Runaway

Chapter 35

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~Uploaded March 2nd, 2015

Christmas Eve morning started off rather quietly. Nothing but myself, my bed and peace. Oh, and Ayden licking my face and whining to go outside. I understood why; yet another fresh layer of snow had settled upon everything. It made everything sparkle like diamonds.

After letting Ayden out, I proceeded to make myself a late breakfast, more like brunch actually. I fired up the stove and waited for the frying pan to heat. I went to get the eggs and found a note stuck to the fridge.

Good morning and Merry Christmas Dani!

I hope you slept well. I'll be at my family reunion in Toronto for the next couple of days, so don't worry about me. I'm wishing you all the best, and have fun at the party! And there might be something underneath the tree for you.

I'll see you soon, Mrs. Wells.

Grinning, I went to the living room where a gift wrapped in star patterned paper sat topped with a giant golden bow. I carried it with me to the kitchen and unwrapped it while making eggs.

"Oh." It was a sweater, one in a beautiful salmon pink. I normally didn't like pink, like at all, but it was so soft when I tried it on. It fit perfectly, and had a bit of a v-shape in the front. It looked good too.

A knocking sound came from the back porch, and I looked over to see Ayden scratching at the patio door. "You poor thing." I let her in from the cold, wiped off her paws, then refilled her water and food bowls before going back to making my own food.

It was a slow paced morning, and I reveled in it. It was one of the few where I wasn't awakened by someone barging into my room, given an insane reason to get up early, then dragged off to who knows where, only to return to my bed later at night. I love lazy mornings, I thought as I took another bite of my brunch, and tossed a piece of egg to Ayden, smacking it between her lips.

That afternoon, I made sure I had everything in my bag, then pulled on my coat and boots and clipped the leash to Ayden's collar. Glancing back at the table in the hallway, I grinned at the carefully wrapped present, courtesy of Andie, I had gotten for Mrs. Wells. It would be the first thing she saw when she got back from her family reunion in Toronto. I hope she likes it.

Ayden yipped at me impatiently to go. "Okay, okay, keep your tail on. I'm going." I locked the door, double checked it, then set off.

I was in a strangely good mood today. Probably had something to do with the holiday spirit in the air. Everywhere I went, there were garlands, wreaths, and shining lights. Little kids were running around their yards chasing each other with snowballs, laughing and goading each other.

As I turned on to Main Street, the sound of Christmas carols came to my ears. It was a lovely chorus, chiming at just the right time and pitching perfectly. I was surprised to see that it was a group of young children standing in front of the grocery store. A little red bucket was being held by...

"Dani!" Ian dropped his singing to come over to me and give me a hug, bucket jingling full of money. "Merry Christmas!"

I bent down to receive him with a smile and a small oomph! "Merry Christmas to you too, Ian. Are you raising money for something?"

Ian nodded and gave Ayden a ruffle on the head. "Yep. We're raising money for Christmas baskets. You know, for families who don't have enough food. We've been doing it all week and we're finishing soon."

"That's great. It's nice to see you wanting to help people." I nodded my head towards the grocery store. "I hope your brother gave you something too."