, especially with everything going on right now."

Margaret stares at me for a moment before sighing.

"You know, back in my day…"

Margaret's voice suddenly drowns out as the hair on my arms rises. I look around, and just outside of view, I swear I see a towering figure on the edge of the treeline. Everything around me seems to go silent.

"Maya?" Margaret asked, "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah. Yes, it is. Sorry, I zoned out for a minute. I don't know what came over me." I chuckle a little awkwardly.

"Well, you're more than welcome to join our family any evening if you don't want to eat dinner alone." Margaret smiled softly before hugging me and making her way out of the store, waving as she passed the large main window.

The young girl approaches the counter and peeks over the edge at me.

"I have to close the shop soon, honey. Do you have anyone that can walk you back to the orphanage?" I wipe my hands on my apron.

The small girl shakes her head at me.

"All right, give me five minutes, and I can walk you home."

Her eyes light up, and she sprints back to the Christmas tree. Her scarf whips behind her.

A cold chill suddenly ran up the back of my spine like fingers dancing up my back, and the hair on my arms stood on edge just like earlier.

My vision quickly darts back out the window, but no one is there. Just soft snow falling from the dark sky.

"Come on, sweetheart, let's go ahead and get you back."

Emery runs up to me, and I hoist her on my hip, pulling her scarf over her head to cover her ears. She hugs me tightly, and we make our way out.

When I open the shop's door, cold air hits us both, and Emery snuggles deeper into my shoulder. I pull out my keys and lock the shop. With how things had been the past few weeks, it was one of the first times I felt I needed to lock the shop up.

I turn around and begin walking with Emery, who is hugged close to me. My eyes occasionally go back to the treeline just on the edge of town. After only a moment, I begin the brisk walk to the orphanage, which is only a few blocks away.

The walk to the orphanage would only take about 10 minutes. However, by the time I was set to head back to the bakery, the snow had begun to fall harder, and buildings were disappearing behind the heavy sheets.

I began my walk back and pulled my scarf tightly around me, covering my mouth, nose, and ears. The snow was almost completely silent but grew heavier by the second.

As I go, my breath pillows through my scarf in small clouds. I begin passing shops boarded up by now old planks and for sale signs plastered all over the properties. Some were sold within the day to a now well-known but anonymous buyer. The same person seemed to be buying up all the properties as soon as it was confirmed that they were beyond repair.

Of course, small-town rumors began; some say he is a rich businessman in another county, and others say it's a scheme to take over the town's land. Of course, there are many more ridiculous theories, such as it being a werewolf.

I round the corner and see the bakery come into view, still brightly lit with Christmas lights and glowing Christmas decorations.

Suddenly, my body stiffens, and it feels as if the cold air has broken through the back of my heavy coat and is working its way up my spine again—this time more venomous.

"It's a little late for a young lady to be alone, right?" A husky voice sings behind me, and I spin around to see an unfamiliar man standing there.

"I'm actually not far from home. Thank you, though. You should get home too. It's only supposed to get colder this evening." My body unfreezes, and I begin briskly walking to the bakery, now only a 30-second walk away.

"I was just passing through town and was looking for a place to stay. You wouldn't mind, would you? I don't want to be a burden or anything, but you're right. It is mighty cold out."

I look over my shoulder to see the man now right behind me. He smiles at me and tips his hat.

My nerves are on edge.

"No, I'm sorry. I don't have a room. There's an inn not far from here." My heart is racing now.

"You're not understanding, little lady." The man grabs my arm harshly and yanks me towards him. I'm stunned, and suddenly, my mouth doesn't work. "I wasn't asking." He grabs my chin and forces me to look him in the eyes. His eyes are blue and almost inhuman.

I slam my fist into his chest, trying to push him away, but all he does is stand there. I look up at his face and see him staring in utter fear at something behind me. The feeling from earlier creeps back into my spine, and I look behind me but see nothing.

The man suddenly throws me to the ground, and I fall hard, splashing snow all around me. I gather myself and look up at him as he stands there in complete shock and frozen with fear.

"You're not supposed to be here," he stutters. His breath blows out of his mouth in heavy, thick clouds, and then a second man takes off, running in the opposite direction.

I hesitate for a moment, still lying on the ground. I prop myself up and glance behind me where the man was looking, only to see once again nothing. I gather myself and stand up, grabbing my scarf off the ground and running to the bakery, fumbling with the keys for a moment before finally unlocking the door.

A chill crept back up my spine, but this time, it was a feeling of comfort—like I wasn't the one in danger at that moment. I hugged myself, trying to hold the feeling close.

After a moment, I began turning off the lights and closing down the bakery for the evening, and then I went upstairs to my apartment to get ready for bed.

My apartment was modest, which was handed down along with the bakery after my grandmother passed.

It consisted of a small living room, an even smaller bedroom, a kitchen, and a dainty little bathroom with a standup clawfoot tub. The apartment was decorated head to toe with various plants and books. My favorite spot, however, was on a window bench near the front of the apartment that faces the town.

I shower quickly before making myself a hot cup of peppermint tea and sitting down at the window, still wrapped in my towel. I begin brushing my hands through my long, wet hair with my tea. It sits loosely around me on the seat, and I begin braiding it back into a low, loose braid.

"Who are you?" I whisper out loud to myself.

I pulled my knees up to my chest and began sipping my tea as I gazed out the small window to the tree line. I'm still unsure if I ever actually saw someone.

The moon is now at its peak in the sky, and its consistent sad face puts my mind at ease. I finish my cup of tea and head to bed, dropping the towel off in the bathroom as I pass.

The familiar cold feeling dances over my shoulder, and once again, I find myself looking behind me and only seeing no one.

I crawled into bed underneath my heavy, silky black comforter and deep into my sheets. The silk was cold, but it was comfortable nonetheless, and not long after, I found myself drifting off, still wondering about the cold presence that had been visiting me.