May 12th 2022

Chapter 132
Our Power to Feel Love

Christmas morning started early, as any morning would, but there were plenty of ways to make a day feel special, and this one was given status by several small girls.

Maya had it on good authority that she'd woken up right before Lucas did. She felt him move the way he would when he'd be crossing out of dreams into reality, and these days that meant feeling his fingers trail ever so lightly over along the curve of her belly, giving greeting as much to the baby inside as the one who carried him or her forth.

"How long do you think we've got before they all want to go downstairs and…" Maya whispered, the better to let him know that she was awake, too. Before he could do much more than chuckle and kiss her shoulder as he did, they both paused at the sound of voices…

The morning show was already on, the faint sound of the triplets' babbling coming from the baby monitor being proof enough, but this morning, the girls came to have some special guests. The nursery door was heard creaking open, and then there was a triple chorus of 'Annie!'

"Shh, we gotta be quiet, okay?" Marianne's voice followed.

"How did they get down here?" Tori asked. She'd spent the night in her aunt's room, as she had done since she and her mother had come over from Houston.

"I don't know, they just can," Marianne replied. "But that's good. We couldn't do that, I think."

"What now?" Tori asked.

"It's a surprise, okay?" Marianne either reminded Tori or told the triplets. Back in their room, Lucas signed to his wife.

"She doesn't remember we can hear her, does she?" he smiled, and Maya buried her face into his arm to stifle her laughter.

"You're asleep," she signed back before resettling against her pillow. He did as she did, and not a moment too soon.

Their door was the next to open, and under more whispers, 'the surprise' was brought along. There was the weight of someone climbing on to the foot of the bed, and then another someone.

"Lucy, come here," Marianne whispered. "Come here, that's it. Hands up? Okay, pull, Tori."

Lucas very carefully opened one eye, unable to keep from making sure that no accidents happened. But the girls managed to pull Lucy on to the bed just fine, and she crawled up a bit before stopping, observing her parents, looking to her sister, then back again… In that time, Kacey had been called forward. She'd walked all around the bed already, so she was just where she could see her mother's face. She had one hand up like she was going to touch her when Marianne said her name, and she walked her way back to be helped on to the mattress, there to join Lucy. She had a look to her like this was even better than when she'd been on the ground. She put her arms around her triplet, and Lucy did the same with her, until they tipped over with a squeak and a giggle on to their 'sleeping' parents' blanketed legs. By the time they righted themselves again, Remy had been pulled up, too. They were all there now, so there was some curiosity going around. What now?

"Wait a minute," Marianne spoke up then, her tone sounding straight out of her perception of her mother's voice. "You're not asleep." She climbed her way right to where she could stare down at their faces, hair dangling around her face.

"She got us good, guy," Maya declared in her best gangster voice.

"She sure did," Lucas tried to imitate her, but Maya made a noise which suggested he had not been successful at all. Ah, well… "What's all this?" he tried to at least play like he had no idea that the others were on the bed, too. The moment his head raised, it was like a signal, and the triplets scrambled to approach him, even as Maya pulled herself into a seated position. Marianne was just there by her side, so she ended up kneeling beside her and putting her arms around her mother's neck.

"Merry Christmas, pumpkin girl," Maya smiled as she turned her head to kiss her cheek.

"Merry Christmas, Mommy," Marianne told her.

"That was pretty sneaky of you," Maya told her, even as she felt Tori crawl up to her. "Did you have something to do with this, too?" she asked her. She was the one nicknamed 'sneak' around here, wasn't she? Right here, she proudly nodded. "Merry Christmas, granddaughter."

"Merry Christmas, Nana," Tori gave that great smile, identical to her mother's.

They had several minutes there, the seven of them together, and for whatever idea the girls had had in coming up here with them that morning, both Maya and Lucas doubted that their daughter and granddaughter really understood how successful they had been. They had given the two of them a memory they would cherish all their lives, especially as they all grew as girls, as teenagers, and as adults, a memory of when they were all small like this.

Never ones to keep hold of all good things with both hands, Maya and Lucas helped the group make its way up to the second floor, the better to wish Ella, Eliza, and Emma a merry Christmas morning. Tori bolted over to find her mother, even as Marianne went to look in on her aunts. Taking up the rear as they guided the triplets along – they all wanted to climb the stairs themselves these days, in whatever way they would manage it – both Maya and Lucas had a momentary flash of last Christmas morning, of Eliza's surprise visitor appearing so unexpectedly. But recalling how that had ended, surely…

"You're back! Hi, Ben! Merry Christmas, Lizard!" Marianne's voice cheerily called from just inside the room, and Maya and Lucas froze, causing the triplets to let go of their hands. At least they had made it to the second floor proper by then, so they could just step forward, unaware of their parents' shock. Marianne left one room and went across the hall, there to greet Emma in turn. Their conversation, whatever it was, didn't factor into the scene out in the hall, as Eliza poked her head out of her door to spot her sister and brother-in-law, her little nieces… When she saw them, she closed her eyes and sighed, bowing her head before retreating out of view.

"'tee!'" Remy pointed, using the same bit of a word as her sisters did in calling to their aunties.

"Be right there, kitty cat!" Eliza called back.

"Good morning, Ben," Maya hopped into this back and forth, speaking loud enough for the boy to hear, over in her little sister's room. After a second, and another…

"Good…" he started to call back then, a moment later, poked his head out, too, a bare arm and shoulder suggesting he at least had no shirt in his possession in that instant. "Good morning, everyone," he greeted his hosts with a very polite but very awkward smile that was very reminiscent of their first meeting a year ago. His hand up in the air was interpreted as an invitation by the triplets, who never saw a wave they didn't return nowadays, so they all waved at him, and he had to wave again before he was able to disappear – going by the look on his face and the speed of it – pulled back into the room by Eliza. The door was closed, just as Emma and Marianne emerged from the other room.

"Did I just see…" Emma pointed to her sister's door.

"You did," Maya and Lucas spoke and nodded at the same time.

Presents and breakfast looked both very similar to and different from last year. Like before, they had Ben with them, both he and Eliza looking just a bit awkward. Of course, all the little girls were a year older than they'd been last time, which made a huge difference, especially as they sat to open presents and saw how each of the triplets coped with wrapping paper. As everyone shifted toward getting ready before guests could start to arrive, there was a bit of whispering happening near the front door. Much as she tried not to spy, Maya could see her sister and her… Ben… talking, and it looked to her like they were debating whether or not he'd stay. Just because he was Jewish and didn't celebrate Christmas, it didn't mean he couldn't attend their gathering, especially if Eliza wanted him around…

In the end, he didn't stick around, though the two of them parted with a kiss that felt significant enough, so… maybe they'd be seeing more of him?

"Is this going to become a thing?" Maya had to ask when Eliza saw her. "As Christmas traditions go, that's definitely one I haven't seen before."

"Ha," Eliza rolled her eyes and laughed. "I really didn't want all this to go like… last year…" she went on, sighing, as she approached Maya.

"I don't think he did either," Maya whispered.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"It's either that or go to a very weird place in my head, let me have this, okay?"

"Fine, fine…" Eliza agreed. They were silent for a beat.

"So… What's going on with you two?" Maya had to ask. By the look on Eliza's face, she could already guess that she was still figuring it out, too.

"I don't know, we're just sort of… exploring a few… options… casually…" Eliza affirmed with semi-confident assurance.

"Casually…" Maya slowly repeated. "Safely?"

"Yes, please," Eliza motioned for her to keep her voice down.

"Hey, I'm sorry, okay, but 'casual' is all good and fine until you end up with… surprises…" Maya gestured down to herself for emphasis.

"Oh, I'm definitely not there yet…" Eliza promised at once.

"Good, good, just checking… For what it's worth, I wouldn't mind seeing more of him around… He's a good guy."

"Yeah, he is," Eliza easily agreed on this at least, a smile rising on her lips for a moment before looking to her big sister again. "It might not happen though, I mean… What we have right now, it's pretty good. I wouldn't want to mess it up."

"Don't worry about it, okay? Whatever happens, I'm here for it. The one who might really be disappointed if it doesn't pan out will probably be Marianne," Maya noted, and Eliza chuckled.

"Yeah, she really likes talking to him, huh?"

"She likes talking to everyone," Maya reminded her, with an undertone to show how that had been a 'problem' especially when she'd been younger. "But yeah, for someone she's only met twice, he's ranking pretty high on her list. Just, please bring him around some more, so he doesn't register as 'Christmas Ben' in my head anymore? Preferably with a shirt on next time…" she slowly suggested.

"You clearly haven't seen his abs…" Eliza mumbled to herself before quickly clearing her throat, eager to change the subject when Maya started to laugh. "Is it alright if he comes around while you guys are in Arkansas for New Year's?"

"Oh, sure, bring him when I'm not there…" Maya joked. "But yes, of course he can. You don't have to ask." Eliza thanked her. "Do your mom and James know about him?" Maya had to ask, as the thought occurred to her. By the gaping expression on her sister's face, she had to assume the answer was no. They might not even have known that there was such a person in their daughter's life called Ben. "Just a thought here, but if he's going to be around more, you might want to work him into the conversation or something while they're in Austin."

"Might have to do that, yeah…"

TO BE CONTINUED


See you tomorrow! - mooners