Artie
He hadn't intentionally invited over every girl he'd ever liked or gone out with, minus Brittany, Sugar, and the one Sam liked to remind him about the most, Betty, but yet here they all were.
Amy had finally roused from her marathon nap long enough to be part of the impromptu party. She'd missed the part where it was announced that Quinn would be one of their visitors that afternoon. Having known all about her brother's long-standing crush on Quinn Fabray, Amy was amused to learn she'd be coming over, too. She'd leaned over to him at one point and whispered, "Julie who?" He'd slugged her gently on the shoulder for that remark.
But it had been going great. They'd watched another Christmas Movie ('Elf' was one of the DVDs in their collection), munched on popcorn for their lunch, and played a few board games. Artie hadn't played Clue in years, but when they realized Sam's little brother and sister had never played, it had been a lot of fun teaching them. Amy took the lead on that. It seemed this age group was kind of becoming her speciality.
And then Tina let slip something that kind of killed the mood, at least for Artie, though he did his best not to let on that he was upset.
"We need to bring some Christmas movies to watch with Hunter and Ryder in the car tomorrow," Tina had said to Kitty.
In that moment, Kitty looked Artie straight in the eye and had the decency to then blush and look away. Artie was stunned by the realization of what Kitty had withheld. Ryder was also going on their ski trip, yet Kitty had kept that part under wraps the other day when they'd talked about it over coffee. He supposed she'd been trying to spare him from heartache. And now Tina had gone and blabbed that this trip was basically a week-long double date.
Well, it's your own damn fault, he bitterly reminded himself. You told her to go get herself a normal guy.
Sure, Artie probably could have figured out a sit-ski at some point. He'd always thought it looked like it would be fun. And, once his back was straightened out again, he intended to do just that. The problem was, any trip he took to do that would end up being all about him. It wouldn't be anything like the trip that Kitty and Ryder were taking together, where they could actually just accompany one another down the slopes for some casual fun.
Artie got a little quiet during his private pity party, so much so that Quinn, who'd developed some sort of spidey sense when it came to Artie's feelings now, picked up on the fact that something had been said that bothered him. When he excused himself to go start on the chili he was making in the crockpot for their dinner later, she followed him as he inched his way down the stairs. He only noticed when he'd reached the bottom, as he was hauling himself back up into his chair.
"Oh, hey," he said, feeling suddenly awkward that she'd been watching him do the inchworm without his knowledge. "Uh, what did you need?"
Quinn shrugged. "Just wanted to see if you needed help with the chili." She quickly clarified, saying, "I know you don't need help, I know you're very independent and all that, I just wanted to help out and chat a little."
"Sure," Artie said, brightly. "Actually, I really don't mind having help draining the meat. That part gets a little tricky. Thanks."
"Of course," Quinn said, following him into the kitchen. She walked so smoothly that, on the surface, one would never know she'd once experienced her own accident and a difficult recovery. But Artie knew, from talking to her in the past, that sometimes the cold weather still had a negative effect on her.
"You feel okay, Q?" he asked, as they began getting out everything needed for the chili. The only two cans of beans had been out of his reach, so Artie was thankful she'd followed him down.
Knowing precisely what he was referring to, she answered, as she retrieved the cans, "I'm a little stiff today and kind of sore. I think I twisted into a weird position in my sleep. And the freezing temps didn't help, of course."
"Help yourself to any pain killers you need from the cabinet above the stove," Artie told her, as she passed him cans to open. Chili was easy, of course, except for draining the meat. He'd done it all — burned himself, accidentally poured grease directly into the drain, dripped grease on his pants — but he was thankful his mother always encouraged his independence, despite any challenges. Still, he didn't pass on help with this step today.
"Artie, I saw how you reacted when Tina mentioned that Ryder's going on their trip," Quinn finally said, and Artie had a feeling that was the real reason she'd followed him downstairs.
"Great, am I that transparent?"
"No, no," she assured him, quickly. "I just think I know you fairly well, that's all, and I figured that would sting a little..."
"The only part that stings," he began, as he accepted the drained ground beef from Quinn and added it to the yummy chili mixture in the crockpot. "— Is that Kitty deliberately didn't mention that he was going the other day when we talked. She just told me Tina was going."
"I guess she thought she was protecting your feelings," Quinn said, with a shrug, as she went to the sink to scrub the pan. "I wasn't around to see you guys dating, but I gathered that you two were pretty serious before you broke it off."
"She doesn't have to protect my feelings," Artie went on. "She knows how much I hate being coddled. She could have just told me."
"I think she realized that," said Quinn, ever the observant one. "You should talk to her in private before we leave tonight, Artie."
"I will," Artie said, and he hoped he would. He hoped he'd get the opportunity. He stirred the chili once more, then replaced the lid on the crockpot. In a few hours, they'd have perfect chili. There had been some talk of going out again, and playing in the snow, and since it had gone well the first time, he decided he was game for going out once more.
"Let's go out in the snow," he suggested, and laughed at Quinn's shocked expression. His hatred of snow was known far and wide. "We had fun with the kids earlier, and I figure it'll get everyone in the mood for the chili later. I'm gonna go pile on some layers."
As he went off to his room to do just that, Quinn headed back upstairs to round everyone else up. Artie got a clever idea, while getting ready, and brought out a few accessories for the snowman — one of his old scarves, an older pair of his glasses, and best of all, the wheels off of 'Big Red', which was what he'd dubbed his old wheelchair.
Sure enough, the handicapable snowman was a huge hit with everyone, especially the kids. Once they'd built the body, they attached the wheels on either side and added the accessories. They could only find baby carrots, so their snowman's nose was a bit stubby. But, all in all, he was a fine-looking snowperson and Amy, thinking of her favorite musical 'Little Shop of Horrors,' dubbed him the 'Artie Two,' or 'Two-ie.'
"Take my picture with him!" Stacey insisted, when they'd finished, and soon everyone else needed to pose with the Artie Two. As Tina was posing for her picture, she mysteriously got hit with a resounding thwack! by a rogue snowball. The culprit turned out to be Artie One, who couldn't dash behind Sam's truck quickly enough to avoid the rest of the girls taking revenge on Tina's behalf.
"Alright, alright, I surrender!" Artie held up his arms, as one more snowball struck his cheek for good measure. He wiped off his cheek, glaring in the direction of whoever had thrown it. "I said I surrendered! Don't forget who made your chili."
The sun had gone behind the clouds and it was snowing again, so both of these things, combined with his frozen face, meant that Artie was now done. He didn't ever push past his limits, when it came to snow and cold, and so he headed in, without making a big deal of his departure.
Kitty immediately followed him in. "Artie," she said, as she trailed behind him, through the garage, where he was headed to swap out of the 'medieval battering ram,' back into his regular chair.
"What's up?" he tried to sound casual, as though he didn't know of any reason why she ought to feel guilty around him right now.
"I'm sorry," she began, wasting no time. She also made no excuse. "It was wrong of me not to tell you Ryder was coming. It was wrong of me to hide the fact from you."
"I accept your apology," Artie said, as he moved from one chair to the next, then took his time rearranging his feet, to avoid making eye contact in that moment. "I just wish you hadn't felt the need to do it in the first place. You don't have to protect me, and I hope you still know that."
Kitty opened her mouth, but closed it again, and Artie noticed she'd amended what she was going to say so he gestured for her to spit it out. She looked flustered, but composed herself quickly, and out it came.
"You need to drop this expectation that I'm going to wait on you and that then, when I'm old enough and finally in college, we're going to be able to just pick up where we left off."
Artie furrowed his brow. "I don't really expect that," he said. "Just like I know you don't really expect the same from me."
"Then we need to stop pretending like our breakup is only temporary," she said, bluntly. "And definitely no more coffee dates, just the two of us." Her eyes were brimming with tears, entirely catching Artie offguard. "It's not fair of me to string Ryder along, and if that's what you're doing to this Julie girl, it's not fair to her either. They're both actual people. They deserve our whole heart or nothing at all."
"I'm not sure my heart was ever whole, to start with," Artie admitted. "But I hear what you're saying."
"Thanks," she said, in a small voice.
He paused. "I should go check on the chili."
Artie was glad he'd made a lot of chili. Everyone dug right in and helped themselves to extra. Everyone, that is, except for Amy. Amy helped herself to a pre-made chicken Caesar salad from the fridge.
"But you love chili," Artie had said, feeling offended that his sister was turning down one of the best possible dishes he could make for her. As everyone else carried their bowlfuls to the table, Sam got himself a salad too and Artie couldn't resist shooting him a dirty look. He'd heard Sam talking about how he'd already "used up his calories for the day." Well, that was fine for Sam, but he'd better not start making Amy think she was fat and couldn't have chili.
"It just doesn't sound good right now," she'd explained, carrying her salad to the table and taking her seat next to Sam, with their matching dinners.
"But rabbit food does?"
Amy gave him a withering look. "It has chicken in it," she pointed out. "I think that doesn't make it rabbit food. Drop it, Artie. Anyway..." she looked around the table, to change the subject. "Tina! How's Brown?"
"Much better, now that Hunter and I are back together," she said, giving a little giggle. Artie's eyes found Kitty's, and she gave a subtle tilt of the head towards Amy and Sam. It seemed that no one understood what he was dealing with better than Kitty. Artie shot her a tight smile.
After dinner and more hot chocolate, by request of the kids, it was time for Kitty's brother to pick up the girls so that he, Tina, and Kitty could finish getting ready to leave on their trip the next day. Stacey and Stevie needed to get ready for bed, and Amy was yawning again and saying that she planned on sleeping in for real this time tomorrow. Sam mentioned that it would be Sunday, and that he was going to church, but Amy just shook her head and said she'd pass.
"Sounds like it'll just be you and me, Sam," Quinn said. "Unless Artie wants to go."
Artie was thinking, though, about something Kitty had said to him earlier that night. About how, if she and Artie were going to be in relationships with Ryder and Julie, respectively, then their new significant others deserved their full hearts. If his reason for going to church was just to flirt with Quinn, then he needed to say no.
"No, thank you," Artie said. "I think I'll sleep in, too."
When everyone else had finally gone on home for the night and Sam had put his little brother and sister to bed, Artie decided he needed to call Julie, to remind himself that a really cool girl in another time zone was still super interested in him. Sam hadn't come down yet, and Artie suspected he was making out with his sister right about now, secure in the fact that Artie couldn't come running up there and catch them.
"Artie, it's so great to hear from you!" Julie gushed, when she answered, and Artie felt a little guilty when he realized he'd let a whole day go by without calling.
"Well," he said, balancing the phone between his ear and shoulder and adjusting his legs so that they were stretched out on the bed in front of him. "I figured since it was two hours earlier there, that it was still plenty early to call you and chat."
"We just got back from getting a Christmas tree," she said. "We always get a real one, the weekend before Christmas. It's been a tradition of ours for as long as I can remember."
"I like that," Artie commented. "We're fake tree people. We've had the same one for years, and it always goes up the first week of December and stays up until New Years' Day. So, tell me, was it nice out tonight?"
"Very," she said. "Upper 60's, so it was cool enough that I had to wear a jacket." She giggled. "I looked up your weather and saw you're basically getting a blizzard. Wish you were here?"
"For more reasons than your weather," Artie replied, and even he was impressed by how smooth his response had been just then.
Sam crept in about halfway through their conversation and quietly dressed down into a pair of sweatpants and an Ohio State shirt with the sleeves torn off. He sat on the couch and listened to Artie's end of the casual conversation with Julie.
"Nice chat?" he asked, when Artie hung up.
Artie nodded. "Nice make-out session?"
Sam frowned. "Uh, no, actually," he said. "I was just reading to Stacey and Stevie. For some reason, they like to listen to me struggle through a storybook. Amy fell asleep before we even started reading."
"Oh." Artie blushed. He knew he wasn't being very mature, by constantly bugging Sam about Amy, even though he purported to be supporting their relationship. He decided to change the subject. "Have you, uh, thought of what to get her for Christmas yet?"
"No, I haven't," Sam said. "And I know I just have a few more days. Maybe you could help me out with an idea?"
Artie smiled softly. "Sure, no problem."