28. Photo Perspective
28
Photo Perspective
I’d barely been back on the Santa line for two seconds before Aunt Coral flagged me down. “Shelby,” she called. Everyone within fifty feet flinched from her sharp pitch.
My family was driving me up a chimney. I walked over to their place in line and crossed my arms. “Call me Sugarplum, here, please.”
“Where is your mother?”
I glanced over my shoulder. “She left, I’m guessing.”
“Why?”
“Because she’s embarrassed her kid is peddling candy for pennies and can’t stay out of my business," I snapped.
“Oh, Shelby,” she chided.
“Sugarplum.” Why couldn’t they do the basics of respecting me in front of my boss and colleagues?
Hoynes shook his head at me and marked something on his clipboard.
Aw, sugarcane. My body language wasn’t up to code. I uncrossed my arms and straightened my spine, but I still wasn’t up to smiling. “Excuse me.”
Other guests were here to make happy family memories.
Before I could get too involved with our guests, Hoynes crooked a finger at me.
I smoothed my skirt and shuffled over, my face still heated from my cross-mall sprint and the fight with my mother. “What do you need?”
He angled his clipboard to the line about fifteen feet behind us. “Can you explain why our guests complained about your family?”
“Well, uh–”
“You also left right at the start of your shift without telling anybody.”
I jerked my thumb at my former post. “You didn’t hear me? I had a family…not really an emergency. More like damage control that needed handling.”
He sighed. “We need holly jolly, okay? Not dipsy…lipsy.”
A nervous laugh escaped me. “You really committed to the rhyme.”
“Sugarplum,” he said in his sternest tone.
I held my hands behind my back and nodded. “No running off. No talking back.”
“I know you want that Nice bonus, so don’t go naughty in the last week.” He wagged his finger at me.
“I won’t.” The heat of shame flooded my cheeks as I hurried to my station. I was so good, usually. And I needed that bonus money. No more playing around. I had to finish strong this week.
I entertained the guests for a bit, talking about holiday plans and traditions to get my mind off home and fulfill my job duties.
A semi familiar bright-eyed kid walked up to me. “Hey, did you get to feed Dasher today?”
“Not yet. He’s training for the big day, so he’s been eating a lot lately," I said, my smile tight.
“What else does he eat besides carrot cake?”
Oh, this kid was from The Bern, when I made my first order and had to stay in character.
I had to memorize some reindeer facts for the job, so I was able to spout off an actual answer involving hay and graham crackers. “Are you here to see Santa again?” I asked.
“No, but I wanted to say hi. Hi.” He waved.
I laughed and waved back. “Thank you for stopping by. Maybe you can leave a carrot out with Santa’s cookies if you’d like to give the reindeer a treat.”
His eyes widened. “Great idea. Mom, we need to go grocery shopping.”
His mother smiled at me. “You’re good at this. Do you do parties?”
I gestured to a posted sign. “Right now, we’re only here during holiday mall hours.”
“No, I mean you specifically. Do you do character visits for kids’ parties? You know, princesses, superheroes, fairies." She raised her eyebrows as if she could easily picture it. Possible costumes and playdates of days past danced through my head.
“Not…during Christmas," was the only reply I had. "I have to stay in uniform.” I showed off my curved-toed shoes in a playful pose, trying to stay in character.
The mother chuckled. “I have lots of friends who’d hire you. We’re on the local parent groups, if you're interested in seeing rates for that kind of thing.”
“Oh, okay, thanks.” I wasn’t sure how in-demand an amateur princess would be, but I did like the idea of going to a party for money.
The mother tapped her son’s arm. “Say goodbye, Joshie.”
The kid and I waved at one another.
A ways down the line, Joon tugged on the line dividers. “Shell–um, shug…”
I walked over. “What is it, bud?”
“Can you play with us?”
“Of course." I patted his head. "Thank you for asking so nicely. I might have to play with others or go help Santa, though, okay?”
“Okay.”
Aunt Coral cleared her throat. “I think you should call and apologize to your mother.”
“I’m at work. I can’t get on the phone," I said. Funny how easily a kid could respect my boundaries and my aunt and mother couldn’t.
Aunt Coral scrolled through her text messages. “She says you told her to leave.”
“She harassed my boyfriend and told me my job wouldn’t miss me. I said if she was going to act like that, then she should leave.”
Scoffing, Aunt Coral stepped closer. “She was inviting him over, which is very considerate of her based on what the kids told me.”
I glanced at my little cousins, who kept playing. “What would they know about him? That he’s tall and has piercings? They met for two seconds. If you’re that nervous, you can chaperone your kids when we make cookies. But he’s great, and I think this family could be a little more charitable about everything, considering the season.”
She sighed and put her phone away. “We can talk later.”
That was as close as I’d get to winning an argument with her or my mother.
Not wanting to dwell in any resentment, I played a fun version of the ‘Reindeer Game’ with the kids: Dancer, show me your favorite dance move; Prancer, pirouette or stretch your legs; etc. Chestnut gave me a death glare any time I tried to rope him into it, so I let him stay on candy cane duty until it was my family’s turn to meet Santa.
As we arranged everyone on the sleigh, I turned to my aunt. “Doesn’t Mom want to be here for this?” I figured she’d return after blowing some steam.
Aunt Coral fussed with the kids’ clothes. “She’s on the phone, so she’s going to meet us after.”
“Oh, okay.” I bet she was talking to my dad or another church friend.
Maybe I should’ve yelled at her in private. Or not yelled at all. But I was sick of her pushing me. I wasn’t going to let her push Harvey too.
Frosty Santa had my littlest cousin on his lap. “What do you want for Christmas?” he asked.
May panicked and reached for me.
“Awww, me?” I reached for her, too, but then all the little cousins clamored to be held by or sit next to me in the photo.
Frosty Santa smirked. “Maybe I’ll have Sugarplum deliver your presents this year.”
“Does that mean I get to eat the cookies?” I did a little dance and wagged my eyebrows.
Hoynes snapped the photo right as everyone laughed. Perfect timing.
This could’ve been a great memory for our family. Now, part of me would always see it as a snapshot of my mom and my fight, forever preserved on my aunts’ refrigerators. At least everyone was smiling. However, I had no idea what or who would be home waiting for me.