Felix

As they reached the house, Georgia tried taking the path to the back door. Felix had to pull on the tree to stop her. He knew the back door was too narrow, and if they tried to push a tree this thick through, it would only lose half its needles. Instead, Felix led her up the step to the front porch and to the door of the gift shop. The gift shop had two glass-fronted double doors, and they could open both to get the tree through without much trouble. He didn't have the key on him, but he guessed that his mom still kept a spare in her special hiding place—the wreath that hung off the very door. After feeling around for a bit, he found he was right. He unlocked the doors and let them in.

Once inside, they found the gift shop was dead quiet. For Felix, it was more than a little strange to see it like this—so unused, so unloved. This place had once been the best part of the Nissen farm, and it held all his favourite childhood memories of the Christmas tree season.

Before his dad took over the farm and business, his grandparents had run the place, and this had been his grandmother's café. Alongside their signature cups of cocoa and cider, she sold baked goods and slices of pies and cups of soup. Even now, the thought of them made his mouth water, even though the glass, rotating case that she used to display her incredible pies had long been empty. Felix's heart gave a twinge. What he wouldn't give for a slic of his grandmother's famous chocolate candy cane cream pie right now...

But those times were long gone.

He tucked the key back in the wreath and then picked up his end of the tree up, guiding Georgia through the open doors.

After quickly locking the doors behind them, Felix directed Georgia through the shop. They passed by the empty shelves, and they served as another haunting memory of what had been. The farm had been through many different forms over the years. After his grandma had passed away and his parents had inherited the farm, the café became a gift shop. They had still sold the signature cups of cocoa and cider, but now they were alongside handmade ornaments and other seasonal knick-knacks made by local artisans. Though Felix had always liked the café better, the gift shop had been charming in its own way.

Now it wasn't even that. The shelves were bare and dusty. There were still a few items of stock left, dotted here and there, but they were flanked with little signs of 'SALE' and 'CLEARANCE' and 'EVERYTHING MUST GO.' His mom hadn't restocked the place in years, knowing that the time to sell was coming.

And now, these days, the place was mostly used for storage.

Georgia let Felix lead her and the tree to another set of double doors at the back of the room that led to a smaller hall. The hall held the small powder room reserved for the customers and then, further down, access to their living room through another set of double doors.

"There," Felix said with a huff. "Let's set it down here for now."

Georgia followed his lead and dropped the tree, leaning it again against the wall. "Now what?" she asked.

"Let's get out of these things," Felix said, pulling off his hat and mitts and scarf. He kicked off his boots, too.

Georgia nodded and followed suit. When she pulled off her own hat, Felix had to suppress a laugh. Her hair stuck out in every direction, a spray of static. She tried to smooth it down, but the static crackled with her every touch, and it refused to be tamed.

"It's no use," Felix told her, muffling a snicker. "I think you're just going to have to live like that,"

"Great," Georgia grumbled, giving up. She hurriedly pulled off the rest of her gear.

"It's kind of cute, honestly," Felix teased. "Maybe it's a new look. Maybe you'll be a trendsetter."

Georgia rolled her eyes but went pink, too, which only made Felix snicker again. She was too easy to tease.

"Why don't you take our stuff back to the mudroom?" Felix suggested, "while I'll go dig out the tree stand?"

"Deal," Georgia said, holding out her arms, already loaded with her borrowed things. Felix loaded his stuff on top, and she hurried off in sock feet towards the mudroom, her hair still sticking straight up.

Felix was still chuckling to himself as he went in the opposite direction, back towards the gift shop. He stepped behind the café counter and headed for the back rooms. When the café stopped being a café, his parents needed to keep all the Christmas stuff during the rest of the year, so they started to use the kitchen and pantry as storage. Felix suspected that was the same now, even though it'd been years since he'd lived here.

As he ducked through the door to the kitchens, he saw he was right. Back here, there were stacks and stacks of boxes everywhere—and not just decorations. The space had become a graveyard of random stuff.

As he surveyed the wide array of boxes, a sinking feeling took hold of him. When his mom finally sold the farm and had to move away, they'd have to clean this place out. That was not going to be a fun job...

For now, though, he just needed to find the tree's stand, lights, and decorations. He rifled through the piles, searching for what he needed. There were boxes of paperwork, out-of-date marketing materials, plates and cutlery, even boxes filled with other boxes—gift boxes, but still.

Finally, he'd found the box with the decorations and the stand for the tree. The boxes were very dusty like his mom hadn't touched them in a while. A flash of guilt took hold. He felt bad that neither he nor his sister had been back for Christmas in the last couple of years. But there was no use dwelling on it. He was here now, and he'd be a lot more willing to spend Christmas with her once she was out of this house and away from these memories.

Gathering everything into his arms, Felix headed back to the living room.

Georgia was back, too, waiting for him on the couch in front of the fire. Her hair seemed to be tamed, too. She looked up as she heard him enter, and her eyes widened at the sight of the boxes in his arms. "What's all this?" she said, coming over.

"Ornaments," Felix said, nodding to the label on the box. "Obviously."

"I thought you were going to get the tree stand!" she said.

"I got that, too," Felix said, gently putting the boxes on the floor. Many of the things inside were glass. "But we've got to decorate the tree, too."

"We do?" Georgia asked, her eyes going wide. "I-I was—I d-didn't think—well, I thought I'd leave that to you."

"What's the point of putting up a tree if you don't decorate it?" he replied. He surveyed the scene of their work. "Now, where should we put the tree?"

"I don't know," Georgia said. "This isn't my house. Where do you usually put the tree?"

Felix pursed his lips like he wanted to remind Georgia, This isn't my house. Not anymore. But it didn't seem worth it to argue. "We would put the tree in a different place every year. And, anyway, this was your idea—you choose."

Georgia's eyes narrowed as her brow fell into a frown. "What would Sue like?"

"She'll just be happy to have a tree." Felix shrugged.

"Helpful," Georgia grumbled with a shake of her head. She began to spin in a slow circle, considering the room from every angle as she tapped on her bottom lip.

Once again, Felix was struck by how seriously Georgia approached a seemingly unimportant task. She seemed to take pride in her work, no matter what it was. It was... admirable.

Georgia went still. Her hazel eyes were bright again like inspiration had struck. "Well, why not where she has the little tree now?" she said, pointing at it. "If we put it there, it will be the centerpiece of the room."

Felix looked over to where the flimsy little tree was sitting on the bookshelf. "Yeah, that would do well. Let's set it up."

"Great. We'll get it up and then you guys can decorate it tomorrow," Georgia said, flashing a warning look at Felix as she went over to the spot she had chosen. She reached down and unplugged the sad little tree's lights. "After I'm gone."

Felix just shook his head. Once his mother saw the tree, he knew there'd be no getting out of decorating—for either of them. "We'll see about that."

🎄

Where do you put your Christmas tree?