Perfect

“A little bit to the left. No, to the left. Left, left.”

One of the guys holding on to the Christmas tree stifles a not-so-subtle eye roll. They adjust the massive tree to the left, in front of the glass window in the middle of the office. The stand creaks as they go. 

“Mmm. No. A little bit to the right? Like just a millimeter. Okay…now stop.” I crane my neck to the side. No, this is not it.

“It’s still not right in the middle."

“C’mon, Lil. Stop harassing the tree people," says Allie, her voice piping up from behind me. She's slouched on the couch in her sweatpants and sneakers, looking like she just rolled out of bed. I don't know how she always make it work, but she does. 

"I'm not harassing them. You could just help me, you know?"

Okay, granted, the Christmas tree is almost nine feet tall and already glistening with lights and decorations. The exposed brick walls of the office is laden with twinkling fairy lights and there's garlands and miniature Santa Clauses everywhere you look. But still, I need the tree to be just right. 

Allie smiles and drawls at me, "Lil, you're my best friend in the whole wide world and I love you, but...no."

"Uh, are you Lillian?" says a scruffy man with a dusting of snow on his hair. He's hauling five or so equipment cases behind him.

"Oh! You’re the DJ, right? You could set up over there." I point to the makeshift stage I set up in the middle of our open office space. I even got him a custom-made DJ booth and LED laser lights. This party is going to be so good.  

"A DJ?" Allie asks. "How much did we spend for all this?"

"Mmmm...not a lot." I fiddle with the ribbons dangling from the Christmas tree.

"Lil."

"Okay, quite a lot. But it's our first company holiday party!" 

Allie sits up properly like she means business. "Remind me, how did we even get a budget for all this?”

"I...may have dipped from my savings."

"Lillian!”

"What? It's our first company holiday party!” I say again, lest she has forgotten that very vital piece of information. “Granted, this year hasn't been...the best."

Allie and I started this company at the beginning of this year and...well, sales didn't really go off like we expected it to. But next year will really turn around, I know it. 

"Look, this party is a way to boost morale," I keep going. "We need to nail this or all our staff will leave and we'll never get anyone to work with us ever again.”

Allie sighs. "That's a tad bit dramatic.” Still, she finally gets up and positions the Christmas tree just right. 

"There! Perfect.”

It really is perfect. The tables are all set up, five on each side with a classy golden motif, and in the middle is a small makeshift dance floor right in front of the DJ. On one side is the drinks table for the bartender and in the far left corner, there's the baby grand piano I bought a few months ago. No one's ever really used it, but it's a pretty nice decoration piece. 

“Doesn’t have to be perfect to be good, Lil.”

"Whatever. It’s going to be amazing and everyone’s going to lose their minds.”

***

“Is everyone having fun? Yes?" 

“Yes, Miss Lillian. Great party," says Jill from marketing. Noelle and Peter smile and nod mutely beside her. 

"Don't forget to wear your Santa hats!" I remind them, handing out the velvet hats like candy. "And yes, just...keep dancing."

There's only three of them on the dance floor, awkwardly shuffling from left to right as the DJ plays some kind of mellow techno music. Everyone else is sort of standing along to the side, half-heartedly munching the hors d'oeuvre. No, this is fine. It just takes some time for the party to heat up. 

I check my phone again, waiting for an update from the bartender. He was supposed to be here hours ago. I hear the other staff members murmuring by the windows and watching the snow fall like heavy pellets. The streets outside are already covered in a thick blanket of white. 

Allie walks up to me with a harried look on her face. “Uh, Lil? I’ve got some bad news. The caterers are stranded. Their van stalled in the middle of the highway. They were able to take shelter in a church but…they’re not going to make it here. 

“What? You can't be serious."

My phone pings in my pocket, signaling a text. I feel my heart drop to my stomach. “Great. The bartender’s not going to make it either."

In a blink, the electricity goes out with a shudder. Jill gasps and spills her drink all over the dance floor. Before I know it, we’re standing in the dark office, save for the moonlight spilling in through the windows. 

"Oh, this is just perfect."

The crowd bursts into murmurs. Allie claps her hands together to get everyone's attention. “Alright, everyone. The building has a backup generator, so we still have heat. Let’s just hunker down and wait for the power to come back on, okay? Sound good?"

The murmurs get louder, a blend of confusion and worry. I grab Allie's hand and hiss in her ear. “Maybe we can call someone?"

“And they’ll do what?"

My hands throw up into the air. How could she be so blasé about this? “I don’t know. How can we throw the coolest party ever without electricity?"

"Uh, hey," says the DJ guy. "I'm still getting paid for this, right?"

"Yes, yes. You're still getting paid," I tell him, waving him off. Maybe we could get another generator somewhere? Maybe I can call my dad or...

"If you want, I can play some songs on the piano," DJ guy offers.

Allie blinks at him, surprised. "That sounds amazing. You can do that?"

He makes a psh sound, like he's so offended that Allie even asked. He takes a seat in front of the baby grand, cracks his knuckles, and plays the opening notes of Silent Night. 

The murmurs die down as everyone gathers around the piano. His fingers fly over the keys, eyes closed as he gets lost in the music. The melody echoes around the space, somehow filling up the office better than the loud techno music did. And then, Allie starts singing, soft and slow at first. Before long, everyone joins in, a cacophony of voices rising and falling in harmony. In the dim light of the moon, it feels almost ethereal. Allie gently elbows me in the ribs and I start singing too, even though I usually can't hold a tune to save my life. 

When the last note dies down, everyone is beaming. "Whoa! Did we just really do that?" Noelle says.

"How about something a little faster?" says DJ guy. With a deft flourish of his hands, he starts playing Jingle Bell Rock. And then comes a very upbeat rendition of All I Want For Christmas Is You. Jill is belting out like Mariah Carey, someone is beatboxing, and Marty the accountant is shaking a tambourine like his life depended on it. Where did he even get that? 

Allie hands me a glass of wine and winks. "Look, we're stuck here, may as well have some fun." Then she turns to everyone and points to the drinks table that's been left unmanned. "Design your own drinks, everyone! Go crazy!"

A chorus of cheers as everyone races to make drinks. I take out all the platters of hors d'oeuvre and set it out on the table. Looks like all we're having for dinner are canapés and deviled eggs. No one seems to mind. 

DJ guy keeps going on the piano, the songs getting more upbeat and the singing more sloppy as the night passes on. Crista from the legal department keeps making tequila bombs and is handing them out to anyone nearby. Peter somehow managed to change into a Santa costume, putting a large balloon under the suit for a belly.

"You know what would be fun?" Allie says to me, her eyes somewhat glassy. "Party games!"

From the corner of my eye, I spot a few empty tissue boxes on a table. "I have an idea."

I round up five players, including Santa Peter, and tie a tissue box each around their backside. Then I put ten little jingle bells inside. "Y'all have one minute to dance out as many of the jingle bells from the box as you can! Ready?"

More cheers and whoops as DJ guy starts the piano and all the players start shaking their behinds any way they can, going all out, jumping up and down. One of them almost slips on the dance floor.

"I never thought I'd see Santa Peter twerking to classical piano music in my lifetime," I tell Allie, who's just roaring with laughter. He's more focused on his twerking and less on the game, the little pompom on his Santa hat jiggling with every move.

The night went on fast. There was a game of musical chairs where everyone put up the flashlight from their phones as disco lights. There was a holiday variation of beer pong. And now, Santa Claus Peter is trying to bust the balloon under his shirt without using his hands. I think everyone's betting on how long it would take him. 

Suddenly, the lights come back on, as abrupt as it went out. Everyone looks like they're in a daze, their eyes adjusting to all the lights. Or maybe that's just the alcohol. 

“Let's keep the party going! Pizzas for everyone!” My voice booms through the office space, met by another chorus of drunken cheers. 

Allie smirks at me. "Well? Was it as amazing as you thought it would be?"

I grin back at her. “It's pretty perfect, actually."