“Merry Christmas, baby,” Marley whispered in my ear as we separated. No need to put on even more of a show for our colleagues and students.
We hugged one more time as folks exited the auditorium, heading to the reception. A sixth sense compelled me to look to the right, and I discovered that what I’d seen before my performance hadn’t been a mirage.
Will, Leo, and my parents all stood there grinning at me.
“I thought that was you earlier,” I said to Leo. “I texted.”
“I didn’t want to ruin the surprise by replying. After you made us take those pictures and send them, we felt like we needed to be here. We actually ran into Will outside.”
I had been texting steadily with Will since the reunion, excited that we’d reconnected. When I’d asked him to send me a picture for what I’d been calling “Project Make Marley See the Light,” I’d had no idea he’d show up for my performance.
Will reached out to clap me on the back. “I didn’t have any plans for this weekend, and after you explained what you were doing, it seemed worth the drive to witness it in person.”
“What if Marley had turned me down?”
He scoffed. “Dude, I saw you two at our reunion. The way she showed up for you. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.”
My parents had been quiet to this point, per usual, but my mom looked over at Marley and said, “We don’t want to overwhelm you, dear, by being here. I hope you don’t mind that we’ve intruded on your moment.”
Marley grinned and waved her arm around at all the people pretending not to stare at us. “It’s okay. Half of Coleman Creek is intruding on this moment. Just like they’ve been butting into our relationship for months. It’s sort of how this town rolls.”
Dad laughed. “Yes. James keeps telling us charming stories. It sounds like a great place.”
“That’s true,” my mom agreed. Turning her attention back to Marley, she continued, “We’re sorry if having us here is a bit much, but you’ll understand when you’re a parent. We’ve waited James’s whole adult life for him to be truly happy, and now that it’s finally in his grasp, we just wanted to see it. Being here is sort of a Christmas present to ourselves.”
Marley took an unconscious step toward my parents. It was tentative at first, but then they pulled her into a double-sided hug. “You’re part of the family now,” Dad told her.
I looked up at the circle of family and friends surrounding us and felt nothing but joy and contentment. I’d miss teaching, sure, but being with Marley in Coleman Creek more than made up for it. And hopefully, I’d get back to the classroom down the road. At least a few of the teachers were in their late fifties. They’d have to retire at some point. In the meantime, there was always substituting.
Our group headed into the reception, where well-wishers greeted us. Maureen and Miranda melted into the crowd, saying hello to old friends they hadn’t seen in a while. After fifteen minutes, Will, Leo, and my parents excused themselves to go back to their hotel. We agreed to meet for lunch the next day before Will had to drive back to Seattle. My family said they’d like to stay until after Christmas, if that was okay with us, and Marley practically leaped out of her skin to say yes.
Once we’d waved them off in their rental cars, we went back into the reception to say goodnight to our colleagues.
As we entered, Nan, Penny and Daniel pulled away from the group they’d been with to come talk to us.
“It’s so cool you’re in love,” Daniel said quietly. “You’re my favorite teachers.”
“For sure,” Nan concurred.
Penny scrunched her forehead. “But what I don’t understand exactly is why Mr. Wymack had to do this big, huge thing at the talent show. I mean, it was cool and all, but why did the performance make it seem like he was fighting for Ms. Davis? You’re already a couple.”
I started to answer when Marley beat me to the punch. “It’s because I didn’t know what kind of couple James and I were until he showed me.”
“What do you mean?” Nan asked.
Marley searched for the right words, clearly concerned with being appropriate with our students. “You know how this time of year everything is so fun and magical, with all the lights and decorations and presents, and then things feel kind of dull for a while after New Year’s?”
“Uh huh.” The teens answered in unison.
“Well, Mr. Wymack makes me feel the way the holidays do. Like there’s another layer over my life.” I squeezed Marley’s waist, reveling in her words as she continued, “It’s a little intimidating to realize that being with the right person makes you look at the world in a whole different way. I found out it’s possible for relationships to feel full of surprises and new adventuresallthe time. Being with Mr. Wymack is like having Christmas year-round.”
“That’s really sweet,” Nan said.
“You should, like, put that on a coffee mug or something,” Penny agreed.
Daniel offered a shy smile before the three of them headed back to their friends.
We stayed a few minutes longer than planned, getting our fill of apple cider and cinnamon cookies. It felt amazing to put my arm around Marley’s shoulders and know this would be our new normal, that there weren’t any more questions about what we were to each other. We were each other's top priority.
