Chapter: A Merry Christmas
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….. A Week Later: …..
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A sneeze echo through the house and then a low groan.
"Bless you." Rossi entered the master bedroom carrying a tray with a bowl of chicken rice soup, bottle of water and a bottle of medicine.
"You don't have to do this."
"I wish too. Plus, we can't have Annabelle getting sick too. We have to get you up and healthy again." Rossi pointed out as he waited for Octavia to sit up against the headboard before he set the tray down across her lap.
"How did you do with getting Annabelle ready then bringing her to school?"
"It went well. I think that I got my butt groped by one of the eighty year old teachers though." Rossi told her, visibly giving a shiver in disgust while Octavia tried to hide her laughter by biting the spoon for the soup.
When Octavia pause in eating, her nose scrunching up, Rossi quickly reached out to grab hold of the tray as she let out two loud sneezes.
"Argh." Octavia cleared her throat.
"Let me get you some tissues." Rossi stood up from the bed.
He went into the connected on bathroom to grab tissues when Octavia came running in and fell to her knees, throwing up into the toilet.
"Oh jeesh." Rossi set the tissues aside and quickly moved over to stand behind her, grabbing her long hair to hold away from her face and he began to rub her back with his other hand.
"Definitely got the bug, beautiful."
"This sucks." Octavia growled, slowly stood up with Rossi holding her right hand and his left hand on her lower back.
Octavia walked up to the sink to rinse her mouth out. She grabbed her toothbrush to clean the taste out.
"Do you want me to get some ginger ale or Gatorade?"
"I have a package of Gatorade in the food pantry closet downstairs. Hopefully I can keep it down." Octavia told him as she slowly make her way back to the bed and slid underneath the blankets, groaning as she hated when her body felt weak like this.
Rossi disappeared out of the bedroom, but then came up a minute later with a bottle of Gatorade. He set the drink onto the nightstand to sit down on the edge of the bed.
"You know would you call this irony because you're a doctor and you got the bug?" Rossi humoredly asked.
Octavia move on her side to stare up at Rossi with narrowed eyes causing him to bend down to gently lay his lips on her forehead. Even though he was showing affection, Rossi was also feeling her temperature. He could feel that she was a bit warmer than usual.
"I don't want to get you sick, David."
"You're not going to get rid of me, Octavia. I'm going to take care of you." Rossi told her as he reached back behind him to grab the bottle of Gatorade and brought it back before him.
Taking a few sips of the Gatorade, handing it back to Rossi, Octavia laid back down.
"When I go out to pick up Annabelle, I will go to the grocery store to get ingredients to make a tortellini soup filled with vegetables." He told her as he set the bottle back onto the nightstand.
"I hope so. I need to start doing Christmas shopping. Also, about my parents inviting us to their home…" Octavia slowly said as he adjusted himself back onto the bed.
"I see no problem in going." He answered her making Octavia to nod while kicking off some of the blankets now.
"Warm?"
"Yeah. Warm then cold. I hate being sick like this." Octavia groaned, shutting her eyes as he ran his right hand over her head and giving her a soften look.
"Don't we all." Rossi whispered as he stared down at her pale face with a small frown as he doesn't like this sickly look that Octavia has.
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….. Hours Later: …..
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"Is mommy sick?"
"She must've caught some sort of bug or virus from work or around. She doesn't want to be too much around you to not get you sick." Rossi explained to Annabelle as he held her hand with his right hand and a basket in his left.
They were in the grocery store, picking up the ingredients to make a tortellini soup. At the moment, they were picking up the last of the ingredients, which was chicken. Rossi decided to put chicken in the soup instead of sausage since Octavia wasn't a big fan of sausage. He also felt that she would get sicker off the taste of the sausage then the chicken.
When looking through the packaging of chicken, Annabelle continue to hold his hand while softly swinging their clasped hands. Rossi let go of her hand for a second to pick up the chicken, set it into the basket before re-grabbing Annabelle's hand.
"Can we get mint chocolate chip ice cream?"
"I don't know, Belle." Rossi replied as they were cutting through the freezer aisle of the grocery store.
When Rossi looked down at Annabelle, he saw her giving the puppy dog face making him to quickly look away with a sigh escaping him.
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"Your daughter is dangerous."
"What?" Octavia stared at Rossi like he had two heads with raised eyebrows as she sat up in her bed with her laptop before her.
"She used the puppy dog face on me." Rossi blurted out as he stood in the master bedroom doorway with his hands on his hips.
"I'm used to it so I don't fall for it."
"Yeah, well I'm not."
"What did she make you buy?" Octavia gently snickered.
"Mint chocolate chip ice cream."
"Ooo, my favorite." Octavia said as she set her laptop aside on the nightstand in exchange to a bottle of water.
"Yeah, well you don't want to ingest dairy products. It would probably make your stomach upset. It seems like you are feeling better though."
"Yeah, I got up a few more times to throw up and my nose is still running, but I don't feel as weak as I did a few hours ago. Probably all these liquids that I have been forcing myself to drink." Octavia told him as she waved the bottle of water that was presence in her hand, in the air.
"Well keep doing what you are doing. I'm going to get started on dinner." Rossi jabbed his thumb behind him to the hallway before turning around to make his trip downstairs.
"David."
Turning back around to face Octavia, he stared at her staring back at him with a gentle smile.
"Thank you for being here and doing all of this."
"Of course. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't do any of this?" Rossi smiled before leaving the bedroom.
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….. Two Weeks Later: …..
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Walking into a study room, seeing a laptop on a desk open to a blank document, Octavia stare at the back of Rossi head. She watch as he lean back in the seat with his right hand fingers tapping against the desk beside his laptop keyboards and his left hand resting on the keyboards.
Slowly, Octavia walked up to him from behind to wrap her arms around him, resting her chin upon his left shoulder.
"Writer's block?" Octavia asked making Rossi to nod.
"I'm trying to write the last few paragraphs of the conclusion, but I'm drawing a blank." David glared at the laptop screen.
"Do you need help?"
"You mean that you'll write this for me?"
"No. I can most likely help you jog up your memory." Octavia softly whispering into his left ear.
Octavia could see the sly grin appear on Rossi lips from the reflection of his laptop screen.
"I think that I might need that." Rossi stood up from the seat where he felt his right hand being grabbed by Octavia.
Rossi was grinning as Octavia led him through the hallways of his house then towards the stairs that led up to his master bedroom. When they were at the top of the stairs, Rossi wrapped his arms around her waist with his face nuzzling into the side of her neck causing her to gently laugh upon feeling his goatees tickling her skin.
Once through the doorway of the bedroom, a kick back of the foot caused the bedroom door to slam shut behind them.
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….. A Couple Days Later: …..
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The boat slowly pulled into the pier of Martha's Vineyard where there were a few people standing around the docks, waiting for their love ones or friends.
"Grandpa! Grandma!" Annabelle exclaimed.
They walked down the ramp and onto the dock where Leonardo and Arla Enzo stood in winter gear, waving towards them.
Once they set foot on the dock, Annabelle ran towards her grandparents while Octavia and Rossi casually walked towards them. Octavia and Rossi came to stand before Leonardo and Arla, who looked at them. Leonardo shook Rossi hand while Octavia and her mother hugged one another.
"Let's get out of the cold. I'll make some hot chocolate back at the house."
"With marshmallows?" Annabelle looked up at her grandmother with wide innocent bluish green eyes.
"There's that look." Rossi muttered making Octavia to laugh.
Leonardo lowly chuckle as he knew what Rossi meant about Annabelle doing 'the look.'
"Yes, with marshmallows little one." Arla poked Annabelle on the nose before they came to stand before a navy blue Ford f150 truck.
They got in and drove for about ten minutes before they came to a two story house with the ocean in the backyard.
"Beautiful." Rossi whispered.
They walked into the house where there was this scent of freshly made apple pie and pine trees.
"I made apple crumble this morning." Arla informed them upon seeing both Rossi and Octavia take in a deep breath because of the scent.
Leonardo placed his hand upon Rossi shoulder and led him away, showing him around. That left Arla and Octavia to bring the suitcases upstairs where they placed Annabelle suitcase in a bedroom that became hers over time. Octavia put Rossi and her suitcases in her old bedroom that had French doors that lead out to a small deck that overlooked the ocean.
Over time, Octavia had turned her room into one that had an ocean theme. All childish things were gone. The only things that were left in the bedroom from her past was old trophies on a shelf and a bookcase that has all sorts of books that she grew up with.
"I miss looking out at the ocean and hearing the waves crashing on the shores." Octavia admitted as her mother as they stood side by side to look out the French doors to stare at the ocean.
"And this is Octavia's bedroom, where you will be staying. No funny business."
"Thanks, dad."
Both Leonardo and Arla left Octavia and Rossi alone.
"So this is your bedroom. There's no boy band posters or anything?" Rossi asked as he came to stand beside her.
The sight of the ocean, thinking how Octavia grew with this, Rossi can say that this was a peaceful and beautiful element of nature.
"When I graduated college, I came back and realized that I needed to change my room up to fit my age. Some of my trophies are still on the shelves and my books in the case, but overall, everything was to fit the ocean theme. It relaxes me." Octavia explained.
"I can see how this is relaxing." Rossi agreed facing her.
He could admit that he can definitely live like this. On an island, away from the mainland and being surrounded by water. The sound of the ocean waves crashing against the shore and the smell of the ocean breeze was refreshing. The winter air mixing with ocean breeze smelled very much pure.
"Octavia, David do you want a cup of hot chocolate?" Arla shouted from downstairs.
Rossi gave a nod making Octavia to step towards her bedroom doorway and clenched the doorframe.
"Yes please, mom." Octavia answered.
Rossi went about unpacking his suitcase to begin hanging up his clothes in the closet and the dresser that was within the closet too.
"What's this?"
Octavia eyed Rossi as he walked out of the closet holding a rolled up poster. He began to unravel it causing Octavia to lunge at him, but he turn his back to her and smiling as he knew that he found something that she doesn't want him to see. Octavia growled and stuck her right leg through his legs, wrapped around his left leg and shoved him forwards onto her queen size bed.
"Oh would you look at that." Rossi chuckled as the poster was a male model with only a cowboy hat covering his privates.
"David, give me the poster." Octavia sat on his back as he laid across the bed with the poster stretched out before them.
Snatching the poster from him, she rolled it back up and she got off of him to go back into the closet to hide it back on the top shelf. Rossi sat up on the bed, sitting on the edge and he was grinning like a cherishing cat.
"So, cowboys?"
"Oh shush. My cousin gave it to me to which I never hung up but hid it in the closet." Octavia truthfully told him as she stood across from him with her hands upon her hips.
"What type of posters did you have hung up?" Rossi asked, curious as to what her preferences were.
"I only had a few posters hanging around the bedroom like a Red Sox poster, a poster of that movie The Lost Boys, and another movie poster."
Octavia heard her mother shouting that the hot chocolate was done. Octavia winked at him before heading out of the bedroom with Rossi trailing behind her. He followed her down to kitchen where there was mugs of hot chocolate sitting upon the marble countertop of the kitchen island.
"Here." Leonardo held out a bottle of bourbon towards Rossi.
"Now we are talking." Rossi said while Arla and Octavia rolled their eyes at the two men spiking their hot chocolate.
"What's that?" Annabelle asked.
"Something that only adults are allowed to have." Arla answered as the two men walked to the living room to talk while Arla, Octavia and Annabelle sat in the kitchen, talking about any new news upon the island.
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….. Few Days Later; Christmas Morning: …..
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Soft lips were pressing against the skin of her collarbones and her neck. Cracking open her eyes, Octavia soon found herself staring up into familiar warm brown eyes.
"Good morning."
"Morning. What time is it?"
"Six. I heard Annabelle running around the house and she came in here, telling me to wake you up before running downstairs to the Christmas tree. Santa has come." Rossi explained to her as he laid another kiss upon her lips before sitting up.
Octavia stared at David, seeing how he seem more relax on Christmas Day now. He had told her about an old case of his where it took place on Christmas and he couldn't celebrate it for years without remembering the case. Almost two years ago, he had solved that old case and now, he was becoming relax around Christmas again.
"Argh." Octavia tried to pull the blankets over her head, but Rossi pulled it away before she could.
Getting out of the bed, Rossi moved to her side and grabbed her hands.
"Come on." Rossi said, helping her sit up then gently pulled her out of the bed, leading her out into the hallway and stopped before the bathroom.
Once they both freshen up in the bathroom, they moved downstairs where Annabelle was patiently sitting near the Christmas tree with Leonardo and Arla sitting on the couch together.
"Coffee in the kitchen." Leonardo waved in motion to the kitchen.
Once they got their coffee, they sat down on a love seat in the living room and sipped their coffee while watching Annabelle tear through her stocking before going through her presents.
Occasionally the adults would open one, but they focus all their attention on Annabelle, who was literally buried in wrapping paper. When Rossi handed Octavia a gift from him, she eyed him closely before tearing through the wrapping paper to find a box. Opening the box, her eyes widen upon seeing a sterling silver bracelet with diamonds.
"Do you like it?"
"This is beautiful. David, this is too much."
"No. No it is not." He whispered to her as he took the bracelet out of the box and clasped it around her left wrist.
"Here." Octavia handed him his present making him to ripped it and then open up the box to only make an impressed whistle at the expensive watch staring back at him.
The face of the watch reflecting his awestruck expression before he turn to face Octavia, reaching out to cup the side of her face with his left hand and he leaned forwards to lay a gentle kiss upon his lips as a thank you. She smiled into his kiss before pulling back, smiling at her.
"I think that we are even." Rossi told her making Octavia to nod in agreement with a smile.
To the side, Leonardo had his right arm around his wife shoulders and they both stared with happiness in their eyes at the couple, especially Octavia as they can see that she had gotten her second chance at love.
"Merry Christmas, David."
"Merry Christmas, Octavia."
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Hi Everyone,
Here was another chapter!
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Thanks!