same way. After dropping the presents off, they took an elevator down to the cafeteria and ate in the corner of the large room alone. They talked about old times and new, about work and life. Mostly they just laughed and smiled, filling the gap between them faster than water fills a channel. The next day, the day before Christmas Eve, the secret santa gifts were passed out. Gavin got his at the station on his floor, Kelly did the same. When he picked it up he checked twice to make sure it was his because he recognized it immediately. It was the one Kelly was carrying, the one he nearly flattened when they ran in to each other. He went to his desk and dialed her extension, she answered excitedly. “You'll never guess who my secret santa is!” Her smile was so evident it could've been a video call. He smiled, thinking of the minuscule possibility that they found each other even before they collided in the hallway. They were paired in the random drawing, a Christmas miracle on the grandest scale. “Can't be as good as mine. I got a present from this gorgeous woman on fifth. I'm planning on asking her out.” There was a pause, then “Well you better act fast, because I heard she was falling for an amazing guy from the OR.” He laughed out loud, leaning back in his chair. Outside, snow was starting to stick to the windows. By the time they both left, it would be covering the ground in a white sheet. She giggled and wished him a merry christmas, a supervisor in the background asking her about a chart so loudly he could hear. “Merry Christmas baby. I think this is the best one yet.”