Note: This is probably my favorite chapter so far... hope you don't mind a Christmas-themed chapter in Summer, but here we go!
Chapter 24.
"Now that is a Christmas tree," said Brandon, staring up at the eight-foot-tall tree that was the centerpiece of the Quinn's living room. It was immaculately decorated with gold ribbon, sugared fruit, porcelain birds, and strands of white lights. It was topped with a huge bow. He turned to Sophia. "Did you decorate it?"
"No," she smiled. "We had a it professionally decorated."
"You don't get to decorate your own tree?" he teased. "What's the fun in that?"
"Well," Sophia replied. "It's prettier this way."
It was a beautiful tree, Callie had to admit. It looked like something out of the glossy pages of a Martha Stewart magazine, standing proudly near the crackling fire in the fireplace, which was hung with swags of greenery. Perfect family, perfect tree.
The night before, Callie and Brandon had gone to the Foster's to help them decorate their tree. The whole family decked it out with homemade, mismatched ornaments and strings of popcorn. She'd laughed when Brandon showed her the ornaments he'd made in elementary school. They were messy, and faded, but they still hung prominently in the branches. Afterward, they'd had hot cider and frosted sugar cookies that Jude and Mariana had decorated.
"Kids," said Jill, coming into the room, carrying a tray. "Come. Sit down."
Callie followed Brandon to the sofa, sitting beside him.
"Help yourself," said Jill, setting a spread of refreshments on the coffee table. There were delicate butter cookies that looked almost too pretty to eat, and were definitely not homemade and decorated with gobs of frosting, as well as cheese and crackers, and mugs of steaming hot chocolate. Callie picked up a wreath shaped cookie and took a tiny bite, letting the rich vanilla flavor fill her mouth.
"These cookies are awesome," Brandon told Jill, stuffing another one in his mouth.
"Thank you," said Jill. "They're from Denmark. I'll ask Elsa to send some home with you, if you'd like."
"Thanks," he nodded, reaching for a cracker.
Sophia took a seat next to Callie, resting her head against her shoulder, as Robert came into the room.
"Hey, kids," he said, sitting down next to Jill. He glanced over at Callie and smiled. "How are you, honey?"
She managed a half-smile. "I'm okay. I guess."
"Honey, I want to apologize to you about yesterday," he began. "I'm so sorry."
"It isn't me you should be apologizing to," Callie told him. "It's Stef."
He slowly nodded. "I know..." his voice trailed off. "I'm sorry."
"Sir," said Brandon, diffusing the awkward conversation. "I was wondering if I could please talk to you for a moment in private."
"Sure, son," he nodded. "You can call me Robert, too, by the way. Come on. We'll talk in the den." He stood up, and Brandon followed him out of the room.
Left alone, Callie lazily combed her fingers through Sophia hair, gripping her cookie, which had crumbled and become soggy in her hot hand. They sat in silence, until Jill stood up, going to the entertainment center. She turned up the stereo, and a choir of angelic voices filled the room with Silent Night.
Fifteen Years Earlier:
Callie looked up at the Christmas tree in awe. The rainbow-colored twinkle lights blinked on and off, illuminating the ornaments. She held the ornament she'd made in kindergarten up in the air, trying to decide where to put it. The pinecone dangled in her little hand, bits of gold glitter flaking off and sticking to her skin.
"Where should I put this one, mommy?" she asked, turning to her mother. "There's no more room."
"I'm sure we can find an empty spot, Lovey," Colleen told her. She set Jude down in his playpen. "Let's take a look."
Callie wrinkled her brow, sticking her tongue out in concentration as she looked around. Her mother crouched down to her level, so she could help her. "Do you you want it high up on the tree, or at the bottom, Punkin'?"
Callie looked at the pinecone, cradling it in her palm. "The top!" she decided. "I see a spot!"
"Are you sure you can reach that high?" Colleen asked. "If you can't, mommy can help you."
"I can reach," Callie assured her. "I'm a big girl." She flexed her tiny arms to prove it.
"I know you're my big girl," said Colleen, ruffling her hair. "But even big girls need help sometimes."
"Mama!" Jude wailed. He began to cry, bouncing up and down in the playpen.
"I'm coming, little man," Colleen called back. She squeezed Callie's shoulders. "I'll be right back, Lovey. I just need to get Judie." She lifted up Jude, who had the sniffles, and began rocking him, humming softly.
Callie looked back at her mother and brother, then back at her ornament. She quickly decided to hang it up while they were preoccupied; Jude was crying harder, and Colleen had taken him to the kitchen to check his temperature.
She pulled a child-sized chair away from her little table, and pushed it up to the tree. Then, she stood on it, still too short to reach the branch she wanted. She stretched, gripping the ribbon tied to her pinecone, and stood on the tips of her toes. Just as she was about to loop the ribbon around the branch, she overbalanced herself. The chair tipped over, and she crashed onto the floor.
"Callie!" Colleen cried. Panicked, she hurried back into the room, set Jude down, and went to her daughter. "What happened? Are you okay?"
"I fell down, mommy," Callie sobbed, fat tears rolling down her cheeks.
"My poor baby." She picked Callie up to comfort her. Then, she noticed the toppled-over chair. "Were you climbing, by any chance?"
"Yes," Callie slowly admitted, rubbing her wet eyes. "Will Santa put me on the naughty list now?"
"No," her mother sighed, carrying Callie to the armchair.
"Promise?" she asked.
"I swear," Colleen told her. "Santa knows you're a good girl. But no more climbing, missy. Got it?"
"Yup," she replied, tears drying on her face. "Mommy, can you kiss my boo boo?" She lifted up her arm to show her mother the scrape she'd received from the rug.
"Let's see." Collen took her daughter's arm in her hand, and pressed her lips to it. "All better?"
"Better," Callie breathed, snuggling up in her mother's lap.
Colleen began to quietly hum Silent Night. As Callie sat there, resting her head against her mother's soft chest, she popped her thumb in her mouth, curling her finger around her nose, watching the Christmas lights and daydreaming of presents she most likely would never get.
She took her thumb out of her mouth when she heard someone at the door. "Daddy's home!" she squealed. She crawled out of her mother's lap, and ran across the trailer to meet him.
"Hey, you little critter," said Donald, scooping Callie up in his arms, simultaneously kissing her cheek and tickling her belly.
"Hi, Dada," she said, holding him around the neck. Her boo boo was long forgotten. "I missed you."
"I missed you too, shorty." He carried her across the room, and kissed Jude and his wife.
"We've been waiting for you, daddy," Colleen told him. "We still need to put the angel on the tree."
"Well," he chuckled. "I think we can do that." He picked the angel up from the ornament box, and handed it to Callie. "What do you say, kiddo?"
Callie nodded eagerly.
"Okay," he said. Gripping his daughter's waist, he lifted her up as high as the Christmas tree itself. "Put it right up there."
Secure in her dad's arms, Callie set the angel on the tree. When he set her down on the floor, she ran to Colleen. "I did it, mommy. Did you see me?"
"Yes, I did." Colleen bent down and gave her a hug. "You did good."
Callie planted a wet kiss on her mother's lips. "I love you, mommy."
Smiling, Colleen hugged her one more time. "I love you too, Callie."
Staring at the exquisite Christmas tree, the white twinkle lights blurred and danced like fireworks as tears ran down Callie's cheeks. There was an ache in her heart that she couldn't ignore. Suddenly, she wanted to feel like a little girl again, safe with her family. She wanted her daddy.
Brandon sat down in a high-back leather chair in Robert's den, twiddling his thumbs and shaking his leg, trying to rid himself of his nerves.
Robert shut the door, then turned to Brandon. "Want to play a round of pool?" He indicated to the dark-wood pool table that stood across the room.
"Oh, uh, no thanks," he stammered. "I- I don't know how."
"Hmm," she older man replied, scratching his chin. "Let me teach you sometime." He sat down across from Brandon. "I guess we should get down to business. What did you want to talk about?"
"Well," Brandon began, tugging his stiff collar away from his neck. "As you know, Callie and my relationship has gotten pretty serious. She... she means everything to me. I love her so much. She just fills my heart. And, I know I'm young, but I'm ready to commit to her. I want to spend the rest of my life with her. So, uh, I'd like to ask your permission to marry her. Please."
Robert gave Brandon a sad smile. "I have to admit, I'm a little surprised you're asking me," he told him. "Callie's all but shut me out of her life completely."
Brandon swallowed the lump in his throat, wishing he'd brought something to drink with him. "Well, it's the respectful thing to do," he told the older man. "You're her father."
"I feel more like a stranger," Robert confided.
Brandon sighed, knowingly. "Callie can be complicated. She... she tends to bottle things up. She has a hard time expressing her feelings. The only people she's ever really opened up to are me and my mom."
Robert nodded grimly. "I know it's hard for her. I try to keep that in mind. I just never understood, though, how she can love your family so much, but she can look me in the eye, her own flesh and blood, and tell me she hates me."
"Well," said Brandon. "She and my mom, they have a really close bond. And I think Callie has a hard time with men in general. All the men in her life have either hurt her or let her down, in some way."
"I know," Robert replied. "I've read her file. But I'm trying to be there for her. I love her so much. It kills me that she doesn't love me back. She just has so much anger."
"I think, deep down, she really does love you," Brandon confided. "She's just afraid to admit it. I don't know... maybe she think she'll be betraying my moms and Donald if she does, or she thinks you'll eventually disappoint her like everyone else."
"I've already disappointed her," he admitted. "I didn't keep my promise to her, to let her get adopted. But I couldn't... she's my baby, and she's all I have left of Colleen." He sighed deeply. "Tell me, if you found out you had a child like Callie, could you just abandon her?"
Brandon tried to imagine a daughter, his and Callie's. He shook his head. "No. I don't think I could."
Robert stood up, pacing back and forth. "I guess I haven't answered your question yet," he told Brandon. "Are you going to take good care of Callie?"
"Yes," he nodded. "Like I said, I love her. You can trust me with her."
"Then," he finally replied. "You have my permission to marry her."
"Thank you so much!" Brandon breathed. "You don't know what this means to me."
"I think I do," he replied with a smile. "Why don't you head back to the living room? I need to run upstairs and get something, and I'll be right there."
"Callie, why are you crying?" Sophia asked, looking up at her older sister.
"It's nothing," Callie quickly told her, shrugging it off. "I'm fine. I just need some air."
She hurried down the hall, up the stairs to her room, and pulled out her cell phone, searching for the number. It rang, and finally, he answered it. "Callie?"
"Dad," she said quietly. "Hi."
"Hi, sweetheart," said Donald, sounding surprised. "I haven't heard from you in ages."
"I know," she apologized. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to say Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas to you too. Is something wrong?" he asked. "You sound upset."
"I just... I miss mom so much," she sobbed, breaking down. "All this holiday stuff... it's too much."
"I know," he sighed. "Your mom loved Christmas more than anyone. Even with nothing, she made the holidays seem magical."
"I wish she were here," she hiccuped. "I need her."
"Don't cry, baby" Donald soothed. "Take a deep breath."
She did so, trembling as she exhaled.
"What's going on?" he asked, trying to distract her. "Anything new?"
"Um, I'm... I'm getting married," she replied, her voice shaking. "Not right away, but soon."
"Wow," he breathed. "I can believe you're so grown up already."
"Well," she sighed. "I don't feel grown up today."
"Callie," said Donald. "I am so happy for you. And I know that... you know, I don't have rights to you anymore. But if you need someone to give you away at your wedding, I would be honored to do it."
"Really?" she asked.
"Of course," he told her. "I'd be proud. I know we're not blood, but you'll always be my little critter."
"You're still my dad," Callie told him. "Robert is just... a sperm donor. You're the person who raised me." She brushed her tears away with the back of her hand. "I love you, dad. And thanks... for talking to me."
"Any time. And I love you too, baby."
She ended the call, tucking her phone back in her pocket. When she stepped into the hall, she saw Robert standing there, tears in his eyes. "I miss her too, honey," he sighed, reaching out to hug her.
Callie stepped away from him, dodging his embrace. "You were spying on me!" she accused. "I can't believe this!" She turned away, and hurried down the hall.
To Be Continued