Chapter 9:

Merry Christmas

Isabella studied her reflection in the bathroom mirror one last time.

Beside her, Ruby was still styling her hair into tight ringlets. Ruby's insistence on curling her entire head put the duo forty-five minutes behind schedule. Isabella thought she looked okay, dressed in a little black dress with a red and green Christmas cardigan over top. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, tied with a red ribbon. Ruby wore black jeans and a green V-neck Christmas sweater that featured Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer on the front. Her makeup was heavy, though it looked like she was hardly wearing any. Isabella always wondered how she achieved that look.

"Any word about Trey?" Ruby asked. Two days before, CNN had reported a bombing at the American embassy in Lebanon. People were still missing. Isabella shook her head.

"No. Please don't say anything about it tonight, either. We're all trying not to worry and we're all trying to have some semblance of a normal Christmas," Isabella pleaded. Ruby nodded. Everyone had been calling Trey, but they couldn't get in touch with him. It left an unsettling feeling in everybody's stomachs. It was going to take a few days for identifications to be made and people to be notified. Isabella was hoping for the best. They all were.

Isabella and Ruby fell into an awkward silence. Isabella applied a quick pink gloss to her lips. "Have you heard from him at all?" Ruby asked. Isabella shook her head. Ruby scoffed. "Well that's just rude."

Isabella shrugged. They finished getting ready and left the house. Most of the snow was already gone, thanks to the Florida sun. They decided to take Isabella's car to her parent's house. As per the norm when driving with Isabella, Ruby started tinkering with the radio station, going from jazz to top forty. "Did you try calling him?"

"It's not my job to harass him and chase him down, Rube," Isabella told her. "I invited him. It's up to him whether or not he takes it." She thought about John's visitor the day before. Was it John's boss? She couldn't see who it was through the tinted windows in the back of the limousine.

"Well, at least a phone call to let you know what he's doing would have been nice. That way you'd have something to tell your parents when they ask," Ruby pointed out. Isabella shrugged. She wasn't as bothered about the situation as Ruby appeared to be. Turning into her parent's driveway, she killed the ignition as Ruby unbuckled her seat-belt and reached for the bag of gifts in the backseat. They got out of the car and walked to the door together. Isabella opened the door and walked in, Ruby on her heels.

"Merry Christmas!" Isabella called out into the house. The smell of turkey and cinnamon hit her nostrils immediately. Her mother Jane emerged from the kitchen with a smile on her face, dressed in a pair of black slacks and a white sleeveless shirt. Isabella was the spitting image of her mother. They sported the same shade of blonde in their hair. Jane worked as an accountant at a Gold's Gym.

"Hey. Your friend told me the two of you were running late." Jane hugged her daughter. Ruby and Isabella exchanged curious glances. Disentangling herself from her mother, Isabella ventured into the living room while Jane showed Ruby a new pie crust recipe she was trying out. In the living room, Isabella was stunned to find John there, playing Nintendo Wii with Miranda. They were playing the old-school Super Mario Bros. game. Isabella was impressed to see that he had shaved and cleaned himself up. He wore a plain black T-shirt and blue jeans. He paused the game and turned to her, smiling.

"Hey! You made it," he said with a smile.

"I could say the same to you," she said with a smile pulling at the corner of her lips. Isabella's father Bob was reading a magazine, seemingly oblivious to the world around him. He looked over and nodded at his daughter. Ruby took over for John on the video game as he walked out of the living room with Isabella. "I, uh, didn't see your car."

"I took a cab. The license thing."

"Right. Well, I'm glad you made it. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas." The two of them were about to hug when they heard a loud squeal from the living room. Turning, Miranda appeared in the arch, holding her outfit.

"Thank you! Thank you!" With that, Miranda bolted past the two of them, into the kitchen to show her mother the new clothing Isabella had bought her.

"Mom, where's Beryl?" Isabella called out.

"Out in the yard," Mrs. Evans called back. John cocked an eyebrow.

"Beryl's our Akita. I was a Sailor Moon fan growing up," she added. He shot her a look. "Don't judge me."

She crossed the living room and walked out the sliding glass door. John followed. He could sense Isabella's father studying him intently. Ruby was visibly uncomfortable around him. Outside, they spotted Beryl digging in the grass beside a tree. "Here, girl!" Isabella called out. Beryl stopped what she was doing and ran over, jumping on her and licking her face.

"She's beautiful," John commented. Isabella shushed him with a laugh.

"Don't tell her that - it'll go to her head," she told him. He laughed. They fell silent as she gave Beryl some pets. She stood up straight and Beryl went back to the tree. "Did you need a ride home?"

"I could take a cab..."

"I'll give you a ride home. It's no trouble."

"Thanks." He reached into his back pocket and cleared his throat. He pulled out a small box. "I got you something."

"I can't accept that," Isabella told him. It looked expensive.

"You have to," he told her. "It's the least I can do. You've been so patient with me." He looked up at the whitened sky. "I'm, uh, I'm going to be going and getting some help. Professional help. So I'm going to be gone for a while."

She nodded. "That's probably for the best. If there's anything I can do..." He nodded. Beryl took off into the house, leaving the two of them out in the backyard. John leaned over and put the box in her hand. She sighed, opening the box, surprised to find a beautiful charm bracelet in there. She closed the box and went to hand it back to him, but he refused. "John, I can't accept this."

"You have to. Consider it a thank-you. I mean, you dragged me home from the bar, cleaned my death trap of a house and bailed me out of jail. If you really think about it, this is the least I can do."

"It's not why I did those things."

"I know. Don't over-think it. Just take it." She nodded.

"Thank you."

"I got you something, too, but it's in the house," she confessed. He looked genuinely touched and surprised. "I wasn't sure if you were coming or not, but if you weren't I probably would have dropped it off on the way home."

"I'm sorry for everything," he told her. "I've been a real asshole for a long time now. I really am trying to get my shit together."

"I know, John. I get it. Grief is a life-long thing that you just have to learn how to live with," she confessed. He nodded. "The real trick is knowing that it's there and how to manage it so it doesn't consume your life the way that it has." He nodded. "When does your flight leave? Do you need a ride to the airport?"

"Yeah. That would be great. My flight leaves at ten tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Yeah. I decided to catch the red-eye and go early. Get the boss off my ass. Is that okay? You don't have to..."

"It's fine. I'll drive you there."

"Thanks, Bella." He gathered her into his arms and hugged her tightly. "I know I've been an ungrateful bastard, but I really don't know where I'd be without you right now." She smiled and hugged him back, thankful that things seemed to be taking a turn for the better.

He pulled back. "Can you do me a favor while I'm gone?"

"What do you need?"

"Do you think you could get rid of the tree and the presents? I don't care what you do with them. Donate them or something. I just can't bring myself to do it, and it's kind of unhealthy to have the shrine, I know."

"Consider it done."

"Thanks. I really couldn't find a better friend," John confessed. "There's a spare key under the top step on the front porch." Isabella committed the detail to memory. In the house, they heard the door close. Ruby and Isabella's father came back into the house.

"We should get inside. I think my dad's suspicious of you." John laughed, but he followed Isabella back into the house, shutting the door behind them.