Mistletoe

1. Winter Wonderlove

I drove myself the next day to the festive market. There were a lot of people buying some gifts, going on a tour of their neighborhood's lights, and celebrating a parade. The bustling crowd was cheerfully gallivanting through the busy streets with their loved ones, and I was stuck here alone trying to find my way out.

It took me several minutes to pull over to the side of the road without hitting the curb. I put on my little beige beanie and went out of my car. I walked around the market wearing a pair of brown boots that were perfectly matched with a wool coat.

𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝑺𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂 𝑪𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒔 played merrily in the background when my feet reached the spot where there was a feeding and gift-giving outreach program for the little children. 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑺𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒎𝒂𝒔 were the printed words on the tarpaulin with some designs filled with the colors of red and white. There was a sudden smile on my face for I was fond of children. Since they were the little angels here on earth, I would always find them loving, innocent, and pure.

"Hello, kids! You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I'm telling you why, Santa Girl is here to spread some love this Christmas!" A tall blonde girl in a Santa Claus costume tried so hard to sound a little deeper. She danced to the remix music of 𝑺𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂 𝑪𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝑻𝒐𝒘𝒏 like a little kid shaking her body whilst sticking her heart-shaped tongue out and scrunching up her thin, pointed nose, without caring about what others would think, just so she could make the young ones happy. She was such a cute crackhead, I wanted to keep her.

As soon as the remix music of 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑾𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅 played in the background, she wandered through the snow with little steps, leaving some footprints on the ground covered with a heavy white blanket of snow. Her face turned heavenward, spinning in circles with her arms outstretched. And on her back, she fell. The little kids laughed at her, jumping from their seats in excitement until she leaped up like nothing happened.

"Ho, ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!" Her deep chuckling sound which came from her belly made my jaw drop. Well, I thought that catchphrase was just a myth. Grooving to the beat of music, she tripped over the small stage stair and landed on the slick ice. Despite slipping on the snow, she kept her sense of humor, pouting outwards like a helpless baby who fell flat on her bum. She saw the children cracking up as she suddenly drew her lips in tightly, then smile; trying to mask anger. The inner corners of her eyebrows angled up as her voice cried out like a cute little elf. "Huhuhu, uwaaa! You're all naughty, naughty, naughty!"

I couldn't help but to burst out in laughter and point my finger at her. "Hahaha! Hey, break dance, not break bones, okay?!" I felt how my cheeks lifted towards my little eyes. There was a sense of strength and strain as my lips curled into a gummy smile. For a split second, my mouth snapped shut; flabbergasted at the thought of what I did for the very first time. Did I just bully the daughter of Santa Claus?!

I didn't expect the next thing that happened. My body froze up; the beat of my heart and the breathing in my lungs slowed down, holding my breath when she heard my laughter that made her glance around different directions until her eyes found me. Her mouth hung open loosely, as she slightly tilted her head to one side so that she could look at me even more. Even the little ones followed her gaze and looked at me as they giggled.

But the moment our eyes met, all the pieces of me melted, especially my heart. Snow fell on her long, dark, and shadowy lashes as she blinked innocently, catching the flakes. Her skin was as white as the snow, lips were as red as the season of love, and hair was as golden as the star. From a sad little pout to a sweet smile on her plump lips, she became as indescribable as the intricate details of a snowflake. She was different in her own beautiful way, for she was one of a kind.