Anniversary
"Hey, it's just me." Jude called as she walked into her parent's house, "I brought donuts." She announced, walking through to the kitchen where she found Sam and Cassie, "Hey." She said to them both.
"Hey." Cassie smiled.
"Hi, sweetie." Sam nodded.
"Where is mom and dad?" Jude asked.
"Having date night." Cassie rolled her eyes.
"Oh." Jude nodded, "And they left you to babysit?" She asked Sam who was sitting with a glass of wine and a cigarette in her other hand.
"Yes and what a fine babysitter I am." Sam smiled.
"You came an hour late." Cassie pointed out.
"Shh." Sam pointed to her, "How are you, baby? What's new with this new man of yours?" She asked as Jude put the donuts over on the kitchen counter.
"Nothing, things are going good." Jude nodded, taking a seat at the table, "He's even getting along with dad." She said.
"Well, he must be doing something right." Sam said, "How is your big sister? I haven't saw her in a while." She said.
"She's ok. She's still pretty couch and bed bound but she's making more movement every day. I'm staying with her tonight." Jude said, "I think the thing that bothers her the most is that she can't really look after James on her own." Jude said.
"Well that's only natural." Sam nodded.
"Where is mom and dad?" Jude asked Cassie.
"They went out for dinner." Cassie said, "It's their anniversary or something."
"Wedding anniversary?" Jude asked, puzzled, "No it's not."
"No, they're dating anniversary." Cassie said.
"People remember their dating anniversary?" Jude scoffed, "Weird."
"It's sweet." Cassie shrugged.
"I remember when your parents started dating." Sam nodded, "I remember your mom coming to our house-"
"I thought you were always drunk." Jude said.
"Well… I was like… almost drunk." Sam said, "Phil had come back to get some clothes or something and I saw your mom standing outside with Dean. She was just sixteen. Had the worst braces ever." Sam laughed to herself, "Feels like a lifetime ago now."
"Well it kinda was." Jude chuckled, helping herself to a donut which she had intentionally brought over for her parents, "So how long have they been together then?" She questioned.
"Thirty years." Sam nodded.
"Really?" Jude raised her eyebrows, "It's mad they still enjoy each other's company." She chuckled as Sam smiled.
"It's rare, that's for sure." Sam nodded.
"What about you, Sam? You don't have any boyfriend?" Jude asked.
"What do you think?" Sam chuckled, "I'm a little past that stage."
"I don't think you are." Jude shook her head, "I think you need to get back on the market." She nodded as Sam chuckled.
"Well maybe you could ask one of your friends for me then." Sam winked as Jude rolled her eyes, "What? You don't expect me to date someone my age, do you?"
"Well it's you, so of course not." Jude said as Sam chuckled.
"Is Sean treating you well? Better than your last boyfriend?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, he's so different. It feels right this time." Jude nodded as Sam smiled.
"I'm glad." Sam said, "I gotta go pee." She announced, getting up from the table and wandering away out of the kitchen to head upstairs.
"What are you doing?" Jude asked Cassie.
"Homework." Cassie said, "Math."
"I don't envy you." Jude shook her head as Cassie nodded, "Hey Thea called me about… the conversation you two had last night." She said as Cassie looked at her, "I want you to know that… you can talk to us about it all if you don't wanna talk to mom and dad. I know it's hard to sort of digest. And you've been through a lot these past couple months. I bet it feels like… a whole new world. Like everything isn't what it seems."
"Yeah, pretty much." Cassie nodded.
"We know how you feel." Jude nodded, "But it'll pass and you'll realise that all of that is just drama and it's in the past, well… now it's in the past." She said, "We're all the same people."
"I just… I thought drug dealers were really bad people." Cassie looked at her as Jude nodded.
"Well… they are." Jude said, "For the most part. But… there's also a lot of people that get stuck in that kind of life, by accident, not by choice. Like mom and dad." She said as Cassie nodded.
"It's just weird being the last person to know." Cassie said, "Made me kinda feel like an alien."
"Yeah, I know. But you're the baby." Jude smiled, "And you didn't need to be exposed to anything the way me and Thea were. You didn't have to know all of that, not until now where you can handle it a little better." She said as Cassie nodded.
"I definitely feel better after talking to Thea." Cassie said as Jude nodded.
"Yeah, she's probably the best to go to when it comes to dealing with it all." Jude nodded, "But I'm here too, and even though we're a little bit older you're still our sister, and you can still come to us." She said as Cassie nodded.
"Yeah, I know." Cassie smiled as Jude nodded, kissing her head sweetly, "You wanna do my math homework?"
"No. You kidding?" Jude chuckled as Cassie groaned, "I'm nice but I'm not that nice." She said as Cassie scoffed.
"Hey, this is the first time we've got four bobbles for the tree this year." AJ smiled, standing next to Punk in the freezing cold, under the twinkly lights, beside the massive Christmas tree downtown in the city.
There were Christmas markets set up all around the tree, and there was a chance for people to write on bobbles to hang on the tree. Some people wrote messages to loved ones, others just wrote names on the bobbles.
Every year since Thea was born, they always went and put bobbles on the tree.
"Oh, yeah." Punk realised, watching AJ write James' name on one of the bobbles, whilst the other three had Thea, Jude and Cassie written on them.
"You remember the first time we took Thea down here to show her? She was so fascinated that her name was on the tree." AJ smiled as Punk nodded.
"Yeah and she was this big." He said, showing very small measurement with his hand from the ground, "Did you still do this when I was gone?" He asked her, putting Jude's bobble on beside Thea's whilst AJ did Cassie's and James' beside.
"Yeah, of course I did." AJ nodded, "Put your name up to." She said as he turned to her, watching as she put the bobbles on the tree with a smile.
"Even after you stopped coming to see me?" Punk asked her as she nodded.
"Yeah." AJ nodded, "But let me tell you, I much prefer you here doing this me, rather than doing it on my own." She said as he smiled and nodded.
"Me too." He said, kissing her cheek as she smiled sweetly.
"Poor Thea said she wanted to come down here this Christmas, but with how she's feeling I don't think she'll get down." AJ frowned, making sure the four bobbles were on the tree securely, other families around the massive tree doing the same.
"She might, you never know." Punk said, "Still a few weeks to Christmas."
"Yeah, I know." AJ said, "Are they on tight enough?" She asked him as he nodded.
"Yeah, they're good." He smiled as she nodded, leaning her head on his arm, hugging into him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.
"I swear it gets prettier every year." AJ smiled, looking on at the massive tree. It was freezing cold out, hats and scarfs were definitely on, but she couldn't think of a better way to spend her night.
"Yeah, I definitely missed things like this when I was gone." Punk nodded as she hugged him tighter, "You think you can manage some donuts after dinner?" He asked her.
They'd gone for dinner after they both finished work, and then had headed to the tree and markets, just like they did every year to celebrate their dating anniversary.
"Is that really a question?" AJ looked up at him as he smiled, both of them leaving the tree and walking through the markets.
"Remember those hot apple donuts they were doing last year?" Punk asked.
"I remember you coming down here every week to get them, yeah." AJ chuckled as Punk shrugged.
"They were damn good." Punk said, holding her hand in his as they walked through the markets, "How are we doing for presents this year?" He asked her.
"The only person I've been buying tons for is James." AJ chuckled, "Baby toys are so fun to buy." She said, "Everyone else… I have no clue."
"I saw this art experience thing for Jude. I think she'd like." Punk said, "Are we allowed to get Cassie soccer things anymore or she going on strike with that right now?" He wondered.
"Oh, I don't know." AJ sighed, linking her arm through his, "I think she's just… overwhelmed by everything that's gone on the past couple months."
"Yeah, I think so." Punk nodded, "But I think Thea talked to her last night. When I picked her up she seemed a lot better. I don't blame her. Poor kid has been in the dark with all of it and then… hit with everything at once." He shook his head.
"You just wanna protect them from it all, though. Don't you?" AJ sighed.
"Yeah, of course." Punk said, "And look, she's asked me things. She's not shy about it all. And I'm not gonna shy away with my answers. She deserves to know just like Thea and Jude do."
"Of course she does." AJ nodded, "I'm glad Thea spoke to her. If there's anyone who can assure her about it, it's her."
"Yeah, my thoughts exactly." Punk said as AJ nodded.
"I'm just glad they're all safe after what happened." AJ sighed, leaning into him.
"Me too." Punk nodded, kissing her head as she smiled.
"Thirty years… you have to be getting bored of me." She said as he chuckled a little.
"There is never a dull moment with you, sweetheart." Punk nodded as she smiled, "Maybe when we hit sixty years, though." He teased as she smiled, looking up at him as he paused, leaning down and kissing her sweetly as people walked their way around them.
"Put it on! Put it on!" Three year old Thea jumped up and down, standing between her parents as she looked up at the huge big tree.
"Alright alright, give me a minute." Punk chuckled, writing Thea's name on one of the bobbles which were available to put on the tree for the public.
Thea was in her hat, scarf and gloves, small but full of energy at this time of year especially. She was fascinated by the idea of her name going on the big Christmas tree.
"Let me see first." Thea told her father who crouched down, showing her the bobble.
"Did I spell your name right?" Punk teased as AJ stood smiling, laughing a little when she saw Thea making sure he had spelt her name right.
"Yes." Thea nodded, giving him the go ahead.
"Do you wanna put it on?" Punk asked her.
"I can't reach." Thea frowned sadly, her little shoulders falling down with disappointment.
She suddenly felt her father lifting her up, sitting her on his shoulders as she giggled.
"Careful." AJ said motherly as she watched.
"Ok, you put it on." Punk handed the bobble up to Thea who was on his shoulders, reaching her little hand over and putting the bobble on one of the tree branches, "Slide it right in." Punk told her as Thea pushed the bobble on nice and tight.
"Good job, baby." AJ smiled as Thea looked at her bobble excitedly, holding on to Punk's head for safety as Punk chuckled.
"Hey, look at that." Punk smiled, putting Thea down on the ground as she looked up at her bobble happily, clasping her hands and gazing up with glee in her eyes.
Punk looked over at AJ, both of them smiling to each other upon seeing how happy Thea looked, how sweet she was in her little hat, scarf, gloves and coat. To see her excitement through the holidays was the best. All the wonder and crazy imagination was amplified to the fullest, and Punk and AJ loved it. Even though they didn't have much, and went back to their one bedroom apartment, having each other was way more important than any gifts or goods they could get.
"That's my bobble." Thea smiled, tucking her hands under her chin and grinning, "It's on the big tree." She told her parents, like they didn't already know.
"It is." Punk smiled, lifting her up and holding her by his side as AJ leaned into him on his other side.
"It's so big." Thea smiled as Punk nodded.
"And now your name is on it, baby." AJ smiled as Thea nodded.
"Hey, what do you say we go get some Christmas chocolate?" Punk asked.
"Yeah." Thea nodded with a smile as Punk nodded, wrapping his arm around AJ on one side whilst he held Thea up on his other one, her little chin resting on his shoulder.
"I love you." AJ smiled, looking up at Punk as he leaned down, kissing her sweetly whilst Thea leaned over his shoulder, looking back at the big tree with a smile and a twinkle in her eye.