NJ’s Surprise
written by: Tim Law
“Nicholas John!” cried NJ’s mother, not for the first time that morning.
“Nicholas, please leave your sister alone,” pleaded his father, looking up from the newspaper.
“Do not forget that Santa Claus is watching,” mother added.
“I don’t believe in Santa Claus,” NJ said with a cheeky smile. “I know it is you and Father who put the gifts beneath the tree at night.”
“Naughty boys who say such things get nothing but coal,” warned father.
“Well, coal could be useful,” NJ replied, no respect, just a know-it-all attitude, which brought a frown to the faces of both his parents. “At least the house would be warm, and it would be all thanks to me.”
Times had been tough in the Brown house that year, since father had injured himself and could no longer work at the factory. Government payments had kept a roof over the family’s head and food in the refrigerator, but there had been few reasons to celebrate. Mother had needed to find a job; having her away so many nights had sucked the spirit from the home. Whereas little Beth had withdrawn into her shell, her older brother, Nicholas, had become quite the troublemaker. The teachers had noticed it at school, and the boy’s past friends had been told that they could no longer play.
Each night, especially after particularly troublesome days, NJ had been visited by two figures in his dreams. The first was the ugliest creature that Nicholas had ever seen, a hunched giant with shaggy fur, sharpened spikes running down its back, and a hideous face that seemed the worst mix of a bear and lion. Being a boy of some intellect, NJ had immediately guessed such a monstrous figure had to be Krampus, evident when the second figure was a jolly old gramps of a man dressed in a red suit.
“Let me eat him…” whined Krampus, the first thing he said at the beginning of every dream.
“Ho… Ho… No…” said Santa, for what seemed like the fiftieth time. “The boy and his family are going through a tough time.”
“You never let me have any fun,” Krampus grumbled.
“Now, Nicholas John,” said Santa, ignoring the monster. “You are my namesake…”
“I don’t believe that either of you are real,” said the boy. “So why should I do anything that you tell me to do?”
“The youngster has a point,” said Krampus.
“And that is the problem with the youth of today… Too much knowledge and not enough wonder…” grumbled Santa.
“What if I ate the internet?” begged Krampus.
Santa gave this a moment’s consideration.
“Ho… Ho… No, we probably shouldn’t do that,” the jolly old man replied. “Could you imagine the riots if I let you do that?”
“More naughty kids would mean a far fuller tum tum for me,” said Krampus with a smile full of pointed teeth.
He patted his furry stomach, and Nicholas noticed, with relief, that the monster was wearing pants at least.
“I wouldn’t care if there was no internet,” said NJ. “Mother and Father took away my laptop and tablet, so I can’t use it anyway.”
“Look, promise to behave, and my brother here will make things better,” said the monster.
“Better yet, actually behave, and my brother here won’t eat you,” said Santa.
The following day, with Christmas morning only five sleeps away, Nicholas John tried to behave. He made his bed and tidied his room, taking his dirty clothes to the hamper in the laundry. Under his pillow, he found a candy cane, and a tiny piece of coal. On the final day of school before the Christmas break, Nicholas brought an apple to school for his teacher, and a packet of chocolate biscuits to share with the boys.
“Thank you, how thoughtful,” said Mrs White.
“Thanks, NJ,” said the boys.
Nicholas found it felt much nicer to do good. The ice in his heart melted a little.
When NJ went to sleep that night, Krampus and Santa visited him again. Krampus’ stomach was rumbling.
“You did good, today,” said Santa. “And the feeling of doing good is its own reward.”
Nicholas understood that. Whether he was rewarded or not, no matter what it was that happened in his life, when he was kinder to others, he was able to be kinder to himself. His little sister, Beth, smiled at him more, instead of trying to get him into trouble. Most of all, NJ noticed that the worry lines on his father’s face became less pronounced when Nicholas was nice.
The first day of the holidays, NJ awoke with a mission in mind. He would do something special for his family as a Christmas gift.
“Nicholas, I have been asked to interview for a possible new job,” his father said over a simple breakfast. “Could you please take care of your sister today, at least for the morning?”
“Of course, father, it would be no trouble at all,” NJ said, sweetly.
Mr Brown gave his son a strange look, expecting at least some sort of argument or excuse. When nothing but helpfulness came from NJ, the boy’s father left, confused, but pleased.
Together, the siblings baked gingerbread cookies during the day and decorated them as a surprise for their parents. When Mother and Father both arrived home, they were alarmed by the state of the kitchen, but they were equally overcome by the sweet smell of ginger and joy in the air.
That night, when the usual visitors arrived in Nicholas’ dreams, he discovered that Krampus was smiling.
“It looks like I’m going to go hungry this year, but you certainly will not,” said the monster.
“You truly have changed your tune,” Santa agreed. “A promise given is a promise kept…”
“I got the job!” Mr Brown announced on the night before Christmas. “I begin at the newsagency in a week.”
“That will mean I can work much less and be home much more,” Mrs Brown said with a smile and a kiss for her husband.
“The best news of all is that the newsagency has offered me an advance on my first pay, we can celebrate a proper Christmas after all,” NJ and Beth’s father continued.
That night, Nicholas John had no dream. The figures, imagined or real, just allowed him to sleep.
Nicholas wondered that Christmas morn, whether all his dreaming had been true. Was the Brown family’s miracle all thanks to his change in behaviour, or had things just happened? He smiled as he tasted the deliciousness of a perfectly cooked turkey leg. It truly did not matter; being nice and not naughty had wonderful rewards, either way.
- NJ’s Surprise - December 19, 2025
- Behind The Mask - October 29, 2025
- The Eleventh Tome – Chapter IX - August 21, 2025
