Part 4 of the 2022 REAL World Thanksgiving Marathon

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Gobble Gobble (1/2)

Steve rolled over and whispered, "Happy Thanksgiving. Thankful for you," to Catherine when her eyes fluttered open.

She smiled sleepily and placed a hand on his cheek, her thumb moving gently as she pulled him into a kiss. "Very thankful for you." Feeling his 'slightly damp from the shower' hair she pulled back a bit. "You ran Cammie?"

"I did." He kissed her. "And I got another hour of sleep afterwards. Gonna be a full day, Lieutenant."

"Hmmm I remember our first thanksgiving on the blow up in the den. Something about early morning being the only time we'll really be able to touch each other all day." Her chuckle rippled through them both.

"I remember that too." He tucked her hair behind her ear. "I was right and I stand by my theory."

She smirked, moving her lips closer to his. "Gotta give you that one. What time is it?"

"Oh six hundred." He shifted them and leaned down to kiss her again. "Time to … touch before Operation Thanksgiving gets underway."

Her smile lit her eyes. "Then commence with maneuvers, Commander, before we waste a minute."

Kissing her deeply, Steve smiled against her lips. "Aye aye, Lieutenant. Aye aye."

"That was a super fun game," Angie bubbled as she headed towards the house, covered in dirt and grass stains from the traditional Thanksgiving Day touch football game.

"Straight into the tub for you," Catherine told her. "Then you can put on the outfit Grandma bought you with the turkey on the shirt."

"The turkey is saying 'Gobble Gobble'," Angie giggled.

"There's a turkey on my shirt too!" Joan said.

The girls joined hands and squealed, "Twinsies!" They began to do an impromptu victory dance. "We're twinsies who win-sied!" Angie said and both girls fell out laughing.

"Make sure you do that dance for Uncle Danny when he gets back." Mary snorted. "He'll love it."

"You'd think he'd give up wanting to be a captain and just ask to be on Steve's team," Aaron said. "Then he might be able to win for a change."

After a quick shower and a change of clothes, Aaron was walking towards the staircase from the guest room when he heard DJ call, "Uncle Aaron, is that you?" from his room.

"It's me, do you need something?" he asked, smiling when his nephew's head popped around the door jam.

"Do you have a second?"

"For you? Of course." He joined the nine year old, following him to the bedside chair and taking the seat DJ waved him to, as the boy sat opposite on his bed. "What's up, everything okay?" he asked, but wasn't too concerned since his nephew's body posture and expression were relaxed and open.

"Yeah." His smile reached his eyes. "I wanted to tell you something."

Aaron leaned forward. "I'm all ears."

"My friend from my class, April, you met her and her family at picnic day, she's adopted and so are her siblings. They all have the same official day except her baby brother 'cause he wasn't born yet when they were adopted. Anyway, we were talking at recess and I told her about my book." His eyes flicked to his bookshelf where the book Aaron had made him before their first meeting sat in a place of honor. "So I took it to school so I could show her. She thought it was super cool and really nice of you."

Aaron smiled softly and patted DJ's hand. "It was absolutely my pleasure."

The nine year old's eyes danced. "It was awesome. And I know I thanked you then and all but I wanted to tell you how important it still is to me. I'm going to keep it forever, Uncle Aaron. I'm gonna show my kids it someday and tell them how you made it for me before we even met."

Aaron swallowed hard. He'd always loved the special connection he had with his nephew and DJ's level of comfort within his own skin made him happier than he could say. "That's… that means a lot to me, DJ."

"I was scared back then. I wanted to stay here so bad. I loved my parents and Angie right away. I never loved anyone before. And then you and Aunt Mary and Joan came and you made me the book and we sat together and read it. I won't ever forget how I felt. I felt accepted, by more than Mommy and Daddy, even though I didn't really know what that word meant when I was six. And happy. And then you told me that Abuelo had given you your book right when you met him and I realized you weren't with your original family either but you had awesome parents and a great sister and you had Aunt Mary and Joan and then I found out Joan was adopted too and…" He chuckled and took a breath. "Anyway, I wanted to say thanks again today because it's Thanksgiving. I'm super thankful for so many things and I want to make sure you know I'm really thankful for you. I love you, Uncle Aaron."

DJ leaned forward and was caught in a hug.

Aaron sniffed and didn't let go until the young boy did first.

"I love you right back, DJ, very much. And I'm so, so proud to be your uncle. I want you to know you can always come to me for anything, whether it's just to talk or for whatever, forever." He leaned back and held out a hand which DJ took and shook with a huge smile. "Deal?"

"Deal!"

They stood and DJ offered his hand again, this time to hold. "Like Jacob always says, this is definitely the best Thanksgiving yet."

"Graaaaaaaaaaace!" Angie and Joan tore across the living room at top speed.

"Mommy said that it's ok for me to get my nails painted today if you feel like doing it," Angie reported excitedly.

"My Mom said so too!" Joan bubbled. "If you feel like it." She caught sight of her mother out of the corner of her eye. The look on Mary's face reminded her she had forgotten something very important. "Please."

"Pretty please!" Angie steepled her fingers under her chin.

Grace reached into her purse with a mischievous grin and pulled out a small bottle. "I was hoping this might happen so I got a special bottle of glittery pink polish. It's called Exercise Your Brights."

The resulting squeals brought Cammie running from the kitchen to see what was happening.

Steve stood next to his best friend who was watching Grace and Angie with a small smile. Angie sat on the floor in front of her cousin, holding a multicolored hair tie decorated with Thanksgiving colors.

"Tell me when you need the tie, Grace," Angie said. She was sitting as still as possible while her hair was being worked into a french braid.

"Pretty soon," Grace told her. "You're being super still so it's going fast."

"Look at them," Danny pointed with the tip of his beer bottle. "You know what I just thought of?"

"That our kids are the best?" Steve's mouth twitched up in a grin even as he sipped his own beer.

"The first time you guys met Nonna. Catherine bought those earrings at Saks and gave them to Grace, remember?"

"Yeah." Steve's smile grew at the memory. "I do. Gracie asked Catherine to braid her hair so the earrings would show."

"She sat just like that, holding a brush and a hair tie while Catherine did the braid." Danny's eyes came back to the girls. They'd been focused on the past. "And look at them. Full circle. Famiglia."

The partners shared another smile, watching as Catherine passed through the room and said, "Good job sitting nice and still, Angie. Did you thank Grace for doing your hair like Joan's?"

"I did, Mommy. It's going to be very very beautiful with my Thanksgiving tie from Aunt Deb."

Catherine grinned at Grace and knelt to kiss her daughter's cheek. "It definitely is. As soon as you're done, go wash your hands because it's almost time to eat."

"There he is!" Steve said triumphantly as Jacob emerged from the house onto the deck. "Two touchdowns and an interception!"

"You get my vote for player of the game," Joseph said. "No question."

"I know I may have said this once or twice before." Jacob beamed. "But I think this might be the best Thanksgiving ever."

"Who knew I had a budding football star on my hands," Jenna said proudly.

"I'm convinced Steve is running some kind of secret year-round football clinic so he can put together a team of ringers," Danny grumbled.

Gabby patted his arm. "If that's true would it be ok with you if I sign up? I'd really like to be on the winning team for a change next year."

Danny scowled. "Et tu, Gabrielle?"

"I come bearing dessert!" Carrie said in a sing-song voice the second Steve answered the door.

He looked skeptical. "Yay?"

"I didn't make it," Carrie huffed. I bought it."

"Oh, well that's a different story." Steve smiled, which caused John to bark a laugh that he then tried, and failed, to cover with a cough.

"Is that them?" Catherine asked eagerly as she came down the stairs from checking on Angie and Joan.

"Yes!" Carrie grinned. "I got both the cookies and the brownies.I had to go to three bakeries to find anyone that made them. Totally worth it. I'm telling you these things will change your life."

Catherine rubbed her hands together. "I can't wait to try them."

"What are they?" Steve asked, his interest piqued.

Carrie pulled the bakery box close to her chest. "I may not let you have any after the way you've made fun of my dessert offerings in the past."

"Well you have to admit," Steve replied, "Some of your previous desserts have been …"

Carrie cut him off. "Don't finish that sentence. Let's leave the past in the past. Today is a new start." She opened the lid of the box. "Behold the wonder of Biscoff desserts."

Steve's eyebrows knit together. "What are Biscoff desserts?"

"Cookies and brownies made with Biscoff." Carrie's eyes sparkled. "It's cookie butter."

Steve's expression showed he still wasn't sold. "What is cookie butter?"

"Think of it like peanut butter but made from buttery, caramel-y cookies." Carrie sighed happily. "I had some on my toast this morning."

"And some straight out of the jar last night," John added, earning him a mock glare from his wife.

"This." Carrie pulled a cookie from the box. "Is maybe the best cookie I ever ate."

Suddenly Angie appeared at the top of the stairs. "Are you guys talkin' about cookies?"

"We sure are, angel." Carrie replied. "And since you're the official cookie expert around here I think you need to be first to try one."

"Everything is pretty much ready," Elizabeth said as Catherine and Carrie entered the kitchen.

"And it all smells delicious if I do say so myself," Grandma Ang chuckled.

"I didn't contribute much to the cooking," Deb joked, "But I think as a taste tester I'm first rate."

"Cody just called and said he, Jess, and Casey will be here in about ten minutes," Catherine said. "Chin, Leilani, Kono and Adam will be here later after dinner with their family."

Steve poked his head in from the deck. "Anything you need me to do?"

"Not a thing." Catherine smiled. "I think we're ready to eat."

TBC

Stay tuned for part 2 tomorrow

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