Day 10 is here! I cannot believe we are a third of the way into our event! So far this has really been amazing...and I expect that to continue. One of the things I particularly love about this project is that we get to hear from some of our WilSon authors who currently aren't posting regularly for a chapter story. Yesterday and today are perfect examples...wonderful writers we haven't heard from in a little while...until now! What a TREAT! Thank you writers, readers and reviewers!
A/N: I always wonder what life will be like in the future for Will and Sonny and this is what came to me one night. It's a little long but a sweet story with an added extra at the end, a recipe. Enjoy! Happy Holidays!
"First Christmas" by AllThingsGay
December 25th, 2018
Early morning light softly spills in through the kitchen window as Will looks out at the backyard to discover a soft white blanket is now covering the children's slide and swing set. He smiles remembering this past summer filled with laughter and fun in the warm sunshine of lazy afternoons. And the happiest memory of the year, this is where Ari met her new brother for the first time.
The summer before Will and Sonny had decided they wanted to grow their family. With so many children needing homes, adopting was the best possible choice. They began the process of being approved and kept the decision to themselves until they had been selected. They didn't want Arianna to hope and be disappointed.
They passed the approval process and began the waiting. They knew it would be a long wait but were sure the right child would come into their lives.
But fate had a different plan. The wait was shorter than expected. In June, the call came, "We have someone we would like you to meet. " As Sonny drove, Will anxiously rubbed his hands on his jeans trying to stay calm, his stomach full of butterflies. With a gentle touch, Sonny stilled Will's hands and smiled.
When Will and Sonny were taken to the yard where the children of the orphanage played, Will saw a little boy about three years old with dark hair sitting at the top of the slide. The boy seemed to be waiting. He was looking down at his hands and then lifted his head and looked around. He glanced at Will and stopped. And then he smiled.
Will couldn't breathe. "There he is." he thought. "That's our little boy." There was only one other time in Will's life where the world seemed to stop and he lost his breath; when he saw Arianna for the first time. An instant connection was so strong that there was no one else in the room, just Will and Arianna.
With his dark hair and eyes, and the way the boy's eyes twinkled when he smiled, Will thought he looked like a mini version of Sonny.
Lost in the moment, Will didn't realize that Sonny had gripped his hand tightly until the feeling in his fingers had gone numb.
"Honey?" Will said as he turned to look at his husband.
Sonny smiled back at him. He nodded and Will knew that he had felt the same connection with the little boy.
The boy's name was Jose Hector Elizondo and having lost both his parents in a car accident the year before, he was a quiet and tentative child who looked a little lost at times. The workers said he rarely smiled and spoke even less. The few times he did speak, the words he used were in Spanish. He was a difficult boy to place; he didn't seem to fit into any of the foster homes he had been in. So with Spanish being spoken at home with Arianna, CPS thought Sonny and Will would be the perfect family for Jose.
Will and Sonny brought him home where Sami, Will's brother and sisters, and Ari waited in the backyard for their return. As soon as they stepped through the back gate, Ari welcomed her new brother with open arms and hugged him.
"Daddy, what's his name?" She asked.
"His name is Jose, sweetie." Will replied.
Ari tilted her head and looked thoughtfully at the small boy with brown eyes. "Can I call him Joe?" she said.
"How come?" Sonny asks her.
"Because Papa, he looks like a Joe." She replied in a matter of fact kind of way.
She took Joe by the hand and showed him the slide. From then on, Ari looked out for him and played with him. She was an amazing big sister.
With Ari's constant attention and love, Joe slowly came out of his shell and flourished. He was a happy and healthy boy always ready for adventure.
And Joe seemed to like his new nickname. When Adrienne asked him what his name was, he proudly stood up and said, "Joe."
Will takes a sip of his coffee while remembering all these moments, feeling so grateful for such a wonderful family; A loving husband, two happy children and loving grandparents who doted on them, spoiling them every chance they had.
Feeling warm arms wrapping around his middle and a kiss at the back of his neck, Will grins. "Good morning, honey." He puts down his mug and turns to seeSonny's smiling face.
"Merry Christmas, Will." Sonny kisses Will tenderly and just as he pulls away,Will leans in to steal three more kisses. Sonny chuckles.
Will peeks over Sonny's shoulder and then furrows his brow. "Aren't the kids up yet?"
Sonny shrugs. "It's only 6:30."
"Yeah, my point exactly." Will moves to pour a cup of coffee for Sonny. "Remember Ari last year? She was awake at, like 5 and we had to tell her to go back to sleep."
"Well, we did let them stay up a little later last night. I guess they're tired."Grinning like a Cheshire cat, Sonny takes a sip of his coffee and leans up against the counter. "Besides, I like having a few quiet moments with my husband on Christmas morning."
Will never tires of hearing those words from Sonny, my husband. Smiling, he comes closer to Sonny, taking his mug and setting it aside. Will slides his hands up into the back of Sonny's hair and kisses him. While the first kiss of the morning was tender and sweet, this kiss is passionate and full of promise.
Sonny wraps his arms around Will's waist, his hands touch the small of his back and he pulls Will closer. A deep moan escapes his lips as he breaks the kiss for split second to grab a breathe of air. After 6 years, Sonny is still in awe of how quickly his body ignites with passion when Will touches him.
Both of them now panting, they touch their foreheads and cling to each other.
"How long do you think they'll sleep?" Sonny asks.
"Hmm, I think we have time." Will replies reading his thoughts.
They quickly and quietly head back up stairs hand in hand. As they reach the landing of the second floor, they listen for stirrings from the children's rooms. The only sound they can hear is the soft ticking of the hallway clock so they continue to their room at the end of the hall.
Once inside their room, Sonny turns the lock on the door while Will slides his hands under his shirt caressing Sonny's back.
Their clothes noiselessly drift to the floor as they fall together into bed, with hands, and kisses exploring naked skin, bodies moving as one. They make love with the familiar dance they know so well. But as familiar as the motions are, they always surprise each other with new pleasures, new delights. Always passionate, their lovemaking is sometimes tender and unhurried, sometimes heated and energetic.
This morning with little time to spare, they make love tenderly but with quickly brings Sonny to climax then finds his own release overwhelming him. They fall onto their backs panting for air, hearts pounding in their links his fingers with Sonny's, and brings their intertwined fingers to his lips. Softly, he kisses the back of Sonny's hand.
"I love you," whispers Will as he blinks to clear the dampness in his eyes.
Sonny turns to him bringing his hand up to caress Will's face. "I love you too." He kisses him and then gently rubs their noses. "Are you ok?"
"I, uh, yeah I'm perfect. I'm so lucky. You're an amazing father. You're so incredible Sonny."
"So are you." Sonny sighs before continuing. "Sometimes I think my heart will burst with happiness. I look at our life and we are so lucky. I'm grateful everyday for you, Ari and Joe."
Will pulls Sonny close to kiss him, savoring the moment.
All of sudden from downstairs, they hear the screams of delight from their children. "Santa was here! Look Joe, he ate the cookies! Daddy! Papa! Look what Santa brought!"
Laughing, Will and Sonny quickly get dressed to join them; they will have time later to cuddle. But for the moment nothing would make them happier than celebrating Joe's first Christmas as a Horton-Kiriakis.
Downstairs in the living room with the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree behind them, they find Arianna and Joe surrounded by little wrapped gifts that have been pulled out of their stockings. As they walk into the room, Joe is about to open one small colourfully wrapped present.
"No, Joe. You have to wait until Daddy and Papa are here. And then we eat breakfast." Arianna explains in an authoritative voice.
Joe looks wide-eyed at Sonny. "Papa? Can we eat breakfast really fast?"
Sonny laughing replies "Well not too quickly but yes we can eat fast. Come with me."
Joe hops up and grabs Sonny's out stretched hand. Looking down at Joe, who is looking back at him with bright clear eyes, Sonny is overwhelmed with love.
In the kitchen, Sonny pulls one of the chairs up to the counter. Joe having done this before, scrambles up the chair. This is their routine; Papa and Joe making pancakes on weekend mornings. Sonny assembles the ingredients on the counter in front of Joe. Joe pulls out the measuring cup and opens the Tupperware bin of flour. With deft hands, he scoops up flour and pours it in the bowl that Papa has set down. Next, the baking powder, salt and sugar. Joe with a wooden spoon mixes the dry ingredients together as Sonny melts some butter. Then with care, Joe makes a well in the middle. Sonny pours the milk into a cup, hands it to Joe, and he pours it carefully into the well. Sonny adds the egg and melted butter. Joe now stirs it all together.
When Joe is satisfied with his pancake batter, he proudly presents Sonny with the bowl. "I'm done, Papa."
"Great!" Sonny pulls the chair over closer to the stove. The pan is heated and ready to go. Joe and he make pancakes, piling them up on a plate as each one comes out of the pan.
"Oh wow, those look yummy!" Will comes into the kitchen and tries to steal a small pancake.
Sonny playfully slaps his hand away. "Hey, you have to wait mister."
Will steals a kiss instead.
After devouring delicious pancakes, they are ready for opening presents. The children tear into their gifts from Santa.
Sonny and Will watch the children laugh and smile and jump for joy when they open their presents; everything they had asked Santa for, they've received.
When all the gifts are open, Ari whispers into Joe's ear. They smile at each other and nod.
Ari stands up and with a glint in her eye; she says, "We'll be right back. Don't move."
Sonny and Will look at each other puzzled. What can they be up to?
"Ari? Joe? What are you doing?" Sonny asks.
"Just a second, Papa." Ari replies.
Joe comes running down the stairs with his sister close behind. Ari is holding something behind her back. They turn to face the tree and when they turn around, they are holding a poster board with a drawing. In bright, beautiful crayon colors was a house with flowers beside it and a sun in the sky. In front of the house were four people. Two male figures, one with yellow hair and one with black, and a little girl in a pink dress and little boy in blue pants and red shirt were standing between the two men. All four of them were holding hands.
Will can't help but smile seeing the proud look on his children's faces. He reaches out for Sonny's hand, gripping tightly.
Smiling, Sonny is the first to ask, "Wow, looks like you did a lot of work. Can you tell us about it?"
"We wanted to give you a present." Ari says.
"Yep, you're the bestest Papa and Daddy ever." Joe grins from ear to ear.
"So we drawed this for you. It's our family." Ari explains.
Will tries to speak but a croak comes out instead.
Sonny squeezes Will's hand. "This is the best gift ever. It's beautiful! We love it!"
Finding his voice, Will agrees. "Yes, Papa is right. We do love it. Thank you so much Ari and Joe."
Will kneels in front of the children to hug them, Sonny joining them in the group hug.
"We love you so much." Sonny says quietly.
Ari and Joe pull away from the hug wanting to play with all their new toys. Sonny and Will stay sitting on the floor for a moment. Sonny leans over to Will and kisses him. Looking into Will's eyes, he mouths the words "I love you." To which Will replies silently, "I love you too."
The rest of the day is filled with visiting family and eating way too much food. When the Horton-Kiriakis family finally arrives home that evening, it's time for bed.
As the children get ready for bed, Sonny and Will tidy the house and get ready for bed as well. Will walks to Ari's room to check that she's getting into bed and not playing with a toy.
Down the hall, Sonny sits on their bed, checking his phone one last time for the day. Joe walks in and stands in front of Sonny.
"Hi Joe, what's up?" Sonny says smiling. "Did you have a good day?"
"Yes." Joe says quietly looking at the floor.
"You don't seem convinced." Sonny gently hooks his finger under Joe's chin to lift his head up.
"It was the bestest day ever." Joe smiles a little. "I hope we can do that again sometime."
"Come here." Sonny pulls Joe up onto his knee. "Of course we can. Christmas is a year away but there will be other fun days before then. Your birthday is coming, Ari's birthday, and in the summer we can go swimming and camping and all kinds of fun stuff."
"Can I do that stuff too?" Joe asks.
"What do you mean?" Sonny is puzzled by the question.
"Can I stay here with you?" Joe looks at the floor again.
Sonny's heart aches. He realizes that Joe doesn't understand that he's been adopted and what that means. That Sonny, Will and Ari will forever be his family.
"Joe, I'm going to tell you something about the day we met you ok?"
Joe nods his head still looking at the floor.
Behind them, Will quietly walks into the room but then stops to listen.
"When Daddy and I came to the place that you lived before, we didn't know anything about you. But when we saw you, we knew that you were our son. We have loved you ever since that day. And we will never stop loving you. We are your family. Arianna is your sister and she loves you too. And that means you're never leaving here. This is forever."
Sonny sat quietly with Joe on his knee patiently waiting for Joe to talk or ask another question. But Joe doesn't speak. He begins to cry and tears fall onto Sonny's arm.
"Oh Joe, why are you crying?" He wraps Joe in arms and holds him tight as his little arms grab Sonny's neck.
"I love you too." Joe says softly.
Will is overwhelmed with emotion and tears begin to cloud his vision. Feeling so much love for his husband and child, he wants to hug them both. As he stands watching Sonny comforting Joe, Ari comes up beside him and hugs his leg.
"Daddy, can you read me a story?"
"Of course pumpkin. Which one?" Will looks down and smiles.
Ari holds up a book, her favourite. The name of the book is "To the Moon and Back."
"Let's all read this one together." Will and Sonny each put a child on their lap sitting with their backs against the headboard. Together they take turns reading the pages of the book.
How much do I love you?
I love you as much as the ocean is deep.
I love you as much as the mountains are tall.
I love you as much as the world is big.
When do I love you?
When the sun is shining, I love you.
When the rain is falling, I love you.
When the stars are twinkling, I love you.
When the flowers are blooming, I love you.
When the snow is falling, I love you.
Why do I love you?
I love you because you make me laugh when I am sad.
I love you because you hug me when you say goodnight.
I love you because you love me even when I'm mad.
I love you because you are you.
For all those reasons and more,
I love you to the moon and back.
Before Will can even close the book, the children are happily sleeping in their father's arms.
Sonny looks at Will. "What a perfect day."
"Yes, it was." Will sighs deeply. He's tired but happy. Knowing tomorrow will be another busy day, he reluctantly picks up Arianna to carry her to bed. Sonny does the same with Joe.
With the children tucked snuggly into bed, Sonny and Will curl up together, fulfilling the unspoken promise to make up for their missed cuddling time from that morning. They fall asleep in each other's arms feeling loved and happy.
The End.
Sonny & Joe's Yummy Pancakes
1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour
3 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 ¼ cups milk
1 egg
3 tablespoons butter, melted
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg, and melted butter. Mix until smooth.
Heat a lightly oiled frying pan over medium high heat. Pour a ¼ cup of batter for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.
