Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to review this story. I enjoyed writing it and exploring how things might have changed in the Hardy world if Joe had never been born. But, alas, the story is now complete. Enjoy.
Silent Night
Chapter 8
Frank was furious. Everyone was looking at him like he had three heads.
He didn't want to go the hospital, and only did so because he saw the concern on his father's face and he was burning up.
But now as the doctor was getting ready to order a battery of tests, Frank just wanted to scream and run out of the room. They were wasting time.
"I'm fine," he insisted, but Dr. Sidhu didn't look convinced.
He had to find Joe…. He had to find his little brother.
And then he saw the small blond haired boy with vibrant blue eyes watching him, and Frank recognized him as the boy from the mall.
"Wait!" he yelled, jumping off the bed and pushing past the shocked doctor and his father. He could hear them running after him but he didn't care – he had to catch that boy.
The little boy ran down the hall and around the corner.
Frank did the same, and almost barreled over his aunt, who had come to the hospital to drop off her gift. She was shocked to see her nephew, and her brother, and then an older East Indian doctor chasing after a little blond haired boy.
Gertrude had left the house a few minutes before Callie called, and had no idea what was going on.
So she did the only thing she could think of…. She chased the doctor!
* * *
The little boy disappeared out the front door, and Frank, Fenton, Dr. Sidhu and Gertrude Hardy chased after him.
Laura Hardy came out of the elevator in time to see a small blond haired boy running out the front door.
The boy glanced at her and then she too was chasing him.… It was him…. She had been looking for him.
* * *
Frank, Fenton, Dr. Sidhu, Gertrude and Laura came to a halt outside the hospital as they saw a group of carolers getting ready to sing. Where was the boy?
As they heard the people singing, Frank was oblivious to them as his eyes searched for the little boy. And then he froze as he heard an angel's voice.
Turning back to the choir, he saw a beautiful dark haired teenage girl with big doe eyes, and as she sang, her very voice seemed to have come from the heavens itself.
And she was looking right at him.
"Silent night! Holy night! All is calm; all is bright;
Round yon virgin mother and Child, Holy infant so tender and mild.
Sleep in heavenly peace; sleep in heavenly peace."
He then saw the little boy as he went to stand beside the raven-haired beauty. Only as Frank watched, the child seemed to morph into a handsome young man with curly blond hair and vibrant blues eyes.
And as the young man started to sing, Frank felt a catch in his chest. The voice was clear, flawless and beautiful as he sang…
"Silent night! Holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight!
Glories stream from heaven afar; heavenly hosts sing Alleluia;
Christ, the Savior, is born! Christ, the Savior, is born!"
Brushing away a tear, Frank shivered, watching the boy and the angel hold hands and smile at each other.
Two voices became as one as they were raised together and around them a hush seemed to fall over all of Bayport. The world was listening.
"Silent night! Holy night! Son of God, love's pure light.
Radiant beams from thy holy face, with the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth."
As if on cue, the clock tower began bonging out the stroke of midnight, and around them everyone started shouting 'MERRY CHRISTMAS.'
Frank ignored it all. His eyes were fixed on the young man as he tried not to lose him amidst the sea of people who had turned out to hear the choir.
"JOE!" he shouted.
To his astonishment, instead of running away as the child had, the young man seemed surprised to see him… and started walking towards him.
"I thought you weren't coming," he said, smiling widely, and Frank just stared at him, drinking him in and praying that he was real.
"Frank…are you okay?" he heard the teen ask, and Frank smiled and grabbed his brother in a tight hug.
"I am now!" he said, unashamed of the hot tears running down his cheeks.
Joe was real. He did have a brother… and finally Frank knew what he had been missing. It had a name. It was Joe.
"Joe, you were wonderful!" He heard his parents gush, and Frank turned in shock – they recognized him?
But then, instead of Dr. Laura Hardy and Police Chief Fenton Hardy – Frank saw his mother, Laura Hardy, and his father, private investigator Fenton Hardy.
"Iola!" Frank heard Catherine Morton pushing through the crowd to her daughter and grab her fiercely, "I'm so proud of you! You were wonderful!"
All their friends and family, who had come out to hear Joe and Iola sing, engulfed them. Aunt Gertrude, Chet Morton, Phil Cohen, Tony Prito, and even Biff Hooper.
Frank was confused but he didn't care because standing right in front of him was his brother and surrounding him was the life he knew.
* * *
It was almost 12:30 when they finally got home. Frank was standing in front of the mirror brushing his teeth. As he stood there he tried to make some sense of his dream.
He was sure now that it had been some sort of strange daydream. What else could it be? And then he wondered who the older man was who had been with the young Joe.
Yawning, he saw his distorted face in the mirror and recognition hit him like a ton of bricks. It had been him –
It had been Frank.
* * *
"Hey Joe," Frank rapped on his brother's door as he opened it up, and was surprised to see him already in bed, "Can I talk to you?"
"Sure," Joe yawned. He was exhausted. It had been a long day. He was elated, although still somewhat shocked that Frank had decided to come to the hospital to hear them sing after all.
The older boy came in and sat down on the bed next to his brother. He was kind of afraid to go to sleep and find out that this was the dream and the other life was the reality.
While he wasn't unhappy in his other life – he just felt like something was missing. And as he thought about everyone in his life, he realized that they had sensed it as well.
"I'm sorry," Frank said, "I was wrong last night in the mall."
Joe looked at him but didn't say anything as Frank continued, "Remember that Christmas after we spent the summer at Uncle Tim's ranch?"
"Yeah," Joe said guardedly.
"And I told you there was no Santa Claus. That it was all Mom and Dad?" Frank asked.
Joe wondered what his brother was getting at. He remembered that Christmas too – he had been mortified when his older brother told him that Santa Claus didn't exist.
"Well I was wrong - there is a Santa Claus."
Joe was skeptical, thinking that Frank was setting him up for something." Oh yeah…. You're so sure how?"
Frank smiled and reached over and grabbed his brother in another fierce hug. "Because he gave me exactly what I needed – even when I didn't know what that was. It's all about magic, Joe – Christmas magic," Frank finished as he released his brother and then he chuckled at the look on Joe's face. "Now scoot over and make room for big brother!"
And with that the two brothers snuggled down together as they had done so many times before when they had been growing up…. And they spent the next little while trying to guess what Santa had placed under the tree.
Frank waited until Joe had fallen asleep, and then smiled down at his sleeping sibling. "Good night little brother… I love you."
* * *
Under the flickering lights of the Christmas tree in the house on the corner of Elm Street and High Street, one gift with an ivory bow, wrapped in gold paper and ivory cherubs, seemed to shine a bit brighter than the rest….
To: Joe
From: Auntie G
The End
Final Note from Phx:
Never underestimate the effect of your life on others…every life is like one drop of water in a pool. The effect that it has on other people's lives is the ripple effect.
Just as Joe's life impacted many people in ways that were unseen, so does yours.
*Another driver in an intersection hit Catherine Morton's car and the accident resulted in her miscarrying her baby girl. But that should have never happened.
Laura Hardy was supposed to be a pedestrian at that same intersection to press the light that would give Catherine a red light instead of a green thus preventing the accident.
But Laura Hardy wasn't at that intersection that day because she didn't have to take her four-month-old son for a checkup at Dr. Bates office, which was located on that intersection. Why?
Because Joe had never been born.
*Aldo Prito tried to make his construction company stay afloat until it was too late and they lost everything forcing the family to move back to New York. But that was not supposed to happen.
While all the boys thought Mr. Prito's pizzas were the best, Joe loudly raved about them so much that when the construction company first started to encounter a down slide of business, Aldo thought seriously about selling out and opening up a pizzeria. Which he did and it became successful.
But then when Joe was never born…
As this Christmas season comes upon us, please remember that even on the days when you're wondering 'why'? Just remember the 'why' is often times in the things we don't see.
And regardless of what your beliefs are, there is something magical about this time of year…
Merry Christmas –
Love,
Phx
