by Nicole Falls
“Looks like I’m right on time,” he said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation, “Hey Junie B.”
Junie, normally hella bubbly in the presence of Jay, just grunted and rolled her eyes.
“Awww, you mad at me?” Jay asked, ruffling her fro, “You should really be mad at Lolo or Ginger, they were the ones that said y’all would work it out for me today.
“Damn,” I said, “Does everyone know what’s going on except me?”
“Pretty much,” Jay responded, “And that’s how I’d like to keep it.”
I had less than twelve hours to pull off the first of this collection of surprises that I had set up for Noelle. I was up for the challenge, no doubt, but whether I'd really be able to pull off all of the things I had in mind to do? I wasn't so sure. My first thought was to do a literal play on the 12 days of Christmas and tie in my surprises to the lyrics of that old Christmas standard, but I'm wasn't sure where one would find a turtle dove. Or honestly, what the hell a turtle dove even was? And I wasn't exactly Noelle's true love, so that shit woulda just been awkward. So, I went with a bit more of a conceptual 12 days of Christmas. Since we only had six true days 'til Christmas, I'd decided to fill these remaining days with activities from growing up that always brought Noelle joy. Some, like everything on today's docket were simple to fulfill and others took a bit more concentrated effort.
"Y'all ready or what?" Juniper grumbled after we'd all finished breakfast and sat around shooting the breeze.
I glanced at my watch, taking note of the time, "Yeah, we can get on outta here. Gotta catch the Metra in like fifteen. Thanks again for getting up to take us, lil sis," I said, ruffling her fro.
"Whateva, man. Don't forget the terms of our compensation," she replied, on a giggle.
"I'll do my best," I said.
"Nah, bruh, you gotta come harder than that," Juniper shot back.
"What are y'all talking about? What's the bribe this time?" Noelle asked.
Juniper pointed to herself and said, "January," then pointed to me and said "February".
Before she could continue, Noelle broke in, "March your ass to the car, Juju."
"After you, sissy," Juniper replied, laughing.
I couldn't help but join in laughing because Juju had one of those contagious laughs that invited everyone within earshot to join in, whether or not they knew what was so funny. The train station that we needed to get to wasn't but a ten-minute walk from our houses, but the temperature had dropped a bit, so I didn't want to walk the distance. Of course, I could have just had Noelle or an Uber driver take us to the station, but I wanted her sisters in on the action, too. A few of the activities would involve them being more than a mode of transportation, but for today Juniper's involvement was minimal, but necessary.
When we arrived at the train station, Juniper called out of the window after us, "You kids have fun, now! Don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"Well that just left the day's activities wide open, didn't it?" Noelle said, dryly.
The arrival of the train saved me from having to respond and we boarded quickly. In our teens, we took the Metra downtown religiously in the summers. We'd take it down to Oglevie Train Station downtown, then transfer to the city's public transit and spend hours traipsing around town from record store to record store. Today though, we'd be visiting a few spots in deeper into city center. Today would be mostly about easing Noelle back into the holiday spirit.
"So, I can't even get a hint about where we're going?" Noelle asked once we were settled in our seats on the Metra.
"Oh, I'll do you one better than a hint," I replied, leaning forward a bit.
We sat on two separate benches, but were not more than an arm's length apart due to the structure of the commuter train and its opposable seats. We had actually struck gold being able to turn our seats to face once another considering we were traveling downtown during a generally heavily populated time of day. I guessed that since we were so close to the actual holiday, the number of commuters had greatly decreased since many had likely taken time off to spend with their families. My movement forward had caused our knees to knock against each other briefly, making Noelle quickly shift her legs so that we weren't touching.
"You'll do me one better?" Noelle prompted.
"I’ll tell you exactly where we’re going.”
“Okay,” Noelle said, excitedly.
“We're going into the City, downtown. That's what the plan is for today."
Noelle rolled her eyes, "Still a smart ass, eh?"
"Still refuse to let a surprise be a surprise, eh?"
Noelle rolled her eyes again and looked out the window before briefly closing them and placing her head down. I grabbed her hands, shifting us so that she was sitting in the seat that faced the direction of travel. If she looked outside for too long opposite the direction of travel, Noelle got extremely sick. Last thing either of us needed was to be wearing those delicious breakfast sandwiches she'd made this morning.
After we resettled ourselves, Noelle said sheepishly, "Thanks. I wasn't thinking and it didn't hit me 'til after I looked out of the window. I haven't been on the Metra in years."
"Really?" I asked, "I mean it is the way to really fly, though."
Noelle groaned, and then giggled at my reference to the commuter train's longstanding tagline. Soon we were pulling into Oglevie, the train ride much quicker than a drive that would have been stymied by traffic. Since the weather was now pretty mild thanks to the emergence of the sun, I figured we could walk over to our first destination; Marshall Field's...oh excuse me, Macy's on State Street. This store had a long and storied history in Chicago; its famed Walnut Room with its massive Christmas tree was a tourist trap, but also a place I knew Noelle loved. The Hollidays always took Noelle alone to the Walnut Room for dinner a few days before her birthday as her special celebration without her sisters. Countless times she related to me how amazingly special she felt that her parents honored this tradition year over year. According to Juniper, Noelle hadn't come to the Walnut Room in quite some time, so I wasn't quite sure how she'd take this part of the surprise. I'd hoped she'd fare well and not be triggered by memories of coming here with her parents, one of whom was now deceased.
As we walked along Madison toward the Lake, I observed Noelle. She'd dressed simply in jeans, a sweater and a pair of UGGs. Her overcoat, a crimson colored pea coat, was striking against her cinnamon skin. Face free of any makeup and hair pulled into a pony tail; she could have easily passed for a young undergrad. As we stood at a light waiting to cross, an overzealous biker jumped the curb as he tried turning without slowing into the curve. He nearly crashed into Noelle, but luckily I grabbed her outta his path before they collided.
"That was close," Noelle said, a hand at her neck, toying with the scarf draped around it.
I grabbed her hand, pulling her a bit closer to me, "The idea was to get you in the spirit, not land you in the hospital. Stick closer by, kid."
Noelle rolled her eyes and tried stepping away, but I kept her hand firmly implanted within mine as the signal gave way for us to cross the street. A few blocks more and we were standing in front of Macy's. As I reached to open the door, Noelle pulled up short.
"Jay," she started, her voice trembling slightly.
"What?" I asked, with a smirk, "I thought you could help me finish up my Christmas shopping. C'mon."
I pulled open the door with one hand and dragged Noelle along with the other. We took the elevator up to the seventh floor where the Walnut Room was situated. I'd planned on us having breakfast here, but those plans had to be slightly adjusted since Noelle made us those delicious breakfast sandwiches, so instead we'd have a beverage or two and maybe a dessert. My homie Rob was acquainted with the GM of the restaurant, so I was able to not only secure us a reservation at the last minute, but also made sure we were going to be seated near the damn near fifty-foot tall Christmas tree.
"Jay, I don't know how you pulled this off, "Noelle s
tarted, as I pulled out her chair to so that she could sit, "But...you're off to a good start at getting rid of my Grinchies."
"Your Grinchies?"
"Yeah, that's what I've been calling my holiday blues in my head."
"Oh, so you do recognize that you haven't been yourself during this time of the year, huh?"
"Yeah man, I never denied it. Just...didn't think it as big a deal as you...and some others if I had to guess...think it is. Maybe I just grew up and the magic and mystery of Christmas waned with maturity. Did y'all ever think of that?"
"Thinking about it now and it sounds like bullshit. But, I didn't bring you here to argue, so let's table this discussion to a later date. Can you eat again? A little birdie told me that the toffee pie is to die for," I teased.
"Um, hell yes! You know that's my favorite," Noelle gushed, "Mommy, Dad and I would share a slice because they always said it was too rich for a kid to have all by herself and it just stuck as part of our tradition."
She lowered her head for a brief moment and when she brought it back up; her eyes sparkled with the sheen of unshed tears. I reached across the table and grabbed her hand, rubbing my thumb along her palm in what I hoped was a soothing gesture.
“Hey, if…being here is a lot, we can move to the next item on our agenda. I don’t…I want you…do you want to leave? We can just go,” I said before catching the eye of our server and waving him over.
“Jay, no. I’m…I’m okay. A little emotional, but I’m good. This is good. Thank you for this,” she replied, squeezing my hand between hers, “let’s get the toffee pie and the cake balls.”
We sat in the Walnut Room for a couple of hours, eating desserts and indulging in a couple of adult beverages. Noelle regaled me with stories from when she and her parents used to come here, including one where she ended up almost knocking the giant tree that was to our left down because she was convinced that one of the prop presents stacked below it was a birthday gift for her. By the time the check came, those tears in Noelle’s eyes from before were streaming down her cheeks in laughter as she told me about the time her father was mistaken for the guy who was set to play Santa for photo ops with the patrons of the Walnut Room. Mr. Holliday was gung ho to go along with the idea and had half his body in the suit before the real Santa showed. Noelle could barely get the story out for her giggles. I was glad to see her in good spirits. And even more glad to have been the one to put her there.
“You ready for what’s next?” I asked while signing the receipt with a flourish.
“I don’t know, Jay. I mean, there isn’t much else you could do to top this, honestly…” Noelle replied on a giggle.
“Well the next activity I have planned isn’t so much fun as practical,” I replied, “But I’m hoping you won’t hold it against me.”
We walked out of Macy’s and hailed a cab going north. We pulled up to our next destination and Noelle looked over at me with barely concealed amusement.
"Really, Jay?"
"What?" I asked, trying for an innocent tone but definitely sounding more defensive.
"You still wait to the last minute to do your shopping, huh?" Noelle said as we walked into Water Tower Place.
"I mean, how do you know that we aren't coming here to do something as cool as dining in the Walnut Room?"
"Unless we're about to make my own American Girl doll… Wait; are we about to make my own American Girl doll?" Noelle asked, excitedly.
"Uh...nah," I replied, "No doll. Just a quick trip into Henri Bendel for your beloved Miss Diane. I need a little help. I'm outside my wheelhouse with handbags. But I mean, if you're that geeked for an American Girl doll we can detour..."
"I'm a grown ass woman, dawg. I wasn't seriously excited about a doll, c'mon now No Z!"
The mall was a shit show, packed with people of all ages, shapes, sizes, and ethnicities getting their last-minute shopping on. Noelle led the way to the store I knew in name only thanks to a few hints dropped by my mother in various conversations over the past three months. What I had hoped would be a quick trip ended up with us spending damn near two hours as the saleswoman and Noelle conspired to deplete my entire checking account with their selections. We finally settled on a handbag with a matching wallet that cost more than any damned car note I'd ever paid. But knowing my mother and Noelle's depth of knowledge when it came to her too, she'd be extremely pleased with the gift when she opened it on Christmas Day. We made arrangements with the store to come back and retrieve the purchases after our final activity of the day.
We got into yet another cab and headed south along Michigan Avenue until we reached Randolph where I had the driver stop.
"We can walk the rest of the way."
Noelle's eyes lit up once again as she realized where we were. Kind of hard to miss the large metal bean that anchored the park into which we were about to travel.
"We're going skating at the Bean?" Noelle exclaimed, much to the amusement of the folks standing on the street corner with us as we waited to cross.
"We're going skating at the Bean," I confirmed as the light changed and we moved with the crowd.
Once again, our hands were intertwined and it felt something like natural. Noelle wasn't pulling away anymore, which was a plus. I mean, it could have just been her way of keeping us connected so we would not lose each other in the crowd, but I'd take it. Despite what I told her sisters I couldn't lie to myself. Those old feelings I had always held for Noelle were coming back full force. This day so far reminded me of how she got me caught in her web all those years ago. Noelle had a way of engaging you in conversation that made you feel like you were the only person on earth that she saw in that moment. Her eye contact was steady and constant as she leaned in, poised to tune all the way into what you were saying. And when it was her turn to speak? She did so with her entire being, making it hard for you to focus on little beyond whatever words were coming from her mouth in that moment. Noelle could make the most innocuous person feel like they were the leader of the free world with the sheer amount of focus she put into ensuring she was present in that moment with that person. It was a quality I figured would suit her well in her quest to become a celebrity profiler.
Coming to ice skate wasn’t one of my finer ideas. I wasn’t exactly the most graceful on my feet and adding the precarious sense of balance that ice skates afforded anyone who dared don them? Shit got real seconds after we laced up and stepped onto the ice. I hadn’t even gotten a full glide in before I fell flat on my ass. Noelle tried holding back her laughter, but failed miserably as she asked about my wellbeing. I navigated myself back to my feet, got a bit more steadiness in my gait, and soon Noelle and I were gliding around the ice in tandem. Her moves were a bit fancier than mine and she glided and twirled about, looking like goddamned Surya Bonaly or somebody.
“Yo, when did you get good at this?” I asked as she circled around me, “We used to be equally terrible, now you left me behind!”
“Weekly dates with Jordan and Payton at Seven Bridges made Tee No find her balance really quickly,” Noelle responded, “I mean, I could teach you, but I’d have to charge.”
“Ok Kelis,” I replied, eyeing a kid who couldn’t have been any older than eight who was whipping around the rink like he was Apollo Anton Ohno or some damn body, “Teach me.”
We ended up being on the ice ‘til damn near sundown as Noelle helped me find my center of gravity and become a bit more comfortable on the ice skates. By the time the day ended, I was whipping around the rink at about a quarter of the speed of the kid from earlier, but considerably faster than my stutter step method that I’d started with. Noelle’s patience was never ending, which was really of no surprise considering her chosen field of work. While skating, I learned more about what made her switch her major from journalism in undergrad to education with a focus on working with special needs children. Her passion for her work was evident in the way her eyes lit up at the mere mention of her kids.
The temperature had dr
opped considerably so instead of taking a cab or Uber back to the train station, we took an Uber home. I’d accidentally hit pool, however, so we ended up stuck for half of the ride home with some weird dude with a handlebar mustache who kept talking about his teacup yorkie that he was set to pick up over the weekend. As soon as he was dropped off, No, the driver, and I immediately began laughing at the name he’d told us he decided on for the dog. Earl shouldn’t be any dog’s name, but especially one as puny as the one he showed us via a slideshow on his phone. Soon we were pulling up in front of our houses.
"I had fun today, Jay," Noelle said, as we walked toward her front porch.
"That was the plan, so I'm glad we were successful. Just wait ‘til you see what I've got in store for tomorrow," I teased, before pulling her closer in a quick embrace and pressing a quick kiss to her forehead.
The last few days with Jay had been… gosh I don’t even know how to describe it really. What began as him helping me get my holiday spirit back has quickly turned into an internal battle with myself to not mount him every time I see him. He put me in the spirit all right. Sheesh! This feeling was new and…if I was being honest with myself, weird as hell, so I was bound and determined to ignore these feelings. Besides, he hasn’t given any inclination that he’s feeling me in any kind of way beyond platonic, so I just needed to cool my jets. I was almost certain that my reaction to Jay was more about a man giving me a steady stream of attention than it was about me actually being sexually attracted to Jay. I mean…it’s Jay, goofy No Z. I mean, okay, yes he had gotten grown man fine with his Hershey’s Special Dark chocolate skin, muscles, straight white teeth and…fuckboy standard issue haircut. But it was more than the fine, it was the keen attention he’d put into trying to help rid me of the Grinchies.