O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree.

Alexa this is crazy! He's going to go ballistic," Sonya, the other waitress she worked with, said with delightful laughter. "But I must admit I love what we've done."

Alexa tried to hide the fear she now felt as she looked around the dining area done up with the decorations she had found in the huge box two nights ago.

Hours ago, when they had started, it had seemed a splendid idea, but looking at it all strung up in place, she felt she might have gone too far.

She fingered the stone she had turned into a simple DIY necklace by using wrapping wire and a gold chain she had and prayed for courage as well as protection from an early grave.

She had planned with Bertha and they got extra help to add more Christmas treats to the menu. Molly was already ensuring that she made the rooms upstairs as Christmas-orientated as she could get. The only thing missing was the Christmas tree.

She glanced at her watch to see what time it was. They had two hours remaining. If only Carson would hurry and get here with his cousin's pickup that would be delivering the tree she had purposely chosen from the mountain slopes herself a day ago so they could get it decorated.

"I hope his brother is more appreciative of Christmas than he is," she heard Sonya say, pulling her attention back to the woman beside her.

"Brother?" she said puzzled as she glanced out the window anxiously. "His brother is going to be here?"

"Well, he should be here for Christmas break. He comes up with their uncles and their family two days before Christmas Eve and stays by the main house. They visit their parents' graves up by the cemetery every Christmas morning," she said softly.

"He is somewhat reserved but not as grumpy as Sheldon."

"Excuse me, I need to call Carson," Alexa said, dashing to the workers' room. She was beginning to lose her nerves again. It had all seemed the perfect thing to do when Sheldon was the only McIntosh she had to deal with.

What she needed was to calm her nerves. Easier said than done. It was hard dealing with Sheldon as it is but to deal with an unknown brother was an entirely different matter.

She paced the floor and found herself relaxing as she fingered the stone around her neck. This was her purpose. She was not alone.

Research had shown that the stone she was given was a Malachite. It holds the virtues of abundance, self-confidence, transformation, good luck, spiritual growth, encourages healthy relationships, and encourages dreams.

She had, for the past two days, placed her all in ensuring that she found a way to reach Sheldon and draw from the components that the stone was said to possess. The most leaned-on component for her was self-confidence and the one she was going to have to lean on for him was transformation.

She would have, however, preferred if the Shady stranger had thrown in one for protection against strangulation. She remembered how she had heard him clearly from the workers' room the early morning after she was given the stone. None too gently he had told Bertha to get two of the boys from town to get rid of the box in the workers' room.

He had left and not returned since. She had taken it upon herself to bring all the Christmas to the Angel's Cafe she could. In his absence, she rehearsed in her head a million ways she was going to share her reason for doing so with Sheldon, but each of them ended with her very much jobless and no longer allowed anywhere near the Angel's Cafe again.

The knock on the door brought her out of her reverie, and she walked to it, heart racing. No way Sheldon would have knocked if he was coming to have her head.

Sonya came bursting in with a shout of glee as she grabbed her hand and pulled her into the dining area to stare at the tree now in place and patiently waiting for them to dress it with the beautiful ornaments that were shaped like angels or boasted on their glass orbs angels of gold and silver nestled in a beautiful variety of colours.

"If it's breathtaking without decorations, can you imagine how beautiful it will be after it's dressed with all the ornaments, bows, and beautiful banners?"

She felt tears come to her eyes. She knew without a doubt she was doing the right thing. As Sonya's infectious delight mixed with her sense of surity, she was fueled with renewed determination to get what she started finished in time for Sheldon's arrival.

"Ok let's get this done", she giggled as she hugged Sonya and started to sing

"O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree your branches are delightful...".

The people who stood in the room did not know what was more splendid; the beautiful blonde woman whose voice rang clear and melodious in the diner or the tree that came to glorious life as it was dressed to depict all the glorious aspects of Christmas.

As they placed the banners written in gold bold letters of Peace, Hope, Joy, and Love on the tree, it seemed that the old, mellowed diner was renewed with a splendour that was more heavenly and majestic than any highly-priced tree could offer.

"What are we going to place on the top?" she heard Carson ask and looked to see that the box was empty.

Something told her that it was not yet time to accomplish that part so she closed the box and smiled happily at everyone. For the first time in a long time, she felt a sense of family.

Everyone in this room had, without hesitation or fear, worked with her in putting together something that they knew could cause them Sheldon's anger, yet here they were, standing by her, and it had not cost her a dime.

She knew more than ever that she wanted to be in Mistle. To call this place her home. She wanted permanence and not some temporary solitude, which she had to eventually run from.

She had to speak to Sheldon, for both their sakes. For too long, she has been on the move, too afraid that if she got attached and connected, it would cripple her, rendering her broken than when she was in Penn Brook.

"I am so proud of you," Elizabeth said when she and Ryan entered the cafe for their customary breakfast a few hours later after they had opened.

She had to admit seeing the tourists, as well as towners, coming to take photos by the tree and the mural on the picture window, was more than she had expected, and it made her extremely happy.

She was basking in this happiness when another wild idea came to her, and reaching for her phone, she took a selfie by the tree and sent it to her sister.

The caption read.

Thank you for giving me a reason to find myself and discover my purpose.

The stone was gradually serving its purpose on her end and more so as she realised as she unlocked her phone at the ping that indicated she had received a message.

She saw a picture of her sister and a baby with eyes so much like Nicholas's that she had to take a deep breath. The caption read:

"Thank you for walking away so that I could find mine. This is your niece Angelica."

It had taken her some time to realize that her sister and her husband were just in love and meant to be and she was only standing in the way of that love. It had brought forth a lot of shame and hurt but in the end, she had found a place where she was free to give, share and restore hope.

She was returning the phone to her pocket when she heard someone say.

"Where are the mistletoes? Lucky thing I came prepared."

Laughter rang out in the cafe as the old man fished a mistletoe from his pocket and gazed around the room with a mischievous grin.

His wife slapped him on the arm, playfully pulled him further into the cafe, and said in mock consternation. "Behave yourself, Charlie. Remember you're taken."

The Tinsley were just two other people who had found themself in her heart and had, over the past months, started to aid her in knowing this was where she wanted to be.

Mistle was home. She felt it in every fibre of her being and wanted more than anything to have it remain so.

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Heyyy ☺️

Sometimes it's just that simple, you have to let go even if it's stepping out on a limb...or should I say branch.

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