Juan lay in the mud and looked along the street.

People moved near him, but nobody looked at him. Some even tried to look the other way, trying not to see him. He felt a disgusted look of an old lady burn his nose. She shook her head from side to side, shrugged and looked towards the sky. Then he heard the choked laugh from two youngsters, passing near him, the girl pointing her finger at him and bursting with more laugh.

Juan wasn't drunk. Not at all. He was robbed and lay hurt in the mud, where the mugger threw him. He moved his right hand toward the pocket, but didn't found a bulge of his purse. How much had he there? Today's earnings were good. He didn't count it, but working for 7 hours all the time and one out of the town ride, brought him a little sum.

He cleaned the mud from his face and felt a trickle of blood under his eye. He rubbed the place, and this movement took him back three years back.

.

America! At last he succeeded to come here. He will be rich. He'll do much better than his grandfather, who returned back to Barcelona after 11 years in America only with debts. Juan will show his family, his friends and everybody else what he's worth.

He knew exactly what he should do, step by step. First, he will begin to work as taxi driver in New York, learning English by speaking with people. Then, he'll open his own business.

He was disappointed that it took him three months to get behind the wheel, but he decided to catch the lost time by working two shifts. It was good money, but Juan felt tired all the time.

That's why he was an easy prey for muggers, not having any strength to oppose them. They took all his money and threw behind the old house not far from his home. Juan swore to be much more cautious. And he was.

Until today.

His last fare, an old man, looked so innocent, so sweet. He reminded Juan his faraway grandfather, and he felt suddenly so alone in this big town, the city of Apple on the Christmas eve. Juan lived all those three years alone, but had no time to think about it or even feel loneliness. The work simply didn't leave any time for those sentiments. But now, looking at this old man with big white bear, he felt that he wants to be a child once more. He wanted to be hugged by his grandfather who loved him so much. Juan longed for love. "Tree years without it," he thought, suddenly comprehending that he really need it.

The old man asked Juan to help bringing his things into the house, and even promised to give him a cup of tea. Juan smiled about tea, but eagerly ran to help.

But when he straightened up from the door, he felt a blow on his head and lost consciousness.

.

The street looked differently now. With lights on, the snow sparkled and it looked lovely. Juan began to sit. Nobody seemed to notice him as before.

"What a fine place to live. Or to die. You won't interfere with anybody. So you can die anytime. Die today, and tomorrow the municipality will send a garbage workers to sweep your remains, so that nothing will show you were here" - Juan felt really unwanted by everybody and this didn't make him feel any better.

With the corner of eye he noticed the ball rolling in his direction. Blue and red, it entered into his field of vision and stayed there blocking everything else behind it.

Juan slapped the ball with his fist and it flew away, finding a near wall and returning from it exactly to Juan's nose.

"Ouch!"

"Hehehe"

Juan stopped rubbing his nose and looked around. A little boy stayed near him and smiled. Then he took a tissue from his pocket and gave to Juan. He didn't understand why the child did it, so the boy came closer and wiped his nose. Juan saw that tissue became red.

The child smiled so sincere, that Juan began to smile too. He didn't know what funny there could be in bloody nose, but he smiled. Then began to laugh. The boy giggled too.

"Peter, stop laughing at this man!" - it was his mother who went out from the house on the other side of the street.

Juan looked at her and looked once more. Then he continued to look. He tried not to, but his eyes returned to her face all the time. She saw that Juan looks at her without cease and asked:

"Do I know you?"

"Hmm.."

"Sorry, what did you say?"

"No. Yes. I don't know. I seem to know you, but I don't know where from."

"Strange. I sure don't remember you. Peter, let's go home. Stop annoying the man"

"Oh, he is not annoying me. On the contrary, we are enjoying smiling."

"What?"

"Mum. He is the first man."

"What?"

"He is the first man."

"I heard the first time but I don’t understand."

"Do you remember that you were angry on Max yesterday?"

"Yes."

"And you said, that you don't want him to come to the Christmas party and that you will invite the first man instead?"

"Ye-e-s."

"He is the first, isn't he?"

"I suppose."

"So.."

"Ah, yes. Sir, do you want to participate in our Christmas party today?"

.

.

"Explain me once more, why had you to rob Juan?"

"If the present he wanted most of all is love, I couldn't just bring it to him. I had to arrange things so that love would develop."

"Santa, do you really believe that they will love each other from now on?"

"Well, if they won't, it would be their fault, not mine. And now, read me another line in our list. Whom next we should bring the present?"