Page 44 of Blame It On The Reindeer

Jasmin quickly turned her head and hid against my chest as laughter erupted from her.

“What’s that about?” Sam questioned with a grin as he pointed at her.

“Nothing,” I lied. “She’s just remembering the first sandwich I made for her. That was when she realized just how much she enjoyed mayonnaise.”

Twenty-Eight

Jasmin

“Alright, you guys. It’s almost show time,” I said loudly, grabbing everyone’s attention in the mall. Aside from the vendors who were finishing setting up, it was all volunteers and those who were going to be in the parade that started in less than twenty minutes.

“I want to go over a few things before we get started. First, safety is our number one priority. While we’re all here to have fun, I need all of the elves on their best behavior today. That meansnojumping off of the floats and no mooning the crowd. I’m talking to you two,” I said, pointing a finger at the rowdy Mayer twins. They were eight and kept me on my toes.

“The parade will be the same as every year. The reindeer will start, and the Sugarplum Falls High School marching band will follow. After that, the floats are already lined up and ready to go. Each float will have a handful of elves that will be responsible for tossing candy canes into the crowd. Try to make sure you guys are spacing it out so we don’t run out in the first five minutes like we did a few years ago. Adult elves, it’ll be your responsibility to monitor your supply and to make sure you have enough to get through the entire parade.”

They all nodded and continued to give me their undivided attention as one of our littlest elves made a run for it.

“We have an elf on the loose,” I announced, pointing in the direction of the toddler who was running with a handful of candy canes they had stolen.

“After the parade is over, we’ll all meet back in the break room. There will be hot chocolate and plenty of food. I’ll ask that everyone take a look at the list taped to the door so they know who is supposed to take their break and when. It’s important that we’re ready to go as soon as the parade is over. We’ll need Santa and Mrs. Claus to get ready while the elves start lining the kids up for pictures.”

I smiled as one of the adult elves wrangled the runaway toddler and kept them entertained while I finished the speech everyone probably already had memorized.

“Today is going to be an amazing day, and from the bottom of my heart, thank you all for being here and helping out. Without you guys, Frosty Fest wouldn’t be what it is. It warms my heart every year when I see how many people volunteer to do this. You guys are the real MVPs.”

“I thought that was the reindeer,” one of the teenage boys said, a smirk crossing his face.

“Well, they are also very important to our event. But I wouldn’t be able to do any of this without the help of the town. From volunteers to the vendors, everyone contributes. That’s an amazing thing, and it just goes to show how incredible Sugarplum Falls is. Now, everyone, help yourself to a sugar cookie and get ready. The parade starts in ten minutes.”

They all cheered and then began heading off to where they needed to go. Thankfully, many of the volunteers were experienced, so they were able to help guide those who were new and unsure of what to do.

I finished what I needed to do, then made my way outside to help make sure everything and everyone was in place.

People were already lining the street, sitting on the sidewalk as they waited for the parade to start. The crowd was bigger this year than I’d ever seen, which left me both nervous and excited about how busy the mall would be with the extra traffic. Butthere was nothing that could be done about that now. Hopefully, multiple vendors would end up selling out today and have a great day for sales.

As I walked past everyone, I felt eyes on me and looked up to find Brody watching me. He was standing near the front, by where the reindeer were, and it pulled at my heart that Mr. Truman wasn’t there. It was strange not seeing him there and brought a sadness over me at the loss we were all suffering without him.

“Thank you for bringing the reindeer,” I said, my throat tight with emotion. “It means a lot to me,” I paused and looked around, “to all of us.”

He nodded, his eyes getting glossy as well.

“My pleasure.”

He reached for my hand and gave it a quick squeeze as I struggled to keep the tears in.

“You were right,” he said, bringing my attention back to him. “This is an amazing turnout. I can see why it means so much to you. To the town. I’ve never seen anything like it before. I’m sorry I was such a pain about it.”

“Well, get ready to see some Christmas magic,” I whispered, kissing his cheek before rushing off as they waited for me to get the parade started.

Twenty- Nine

Brody

She wasn’t lying. That parade felt magical. It wasn’t just the children singing Christmas songs at the top of their lungs that made it feel special. It was the way everyone was smiling and seemed genuinely happy like theywantedto be there.

After it was over, I got the reindeer settled in the pen outside that Jasmin had set up for the kids to come see them and then went inside the mall to find Jasmin. I knew she would be working the rest of the day, but I wanted to help however I could. Even if that meant I had to put on one of the ridiculous elf costumes and guide the sugar-crazed kids in line to see Santa.

I headed into the breakroom where she told me she would be and was surprised by how many people were already in there. There were so many little elves running around that I was convinced we had to be at the North Pole.

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