Page 4 of Wrap Me Up

Noel

Christmas music plays softly in the background of the gift wrapping warehouse. There’s a pleasant heat emanating from the windows that’s still so strange. I sit at a long worktable with a bunch of my fellow elves. We all hum along with the radio as we work. My fingers fold crisp edges in the gold wrapping paper in front of me and I have to decide on the embellishments I want for the package.

In front of me is everything I could ever desire. Ribbons in every color, tulle, stickers, glitter, tissue paper, metal stars in gold and silver. I hover my hand over a little silver star to tie into the tulle I’ve wrapped around the package, but it doesn’t feel just right. The tulle feels too much, so I take it off to wrap a pink ribbon around the package instead. Perfect. I give the gift a nod and move to the next until I have a pile of beautiful presents in front of me.

It’s been a few days and I still can’t decide on a gift schedule for Tinsel. Daily can be a nuisance. Maybe weekly? Every two weeks? What will be best?

What will be the best gifts? Should I choose something sparkly like him? Or make it more subtle? He loves novelty coffee mugs, or rather hot chocolate mugs, since he doesn’t drink coffee. Says he’d rather drink happy rainbows with loads of marshmallows or whipped cream than bitter sadness. His words. Though I think most elves will agree that we just don’t care for coffee. I can’t even remember the last time I saw coffee offered in a grocery store. But I digress.

Present for Tinsel.

Something sparkly could be a little on the nose for him, if I’m being honest. His outside persona is dazzling bright, but when we had quiet moments before, he’s more reserved and sometimes adorably shy depending on the subject. Something less showy could endear him to me more.

Hmmm…

I scrunch my nose at the gift in front of me. What the chestnuts did I do?

“Noel?”

I snap my head up to Sleigh frowning. Her black hair is braided and wrapped around her head like a crown. Her pointed ears peek through and sparkle with jewelry. Her flowy, glittery skirt brushes the tops of her knees. A silver belt cinches her green shirt in the middle. Her red lips purse together as she scowls at me. Oh no.

“What has you so distracted?” She asks gently as she picks up the gold package in front of me and examines the sides. Usually I have crisp sharp lines in my paper folds, but there are spots that need improvement. “This isn’t your best work, Noel. Please fix it, then take a break.” She hands the package back to me. “You need one. You’ve been working so hard.”

My shoulders drop and I nod before carefully peeling off the tape in the spots I need to work on. I rework the paper until I’m satisfied, knowing Sleigh was right. I can’t get distracted by Tinsel, no matter how much I want to. But every sparkle I see reminds me of him.

Chapter 5

Tinsel

Noel. Gift for Noel. What to do? I chew on my thumbnail as I stare across my workshop. The big windows at the top of the building let in a ton of light. We have a giant decorated tree against the wall with bright, colorful lights. My fellow elves—Mistletoe, Snickerdoodle, Peppermint, Jolly, and Snowflake—are bent over their workstations. We’re listening to a hard rock Christmas station because that’s what we voted on this morning. I’ve been so distracted I’ve poked my damn fingers so many times with my needle it’s not even funny. If I’m not careful, I’ll have to clean blood out of the leather before I ship off the order.

My initial thought is to stamp Noel’s name on a bit of leather and make a cute little keychain. It’s not too personal and he’ll either think I’m his person or someone came to me for the gift. We always have a few readymade leather items people can buy whenever they pop into the shop, but mostly we specialize in custom orders.

But why not ask my friends?

I lower the volume of the music. Everyone lifts their heads and faces me.

“If you signed up for the Naughty and Nice gift exchange, how would you feel about getting a keychain with your name on it?”

Snowflake nods when I hold up a thin scrap of leather. His black hair flops into his eyes and he brushes it away. The other four hum in agreement.

“This is nice, right? We make nice things. Right?”

Mistletoe smiles and pushes to her feet to stretch some more, bending from side to side. “Why are you worried about it? Did you draw someone special?” Her arms go above her head and she bends backward.

“I-uh… No. Just some elf.” I shrug it off.

The five snort at my unconvincing answer.

“Sure. Sure.” Jolly says as she shares a look with Mistletoe. They always conspire against me.

Peppermint snickers. Wisps of his red hair tickle his ears. “Tinsel and Noel sitting in a tree.” He rushes to Mistletoe’s side and they sway back and forth as they continue singing. Soon, all five of them are chanting the silly nursery rhyme.

“No! No.” I laugh as I thread my fingers through my hair. We were so obvious last Christmas. “Ugh, y’all are no help.”

Snickerdoodle skips, but her silver skirt is so long it almost catches on her shoe, so she stops to walk toward me. She throws open her arms, and everyone rushes us to pull me into a big hug. In her mid-thirties, Snickerdoodle is a little older than the rest of us. She swipes her hand through my bangs. “We’re just having a bit of fun. We want to see you happy.”

All five of them nod and we pull apart. “I know. And you’re great.” I give each of them eye contact. “I don’t know where I’d be without you all. And…” I hunch down and wave them closer again before whispering, “It is Noel, but don’t tell anyone!”

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