Jessica pulled another tray of cookies from the oven. She was so happy he liked real food versus replicated ones. Replicators could not produce the smells of Christmas: sugar cookies, pies, apple cider simmering on the stovetop. All of this smelled like Christmas and that is what made Christmas Christmas. As she finished the last bits of Christmas cookie Aedan and Cera were in the other room watching Rudolph save the Island of Misfit toys.

Cera sat on the floor caddy corner to the couch her father was sitting on focusing on a very important task. Since she was two and a half, there were a lot of things she could do by herself and this was one of them. Visiting Santa today was not as she had seen on the movies and what her mother had called a “Not so fine Teller moment”. It was just last year the man seemed jollier, happier somehow. This year he was downright terrifying. Those green cloves coming at her fast as lightening ripping her bodily from her Daddy. The elf lady had handed her mom and dad what they claimed was hot chocolate but Cera knew it had to have been one of those things her parents drank and then became silly instead. There was no other reason her daddy and mommy had just stood there yelling “smile” as Cera clawed desperately for her life. After what had to been hours in his clutches her mommy finally said that “it was gonna be the best they could get” and her Daddy rescued her like all good Daddy’s did.

Jessica Teller