A Memorable Christmas

The small amount of snow crunched beneath her feet as she walked home from her last day of school, at least until Christmas break was over. It would soon melt, because Retroville's winter was always mild. Christmas spirit filled the air, along with the sound of kids laughing and playing in the park, celebrating the arrival of their break from school.

As Cindy walked past the stores in downtown Retroville, she looked into the windows that were filled with gift ideas for families with people of all ages. She thought, Why do presents make people so happy at Christmas? I mean, sure, I love opening presents Christmas morning, but half of the stuff I receive just ends up under my bed or stuffed on a shelf in my room. I want something special this Christmas. Something you can't wrap up in a box with decorative paper and a bow on top.

As she continued on her way home, she heard the Retroville Symphonic Band playing "All I Want For Christmas is You" while marching down the street. At the same time, she saw Jimmy walking down the sidewalk on the opposite side of the road. She couldn't help but smile when he turned and waved at her. She waved back to be polite, and walked home.

When she arrived at her house, her mother and father were placing presents for the Vortex family Christmas under the colorfully lit tree. They were presents for her aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents when they got together for their yearly family Christmas party which was in two days. Each year, one person could bring a friend to their get-together, and this year it was Cindy's turn.

"Cynthia dear, Elizabeth called. She said to call her as soon as you got home," Mrs. Vortex said.

She nodded her head, and ran upstairs to call Libby.

"Hello, Folfax residence. May I ask who's calling?"

"Hi Mrs. Folfax. It's Cindy. Is Libby there? She called me earlier and said to call her back."

"Hold on, just a second. Here she is sweetie!"

"Libby, my mom told me you called earlier. Was there something you wanted to tell me?"

"Uh, yeah.. You know how you asked me to come to your Christmas party? Well, we had a change in plans. My grandma invited us all to come to Wisconsin for Christmas, and Mom is making me come. I'm really, really sorry about this Cind."

Cindy sighed. "Its alright. I'll just find someone else to come I guess."

"Alright, well I have to finish packing. We're leaving in an hour. Have fun Cind!"

"You too Libs. Bye!"

Cindy hung up the phone with a sad expression planted on her face. "Now who am I going to invite?" she thought out loud.

She heard something crash outside of her house, and saw a big cloud of dust form around her window. Sure enough, it was Jimmy. His rocket malfunctioned and crash-landed outside of Cindy's house.

"Neutron," she hollered out the window, "you okay?"

He coughed, "Yeah, I'm fine. Don't think my rocket is, though."

Suddenly, she remembered she needed someone to come to the party with her, and Jimmy was the next closest friend she had.

"That's too bad," she hollered back. "Stay right there, I'll be right down."She ran down the stairs and hopped over the bottom step, and out the front door. "So Neutron.." she paused, looking for the right way to ask him to come. "Well, you see, our family is having our annual Christmas party, and I was going to bring Libby, but she canceled on me at the last minute, so I was wondering if you wanted to come instead." Jimmy couldn't tell if it was the crisp air nipping at her cheeks, or if she was blushing, but her cheeks turned a light pink color.

"Uh, sure I guess so. Is it at your house?"

"Yeah, and its on Sunday. Well, see you then Neutron!" She waved goodbye, and ran up to her room, and screamed happily into her pillow.

OoOoO

Sunday soon came, and Cindy's parents were placing last-minute decorations around the house. Cindy organized the presents so they looked perfect under the tree.

A few minutes later, her family members came one by one. First it was her grandma and grandpa, Jean and Ronald.

"Cindy dear! It's so good to see you sweetie!" her grandmother said cheerfully, giving her a kiss on the cheek. Her grandpa just grunted, being his unhappy self.

"You too grandma! Hi grandpa, Merry Christmas," she said, trying to make Grandpa Ronald feel welcome. He showed no sign of cheerfulness. She just sighed.

The doorbell rang again, signaling the arrival of either her cousins or Jimmy. When she opened the door with a smile on her face, she saw her little cousin, Gracie, and her twin older cousins, Lillian and Landon. Behind them was her aunt, Suzy, and her uncle, George.

"Dude, Cind, aren't you gonna like, invite us in?" her cousin Landon said jokingly.

"Landon, leave her alone. Hey Cindy, Merry Christmas!" Lillian hugged her, along with Gracie tugging at her leg.

"Cindy, do you want to know what Santa Claus is going to bring me?" Cindy always thought Gracie was a spitting image of herself when she was little. It made her smile.

"Gracie, sweetie, why don't you tell her when we all get inside, huh?" Suzy interrupted. Cindy moved aside to let them all in.

Why isn't Neutron here yet? I told him 3 o'clock! Just then, the doorbell rang, and sure enough, it was Jimmy.

"Sorry I'm late! I went to go pick up this present. Should I put it under the tree?" he asked rhetorically, walking over to the tree.

"You didn't have to get a present," she said, smiling.

"Whats Christmas without presents? Anyway, can I meet your family?"

"Sure, if you really want to. But, steer clear of my grandpa. He's not really in a good mood when it comes to family get-togethers."

She took him to the living room where everyone was sitting and sharing Christmas memories from past Christmases. She interrupted to introduce Jimmy.

"Uh, everyone? This is my friend, and neighbor, Jimmy. He's my guest this year."

Her cousin Landon "ooh"ed and winked at her, and Cindy and Jimmy both blushed. Lillian elbowed him in the stomach, but quickly covered it up with a smile.

"Welcome to our Vortex family Christmas, Jimmy!" Lillian answered. She was always the cousin that would settle everyone down. "I'm Lillian, but you can call me Lil, this is my twin brother Landon, and this is our little sister Gracie. I believe you've met our mom, Suzy before. And this is our dad, George."

"Salutations everyone," he said with a small wave. Then her grandma walked in the room and said, "Dinner is ready!"

OoOoO

After dinner, it was time to open presents. When they had all unwrapped them and thanked everyone, there was a present left under the tree which was from Jimmy. To Cindy, it read. She grabbed the present and opened it, revealing a necklace with Jimmy's infamous atom symbol as the pendant.

"Oh, Jimmy, I love it! Thank you!" She ran up to Jimmy, who was standing near the doorway and hugged him. The impact of her hug made Jimmy and Cindy stand farther under the doorway, which beared the mistletoe that her mother had placed earlier that day.

Little Gracie took notice of this, and she shouted out, "Guys, you have to kiss! You're under the mistletoe!" Everyone giggled, and turned to see them standing there staring at each other eye to eye.

As if a force drew their lips together, they shared a warm Christmas kiss. Her family clapped, and as a joke, Landon shouted out, "So when's the wedding?" Cindy shot him an ice cold glare that made him freeze in his spot, and he gave a sympathetic smile.

Jimmy giggled and said, "Well Cindy, it was nice to get to know your family. Thanks for inviting me. I have to get home now. Merry Christmas!" He almost walked away, but turned to give her another kiss before leaving.

"Merry Christmas, Jimmy," she said, while waving him out the door. She placed the necklace around her neck, and she knew this would be a Christmas she would never forget.