Christmas Wishes
Monica was happily decorating a little pine tree in the forest she and her friends used to visit during their free time when someone slowly approached her in the most absolute silence. And she was so absorbed in her task that she didn’t realise when Andrew stood right behind her and subtracted one of the little angels with which she had been adorning her Christmas tree. Only when she stopped to contemplate the tree, which was almost finished, did she look for the small angel on the table where she had spread the ornaments.
Hardly controlling himself not to laugh, Andrew chuckled at the adorable mix of confusion and annoyance on her beautiful face.
“But I’m sure I left it here!” she exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. Then, the Irish angel looked at the ground, to see if it hadn’t fallen, but, having found nothing, she grumbled again, “Where can it be?!”
“Do I get a reward if I find it?” Andrew finally spoke, close to her ear.
And, at the sound of his voice, Monica covered her mouth with her hands and quickly turned around to face him with a surprised and rather shocked look in her eyes, “Andrew!!!”
The blond angel was going to say something else, but he gave up a second later, as Monica wasted no time in wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight hug, with an almost tearful expression on her face, “You came! You’re finally here!”
He returned her embrace, squeezing her as tightly as he could, and was deeply moved by her spontaneous reaction to his presence – all the love in her heart immediately flowed to his.
Kissing the top of her head repeatedly, the blond angel ran his fingers through her auburn hair, intoxicated with her sweet perfume, and smiled, “Well, I guess I already got my reward!”
“I thought we would only meet later, at the place where our assignment would be, I didn’t know you would come here!” she spoke, never releasing her hold on him.
“Yes, that was the plan, but I received a message from Tess to meet you here instead. And I personally loved to obey her orders this time!”
Monica pulled away just a few inches and looked up at his face, “I missed you so much! Three weeks without seeing you seemed like a whole century...”
The affection written in her eyes caused his heart to rejoice for that moment, and he tenderly stroked the delicate skin on her face, “I can say exactly the same, Monica... But being away from you only serves to remind me of how much I love you, angel...” he bent down and, slowly, their lips met in a sweet, loving kiss. Andrew placed one of his hands on the back of her head, wrapping his other arm around her waist, while the Irish angel was practically limp in his arms; both frozen in time once again, as they always did when they had a chance to see each other.
Moments later, he lay kisses on her forehead and cheeks and finally placed a tiny kiss on the tip of her nose. “I love you!”
“I love you too, Andrew. And I love the fact that we’ll spend Christmas together again, like we did many times in the past!”
“Yes, that’s true; and we’ll be working too, I guess now we’ll just have to wait for Tess to say what our assignment will be...” he looked at her almost complete Christmas tree, “Want some help here?”
“Yes! I was almost finishing when you stole my angel!” she playfully said, taking the little object from his hands and turning around to hang it on the tree.
A mischievous smile formed on the corner of his lips and, from behind, he wrapped his arms around her waist, “Well, you shouldn’t complain, baby, cause you stole my heart!” he whispered in her ear, and brushed one more loving kiss on her cheek.
XXXXX
The two angels spent the last 10 minutes finishing to decorate the tree and chatting, when Monica looked around them frowning with worry, “Andrew...”
“What?”
“Did you hear this?”
“Hear what?” he asked, already trying to pay attention to the sounds in the (apparently) desert woods.
“I don’t know exactly... but I think we’re not alone...”
“Are you sure?” now his face was one of worry, and deep inside he immediately felt protective about the little Irish angel he loved so much.
“Yes... listen...”
The two angels remained in silence and, a sound made their hearts jump.
“It’s... it’s a baby!” Monica exclaimed, extremely worried.
“Yes... And it’s coming from that way...” the blond angel pointed.
“Let’s go, Andrew, somebody may need help!”
The two followed the sound of a baby’s cries and, minutes later, they saw a small bundle lying on the grass. Monica was quick to check on it: a little baby, of about 4 months, stopped crying as soon as the Irish angel took him in her arms, “Oh, no, wee one, don’t cry, please...” she said, cradling the little one.
Andrew took the baby’s tiny hand, “Shh... it’s ok now, little one, we found you....” He looked around them, but there was no sign of another human being, “The baby must’ve been here for some time...”
The blond angel started to exam the child, looking for any wound or insect bite, and was relieved to have found none.
“But Andrew... Oh, Father... who would abandon a wee innocent child in the woods?” Monica spoke, tears already falling down from her eyes.
“Someone who stole him from his mother, 4 months ago.”
The two angels heard the all too familiar voice right behind them and turned around to face a dark skinned old angel.
“Tess, what’s happening here?”
“Little Peter Scott was stolen from his mom in a hospital, some days after he was born, angel boy. The woman who did this was disguised as a nurse and intended to sell him; but the police is now after her and they’re close to catch her. So, she had to get rid of him as soon as possible and decided that the woods, where almost no one comes at this time of the year, would be perfect to leave him.” the oldest angel spoke, softly running her fingers through the boy’s silky blond hair.
“Scott? Wait a minute, Tess, is his mother Sally Scott?”
“Yes, Miss Wings. She’s the young widow you were helping last week. And this is an assignment that, contrary to what you thought, isn’t finished. Your job was not only make her see that God would help her to find her son; you would also be the one to take him back to his mother, with Andrew’s help.”
Monica and Andrew looked at each other in surprise and then the Irish angel looked down at the baby, with her heart aching for the small creature, “So this is little Peter...”
“He could’ve died here, Tess!" the blond angel said with the tone in his voice louder than the usual; anger burning inside his heart. Monica nodded her head and shed more tears, still cradling the little baby and speechless with such cruelty.
“Yes, you’re right, angel boy. But that’s when God interceded and placed His angels right here! You two are going to take him back to his mother. Here... take this...” She gave Andrew her car keys, “I’ll stay together with Sally.”
“Why can’t we just take this wee one there by other means, Tess? Sally lives thousands of miles away from here! It’s a day and a half trip!”
“Because, although this cute little baby looks like a little angel, he’s a human child and cannot do the things real angels can, Miss Wings!” the supervisor responded, “Now you’d better get going. I’m sure his mother would love to spend Christmas with her son! There are diapers, pacifiers and a bottle of milk in the car too.”
“We’ll get there, I promise, Tess!” Andrew spoke, already opening the car door.
Tess grabbed his arm and spoke for the last time, “And you’d better be careful: you’re carrying TWO babies here, you hear me, Mr Halo?!”
He nodded his head, “I promise they’ll both get safe and sound to their destination!”
XXXXX
Andrew and Monica travelled for hours until they arrived at a small town that lay on their way to Utah.
“Hungry, sweetie?” the blond angel asked, looking at his dearest friend through the mirror, as she was sitting in the back seat, next to the baby’s small crib.
“Yes, in fact I am; being in human form has some drawbacks, you know...” she looked down at the little baby, “Besides, I guess our wee one is hungry too!”
The blond angel smiled tenderly with her last words. There was a little restaurant by the road and he reduced the velocity. “That restaurant looks pretty good, don’t you think?”
“Yes, that’s fine for me...”
“Then I’ll stop right there, ok?”
XXXXX
When Andrew and Monica entered the small restaurant, with the Irish angel carrying little Peter, the owner smiled and walked over to them, “Please, do come in. I have a special little table where you can put your son...”
The two angels looked at each other surprised with the woman’s words, but elected not to say anything about themselves. The police was looking after the baby and they didn’t want to be confused with two criminals. Besides, the fact that people thought about them as a family somewhat pleased Monica and Andrew and they happily and secretly agreed to let everyone think so.
They sat at the table and ordered their lunch. Meanwhile, Monica held little Peter in her arms and gave him the bottle of milk that the owner of the restaurant kindly warmed up for her.
“See? I told you this wee one was hungry...”
“Yes, and you noticed that before he started crying!” Andrew replied, sitting right beside her and stroking her hair, his eyes full of love for the little Irish angel.
“Well, yes... It’s amazing how such a tiny creature can inspire so much love isn’t it? It seems that I can feel what he’s feeling!”
“Yes... and it really makes us feel like taking care of him... protect him as if he were ours...”
Monica looked at his handsome face and smiled, “Would you like to have a wee one like him?”
He chuckled at her question and, for some moments, seemed to be picturing himself as a father. Then, smiling cheerfully, he nodded his head. “Yes... I would... though... he or she would be a little bit different from little Peter, you know...”
“Different?”
“Yes... the little one would have reddish brown hair and beautiful brown eyes... like his mom...”
Monica’s smile became wider and she looked deep in his eyes, “Well, I beg to differ... If I had a wee one, it would be just like little Peter... Blond hair and beautiful green eyes, which I love so much...”
They inched their faces closer and shared a small but loving kiss; Andrew cupped her chin and lay small kisses on her face and lips until they heard a woman clearing her throat next to them.
“Sorry to interrupt you, but here is your lunch...”
“Oh, thanks...” Andrew replied, he and Monica slightly embarrassed.
The woman looked at the little baby in the Irish angel’s arms and smiled enchanted, “He’s such a cute little boy! And he looks like his father, you know? The hair, the eyes! Definitely like you, young man! Though I have to admit that you three together look beautiful!”
With a content look in their faces, they looked at each other and after at the woman, “Thank you, madam...” Monica replied, totally pleased to hear such compliment.
X
After they ate, the angels and the baby returned to the Cadillac and back to the road. The border with the state of Utah was some miles ahead of them and Monica and Andrew were more and more apprehensive as they got closer to it, and soon they noticed a queue of cars formed close to it: the police was checking each vehicle.
“Do you think there’ll be a problem?” Monica asked, somewhat nervous.
“Well, we cannot go back... Right now the best thing to do is to remain calm, we didn’t do anything wrong, remember?”
“Yes... you’re right...”
Andrew guided the Cadillac ahead and soon the policemen were checking on its interior. They saw Monica sitting on the back, next to a crib and watching over a sleeping baby boy inside of it, and their attention was focused on the child for some seconds. But as soon as they saw Andrew on the driver’s seat they noticed the resemblance between him and the baby.
“Where are you guys heading?” the man asked.
“Salt Lake City, officer.”
“Well, it’s a long journey. You’ll need to make a stop somewhere, especially today cause maybe we’ll have snow.”
“We intend to get at Salt Lake on the Christmas eve, but we’ll stop soon, sir, thanks.”
“There’s a motel some miles from here, it’s not a fancy one but it’s pretty good and you and your wife and son can rest for the night.”
“Thanks, we’ll stop there then.”
“Merry Christmas to you!” The policemen waved and they let the Cadillac pass.
“Oh thank you, Father!” Monica exclaimed, as relieved as her dearest friend.
“See? I told you not to be worried!”
“Yes, but he only let us pass without further questions because he thought we were a family and especially because of the resemblance between you and wee Peter.”
“Well, it may be. But this resemblance wouldn’t have helped if I were alone with our little one. Having you here made all the difference!” he smiled and looked at her through the mirror, “Not to mention that I loved to have you as my ‘wife’!”
Smiling cheerfully, she returned the look, “Well, be sure that wee Peter and I loved to have you as a ‘daddy’ and ‘husband’!”
X
Andrew drove for some more miles when they finally found the motel the policemen had mentioned and elected to stop there. He and Monica where in human form and exhaustion for a whole day driving soon hit them. Besides, it was getting colder and darker and, most importantly, little Peter started to cry.
“Oh please, sweetheart, don’t cry! Try to calm down...” Monica said, rocking the baby in her arms, as she and Andrew got out of the car.
“I guess he had a lot of adventures for one day! He wants to go to bed, right little buddy?” Andrew spoke, taking the baby’s tiny hand and hearing another loud cry as a reply.
“I guess our wee one said ‘yes’!”
He and Monica couldn’t help but laugh, still trying to calm Peter down. But the little one didn’t stop crying, not even after they had registered and settled in their room.
“Oh honey, what’s the matter with you, huh?” Monica walked from one side to another rocking him.
“I guess we have to change him, Monica...” Andrew said, bringing the bags with the baby’s things to their bedroom.
“Yes, and he must be hungry too. I’ll do it.” Monica placed the crying baby on the bed.
“I’ll buy more diapers and some milk, then.”
“Oh please, do it, and take the bottle of milk with you and ask the owner if it’s possible to warm it up.”
“Oh I’m sure she’ll be pleased to do it, she loved our noisy little one! I’ll be right back, ok?”
The blond angel placed a quick peck on her lips and left the room.
Andrew returned an hour later, as he had to go to a small city a bit far from the motel to buy the baby’s things. He came back as fast as possible imagining that Monica would still be with little Peter in her arms trying to make him stop crying. But when he opened the bedroom door, an image nearly made his heart melt: the Irish angel was peacefully sleeping on the bed, with little Peter lying next to her, equally quiet and asleep.
Andrew carefully closed the door and placed the bags he was carrying on a nearby armchair. Silently, he tiptoed over to the bed and took a closer look at the twosome: Monica had changed the little baby and fed him, and certainly feeling tired, she lay down to rest for a few minutes and ended up sleeping, holding Peter’s tiny hand.
Smiling, the blond angel took the baby’s blanket and placed it over him. he checked inside the closet and found two other blankets; with one of them he gently covered Monica’s sleeping form, not missing the opportunity to brush a loving kiss on her cheek. Then, Andrew lay down on the other side of the bed, facing the baby and his beloved friend, and covered himself with the other blanket.
But contrary to the Irish angel and the little boy, Andrew didn’t sleep so soon; much on the contrary: he spent nearly an hour just staring at Monica and the baby, with his eyes full of love and tenderness. The blond angel stretched his arm and softly stroked Monica’s cheek. “I love you so much... so deeply, honey... And I’m forever thankful you’re here with me...” He whispered, enjoying the moment at the maximum, and only some time later, did he finally manage to sleep.
X
When Monica woke up on the next day, Christmas eve, she noticed that little Peter wasn’t lying beside her anymore, but it took her only a second to find out where he was: the vision of Andrew sitting by the window, holding the little baby in his arms and feeding him caused a slight smile to appear on her sleepy face and she felt her heart immediately filled with tenderness and the deepest love. “Hey you two handsome boys...” she spoke, staring at her beloved friend with sparkling brown eyes.
Smiling, Andrew bent his head and whispered to the little boy, “Hey, little buddy, look who’s up! That beautiful Angel Girl who took care of you yesterday!” then, he looked at Monica with the same tender eyes, “Good morning, angel.”
Monica propped herself on her elbow, still admiring the image of her beloved friend holding Peter “You two look so cute together...”
Chuckling, Andrew looked down at the small creature in his arms, “I can’t understand how humans can possibly complain about taking care of a baby! I mean, this is great, take a look at him. He is enjoying and it’s like you had his life in your hands and he trusted you to watch over him...”
Monica got up and walked over to them. Then, she sat on the arm of the chair and caressed the baby’s cheek, “Yes... I know what you mean.”
They stood there, watching little Peter until he had finished to drink his milk. “You want me to stay with him?” Monica offered, as Andrew stood up and placed the boy close to his chest, his little head resting on his right shoulder.
“No, it’s ok, I’ll do that. Why don’t you go and get changed, we’ll have our breakfast and leave; there’s a long distance until Salt Lake.”
Giggling, as she could notice how much her beloved friend was enjoying to take care of little Peter, she nodded her head, “Ok, then...” and brushing a loving kiss on his cheek, she headed to the bathroom to have a shower and get changed so that they would continue their journey.
They left their suite and Monica was waiting for Andrew to pay for the bedroom near their car and holding little Peter in her arms. The boy was awake and much calmer than the night before and, as Monica spoke to him, he kept on smiling, “You’re happy to go back home, aren’t you, wee one? I’m sure this will be the best Christmas ya ever had! And your mom too; she’ll be so happy when she holds you in her arms...” enchanted with Peter’s toothless smile, she giggled and touched his tiny nose with hers, “And she’s such a blessed mom to have such a cute little boy like you!”
Andrew came out of the motel and, marvelled with the image ahead of him, he came closer to them. “And you said that Peter and I look good together... Well, I’ll tell you what: you both look just... beautiful!” he spoke, softly running his fingers through Monica’s hair and gazing at her with tenderness and affection.
The Irish angel turned her head to face him with a content look, “He’s so much calmer and smiling today and the reason is that you’ve been holding him since he woke up, you know. Babies can feel how much they’re loved!” she said, causing Andrew to smile even more.
“Well, I guess being in your arms and looking at this pretty face of yours can do wonders too!”
The blond angel inched his face closer to hers and their lips finally met in a tender, sweet kiss. Little Peter started to move his tiny arms and tried to babble some sounds, turning the angels’ attention back to him.
“Ok, little buddy, she’s all yours!” Andrew joked, poking the baby’s belly and making him laugh even more. Then, he looked inside the bags he had in his hands: in one of them, there were some baby toys he had bought the day before, together with some other things for Peter. “I thought that maybe he would like to play with these...” he took a rattle and shook it in front of the baby; the different sound immediately calling the little one’s attention.
Monica would never get tired of watching the blond angel’s care and affection for that child. Smiling and with all her love for him reflected in the sparkle of her eyes, she reached out and gently stroked his cheek, “You’re enjoying this a lot, aren’t you?”
“Well... Have you ever felt you’re the perfect angel for the perfect assignment?” he asked, with a sheepish smile upon his handsome face.
Monica looked deep inside his green eyes, “Yes... that’s what I’m feeling right now...”
Andrew turned to little Peter and joked, “Well, I’m sorry but you’ll have to wait a bit more, buddy...” he inched closer and kissed Monica one more time; a long loving kiss, full of affection and tenderness.
X
Some time after driving, Monica and Andrew exchanged places and while Monica drove, the blond angel took the back seat; both of them having fun with Peter’s gestures, smiles ad even cries, and enjoying every single moment with the baby, as well as with each other.
Finally at night, they arrived at Salt Lake City, and Andrew, back in the driver’s seat, drove up to the house where Peter’s mother lived, helped by Monica who knew the directions, as the young woman had been her assignment before. But they didn’t find anybody at home; the house was empty.
“Where can she be? You said she doesn’t have any family, no relatives...” Andrew spoke, still checking through the window.
“Well... she doesn’t... But we have to find her soon, and our wee one cannot stay out here, it’s too cold!” the Irish angel’s worry was evident in her eyes. Holding little Peter in her arms, she came back to the Cadillac, followed by Andrew.
“What do we do now?” he asked, trying to figure out a solution to that situation.
His dearest friend was sitting right next to him now. “I don’t know but we can’t stay here Andrew, we have to find a shelter!” she sighed deeply.
The blond angel stroked the baby’s cheek and nodded, “Yes, you’re right... But we’re out of money, we can’t pay for a hotel.”
Both were pensive for some seconds and then, at the same time, an idea crossed their minds and they looked at each other, “The church!”
They headed to the local church; it was almost 11 PM by that time and snow started to fall in the street. Before they left the Cadillac, the angels put some extra clothes on little Peter; then, they got out of the vehicle, with Monica holding the little baby close to her chest and Andrew holding her close to him, and quickly entered the beautiful building. It was empty at that time, as the service would only start in an hour. But a closer look at the nave revealed two people in there: a young woman, who was kneeling in front of the altar, with her hands conjoined, and a dark skinned old lady, who was standing some steps behind her. Monica and Andrew looked at each other and their worry was replaced by a great sensation of joy. They walked along the aisle and, as they were closer to the nave, the angels exchanged a happy look with Tess, who smiled proudly at them.
Then, Monica kept on walking, followed by her two dearest friends, and stood right behind the young woman, who had tears in her eyes and a sad and sorrowful expression on her face. She had been praying for some time and didn’t even notice it when the Irish angel came closer to her.
“Sally?”
Sobbing, the young lady merely opened her eyes, without turning around. “Yes?”
“It’s me, Monica...”
“Hi, Monica...”
“I looked for you in your house, but you weren’t there...”
“I... I had to come here and keep praying, you know... I just couldn’t stay there anymore, knowing that my baby is out there... Everywhere I look inside that house reminds me of him... his little toys, that he never used, are still in the same place... I can’t even pass by his bedroom door...” she sobbed, “I lost so much, Monica...”
“But I’m glad you’ve been holding on to your faith and kept on praying... Cause God saw your tears, grieved with you...” Looking at Sally with compassion, the Irish angel knelt beside her, “...and sent His angels to help you find your little boy...”
The look in the young woman’s face was one of amazement and shock when she saw the little baby in the angel’s arms. Practically speechless, she covered her mouth with her hand and uttered a few words, “Oh... Oh my God... oh my God!!!”
Monica placed little Peter in her arms and Sally held him close to her chest and cried for several minutes. The boy was sleeping peacefully and unaware of what was happening around him.
Only some time later did his mother managed to control the flood of tears. It was then that Andrew and Tess approached her and the blond angel helped her to stand up. She looked at them with astonishment, “So... you’re... you’re angels too? Like Monica?”
“Yes, baby, we are!” Tess replied; she and Andrew happy to see mother and son finally together again.
“And our mission this Christmas was to bring your wee boy back to you...”
“It’s my Christmas present, right?” she joked, her voice still hoarse.
“It is the evidence that there is a loving Father Who is always watching over you, Who is holding your hand through your journey on this Earth and Who is carrying you in His arms when your legs are weak and prevent you to walk...”
“A miracle...” Sally spoke, kissing her son’s face. “... my little miracle...”
“Yes, Sally. A wonderful miracle from the Father to you...”
With a grateful expression on her face, the young woman smiled, “I’ll spend the rest of my life thanking Him... And thank you too... Thank you so much for bringing my little Peter back to me!”
“You don’t need to thank us... In fact, I’m sure Andrew and I will miss this wee one very much!” Monica said, taking the baby’s tiny hand.
Andrew joined her and stroked the boy’s blond hair, “Oh yes... we did have a lot of fun together, right, little buddy?”
The service started some time later and, with happiness evident on their faces, they attended the beautiful celebration, with their hearts filled of gratitude and joy.
X
And when the service was over, Tess, Monica and Andrew, now unseen to the human eye, observed as Sally left the church carrying her little son in her arms.
“I’m so proud of you babies! I knew you’d do great!” Tess exclaimed, looking at her two dearest charges.
Andrew wrapped his arms around Monica, bringing her even closer to him, “And I’m grateful that the Father sent us two together in this assignment, Tess. Truly grateful!” he spoke, looking at his beloved angel girl with tender eyes.
“Well, and what other angels would He send to work on this mission other than you two?” the supervisor replied, playfully looking at them from head to toe and causing them to smile.
Monica rested her head on Andrew chest and, with a pensive expression on her beautiful face, she sighed, “But you know what? Andrew is right, I’ll miss wee Peter, you know... I loved taking care of him. It would’ve been a pleasure to keep him for some more time...”
“Are you just saying that you’d like to have this poor woman waiting for her son for some more days, Miss Wings?!”
“Oh no, Tess! Never! What I mean is that if we had found him earlier, we would’ve had more time to spend with him...” Then, the Irish angel finally spoke what was already on her mind, “Tess... do you think that it would be possible for angels...”
“Don’t ask me, Miss Wings! I guess you drank way too much coffee in the last 24 hours! And I have a pretty good idea who is responsible for that!” she grumbled, staring suspiciously at Andrew, who shrugged his shoulders and looked back at her with an innocent face.
“Hey... what are you talking about, Tess?”
“Oh, let’s go back Home!” the supervisor started to walk out of the church, and, finding her annoyance quite funny, Andrew and Monica followed her.
“Well... keeping that cute wee boy for some more time would’ve been wonderful. But I’m glad he found his mommy.” The Irish angel said, never releasing her hold on Andrew, who nodded his head in agreement.
“Yes, me too. And do you know what would be even more wonderful?”
“What?”
“Having one like him...” he whispered in her ear. Monica looked at his green eyes with all the love in her heart evident in her own eyes.
“That would be the most amazing miracle I could ever witness...”
A slight smile appeared on Andrew’s handsome face and he kept on speaking, “Well... our love is a miracle, isn’t it? What we have to do is to make a wish and keep on dreaming...”
“...or maybe waiting for this wish to come true!” she completed; and they shared a small tender kiss before disappearing.
To be continued.