Most Beautiful Smile In The World
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The door opened, and two figures stepped out into the corridor.
A man in his thirties with a handsome face wearing an expensive suit stood there. Next to him was a young girl dressed in school uniform who wore her hair in pigtails. She looked about ten years old.
“Are you here for me?” the man asked, looking down at them from above. He wore his smile like a mask, but it wasn’t hard to guess what his true feelings were.
It seemed he’d been waiting for them. “Yes,” replied the girl, smiling back at him.
They walked together into the room, where they found a large table covered with documents laid out in neat rows.
The man sat down first, then pointed to the chair across from him as he smiled at the little girl sitting across from him. She obediently took her seat.
“Now,” he began, “I have some things I need you to do.”
She nodded, her eyes shining as she gazed up at the man. Then, she smiled again at him. A beautiful smile…the most beautiful smile in the world. It was so lovely that it made people want to look away and close their eyes as if they could never hope to match such beauty.
But it was not meant for others. It was for this man alone. This beautiful smile belonged only to him. And the girl had come here to give it to him.
***
A few days later, on a rainy night.
“I’m home!” The girl ran through the front door of the house, her hair flying behind her as she rushed inside. As she went upstairs, she stopped to wipe the rain off her umbrella before heading into her bedroom. There, she took out her phone and sent a text message.
“I’m home, Daddy! Can we go out tonight? Please?!”
There was no response for quite a while. After fifteen minutes or so, she tried calling him again. Still nothing. Finally, he responded.
“Sorry, honey. I’ll make it up to you next time…”
She hung up the phone and sighed. She put her umbrella in its proper place by the front door, then headed into her room. She lay down on her bed and turned on the TV. She picked up her stuffed rabbit and hugged it tightly. Tears started to well up in her eyes, but she didn’t bother wiping them away. Instead, she just squeezed her rabbit tighter and closed her eyes.
Her father had told her not to cry anymore. He said that if she cried anymore, he wouldn’t be able to see her smile anymore. That was why he always said not to cry.
She heard someone knocking on the door. Her mother’s voice called from outside. “Hey, sweetie. Are you all right? Your dad just called me…he sounds really worried.”
“Oh, sorry.” The girl got out of bed and went to open the door. When she did, her mom gave her a hug. “Mommy, I’m fine. I’m just tired from school today.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah.”
After saying goodbye to her mom, the girl returned to her room. She changed into pajamas and brushed her teeth. Once she was finished, she climbed back into bed, pulled the covers over herself, and closed her eyes.
“Please don’t cry anymore…”
She held her bunny tightly as she slept, and dreamed of a warm, sunny day.
***
“We’re here!” The girl and her mother were walking through the town center toward the park. It was almost closing time, so there weren’t many people around. But that only added to the peace and quiet.
“That looks like a nice spot over there.” They reached the end of the street and came upon a bench overlooking the river. It was covered in green ivy, giving the area a very secluded feel.
“Wow, it is! Let’s sit down, Mommy!” The girl ran over and sat down. She looked at her mother and giggled as she said, “It feels like we’ve gone on vacation.”
The mother laughed too. “You’re right; this is like a vacation spot.”
The little girl sat cross-legged on the ground, her knees bent, as she stared up at the clouds passing overhead. She had never seen anything like them before. She’d only ever seen the ones in books.
“They’re so pretty! Like fluffy white rabbits! Oh, I can make them out!” She grabbed onto the back of her mother’s shirt and lifted herself up. She wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck and looked straight ahead. The mother leaned back against the bench and watched her daughter in wonderment.
“Look at her,” she whispered to herself. “She’s so happy…”
It was then that someone approached them, startling both woman and child. It was a man who looked to be in his thirties, wearing an expensive suit. His eyes swept over the scene below him and landed on the girl, who was still holding onto her mother’s neck.
“Hello there.”
He smiled at the little girl, and she flashed him a brilliant smile in return. “Hi, Mr. Man!”
“Mr. Man? That’s my name, silly.”
“I know,” she replied.
The man’s eyes moved to her mother. “And what about you?”
“Um, I’m Mommy.”
“Well, Ms. Miller…” He paused for a moment as he thought of how to address the older woman. “Ms. Miller, would you like to join us? We could have some ice cream, or maybe even something sweet like cake.”
“Cake? That sounds wonderful, thank you.”
“My pleasure.” He turned to face the little girl. “I have a present for you.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a box wrapped in shiny red paper.
“It’s a present?”
“Yes. Open it.”
The girl took the ribbon off with her teeth and tore apart the wrapping paper, revealing a small pink doll in her hands. She held it up close to her face and inspected it from every angle.
“Is that for me?”
“Of course.” He reached out his hand and placed the doll in it. “Now, go on, give her a kiss.”
The girl gently kissed its cheek. Then she looked back at the man. “Thank you, Mr. Man.”
He nodded. “Anytime, dear.” With a final smile, he walked away.
The girl looked down at the doll in her hands. A single tear trickled down her cheek as she thought, “Thank you.”
***
“Good morning, Miss Miller.” The girl’s teacher came to collect her after class. “How did your first day go?”
“It was fun,” she replied. “Mr. Man gave me a present!”
“A present? From who?”
“I don’t know. I asked him, but he didn’t say.”
Her teacher chuckled and put an arm around the girl’s shoulders. “Don’t worry about it. You’ll find out soon enough.”
“Okay.”
Once they were outside the classroom, the girl and her teacher headed toward the school building’s exit. On their way out, they passed by a tall, well-dressed man who was talking to a young girl. As the teacher stopped to greet him, the girl noticed something strange.
The girl looked over at the other girl and saw that she wasn’t wearing any shoes on her feet. In fact, she wasn’t wearing anything except a thin cotton dress and a diaper. Her hair was tied in two pigtails and her skin was pale, making her look much younger than she really was.
“Miss Miller!” The man’s voice caught the girl’s attention again, and she turned back around to see him smiling at her.
“Yes, Mr. Smith.”
“I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be leaving early today to take care of some errands. Would you mind keeping an eye on her for me?”
“Sure thing, Mr. Smith.”
“I’ll be back before you know it.” The man turned to the young girl and said, “Are you excited?”
“No,” she answered with a shake of her head.
“Why not?”
“I want to stay here.”
The man smiled and stroked her cheek. “But you’re going somewhere nice, right?”
The girl shook her head again. “Not nice. Bad.”
“Bad? Why do you think that?”
“Because Mr. Man is going to leave me behind.”
Her words struck the man hard. He took a deep breath to keep himself from saying something foolish. “That’s not true, dearie. I won’t abandon you.”
“You will. I know you will.”
The man sighed. “Listen, I’m sure things are going to get better soon.”
The girl didn’t answer; instead, she continued to stare into his eyes as though she were searching for clues. Then she finally turned her gaze away and started to walk toward the school building, leaving the man standing alone in front of the entrance.
“I guess we’d better get going then.” The teacher walked up to him and took his arm. “She seems like a smart girl.”
“I’m sure she is.”
“So, does she talk too much?”
“Sometimes.”
“Hmm. Well, it’s probably nothing to worry about.”
The man nodded. “It’s just a habit, I suppose.”
They both entered the building together and headed toward the girl’s classroom. “Did you see Mr. Smith? He seemed kind of upset about something.”
“Yeah, I know.” The girl shrugged as though she really had no idea what was going on.
“I wonder why.”
“Probably because his friend left him.”
The teacher chuckled. “Maybe so.”
The girl watched her teacher leave through the window before returning to her desk. She sat down and put the doll in the center of it, then looked back up to find Mr. Smith staring at her from the other side of the room.
“Hey, there.” He smiled warmly. “How was your first day?”
“Oh, it was great! Thank you, Mr. Smith!”
“No problem at all. Did you have fun?”
“Yes!” She nodded vigorously. “I got lots of presents, and Mr. Man even gave me one himself.”
“I bet he did.” Mr. Smith chuckled as he sat down next to her and pulled out a piece of paper that he had hidden under his desk. It was a picture of the girl, taken during a photo shoot earlier in the week. In it, she wore a frilly white dress and held a large bouquet of flowers in her hands. She was beaming happily at the camera. She couldn’t help but giggle whenever she looked at it.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing, really.” He handed her the picture. “Just looking at this makes me happy.”
She giggled and smiled at the same time. “Me too.”
He leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead before handing her another photograph. This one was of the two of them posing together in front of a large Christmas tree. They were surrounded by colorful lights and gifts beneath a starry sky. In the background was the sound of a carol being sung.
“Mr. Man told me that I could give this to my momma,” the girl explained, holding the picture out toward him.
“I’m glad to hear that.” He smiled. “And I’m sure she’ll love it, too.”
The girl nodded. “Momma, I got a present from Mr. Man today!”
Her mother came rushing into the room and saw the gift sitting on her daughter’s desk. She gasped and hurried over to grab it off the table, then immediately broke into tears. “Oh, my baby! Oh, thank you!” She hugged the girl tightly. “Thank you, my sweetheart!”
“You’re welcome,” the girl replied quietly.
As the mother sobbed, Mr. Smith went to the window and peeked outside. He waved at the child as she looked up at him. Her face was lit up with joy, as though the whole world had suddenly become brighter and more beautiful than ever before.
His heart felt lighter than it had since he’d last seen her. He couldn’t help but smile as he thought about how everything was finally starting to come together.
***
A few days later, the man returned home to find the girl waiting for him in the living room. There was a huge grin on her face as she ran up and jumped onto his lap. As he picked her up and hugged her tight, he wondered if he might feel the same way again when she finally reached the age where she wouldn’t want to cling to him anymore.
But even now, when she was still small enough to fit in his arms, he knew that he never would. He loved her dearly, and he always would.
“Did you have a good day at school today?” he asked her.
“Yeah! I talked a lot!”
“Really?” He laughed. “I’m not surprised. You’re always talking.”
“I know.” She nodded seriously. “But I was just telling stories.”
“That’s nice. So, what happened today?”
“Today was Christmas Eve, right?”
“Right.”
“And Mrs. Smith gave us presents, right?”
“Well…yes.”
“And I got a present from Mr. Man, right?”
“Yup.”
“So did you get anything else?”
“I don’t think so…”
“What do you mean? You didn’t get any presents after school, right?”
“Nope.”
“Well, maybe Mr. Smith forgot and took them home with him.”
“Maybe he did,” the girl said nonchalantly.
The man frowned. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah. If someone gives you a present, you have to give them a present in return.”
“Hmm…”
“And I already gave him something,” she added proudly. “Remember?”
“Yeah. The picture.” He smiled fondly. “He must’ve forgotten to take it home.”
“Probably.” She nodded. “But we should give him a present anyway.”
“You say that, but…”
“We shouldn’t tell anyone about it. I’ll do all the work.”
“All right.” He nodded. “Let’s go get it.”
The girl jumped down off his lap and skipped out of the room, leaving him alone once more.
***
It didn’t take the man long to realize that the girl hadn’t been lying. Not only had Mr. Smith forgotten to bring back the present, but he’d also left it at home. He quickly realized that they were probably going to have to go pick it up from the store. That meant that he’d have to go out in public wearing an ugly sweater.
He wasn’t too keen on the idea, but he figured he could make it through by pretending like it was some sort of weird fashion choice. And if he was able to put on a smile and act cheerful, no one would be any wiser. Besides, he was pretty sure he was going to enjoy the surprise more than anyone else.
After getting ready, the man headed to the front door and waited for the girl to arrive. When she appeared beside him a few minutes later, he smiled at her and held open the door. They stepped outside and stood in the street, watching people pass by and cars drive past. It was a quiet night, with little traffic and few pedestrians. But despite the lack of people around, it was still fairly cold.
As he walked along, the man kept glancing behind himself in an attempt to keep warm. He didn’t want to let his guard down or risk being caught by a sudden gust of wind. He’d already made one mistake tonight; he couldn’t afford to make another.
They soon arrived at the local shopping center and headed inside to pick up the gift. He led the way to the counter and handed the woman behind the register his wallet. She scanned each item and tallied up the total before handing him his change.
“Here you are,” the man said, giving her a handful of bills.
“Thanks so much!” she replied cheerfully. “Merry Christmas!”
“Oh, thank you! Merry Christmas to you, too!”
The man glanced at the girl, who was looking around the store. When their eyes met, she flashed him a smile and started making her way toward the exit. Before he realized what was happening, she’d disappeared into the crowd.
With a sigh, the man hurried after her, trying to catch up to her before she slipped away. But it wasn’t easy. She seemed to move almost as fast as a cheetah, and he was having trouble keeping pace with her. He eventually managed to catch up, though, and they continued on their way together.
Eventually, they came to a stop near a corner. The man looked up and down the street, trying to find someplace suitable. He spotted a nearby park bench and pointed in its direction. Then, with a nod, he signaled for the girl to follow him.
She nodded and began walking over. Once they reached the bench, however, he noticed that it was occupied by an old man reading a newspaper. As the man watched, the elderly gentleman placed a bookmark in his book and closed it. Then he stood up and began walking away.
“Wait!” the man cried out, following the old man.
The old man stopped and turned around, holding his hand up to signal for the man to wait.
“Can I ask you something?” the man asked. “Did you see me come here?”
The old man smiled. “Of course I did. What kind of idiot would forget your own face?”
“That’s not my point,” the man said, raising his voice. “How do you know who I am?”
“Because I’m always watching when people come to pick up their presents,” he answered. “Don’t worry; I won’t tell anyone.”
“But how…?” the man trailed off.
“Who cares? Let’s just say that you’re someone really special. Now, if you don’t mind, it’s time to head back home.”
The man hesitated for a moment. There was something strange about this, but there didn’t seem to be any harm in following his instructions.
“All right,” he said. “Let’s go.”
The girl smiled again and began leading them back down the street. Just as they got close to the park bench where they’d left the gift, however, the old man suddenly changed direction and headed in a different direction.
“Wait! Where are we going?!” the man shouted.
His words fell on deaf ears, though, as the old man continued on his way without slowing down. With a sigh, the man followed after him, wondering exactly what was going on.
When they finally reached the corner, the man stopped and looked around. His eyes soon found the shopping center, and he realized that they’d gone too far. He’d never seen the old man look so determined to get somewhere, but he was pretty sure that they needed to turn around and try again.
He looked at the girl, then shook his head and sighed.
“I guess I should have expected that,” he said.
Without waiting for a response, he took a step forward and began running back toward the shopping center. He ran past the park bench and saw the old man heading straight for the entrance, which was only a couple of yards away. When he arrived at the doors, the man could see a crowd of people standing in line and a large line of gifts being handed out.
The man paused to take a deep breath, then hurried over to join the end of the line. After a few minutes, it was his turn. The clerk handed him his package and he thanked her and turned to leave. As he approached the exit, however, a pair of strong hands grabbed him from behind and lifted him off the ground.
“Hey!” he cried out, struggling to break free. “Let me go!”
The girl stepped up beside him.
“It’s okay,” she whispered, looking into his eyes. “Just relax.”
After taking a moment to collect himself, the man finally gave up his struggle and let go of his grip on the man’s arms. He glanced at the woman beside him, then at the box she held.
“What is this?” he asked. “Why are you holding it?”
“You’ll find out in a minute,” the girl replied. “Now, let’s go.”
She led him back to the bench and sat him down on it. Then she opened the box and removed a small wrapped present. It was tied up with a green ribbon, and there were two cards sticking out of the top.
“Open it,” she instructed. “Then read the card.”
The man nodded and undid the ribbon. Slowly, carefully, he pulled back the wrapping paper, revealing a white shirt that had been neatly folded inside. He took a closer look and noticed that it was covered with a pattern of tiny black dots.
“It looks like a sweater,” he remarked, glancing over at the girl.
She smiled. “Yeah. You’ve got to be the first person to ever wear one. But don’t worry; it comes with some special powers.”
The man stared at her blankly for a moment, then nodded.
“Okay. Let’s see what those are.”
He took the present from her and removed its lid. Inside he found a note along with the sweater.
Dear Friend,
I hope this helps make your Christmas a little better. Don’t worry: you won’t be cold wearing this. And even if it gets dirty somehow, you’ll always be able to wash it clean. Merry Christmas!
—Cindy
The man took a deep breath. It was obvious by now that Cindy had sent him the present. She must have known that he was the one who’d been looking for her because she’d obviously prepared an identical gift for him.
He smiled and looked back at the old man, who was still sitting on the same bench and staring at him intently.
“Thanks, Cindy,” he said, giving her a quick wave before turning back to the present.
Carefully removing the card, he started reading the letter inside.
Hello, my name is John. I’m not sure whether or not you know me, but I do remember seeing you around town sometimes.
Anyway, I think it’s safe to assume that you’re probably in some sort of trouble right now. That’s why I decided to send you this gift. I wanted to give you something that might help you out.
I know how much you value your friends, so I want you to understand that I’m really sorry about everything that happened to you. I didn’t realize that things would go this far, and I wish that I had acted differently when I had the chance. But now I feel like I can say that I truly regret the way things went down between us.
If you ever need anything, please let me know. I’d love to hear from you.
Take care,
John
The End