Seeing Zinnia’s chewing slow down, Fiona gently fed her another bite of pancake.
“I’m full, Fiona,” Zinnia mumbled with her cheeks bulging. She squatted by the flowerpot and absentmindedly played with the rose petals in front of her.
Fiona gently wiped the crumbs from Zinnia’s mouth with a handkerchief. “You barely ate anything, yet you claim you’re full? I bet you’ll have Nathan make you a midnight snack again tonight.”
Zinnia barely ate anything at Christmas dinner. In previous years, faced with a feast, she wouldn’t leave the table for at least an hour. But this time, she just took a few bites with Simon and the other kids before running off to play.
Hearing Fiona’s words, Zinnia could only blink.
Fiona fixed her deep eyes on Zinnia and asked, “Zinnia, what happened between you and Nathan? He looks so much thinner lately. At dinner, he barely touched anything. He only picked some vegetables.”
Fiona’s sharpness caught Zinnia off guard. Zinnia lowered her eyes and murmured, “Nathan’s fine. He’s just… been swamped with work lately, so he hasn’t had much of an appetite.”
Zinnia kept her head down, never once mentioning Nathan’s health to the townspeople.
However, Fiona didn’t buy her story. “Zinnia, something’s happened to Nathan, hasn’t it?”
Fiona didn’t know Nathan’s exact identity or what he did for a living, but she was sure he was no ordinary man. Exceptionally brilliant and gifted, he was, above all, a genuinely good person.
“No, Fiona, don’t worry,” Zinnia said with a faint but steady smile. “Nathan is brilliant. If anything happens, he’ll definitely be able to handle it.” Her voice
was firm, though she wasn’t sure if she was saying this to reassure Fiona or to convince herself.
As dinner was winding down and the night grew late, Chandler waved at Zinnia with a warm smile. “Come here, Zee.”
Zinnia walked over and said in a soft, sweet voice, “Yes, Chandler.”
“Zee, I wish you happiness and safety this Christmas,” Chandler said with a warm smile. Then he pulled a small present from his pocket.
“Chandler,” Zinnia said with a shy smile, “I’m all grown up now, and you’re still giving me presents?”
Chandler placed the present in Zinnia’s hand. “Presents are a must during Christmas,” he said warmly. “No matter how old you two get, you’ll always be children to us. And children should always receive presents for Christmas.”
“Take it, Zee. This is a little something from Chandler and me. We just want you to be safe and sound this Christmas,” Wendy urged.
“Thank you, Chandler and Wendy,” Zinnia said softly as she accepted the present.
With a gentle smile, Giselle said, “Zee, come to me.”
Tessa gently handed Zee a present and said, “Here you go, sweetheart. I wish you happiness and safety.”
The small town folks had all prepared Christmas presents for Zinnia and Nathan.
Seeing Chandler pull out yet another present for him, Nathan said helplessly, “Chandler, freally don’t need one.”
“Of course, you need one!” Chandler insisted, pressing the present with “Merry Christmas” written on it into Nathan’s palm.
He added, “You’re still young, not married or settled down yet, so you’re still a kid in our eyes. When elders give you a present for Christmas, you can’t
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refuse. It’s my blessing. One for you, and one for Zinnia.”
“Yes, Nathan. None of us is short on money these days. Life is so much easier now. If you hadn’t brought that large medicinal herb plantation to our small town, we wouldn’t be living so comfortably. We really should be thanking you,” someone chimed in.
Back then, they welcomed Nathan when he first settled in their small town. Now that he had grown up, he helped the community.
He had local
Thanks to Nathan bringing in a large–scale medicinal herb plantation and helping develop the local tourism industry, the townspeople no longer had to worry about money. Their children no longer had to leave their hometown to work in other cities.
These days, every household in the small town lived comfortably, and everyone knew it was all thanks to Nathan. They had truly raised an exceptional young man.
After dinner, as it was getting late, everyone pitched in to clear the tables before heading home.
Simon wrapped himself around Zinnia’s leg, pleading, “Zinnia, come play with us tomorrow!”
Meanwhile, the other little ones crowded around Zinnia.
One of the kids piped up excitedly, “Yeah, Zinnia. We found some super pretty blossoms. We’ll take you to see them tomorrow.”
“Yeah, Zinnia. Come play with us tomorrow. My mom bought tons of snacks, and Lindsay and the others said we were gonna make jambalaya with bacon and pepperoni. It’ll smell amazing.”
“Alright,” Zinnia said with a gentle smile, ruffling their hair as she nodded.
“Yay!” The kids instantly lit up when Zinnia agreed.
“Let’s do it tomorrow, Zinnia!” one of them shouted.
“See you tomorrow, Zinnia!” another added.
Then the children scampered back to the adults, waving their little hands at Zinnia one last time. With everyone helping to tidy up, they soon gathered their belongings and headed home.
Fiona was in no hurry to leave. With the last bits of cleanup left, she stayed behind to help sweep the floor.
After loading the dishes into the dishwasher, Nathan came out and saw Fiona sweeping the floor. “Let me do it,” he said gently. “You should take a break.”
“Since when do we stand on ceremony between us, Nathan?” Fiona deftly avoided his hand. “If I don’t do it, Zinnia will end up helping you instead. Would you really let her?” With a few quick motions, she dumped the swept trash into the bin.
Nathan pulled on a light tan overcoat as the night air grew colder. Under the warm, amber glow of the overhead light, his silhouette appeared strikingly gaunt.
A gust of wind swept by, making Nathan turn his head as a cough escaped him. “I wouldn’t let Zinnia do it, either,” he added.
After sweeping up, Fiona rinsed her hands at the outdoor faucet. “Alright, come on. No need to stand on ceremony between us.”
She walked over to Zinnia, who had just returned to the yard after seeing the kids off.
Zinnia struggled to hold a pile of presents. Some were already slipping through her fingers as she tried to keep them all together. Every Christmas, she would always end up with a mountain of presents from everyone.
Fiona reached into her white coat and pulled out a present, handing it to Zee with a gentle smile. “Here you go, Zee. This one’s from me. Wishing you a safe and healthy Christmas.”
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Because Zinnia had always been frail since childhood, everyone’s wishes for her were always for safety and health.
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“I can’t hold all of these!” Zinnia exclaimed, her arms overflowing with presents. She tried to gather them up, but her pockets were stuffed full. Even her hat was crammed with them. Some of the kids had even tucked their favorite candies into her hat.
“Just tuck them in wherever you can.” Fiona chuckled as she tucked the presents into Zinnia’s already full hands.
She turned back, handing another present to Nathan. “This one’s for you,” she said.
Náthan sighed helplessly. “Since when did you start copying Chandler?”
“Zee got hers, so as her mentor, shouldn’t you get one, too?” Fiona’s deep eyes crinkled with amusement. “Just like Chandler said. As long as you’re unmarried and unsettled, you qualify for presents.”
“Guess I should prepare one for you, too,” Nathan said, looking at her helplessly.
Fiona was 27 this year. She studied in Gernmiland before single–handedly founding her own law firm.
Exceptionally accomplished, she had never lacked suitors, yet she had never been in a relationship all these years. She had known Nathan since childhood, and their conversations were always easy and unrestrained.
Fiona’s eyes sparkled with growing amusement. “If you’re offering a present, you know I’ll take it!”
Nathan reached into his coat, pulled out a present, and handed it to Fiona.
Fiona’s eyes widened in surprise, and her smile deepened. “Wow, you really did prepare one!”
“You already gave one to Zinnia. Aren’t these presents meant for kids at this time of year? Since when do adults get them, too?” Nathan said, his voice mellow and teasing.
Fiona’s smile faded slightly as she took the present, noticing how Nathan deliberately stressed the words “kids” and “adults.”
AD
