Welcome to Newtonberg by David Emprimo Read Free Book Online Page A

parade without totally humiliating himself in
front of Janet. In fact, he’d begun to feel more comfortable around
her. He no longer got choked up, and he could answer her questions
with words longer than one syllable. He could look her in the eye
without his stomach knotting up. He’d actually begun to look
forward to seeing her each day.
    There was a knock on the door. John Swensen
stuck his head in the room. Seeing Mike in his full Santa suit for
the first time, he smiled.
    “My word, Mike. You’re the spitting image of
old Saint Nick himself. It’s like looking in a mirror.”
    Mike gave him a grin. “I’ll take that as a
compliment.”
    “You should. I bet Jo wouldn’t be able to
tell the difference between us if she walked in right now. Well, at
least until you spoke.” He chuckled. “Anyway, Janet sent me to
fetch you. The marching band is just about to start playing and
you’ll head out a minute or so after that.”
    Mike put the hat on his head and grabbed the
bag of peppermints. “Thanks. I’m on my way.”
    John left and Mike made his way toward the
back door of the Café, where the Bel Air was parked.
    Janet met him there. “You ready?”
    “I think so.”
    “Just remember. Don’t worry about saying
anything right now. Save your voice. They can’t hear you over the
band anyway. Just wave and throw out the peppermints. The children
will be happy enough just to see you for right now. They’ll hear
you later at the Workshop.”
    “Got it.”
    “And Mike?”
    He looked into her eyes. “Yes?”
    She took his hand and gave it a squeeze.
“Thank you for this. The children really look forward to it. And
since Al couldn’t be here to do it, I’m glad Missus Johnson talked
you into it.”
    He swallowed hard. “It didn’t take much
convincing. You know I’d do anything for Missus Johnson.”
    She smiled. “I know.”
    Just then the marching band struck up the
first chords of “Here Comes Santa Claus.”
    “Hey, Santa!” called Gene. “Are we headed
down Santa Claus Lane or are we waiting for Rudolph and the
others?”
    Mike gave Janet a smile. “Let’s go.” He
climbed into the back seat, settling onto the trunk with the bag of
candy. “Dash away all!”
    Gene rolled his eyes. “You got it, big
guy.”
     
    * * * * * * * *
     
    The parade went by quickly. The children were
excited to see Santa Claus, and Mike had to admit that he enjoyed
it. The people lining Commerce Street to watch the procession were
all smiles, and no one seemed to mind or notice that Al wasn’t
playing Santa this year.
    At the football field, Cliff Magnuson made
his way through the crowds checking on each booth, making sure that
there were no problems. As he walked, he stopped occasionally to
talk to the families waiting in line, greeting people he saw every
day as well as former residents who had moved away.
    He paused briefly to say hello to Emily Kelly
and her husband. Emily, who had always considered Cliff to be a
surrogate grandfather, insisted that he hold Little Philip. He
hadn’t seen the baby before, except in the photograph that Cap
showed off every chance he had. He had to admit to feeling a bit
odd. He hadn’t held a baby since he’d held his own son, Jeff.
    It was a bittersweet moment. Jeff would have
been a little younger than Emily, if he hadn’t been killed during
Operation Desert Storm. He was only 22. Cliff’s wife had never
quite gotten over it. She mourned his death every day until she
passed away herself, not too long after the Widow Missus lost her
husband.
    At least Little Philip didn’t seem to be a
fussy baby. He didn’t cry at all when Cliff took him from Emily.
The baby stared up at him with wide, wondering eyes with his fist
in his mouth.
    He stared at the small trusting face and
smiled. Life goes on , he thought. We lose the ones we
love, but we can’t let that keep us from loving others .
    Cliff handed the baby back to Emily, wished
them all well, and headed to Santa’s