The sun had just finished setting when Dad knocked on Chloe’s door. “How’s it going in there?” he called through the door. “Are you ready for the party?”

“Almost!” Chloe replied as she put on her sparkly snowflake earrings. Then she opened the door and spun around so that the skirt of her dress flared. “Ta-da! What do you think?”

“Wow!” Dad exclaimed. “You look beautiful, Chloe. So grown-up, I can’t believe it!”

Chloe’s smile grew even bigger. Then she noticed her dad’s tie. “Seriously?” she asked. “You’re wearing a light-up tie in the shape of a Christmas tree?”

Dad glanced down at his tie. “Pretty great, isn’t it?” he asked. “Check it out—the lights have three different flash settings! And if I push this button, it plays Christmas songs! Want to give it a try?”

Chloe held up her hands. “No thanks,” she said. “I’m good. But, ah, Dad… I thought this was, you know, a fancy party.” Not a ridiculous-looking-light-up-musical-tie party, she wanted to add—but Chloe kept that thought to herself.

Dad nodded solemnly at her, but Chloe couldn’t miss the amusement in his eyes. “It is,” he replied. “That’s why I bought such a fancy tie. I remember the lodge’s website specifically said ‘festive dress encouraged.’”

“Festive, not funny-looking!” Chloe laughed.

There was a knock at the door.

“That must be Jessica and Sandy,” Dad said.

“Or maybe just Jessica,” Chloe said, remembering the look on Sandy’s face that afternoon. She’d been so upset that Chloe wouldn’t have been surprised if Sandy had decided to stay in her room for the rest of the trip in protest.

“Jessica texted me a little while ago. She said they’re both definitely coming,” Dad replied. “Hope they’re as ready to party as we are!”

“I don’t know, Dad,” Chloe teased him. “When they see that tie, maybe even Jessica will want to go home early!”

“We’ll see about that,” Dad said. Then he opened the door. “Merry Christmas Eve Eve!”

“Merry Christmas Eve Eve!” Jessica and Sandy replied as they hurried inside.

“Brrr,” Jessica added, rubbing her arms. “Either my party dress isn’t nearly as warm as my snowveralls, or it’s gotten a lot colder out there.”

“Probably both,” Sandy said, deftly stepping around her mom as Dad gave Jessica a quick hug.

That’s when Chloe saw it. She would have recognized it anywhere—her perfect party dress. But it wasn’t only Chloe who was wearing it.

Sandy was wearing it, too.

The only difference between their dresses was the color. Chloe’s dress was cranberry-colored, while Sandy’s was a deep, rich green. Beyond that, the dresses were identical. Same swooshy, swirly skirt. Same lacy top with long sleeves. Chloe could just see the edges of them peeking out from the cuffs of Sandy’s overcoat.

Sandy noticed their matching dresses at the same time. She slowly shrugged off her overcoat, and that’s when Chloe started to worry. Uh-oh, she thought. Is this going to set Sandy off? Is she going to be upset that we’re matching at the party? If she gets mad, I can’t change my dress! It’s the only fancy dress I brought!

Just then, Sandy started to laugh. “Chloe! You look amazing,” she said. “I love your style!”

Chloe laughed, too, relieved. “No, stop, I love your style,” she said. “Your dress is perfect.”

“No, your dress is perfect,” said Sandy.

“You two look like the Christmas twins,” Dad joked. “Come on, let’s head over to the party. I can already tell you’ll be the belles of the ball!”

The celebration at the lodge was the best party Chloe had ever attended. She ate warm gingerbread cake with cinnamon whipped cream, took a bunch of funny photos with Sandy in the photo booth, and danced to jazzy Christmas tunes until her feet ached. She loved every moment of it… especially seeing Dad and Jessica slow dance to the last song of the night.

After she got home from the party, Chloe remembered that she still had to wrap Sandy’s present. She was searching her room for wrapping supplies when she heard Dad call her name.

“What’s up?” she called back as she poked her head into the hall.

“You coming for teatime?” he asked.

“Right! Sorry, Dad. I got caught up,” Chloe replied. She padded down the hall in her slippers and found Dad bringing a tray with two mugs of tea into the living room. Chloe wrapped her hands around one of the cups and inhaled deeply. “Mmm, peppermint,” she said. “Perfect for Christmas Eve Eve!”

“I thought you’d appreciate that,” Dad said with a smile. Then he glanced at the clock on the mantel. “Whoa—it’s later than I thought. Pretty soon it will be Christmas Eve! Drink fast, kiddo. You’ve got to get to bed or you’ll be exhausted tomorrow.”

“I’ll be okay,” Chloe assured him. “Besides, I can always sleep in the car on the drive home.”

“Just what I need—a copilot who sleeps on the job,” Dad joked. “So what have you been up to since we got home from the party?”

Chloe grinned at him. “I guess I can trust you not to spill the secret,” she said. “Stay there—I’ll be right back!”

A few minutes later, Chloe returned from her room with the bag from the Pet Palace. “I got a Christmas present for Sandy,” she said. “It’s not much—but when I saw it in the store, I just knew she had to have it.”

Chloe opened the bag and showed Dad the ornament that looked just like Elsa, and the three catnip mice.

For a moment, Dad didn’t say anything as he stared at Sandy’s present. Chloe shifted uncomfortably on the couch. “Do you—do you think she won’t like it?” she asked.

Dad looked up at her. “No, no—I think Sandy will love it,” he said quickly. “I was just thinking”—Dad paused to clear his throat—“I was just thinking what a kind thing this was. To spend your money on a gift for someone who hasn’t been very kind to you.”

Chloe shrugged a little as she glanced away. “It’s not a big deal,” she mumbled.

“Sometimes little things, little acts of kindness, are the biggest deal,” Dad told her. “Especially to someone who’s hurting. Whose pain is making her act out in all kinds of unpleasant ways.”

“But Sandy had fun at the party, didn’t she?” Chloe asked.

Dad nodded. “Yes, I think so,” he replied. “At least, I hope so. And I’m glad the trip will be ending with a happy memory for us all to take home.” He reached over and picked up one of the catnip mice, dangling it by the ribbon tail. “And for Elsa it seems like the fun will be just beginning!”

Chloe started to laugh but stopped abruptly.

“Hey—what’s wrong?” asked Dad.

“The mouse’s tail is made of ribbon,” she realized. “Ribbon! It can make cats really sick if they eat it!”

Dad tugged on the toy mouse’s tail. “It seems pretty firmly attached,” he told her.

“I don’t want to take any chances,” Chloe said. “I’ll have to cut off their tails—even though they’re really cute. Better to be safe than sorry.”

She scooped the catnip mice into her palm and carried them into the kitchen. Snip, snip, snip. Just like that, the tails were off—and the toys were safe for Elsa to enjoy. They were stuffed so full of catnip that Chloe had a feeling she would love them!

Suddenly, Chloe yawned so big her jaw hurt. In that moment, she realized how exhausted she was: from snow tubing to shopping to dancing, Chloe’s day had been nonstop. Wrapping Sandy’s gift, she decided, could wait until morning. It will be one last thing to do before we say goodbye to the lodge, she decided. Between Sandy’s attitude and Charlie’s illness, the trip had been a lot more stressful than Chloe had anticipated, but she was still a little sad that it was almost over.

At the same time, she was ready to go home.