A Christmas Miracle

      Christmas is a family holiday. Every year, people meet their families to spend some time with each other. Which they sometimes lack because of some important things. A small family did not become an exclusion. All the members come together again in the evening time, exchange gifts, discuss all the latest news, and are getting ready to say goodbye to the old leaving year. With the thought that the bad things will remain in the past, and only good things will be waiting for them in a new one.       The atmosphere at the house is truly festive. Perfectly clean glasses that were recently taken from a pack are beautifully placed on the big table with a white tablecloth on it. Silver forks, spoons, and knives are put in a specific order next to plates. In the middle of the table, there are a couple of vases with gorgeous bouquets of flowers, and white blankets are placed on all the chairs. That’s why sitting on them is getting more comfortable. A TV has been working since the morning because everybody enjoys watching their favorite Christmas movies that definitely wake up the spirit of the upcoming holiday. Someone even turned on the music system and found a CD with the most popular holiday songs that everyone loves.       A big, tall Christmas tree is placed not far from the table and decorated with toys of different forms, bright garlands that glow with various colors, and sparkling silver tinsel. There is a big star on top of it. It’s covered with little sparkles that end up lying almost everywhere. While it’s freezing outside, and big fluffy snowflakes are spinning in the air and slowly falling on the ground, it’s so warm in the house that anyone can easily walk in a thin t-shirt and pants. The air is full of magnificent smells of food that the owner of the house is cooking with the help of the guests. Light vegetable snacks, simple but delicious salads that everyone eats to the last piece, a couple of dishes from good-quality meat… Everybody can find what they like. Besides, a big chicken is getting baked now. The imitable smell of it is spreading throughout the whole house and literally drives everybody crazy. They cannot stop drooling, and the grumbling stomach lets them know it would be great to sit down and eat something that looks good and smells awesome.       Colorful garlands are hanging on the walls of the whole house and can work in different moods. The floors are washed to the gloss and literally squeak from how clean they are. The owner of the house missed no dust when having a general cleaning in every single room, getting ready for the visit of the wanted guests, with who they could barely spend much time without a rush. It should be noted that all the guests that arrived here highly appreciated her work and tell her that this place would always be a paradise for her family and those, who come here.       While the women are working on the food and talking about something with wide smiles on their faces, the men are having a talk, sitting on the sofa and discussing what makes them laugh. All of them are wearing comfortable but beautiful clothes, which they picked up especially for today. Twins, a girl, and a boy, of the same age are being not far from them. Both have blonde hair and are wearing similar red and white clothes. They are having the pleasure to open some boxes, in which they surely find an interesting gift. The children being excited from happiness talk much about them and have the pleasure to play with what they definitely wanted to get for one year or even more. Adult people sometimes watch them and cannot hide their smiles, feeling something nice and warm when seeing true happiness on their faces.       Almost everybody is happy. Except for one little blue-eyed girl with light brown hair, which is brushed in two cute pigtails. She is sitting on the corner as quietly as a mouse on the light, fluffy mat and quietly talking about something to her brown teddy bear that she is embracing and pressing to herself as if it’s something very important to her. The girl does not talk to the other children and does not come to the adult people, who are too busy with their talks. She literally has tears in her eyes, and there is no even hint of a smile on her face. As if Christmas does not make her happy. As if she is literally the only child in the world that does not like this magical holiday. She does not care about boxes with gifts that are put near the tree. The baby does not want to know what’s inside them. Even the thought that she could get a madly wanted toy does not make her do this.       “Dad won’t be celebrating Christmas with us again,” the girl says quietly with sadness in her eyes, pressing her teddy bear to herself. “I won’t see him today. Though, he promises to stay with me every year.”       The girl sniffs quietly.       “He always comes back home when I go to sleep. He leaves when I’m sleeping. Though, I miss him so badly… I want my dad to play with me… Him to read me a tale… About a prince and a princess… But he doesn’t play and doesn’t read…”       The girl presses her toy to herself much tighter and makes a couple of loud sobs, thinking this holiday is not going to be good for her because her beloved daddy is not with her.       “Santa Claus, please, make my wish come true! I don’t ask you for any toys! Just bring my dad to me! I want him to celebrate Christmas with me. Please… I wish magic happened, at least this time! Please, Santa, do this…”       While the girl is begging Santa Claus to make her biggest dream come true, she does not notice the owner of the house comes to her. That’s a dark-haired woman with blue eyes, who is wearing an elegant blue dress. She saw the baby was sitting alone and not even thinking of opening her gifts. Though, the woman and her husband spent a lot of money on them. Everything to make their beloved daughter happy. However, she does not even look at them and would be happy to exchange them with the opportunity to spend every day with her dad.       “Ellie, sunshine…” the woman addresses the girl tenderly and squats down in front of her. “Why are you sitting here alone? Why aren’t you opening your gifts?”       “I don’t want,” Ellie pronounces in a quiet voice.       “Don’t you wanna know what Santa Claus gave you?”       “I’ll check later.”       “What if he read your letter and decided to give you what you asked him about? You’ve been a very good girl this whole year, and Santa will take a note of it.”       “No, Mommy, Santa Claus didn’t make my dream come true.”       “Daughter…” the woman pronounces with pity in her eyes.       “Daddy won’t be celebrating Christmas with us.” Ellie makes a quiet sob. “He won’t come back home again.”       “Your daddy is working, sweetie. He’s a doctor and taking care of those, who need it.”       “But can’t it wait?”       “Every day, your dad has hundreds of patients that come to him with the hope to get good therapy. He can’t refuse.”       “Even at night? Even on holidays? Even at Christmas?”       “Illnesses don’t have weekends. They come at any time of day and night. And your dad, as one of the best doctors, should cure people.”       “Can’t he stay home at least for one day?”       “No, Ellie, it’s impossible.”       “Why?”       “Who’s gonna earn money? The money for delicious food, beautiful clothes, and much more! If your dad is not working and helping people, you and I will have nothing to eat and wear.”       “It’s wrong!” Ellie exclaims with tears in her eyes.       “Ellie, sweetie, listen…”       “Every year, I beg my dad to have a break and at least celebrate Christmas with us. He promises he’d do this, but you say he should go to work at the last moment.”       “Because he is an experienced doctor, and others learn from him. They don’t know how to help someone, but your dad does.”       “Dad always comes back home very late. I sleep at this time. And I sleep when he goes to work. I don’t almost see him! I miss him!”       “Sunshine, I miss your daddy so much, too,” the woman says softly with a slight smile and slightly fixes Ellie’s pigtails. “And I suffer because I can’t spend time with him. You know how much I’d like us to go somewhere in a park all together! Or stay home and watch a movie.”       “Talk to him, Mommy, I’m begging you.” Ellie takes the woman’s hand, looking at her with wet eyes full of pity. “I wish he was with us for the next Christmas.”       “I’m not the one to decide when he should work.”       “But you can persuade him to stay home!”       “Of course, I can. But it’s his job – he can’t leave early and have a weekend at his wish.”       “What if he finds a different one?”       “Which one? He’s working in his specialty.”       “It’s a stupid specialty!” Ellie throws with the offense. “I will never be a doctor when I grow up! Because I don’t almost see my dad!”       “I get it, my darling. But I've already said he should work.”       “Will it always happen so? Will I rarely see my dad?”       “Even if he’s not with us now, your dad thinks of you and wishes you a Merry Christmas.”       “I hate Christmas!” Ellie says angrily. “Christmas without my dad is bad!”       “Ellie, sunshine, don’t say it.”       “Can I take off this stupid dress and go to my room?” Ellie glances at her dark red dress with short sleeves and a big bow on the side. “I don’t wanna celebrate Christmas without my dad!”       “No, sweetie, you can’t go to your room. We’re having guests.”       “I don’t want!”       “Don’t be upset, daughter,” the woman encourages with a shy smile and strokes Ellie’s shoulders. “Go to play with your cousins a little. Look how much fun they’re having there!”       The woman moves her eyes to the boy and the girl, who are thrilling with laughter and having the pleasure to play with some toys.       “They’re probably wondering why Ellie isn’t playing with them,” the woman assumes. “Why she’s sitting aside with her bear and crying.”       “Because Dad gave me this bear,” Ellie replies with wet eyes and presses the teddy bear to herself.       “I’m sure the gifts that Santa Claus prepared for you are gonna be much better.”       “No! They won’t be!”       “Ellie, my sweetie, go to check your gifts and play with the babies. Stop sitting here alone and crying.”       “I don’t wanna play!”       “Today is such a wonderful holiday!” the woman smiles widely. “Christmas! The most magical and wonderful holiday I've ever known. I’ve loved it since childhood. I get ready for it with impatience.”       “And I hate it! And it’s not magical!”       “No, daughter, don’t say it.”       “If it was really magical, Dad would be with us now, not at his work.”       “He will spend time with you, but a little later.”       “You always say it!” Ellie snuggles her nose in her bear. “But he doesn’t spend time with me.”       “I know, sweetie.”       “I’ve written tons of letters to Santa Claus and begged him to allow me to spend much time with my daddy,” Ellie confesses quietly and sniffs. “I write all the same in them…”       “Santa Claus has already taken a note and will make your dream come true.”       “He will not!”       “In addition to you, there are just so many children, whose wishes he should come true.”       “I don’t need all these big boxes with gifts. I don’t need any expressive toys. I’d be happy to exchange all of them for the opportunity to spend time with my dad. The opportunity to spend it with you and him.”       “I promise we will go somewhere all together in our free time. We will take a ride, eat something delicious, take beautiful photos…”       “I wish I didn’t have it all…” Ellie says in a shaking voice with tears. “I just want us to spend time all together. I want to know I have loving parents.”       “You have and will have them.” The woman tenderly caresses Ellie’s head. “Your dad and I love you much more than anything in the world. Ellie, you’re the best thing we’ve got. Our beloved daughter, who makes us happy with just your existence, not only with something, Without you, our life wouldn’t be so beautiful.”       “Jenny and Danny’s dad always finds time for them! They never complain that they lack his attention.”       “But he’s also working very much and comes back home tired.”       “They do see him, but I don’t see my dad! You aren’t allowing me to wait for the return of my dad until late night, so I can finally hug and kiss him.”       “Ellie…”       “But if I had to wait for the night, I’d do this.”       “Alright, sunshine, let’s talk about it later.”       The woman tenderly embraces Ellie and presses her to herself, while the baby wipes tears under her eyes.       “Let’s not make our mood worse,” the woman suggests softly. “Wipe tears, smile, and go to play a little. Check your gifts and play with Danny and Jenny.”       “I don’t want!” Ellie exclaims.       “What if there’s something special in those beautiful boxes? Huh?” The woman smiles mysteriously. “Santa Claus does know what you need.”       “I need Dad!” Ellie says loudly. “Nothing more!”       “It’s impossible, sweetie!”       “Not true! Not true! Not true!”       Ellie starts crying bitterly and presses closely to her mother, who tenderly strokes her head with a heavy sigh.       “It’s okay, my baby, don’t cry,” the woman tries to calm down in a quiet, soft voice. “It’s okay.”       “Where’s Dad?” Ellie makes a quiet sob. “Why isn't he with us?”       “I swear, my sweetie, he’s also worried because he isn’t able to be with you. His heart is tearing apart because you’re here, and he’s there.”       “Can’t he spend at least one day with us?”       “He’s made a few attempts to persuade his boss to let him have a rest for two days. But sadly, no. And your father can’t go against the boss’ wish. He must obey him.”       “But it’s Christmas! How could someone work on holidays? When everyone comes together and celebrates it!”       “Alas, sweetie, it’s life. Sometimes we have to do what we don’t like. Your dad would be happy not to work in the holidays, but he has to. He has no choice.”       “It’s unfair! Unfair!”       Sobbing loudly, Ellie steps away from her mother and leaves the living room, not paying attention to her cousins, Jenny and Danny, playing together.       “Ellie!” the woman exclaims with sadness in her eyes. “Ellie, where are you going? Wait!”       But after following her daughter, the woman cannot catch her because Ellie goes upstairs and hides somewhere on the second floor. Her mother sighs heavily and looks around the whole living room.       “Gosh, I wish a Christmas miracle happened…” the woman wishes quietly. “I wish my husband was released from work earlier. At least, today. So, Ellie is happy and doesn’t cry because of the constant lack of attention from her dad.”       Thinking about something with sadness in her eyes, Ellie’s mother does not notice a woman with dark hair and blue eyes coming to her, as she pulls down her dark green dress on the way.       “Adele, honey…” the woman pronounces softly and puts a hand on Adele’s shoulder.       “I don’t know what to do, Carol,” Adele sighs heavily. “Leonard can’t leave work today, and Ellie has been crying since the morning…”       “Oh, my God…”       “My heart is breaking. My daughter is missing her father and wants to spend at least these holidays with him. Every year, she asks Santa Claus to allow her to do this.”       “We can understand Ellie. Leo works in daylight and nighttime and doesn’t almost stay home. And she’s suffering because of it.”       “I know, but we can’t live without it. It’s his job! He’s saving the lives of people.”       “I’m sure your daughter understands everything.”       “Yeah, but it’s hurt for me to see her hears,” Adele confesses with pity. “Trying to distract her doesn’t help me anymore. She literally tells me to bring her dad to her.”       “Ah, sister, I don’t even know what to advise.”       “I’m also missing my husband and suffering that I’m not allowed to spend time with him. But I understand it’s his job. He’s our only breadwinner, while I’m responsible for taking care of the house and the well-being of my family.”       “Wasn’t Leonard really released from work even during the holiday?”       “Alas! He’s gotta spend a night at his work.”       “Jesus Christ…”       “If I had a little chance to make Ellie happy, I would undoubtedly use it.”       “What can you do? You can’t go to the hospital and tell your boss to let your husband go home because Ellie is suffering from being separated from her father.”       “Sometimes I really want to do it.” Adele embraces herself with both arms. “Looking at my daughter’s tears, I sometimes wanna convince Leo to find a different job. Because of which, he wouldn’t spend hours at his work.”       “Sadly, we sometimes have to sacrifice something. Either constant attention but a lack of money, or endless money but a lack of attention.”       “It’s right. At first, I also cried and was worried because my husband spent time at his work. But I accepted it slowly and do understand our well-being depends on it. Besides, I don’t have time to suffer because I always have something to do.”       “Ellie is a baby yet. She needs the attention of both parents. You can’t entirely replace a father for her.”       “It’s especially hard for her when it’s the time of holidays. When she goes to school, she thinks of lessons and what to talk about with her schoolmates.”       “At least, she understands her dad is working for the well-being of her family. He’s doing his best for her to eat well, dress up beautifully and play with the best toys.”       “Ellie just said she’d exchange all of it with the opportunity to spend as much time with her dad as possible.”       “Sorry, Adele, but I don’t know how to help you,” Carol shrugs. “Jenny and Danny sometimes also cry because they rarely see their dad, even if he gives them as much time as possible.”       “Okay, Carol, let’s not talk about bad things. Today is a holiday. We should try to think of the good things and what’s waiting for us in the new year.”       “Oh, sweetie… Years are gone, but the problems are still the same. Nothing would change if the number on the calendar changed.”       “I know. But I wanna believe there’s something magical in this world.”       “Yeah, you’re still like a baby!” Carol laughs shyly. “You believed in tales in childhood, and you haven't stopped doing this.”       “Without a belief in a miracle, life doesn’t make sense, sis. No matter how hard my problems are, I try to keep believing that everything is going to be alright, early or late.”       “Don’t tell me you’d write a letter for Santa Claus.”       “Why not?” Adele shrugs with a smile. “I’ve always believed in him! I shall believe until I get old.”       “Aw, honey…”       Carol cutely embraces Adele around the shoulders, making her sister smile. And two seconds, the happy Jenny and Danny run to them, holding something in their hands.       “Mommy! Mommy!” Jenny exclaims happily, shaking her doll. “Look what beautiful gifts we received from Aunt Adele and Uncle Leonard!”       “Yes, Mom, look!” Danny smiles widely, showing Carol his black car and small remote control.       “Wow, it’s so beautiful!” Carol pronounces with admiration, taking the beautiful doll and looking at its gorgeous long dark hair and a long green dress. “What a doll! What a car!”       “You really like it?” Adele asks.       “Yes, Aunt, much!” Danny and Jenny pronounce happily at the same time.       “Thanks, Auntie!” Danny thanks.       “You’re the best!” Jenny exclaims.       “Uncle Leo and I chose the best gifts for you,” Adele notices. “We knew you’d love it.”       “Yeah, you’re so lucky with your aunt and uncle,” Carol smiles shyly.       “Hey, Aunt, why doesn’t Ellie wanna play with us?” Danny asks. “Jenny and I called her, but she refuses! And she doesn’t even wanna check the gifts under the three.”       “And she’s crying bitterly,” Jenny adds. “Why did Ellie run away somewhere with tears?”       “Ellie is just worried because she’s gonna have to celebrate Christmas without her dad,” Adele explains softly.       “Won’t Uncle Leo join us?” Danny opens his eyes widely.       “He’s got much work,” Carol replies. “Sadly, Uncle Leo can’t be released from work.”       “Ellie’s dad is just such an amazing collaborator that they can’t do without him,” Adele smiles shyly. “When someone needs help, everyone comes to him.”       “Seems like Santa Claus forgot about Ellie,” Jenny assumes with sadness in her eyes. “He doesn’t make her wishes come true! She’s been asking him for the opportunity to spend time with him for so many years!”       “Alas, my sweeties, but Santa Claus isn’t powerful,” Carol says with sadness, embracing Jenny and Danny around the shoulders. “There are things that he can’t do.”       “But he’s a wizard!” Danny exclaims. “Santa Claus must be able to do anything!”       “Being a wizard doesn’t mean doing everything.”       “But we gotta do something!” Jenny pronounces excitedly. “We must make Ellie’s mood better! We don’t wanna see her tears on such a beautiful and magical day.”       “Alas, guys, only the arrival of Uncle Leo can make her mood better,” Adele smiles with sadness, folding her hands in front of her. “He’s the only one to be able to make her smile and wish to celebrate Christmas.”       “And what?” Danny asks hesitantly. “Is she gonna be crying and feeling sad while embracing her bear?”       “We did everything we could do,” Carol says softly.       “But don’t you worry!” Adele smiles shyly. “I will go upstairs now and persuade her to come back to the guests. And we will do our best for her not to feel like her dad is not with us.”       “Really?” Jenny rounds her eyes.       “Sure!” Adele kisses Jenny and Danny on the top of their heads with a slight smile and slightly fixes the dark pink dress of the little girl. “Now go to play a little. We will sit at the table soon and taste what I cooked for you.”       “Oh, yes, yes, yes!” Danny claps his hands happily with a gloss in his eyes. “I love your food! You’ve always been able to cook delicious food!”       “Aw, thank you, sweetheart.”       “Alright, guys, go to play,” Carol says. “I’ll come to you now.”       “Yes, Mommy!” Danny and Jenny pronounce at the same time and quickly run to another part of the living room, continuing to play with their toys.       Adele and Carol watch the babies for some time with a slight smile and look at each other.       “So, it’s time to bring to the table?” Adele asks thoughtfully.       “Yeah, as everybody came together,” Carol shrugs. “Waiting for Leo doesn’t make sense, and we’re waiting for nobody else.”       “But it’s a little sad that we’re celebrating the second Christmas in a row without Mother and Father.”       “Yeah, it’s been too sad without them. There is only you and me, our brother Johnny, your husband Leonard, my husband Cole… Ellie, Jenny, and Danny… We’ve got a small company.”       “Small, but very friendly.”       “That’s what I’m grateful to God. For having a loving, friendly family.”       “Aw, Carol…”       Adele and Carol, embracing each other around the shoulders, decide to go to the kitchen to finish some things related to the Christmas dinner. Which is definitely wanted by the men of almost the same age as theirs. Who are sitting on the sofa and wearing comfortable sweaters and jeans.       “Hey, sisters, when will you feed your brother?” Johnny asks funnily, laughing much at something alongside the husband of Carol named Cole. “I’m already hungry!”       “You better be ashamed of saying it!” Carol exclaims.       “Yeah, you visit us just to empty the fridge and laugh with the men,” Adele adds.       “Not at all!” Johnny raises his hands up. “I come here because I really miss my older sisters.”       “Oh, okay, big boy, don’t worry! We will feed you now.”       “Hey, I’m not a big boy!”       “Indeed, ladies, when will you serve the table?” Cole asks. “My stomach is grumbling because of all these smells in the air.”       “Yeah, I think men will always be hungry in a company, not children,” Carol laughs shyly, putting her hands on her hips.       “Yeah, the babies don’t even ask about food and are busy with the gifts!” Adele notices. “It’s vice versa in your case.”       “We will eat and go to open our gifts,” Cole promises. “You better do this thing when you’ve got a filled stomach.”       “Gosh, we’re coming! Coming! You’re gonna eat now!”       “Yeah, while you’re working your tongues here, we’ve almost done everything and are gonna bring the food to the table,” Carol adds.       “C’mon, c’mon, lady of the house, bring your magnificent baked chicken,” Cole says with a wide smile. “You know how much I love it.”       “Of course, my dear,” Adele nods confidently.       “Hey, why are Jenny and Danny the only ones to play in the living room?” Johnny wonders, looking around the whole living room. “Where’s Ellie?”       “Ran to her room with tears,” Carol shrugs.       “Because of Leonard?” Cole specifies.       “Exactly.”       “Are we gonna celebrate Christmas without him?”       “Alas, Cole,” Adele throws her hands up. “A doctor’s life is hard.”       “Oh, poor Leo…” Johnny pronounces thoughtfully. “They’re gonna get him too exhausted…”       “Let’s hope we’d be lucky the next year,” Carol replies thoughtfully. “Though, I’m having less hope every year.”       “Yeah, because of Leo’s case, I wanna be an ordinary worker, earn my money, and work as much as I need more and more.”       “He’s doing this for his family,” Adele says confidently. “So, Ellie and I don’t need anything.”       “Of course, it’s good, but the child is suffering because of the separation from him,” Cole notices. “Ellie needs a little to get the hate for Leo and stop waiting for him to go home from work.”       “All questions go to his boss and colleagues, who can’t do without him.”       “Alright, guys, no need to talk about it!” Carol exclaims. “So, we will spend one more holiday without Leo.”       “Listen, Carol, can you check the food yourself?” Adele addresses her sister. “I will go to Ellie’s room and talk to her. Maybe, I could even persuade her to come down.”       “Okay, don’t worry, I’ll figure it out,” Carol nods confidently.       “Johnny, Cole, watch Jenny and Danny! They’re running here like hurricanes and are about to destroy something or hurt themselves.”       “Don’t worry, sis, my nephew and niece are under the wonderful view of their best uncle in the best,” Johnny says with his head proudly up.       “We will see it!” Carol exclaims.       Laughing shyly, Carol and Adele want to go to different sides to work on what they agreed on. But when they take a few steps, everybody suddenly hears the ring on the doorbell.       “Who’s that?” Cole frowns slightly.       “It’s weird, nobody else is supposed to come,” Carol frowns slightly.       “What if Santa Claus decided to give us more gifts?” Johnny assumes funnily.       “I’ll go to see,” Adele smiles shyly.       While everybody stays in the living room and looks at each other, Adele confidently comes to the hall door and opens it. Then she opens her eyes widely because she sees a tall man with light brown hair and light stubble on his face. He is holding a couple of packets with colorful paintings and sparkling patches and wearing a red and white hat with a little pompom on his head.       “Leo?” Adele pronounces surprisingly.       “Surprise!” Leonard exclaims happily with a wide smile. “Merry Christmas!”       “My gosh, honey…” Adele, not believing what she sees, closes her mouth with her hands and looks at Leonard from head to foot. “I can't believe it…”       “Maybe, would you let me in? Or do I better come back to the hospital and celebrate Christmas there?”       “No… I… Uh-h-h…” Adele tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “Yes, yes, sure… Come in… Come in, please…”       Adele steps away from the door to let Leonard come into the house. While she locks the door, the man looks around and breathes in the smell of the chicken that is baking in the oven with a blissful smile.       “But, Leo…” Adele pronounces hesitantly. “You were supposed to be at work! You said you’d be working all night and would be back in the morning.”       “You can think it’s a real miracle,” Leonard replies cheerfully, hugs Adele by the waist, and kisses her on the cheek tenderly. “Or Santa Claus has finally received Ellie’s letters and made her wish come true.”       “My gosh…”       “As I understand, did everybody come?”       “Uh-h-h… Yeah… Carol and I were going to serve the table…”       “Oh, I wasn’t late, huh!” Leonard rubs his hands happily. “M-m-m… I feel my favorite chicken is getting baked there…”       “It’s almost cooked.”       “Oh, how much I dreamed of it!”       Leonard goes further and comes to Carol, Johnny, and Cole, who are sitting in the living room. First, the three talk about something with each other, but then they pay attention to the man, who just came, and open their eyes widely when seeing him.       “Leo?” Cole, Carol, and Johnny pronounce.       “What a surprise!” Johnny exclaims cheerfully.       “My God, Leo, what are you doing here?” Carol wonders. “We weren’t waiting for you. We thought you were working.”       “But here I am and am ready to celebrate Christmas with my family,” Leonard replies confidently.       “You said you’d be working!” Cole exclaims.       “I wasn’t hoping for a miracle! But my boss suddenly decided to send me home and asked another doctor to work for me. And he told me to go home and spend time with my close people.”       “Ha, that’s awesome!” Johnny smiles widely. “You’re gonna spend the holiday with us for the first time in a while, not with people in white.”       “Oh, if only you knew how happy I am!”       “So, as you come, welcome!” Cole pronounces funnily.       “Let’s greet each other!”       Cole and Johnny come to Leonard first to greet him with a strong handshake and a hug. Then the man hugs Carol with a slight smile and shares an amicable kiss on the cheek with her. After hearing some noises, Jenny and Danny decide to check what’s wrong and run to their uncle with happy whoops.       “Uncle Leo!” Jenny and Danny whoop loudly, happily.       “Jenny! Danny!” Leonard exclaims with a wide smile, squats down, and hugs both of the babies.       “You’ve come!” Danny rejoices.       “We were told you wouldn’t be able to come,” Jenny adds.       “But I have come!” Leonard replies.       “Yeah, so, you’re gonna celebrate Christmas with us!”       “Sure! I’m gonna be with you this time!”       “Yea-a-a-a-a-a-ah!” Danny and Jenny whoop funnily. “Uncle Leo is gonna be with us!”       “By the way, did you see the gifts that Aunt Adele and I prepared for you?”       “We did!” Danny exclaims. “We absolutely loved them! I’m gonna play with my car all day long.”       “Yeah, thank you so much, Uncle,” Jenny thanks. “The doll is really beautiful.”       “Glad you’re loving it,” Leonard smiles shyly.       “So, guys, I think we must drink a glass of champagne,” Carol notices cheerfully.       “Yeah, we must celebrate a long-awaited release of Leo from the hospital captivity,” Johnny adds funnily.       “Oh, yeah, I’m afraid this event happens once in one hundred years,” Cole laughs shyly.       “That’s why I always say we should believe in miracles,” Adele says confidently, taking Leonard under his arm when he gets up. “Today, it finally happened!”       “Yeah, where’s Ellie?” Leonard, frowning slightly, looks around the whole living room. “Why don’t I see her?”       “Ellie is in her room. Crying.”       “Crying?” Leonard opens his eyes widely.       “Yeah, she thought she’d spend the holiday without you again.”       “Oh, God…”       “It’s the truth, Uncle Leo,” Jenny confirms. “Ellie doesn’t want to play with us and refused to check the gifts under the tree.”       “Ellie was sitting with her bear and crying all this time,” Danny adds. “And after talking with Aunt Adele, she ran to her room.”       “Yeah, the girl is missing you, my sweetie,” Carol notices.       “Ah, Carol, I’m so ashamed for my daughter,” Leonard sighs heavily. “I promised her to stay and spend time with her so many times, but I couldn’t. Because I was always told to go to work.”       “You better take a vacation,” Cole advises. “Save some money and go somewhere with your family. Or Adele, Ellie and you could just go to a park.”       “I will do this. My boss gave me a few free days, and I will definitely spend them with my beloved girls.”       “Really?” Adele smiles widely. “A few days?”       “Yes, honey. I’m gonna stay home for this holiday.”       “My gosh, what a miracle!” Carol exclaims funnily. “Santa Claus did hear the plea of Ellie!”       “That’s why they’re right when saying Christmas is a magical holiday when what you don’t expect may come true. But what you’re dreaming about so badly.”       “Listen, we’ve gotta celebrate it!” Johnny says cheerfully.       “Alright, ladies, bring to the table now and get some champagne for us!” Cole says loudly.       “Almost everything is ready!” Carol says. “We need only to check a couple of dishes and wait for the chicken to get baked.”       “Hey, Danny, Jenny, run to Ellie’s room and call her here,” Adele says, putting a hand on Jenny’s shoulder.       “But don’t tell her about Leonard!” Carol suggests. “Let it be a surprise for her.”       “Okay, we will do it now!” Jenny and Danny pronounce obediently and rush to the stairs to get upstairs to the second floor.       “Hey, Leo, take the coat off and go to wash your hands!” Adele exclaims.       “And come to us!” Johnny adds. “Cole and I are gonna tell you something!”       “Give me one second!” Leonard pronounces with a wide smile.       Leonard quickly takes his outer cloth off, leaves it in a special place, and goes to the bathroom to wash his hands. But some time later, he returns to the living room and joins the talk of Johnny and Cole, who start to tell him something. Carol helps Adele check some dishes, puts some plates on the table, and talks to her sister about something that makes them laugh. The unexpected appearance of Leonard made the mood of the members of this family much better. They do not doubt that the holiday is going to be much better than it was in previous years.       Everybody kind of quickly forgets about the little children, who are still somewhere on the second floor and have not come to the adult people yet. But at some moment, the men sitting in the living room hear someone going downstairs quickly and whispering about something. As it turned out, it’s Jenny and Danny, who are trying to make Ellie sure to follow them.       “C’mon, Ellie, let’s go!” Jenny exclaims happily, taking Ellie under an arm and pulling her.       “Ellie, where are you?” Danny wonders, pulling Ellie by the second arm. “You’re gonna cry the whole Christmas!”       “I don’t want Christmas!” Ellie moans with pity and sniffs quietly. “I don’t want! It’s not magical! And Santa Claus doesn’t want to make my wishes come true.”       “C’mon, sis!”       “Ellie!” Jenny exclaims.       “Alright, I’ll no longer send him letters!” Ellie throws gloomily. “He doesn’t read them anyway! I wasted my time doing all of that and…”       Then Ellie moves her wet eyes to the men sitting in the living room and opens them widely when she sees her father Leonard among them.       “D-dad?” Ellie pronounces in a little shaking voice, standing on one of the stairs.       “Surpri-i-i-i-ise!” Jenny and Danny pronounce loudly and happily at the same time and get downstairs quickly.       “Oh, Ellie has come!” Johnny smiles widely. “The babies pushed her outta the room.”       “D-d-dad…” Ellie cannot believe what she sees and makes a quiet sob.       “Ellie, daughter…” Leonard pronounces softly.       “Daddy… DADDY!”       Not watching her steps, Ellie goes downstairs with happy whoops and runs to Leonard, who gets up from the sofa and steps aside. Then he gets down on one knee and touchingly hugs the little girl, who is putting her arms around his neck tightly and crying from happiness, not from sadness.       “Daddy…” Ellie pronounces with a wide smile. “I missed you so badly…”       “Merry Christmas, sunshine,” Leonard congratulates.       “I can’t believe it…” Ellie sniffs quietly. “You’ve come… You’ve come!”       “I’ve done, my sweetheart. And I’m gonna spend the holidays with you with pleasure.”       “Really?” Ellie steps away from Leonard and looks at him with widely open eyes full of hope. “Are you serious?”       “Really,” Leonard nods confidently.       “But… You said you couldn’t… You said you had very much work and couldn’t celebrate Christmas with us.”       “M-m-m… I guess Santa Claus did read all your letters and heard your plea.” Leonard smiles mysteriously. “He went to my work and told my boss that my beloved daughter was waiting for me at home.”       “Really? Did Santa persuade him to let you go?”       “Yes, he did. He said if he made me work during the holidays, he wouldn't make his wish come true.”       “So, did you see Santa Claus?”       “I did! And I thanked him for making my wish of spending time with my family come true.”       “That’s cool!” Ellie claps her hands happily.       “But he said he didn’t allow good girls to cry on such a beautiful day,” Leonard says confidently and carefully wipes tears under Ellie’s eyes. “He wants to see your smile and a gloss in your beautiful eyes.”       “I won’t cry! I promise!” Ellie wipes tears off her face, sniffing two or three times. “I won’t do this…”       “And don’t say Santa Claus didn’t read your letters. He did! All of them. There are just too many children, whose wishes he should make come true. And today, your time to get your gift has come.”       “Gosh, Daddy! I’m so happy! You can’t imagine how much I dreamed about it!”       “And Santa Claus promised to make any of your wishes come true. You can ask him for anything, and he will make everything come true. You should just be a good girl for the whole year and make your mom and dad happy.”       “I need nothing more. I just wanna be with you, Daddy.” Ellie strokes Leonard’s cheeks with her warm, little hands. “Please, don’t go to your work. Let’s spend all the time together.”       “C’mon, sweetie, I can’t work at all,” Leonard smiles shyly. “Who would feed you and your mother?”       “Please, Daddy…”       “I promise I shall spend the holidays with you. My boss gave me a few free days and told me to spend them with my daughter. But I can’t go against his will.”       “Okay…” Ellie pronounces with sadness in her eyes. “But you at least spend more time at home… So, you play with me and read me tales for a night.”       “Alright, my sunshine, I will do this. And I’m gonna tell you a secret. I asked Santa Claus to give me much more free days in the new year, so you, your mother, and I would go somewhere all together.”       “And he will do?”       “He promised to make my wish come true.”       “A-a-a-a-a-a, I’m so happy!” Ellie whoops happily. “I can finally spend more time with you!”       “Don’t worry, Ellie.” Leonard takes Ellie’s hands. “Now we will spend very much time together. I will do my best to make it real.”       “Promise?”       “Promise.”       Ellie hugs Leonard tightly with a wide smile, while he presses the girl closely to himself and caresses her head tenderly.       “Ellie, my sweetheart…” Leonard pronounces softly and kisses Ellie on the cheek cutely.       “I love you, Daddy,” Ellie says happily.       “I love you very much, too. Your mother and I are the best things I have.”       All this time, the relatives of Leonard and Ellie watch what’s happening with wide smiles on their faces and do not hide the happiness that they got from what could be called nothing but a Christmas miracle.       “Yea-a-a-ah!” Danny whoops happily, while Carol hugs him around the shoulders. “Ellie is smiling again!”       “Santa Claus made a real miracle!” Jenny smiles widely, while Adele is hugging her cutely.       “It’s a real miracle!” Ellie exclaims loudly with a wide smile after she steps away from Leonard. “A Christmas miracle!”       Everybody in the room laughs shyly and shares a shy smile with each other. At some moment, Adele comes to Ellie and Leonard, hugs her daughter touchingly because she runs to her with open arms, and smiles tenderly at her husband, who embraces her around the shoulders.       “That’s what I call magic!” Johnny pronounces cheerfully.       “Our whole family is gonna celebrate Christmas all together,” Cole adds.       “I’m gonna tell you a secret, the chicken is really delicious,” Carol confesses with enjoyment. “I tasted a piece and almost swallowed my tongue.”       “I’m doing everything at ease today!” Adele exclaims cheerfully. “Whatever I do, I do everything easily and quickly.”       “Let’s sit at the table?” Ellie suggests funnily. “I got a little hungry.”       “Yes, Aunt Adele, when will we sit down?” Jenny asks.       “You can sit down right now,” Adele shrugs. “Carol and I have done everything.”       “Yeah, but before we do it, I’ve got a gift for Ellie,” Leonard says confidently.       “Really?” Ellie gets excited.       “Yes.” Leonard comes to the sofa, takes a sparkling packet, and gives it to Ellie. “Here, it’s for you, Ellie. Personally from me.”       The excited Ellie takes the packet, takes a small bright box wrapped in gift wrapping, and tears it with a wish to find out what’s inside of it.       “Wow, Barbie doll!” Ellie pronounces with a wide smile, looking at the beautiful doll with long wavy hair in a puffy dress. “The one I dreamed about!”       “My gosh, Leo, but it costs very much…” Adele opens her mouth slightly.       “I’d spend all money for my beloved daughter…” Leonard replies confidently. “She wanted it so badly, and I decided to buy it when I saw it in a toy shop.”       “Daddy, thank you…” Ellie thanks and kisses Leonard on the cheek touchingly. “You’re the best.”       “Everything for you, my honey.”       “Will you let me play?” Jenny asks. “It’s so beautiful!”       “Sure, Jenny!” Ellie promises. “We’ll play together.”       “Yeah, but you will do it a little later,” Adele says confidently. “Now, let’s go to the table. So, we can eat a little and then watch some Christmas movies.”       “Or go somewhere to walk and watch the fireworks,” Carol suggests.       “Good idea!” Cole agrees.       “Then let’s go to the table!” Adele invites with her head proudly up.       “Ellie, leave the doll somewhere,” Johnny says. “You’ll check it later.”       “Yes, Ellie, let’s go,” Carol says softly.       All the members of the family go to the table with happy whoops, still feeling the smell of the baking chicken with some spices in the air.       “Hey, I forgot to say that I seriously decided to think about taking a vacation for one month and spending more time with my family,” Leonard confesses.       “Really?” Adele wonders.       “Yeah, I should’ve done it a long time ago!”       “Wise decision!” Carol exclaims. “You’ve been working like crazy for ages and haven’t had a vacation yet.”       “But I’m gonna fix it now.”       “So, will we go to a zoo?” Ellie asks.       “Wherever you want, honey.” Leonard caresses Ellie’s head tenderly. “Our schedule is gonna be busy for the holidays.”       “Yeah! Thank Santa Claus! It’s gonna be the best Christmas in my life!”       Carol, Adele, Leonard, Johnny, and Cole laugh shyly but agree with Ellie’s words. Just like Jenny and Danny, who are very glad to see their cousin so happy and make much more sure that there is really something magical in this world.       Every year, people believe in tales less and less. Though, they sometimes need to believe in something beautiful so badly. Even if it seems that it does not make sense. Magic happens to those, who truly believe it and know that tales are not only for children. Takes, which should always take a place in your heart. Without a belief in magic, life does not make sense and gets gray colors. Even if we sometimes have to run into hard difficulties, we should always believe that there will be a moment when a miracle will happen and make any of our wishes come true. Some kind of magic… A Christmas miracle that does really exist…