Because Caleb told her they would buy the tree together on the twenty-third.
She had already chosen where it would go.
Beside the window.
Not too close to the heater.
She wanted white lights.
Caleb preferred colored.
They had agreed on both.
On December twentieth, Nora sat at the kitchen table making paper snowflakes.
“Do people at your work have a tree?”
She asked.
“Lobby has one.”
“Do you?”
“My toolbox?”
“Yes.”
“I have your ornament.”
“That’s not a tree.”
“It’s emotionally a tree.”
Nora frowned.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“Most adult things don’t.”
She returned to cutting paper.
Then asked:
“Are we poor?”
Caleb stopped washing a dish.
Children rarely arrive at difficult questions through predictable routes.
“What makes you ask that?”
“Tyler said people who live in apartments are poor.”
Caleb dried his hands.
“Tyler is eight.”
“So?”
“So his financial analysis may be incomplete.”
Nora smiled.
Caleb sat across from her.
“We have what we need.”
“Most of the time.”
“We have to be careful with money.”
“That doesn’t mean we’re poor.”
“Can we still get the tree?”
There it was.
“Yes.”
He said.
Even if it meant delaying the truck brakes another week.
“Yes.”
Nora nodded and returned to her snowflake.
Then she slid something across the table.
A tiny wrapped object.
“What’s this?”
“Your present.”
“You’re supposed to hide presents.”
“I did.”
“Where?”
“Under my bed.”
“That is where every child hides presents.”
“It worked.”
“Apparently.”
She made him promise not to open it until Christmas morning.
Caleb promised.
The following day, December twenty-first, Human Resources asked him to attend a meeting at eight the next morning.
Caleb told himself Ronan was wrong.
He slept badly anyway.
Northstar’s HR manager, Paula Greene, sat inside Graham’s glass office when Caleb entered at 8:03.
A folder lay on the desk.
Graham did not offer coffee.
Caleb knew.
That was the strange thing about termination meetings.
Nobody needed to say the words immediately.
The room already knew.
“Sit down, Caleb.”
Graham said.
Caleb sat.
Paula looked uncomfortable.
“Caleb.”
She began.
“Northstar has been conducting a review of staffing needs and operational alignment.”
Caleb looked at Graham.
“Operational alignment.”
Paula continued.
“As part of a restructuring process, the company has determined that your current position will be eliminated effective today.”
Caleb stared.
“That’s not true.”
Paula stopped.
Graham leaned forward.
“Excuse me?”
“My position is not being eliminated.”
“Caleb.”
Paula said quietly.
“We have the restructuring documentation.”
“Who is taking my shift?”
Silence.
Caleb looked at Graham.
“Who covers my assigned aircraft?”
“We will redistribute responsibilities.”
“So the work still exists.”
“That isn’t how restructuring works.”
Graham said.
Caleb felt heat rise into his face.
“Is this because of Westbridge?”
“No.”
Graham answered immediately.
Too immediately.