Christmas Wealth

Genre: Fiction

Author's Notes: I wrote this story last year during the Christmas season. It was one of the first "mundane" stories that I wrote for a short story contest. I purposefully made it ambiguous whether or not the three people who meet the Solace family are real or spirits. I generally do not write happy endings, but I had to make one especially for a Christmas story.

Sitting on the edge of his bed while playing the newest online first-person shooter, Nicky Solace smiles and cheers every time that he shoots down another player. His friends, or to be precise, made-up usernames,  talk to each other in code using a language that only the most avid players would understand. With only the vacuum used by the maid, Isabella, heard in the background, Nicky’s eyes do not leave the television screen and the near-realistic graphics of the game. 
An hour passes, and school starts in an hour. It is the last Friday before a two-week vacation for winter break with Christmas coming in six days. However, Nicky’s stomach needs food. He slowly gets up to turn off the console and heads downstairs to eat. He looks out the window and sees the city view from his parents’ multi-million-dollar home. Southern California does not snow during December, and at worst, it rains, but the sun shows itself this morning bringing with it a slight chill. 
Nicky’s father is already in his executive corner office that has windows that look down on the city from the top-floor.  Nicky does not ever expect to see his father at the breakfast table anyways, or the dinner table for that matter. His mother makes more appearances in the house than his father, but her work as a fashion designer has her meeting clients or spending time in the studio. 
Nicky sits at the kitchen table looking at a plate of bacon, eggs, and toast. A row of empty chairs join him while the maid watches television in the family room. Once he finishes eating, Nicky’s mother, on schedule, comes downstairs to take Nicky to school. 
“How are you, cutie?” Nicky’s mother asks
“Don’t call me that,” Nicky says with a hint of anger even though she has been calling him that since he was a baby.
“Make sure to get changed. Don’t forget to shower.”
    Nicky takes a shower and changes his clothes. They head to school in their Range Rover, and Nicky plays his Nintendo 3DS on the way. His mother attempts to start a conversation with him, but she stops when she realizes that she is being ignored. In her mind, she imagines that she swipes the handheld game system from his hands and throws it out the window. In reality, she drops her son off school, smiles and tells him to have a nice day. 
    Nicky walks through the quad of the elementary school while hearing chatter from other students. Everything from the hallways to the doors is covered in reds, greens, and whites. He walks by himself to class as he sees various cliques talking in delight. Everyone is anticipating winter break, even the teachers.  
Nicky heads to the bathroom before class. In the stall, he overhears a conversation between two older students.
“So, do you know what your parents are getting you for Christmas?”
“Not really. I’m hoping to get a Nintendo 3DS.”
“Dude, I see that Nicky Solace kid always playing his. He, like, gets everything I’ve ever wanted.”
“You ever see his house? It’s seriously, like, four of my houses combined.”
“Seriously, he doesn’t need Christmas presents. He’s got, like, all this stuff I want. He doesn’t need a thing.”
Nicky stays in the bathroom stall until he hears the boys’ footsteps leave the bathroom. Solemnly, he walks to his classroom, but the bell rings on the way. He enters the classroom with all eyes on him while his unpleased teacher marks him as tardy. 
Nicky daydreams while the lesson is taught and thinks about what the boys in the bathroom said about him. Last Christmas, he received a new computer and laptop from his mother, and money from his father. Because he has every new electronic device, maybe he will get money this year. 
During lunch, Nicky sits by himself on a brick planter. His school serves Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, and he bought pizza since he ate tacos yesterday. Throughout the crowded quad area filled with lunch tables and groups of friends gossiping, a boy dressed in red and white approaches Nicky’s direction. Dressed in what appears to be a Santa Claus outfit, hat and everything, no one except Nicky notices him. He walks with a step that looks like he has no worries in the world and wears a happy-go-lucky smile. He stands in front of Nicky and says to him in cheer, “Don’t you feel the Christmas spirit?”
“Not really, dude,” Nicky responds indifferently.
“Why not? Everyone is full of glee and can’t wait to spend time with their friends and families.”
“Sounds boring. I’m just happy there’s a break from school. Who are you anyways?”
“I’m Kris. Aren’t you spending Christmas with your family?”
Nicky starts to become frustrated.
“What are you talking to me for anyways? Don’t you have someone else to bug?”
“Ba-hum-bug! Someone needs a hug.”
“Look, my parents are never even home. I hardly see them in the year. Why’s it any different that it’s Christmas?”
“You and your family just haven’t felt the Christmas spirit yet. It’ll come. Don’t worry.”
Kris heads into a crowd of students and out of Nicky’s sight.
“That kid was weird,” Nicky says to himself.
After school, Nicky’s mother picks him up. In the Range Rover, she tells him, “I’m going to be in the studio working with some models. I’ll be out of the house a lot. Hopefully, I won’t miss spending Christmas Eve with you guys like last year.”
“That’s fine,” Nicky says since he has heard this before. 
Nicky’s mother takes him home, and she takes a few belongings before telling him, “Don’t go outside by yourself. Also, don’t give any trouble to the maid. She’s pretty much going to take care of you.”
Nicky’s mother rushes out of the house and drives to the studio. Passing by stores, she sees sales for various consumer goods. Lights and decorations litter the store fronts hoping to get customers to walk through their doors. The distractions end once her cell phone rings, and she speaks to someone through her Bluetooth. 
At the studio, her assistants and fellow designers put up Christmas decorations. The desks contain glass vases of red and white flowers while ribbon of various colors hangs off the walls. The single women chat about what they expect their boyfriends to get them as gifts, while the married women talk about taking vacations with their families. 
Nicky’s mother sits alone at her desk thinking of new clothing designs and reviewing current designs. An assistant approaches her and says, “The models are ready.”
Three female models who will wear the winter-line clothes to be put on the studio website present themselves to Nicky’s mother. All are young, energetic, confident yet a bit anxious as well. However, one of them appears to be ecstatic. She chats with the other models and all of the employees as well as if she knew them for a long time. Her energy noticeably lightens up the already gleeful studio. When she meets Nicky’s mother, she says, “Hello, I’m Kristine. It’s so nice to meet you.”
“Hello, Kristine. I’m Joy. I’m the designer for the clothes that you’ll be modeling,” Joy responds as she shakes Kristine’s hand.
They take pictures for the photo-shoot with no problems. The photographer and the camera itself love Kristine. After the photo-shoot, Joy sits at her desk while everyone else mingles. Kristine approaches her and says with a smile, “It’s the holidays. Why are you working so hard?”
“I don’t know. It gets my mind off things when I stay busy.”
“The Christmas spirit hasn’t hit you yet?”
“It’s just another day for me. Maybe I’ll get my son a present…… or money. I don’t know.”
“You have a family? You should be with them. That’s a better present than any object or money.”
“You know what? You’re really sweet. If I have the time, then I’ll try to make it home.”
Her office phone rings, and Nicky’s father is on the other line. She tells Kristine, “I have to take this. Will you excuse me?”
“Hey, honey. It’s me,” Nicky’s father says on the other line.
“How’s it going, dear? Is everything good in the office?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’ll probably be here for a while and won’t be home until late. How about you?”
“Same here.”
“Any idea what to get Nicky?”
“I don’t know. He has everything already. Maybe money or gift cards.”
“I don’t know what to get him either. He’s got all those electronic things already. Well, I have to get going. See you at home.”
Nicky’s father hangs up the office phone and gets back to work in his upper-level corner office. The administrative assistant knocks on his door to remind him of the upcoming office party on December 24. 
He steps outside his office and sees that many employees have decorated their cubicles. Blue wrapping paper that line the walls and an arch created out of cardboard and paper act as an entrance to a particle row of cubicles. The mail courier, dressed with a Santa’s hat, delivers boxes of gifts on a cart. Nicky’s father signs off on a box of Omaha Steaks given to him by a client. 
After an eleven-hour work day, he drives home in his white Mercedes with his Omaha Steaks. He knows that he will not eat them, as he usually eats out, but the maid may want them. When he steps through the front door, he can hear the loud sounds of a television in his son’s room. He takes his shoes off and immediately heads to the upstairs master bedroom. His wife, already asleep, left the master bathroom light on knowing that he still has to shower, change his clothes and brush his teeth.
*************************************************************************************
On December 24, Nicky’s father leaves for work before his son wakes up. Driving along relatively empty roads and many green lights, he makes it to work earlier than usual. 
The work day moves along slowly, and the anxiety of having a short vacation makes everyone who has not taken the day off yearn to leave. However, everyone is excited when the office party starts, as they know that the work day is pretty much over. Chatter ensues as paper plates are filed with lasagna, bread, salad, fruits and chicken wings in a conference room.
A jolly elderly man approaches Nicky’s father. He has a white beard and wears small round glasses. Nicky’s father knows that he is not an employee on the floor that he works in, but he figures that he could be from a different floor or possibly related to an employee.
“Hello, sir. Are you having a good time?” the elderly man asks Nicky’s father.
“Call me Pete. That’s what everyone calls me.” 
“So, Pete, I see that everyone here is filled with the Christmas spirit. I’m sure that you have something wonderful planned with your friends and family.”
“To be honest, I haven’t even gotten my son a real Christmas present. I’ll probably give him money again this year.”
“Why is that, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“I bought my son, Nicky, all this nice stuff already. When some new electronic gadget or whatever comes out, me or my wife would buy it for him. I’m so occupied with my work that I don’t ever see him. I work hard so we can live in a nice, big house and have everything we ever wanted.”
“You can’t buy happiness, you know, but I’ve always found that the greatest gift is that which came from the heart.”
“You’re right, but it’s Christmas Eve. I think all the stores might be closed.”
“There’s still time, but you have to hurry.”
Pete looks at his watch and hurriedly says his goodbyes to everyone. He runs to the elevator and sees the elderly man standing next to it. The elevator door opens, and he gets in. Before the door closes, he says, “By the way, I never got your name.”
“It’s Kristoff. I’m just glad because I see that you’re filled with the Christmas spirit.”
“Thanks.”
The door closes, and when he reaches the lobby, Pete runs to his car. He drives to the nearest Target, and he sees from the many cars in the parking lot that he is not the only one getting a last-minute Christmas gift. He enters the store with a natural inclination to look through the electronics section. Seeing that he has bought everything in that section already for Nicky, he seeks out other departments hoping to find the right gift. 
Through what feels like hours of searching, he sees the perfect gift in front of his eyes. He calls his wife on his cell phone, and once she picks up, he tells her, “Honey, I think that I’ve found the perfect gift for Nicky.”
“What is it, honey?”
“I’ll show it to both you and Nicky at home,” Pete says with obvious excitement in his voice.
Joy Solace hangs up her cell phone while sitting alone at a Starbucks next to the studio. 
“The Christmas spirit hasn’t hit you yet?” A familiar woman’s voice says to her from behind.
She turns around and sees Kristine dressed in a green and red elf costume. 
“Why aren’t you home yet? It’s Christmas Eve,” Kristine asks.
“I don’t know. I just never got my son a Christmas present, and even my husband, who’s always stuck in the office all day, managed to find something.”
“Just be with them. That’s all.”
A smile lights up on Joy’s face as if a light went on inside her head.
“What am I doing sitting all alone in a coffee shop? I need to be home. Thanks Kristine,” Joy tells her happily as she runs out the door.
Joy makes it home first, and she sees a boy dressed in a Santa Claus suit walking out the door merrily. Curious, she walks in and sees Nicky, He runs up to his mother and gives her a hug. As they are hugging, she asks, “Who was that kid who I saw walking out of the house.”
“Some kid from school. He was caroling around the neighborhood, and I let him in.”
“You seem pretty happy right now.”
Pete walks in with a long, gift-wrapped present and a smile. He sees Nicky and Joy hugging and joins in. They disengage and sit by the fireplace. Pete hands his son the present and tells him, “I know it’s not Christmas day, but I want you to open this.”
Nicky rips open the gift wrap and sees a box with baseball equipment: one bat, three baseballs, and two gloves. 
“Since you have all this baseball equipment, I’m going to have to be home a lot more now. Who else are you going to play catch with, or hit the old baseball with? It’ll get you away from all those video games, tv and all that other stuff that you’re on,” Pete tells his son assuredly.
“I guess I have to be home a lot more now, too. I got to watch you guys and make sure that you two aren’t getting too crazy out there,” Joy interjects. 
They sit silently by the fireplace with joy and content in their expressions. Pete then says, “You know, I met the nicest and jolliest guy at the office party. His happiness was contagious.”
“That’s funny because I met the sweetest girl at the studio. She just lit up the room,” Joy says.
“Yeah. That’s crazy because I met some kid at school who was like that. He couldn’t stop smiling,” Nicky says.
And the Solace family could not stop smiling.