Hey everyone! I'm back with another chapter! I apologize for the delay. Thanks for all your reviews last chapter! You guys are so sweet. :) Thank you to all of my guest reviewers, sorry I can't reply to you because that's how it's set up but thank you all the same! PLEASE REVIEW and let me know what you think of this chapter! God Bless.
-Vegter999
Author's Note: Any non-English words in this chapter will be in Norwegian.
Chapter 9
Ruth's POV:
BLEEP! BLEEP! BLEEP!
The sound of the alarm clock from my phone blared in my ears and I groaned as I reached over to the bedside table and turned it off.
I then stretched and turned over to gaze at Erik, who was still sound asleep. I hated to wake him up after he had such an emotional day yesterday but we had to wake up now or else we would never get to church on time.
I gently shook him awake.
"Erik, sweetheart we need to get up."
He moaned and opened his eyes and I couldn't help but smile as he sat up because a piece of his hair was flopping over the wrong way.
"What?" he asked.
I said nothing and instead just wordlessly moved the piece of hair back to it's correct position, all the while trying not to giggle.
"There, perfect" I said.
"You should see your hair."
"You wanna come over here and fix it for me then?" I grinned mischievously.
"How about I do something even better?"
"And what would that be?"
"This" he kissed me deeply and hugged me to him.
When we pulled apart I said "You're right that was a lot better. You are a good kisser."
"Just a good kisser. I poured my heart and soul into that kiss and all I get is the title of a good kisser?!" he exclaimed, pretending to be exasperated.
"Yep" I said. "Unless of course you wanna try again for the title of a great one."
"I'll remember that Ruth the next time you want a kiss from me" he narrowed his eyes in mock irritation.
I rolled my eyes.
"Alright, you are a great kisser. Happy now?"
"Very." He kissed me one more time.
"Now I think we should get up. We don't wanna be late for mass" he continued.
"My thoughts exactly."
We both lifted ourselves out of bed and quickly dressed. While I brushed through my hair and Erik combed through his we heard the door to the bedroom squeak open and the sound of tiny feet padding towards the bathroom. The door to the bathroom was pushed open and Annalise stood there in her little white nightgown.
"Pappa?"
"Hva er det prinsesse?" (What is it princess?) Erik asked, putting down the comb.
"Må vi gå i kirken i dag?" (Do we have to go to church today?)
"Du vet allerede svaret på den prinsessen. Vi må gå og takke Gud for hvor mye han gjør for oss." (You already know the answer to that princess. We have to go and thank God for how much he does for us.)
Annalise gave a big dramatic sigh.
"Ok" she said begrudgingly, looking down at her feet.
Erik gently lifted her chin.
"Kom igjen, det vil ikke være så ille." (Come on, it won't be that bad.) He smiled at her affectionately and bent down and kissed her on the forehead.
"Gå og kle deg for kirken." (Now go and get dressed for church.) He ruffled her hair and she gave him a quick hug and then scrambled away back towards her bedroom.
Once Erik and I were done in the bathroom we proceeded to wake the rest of the kids up.
"Erik would you go and ask Torsten if he wants to come with us?"
"Sure."
He padded down the hallway towards Torsten's room while I herded the kids downstairs.
I noticed Jakob seemed agitated and nervous, as he was rubbing his hands together and sort of swaying back and forth.
I remembered that Erik mentioned how Jakob had wanted to ask another kid he knew to church and I figured that that was what was causing this sudden change in his behavior.
"Jakob" I said, coming over to him.
"Yeah Mamma?"
"Your Pappa told me you wanted to ask someone to church and I wanted to tell you that I think that is wonderful and I know you have the courage to do it."
I kissed him on the forehead and bent down to look into his eyes, taking his face in both my hands.
"God is with you all the time Jakob. You have nothing to fear. What's the worst that could happen anyway?"
"He says no and thinks I'm weird."
"And if he does it won't be the end of the world and you can walk away knowing you tried."
He gave me a small smile.
"Ok thanks Mamma."
"Your welcome" I kissed him on the forehead and released his face.
"Now where does this friend of your's live?"
"Just next door. They just moved in."
"Oh yes the Bjornsons. I've seen them around but I don't know much about them other than they have a little boy about your age."
"His name is William. I've seen him around sometimes. He doesn't talk very much to anyone."
"Well moving to a new place can be hard sometimes. Maybe all he needs is a friend like you to make him feel more welcome and at home."
Our conversation was interrupted as Erik and Torsten soon joined us.
"How about we all walk there since it's just up the street and it's not snowing today" Erik suggested.
"Sure, although Jakob wants to make a stop at the Bjornsons next door to ask their son William to come with us."
Erik glanced at his watch.
"I think we can do that and still make it."
Once everyone was bundled up sufficiently enough to deal with the winter weather we began heading in the direction of the church but stopped at the Bjornson's house next door. It was a cozy looking one story structure with it's walls painted white and a mahogany door with a lamp next to it.
Jakob stood frozen to the spot before looking at Erik for guidance.
"Go on Jakob. You can do this" Erik said, making a shooing motion in the direction of the Bjornson home.
Jakob inhaled and then exhaled deeply before taking a few steps and starting up the drive. He didn't get very far however before he turned around and raced back to Erik.
"I just can't do it Pappa!"
"Yes you can. Now I want you to march up there, ring that doorbell and don't come back until you've asked him and that's an order from your Father" Erik said affectionately.
"Can you at least come with me? Please?"
"Alright but your still gonna be the one to ask. Ok?"
"Got it."
"Alright come on."
I waited with Torsten and the girls as they strolled up to the door and Erik rang the doorbell.
###
Jakob's POV:
I fidgeted and shuffled my feet back and forth as I waited for the door to be answered.
I felt a hand on my shoulder and I looked up to see Pappa grinning at me, nodding in encouragement. He gave my shoulder an affectionate squeeze and a few seconds later the door opened. William's mom stood in the doorway, and she appeared to be a friendly lady and full of warmth as she spoke.
"Can I help you?"
"Hi are you William Bjornsons mom?" Pappa asked.
"Yes."
"I'm Erik Anderson and this is my son Jakob." Pappa gestured to me before continuing. "We live next door and I brought Jakob here because he has something he wants to ask your son."
"Oh ok sure. William!" she turned and called into the house.
I felt my stomach turn as we waited for William to come to the door.
What if he thinks I'm weird? What if this whole thing was a mistake? What if...
I didn't get to finish that thought because soon enough William padded to the doorway and poked his head out.
"Sweetie this is Jakob Anderson and his Father, they live next door. You remember Jakob right?"
William gazed in my direction and I gave a small wave.
He looked down and said softly "Hi Jakob."
"Jakob wanted to ask you something sweetie." She nodded at me to do so.
Well here goes nothing...
"I was wondering if maybe you'd like to come to church with us."
William simply gazed at me for a moment and he blinked a few times.
Oh no he's going to say no. I knew this was a bad idea! He probably just wants me to go away...
"Um...sure" he replied softly.
"Really?!" I blurted out, shocked.
He seemed almost startled at my response, so much so that he almost jumped.
"Um..yeah."
"We can have him back in an hour and a half or so if that's alright with you" Pappa said to Mrs. Bjornson.
"That will be fine." She glanced at William.
"Put your coat on William and then you can go and have fun with Jakob."
William silently shuffled back into the house and came back about ten seconds later with a blue coat on and a scarf tied around his neck as well as a pair of mittens on his hands.
He gave his mother a kiss on the cheek and then Pappa, William, and I all made our way towards Mamma and the others.
###
Ruth's POV:
I grinned as I saw Jakob and the boy who I assumed to be William Bjornson strolling towards us along with Erik.
"Looks like mission accomplished Torsten" I said, turning to him.
"I always knew that nephew of mine had it in him. He just needs to have more confidence in himself."
When they reached us Jakob said "Mamma this is William."
"Hi William it's nice to meet you" I gave him a comforting smile.
"Hi" he replied in a soft voice and I got the impression that he was rather shy of meeting new people. He seemed a good-natured young boy though.
All of us soon arrived at the church where we quickly took our seats in a pew that had a handicapped spot so Torsten could sit with us.
"Ruth" Naomi said, coming up to us. She usually sat with us when we came to church every Sunday.
"Mother" I greeted her with a smile and stood up, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"Kids, make room for grandma" I said, and they all scooted down the wooden pew so Naomi could have a seat.
Soon enough mass began as the priest and the deacon made their way to the altar as we stood up and sang and soon enough we were able to sit back down. I wasn't able to hear much of the homily later on though because the kids, especially Annalise, began to fuss from boredom.
"Mommy how much longer?" she whined.
"Shh Annalise we are in church" I quietly chastised her.
"But the seat is so hard" she bounced up and down on it to make her point.
I pulled her onto my lap and shushed her.
"Mamma I'm hungry" Katarina piped up. I had to resist the urge to sigh in irritation. I could tell Erik was feeling the same way as Maryam constantly tugged at the sleeve of his shirt and squirmed in her seat. Jakob and William were engaged in a quiet conversation about something and I had to smile at the obvious bond they were already forming.
Finally, mass was over and the kids were long since ready to scramble out the door.
Naomi touched my elbow as I made my way out of the pew.
"Good job handling the kids today. Both of you" she addressed Erik too as he came up to us.
"Thank you Mother. It's really hard sometimes."
"Excuse me, but are you Ruth Anderson?" a young woman asked, coming up to us. She spoke with an American accent and looked to be about 30 years old with light brown hair down to her shoulder and warm brown eyes with fair skin and a beautiful complexion. She wore a yellow sleeveless dress which went down to her knees and she carried a heavy winter coat along with a purse.
"Yes I am" I replied.
"I'm sorry to bother you. My name is Kate" she stretched out her hand and I shook it warmly.
"My Father-in-law, John, was the man you encountered at the restaurant and I wanted to come and apologize for his behavior, it was absolutely unacceptable. He told me where it happened and I asked the owner of the restaurant if he knew where I could find you and he said you usually come here on Sundays. I hope you don't mind."
My heart warmed at her kind gesture.
"That's very kind of you Kate."
"I wanted him to come and apologize to you himself but unfortunately I could not persuade him."
"He mentioned something about losing his son when he attacked me."
Her eyes saddened for a moment.
"Yes, his son, my husband Matt was killed while he was on a diplomatic assignment in the middle east five years ago shortly after we were married. He was captured by terrorists who later demanded money for his release but the U.S government refused to do anything to help him and he was executed shortly afterward."
"I'm so very sorry" Naomi spoke up.
"Oh Kate this is my Mother Naomi" I gestured to Naomi and then to Erik "and this is my husband Erik."
"Hello" she said to both of them as she shook their hands.
"Are you only visiting Norway Kate?" Erik asked.
"No, John got transferred here for a year for work. He hasn't been the same since Matt died and I felt he needed someone to look after him so I came with him."
"You guys coming?" Torsten asked, wheeling up to us.
He stopped when he saw Kate however and when she gazed upon him her eyes lit up and he couldn't stop gazing at her for several seconds.
"Eh hem Torsten?" Erik cleared his throat, obviously trying to hide the smile in his voice.
Torsten shook his head and glanced at Erik as if he just came out of a daze.
"This is Kate. She just came here from America with her Father-in-law and Kate this is my younger brother Torsten."
"Hello" she smiled at him, shaking his hand.
"Hi" Torsten practically squeaked out, a slight blush creeping into his cheeks.
"Hey Kate if you ever need someone to show you around I'm sure Torsten would love to volunteer" Erik said, trying hard not to laugh.
"I think that would be a wonderful idea" I jumped in.
Torsten looked as if he wanted to kick us both.
"Actually that would be great. I haven't been able to see much recently and it would be good to know the town better."
"Good" Erik said, then proceeded to rattle off Torsten's number while Torsten's jaw dropped and his eyes practically said I can't believe you Erik.
Kate put the number in her phone and then turned to Torsten.
"It was nice to meet you Torsten. I'll probably give you a call soon if that's alright."
"Uh...yeah... sure."
"Cool. It was nice to meet you all" she said to the rest of us.
"Nice to meet you Kate" we said, before she departed out the door. Once she was out of the church, Torsten sharply turned his chair to face us with an accusing look.
"What do you two think your doing?!"
"What? She needed to someone to show her around and I volunteered you" Erik said, feigning innocence.
"Besides, she's very pretty Torsten" I said.
"You two are unbelievable." He turned and wheeled towards the door. Erik and I gave each other a knowing look and snickered to ourselves as we followed him out of the church with the kids.
Hey guys I hope I did this chapter alright. Please REVIEW and let me know what you think. God Bless.
