Surprise

Amelia sat in her office chair and started her work. A couple of tables away from her, she can already hear murmurs about Christmas.

She sighed on her table with her elbow propped on it supporting her head. 'What do I give for Christmas again?'

As she worked on her papers, she listed down things she could give and to whom.

'First off, for my manito/manita, I think I'll give a good bath towel with a personalized coffee mug. After all, I have no idea who will have it.'

Every five or more minutes, she would write down what she would give to people she listed.

To her Mom, a Beatles t-shirt, hair towel and hair brush. To her Dad, a Beatles t-shirt of a different color and design, an electric hair clipper and a cap.

To her uncles, t-shirts with a variety if designs. To her eldest sibling, possibly some earphones. To her Irish twin, a shirt and a cap.

To her significant other, she paused for a moment and thought of it.

'What should I actually give Paul?'

Come lunch and all of her work mates are chattering of Christmas plans. One is going to a local resort. Another is attending a reunion. While another is prepping herself on being a bridesmaid.

The usual chatter and banter of her mates envelope the quiet Amelia as she thinks of her plans for Christmas. One colleague nudged her awake. "How about you Millie?"

She looked down on her food and smiled. "I am not sure yet but who knows. I'd like surprises more than plans during Christmas vacation."

The office workers continued their happy chats as the lunch break ended.

A call appeared on her phone right after she sat for work again.

She clicked answer. "Hello."

The person on the other line greeted her with glee and asked, "Can we go for a date later? If you're just free. It's okay if you don't want to. I'm not going to force you if you're so busy before the holidays."

"Sure we can go," Amelia replied. "Well, can I ask for a tiny favor after the date, Paul?"

Paul was glad of her answer but was surprised of the favor. "Yeah, what is it? As long as I can help you with it in my own way, I will gladly aid you."

"Uhm...you see, it's almost Christmas and I want to give gifts to my family," she said, her voice sounding shy and girly.

"Sure. I'll accompany you."

"Thank you." Amelia's face lit up as they ended the call.

'This is my chance to give him a surprise.' She continued her work and hummed a tune.

A few hours after, work has ended for Amelia and her office mates. She stayed for a few minutes to wait for her date to arrive.

After a few moments, a baritone voice called for her name in the distance. "Amy!"

A smile spread on Amelia's face as she ran to him with her body bag slung on her left shoulder. "Paul! Where do we go?"

"Where do you want?" He asked as she grabbed Amelia's body bag to put on his scooter's storage.

"We could just eat ramen then buy stuff and get home," Amelia decided shyly sitting behind Paul.

The couple went to their favorite restaurant and ordered chicken nuggets as side dishes for their ramen. Amelia discussed the things she would be buying for her family as Paul stared at her lovingly.

"And I would be buying a matching shirt for my Irish twin and I."

Paul smiled as they finished their drinks and paid for the dinner. "So shall we go there now?"

"Yep." A smile spread across her lips and a pink tinge on her cheeks.

The two walked slowly to the mall and started the shopping hunt for Christmas. "First stop would be the shirts and cap."

Amelia fished through a lot of shirts in different boutiques. She bought one for Paul too. "This one would be for helping me grow."

She gave it to Paul and smiled. "I can't accept that. I should be paying for us."

"Then I'll just have a refund of this to the cashier." Amelia trotted to the counter but her date grabbed her wrist blushing.

"Okay. Thank you."

Amelia smiled and held his. "Next stop, home essentials and gadgets."

They walked back in different stores again and before they head out, Paul asked his date. "Uhm, can we stop by another store later before we go home?"

"Sure." Amelia smiled.

Once they finished the last gift for her family. Paul dragged her to a store and fished through the variety of stuffed toys being sold.

Amelia followed him patiently. He stopped by a corner and showed her two toys--a little munchkin kitty on his left hand and a green little alien baby on the other.

"Pick one," he said.

"Is this planned?" Amelia looked at him and cocked her head to one side.

"Kind of." Paul waited patiently on her answer.

She touched the little kitten. "This one is cute and life-like. I would love to have a kitty like this even if it's just a toy. But..."

She caressed the alien baby on the other. "This one is more adorable because this is my favorite character from the series we love. But..."

Amelia cupped a hand on his cheek and smiled. "I needed this one more because he helped me grow. He loves me, too. He is as adorable as these two toys combined. He is my pillar when I crumble. He likes my experimental cooking even if they look a bit terrible. He's my biggest weakness and my strongest strength. And as much as these toys would make me happy when he's not around, he would make me happier if he stays with me longer."

Her hand fell to the left side of his chest as she giggled. "I want to keep this heart happy forever."

In the end, they ended up buying both the toys. When they went back to the apartment, Paul opened the door and gave her the toys. "Merry Christmas, my Amy."

Amelia gave him the shirt in exchange. "Merry Christmas too, my Paul."

An awkward moment passed between them and to break it, Paul kissed her on the lips to which she answered back lovingly.

The guy walked to his apartment room and glanced at her mouthing 'good night' as soon as she went back to her room. They both knew that they've chosen each other well.