Page 3 of His Christmas Gift

AUTUMN

“Good job, everyone! See you next class!” my voice rang out throughout the yoga studio.

A warm feeling floated over my skin as I drew in a breath, cooling down after my hour-long yoga class. I wasn’t the only one feeling the burn as my class participants caught their breaths and stretched their arms.

A small smile crossed my face as I nodded my goodbye to the participants, feeling good after a great class. I always felt so fulfilled, so energized, after seeing how satisfied everyone was after class. Maybe I just loved my job working at my Aunt Lisa’s gym on the outskirts of New York City, but what I did know was that I was happy overall.

I got to work at a job that I loved with a person whom I cared about and respected. I got to live a new adventure in a place far away from home. I felt like I could do anything here and things felt nearly perfect.

Of course, more could be added to my life to make it even better, to make me smile a little brighter. I didn’t know what I could change, but I was sure I would figure it out at some point. For now, I was going to ride this wave and see where it took me. It was nice being able to live my life without feeling like I had to tiptoe day-to-day.

I strode out of the yoga studio and to the front area of the gym where the front desk was. It was a modest-sized gym with an area for cardio and another area for strength training and weightlifting. Then, there were smaller studios for specific classes. Blue and green accents and trim popped out against the white walls and rubber flooring.

Aunt Lisa worked hard to get this place up and running. When I rushed to New York City looking to start a life of my own, she helped me out a lot by offering me a job to run the front desk. From then on, I picked up a few more skills. Now, I was an instructor and an assistant manager when she needed some help or input.

I didn’t want to be a yoga instructor for the rest of my life. I wanted to do something bigger, a grander adventure, but this was great for right now. At least I was making some people’s days better. That was good enough for me.

“Worked up a sweat today,” I said as I walked over to the front desk where Aunt Lisa was standing behind.

Her brown hair was tied up into a ponytail, a few strands hanging in front of her face as she shuffled through paperwork. With her eyebrows furrowed, which accented some of the early wrinkles on her face, she stuffed the papers into a file folder before looking up at me with an expression that worried me and caught me off guard.

“I need to talk to you,” she sighed, her shoulders sagging.

I frowned as I peered at her in confusion, wondering what had her in such an upset mood. Usually, she was pretty chipper and easygoing. Something had to be up.

“What’s wrong?” I asked her.

Aunt Lisa leaned her body against the front desk, shaking her head at herself.

“I should’ve said something to you sooner, but I didn’t want to say anything until everything was set in stone,” she murmured, sounding guilty.

My heart rate picked up slightly, preparing for some big reveal that I wasn’t expecting today. She usually clued me in if there was something she needed help with. As of lately, she hadn’t brought anything to my attention. She had just been saying that things were fine. I had a feeling that things weren’t fine at all.

“What’s set in stone?” I asked her, feeling afraid to know the answer to that question.

Aunt Lisa shifted her brown eyes to my green ones and spoke words that I never thought I’d hear.

“I sold the gym.”

At first, all I could do was blink at her, wondering if I actually heard her right. I couldn’t possibly have heard her correctly. She built this gym from the ground up putting her blood, sweat, and tears into it without losing her determination. She was inspiring because of that, so I didn’t understand why she’d sell something that she worked so hard to create.

“What? Why?” I asked her, my heartbeat thudding in my head. I couldn’t think of any reason why she’d suddenly do this.

Aunt Lisa messed with the end of her ponytail as she lowered her eyes, seeming ashamed.

“We just haven’t been making the money we need to make lately. It’s just so much stress, and I’m getting to the age where I’m ready to retire,” she admitted to me.

Retire? Aunt Lisa was in great shape, always using her own equipment to keep up with her health. She always seemed completely invested in her business discussing new ideas for marketing and branding. It seemed so unlike her to just walk away from all this.

“But you love this place. We can turn it around. I can even take on more responsibility if you want,” I offered. I knew it was a lot for her to run this place, but I would be happy to step up and help more. I wasn’t as big of a businessperson, but I loved coming up with ideas and trying new things. I could try to save this place.

“It’s just easier to let someone take it off my hands. A company reached out to me about buying this place, and I accepted their offer,” Aunt Lisa replied as she shrugged her shoulders in defeat. “It’s said and done.”

My frown broadened as my eyes dropped to stare at the ground in front of my white and teal sneakers. I knew that this was out of her hands and that she deserved to retire after working so long, but I couldn’t help but feel a little betrayed. She didn’t even bring up the financial issues to me. She made it seem like everything was fine.

“I know it’s upsetting, but it’s truly for the best. I just don’t want to struggle with this anymore, and I’ve had a good run,” Aunt Lisa told me as she put a faint smile on her face. She reached across the desk to rub my arm in a comforting manner. “Your job is still safe no matter what.”

It was hard to imagine working here without Aunt Lisa around, but I still loved this gym. I didn’t want to just ditch it and let it completely change. It was a place of comfort and motivation for some people, and I wanted to keep it that way. Hopefully, the new boss wouldn’t try to sweep in and change much.

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