"When you want it the most
There's no easy way out
When you're ready to go
And your heart's left in doubt
Don't give up on your faith
Love comes to those who believe it
And that's the way it is."
--Celine Dion, "All the Way"
Strangers on a Train
Part Two
Their breaths were like puffy white clouds in the crisp cold air as they walked to Serena's home. Casting a sideward glance at him, she noticed that he was clutching his briefcase tightly, and she couldn't tell if he was that way naturally, or if he was just uncomfortable with the situation. "Do you think your company will be angry with you for abandoning your work like this?" Serena asked softly.
Darien looked at her, coming out of his deep train of thoughts. Funny, he had been thinking the exact same thing. He knew they wouldn't be exactly angry with him, just concerned with his sudden actions. He had never been known to be spontaneous. This would certainly raise a few eyebrows back at the office.
"Thanks for reminding me. I'll give them a call right now." Pulling out his cell phone from his coat pocket, he auto dialed his number at the office. Knowing it would automatically pick up his voice mail, Darien kept his pace up with Serena's, listening carefully to the list of messages.
"Darien, by the time you get this, you're probably already on your way to Denver, but the meetings you were scheduled to attend have been postponed; the corporate office decided to wait until after the first of the year. Have a good holiday."
Serena stared at him intently as he gawked at the device he held in his hand for a moment. "Well, what do you know," Darien muttered, slipping the phone back into his pocket. Placing her hands on her hips, Serena asked, "Are you going to tell me or not?"
Darien shook himself out of his stupor and faced the blonde-haired pixie who was beginning to look quite agitated. "I guess it wouldn't be fair to you to keep you in the dark after all you've done to get me here. The plans which put me on the train in the first place have been postponed until after the first of the year."
Serena threw her arms around a surprised Darien and hugged him tightly. "That's wonderful! Now you can spend the holidays with me and my family and not feel guilty about skipping out on your work. It has to be a miracle!"
Frozen in his tracks, Darien wasn't sure what to make of the warmth surging through his veins as Serena hugged him. He had not been this close to a woman and enjoyed it so much in a very long time; not since his favorite foster mother back when he was nine. Those tender memories came flooding back to him as Serena held him in her embrace, and he wished, just once, that he could have memories like that again.
He stepped away from her, sad to lose the comforting feeling. "A coincidence, maybe, but not a miracle," he answered. Serena smiled impishly. "What's the matter, don't you believe in miracles?"
"Nope. Haven't for a long time. But I guess that all depends on what you would call a miracle." Serena laughed, and poked him in the shoulder. "Whatever you say, Mr. Non-believer, but my faith is still strong."
"You haven't told me much about your family yet. What are they like?" She smiled. "That's right. You do need some background information, don't you? Well, for starters, there's my mother and my father and three kids; myself and my two older brothers."
"Brothers?" Darien cut in. He gulped. Where there were older brothers, there was usually trouble for him. "Yeah, Tal's four years older than me, and Ricky's two years older. Both of them are married now, and Tal's got a five-month old baby girl who I haven't seen yet. So I'm really excited to get home."
Darien gulped again. "Anything else I should know?" She shrugged. "I don't know, but I'm sure you'll get along great with them. Both of them were on the football team in high school, but they're just big softies now."
That's what he was afraid of. Two brothers, very strong and very capable of tearing him apart. He remembered the boys that would come over to play with the children in his foster home and how they would tease him. He just didn't fit in. And that's the way it had always been.
"You know, now I'm not so sure about this," he wavered, and seriously started to consider going back. Serena grabbed his arm, and gave him a bright smile. "Oh no you don't, you can't back out now! Besides, we're almost there. Look!" she said, pointing to a large house on their left.
The house looked no more than five or six years old, tastefully decorated for the Christmas season. Cascading icicle lights hung all around the outer trim of the house, and a beautiful pine tree was framed in the living room window for all the world to see. "Looks like Mom and Dad didn't waste any time," Serena whispered under her breath. "Oh, are they going to be surprised when we come through that door. Come on!" Grabbing Darien's hand, they jogged across the street and up the walkway of the place she loved to call home.
With Darien right behind her, she twisted the doorknob, and being careful not to bump the enormous wreath hanging on the front, Serena pushed open the door to reveal the front hallway and staircase, all decorated with a beautiful garland. They stepped in, and shut the door behind them. Looking up, Serena smiled and tugged on Darien's arm. "Never fails. Every year... be on the lookout." She pointed to the arch connecting the hallway and the kitchen where a fresh sprig of mistletoe hung.
"Who's here?" a distant voice called from the kitchen. Serena got a huge grin on her face. "Mom?" Darien watched in amusement as Annie Cardon bolted from the kitchen and latched on to her youngest child. "Serena, sweetheart! What a wonderful surprise! I didn't expect you until tomorrow. Was the train ride all right? Where's the rest of your luggage?"
Disentangling herself from her mother's grasp, Serena grinned. "Everything was fine, and my luggage is still at the station. I'll go pick it up later. I decided to surprise everyone by coming home early. Speaking of surprises," she said, turning to where Darien stood behind her, "I want you to meet Darien, a friend of mine. He doesn't have anyone to spend the holidays with, so I invited him to come here."
Annie smiled brightly, and stuck out her hand. "Welcome to our home, Darien. I hope that you'll enjoy yourself while you're here."
Darien took Annie's hand, and shook it firmly. "Thank you for letting me be a guest in your home, Mrs. Cardon." With wide eyes, Annie glanced over at Serena. "Well, he's certainly a polite one, isn't he?" She turned back to Darien and smiled warmly at him. "Please, call me Annie, everyone does." She walked back into the kitchen, with Serena and Darien following closely behind. "You two are just in time to can help me frost the sugar cookies I just baked. Then later on you can take them around to the neighbors."
They shrugged off their coats, and put them away in the closet. Serena whispered, "See? I told you my mom would like you. You have nothing to worry about." Darien smiled back, even though he still had many doubts.
******
"Mom?" A masculine voice was heard out in the front hallway nearly two hours later. Serena and Darien were busily frosting cookies as fast as Annie could get them out of the oven. A tall form filled the archway leading into the kitchen. "Are you baking cookies again?"
Annie crossed her arms and smiled at her oldest child, pointing a spatula at him. "What kind of question is that, Tal? You know I'm always baking this time of year. But they're not for you. They're for the neighbors."
Tal turned his attention to where Serena and Darien were sitting at the table. "Sere! When did you get home?" Serena jumped up to give her eldest brother a huge hug. "Just a few hours ago. Oh, Tal, this is Darien, a friend of mine. He's going to be staying with us for the holidays. Darien, this is Tal, my oldest brother."
Standing up, Darien shook Tal's hand firmly, giving him the best smile he could muster. He didn't seem quite as intimidating as Darien thought he would be. Tal returned the smile. "Well, any friend of Serena's is bound to be a friend of mine." He turned to look at his mother and little sister. "I'll go get Michelle. She's still getting a few things from the car."
Serena looked up from her frosting, a smile lighting up her face. "Oh, the baby! I am so excited to see her." Tal smiled, and left the kitchen to bring his family in from the cold. Darien watched him leave, a wistful feeling harboring in his heart. He and Tal were about the same age... he pictured himself in that place, with a wife and child... he could finally be happy... with Serena by his side...
HOLD IT! Back the truck up! Him and Serena? But he barely knew the woman! Still... after getting to know her on the train ride, and then being in her home, it was like as if he had known her for years.
Serena's voice broke into his silent thoughts. "Mom, where's Dad, Ricky and Sid?" Annie finished peeking into the oven to see if her current batch of cookies was done yet. "Oh, Rick and Sid took your father shopping; Sid was determined to make him get me something decent this year. They should be back soon; then we can all sit down to dinner."
The front door opened and closed again. This time two people came into the kitchen, one held a baby wrapped in a blanket in her arms. Michelle handed the baby over to Tal, crossing the room to give Serena a warm hug. "Serena, it's so good to see you." Tal came over to stand by his wife and grinned. "Meet the newest member of the Cardon family." He pulled back the blanket to reveal a sleeping baby girl. "Serena, this is your niece, Miriam. Miriam, this is your aunt Serena."
Serena let out a gasp. "Ohh, Tal, Michelle, she's absolutely beautiful. Can I hold her?" Michelle smiled gently. "Of course, it's about time that you got to know her." Tal gently placed Miriam into Serena's waiting arms. Tufts of blond hair were tied into a ribbon on her head, and Serena guessed that beneath her tiny eyelids, her eyes were as blue as both of her parents.
She nudged Darien with her elbow and he looked down on the sleeping child from over Serena's shoulder. "Isn't she beautiful, Darien?" He nodded in agreement. "Would you like to hold her?" she asked shyly, looking up into Darien's shocked gaze.
"I--I don't know. I've never held a baby before. I'm not sure I'd do it right--" Before he knew it, Serena had delicately placed Miriam into his arms, and now his gaze was fixed on the little girl. "Incredible," he murmured. "She's a little miracle," he replied, looking up at Tal and Michelle.
As he handed the baby back to her mother, Serena whispered in his ear, "So you believe in miracles after all." With a smile, he whispered back, "I guess I do."