Christmas At The Café. Rebecca Raisin

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       Chapter Eleven

      By early afternoon the kids finally lose their zeal. We’ve sold out of almost everything as the festival went on merrily outside, while the children played inside. My head throbs with the sudden silence but I brace myself for them to get their second wind as the Easter bunny is moments away from arriving to spread some cheer and hand out eggs we’d secreted out. I stop for a moment, and look over at Walt and Janey’s shop, and can’t help but miss them. I know CeeCee will put on an act, pretending to be all bubbly and happy for everyone’s sake, but really her heart’s broken into about a million pieces.

      CeeCee wanders over to me and whispers, “He’s here.” She nods to the back door.

      I find Charlie in the crowd and get set to watch her reaction.

      CeeCee claps her hands to get their attention. “We just wanna say thank you for coming to play here at the Gingerbread Café today. We surely have enjoyed it. If you wouldn’t mind doing me one last favor…”

      The kids sit cross-legged on the floor, staring up at her.

      “Can anyone tell me who that is at the back door?”

      Their heads swivel to door as the Easter bunny walks in holding a basket filled with eggs. They immediately jump up and race towards him screaming, “The Easter bunny!”

      Damon in his pink fluffy bunny suit is well disguised, but I can almost feel him laughing under the bobbly head as they launch themselves at his knees. Charlie is at the back of the crowd, her face lit with wonder.

      Parents shade their faces as they peer through the glass. They’ve been relegated outside and seem happy to watch from the street.

      Damon tries to hand out eggs but can’t pick them up with his huge paws. He muffles, “A little help here?”

      We giggle and edge the kids back so we can get through and help him.

      “Have you been a good girl?” he asks me.

      “Isn’t it Santa who asks that?”

      “You’re on the naughty list. I’ll deal with you later,” he says, stepping forward and shaking hands with the kids as they stand stunned. I try and wipe the goofy, lovey-dovey look off my face, but find it impossible. CeeCee’s right: I had to kiss a toad before my knight in a bright pink bunny suit found my heart. I watch Charlie pick the foil off her egg slowly and delicately before popping it into her mouth, beaming.

      ***

      “It just ain’t the same without Janey and Walt here,” CeeCee says sadly. We’re up before the sun, hiding the eggs for the Easter egg hunt in shrubs along the streets of Ashford. Sarah and Damon are helping; they’re further ahead, chatting as they walk on opposite sides of the street.

      “I know,” I say softly. “Feels hollow without them.”

      CeeCee goes to speak but chokes up. She takes a minute then says, “You know, Lil, the only thing that matters in life is having good friends and family around you. When you get to the twilight of your life, like me, you realize that. Money, fancy clothes, none of that matters. When you’re sitting alone in the dark of night, the things that make your heart happy are simple. Charlie’s smile when she bit into that cake pop. You and me laughing ourselves silly every day. My grandbabies, my kids, who all done me proud. And Janey. Our friendship’s spanned decades. There ain’t a thing we don’t know ’bout each other, and that counts for more than anythin’. I know she gonna pull through, I know it. But if she don’t, it means that God got other plans for her, and, as sad as that be, I trust Him. And I’ll be ever grateful for havin’ a friend like Janey. Life doesn’t always have a happy ending, and that makes it even more important to love and cherish what you got. So you just remember that, Lil, OK?” She wipes tears from her eyes, and nods at me before turning away and walking up the quiet street. Times like this I know she wants to be alone. Her words replay in my mind. I can’t help but wonder what else she means.

      My heart’s heavy as I walk the other way, placing eggs into the underbrush of plants that line the street. Things don’t often change in Ashford, but it suddenly seems as though they will. The people I look up to and respect are all advancing in years, and I just can’t picture my life without them. I try and shake the blues away. Everything is always sadder before the sun comes up. Picturing Janey and Walt about to face their biggest struggle puts the Joel fiasco into perspective. As CeeCee says, it’s only money. Once I pay him, I’ll never have to see him again, and that’s worth more than anything. My friends need me now, and I need to be strong for them, not lost inside my mind with Joel, and his toxic threats.

      ***

      Since Walt isn’t here, Damon takes over as the egg-hunt organizer. He lines the kids up along a makeshift start line, painted hurriedly at daybreak, when we realized we’d forgotten.

      “OK, does everyone have a basket?” he hollers above the excited chatter.

      Their “yes sirs’” ring out high into the fresh morning air.

      “Great! Now we have a few little ones here today. It’d be nice if the bigger kids buddy up and make sure they find just as many eggs as you.”

      The line wobbles as the tweens move places to stand next to the younger kids to shadow them.

      “On your marks, get set, GO!”

      We watch them race every which way, their yelps punctuating the morning.

      CeeCee and I head on into the café, and get to making gingerbread coffee for the parents, who stumble in groggy from such an early start.

      ***

      The kids have all moseyed on home as I close up shop for the day. CeeCee tallied up the takings, including the festival, and it looks as though we’ve made more than we anticipated. All our hard work was worth it in the end.

      I’m just about to lock the front door when Damon pushes against it. Charlie stands behind him, gripping the edge of his shirt.

      “Hi,” I say, confused. We’d planned to close up and meet at home so Charlie could have a nap after running around town most of the day. СКАЧАТЬ