Holly's Jolly Christmas (4 page)

Read Holly's Jolly Christmas Online

Authors: Nancy Krulik

BOOK: Holly's Jolly Christmas
11.01Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
Katie gulped. She looked down at her feet. Instead of her pink and white snow boots, she was wearing heavy, black boots. And instead of her pretty, new winter jacket, she was wearing a thick, dark green parka. There was a tree-shaped nametag on the parka. The tag had the name “Holly” written on it.
Katie gasped. Oh no! The magic wind had turned Katie into the very un-jolly Holly!
“I was hoping to buy this wreath as a surprise for a very special fourth-grade girl,” Nick told her. “But I’m not sure how much it costs.”
Katie smiled. Nick was buying her the wreath as a surprise. Of course, it wasn’t a surprise anymore. But Nick didn’t know that. And Katie would never tell him.
“Isn’t there a price tag on it?” Katie asked.
Nick shook his head. “There was a price on some of the other ones, but not this one,” he told her.
“I guess it costs the same as the other ones,” Katie said, trying to sound like someone who worked at a tree farm. “How much were they?”
“That one with the silver tinsel is ten dollars,” Nick told Katie. “It’s smaller, though.”
It actually was quite a bit smaller. Katie didn’t know what to do. She finally said. “Since there’s no price, I’ll just charge you ten dollars for this one, even though it’s bigger.”
“Well, thanks!” Nick said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bill.
Katie went and placed the money in the cash register, just like she’d seen her mom do at the bookstore at the mall.
“Thank you very much,” Katie told him.
“I’m going to go put this wreath in the trunk of my car,” Nick told her. “If a girl with bright red pigtails comes over, don’t tell her I bought her the wreath.”
Katie smiled. “I won’t. I promise,” she assured him.
“Merry Christmas,” Nick said as he walked away.
“Merry Christmas,” Katie told him.
Just then, a woman in a blue and yellow checked coat walked up to Katie. “I’ve chosen a tree, and I’d like someone to help me bring it to my car,” she said.
“Oh,” Katie said. “I don’t think I can carry a tree by myself.”
“Don’t you have men who work here to help carry the trees?” the woman asked.
“I don’t know,” Katie said. “I don’t see any. Do you?”
The woman looked at her curiously.
Oops.
Katie had forgotten she was Holly now. “I mean, let me find someone to help you.”
Katie stepped away from behind the counter and started to walk toward the trees.
“Hey, where are you going?” a man in a black coat asked her. “I’ve been waiting in line to pay for five minutes.” He held up a small Christmas tree.
“I’ll just be a minute, sir,” Katie said, trying to sound polite.
“I’m kind of in a hurry,” the man explained. “My office is having a Christmas party this afternoon, and I said I’d bring a tree.”
“What a great idea!” Katie exclaimed.
“Excuse me,” the woman in the blue and yellow checked coat interrupted. “But I was ahead of him. You were helping me first.”
“But I’ll only be a minute,” the man with the small Christmas tree said. “I can’t be late!”
Just then, a woman and a small boy hurried over to the counter. “Do you have a bathroom?” she asked Katie. “Joshie here has just been potty trained, and he really has to go.”
Katie looked down. Joshie was moving back and forth on his feet. He did look like he had to go to the bathroom right away. But she didn’t see a bathroom anywhere. Not even a porta potty.
“I’m sorry, but . . .” Katie began.
“Here, I’ve got the money ready for you, exact change,” the man with the small tree said.
The woman in the blue and yellow checked coat was growing very impatient. “I really would like to get my Christmas tree to my car.”
“Is there a coffee shop anywhere near here that Joshie could use?” the mother asked Katie.
Too late! A yellow puddle formed at Joshie’s feet. He started howling.
The man with the small Christmas tree dropped his money on the counter. “I’ve got to go,” he told Katie. “Merry Christmas.”
Katie sighed. “Whatever,” she murmured, as she put the money in the cash register, and went off to find someone to carry a Christmas tree to a car.
Chapter 8
A few minutes later, everything had calmed down. The woman in the checked coat had driven away with her tree. Joshie and his mother had gone off in search of dry clothes. And there was no one waiting in line at the cash register. Things were so quiet, Katie could hear Christmas music playing from speakers set up around the tree farm.
“Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, of all the trees most lovely!” Katie sang along with the music. Her Christmas spirit was back. After all, she was only cranky Holly on the outside. She was still jolly Katie on the inside.
That
was a problem. For all she knew Grandma and Nick were looking for her right now. And they wouldn’t be able to find her anywhere.
Katie looked hopefully around for any sign of the magic wind’s return. Unfortunately she didn’t see any wild tornados coming her way. What she did see, though, was a father and his two little girls.
This family stood out from the other shoppers at the farm. They weren’t all bundled up in gloves and heavy coats. Their coats were thin. The kids had their hands shoved in their pockets to keep them warm.
“I’m sorry. I know how much you want a tree,” Katie heard the father say sadly. “But even the small ones are too expensive. We just can’t spare the money right now.”
“It’s okay, Daddy,” Katie heard one of the girls say. “It’s still Christmas, even without a tree.”
Now
Katie
was the one who felt sad. A Christmas without a tree? She just couldn’t let that happen!
Before she could stop the words from leaving her lips, Katie blurted out. “If you want this tree, you can have it.” She pointed to a nice short full tree.
The father stopped and stared at her. “Do you mean that?”
Katie looked at the two little girls. They had big smiles on their faces.
“Of course,” Katie said. “It’s Christmas. Everyone should have a tree. Go ahead. Please, I want you to take it.”
“Thank you! Thank you!” The two girls cheered.
“You are the nicest person I’ve ever met,” the father told Katie. “You’ll never know what a wonderful thing you’ve just done.”
Katie smiled. For once, the magic wind had changed her into a person who could do something nice for someone else. How great was that!?
“Here, I’ll help you carry the tree to your car,” Katie said, feeling more and more of the Christmas spirit coming over her.
“Holly, you are the sweetest lady ever!” one of the little girls exclaimed.
If she only knew the truth
, Katie thought. But she didn’t say that. Instead, she said, “Thank you.”
After Katie helped to load the Christmas tree onto the roof of their old car, she began to walk back to the farm. She hadn’t gotten very far when she felt a cool breeze blowing on the back of her neck.
Katie knew what that meant. The magic wind had returned!
Sure enough, in a flash, that cool breeze soon turned into an icy, powerful tornado. A tornado was spinning just around Katie. She shut her eyes, and tried her hardest not to be blown away.
And then it stopped. Just like that.
The magic wind was gone. And Katie Kazoo was back.
So was Holly. She was standing right next to Katie. And boy, was she confused.
“What am I doing out here in the parking lot?” Holly asked Katie.
“You were helping a man and his two daughters with their tree,” Katie told her.
“Why would I do that?” Holly wondered.
“To be nice,” Katie explained.
Holly laughed. “Yeah, right,” she said.
“No, you
were
nice. One of the girls even said you were the nicest lady ever,” Katie told Holly.
Holly shook her head. “You’re a weird kid,” she said. “No one would ever say that about me.” Then she thought for a minute. “Or maybe once they did. I kind of remember something like that.”
“Well it
was
really kind of me . . . I mean of
you
to give them that tree for free,” Katie told Holly.
“I gave them a what? For
what
?” Holly asked Katie. She looked upset.
“That family didn’t have much money,” Katie told her. “And they couldn’t afford a tree so I . . . I mean
you
. . .”
“What was I thinking?” Holly interrupted Katie. “I would never give a tree away. What if my boss finds out?”
“Your boss?” Katie asked her.
“Yeah,” Holly said. “You don’t think I own this place, do you?”
Katie hadn’t really thought about it.
“He likes to
sell
trees,” Holly continued. “He might fire me for giving one away.”
Katie gulped. Holly might lose her job. And if she did, it would all be Katie’s fault.
This was
soooo
not good.
But Katie wasn’t sure what she could do to help Holly. She wasn’t even sure if she
should
help. After all, she’d tried to help the poor family, and look what a mess that turned out to be.
Her only hope was that no one had seen her give the tree to that family. Maybe it would just remain their little secret.

Other books

A Summer Bird-Cage by Margaret Drabble
Voltaire's Calligrapher by Pablo De Santis
The Iron Ship by K. M. McKinley
A Shared Confidence by William Topek
Flash Fire by Caroline B. Cooney