Legacy: A Holiday Ghost Story
Previously Unpublished
I
The first snow came late. It was early November by the time the snow began to stick, although all the trees had shed their leaves for the season. As the thick sheets of white began to build up, the tension the people of Heartview held seemed to dissipate. We made an industry out of the holiday tourist crowd, and the longer it took to snow, the less time we had to make our living. I was the resident old rich guy, and every year, I set up displays on my estate and let vendors use my property to sell Christmas trees, sweets, and charming, rustic crafts. This year, however, I bequeathed the task to my only grandson.
II
A soft glow came down from the multi-colored lights strung along the top of the walls around the bookshop. Terry, bless her, had perfected tacky Christmas décor to scientific precision. In the corner, by her complimentary coffee station, a record player sent fuzzy jazz throughout the store. Bookshelves crowded together into a labyrinth of words.
“Mr. O’Callaghan?” a sing-song voice chirped.
I raised my head, just as my grandson did. It’s been a difficult year trying to adjust to Alexander being the new Mr. O’Callaghan.
“Terry, you know I’m not…” He trailed off, shifting his body weight onto his cane as he came to a stop in front of the front counter. Alexander pushed his thick brown hair back and fidgeted with his glasses.
Terry’s expression softened. “I know, Alex. I didn’t mean—”
“It’s alright.” He tightened his grip on the handle of the cane and swallowed hard. I wished I could do this for him.
Terry shifted through some papers on the counter. “Do you have things sorted out for this year? I know several people are going to be expecting the estate to get just as done up, even if it’s without your grandfather.” She kept her gaze on the counter, fidgeting with pens and paperclips.
“I don’t know if I can even—”
“The Girl Scouts will help. They helped Mr. O’Callaghan every year. No one is expecting you to do this without help, Alex.” Terry looked up and stared straight past me. The end of the record came, and we were left in silence.
III
Alexander has been hanging around a nice young man lately. Terry introduced them. While the town is bustling in holiday preparation, Mr. Jiang will take photographs for our new website. I suspected Terry wanted to give some pressure to going through with the estate party, even if she had other match-making motives. It wouldn’t be the first time she tried to orchestrate a connection for my grandson.
“Mr. Jiang, I don’t see how ice skating is going to be helpful.” Alexander stood at the side of the lake, his arms out like a penguin to keep steady.
“It’s Chet, and I think it would help me get a sense of what ice skating is like. I rollerblade all the time, but we don’t get ice down south. How can I take pictures of something I have never experienced? I want to capture the energy just right.” Chet took Alexander’s hand and just as he took a step onto the ice, his feet went out from under him, and he fell flat on his back.
I couldn’t help but try to hide a laugh. He was a little overconfident, and I knew he wasn’t hurt too badly.
Alexander went to his knees, trudging close. “Oh my god, are you okay?”
Chet erupted into laughter, propping himself up on his elbows. “You didn’t tell me it’s slippery!” He grinned.
Alexander flushed and gave Chet’s arm a little whack. “It’s ice! Of course it’s slippery!”
I smiled. I hoped they would know each other for a long time.
IV
December 21st. The estate swarmed with Girl Scouts. I had never seen such a large team come together before to put the O’Callaghan property together for the holidays. I wanted to tell Alexander how proud I was, but I couldn’t find the right moment. He was so busy directing everyone and getting people organized.
Chet wrapped an arm around Alexander, and he leaned in close.
V
Through some sort of miracle, Alexander and Chet got everything pulled together in time for Christmas Eve. The front lawn of the estate was littered with small vendor booths and small pine trees were tucked in between them. I had never pulled anything off on this scale in my lifetime. A small stage was set up with local bands playing covers of classic carols.
Before the night ended, Alexander climbed up onto the stage. Chet followed, but I could not figure out why. Everyone fell silent to listen to him speak.
“Thank you, everyone, for showing up tonight. I know things were a little short notice, but the holidays were a lot harder this year.
“Since my grandfather passed, I wasn’t sure how to take over this responsibility. He left everything to me, and that included the task of becoming Mr. O’Callaghan instead of being just Alexander. I’ve realized, over these past couple of months, that being Mr. O’Callaghan doesn’t mean trying to be the pillar of the Heartview Christmas community. It means trying to get us to work together to be Heartview.”
Tears pooled in my eyes. Pride swelled my chest, and, with a shaky hand, I wiped my eyes. Alexander was in good hands.
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