The One Way in the Future
Caroline was nervous. She was meeting her parents at the cabin for Christmas, but this year she was bringing Caleb with her. They'd spoken to him, but never met him and although they seemed to like him, they didn't yet know he was now her fiancee.
"Are you ready yet?" she asked impatiently.
"Patience woman" he responded with a dazzling grin, "I'm ready".
"Sorry" she replied sheepishly, "I'm just nervous".
"Hey", he put his finger under her chin, "it'll be fine" and added a kiss. "They're gonna love me." He added confidently.
She rolled her eyes grinning as they walked out the door.
Caleb and Caroline pulled up to the cabin and she used her key to let them in.
"Where are your parents?"
"They'll be here shortly, I'm sure."
Caroline wasn't certain how he did it, but soon after she moved out, her Dad had convinced her Mom to travel across the country in the airstream. They only spent a few weeks a year at the cabin these days, but Christmas was always one of them.
"There's nothing here to eat!" Caleb exclaimed as he was staring at a nearly empty fridge.
"They'll bring pizza, they always do."
Just then they heard the Airstream rumbling down the driveway.
The family sat around the living room preparing to decorate the tree that Jane and Lisbon had brought chatting and getting to know Caleb.
Caleb was confident meeting his future in-laws, even though he knew they were both FBI. It was something Caroline found attractive in him... she wasn't certain why. Jane and Lisbon sized him up pretty quickly and accepted him as part of their family once they announced the engagement. The family decorated the tree together and Jane and Lisbon told about stories from their recent travels.
The next morning Jane awoke to noises and voices coming from the kitchen. His wife's head was still resting on his chest, so he assumed it was the kids. He laid still for awhile listening, it sounded like they were arguing, he smiled. He was proud of his daughter, she was extremely smart and yet very tough. She'd become a forensic scientist and he couldn't be more pleased. She'd learned a lot from both her parents and he was happy she chose to stay out of the dangerous part of field work.
He could tell Caleb would push her out of her comfort zone, which she probably needed. He was a firefighter well on his way to becoming a fire inspector should he so desire. Jane could tell he was a little cocky, but he was respectful of himself and Lisbon, so he didn't push him around too much when they met. Jane knew he would need a little arrogance to be successful.
Lisbon began to rustle next to him. He guided his hand up and down her back and heard her groan making him kiss her on the head. "Merry Christmas Sweetheart."
"mmm... Merry Christmas Patrick" she grumbled sleepily.
"I think the kids are making us breakfast" he said cheerily.
"Good" she mumbled into his chest.
After a few minutes of laying silently, Lisbon untangled herself from her husband and gave him a kiss on the lips. "I guess we should get up."
Jane and Lisbon walked into the kitchen to find Caroline and Caleb still arguing... although bickering was probably a more appropriate word... about how to prepare eggs. Caroline warning Caleb about how perfect they had to be.
Jane laughed from behind them, "You can tell a lot about a man from the way he prepares eggs."
Caleb and Caroline both stopped realizing they were being watched. Caroline spoke up, "it'll be ready in a minute, here's your coffee and tea."
Lisbon grabbed her cup and sat down, Jane taking a seat next to her both waiting for breakfast. "Mmm... perfect" Jane said after his first sip.
That evening Jane and Lisbon and the kids headed out to look at Christmas lights like they'd often done when Caroline was a kid.
They stopped at the Chinese Restaurant for dinner. Caleb whispered to Caroline "Chinese food for Christmas dinner? Why?"
Caroline smirked, "ask them" she responded loud enough for her parents to hear and nodded in their direction.
Caleb saw them smiling at each other preparing to tell the story.
Jane and Lisbon's story had been told thousands of time over the years. They always had new stories to tell, but it was the old ones, the first ones that were the greatest. It was no longer a story of sorrow for Jane, it became a story of redemption, hope, and joy. It had taken many many years, but he'd finally laid his family to rest in peace in his heart. He could talk openly about them now, he would speak gently about what had happened leaving out the details, and talk about his new life and how Teresa saved his life.
Lisbon always hated that part. She would share the bits of the story Jane always left out, his troublesome antics and how she'd fallen in love with him long before she realized but knew it would never be.
A/N: well that's it, that's Christmas with the Janes. I appreciate reviews, but I'd rather read your thoughts and opinions.