Page 41 of The Christmas Box

Lexi

At the sight of all those little slips of paper now on the counter, two thoughts hit me at once.

Did I actually think the box couldn’t be opened? Why did I never ask him?

And the much worse one:Mywish is in there! The one abouthim! The one about wanting him to fall in love with me!

Why did Dara have to put that name line in the form? And even if she hadn’t, it would be pretty obvious who wrote it. This is my worst nightmare. Getting stood up at the Christmas Ball? Mere child’s play.Thisis what true horror and humiliation are made of. My chest tightens and my throat seizes.

“Are you okay? You don’t look well.”

I’m blinking rapidly—in a panicky way, and having trouble breathing. If I were older, I’d fear I was having a heart attack. “I…feel woozy.” It’s not a lie.

“Are you … dehydrated or something? Did you have dinner?”

I blink some more, trying to think through the sickening panic. “I ate, but…I’m kind of nauseous.”

I lower myself to a stool by the coffee bar and rest my head in my hands.Think.

“Are you coming down with something? Do you need to lie down?”

Breathe. Think and breathe.“Maybe my dinner didn’t agree with me.” Then an idea blossoms. “You know what I really need right now?”

“What?”

“A Coke, from Winterburger. Would you mind?”

I’m waiting for him to go flying out the door—but instead, he asks, “Do you think they’re still open? It’s been a long, snowy day—I assumed everyone had shut down early.”

“Istayed open,” I point out. Then I raise my head from my hands just long enough to hold them out, palms up, in a who-can-say? shrug. “All I know is that a Coke always makes me feel better when I’m nauseous.”

Finally, he says, “Okay—I’ll find you one. Hang tight.”

He hadn’t taken his coat off, so back out into the snow he goes, my knight in shining armor who I’ve just lied to. I feel awful, but it was entirely necessary. Once he’s headed up the street, I fly to the pile of wishes and start rifling through them like a maniac, in search of my name and handwriting, knowing I don’t have much time.Please, please, please.

I barely register anything I see that isn’t my wish. My heart feels ready to explode in my chest, and my hands tremble as I frantically sort.Where is it already?

I’m starting to panic all over again because I’m finding ones I’ve already checked, including my own about the Christmas Box—but where’s the one about Travis?

And then—there it is! Between my fingers. cringe at the words—maybe he even falls in love with me—and that’s when I hear the sleighbells on the door jingle. My heart nearly stops as I cram the wish into the pocket of the long cardigan sweater I’m wearing. Crisis averted.

I look up to see him carrying a can of soda. “Winterburger was closed, but I had some in my apartment, so I ran up and grabbed one from the fridge.”

I really do feel unsteady and sick, so I’m not sorry to see it. “Thank you,” I say as he walks up, popping the top. I take it from him, our fingers brushing, and swallow a sip. Then I let out a big sigh. “I’m already doing a little better, but this will help.” Alotbetter actually. I feel like I’ve just gotten away with some kind of a crime—the crime of stupidity, perhaps.

I drink some more Coke, and he warms up with his cocoa, wrapping cold hands around the mug. And when, a few minutes later, I announce my complete recovery, he says, “Then let’s look at these wishes and see if there are some you can make happen.”

“All right,” I agree quietly, mainly still just basking in relief.

He plucks up a slip of paper from the pile I just dug through like a madwoman and reads it to me. “World peace. Okay, we can’t do that.” Then he sets it aside.

“Fair enough,” I say. That’s a big one.” Then I pick one up. “Marissa Compton—who didn’t sign her name but I know it’s her—wants her boyfriend, Cash, to propose at Christmas.”

He blows out a breath. “Really? No jewelry? No clothes? Everybody went super big?”

But I’m already busy thinking. “I know Cash. His father, Nick, owns Winterburger.”

Travis tips his head back. “Oh, yeah, Nick. Nice guy.”

---