What I am Thankful For…a Christmas Gift

Henry and his new wife are expecting a baby. At first, Shawn is unsure of the news…until he holds his new sibling.

"Shawn, please say something," Henry pleaded.

Shawn stood in the middle of his father and stepmother's new house. He couldn't move. He was in shock. He had just been given the news that his father, Henry and Henry's wife of 1 year, Susan was expecting a baby.

"What do you want me to say, Dad?" Shawn asked. "I mean, you and Susan are having a baby. It's great. It's weird but great."

"Shawn, we didn't plan this," Henry said. "Susan didn't even think she could have more kids. But she can and she is having a baby. You're gonna be a big brother."

Shawn laughed and said, "Dad, come on, I'm 29 years old. You don't say 'you're gonna be a big brother.""

"Well, you are," Henry said. "You are going to have a brother or sister."

Shawn sat on the couch and said, "Well, that's great, Dad. I'm happy for you and Susan."

"Don't sound happy," Henry said.

"No, I am," Shawn, said. "I just got to go, I'd promise Gus I would meet him. I'll see you later. Tell Sue I said bye."

Shawn rushed out of the house, hopped on his motorcycle, and drove away from the house. He made sure he was out of sight before he called Gus.

Thirty minutes later, Gus met Shawn at the Psych offices. Gus was the picture of concern.

"Shawn, what is wrong?" he asked, hastily. "I left a very important meeting because you said it was an emergency."

"It is an emergency, Gus," Shawn said. "I just got some news from my father."

Gus sat down and looked very worried. "What? What is wrong? Is he sick?" he asked, frantically.

"No, it's just so weird," I said.

"Shawn, what is it?" Gus asked, loudly.

"Gus, my stepmother's pregnant," I said.

Gus looked confused. "What? What did you just say?" He asked.

"Nancy is having a baby," I said, pacing the floor.

Gus looked more confused. "How, how could this happen?" He asked.

"Well, Gus, when two people really, really love each other," I began.

I was met with a hit of my squeaky frog toy. "I know that part, Shawn," Gus said. "What I met was, how could Susan get pregnant? Your dad thought she couldn't have any more kids."

"Apparently, she can," I said.

"When is she due?" Gus asked.

"First week of January," I said.

Gus took a breath. "How are you taking the news?" He asked.

"It's weird," I said. "That's all I can say about it. I mean, Gus. I'm 29 years old. 29 years old. Most guys my age are becoming fathers, not big brothers."

"Well, that's true," Gus said, weakling over to the fridge and getting the two of them some pineapple juice. "But think about how wonderful having a little brother or sister will be."

Shawn accepted the pineapple juice and said, "I imagine it will be wonderful but I don't know. It just feels weird. I mean, there's going to to be such a big age gap between this kid and me. I'll be walking him or her in the park and people will say, 'Ohh, what a beautiful child you have.' What are people gonna say when I tell them I'm the big brother."

"Who cares what people think?" Gus asked. "Just tell them that this baby is your little sister or brother and be proud."

Shawn ran his fingers through his hair. "You know, dude, I was not expecting this," I said. "I mean, this news just caps off a year of weirdness. First, my mom dies of ovarian cancer, then, my dad meets this woman, who's 20 years younger, he marries her after 3 months of dating, and now, they're having a baby. It's just all happening so fast."

Gus sat beside Shawn and looked him in the eye. "Shawn, you should be use to things going fast. That's how you've lived your life. Why is this so different?"

"Cause this time, a new person is coming into my life," Shawn said. "And I'm gonna be forming an emotional attachment to this person and I don't know if I could handle it."

"You don't know if you could handle forming a emotional bond that could change your life?" Gus asked. "You don't know if you could handle a little brother or sister looking up to you?"

"I've never been a dependable guy," Shawn said. "I've always taken off after a while. Now, with a new brother or sister coming into the world, I'm gonna have to stick around more."

"You mean stick around in Santa Barbara or stick around your dad and stepmom?" Gus asked.

Shawn stopped and thought about that statement. He still hadn't gotten use to the idea of his dad being married. It wasn't that Shawn didn't like Susan. She was a nice person, she loved to surf she was a lawyer, and she loved pineapple. Susan embraced Shawn fully and loved him as much as she could, even though he was her stepson. But still, it was hard for Shawn to accept Susan. It was hard for him to accept the fact that his dad was dating anyone, despite the fact that he and Shawn's mom, Abigail had been divorced for 20 years. Shawn was incredibly close to his mom, which made it so hard when Abby died of ovarian cancer. And that closeness made t harder to take when Henry and Susan began dating and got married. Shawn felt that Susan was replacing his mom. But Susan assured him that she wasn't. She made it known that she could never replace his mom, but she could be a good stepmother. And she was. Susan let him know it was okay to remember his mom. She held his hand as he cried on Abby's birthday. She bought him a Renaissance angel to hang in his room to remember Abby. Susan even managed to bridge the gap between Henry and Shawn. In fact, Susan had made Henry and Shawn's relationship stronger. It was then that Shawn decided that Susan wasn't just a good stepmom; she was the best stepmother that he could hope for.

After much thought, Shawn said. "No, it's not that. It's just that…."

"Just what?' Gus asked.

Shawn said, "I'm afraid that my dad will not have time for me. We've gotten real close in the last few months, we've been fishing and building things. Once the baby comes, I'm afraid we won't have that."

Shawn looked very sad as he said that statement. He looked so sad that Gus moved closer to him and a warm hand on his shoudler.

Gus spoke in a small voice and said, "Shawn, no matter what happens, your dad will always be there for you. He'll always have time for you."

"Oh come on, Gus, how will he lave time for me? He's going to be busy with a new baby," Shawn said, standing up and pacing the floor.

Gus remained seated and said, "Well, of course, Shawn, the baby will require a lot of his time and energy but then again, being a cop took a lot of his time and energy and he still made time for you."

Shawn still wasn't convinced. "Yeah, well, he won't have time for me. He'll be spending time with his favorite child, who'll make him very proud."

"Ahhh, so the truth comes out," Gus said, leaning back in his chair. "You're afraid that your dad will love the baby more than you."

"Yes!" Shawn said throwing his hands up. "I'm afraid that my dad will love the baby more. I'm afraid that this kid will become all the things that I wasn't." Shawn sat down, looking sad.

Once again, Gus placed a warm hand on Shawn. "Look, Shawn, your dad is proud of you, proud of all you've accomplished. Sure may have not become a cop like he wanted you to, but you still used the tools he gave you to be good at what you do. And for that, your dad is very proud of you. He's accepted you and what you do. You don't have to worry about whether or not your dad will love you less. He loves you, dude. And he'll always love you, baby or no baby."

Shawn listened to what Gus said. Shawn knew in his heart that his dad loved him and was proud of him. He also knew that this baby would not cause Henry to change his love for him. And if it did, it would be for the better