Page 2 of Grinchland
“But I came to get you at nine.”
I glanced over my shoulder and shrugged. “And?”
Abbie’s jacket was off now, and she stepped forward to hang it next to mine. “So…what? Did you wake up before dawn to bake cookies?”
I blinked a few times, waiting for her to answer her own question. This girl had been my friend since middle school. Did she really not just know?
When I didn’t answer right away, Abbie looked over her shoulder at me and sighed. “Why do I even ask?”
I snorted. “Why do you?” I brushed off my hands and turned to my spoils that were sitting, still wrapped, in the shopping bags. I grabbed the handles and headed to the kitchen.
“I guess every Christmas I secretly hope that you will come to your senses and be normal...”
She’d stopped in the entryway and stared at the three trees I’d set up a few weeks ago. I may have promised my best friend that I wouldn’t engage her in Christmas festivities outside of December. But here I could do whatever I wanted.
“Really? Three?”
I set the snow globes down on the counter and then walked back so I could catch her gaze. If I didn’t act fast, Abbie would get trapped in the spiral of “Really, Clara?” followed up by “Don’t you think you’re over doing it?” and the pièce de résistance, “This is not normal.” It was better to be proactive and help her move on from the shock of my house than to let her continue down this path.
“Come on, the cookies are cold now. We can decorate.”
Abbie glanced over at me. I could see that she wanted to say something, but I just waved my hand in an effort to coax her into the kitchen. “I have almond-flavored icing,” I sang out.
Abbie glared at me. “My weakness,” she said as she made her way toward me.
I patted her on the shoulder as she passed by. “I know.”
We were elbow-deep in spreading frosting on reindeer, Santas, and Christmas trees—well, Abbie was spreading. I took my cookie decorating seriously. I had multiple bags of icing laid out in front of me while I painstakingly took my time piping out every detail on Santa’s face—when my phone rang.
My hands were sticky with sugar, so I did my best to find the one finger that wasn’t coated to answer the call.
“Jingle, jingle, Clara speaking. Ready to sleigh the day?”
I heard Abbie snort. I shot her a glare before I turned back to my phone. That was exactly how Gran had answered the phone throughout December. Sure, it was a little corny, but sometimes people needed a little corny in their life.
“Um, hello?” the female voice on the other end of the call asked. “Clara?”
I slid the phone closer to me. “Yes, yes! This is she.” Maybe that greeting was a bit too much. On numerous occasions, phonecalls had started in complete silence as if the caller had not been expecting it and needed a minute to catch up.
“Oh, good.” Pause. “Anyways, this is Maria. Maria Thompson.”
“Oh!” Memories came flooding back to me of my student teaching days with her as my mentor. “Hey!”
We chatted for a few minutes about what she was up to. Apparently, last year she’d taken a principal position at an elementary school. I was so happy for her even though my own teaching career was struggling.
I was excellent at finding long-term sub jobs, but none of them had led to a full-time position. Teaching jobs were sparse in a small town like Winter Springs, Maine.
“I was calling because I’m in a little bit of a pickle.”
I gathered some icing drops from the counter with the tip of my finger and then licked them off. “What’s up?”
“My kindergarten teacher needs to go on an emergency sabbatical. I haven’t been able to find someone who could come take her place with the holidays coming up. I was hoping…” She let her voice trail off.
I glanced over at Abbie, who was watching me with her eyebrows drawn together. As soon as my gaze met hers, she mouthed, who is it?
I ignored her question and shifted my attention back to the countertop. The thought of a job was appealing, but it was Christmas. The most magical time of the year. I couldn’t imagine not spending it here, in Gran’s house.
“I know it’s the middle of the school year and last minute.” She paused. “It does have the potential of being a full-time position.”
