I DO NOT OWN ANYONE OR ANYTHING IN THIS STORY BESIDES THE OC'S.
Tara's Point of View-
I drove Xavier and I home unloading the car putting the things that I had put aside.
"Mom, I want lunch." Xavier said as he walked into the kitchen with me.
"You want a peanut butter and banana?" I asked.
"Yes! May I try on my jacket?"
"Yes, go show grandma." I said as I handed him his jacket after cutting off the tags and he pulled it on going out to the living room showing my mom, which from what it sounded like she enjoyed the sight of it as I made the sandwich for my son and he ate at it as I collected the dishes that may be needed for Alex's lasagna or cookies that we were to be made today. I pulled down all the cookie ingredients besides the items that needed to be kept cold when I went out to the dining room starting to wrap up Alex's gift and put it under the tree with the other gifts.
"Did you put my name on that?" My mom asked as she walked into the room with me.
"Yeah, unless if you had bought him your own gift." I said smirking as I walked around the couch going back to put a new pot of coffee on watching the clock tick down the minutes to 3 PM when Alex said he will be here. When the door bell rung, I went and opened the door seeing Alex carrying a brown grocery bag with a duffel bag over his shoulder and I stepped aside letting him. "Is there anymore?" I asked.
"No, this is it." He said as he went into the kitchen setting the brown bag onto the counter and he turned around. "Where shall I put the duffel bag?"
"You can put it in my room so it could be out of the way." I said.
"Thanks…" He said as he went down the hall putting the duffel bag up as I begun unpacking the brown grocery bag when he came back into the kitchen.
"You need help making this lasagna?" I asked curiously.
"If you want to help…" Alex said as I smiled.
"What do you need to preheat the oven to?" I asked.
"350." He said as I preheated the oven when Xavier came in climbing onto the breakfast stool. "You want to help buddy?"
"Yes!" Xavier said.
"Did you wash your hands?" I asked as I grabbed the anti-bacterial bottle carrying it over spraying some into his hands then some into both Alex and my hands as Alex was letting Xavier and I help him with the lasagna. When the lasagna went into the oven, Alex looked to me and smiled.
"I forgot to say hi to my favorite girl." He said giving me a kiss before he pushed a strand of hair out of my face.
"Hi." I said smirking.
"Merry Christmas Eve." Alex said smirking at me.
"Merry Christmas Eve." Xavier said smiling.
"You want to help me again?" Alex asked turning to my son.
"Yes!" Xavier said as he asked for a salad bowl and Xavier helped Alex toss the salad and mix the dressing in along with other things that he was cooking with the lasagna. When the lasagna was done, I pulled down the plates when my mom finally emerged from her room.
"I thought I smelt lasagna…Alex, when did you come in?"
"A couple hours ago." Alex said as my mom wrapped him in a hug as I begun cutting the lasagna putting a slice on each plate and put salad on each plate handing them to a new person letting them take it out to the table. I went to the fridge pouring milk for Xavier, then grabbed a can of soda for my mom, Alex and myself going out to the table joining them. "What is left to do tonight?" Alex asked.
"We got to make cookies for Santa and leave carrots or celery out for the reindeer, then we are going to make hot cocoa then go see the lights while singing Christmas carols." Xavier said.
"Sounds fun." Alex said as he took a bite of his lasagna.
"It's our traditions." Mom said.
"What type of cookies are you making for Santa?" Alex asked.
"Sugar cookies but we have green and red sparkly sprinkles to put on it." Xavier said.
"Sounds cool, have you ever made gingerbread houses?" Alex asked.
"In school." Xavier said.
"You never let him make one at home?" Alex asked.
"Never got around to it…" I said shrugging.
"I don't like gingerbread." Xavier said as he bit into his salad, "What is this?" Xavier asked chewing on the piece of lettuce.
"It's a salad which is lettuce and other veggies with dressing." I explained.
"I like the dressing." Xavier said, as long as it got him to eat it and we enjoyed our dinner discussing what Alex's rituals were when he was a kid.
"So, what is your morning ritual for Christmas?" Alex asked.
"We get up, I open my stocking present then we eat cinnamon rolls and then we shower and get dressed then we open rest of our gifts." Xavier said.
"You've never opened your gifts in your pajamas?" Alex asked.
"No, have I mommy?" Xavier asked looking to me.
"No you haven't." I said as I didn't look up from cutting another bite off my lasagna.
"Her dad hated doing it when he was a kid, all the pictures her grandparents had of him of a kid was him in his pajamas on Christmas, he always wanted his kids to be dressed that way they won't look stingy or what was that other word he used?" My mom asked looking at me.
"He just didn't want his kids being in their pajamas on Christmas because he made it look like we were lazy or something…" I said shrugging.
"Maybe I can talk you into letting him wear his pajamas this year." Alex said smirking, "I'll wear mine too." Alex said in a taunting tone.
"Maybe just once, but please don't wear yours because I'm afraid of what yours might be." I said when my mom gave me a dirty look.
"No, your dad wanted it that way and as long as I am around it'll be that way." My mom said getting up leaving the table.
"Where is my grandpa?" Xavier asked.
"In heaven." I answered.
"I didn't know…I'm so sorry, didn't know that it meant that much to her or that he had died.' Alex said.
"It's fine…he died around the holiday so it's rough on her more then it is me." I said.
"How'd he die?" Alex asked as he reached over grasping my hand as I was thinking back to that day.
"What is heaven?" Alex asked.
"Heaven is where good people that turn into angels go when it is their time." Alex answered.
"Grandpa is an angel?" Xavier asked.
"Yes he is." I said.
"Mom, may I go watch wrestling?" Xavier asked.
"Yes, leave your plate and I will take care of it." I said as he climbed out of his chair running out to the living room hearing the television turn on.
"How'd he go?" Alex asked as he looked at me with a concern expression.
"He was driving home from the store with the last minute items for our meal when a drunk driver did a hit and run."
"I'm so sorry."
"That's why I didn't want you to drive after that one beer even though I knew you weren't drunk, we always stay inside around this time of year." I answered.
"Is mom mad at me?"
"No, she won't be mad at you because you didn't know."
"What else can I do tonight besides making mom cry?" Alex asked as I could tell he was beating himself up over it.
"You can help make the cookies, help with the hot cocoa and go with us to see the lights. We may even open a present tonight."
"I love baking cookies, that may cheer me up but first I brought something Xavier would love to play."
"What's that?" I asked curiously
"I brought my game console and video games."
"You couldn't part with that could you?" I joked.
"I thought it'll be fine." Alex said smirking as I rolled my eyes as I got up taking the dishes out to the sink starting to clean up before I called Xavier out to the kitchen where we begun making the cookies, I put the cookie sheet into the oven to cook.
"Do you play video games?" Alex asked ruffling Xavier's hair.
"No." Xavier said.
"Let me go get my console, you must try it." Alex said as he went out to his car bringing in the X-Box Kinect he obviously didn't have in his bag and put in the dance game into the console, who would have known that he would play that type of game? I sat on the couch watching the two men dancing along to the game, Xavier was getting into it and he was giggling the whole time.
"Come on mommy." Xavier said tugging at my arm to try to get me to play when my mom walked out from her room.
"Mom, come play with me…its that dance game you always wanted to play." I said as my mom looked at the screen seeing the game displayed on the screen.
"Okay…" My mom said as Alex sat on the couch pulling Xavier on to his lap, by this time I knew how this Kinect worked choosing Apache since I figured it seemed easy enough and my mom was the one that taught me this dance. "When did they change this dance?" My mom asked when we got a few moves in, Alex and Xavier were giggling behind us as we finished the song and I heard the timer for the cookies going off, I went into the kitchen pulling them out when I heard another song starting and I recognized it as a Katy Perry song that I enjoyed. I rinsed off the cookie sheet, after cleaning it off I put another dozen on after spraying the pan with more Pam and put that dozen into the oven to cook. I walked out when Xavier and my mom finished that song that has been playing.
"Come on." Alex said nodding to me.
"Yeah mom." Xavier said excitedly as I groaned as I took the spot where Xavier was when my mom sat down watching as Alex chose a Britney Spears song that the game had.
"Britney Spears, I'm shocked that you chose this." I said.
"Only cause I know you and your 90s music obsession."
"I do enjoy my 90s music." I said smirking when the first move came up where we had to shake our hips a certain way.
"Why did I choose this?" Alex asked as he tried to shake his hips like that of what was being shown on the screen, I spent most of the song and dance laughing at Alex trying to do these moves that were obviously made for females. "How is it that I beat you?" Alex asked putting his hands on his hips and out of breath.
"Because you have those fancy hips…" I said letting out a sigh from laughter.
"My hips don't lie." He said smirking as he shook his hips a little more. I just had to laugh at him as he shook his hips as he said it, "Are you laughing at me?' Alex asked as I nodded proudly, he grabbed me by the waist as I tried to get away from him but he tossed me onto the ground but he took the blunt of the fall, "Tickle monster!" Alex exclaimed as he climbed onto me to straddle my waist holding me down as Xavier jumped off the couch and joined in the fun and games before Alex grabbed Xavier picking up over his shoulder as he got to his feet helping me up and wrapped his one free hand around my waist holding me in his embrace, our faces were mere inches apart as my son was squirming to get free and laughing. "That didn't hurt did it?" Alex asked concerned as my son continued his laughing.
"Do it to me! Slam me Alex!" Xavier said excitedly.
"Nah, it's fine." I said smiling not hurting that much from the fall.
"Sorry babe." Alex said as he leant forward giving me a peck hearing the timer go off.
"Don't break my son." I said pointing at Alex.
"I won't get hurt mommy." Xavier said looking up at me from his upside down state.
"Honestly, I'm more worried about you hurting Alex." I said kissing my son's forehead as he was looking up from his bent over Alex's shoulder position seeing Alex give me a dirty look as I went into the kitchen taking that batch out and put the last batch in then begun making and filling the thermostat with hot chocolate pulling down three coffee mugs for my mom, Alex and I then a coffee cup with a lid for Xavier so he won't spill it in my car. I walked out to the living room seeing my mom chuckling and snapping pictures of Xavier who was on Alex's back, his tiny arms wrapped around Alex's neck trying to do some kind of submission move.
"What are you two doing?" I asked putting my hands on my hips, I couldn't help but to smile.
"I'm trying to put him to sleep." Xavier said innocently when Alex grabbed Xavier's arms flipping him over his head landing onto the carpeted ground. Xavier just giggled and I let out a gasp of fear that my son would get hurt or that he was going to start crying. In a way I think this is toughing him up by rough housing with Alex, that is the one thing he is lacking and that is testosterone.
"The cookies are ready to be decorated." I said as Xavier got to his feet running into the kitchen and went over to the dining room table where I brought plates out along with the cookies and decorations letting us all decorate equal amounts of the cookies before I pulled out the last batch decorating those.