-1 Title: An Eppes Christmas Carol
Author: 1st endeavor
Disclaimer: All the characters and references to the show "NUMB3RS" are the property of Cheryl Heuton and Nick Falacci, CBS and the Scott Brothers. I am not making any profit from this and no infringement is intended. This disclaimer applies to all chapters in this story.
Chapter 1:
To his dismay, Alan Eppes, found himself in the middle of a multitude of chaotic shoppers on Christmas Eve. It wasn't a planned trip but it was one of necessity.
Alan had finished his Christmas shopping weeks ago and all of the presents had been wrapped and were now lying beneath the tree. He had been so pleased with himself, no last minute shopping for him., no sir….until he did a quick inventory of the supplies that he needed for their Christmas dinner and discovered a shortage of potatoes. Christmas dinner just wouldn't be complete without the mashed potatoes to go with the turkey and with all of their friends joining them for dinner, two potatoes was just not going to be enough.
So here he was, scurrying through the aisles, avoiding shopping baskets and various food displays; amid the horde of shoppers on this Christmas Eve to find his elusive target. Finally, on his third trip down the produce aisle he found the 5 lb bag of potatoes that he had been so desperately seeking..
Sighing with relief, he bent down and picked up the last bag just as another pair of hands tried to grab it. Clutching it tightly to his chest, Alan looked the man squarely in the eye and with a broad smile wished the man a hearty Merry Christmas and headed for the check-out line.
Alan couldn't suppress another sigh as he caught sight of the lines of people waiting at the registers, even the self-check out machines had long lines. Choosing the nine items or less aisle he reluctantly took a place in line and found it ironic that almost everyone in this line had apparently failed math because from where he was standing there was only one other person who had less than nine items. He groaned inwardly, this was going to take all night.
As the line moved slowly, festive Christmas music played over the loudspeaker. It was meant to soothe the tired shoppers and help keep the people in the Christmas spirit but everywhere Alan looked all he saw were harried , impatient shoppers eager to be on their way.
Finally, it was his turn and he tried to put on a cheerful face for the frazzled looking check-out girl. She barely responded to his "Happy Holidays" as she frantically rang up his purchase and moved on to the next person in the line.
Alan grabbed his shopping bag and walked quickly toward the exit, once again dodging shopping carts and people.
The pandemonium didn't cease once he stepped outside. The parking lot was just as chaotic as the store was and as he weaved his way between the cars he thought about how nice it would be just to get home and out of this madness.
He glanced at his watch as he started his car. It was 6:20 p.m, and Charlie's plane would be arriving at LAX in ten minutes. At least, he hoped it would, there was a massive snow storm approaching the east coast and his son had been in Washington, D.C. on a consultant gig for one of the government agencies. The young Professor had left over a week ago promising that he would be back in time for Christmas.
Alan had almost given up any hope that he would make it home in time until his son had called him from the airport that very morning saying that he would be home by this evening. Thrilled with the news, he had immediately called his oldest son to let him know.
Don and his team had been really busy all week tracking down a suspected gun runner and Alan hadn't seen him for three days. They were hoping to make an arrest today and he was planning on coming by later.
Smiling at the thought of the three of them spending Christmas Eve together, he pulled out of the parking lot and headed for home.
Traffic was heavier than usual as Alan weaved his way down the street and stopped at a red light. Realizing he was grumbling to himself because the light seemed to be taking so long, he sighed and mentally went over the menu for tomorrows dinner. Just a few more miles and then he could relax and enjoy the holidays.
He heard the screeching of the tires before he saw the truck barreling toward him. Alan was surrounded by cars and with the truck coming at him head-on, there was no room to maneuver out of it's way.
As he tried to remove his seatbelt, time seemed to slow down and the truck appeared to be moving in slow motion. Alan watched in stunned silence as the cab of the truck loomed even closer.
His thoughts turned to his sons and he realized that he hadn't told them how much he loved them both and how proud he was of them. He was sure they knew it, but he hadn't said the words to them for a long time and now he wouldn't have the chance.
They had come so far this year. Don was spending more time with them now and over the past few months it seemed to Alan that he had finally come to terms with his brother and put all of their childhood issues to rest . With a happy heart, the elder Eppes had actually observed them becoming friends. This year, Alan himself had finally begun to understand his youngest son and they had developed a better understanding of one another.
He closed his eyes and envisioned his sons faces in his mind and as the air bag deployed he covered his head with his arms and whispered, "I Love you both so very much,."