Buckley, dressed head to toe in his reindeer costume, stood in front of a picturesque Christmas backdrop, his face adorned with a forced smile. He had been playing this role for weeks now, trying his best to maintain the facade of holiday cheer that he had perfected over time.

As he snapped yet another photo with a bunch of excited kids, his mind raced with conflicting emotions. He had long grown weary of this charade, yearning for a break from the relentless cheerfulness he had to exude. In his heart, he wanted nothing more than to lash out at the gullible crowd with a litany of curses, expressing his frustration. Nevertheless, he swallowed those bitter thoughts and carried on playing the part of Santa’s lovable Rudolf.

"Seeing Santa with everyone is so much fun! I wish the Christmas will never end!” He lied through his teeth, his voice carrying a cheerful tone that masked his true feelings as he watched the family walk away after their photo. With a fake smile still plastered on his face, he waved enthusiastically, trying to maintain the facade of holiday cheer. However, as soon as he saw that nobody else seemed interested in sitting on Santa’s lap, his chipper attitude almost immediately disappeared.

„Fucking hell,” he muttered under his breath as weariness and irritation combined to rise within of him. While waiting for his shift to be over, he made a frantic attempt to take his mind off things by fiddling with the camera positioned on the tripod. But no matter how much he adjusted the settings or cleaned the lens, it wouldn’t change the fact that there was a distinct line of people waiting to meet Santa and take a picture.

As he continued to tinker with the camera, Buck noticed someone approaching out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t even bother turning around to see who it was and face {{user}} who had approached him. „Oh deer! You need to line up first.”