try begging
Grace looked down at the child and despaired. It was too late. Ellie was staring at the dollhouse with her mouth wide open.
Through the eyes of greedy Ellie.
Oh no! Grace quickly grabbed the child and started walking.
"Ellie, if you're too late, you won't be able to meet Santa Claus?"
The child who had been unable to take her eyes off the dollhouse and had her head tilted back the entire time she was being dragged away by her mother finally began to look forward and walk.
A man dressed as Santa sat in the middle of the third floor, decorated with sleighs, reindeer, and fake snow. Ellie pulled down Grace's coattails as she stood behind the other parents and children already in line.
"Mom, mom."
"why?"
She bent down and the child whispered in her ear.
"Don't tell Santa Claus that I don't pick mushrooms."
"Then Mom becomes a liar. Is Mom telling me not to accept gifts?"
"Ellie, buy it for me."
"Okay. Then Mom would like to receive Ellie, who eats mushrooms, as a gift."
The boy who was trying to make a deal furrowed his brow, pouted, and replied.
"That kind of Ellie is annoying."
"Why isn't it there?"
"... They're all sold out."
"Were you able to buy Ellie? I should buy another one."
"No. Ellie is carrying Hanabake."
"Oh my god, you lied? Santa, Ellie lied."
While they were arguing, it was Ellie's turn. I took several pictures of Ellie, smiling brightly, sitting on Santa's lap, with the camera I had prepared. The thought that I had seen those slanted eyes somewhere before crossed my mind every time I took a picture of Ellie, and it became stronger as the days went by.
"Yeah, I guess our little girl has been a good girl this year?"
"huh!"
Ellie nodded vigorously and looked at Grace. Half pleading, half threatening, she nodded with a smile to quickly tell her that she had been a good girl.
"That's right. He hasn't been sick once this year, and he eats mushrooms, ahem, well. He was a good kid."
"Then you deserve a Christmas present. What does our little girl want?"
In this way, parents figured out what gifts their children wanted to receive.
"Ellie...."
As I watched Ellie pondering, I felt tears welling up in my eyes as I realized that my daughter had grown up so much in just one year. Last year, I cried as if the department store was leaving me behind because I thought I was leaving her with a strange old man. When I asked her what kind of present she wanted, she only asked for cookies.
"That!"
Grace, who was deeply moved, turned to the direction Ellie was pointing with her hand and was shocked.
"Ellie."
Grace took the child to a corner and began to coax her.
"Let's do something else instead of that."
"But Ellie is a princess."
Ellie stamped her foot, pointing to the toy crown on her head.
"You are a princess, but your mother is not a queen."
The dollhouse cost Grace half a year's salary. If she could afford such a luxury, she would have bought a refrigerator first.
Since I was young, I have had the habit of saving money, and there were times when I would hate myself for being so frugal with the money I spent on my child. I promised myself that I would not make my daughter feel self-conscious about money like my parents, and I gave Ellie everything she needed without holding back.
But such expensive toys are not necessary. It is not wise to give in to whining unconditionally, even though it is disappointing.
"Mom doesn't have money to buy that. If you buy that, you won't be able to buy any other toys next year."
Grace was honest about my limitations. I wanted Ellie to love me forever, but I didn't want her to think I was some kind of god who could do anything, like I did.
"And even if I take it home, I won't have anywhere to put it."
If you want to put that giant dollhouse in, you'll have to buy a human house first.
"Then Santa Harabuji won't give you the order?"
"It won't work if it doesn't fit in your socks."
"Ugh... ."
The child looked sullen, but soon nodded as if he understood.
"Okay. Okay... ."
"huh."
"Buy a horse."
Princess, you should buy a mansion.
In the end, they settled on a pony doll. Grace's heart sank as she turned around to buy a pony toy that was waist-high and had wheels so she could pull it or ride it. The child who had been looking at the display case just a moment ago was definitely gone.
"Ellie!"
Grace, who ran to the center of the store calling the child's name, soon stopped and felt relieved. As expected. Her first guess was right. Ellie was loitering in front of the dollhouse. But she wasn't alone. She was standing next to a blond boy of her age, chattering excitedly.
"Ellie, I told you not to leave Mommy's side."
Ellie clung to the toy box in her mother's hands, unaware that her mother had just stepped foot into hell and emerged.
"I want to go on a horse!"
"Not before Christmas."
"Ugh... ."
Oh, we have to get out of this hell. Grace dragged the whining child towards the elevator.
"Achus."
Ellie waved at the boy and greeted him. Just as he was wondering why he was speaking Norden language again, the boy waved back.
"Achus."
Oh, it was Norden Eye.
It was a mistake to think that it would be safe once I left the department store.
"Mom, what is that?"
As we walked to the tram stop, Ellie pointed to a poster on the wall of a building.
"uh?"
I thought he was talking about my father's movie poster, but he wasn't. In the colorful poster next to it, a clown was performing tricks on a horse and a magician was pulling a rabbit out of a hat.
"circus."
When I explained it to a child who didn't know what it was, his eyes started to sparkle even more. I can't buy half a year's worth of toys, but I can at least buy a circus. So I asked at a roadside kiosk, but all the tickets were sold out.
"Ugh... ."
"Mom, I'll try to get you a ticket."
Grace, who was walking to the station while comforting the child and singing carols together, stopped. An old woman was standing in front of the police station, begging for money from passersby.
I wonder if it wouldn't be better for the world if we lived as ignorant people who gave all the pennies we had to beggars rather than as so-called enlightened people who exploit other people with their greed and use justice as a weapon.
Whenever she saw people suffering from poverty, Grace couldn't just pass by because her mother's letter came to mind. She opened her wallet and took out a bill and handed it to the old woman. It was her way of atonement for her past ignorance and blindness.
"Thank you. May God bless your home."
"I wish you a warm Christmas."
Just as they were about to leave after exchanging greetings, Ellie, who was looking into the police station, grabbed Grace's hand and pulled her along.
"mama."
And speaking Norwegian again.
"Mom."
As I corrected her words and followed Ellie's gaze, I saw a noisy fight going on inside the police station. What on earth was going on? A young woman was hanging on to the officer, spewing out a foreign language that was difficult to understand at a rapid-fire rate.
"Calm down. Don't you speak the language at all? I have no idea what you're saying... ."
Grace could not understand it, but the accent sounded familiar, like Norwegian. As expected, Ellie, who had been silent, suddenly shouted.
"That lady is like this to a baby!"
Everyone in the police station except the woman turned to look at Ellie, and when Ellie started talking in Norse, the woman also looked at Ellie, then blushed and ran over.
"They're both girls and men, and they have the same hair as me..."
As Ellie began to interpret the woman's words, and as soon as she heard that it was a blond boy of Ellie's age, Grace thought of the boy she had seen at the department store earlier. Since he was alone without a guardian, it could be him.
"Ellie, isn't that the guy I saw at the department store?"
"Ouch, Mata!"
As Grace told them where the child was last seen, a police officer and a woman ran into the department store to look for the child. Grace was about to leave when an older officer sitting behind the desk pulled out a bundle of candy from a drawer.
"The little interpreter solved the case. A child who does good deeds deserves a reward."
"Wow!"
The moment the officer stood up from his chair, Grace's breath caught.
[kidnapping]
A wanted poster with a list of crimes written in large letters caught my eye. From the description of the wanted person to the description of the girl who was kidnapped, to the Winsford area phone number written at the bottom. I couldn't help but notice that it was a wanted poster for me.
"How old are you?"
"Two shills."
"What's your name?"
The moment the officer asked, bending over the candy-munching child, Grace quickly picked Ellie up in her arms.