Georgia

The Nissen farmhouse was quiet and dark in the early morning hours. Not a creature was stirring... except for Georgia. She snuck downstairs, careful not to hit the creaky spots in the floorboards that she had already learned, her arms laden with the results of her work.

She had spent most of the previous day digging through the back room to find all the right pieces for the present. Fortunately, there was plenty to work with. She had found a good collection of photos, cards, newspaper clippings—a hundred little pieces of memorabilia that Felix's father, Gareth, had squirrelled away. Along the way, she'd found other useful pieces too, like an empty photo album and even a gift box to put it all in.

After her day of searching, she'd spent her night putting it together. She had snuck all the pieces up to her room, and when everyone turned in for the night, she set about putting on the finishing touches. She had originally intended to do more work on Hugo's project, but that had gotten pushed aside in favour of finishing her present for Sue and for Felix. It just seemed more important. She'd deal with Hugo later.

When it was finally ready, she wrapped the whole thing up in simple brown paper and a scrap of ribbon she'd found in the gift shop. Even though it was a last-minute gift made from things she'd found, it looked pretty good if Georgia had to say so herself.

Tip-toeing into the living room, she was surprised to find the Christmas tree lit. Did Sue forget to unplug it before—

"Good morning!"

Georgia screamed, clutching the gift to her chest.

Sue had just popped out of the entrance to the other side of the tree. She was still in her pajamas, with a fluffy robe and even fluffier slippers, with a cup of coffee in her hand.

"Oh dear, I didn't mean to startle you!" Sue said, hurrying over.

"Y-You're up early," Georgia gasped. Her heart was thrumming in her chest.

"Oh, I usually get up this early. Gives me time to relax before starting my day. But what are you doing up so early? They don't post road updates for another hour at least." Sue's gaze shifted to the box Georgia still had clutched in her arms. "And what do you have there?"

"This is your gift," Georgia confessed. No use hiding it now. "I was going to sneak it under the tree, but..."

"My gift, eh?" Sue said, narrowing her eyes at Georgia.

Georgia narrowed her eyes right back like they were facing off in a duel.

After a moment, Sue cracked a smile and laughed. "Oh, alright, alright. You get one."

"Thank you," Georgia said as she bent down and pushed the Nissen's gift under the tree. "Think of it as your gift to me."

"Oh, dear, it's too late for that," Sue said with a chuckle. "Yours is already wrapped." She pointed to the other perfectly wrapped gift that was already under the tree.

Damn. Sue was a tough one to beat.

Sue just chuckled to herself. "Oh, dear. You've only been here for such a short time and already you feel like you've always been here. I'll be sad to see you go."

"If I can go," Georgia said with a sigh. "If the snow ever lets me leave."

"Actually," Sue said, going to sit down on the couch. "I called an old friend this morning, who gets up as early as I do. He manages the clearing crews and he gave me a heads up on the road conditions..."

Georgia perked up. "And?"

Sue tilted her head. "Well, I've got good news and bad news..."

"And... And... And?!" Georgia repeated.

"The bad news is that they haven't cleared the avalanche yet," Sue said.

"Oh no," Georgia groaned. Suddenly her knees felt weak. She staggered over to the other couch and sank into the cushions. That was that, then. It was Christmas eve, so if she didn't get through today, she wasn't going to make it to her sister's for Christmas...

"But," Sue said, interrupting Georgia's spiral. "They did say that they should be done by this afternoon."

It took a moment for Sue's words to sink in. But when they did, Georgia jumped up from the couch. She let out a girlish squeal and ran at Sue, flinging her arms around the woman's neck. "Yes! YES!"

"What is with all the screaming?"

Georgia loosened her grip on Sue to look up.

Felix was standing at the foot of the stairs, wearing the same buffalo-check pajamas that Georgia first saw him in. His auburn hair was in disarray, and he was squinting against the light of the tree. He had his phone in his hand, ready to call for help.

"The road will be cleared today!" Georgia cheered. "I'll be able to make it to my sister's for Christmas after all!"

"Yes, dear, unfortunately our guest will no longer be staying with us for Christmas," Sue said.

"Oh," Felix said, blinking. "That's... That's great."

But the way he said it, it didn't sound that great at all.

Georgia felt a sudden urge to tell him that she'd changed her mind, but that didn't make any sense. Why would she want to stay here? Her sister was waiting. But...

"Felix..." she began.

But a shrill ring pierced their conversation.

Felix looked at the phone in his hand. "Oh!" he said. He quickly answered it. "This is Felix... What? Coordinates? Sorry, you're breaking up..." He began to move, swaying to and fro, trying to catch a better connection. He moved towards the kitchen in search of the elusive signal. "What do you need those for... Huh? A helicopter?"

"What's that all about?" Sue wondered.

Georgia opened her mouth to say but then remembered that this was Felix's surprise to share. "Not sure," she said instead. "He's definitely up to something, though."

"Hmm," his mother grumbled. By the look on her face, she liked surprises even less than she liked gifts.

Soon enough, Felix came thundering back into the living room. "It's happening!" he cheered.

"What is happening?" Sue demanded, looking cross.

"This was supposed to be your Christmas present, Ma, but I suppose there's no hiding it now. You've got to find out. Your dearest and most favorite son—"

"My only son," Sue interjected.

Felix didn't let that phase him. "—has found a prospective buyer for the farm," he said, his wide grin boyish and smug. He had double the dimples now. "A good one, too."

"Oh, did you?" Sue said, trying to seem excited, but her face stayed flat.

"That's excellent news, Felix!" Georgia said, trying to pump up Sue's muted response.

"And the buyer is highly motivated. If we're lucky, the deal could be done before New Years," Felix said.

"That's great, honey," Sue said, still sounding unimpressed.

"And I know it's late notice," Felix began. The expression on Felix's face was an attempt to look apologetic, but his giddy energy undercut it. "But he wants to see the farm today."

"Today?" Sue echoed, her eyes going wide. "And there's no putting him off until after Christmas?"

Felix shook his head. "Unfortunately not. He's a busy man. All rich men are."

Sue huffed. "Today," she said like she was trying out the word for the first time. "Well, fine. If he wants to come today, then we will have to make way for him. We've got to give this place a good once over to make sure it's in decent shape to show." She got up off the couch, dusting off her robe. "Let's go get ready for the day, then. There's lots to do."

"What can I do to help?" Georgia asked.

"Not you, dear," Sue said. "You've already done enough. And besides, you should be packing up your car so you're ready to go at the first sign of the road being clear. My friend said he'd call me when it is, so I'll let you know right away."

"R-Right," Georgia said.

As Sue rushed off to start preparations, Georgia was left alone in the living room with Felix. Silence hung heavy between them, like there were many things they wanted to say but couldn't find the words.

"Congratulations," Georgia said at last. "I'm glad you've found a buyer."

Felix grinned and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Thanks. I actually owe it to you—you gave me the idea."

"I did?" Georgia echoed.

"It's a long story," Felix said. "I don't want to say anything that will jinx it. But I'll explain it all... later..." His words drifted away.

But if I'm going to leave today, Georgia thought, would there even be a later for us?

Felix seemed to realize this, too. But they didn't say anything—they stared at each other. Felix opened his mouth a few times, but nothing made it out.

"Well, I'm glad it all worked out," Georgia said, but it did not sound convincing.

"I guess you could say it was a Christmas miracle," Felix said, giving a laugh... but it came out flat. "Thanks for all your help, Georgia. It was... nice... having you here."

"It was nice being here," Georgia said. And that came out right because it was true.

She turned to leave. As she drifted towards the stairs, looking around at all of Sue's beautiful decorations, she couldn't help but feel a little sad that today was the day she was finally saying goodbye to Nissen Christmas Tree Farm.

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