Last day of school before Christmas.
Marcus was ecstatic. It was a half day. There would be cookies and apple cider, and before you knew it, it was time to exchange presents under the tree then go to Chicago to visit his grandparents and old friends and then it would be his birthday in January. He had a lot to be excited about.
He wore a red sweater and jeans and went downstairs for breakfast.
Uncharacteristically, Brenda woke up early and made breakfast, waffles, and bacon with syrup and a fruit salad. She even figured out how to use the juicer and made some fresh juice. Fritz woke up to the smell of bacon and coffee. Excited, he took a quick shower and headed downstairs.
"Good morning, Baby!" he greeted her with a kiss as he went in for a cup of coffee.
The trio ate breakfast together, chatting about their last day before the break. Fritz had an easy case to wrap up. Smugglers got caught bringing fake Louis Vuitton merchandise into LAX, and a plea deal was expected. They would pay a fine and then be deported to their home countries. Fritz just had some paperwork to fill out. Similarly, Brenda had an easy day ahead of her as well. She just had to sign off on a couple requests, and then she was going to take her team out for lunch and end the day early.
"When do you get out of school today Marcus?"
"Noon."
Fritz probably wouldn't be done so early.
"How about I get you at noon, and you can come to lunch with us?"
"I won't be in the way?"
"Of course not. Nothing gets in the way between those greedy guts and food."
Rusty was just finishing his final math assignment of the year. Good Riddance! He, unfortunately, had a full day, but what can you do? Bobby headed to work early as did Sharon, both ready to wrap up the year on a good note. Charlie was sleeping in and Sammie was reading the paper and drinking some coffee.
Sammie drove Rusty to school and he got there right before class was to start. The school day was a bit of a waste, teachers talking while disinterested students gossiped and blabbered about their holiday plans. Some teachers had tests today, so they wouldn't have to speak. Other teachers played a movie. Mr. Humphries had to try and teach math. What a bore! It was the last class before lunch. 20 more minutes, then something to eat. Of course, Rusty heard his name over the speakers. "Will Rusty Beck please report to the principal's office?" The class snickered. Of course, Rusty got himself in trouble right before school was ending for 3 weeks.
He got up, taking his backpack, as he headed to the office. Waiting for him, to his surprise, was Sammie. She came to take Rusty to his doctor's appointment.
"Well, we hope you feel better," the principal's secretary told Rusty. He faked a cough and then he thanked her.
They left the school, heading for In and Out. Charlie was behind the driver's wheel.
"Let's blow this popsicle joint!"
The trio went to In and Out burger.
"How come you guys came to get me?" Rusty asked them as they left the drive through window.
"We decided no one deserves to be cooped up two days before Christmas, not even you." Charlie retorted.
"How Sweet!"
"I know."
After burgers, fries and shakes, the trio went to the mall to do some last minute Christmas shopping. Then they headed home and decided to get the house ready for Christmas: set up the tree, clean up the house, etc.
Bobby had a long day. His project was on time, but he still had his boss and his client on his ass at every turn. His men were tired and eager for some time off. He headed home. On the way, he got a call from Sharon. Her case was finally done. It was the lead singer's brother, who they had been paying to write their songs, but actually, he had been ripping them off of other artists. He killed the victim after being confronted by him, and of course, nothing but publicity for Topic Thunder. She was on her way home too. So much to do, she thought.
Hollywood
Maybe Michael would be able to make a comeback after all. Now, he had all kinds of people trying to get ahold of the song that caused all of the controversy, and he might even be able to afford to buy the copyright permissions. He didn't realize that Joyce was preparing an exit strategy in Atlanta. Would be he able to turn it around fast enough to keep her?
At Noon, the kids ran out to their awaiting parents. Full of cider and cookies and eggnog, they were ready to relax. Christmas break was here, every kids favorite time of the year. Marcus was no different. He saw Brenda's beat up Toyota and climbed in.
"Hey Marcus! How was your day?"
"It was great. They had cider and cookies and eggnog."
"Will you have room for lunch?"
"Always!"
They headed back to Brenda's office to grab her team.
Tommy and Jackie were playing darts and Gabriel was trying to work, but he couldn't focus on anything. The door opened. Crap! Boss is back.
Tommy and Jackie ran to their desks, pretending to be very busy.
"Hey team! It's time for lunch. Let's go."
"You mean us?" Tommy didn't know about any lunch.
"No I mean the plants. Yes you. Lunch on me."
"Now you're talking!" Jackie grabbed her purse.
They all crammed into Brenda's car and drove to a local Sichuan restaurant. They got a table and began to check out the menu.
"I like cold sesame noodles," said Marcus. "Anyone allergic to peanuts."
"Nope!"
"They have pork dumplings!" Jackie was happy.
"Scallion pancakes or pork steam buns," pondered Tom.
"Scallion pancakes if we're getting pork dumplings," answered Gabriel.
The waiter came with the tea and the water.
"I think we're still trying to figure out the entrees, but could we get started with pork dumplings and cold sesame noodles and some scallion pancakes."
"Absolutely."
Brenda perused the menu. She saw crispy fish, that was mandatory. Sesame chicken was always a hit and maybe a vegetable. "How about sesame chicken, crispy fish and spicy broccoli?" That, along with the rice and appetizers, sounded like plenty.
"Yum!" Marcus was happy.
The appetizers came and Brenda ordered the entrees. The appetizers went fast: first dumplings gone, then pancakes gone, then noodles almost gone, just some peanut sauce at the bottom.
"It's like y'all never ate before," Brenda laughed.
"You know how Tommy is," Jackie ribbed.
"Me. You about inhaled those dumplings."
Soon enough, the main courses arrived. They passed the dishes around the table, everyone grabbing some of everything. People chatted about their plans. David's parents were coming into town. Jackie , Rachel, and Tommy were just going to be at the apartment, eating fried goodness and watching football on tv. Brenda saw a lot of opportunity for this break. Maybe Tommy and Jackie could finally get together and Rachel could come over for another visit. Brenda had a smile on her face. She had a plan forming in her mind.
Eventually, the entrees were all gone too, and Brenda settled the bill and the quintet went back to the office. Brenda said they could break early, and Tommy unveiled his spiked eggnog for an impromptu office party. Brenda only had a taste; she had to drive home, but it was quite delicious, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, rum, all tasty.
Brenda and Marcus got to the house, where Fritz was bringing up a box of decorations for the tree from the basement.
"I thought we could decorate the tree together."
"How nice!" Brenda gave her husband a kiss. "I'll get the camera.
Flynn's House
Andrea was doing some last minute packing. They were driving out this evening and getting to her father's tonight. She was struggling to closer her suitcase. "Close DAMNIT!"
Flynn saw her plight and pushed on the bag, allowing Andrea to latch it.
"Thanks, Honey."
"Did you pack too many clothes? Maybe you should leave some here." He spoke with a sly grin.
Andrea knew exactly what he was implying and pinched his behind. Maybe, I should leave these clothes right here, on the floor.
"Now, we're talking." He kissed her and pushed her onto the bed.
Eliza's loft.
Eliza spent all day cleaning. She wanted the place to be just right when Gabriel's parents arrived. She went to the store and got what she needed to make dinner, desserts, snacks, drinks. She was ready for anything.
Gabriel came home to see his girlfriend frantically trying to get everything perfect. He swooped her into his arms and kissed her head. "Relax. My parents will love you."
"They will."
"I know I do."
Eliza finally took a breath and fell onto his chest.
Raydor's House
Sharon came home, having finally closed the case, with a laundry list of things to do in her head. She was surprised to open the door and see a clean and decorated house. There was ribbon out, the tree was up, presents underneath it, mistletoe in a few places, a delicious smell coming out of the kitchen. Bobby was already on the couch with a beer, and Rusty was in front of a plate of cookies.
"This house looks ..."
"You're welcome," said Rusty with a smirk.
"It's the least we could do, Mom" said Sammie.
"We could have done nothing," retorted Rusty.
Sammie sighed.
Charlie was making gumbo for dinner. She also had baguettes in the oven and a sweet potato salad in the fridge.
"What smells so good?"
"Cookies, and they're all mine" said Rusty, possessively.
"Are not," Charlie called from the kitchen. "Anyway, I'm making gumbo for dinner."
"It smells fantastic." Sharon ditched her shoes and was changing into something more comfortable. Christmas break was finally here; she didn't have to do any chores tonight. I'm going to open a nice bottle of wine at dinner, and …. Her thoughts got interrupted by a kiss Bobby. He followed her into the bedroom.
"We have 20 minutes before dinner. How about we work up an appetite?"
Sharon laughed. "Oh you horn dog," not that she didn't like the attention. They shed their clothes as they headed for the shower.
The hot water hit Sharon's back as she pulled Bobby in for a kiss. His hands settled on her back. He turned her around and cupped her breasts as he started to nibble on her neck.
Rusty went ahead and finished off Bobby's beer.
Sammie looked at him.
"What it'll get warm."
She shook her head and changed the channel. Well, if Bobby wasn't here, they could watch something other than sports-center.
Charlie put the finishing touches on dinner, and Sammie went in to set the table. She planted a kiss on Charlie's shoulder as she walked by.
The shower was very orgasmic for all involved. Bobby held Sharon in his arms as he had his way with her. His neck was covered in bite marks and her back had its fair share of scratches. They got dressed and Sharon blow dried her hair. Bobby just used a towel. "Dinner's ready!" Charlie called, and the lovers went out to eat with the family.
"Do you two always shower together or is this in the holiday spirit?" Rusty ribbed.
"Rusty!" Sharon responded.
"We're just saving water," Bobby joked.
"Glad to see you're so environmentally conscious Dad." Why did Rusty have to bring up their sex life? Gross!
"I recycle too!"
"Well, this gumbo is fantastic." Sammie never had "real" gumbo before, and this was spicy and very flavorful.
"This bread is the best." Rusty loved his carbs.
"Sweet potato salad?" Bobby was a bit skeptical. "What happened to the regular potatoes?"
"I wanted to try something new," said Charlie.
"I don't trust knew." He took a bite anyway. It wasn't bad. It would have been too sweet, but the bacon saved it.
"When in doubt, add bacon."
"Good girl."