The Santa Clause: A Calvin Christmas [Book 1]

🎄Chapter 06: 🎶Once Upon A December🎶🎄

Bell blushed and started stuttering. "R-Really? I-I didn't think...I mean...if anything, it's you they look up to, Miss Clem-" Elizabeth gave her a look. "Sorry, I mean...Elizabeth? You have that motherly aura around you, not me."

Elizabeth waved her hand in dismissal and took a seat at the head of the kitchen table. "Come on Annabelle, don't be silly. They look up to you, too. If you have this affect on the children, then imagine what it'll be like when you have a family of your own to look after someday, a husband who looks after you, and the most adorable children who look up to you."

"And you know what I believe?" Bell and I looked at each other, then back at Elizabeth.

"I believe that one day, you girls will meet your soulmates, get married, and start a family of your own." I blinked my eyes several times, trying to process everything she just said.

I can only come up with one conclusion. "Elizabeth...are you drunk?"

Elizabeth chuckled and shook her head. "I'm pretty sure one glass of wine isn't enough to get you drunk, Holly. Besides, I only drink on special occasions anyway. I was just giving you my words of wisdom, that's all. You'll become young adults before you know it." She stood up and walked over to the cooker to check on dinner.

Moments later, Nathan had kicked a football through the back door and into the kitchen.

Elizabeth faced him with her hands on her hips, looking at him sternly. "Nathan, what did I tell you about kicking the ball through the kitchen? Use your hands to pick it up, it'll make the floor dirty if you played with it outside."

Nathan looked everywhere else but her, trying to avoid eye contact. "Sorry, I'll go put it away." He turned to Bell and waved at her. "Oh, hey Bell."

Bell chuckled and waved back at him. "Hey Nathan." Nathan left to put his ball away.

"Make sure you get cleaned up! Dinner's almost ready!" Elizabeth called after him.

Both Nathan and Michael, or Micky as we like to call him, have short blond hair and dark brown eyes. They're identical twins, but they act very differently to each other. The reason why they live here in the orphanage is because they're parents went through a nasty divorce to the point where they were throwing abuse at each other physically and verbally.

One day, one of their neighbours saw and heard everything that was happening. They called child services, who then took Nathan and Micky away and dropped them off here. They were 5 at the time, and now they're both 11.

Micky walked in, carrying a picture he drew. "Holly, do you think Bell will like this drawing I made?"

I pretended to think. "Hmm, you know what? I have no idea. Why don't you ask her yourself?

Micky looked to my left, and his eyes went wide. He ran over to Bell and hugged her tightly. She laughed as she hugged him back. "Bell, I made a picture for you. What do you think?"

He wriggled out of the hug and practically shoved the picture in her hands. She smiled as she looked at it. "You drew all this by yourself?"

Micky put his hands behind his back and looked down at his feet sheepishly. "Yeah...Do you like it?"

Bell grinned. "I absolutely love it! I see you drew Santa, a Reindeer, and two elves holding presents. You're art work is amazing as always. I'll hang it up in my room as soon as I get a picture frame to put it in."

Micky looked up at Bell and gave her a small smile. "Thanks. I also made one for Holly yesterday after she told us the story of how she went to the North Pole with you, Charlie, and your dad on Christmas Eve and delivered presents."