Christmas Advent
Chapter 24-December 24th
All day, Mike waited. He cleaned the house from the top to the bottom. Arranged presents by wrapping paper. Made sure the bread was out for the casserole. He had taken the ham out the night of the 22nd, so it would be thawed. Things were prepared. He even checked the porch a few times.
Finally, about four; his door bell rang. He rushed to it in anticipation to find his sweet neighbor lady on the other side of the door, delivering cookies. He gave her the store-bought fruitcake he had purchased for several friends, neighbors and co-workers and then made small talk before helping her down the icy walkway and to her own house. While there; he got hooked into changing a lightbulb and cleaning her sidewalk off before he could get back to his house. About halfway up the sidewalk; he realized there was a familiar car sitting in the drive. It was Sasha's car, but she wasn't waiting in it. He walked into the house and was greeted by Tom.
"Former cop and you leave your door wide open?" Tom asked.
"Yeah. Was helping the neighbor and forgot to shut it. Why are you here?" Mike retorted.
"Merry Christmas to you too." Tom said.
"Yeah, sorry. Where's Sasha and the kids?" Mike asked.
"Helping us get settled in." A familiar voice said from behind him. He spun around to find Christine-much older and grayer, but still a beautiful woman; standing behind him.
"I'll give you two a moment." Tom said with a laugh. Mike barely acknowledged him leaving, concentrating on Christine. She was thin and her hair was mostly gray but she gave him a beautiful smile.
"After so long; aren't you going to give me a hug?" Christine asked. Mike rushed to her, pulled her in for a hug and practically lifted her up off her feet. As thin as she was; he suddenly remembered that he could be crushing her. He loosened his grip on her slightly but let the tears fall into her hair.
"I've missed you so much." Mike whispered. She kissed the side of his neck and pulled away.
"The girls are in the living room but…Mike; I was pregnant with twins. A boy and a girl. Max and Ella. And they are yours if you were wondering." Christine said. The last couple months before he left the Arctic was not their best, but he knew Christine would have never cheated and he remembered a couple's weekend two weeks before he left that could have resulted in twins. Instead of saying anything, he nodded and kissed her forehead.
"I'd better go meet them." Mike said finally. He took Christine's hand and led her into the living room. Hannah and Katie-both so grown, immediately rushed for him. He spent a few moments hugging them and talking to them before turning to the twins that Christine had mentioned. Max resembled Lucas a great deal, but Ella reminded him of Hannah when she was young. Christine was with them on the couch and he sat down next to her.
"Mike; this is Max and Ella. Guys; this is your daddy. We've told you about him." Christine said. Max shook Mike's hand confidently but Ella was intensely shy and put her face into Christine's shoulder. "Give her time. She'll warm up." Christine said. Mike noticed even more presents under the tree and smiled at the little girl.
"I wish I had something to give them." Mike remarked. Christine smiled at him before standing up. Max had sat down on Mike's knee and was playing with his hand. Christine reappeared and handed him two small gifts.
"I thought of that. They can open one small gift each tonight. The rest will wait until tomorrow." Christine said. Those gifts had the names written on tags so Mike handed them to the corresponding twin and smiled as they unwrapped them. Ella got a new doll and Max got a stuffed animal. "They are still young enough that they like dolls and stuffed bears." Christine said.
"The girls?" Mike asked; referring to his older daughters.
"They are aware of the gifts but will probably wait to open theirs til tomorrow morning. I think they are helping Sasha with dinner. You really did do a good job getting ready for us." Christine teased.
"I didn't know what I was getting ready for." Mike remarked.
"Ah; your friends were great help and you made the job easy for them by just accepting it. Kara was really worried you would change your mind about the doorbell camera. Even your neighbors helped." Christine said.
"Explains how the food never arrived until not long before I got home. How you seemed to know my work schedule and all that." Mike commented.
"Your neighbor lady would make sure the packages weren't sitting out for long. The security guard would call her and let her know that you were headed home. And we stayed with Tom and Sasha. They helped me with it all. I know its not been fun for you, but we've had a great deal of fun with it. There is a lot to catch up on; but tonight and tomorrow; I just want to enjoy us being together and home." Christine explained. Mike leaned over and gave her a long kiss on the lips.
"And I didn't even bring the mistletoe!" Tom yelled from the adjoining kitchen.
"I never needed it." Mike answered before giving Christine another kiss. She just chuckled in response.