Work Text:
“Who was that on the phone?”
“My mother calling to give me a play-by-play of everything we missed by not going to Texas for Christmas. Be glad you missed the conversation. We should arrange to be on a Nobel Prize lecture tour for the holidays every year.”
“Why? What happened?”
“Well, this year my family elected to do a Secret Santa gift exchange to save money and, to quote my mom, 'help bring the focus back to Jesus as the reason for the season.'”
“Sounds practical.”
“Yes, but it seems my sister's boyfriend proposed during the exchange.”
“What? That's great! What's his name again?”
“Stay focused, Amy. He proposed during Secret Santa.”
“So?”
“So? He was her Secret Santa!”
“You're going to have to walk me through this one.”
“First of all, my mother said they pulled names out of a hat. Unless the hat was somehow rigged, he couldn't have known he was going to get Missy's name.”
“Maybe he traded with someone else to get her name?”
“That violates the rules, plus that would just make his actions even worse.”
“How?”
“He gave her the ring as her gift, he didn't get her anything else.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“This man was going to propose anyway. He took advantage of the situation and used this as a way to get out of buying a Secret Santa gift. He owes my sister a gift!”
“Hmm, I would think, as a reluctant gift-giver yourself, you might appreciate his resourcefulness.”
“That's where you're wrong Amy. If we had attended the party, we both would have been obligated to buy gifts. If we all have to suffer, so should he.”
“Sheldon, I think you might be overreacting. What did Missy say? Did she like it?”
“She said yes, but she shouldn't have.”
“If she's happy, I think you're going to have to let this go.”
“But that's not even the worst part.”
“What's the worst part?”
“As you are likely aware, there's a widely accepted price rule that states one must spend two to three months' salary when purchasing an engagement ring.”
“Yeah, and?”
“There was a fifty dollar limit on the Secret Santa gifts!”