Ho, Hoe, HO
by Emom
These good fellows don't belong to me, but I promise when I'm done to pick um up, dust um off and with a kiss on the cheek return them safely home.
Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. ~Jane Howard
A/N: Just a holiday one shot that came to me today. I hope you enjoy it :)
Johnny leaned hard against the pry bar as Roy watched his face turn red with the effort.
"Want me to try?" Roy casually offered.
The look of indignation of his partners face almost made Roy chuckle.
"No, no, I've got this. Don't you have something else to do?"
Roy propped against the rear door and crossed his arms. "No, I'm good. Just waiting on you."
The grunt that escaped was part exertion and part annoyance as Johnny put in his greatest effort into getting the crashed car door opened up.
"Don't be mad at me cause its our rotation this year," Johnny said with a grunt and strain.
Roy's mood darkened again. "I said I don't want to talk about it."
A quick glance at his best friend and partner reflected his concern.
"John, don't you have the door open yet?" Hank stood behind him, hands on his hips.
His instinct was to shoot an evil glare, but quickly readjusted his expression when his brain recognized the deep voice of his Captain.
"Almost Cap, just give me a minute."
"I hope so, I really don't want to break out the jaws for this."
Johnny shook his head. "You won't Cap." As soon as he finished the sentence the door came loose and Johnny fell straight back on his tailbone.
Roy jumped up and ran over to him, but quickly saw the man was okay with the only injury to his dignity. He shook his head and reached out his hand. Johnny appreciated the lack of comment and gratefully took the hand as he hopped back to his feet.
A little girl, about five years old darted past both men and jumped into the waiting car, climbing into the back seat to retrieve something precious and priceless to her. Roy leaned in the door to make sure she was okay and found her crying as she clutched her treasured item.
"What's wrong honey?" He asked gently. She was about the same age as his daughter Jennifer and there was one thing he had never gotten used to, and that was his daughters heart-felt tears.
"My Papai," she sobbed. "He's hurt!"
Roy reached out and pulled her over into the front seat and into his arms. Backing out of the vehicle, a quick glance let him know that Mike, Marco, Chet, Cap and even Johnny were eyeing him closely as the girl cried into his shoulder.
"Well, Elina, do you know what a paramedic is?" He asked her.
She sat up in his arms, "No."
"We help people feel better." He had her attention now.
Her little body heaved with sighs from crying so hard. "Can you help my Papai?"
He turned to Chet and Marco. "Grab the boxes."
They paused for just a half a second with a quick glance to their Captain who only responded with. "You heard him, move it!"
Johnny took off his turnout coat and laid it on the ground as Roy knelt and set her down on it. Her legs were crossed with her Papai lying in her lap, still cradled in her arms. With big brown eyes, she looked up to Roy with sadness that he would do almost anything to take that pain away from her.
Chet ran up with the trauma box and opened it up beside Johnny while Marco rolled up the oxygen tank beside Roy.
Roy looked at them. "Oxygen, Marco." Then over to Chet. "Need vitals Chet."
Both firemen now smiled in return as Marco gently placed the face mask on the victim. Chet took the smallest blood pressure cuff he could find and wrapped it around the tiny arm and inflated it. Meanwhile, Johnny leaned in and placed the stethoscope over its heart and listened intently.
"Bandages," Roy looked up and said to Mike, who then also circled around the innocent injured party and its guardian.
"Very strong heartbeat," Johnny told her with a smile. "It sounds like Jingle Bells."
Elina giggled then quickly looked over as Roy placed a band-aid on the elbow, and another over the knee.
"Roy, blood pressure is perfect, breathing is like a bowl full of jelly."
Elina giggled louder this time.
Roy looked into her eyes and saw the return of a twinkle there. "I think Papai is going to be just fine. What do you say?"
She nodded her head eagerly. "Papai says thank you."
Roy removed the face mask and blood pressure cuff and the men took a few steps back. He reached down and picked her up again, holding her in one arm as he patted her stuffed Santa Clause doll on the head.
"You're very welcome Papai. Now, I think it's time to let your momma know that he's feeling better."
He walked over to the sidewalk where an extremely grateful mother took Elina into her arms and hugged her tight before the little girl squirmed out of her arms once again.
Tears filled her eyes. "Thank you so much. We had just walked into the store when we heard the crash out here in the parking lot. I'm just so grateful that we weren't in the car."
Roy smiled back to her. "No problem ma'am."
She grabbed his arm. "No, what you did for her. Her father gave her that last Christmas, just before we lost him to cancer. Papai has never left her since then. I can never thank you enough for getting it back to her."
He pushed back the moisture in his own eyes. "I hope you can have a very Merry Christmas."
Feeling a tug on his coat, he looked down to see the cherub face looking up to him. "Yes ma'am, " he said with a big smile.
She pushed a wrapped box up to him. "This is from Papai. But, you can't open it til tonight. Promise?"
He looked at the mom who's eye's were glistening now. "Yes, from us to all of you. Please take it."
Roy took the box in his hands, it was so lightweight he couldn't imagine what it held.
"Not til tonight. Pinky promise," she held out her small finger to him.
He knelt and wrapped his much bigger pinky around hers. "Pinky promise."
When he turned back to the engine and squad, he found everyone staring at him with big goofy grins on their faces.
"Roy DeSoto, hero of the day," Chet hummed.
Roy moved past him, ignoring the jab.
"Nice work," Hank said with a slap on his back.
"Thanks for playing along for a few minutes," he replied.
"Hey, those few minutes gave that little girl a lifetime of memories back. You did good DeSoto."
Roy climbed into the squad and glanced over at his quiet partner. "You okay?"
Johnny looked serious. "You made a real difference back there. I mean, the other guys might not get it, but I do."
Johnny knew the close relationship Roy had with his kids, he'd seen it firsthand many times. He also knew how hard this shift was going to be on his partner and best friend.
"Thanks, Junior."
It wasn't even lunchtime yet and they had been gone on runs almost all morning. It was bad enough having to work Christmas Day, but coming in from this last run and walking into the dayroom hit them like a brick wall.
"What the hell!" Chet yelled at the sight that greeted them.
"No, no no no," Johnny said as he darted over to the Christmas tree over by the couch.
Well, it had been over by the couch, but now it was on the couch, under the couch, inside the couch, with scattered remnants all over the floor. The others were completely speechless. Everything had been destroyed. The tree, the presents, broken ornaments, and even the star on top was now in plastic pieces everywhere.
"The turkey too!?" Marco cried out as he picked up pieces of bone off the floor.
Johnny stomped towards the station mascot. "BOOTS!"
The dog, no longer proud of his accomplishment darted past the long arms of Johnny and headed straight out the back bay doors into the safety of the parking area.
"Let's get this cleaned up," Hank said with all the energy drained from him.
Quietly, the men pulled out brooms and trash bags, gathered up the remains of the presents, and drug the pathetic tree skeleton out the back door.
Every shift had their rotation of working Christmas Day. It was no different for this crew. They had tackled missing their families and mornings with Santa by decorating the station, planning a gift exchange and coming up with great food. Now, all their effort was demolished by a thirty pound furred terror.
"I can't believe this," Johnny moaned as he swept up the last of the turkey remains. "How can one dog be that destructive in such a short time?"
Mike scoffed at him. "Can tell you've never had a puppy in the house."
Johnny frowned.
"We can order pizza," Marco said. "And there's still two pies in the freezer for us from the last shift."
"Pizza," Johnny muttered. "Who dreams of a delicious, juicy, dressing stuffed pizza for Christmas dinner?"
They all looked up when the tones sounded.
STATION 51, Entrapment, 1190 Crimson Drive, cross street Moccasin, Timeout 1314.
Tossing the brooms and mop into the closet, they quickly loaded up into the trucks and pulled out of the bay. There was no time to moan fallen firs, and dashed turkey hopes.
"Uh Roy, isn't Crimson and Moccasin the area with all the," he paused.
Roy shot him a look. "Yea, it is."
Johnny's eyebrows shot up as he twisted lips. "This should be interesting then."
"Let's hope interesting is all it is."
In less than ten minutes they pulled up to the curb, at the corner of a less frequented intersection. It wasn't the safest part of the county to visit and both medics were grateful for the presence of the engine as backup. Jumping out of the squad they quickly pulled out the necessary boxes and then turned to see some indication of where they were needed.
Roy pointed to the narrow steps that lead up to a solid black door. The only markings it bore were thin, hand painted numbers that read 1190, barely invisible against the black paint. Johnny knocked only to find it easily pushed open by the pressure of his knock. Reaching out he gently opened the door and peered into what looked like a lobby. Over on the wall, where paint was peeling off in sheets, there were tarnished mailboxes, indicating this was an apartment building, not a single dwelling.
"Great, how are we supposed to know where to go?" Johnny complained as he looked up the long and narrow staircase before them.
"Hello?" Roy called out as he heard the footsteps of Hank and Chet come up behind them.
Getting no response, Hank motioned up the stairs. "I guess we go door to door."
The old stairs creaked and groaned as the crew moved up them to the first floor.
"John, Roy, take the right side. Chet left with me," Hank directed them.
Fanning out they began knocking on doors. Most of the doors opened to the firemen, puzzled and shrugging at having no idea what they were talking about. Dogs barked, making babies cry, and momma's yelled in languages that they could only nod and apologize for the interruption. Coming up empty, they headed up the next staircase and began to repeat the process. Luckily, only a couple of doors were knocked on before Chet was greeted by a tall, slender, beautiful, bleached blonde woman. His eyes widened as she leaned against the frame and smiled seductively at him, her knee-high black stiletto boot propped up against the wall behind her.
"Well, hello cutie pie," she purred at him as she played with the red and green elf hat on her head.
Everyone in the hallway stopped and looked at Chet, who was having difficulty breathing, much less speaking at the moment. She played with her hair that fell over her lacy red corset, which didn't complete the distance to her matching green mini skirt and black thigh high hose.
Johnny came up behind them. "Um, ma'am, did you call the fire department?"
Her eyes widened as she looked down the hall at the stunned faces. "Well, if I'd known one phone call would have worked this well, I'd of called a long time ago."
Roy realized they were getting nowhere fast and there might actually be an emergency somewhere.
"Is someone here hurt or sick?" He asked, trying to look past her and into the apartment.
HELLLPP!
The cry for help seemed muffled and came from back inside the apartment, but Roy definitely heard it. He moved past her and through the nasty, trashed living room, towards the back hallway. Johnny was right on his heels, as Hank pushed Chet in the back and past the woman.
"Let's go Pally," he said as Chet had to refocus and not fall over his own boots.
"Back here Cap!" They heard Roy call out and followed his voice.
In the bedroom, they found Roy and Johnny standing next to an old metal framed bed. The man wearing a reindeer costume.
"Oh geesh," Chet grumbled.
A swift elbow in his side reminded him to shut up. "What's the problem," Hank asked while trying to keep a straight face.
"I CAN'T BREATH!" The muffled voice said from the plastic molded reindeer head that covered the man's head. "HELP ME!"
"Now, now, just calm down there," Johnny said. "Where's the keys to the handcuffs?"
The guest elf now leaned against the inner bedroom door frame. "How am I supposed to know?"
Roy approached the head of the bed and leaned in towards the man and tried to pull the costume head off.
"OUCH! STOP!" The voice yelled back at him.
"It's wedged on tight Cap. I can't do much until we can move him around."
"THEY WERE ON THE NIGHTSTAND OVER THERE."
Hank nudged Chet. "Go check for them."
Chet moved over to the narrow space between the bed and the wall, having to scoot sideways in a small area. Looking around the various, items of entertainment, he shot a look over to Roy again and shook his head.
"Make sure you look on the floor Kelly," Hank said sternly.
"You're enjoying this too much," Chet mumbled under his breath.
"What was that Kelly?" Hank pursed his lips together tightly.
"Nothing Cap, nothing." Chet moving back, facing the wall, until he was standing directly behind Hank.
"PLEASE HELP ME!" The man gasped out. "I CAN'T BREATH IN HERE."
"We're going to have to cut it off Cap," Roy said.
"OMG WHAT?! YOU'RE GOING TO CUT WHAT OFF?" He struggled harder against the cuffs.
"Hey! Stop that before you really do hurt yourself," Johnny chided him. "Now, we're going to get you out of this, but you gotta calm down."
"Kelly, get the small cutters."
The sentence wasn't even finished before Chet was racing down the second flight of stairs and out the door. No one was sure exactly what to say, so they stood in silence.
"Marty, I'm gonna go okay?"
"OH, OKAY. SORRY KIKI, NEXT TIME NO REINDEER."
She walked over and bent down to kiss his shiny red nose, bending over right in Johnny's direction.
"It's okay baby."
She scooted between the chair and Johnny, brushing up against him causing he costume bells to jingle. "What about you handsome? You busy tonight?" She winked at him.
Johnny tried to step backward and nearly fell on top of Roy, scrambling to keep his balance and having no control over the hot flush that came to his face. "Uh, working, see, yea, working all night. All night, can't leave." He stood up and pushed down his coat again. "Sorry."
She made a pouty face and stuck out her lower lip. "Okay, but if you ever want Kiki, you know where to find her."
Chet had to body press the doorway to avoid running right smack into her as she headed out into the hallway. She leaned in almost nose to nose with the frozen fireman, placed her finger on her lips, then on his and made a kissing sound.
"Night sexy," she whispered to him as she sauntered down the hall and around the corner.
"KELLY!" Hank yelled to get his attention again.
He scrambled to them and quickly cut the man loose, allowing him to sit up with Roy's help. It took a few more minutes to cut away at the mask until they could pry it off the man's face. He gasped at the fresh air, his hair was soaking wet, and his chest heaving with relief.
"Pulse is 100, blood pressure 140 over 80, respirations twenty-four." Roy looked at the man. "Feeling better?"
The man grinned from ear to ear. "Oh God, I can't thank you enough. You saved my life!"
Behind him, Johnny called in the rescue, reporting that the man was doing okay now. "You don't need to go to the hospital, but we do recommend you follow-up with your doctor tomorrow."
"Oh, I will, I will. I wish I knew how to repay you guys. You're life savers."
"Just doing our job," Roy answered.
Outside, Marco and Mike stood by the engine and watched the woman leave the building and give them a little wave. Mike waved back with a smile as Marco smacked his hand.
"Don't wave. She'll think you want to hire her."
"Oh," Mike said and stuffed his hands in his coat pockets.
When the others emerged and headed over Hank climbed in the engine without further comment while Chet saddled up next to Johnny.
"Hey, Johnny boy, why does Santa have three gardens?"
Johnny stopped, closed his eyes and shook his head. "I know I'm going to regret asking."
"You're going to regret asking," Roy echoed him.
"Why Chet? Why does Santa have three gardens?"
Chet smiled and looked to the street corner where Kiki stood. "So he could Ho Ho Ho."
Johnny fought down the smile, refusing to give Chet the gratification, and turned back to climb into the squad.
"Don't say it," he told Roy.
Roy just smiled back. "I wasn't going to say a thing."
As they pulled onto the main road again, the engine right behind them, they began to work their way back to the station. Two red lights later Roy was stopped for red, when a truck was side swiped by a car in the opposite direction which was running the light. All right in front of them.
Johnny flipped on the sirens and lights, followed by the engine as he called the accident into HQ. Pulling up closer to the crash, Roy jumped out and headed towards the smaller car first. The boy appeared to be about seventeen, as he leaned back in the seat stunned.
Roy opened the door and leaned in to check on him. "Are you hurt?"
"My head," the boy replied. When he pulled back his hand, there was a large gash on his forehead. Roy turned toward the engine crew as they headed to him. "Chet, grab the boxes. Cap, we're going to need an ambulance."
Hank waved back to him.
Johnny headed for the box truck which had been hit at the rear back-end, breaking the doors open and knocking some of the contents out. He climbed up on the step of the truck to check the driver.
"You okay?"
The older man nodded. "Yea, I'm a little rattled, but I'm not hurt. What about the other car?"
"I think he's okay too. Think you can climb out and let me make sure you're okay?"
"Sure," the man said as he followed Johnny out of the truck and over to the sidewalk.
"What do we have John?" Hank asked.
"Truck driver has no injuries, Roy's kid has a head laceration, but otherwise seems okay. He'll need to go in though."
"Hey fellas," the truck driver called out, now standing behind his truck looking at the damage.
They wandered over to him.
He reached down and placed a huge thawed turkey in Johnny's arms. "Here you fella's go. I can't sell these now, after this, so take one back to the station for dinner." The man smiled at being able to do something nice for them.
"That's really generous of you Mister," Hank started. "But," he started.
"Now, my dad was a fireman a long time ago. I know what it's like to work the holiday and be away from family. So please, let me do this for you."
Hank nodded to Johnny and reach out to shake the man's hand. "Thank you."
"Merry Christmas fella's."
"The guy just gave you a turkey?" Dixie asked amazed.
"Yea," Johnny said. "Apparently, he owns that butcher shop over on eleventh and was closing up shop for the day and delivering some last-minute birds."
"Well, after Boot ate ours, it was hard to say no," Roy added, expressing less excitement over the events of the day.
"I'm glad that something went well for you guys today," her smile softened at the men in front of her. "If anyone deserves a good holiday, it's you two."
"Aww, thanks, Dix, you too," Johnny beamed.
"Maybe some elves will help make the day better somehow."
Roy groaned. "I think the only way this day will get better is when the seven a.m. alarm rings."
"Oh, come on Roy. You have to admit it's been an entertaining shift at least." Johnny was starting to get worried about his friends Christmas spirit.
"Let's get back, before Boot figures out how to open the freezer and eat the pie that's left too. Merry Christmas Dix."
"Merry Christmas fella's," she said. Her smile faded as she watched her two favorite medics walk down the hall. All didn't seem well in the land of Station 51 this holiday.
Lunch had been missed in the chaos of the afternoon, but the small break in calls had allowed them to relax a bit and watch the parade on TV. Marco worked in the kitchen, getting the turkey ready for the oven while whistling holiday tunes and Chet was trying to repair the gingerbread house that Martin's daughter, on C-shift, had made for the station.
"Hey Roy, wanna help me make some cookies? Marco says we have enough supplies to make some sugar cookies."
Johnny sounded like a kid and Roy couldn't let his downed spirit bring his friend's excitement down.
"Sure."
They stopped mid-step as the klaxons sounded.
SQUAD 51, INJURED MAN, BIG JOHN'S FARM, 493 WESTBROOK AVENUE, CROSS STREET MORGAN, TIMEOUT 1730.
"So much for cookies," Johnny grumbled.
They rode in silence as Johnny tried to figure out how to make being away from the kids better for his friend.
"I know working today isn't easy Roy. It's rough when you have kids and a family you're missing," Johnny said as they drove down the road.
"I really don't want to talk about it Johnny, okay? It is, what it is. Can't do anything about it. I'll survive."
Johnny pressed his brow together knowing that was true, there was nothing they could do about it. But he felt that somehow, he had to make today something special for his best friend. Somehow.
Pulling up to the location, they parked next to a large tree farm. Rows and rows of cut trees, all sizes and shapes stood at the ready, yet unpicked for this holiday season. Carrying the boxes they headed past the forest and to the other end where a makeshift counter had been constructed. A young woman came from behind the tarp backdrop.
"He's back here, please hurry."
Their pace quickened as they rounded the barrier and emerged on the other side, finding a large play area. There was a play set for kids, a hot chocolate stand, a giant wooden snowman with holes and bean bags to toss into them. Several other booths with carnival style games completed the winter village with a train track that circled the entire area. The woman led them past the small cars, that held seats for children to ride in, to the miniature engine where they could only see a torso and legs sticking out.
Roy immediately got down on his hands and knees to see where the rest of the man was.
"Hello?"
"Hey, I'm stuck." The man moved his legs.
"Okay, just be still," Roy told him. "Where are you stuck at?"
Johnny was on the other side and laid down in the dirt, his head moved under the little engine. "Roy, it looks like his arm is caught up in the engine here." Johnny reached up and tried to follow the arm until it met the metal parts.
"OH! Don't pull, I can feel it cutting me," the man yelped at Johnny's manipulations.
Johnny could see the man's face now. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"
"No, no, just my arm. If you need to, you can remove the front carriage and you might see better from there."
Both men stood up and found the latch on the front, pulled the outer casing up and swung it to the side on its hinges. Leaning forward Roy could see the man's fingers.
"Your wedding ring is caught."
He reached in and slid his hand between the parts until he could lift the ring up just enough to unhook it from a small metal rod. Johnny moved back down and eased the man's arm out until he was free. Once out, they inspected his arm and found no damage other than a deep indention into the skin, but no open wound.
"You're a very lucky man, Mr. Jacks. Looks like no damage at all."
The man rubbed his arm and his ring as he looked up at his wife. "Thank you, fella's. I have to admit I was pretty worried there for a bit."
Roy closed up the boxes and stood back up. "If anything starts to bother you, just call your doctor."
"I will, thanks."
They walked around the tarp and headed to the squad.
"Hey fellas," he called out as he caught up with them.
"I don't know if you could use one, but you'd be welcome to any tree on the lot, no charge. The selling season is over and these guys will just become wood chips tomorrow."
Johnny's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. "Roy?"
Roy sighed. "How do you plan on getting one back to the station?"
"If I can get it on the squad, can we have one? Please?"
The tree man laughed. "I have all the twine you need, even a box of stuff to put on it, you're welcome to take it too."
Roy knew there was no way he would win this battle. "Fine." Tree or no tree mattered to him at this point.
Roy backed the squad into the station and parked it. Getting out, he shook his head.
"The things you get me into," he said.
"What? This was genius Roy, genius. You can't deny it." Johnny bounced out of the seat and closed the door.
Moving to the back of the truck, they looked up at the six-foot tree which was tied into the stokes, then tied to the back compartments.
"What the hell?"
They spun around to the sound of Hank's booming voice in the bay.
"Look Cap!" Johnny said giddily. "The guy we rescued, gave us a free tree."
"Nice," he said nodding his head. "And very creative packing I have to say."
Johnny nudged Roy with his shoulder. "Told ya."
"Yea, yea. We'll rename you Father Christmas."
He tried to sound serious, but even Johnny saw the hint of a smile on his lips.
"Come on, let's go show the guys."
The station was starting to smell like the wonderful aroma of the roasting turkey and Marco and Mike had managed to dig through the cupboards for some side dishes to add to it. The sun had set outside and as dinner time approached they all were feeling a bit more lively as Chet and Johnny argued over the lights and ornaments on the tree and Roy finished up the sugar cookies.
Johnny plugged in the lights and nothing happened.
"Aww man, now what?" Disappointment rang loud and clear in his voice.
"Only takes one bulb to mess up the whole strand you know," Chet said with a head shake. "Now, we have to check every single bulb."
The klaxons sounded again and Johnny dropped the cord knowing they would have to figure it out later.
Three hours later the men returned to the bay, exhausted, sweaty, covered in soot and singed at the edges. The house fire started by a Christmas tree could have been tragic had the family not escaped in time. No one had been hurt which was a holiday miracle, and the house was damaged, but not a total loss. It could have been a hundred times worse.
Hank pointed everyone to the showers as he headed to his office. "Get cleaned up, we'll meet up for dinner."
He knew it might be asking for a lot, but Hank understood that his men needed something good tonight, something to remind them what today was about. He just wasn't sure what to do at this late hour. Sitting down to fill out a call report, while he waited for his turn in the shower. He picked up the phone to call his wife.
The men gradually found their way back to the dayroom. Back to the dark and lonely tree, empty underneath, a cold turkey in the oven and dinner that waited to be cooked and no one with the energy to do it anymore.
When the station doorbell rang, Hank left his office to answer it. As he joined the others he found Chet petting Boot on the couch, not really focusing on anything in particular. Marco was pushing dishes around in the kitchen, mildly frustrated that none of the dining plans had worked out for the shift while Mike buried his head in the paper from two days earlier. Johnny and Roy sat in front of the TV, flipping channels with nothing to watch and were barely talking to each other.
"Fella's?" Hank called for their attention. "It seems we have some company."
The men turned around to see familiar faces moved into the room with them. Jenny and Christopher ran over to hug Roy as he looked up with near tears in his eyes to see Joanne standing there with a radiant smile on her face. Emily was there with Hanks two daughters as they ran over to the tree and squealed with delight over each ornament. Dixie, Kel Brackett, Mrs. Lopez, and Joe Early emerged next, all carrying arms full of food, hot and ready to eat.
While Marco and Mike helped to get the table set and the food put out, Joe moved over to the tree and tinkered with the lights until they popped on. The beautiful glow reflected off the walls and against the shiny ornaments and tinsel that hung on the branches.
Joanne and Emily dropped large bags of wrapped presents letting the kids tuck them under the tree, filling it up quickly as if Santa had just arrived.
Roy sat on the couch with Joanne at his side. "How? How did you guys pull this off?"
She nuzzled in next to him. "Did you really think we could go all day without seeing our favorite guy?"
"And you all just happened to arrive at the same time?" He asked with a smirk.
"Well, there was a little planning involved here," she laughed.
Jenny placed a box in Roy's lap. "What's this one daddy?"
He knew the lightweight rectangle box from the morning accident. "I'm not sure honey, why don't you open it up and see?"
Jenny bounced up and down as she pulled the paper away then opened up the lid. Reaching inside she pulled out a white Angel tree topper.
"Oh Roy," Joanne gasped. "It's beautiful."
He stood up and picked Jenny up hoisting her to his shoulders, holding her legs tight as Chet passed the Angel up to the little girl.
"Go ahead honey, put it on top," Roy told her.
Once the topper was situated he felt Joanne's arm wrap around his waist.
"You're the most amazing woman and I'm glad you're mine," he leaned in and kissed her as Jenny scrunched up her nose and went 'eww'. They both laughed. "I mean it baby, to do this for me and the guys."
"Oh, I didn't plan all this. I just got a phone call," she told him.
"Phone call?"
"Apparently, there's an elf at the station that was very worried about his friends today."
Roy looked around at the room full of people, friends and family that meant the world to him. Kids ran around laughing and playing, the tree sparkled with presents packed underneath, and a table full of delicious food waiting. He suddenly felt ashamed for how he had moped and pouted through the day. This crew was just as much his family as the beautiful woman he married and children he adored.
Then one smile caught his attention.
Johnny tipped his glass of sparkling grape juice in Roy's direction and gave him a wink.
"Merry Christmas pally."