Before she knew it, it was Max’s turn and he was talking to Catherine. After she spoke to him, she was nodding, smiling, and he looked nervous standing on that stage under the bright lights, but as Santa called out, “Max!” his face lit up and he nearly ran to Santa and climbed on his lap.
A bright bolt of light flashed, causing Max to blink several times. When he seemed to clear his vision, Max unrolled the balled paper in his hand and began to read his list. “I’d like an iPad, a skateboard, a scooter, a Willie Mays baseball card…” That baseball card was because of Gramps. It was his favorite player. The bare minimum value for a Willie Mays card was probably a hundred dollars. They went up to the thousands. Abbey swallowed to alleviate the lump that was forming. This Christmas, she’d have the money for all those things.
With a wave to Santa, Max came barreling toward her, slamming into her and wrapping his arms around her waist. “That was the real Santa!” he said.
Max would know better next year, and he’d never believe the mall Santa was the real Santa. She’d have to bring him back here next year. Making sure to keep the magic of believing in Santa alive was important to her.
When Abbey was a girl, her mom had worked hard to keep the magic alive, and when she’d finally told Abbey the truth, she explained that Santa was really a way to explain faith. We have to have faith in things we can’t see sometimes, and if we believe, we may discover goodness beyond our dreams. That had stuck with Abbey all her life, and she wanted to be able to have that same talk with her own son. But she wanted the timing to be just right. She didn’t want that magic ruined by a Santa at the mall that didn’t live up to this moment.
Nick stepped away just as Max pulled at her arm. “Mama! Can you believe we really met the real Santa? He was so different! We’ve been going all this time to the mall and that was only his helper! He knew my name! Maybe that’s why I never got what was on my list! Now, I’m sure to be one of the kids this year!”
Abbey tried to squelch her worry. If they continued to visit the Children’s Museum each Christmas to see Santa, would Max expect to get everything on his list every year?
Nick returned, carrying a small white bag. He handed it over to her. “I got five three-and-a-half-by-five-size photos, six five-by-sevens, and four eight-by-tens. Just to be on the safe side, I paid to have the digital image emailed to my personal account because that has copyright release. I’ll forward it to you. I would’ve gotten your email, but I was already paying, and Max had your attention.”
She opened the bag and slid an eight-by-ten out to view it. Max was adorable. He had a gorgeous smile on his face as he looked up at Santa Claus.
“Thank you,” she said, feeling a little uncomfortable about taking the photos. Nick had easily just spent a hundred dollars or more and she wasn’t used to receiving gifts of that size. She wouldn’t be able to repay him with a gift of comparable sentiment.
“You’re welcome.”
“Can we play with the boats now?” Max asked.
“Yes, we can,” she said, rummaging in her purse as they crossed the lobby to the ticket counter. She only had seven dollars. That wasn’t enough for one admission ticket. She pulled out her credit card.
Abbey had one credit card for emergencies. She never used it because she was terrible at keeping track of what she’d spent, and she didn’t make enough each month to pay it off. She believed that if she couldn’t pay for things with cash, she didn’t need to have them. Even knowing she was getting the money, it felt odd using it.
“Two, please,” she said to the woman behind the counter.
“I invited you,” Nick said. “It’s my treat.”
The woman behind the counter paused, holding the credit card, clearly unsure of how to proceed.
“You don’t have to pay for us,” she said.
“I’m sure I don’t, but I want to. As a friendly gesture.”
“Do you want me to run this credit card?” the woman said from behind the counter. Max was sitting on the floor, waiting, his knees pulled up, and his arms around them.
“Yes, thank you,” Abbey said back to the woman. She turned to Nick, feeling awkward about having her employer spend his money on her. Even though he had it to spend, she wanted to do this on her own. “Thank you so much for your offer, but it’s really fine.”
The woman walked from behind the counter with a pen so that Abbey could sign the receipt. With one hand, Abbey pressed the receipt against the wall and wrote her name with the other.
Max ran ahead to a life-size apple tree. It spit red plastic balls out of chutes that kids could collect with baskets as if they were apples. “Max, the boats are over here,” Abbey said, smiling at his excitement.