Being a part of a family where time together with simple pleasures became nothing short of a bountiful celebration was something Nicky knew she would never take for granted. For most of her life she had believed such blessings to be unobtainable, and that was because they were with the parents she had grown up with. Nicky now realized that wealth and privilege had been a necessary distraction for Marka and Hayden Nichols to cope with the understanding that their hearts and lives were meaningless. It hadn't needed to be that way, but materialism and impressing people who they didn't actually care about had always been more important than love or togetherness in their family. The Reznikovs were everything that Nicky's parents would have turned their noses up at and they were also everything that mattered.
After eating their Christmas feast, which was followed by samplings of at least four different kinds of dessert that were accompanied by coffee spiked with brandy, everybody had lingered at the table feeling stuffed and relaxed. The wine bottles stacked on the side table were proof of how much had been drunk, but nobody was keeping count, and the copious amounts of food they had eaten kept signs of intoxication to a minimum. Nicky enjoyed the rosiness in her mother's cheeks and the way her chatter and laughter lightened up the entire room. It was obvious that Red was happy, which made all of her children happy. The alcohol in her system mellowed her, and Red's tense facial features had relaxed. She tried to act as though Klara was not even there, but at least restrained herself from grimacing whenever Klara spoke or was mentioned in a story one of her sons brought up about Christmases past.
There had been one hard moment near the end when Maxim had raised his glass and toasted his Papa, who he said they missed and hoped was smiling down on them all today. Nicky had seen the way Red's hand had tightened on her glass and the way she had stared down into her lap while Maxim spoke, but she drank to Dmitri's name with the rest of them before starting to hastily gather up the dishes on the table. It was more than Nicky had ever imagined Red would do and she was proud of her.
"You boys should clear the table," Klara reproached them, as she patted Maxim meaningfully on the arm, "you've been relaxing all day while the women worked." The three brothers' eyes darted side to side at one another before they, and Luca, lowered their glasses and stood up and began to clear away the remnants of supper from the table. Julio followed suit, taking the heavy stack of dinner plates out of Red's arms before she could object. Nicky scratched Daisy behind the ears and decided not to point out that she had hardly been straining herself with preparations that day either and so should probably be equally tasked with cleaning up the kitchen. She was so comfortable and Daisy was still sleeping so peacefully in her lap that nothing could have persuaded Nicky to move.
"Alexei, come with me to wash your hands," Lida called, picking Vera up out of her highchair, "your hands are sticky...just like your face," she snorted as she eyed Alexei's blueberry stained face. She gripped her son by the wrist to prevent him from touching the walls on the way to the kitchen. Vera laughed from her perch on her mother's hip and wiped her sticky hand across Lida's cheek, leaving a gooey mark. "Thank you, darling," Lida said sarcastically to the baby.
Red huffed and her eyes followed the retreating backs. She did not look happy and Klara seemed to realize at once that she had overstepped her boundaries. "I just thought that you shouldn't be tasked with clearing all of these dishes away after all the baking and cooking that you've done," Klara explained calmly, liquid courage seeming to give her the confidence to not back down from Red's irritation.
"They're my sons," Red looked at Klara with ferocious eyes, "if I had wanted their help I would have asked them for it."
"Okay," Klara nodded unabashedly, dabbing at her mouth with her napkin, "next time I won't say anything." She refused to look away from Red's gaze, had no intention of backing down and allowing Dmitri's ex-wife to intimidate her. Red rolled her eyes.
"You seriously think there is going to be a next time?" Red muttered under her breath. She brushed some crumbs off the tablecloth into the palm of her hand.
"Easter," Nicky pointed out unhelpfully. Red glanced at her and Nicky immediately began bestowing kisses upon Daisy's head so that she wouldn't get into trouble.
"I'm sorry, Galina," Klara said, "I didn't mean anything by it and I know that you ordinarily prefer doing the work cleaning up on Christmas by yourself. I just thought they should help." Red gasped, as though Klara had just spoken something terribly offensive.
"Who's a good girl," Nicky was saying to Daisy, scratching the dog's belly, "Look Mom, Klara! See how happy she gets when you rub her here?" Neither woman looked.
"You know what I like—," Red began to say but was cut off at the sight of Alexei and Vera being ushered back into the living room by their mother. She knew she couldn't say what she had been about to say with them watching, but the arrogance of Klara claiming she knew anything about her was a low blow to Red. In that instant, she was forced to mentally acknowledge that Dmitri and this woman had been intimate, that they had probably talked about everything, including her. Liking to work in the kitchen on Christmas was hardly a significant character attribute, but Red couldn't help but wonder what else this woman knew about her. She had never before considered whether or not Dmitri had kept her secrets and respected the intimacy they had once shared. Maybe her former husband had betrayed her in more ways than one.
"Don't worry about it," Red said dismissively, as Vera toddled towards her and hugged her leg. Red took a deep breath, her left palm still held out holding the crumbs that she needed to throw away. She felt like a martyr being forced to act like she was alright for the sake of the grandchildren watching her. There was no point in lingering on her feelings because nothing could change and nobody would understand them anyways. She had been about to instruct her sons to get to work just as Klara had said it for her, and being spoken for had reminded her of the way Dmitri had sometimes done that right before he admonished her for being too lenient with their boys; after Red turned around and was criticized by her in-laws for being too strict. Her own insecurities about the sort of mother she had been flared up at such a harmless comment and she wondered if Dmitri had believed Klara to be a better mother than she was.
"Do you want to go see what Daddy and your uncles are doing?" Red said to Vera, trying to ignore the way the muscles in her back flared as she leaned over to take her hand. Maybe she had been on her feet a little too much today.
"I want to see," Alexei chimed in, jumping off of the couch where he had been snuggling with his mother.
"Let's go," Red said, attempting to sound positive. She walked into the kitchen with both the babies. Even if it appeared so, her intention was not to check on how they were doing, but to escape the stifling confines of the living room where she had felt on display. Maxim and Luca were washing and drying the dishes while Yuri put away all of the leftovers. Julio had moved into the hallway to speak on his cellphone and Vasily was sitting on top of the counter polishing off what had to be his fifth piece of pie. Red opened the cupboard door beneath the sink and brushed the crumbs from her hand into the garbage bin.
"Grandma, can I have something to eat?" Alexei asked, tugging on Red's arm.
"I can't believe you're still hungry," Red commented, but she lifted the lid off a Tupperware container and handed each child a piece of banana bread. Alexei scampered out of the room with his treat as his little sister following in his wake.
Vasily tugged his mother's sleeve childishly. "What?" asked Red, stifling a yawn.
"Today wasn't so bad, right?" he asked hesitantly, "or was it? I'm not good at figuring things like that out."
"Today was a good day," Red reassured him, she leaned her back against the counter and patted Vasily's leg with her hand. Relieved, Vasily put down the fork he was using to shovel pie into his mouth and wrapped his arm around his mother's shoulders. They watched Maxim, Luca, and Yuri work and Vasily pardoned his laziness by pointing out that there were not enough jobs to go around and that he was only hanging out in there because he was afraid of getting yelled at by Klara if he left.
"How's it going, guys?" Nicky asked brightly a few minutes later. She stepped into the kitchen with Daisy in her arms. She hadn't let go of her new pet for a moment. "Are you almost done? Because Klara said that you guys always play some card game called Thirty-One after dinner, and Julio and I really want to play before his aunt gets here."
"Is Lourdes coming now?" Red asked Nicky disappointedly, with her head rested against Vasily's side.
"Soon," Nicky replied, "he just got off the phone with her."
"Well, you guys go ahead and play," Red said to the boys, "I'll finish tidying up in here."
"Nah, Mamochka, we can do it," Maxim replied, looking over at her from the sink, "we're almost done anyways."
"I'm not going to tell you again," Red said sternly, "go ahead." Maxim and Luca shot her big smiles and quickly dried the water and suds from their hands. Yuri put the container of leftover mashed potatoes into the fridge and followed Nicky out of the kitchen.
Vasily slid off the counter and made to follow but Red wrapped her hand tightly around his wrist, holding him back. "Ma, let me go," Vasily laughed.
"You haven't done anything yet," Red replied, "you can help me finish up here before you join the others."
"Julio didn't help either," Vasily pointed out.
"He was talking on the phone to his aunt," Red excused him, "and he's our guest. He's not supposed to help clean up."
"Fine," sighed Vasily, walking over to the sink and beginning to mournfully scrub out a large pot that had been used for mashed potatoes. Red smirked and silently began putting the remaining leftovers that Yuri had packaged up into the fridge.
"Thanks for being nice to Klara, Ma," Vasily said quietly, his back to Red as he leaned over the sink.
"Have I been nice?" Red asked him with raised eyebrows. She shut the door to the fridge.
"Well, you've been okay," Vasily conceded, "better than I thought you would be." Red snorted. "I just was thinking of what it would have been like if Pop had been here. Would that have made things better or worse?"
"Oh, honey," sighed Red, "listen." She walked over to the sink and began to rinse out the pot Vasily silently passed her. "It was wrong of me to make you feel guilty for inviting her here. You did the right thing and I am glad that you had somebody around who helped make my absence a little bit easier."
"So, you're not mad at me?" asked Vasily.
"I never was," Red replied simply, "you're not responsible for the choices Papa made." She rinsed the last dish and then wiped her damp hands on a tea towel, "and a small part of me feels a little better knowing that she was there to look out for you boys after Papa died. I'll never forgive myself for not being able to be there for you and your brothers then."
"I miss him," Vasily said softly as he pulled out the sink stopper and began draining the water.
"I miss him too," Red admitted quietly.
"You do?" Vasily asked her in surprise.
Red nodded. She picked up the dishcloth and began to wipe down the counters and the splattered stove. "Now you can go," she nodded her head in the direction of the living room.
"You should play too," Vasily urged his mother, "you love cards. Remember how you taught us how to play Rumi and we played until three in the morning that time."
"I remember," Red said with a small smile. "We'll need to do that again sometime, but right now I'm going to make myself a cup of tea." Sensing that his mother really just wanted to be alone, Vasily kissed her cheek and then went to join everyone else in the living room, where Klara was explaining how the game was played to Nicky and Julio.
Lida had fallen asleep on the couch, which wasn't surprising since she had been working on preparations for their meal since six that morning. Vasily shooed his daughter away, as Vera had been about to poke her mother with a plastic pancake flipper from her toy kitchen, and then he reached for the fleece blanket tossed over the back of the couch and tucked Lida in.
"Daddy, can I watch Paw Patrol?" Alexei asked, sitting cross-legged on the floor near his sleeping mother. Vera sat down beside her brother, biting down on the end of the spatula.
"Sure," said Vasily agreeably, flipping on the television. He settled the children and then went to join everybody else at the table.
"Where's Ma?" Maxim asked.
"She's making herself some tea," Vasily replied, "she said to go ahead without her." Klara shuffled the deck in front of her and then passed each of them three cards. She put the rest in the centre of the table and flipped the top card over.
"Ace of hearts," Julio voiced aloud, staring at it intently. As he was seated next to the dealer it meant that he got to go first. "So, if I want that I can just pick it up?" he glanced quizzically at Klara.
"Yep," Klara nodded, "just remember that when you pick up from the pile it means that everybody sees what card you took and knows what suit you're playing."
"So, in other words, don't expect Klara to pass you any more hearts," Luca grinned.
"I'm not worried," Julio said confidently, as he picked up the Ace of Hearts and discarded the Two of Spades, "I have a strategy."
They went around the table like that, with each person exchanging a card in their hand in the hopes of getting as high a score as possible. The round came to an abrupt end when Klara picked up off the deck and dropped her cards down on the table with a flourish. "Thirty-One," she said cheerfully, "everybody pays up."
"No fair," Nicky grumbled, "I was just about to knock." In a game of thirty-one you could always use your turn to conclude the game if you felt your hand was strong enough to beat everybody else. In that case, only the lowest scoring player would need to pay, but a score of thirty-one wiped everybody out.
"You should have knocked and saved us all," Maxim groaned glancing at Nicky's healthy thirty, "Vasily only had twelve."
"Next time," Nicky said exuberantly, "you're all going down. I'm just warming up."
Yuri gathered all of the cards into a pile and shuffled them before passing the deck to Julio, whose turn it was to deal. The doorbell rang and Julio let out a low groan, before he began dealing everybody their hand.
"Are you going to get that?" Klara asked Julio with a reluctant smile, as she picked up the cards he had given her. She knew it must be his aunt because she was the only person that they were expecting that night.
"Somebody else will let her in," Julio replied with a grimace, just as he caught a glimpse of Red walking out of the kitchen towards the door. "she's here early, so she has to let me finish this round at least."
"She will," Nicky said confidently, "Red will distract her." She picked up off of the deck and then placed a card in the discard pile. "I'm being generous," she grinned at Yuri, nodding at the King of Clubs she had put down.
"Too bad I don't need it," Yuri replied, picking a fresh card up off of the deck.
"Why do I always pick the worse seat," Vasily complained good-naturedly, giving Yuri's thrown out three a dirty look. "You never give me anything I want," he elbowed his brother.
"Maybe you should work on your strategy rather than expecting me to just pass you a winning hand," Yuri retorted, "although if you haven't learned to step out of my shadow by now, I guess you never will, little brother."
"Says the older brother who lived on my couch for four straight months this past year," Vasily retorted, making Yuri flush. After his separation from Anna, Yuri had moved in with his brother until his wife made it abundantly clear that there was no hope of reconciliation, by moving in her new boyfriend. Yuri now rented a small bachelor apartment located on the same street that his mother lived on and his kids came to visit one or two weekends a month.
"Burn," laughed Max, just as Red, Lourdes, and most surprisingly Benny walked into the room.
"I can't go yet," Julio whined, whirling around in his chair to look at his aunt, "we're in the middle of a game, Tia!"
"Well, it's nice to see you too," Lourdes replied, walking over and kissing the top of his head. She greeted everyone around the table warmly but hesitated when her eyes fell on Klara. "I don't think we've met before," she said kindly, extending her hand across the table, "I'm Lourdes Mendoza, Julio's Great Aunt."
"It's nice to meet you," Klara said politely, taking Lourdes' hand in her gentle grasp. "I'm Klara Petrova." Lourdes waited for more of an explanation. The different surname surprised her as Red had once confided in Lourdes that she had no relatives from her side of the family in America. Perhaps she was a sister of Dmitri's and Petrova was her married name. "Are you a friend of Galina's?" Lourdes asked innocently, hoping for more information.
"No, she's not," Red said coolly, without giving Klara a chance to reply, "it's a long story why she's here."
"Okay," Lourdes said uncertainly, clearly taken-a-back by Red's coldness towards this other woman. Vasily raised his eyes towards the ceiling, evidently the compassion his mother had displayed to him in the kitchen was not to last.
"Alexei, Vera," Red called, apparently deciding it would be best to diffuse the tension about Klara by distracting Lourdes with her adorable grandchildren. "Come say hello to Mrs. Mendoza."
"Benny, do you want me to deal you in?" asked Maxim kindly, "pull up a chair." All eyes turned to stare at Benny who hadn't spoken a word or moved from the doorway since his arrival. His stony expression let them all know that he was currently wishing he was anywhere but there.
"No," said Benny stiffly, "thanks." An awkward silence fell across the table and none of them were sure what to do. Red's sons were sad at the terrible turn their relationship with Benny had taken ever since they had learned the truth about their mothers. They had thought he would come around once he adjusted to the idea of Red and Gloria being together, but nearly a year had passed with no improvement. They weren't even sure what he was mad about anymore, and were pretty certain that Benny didn't know exactly either. Red hadn't done anything that would give him grounds to dislike her so fiercely, except perhaps ignite his fear that she was somebody who would take his mother away from him again, before he even got her back.
"Oh, Alexei you're getting to be so big," Lourdes crooned, smiling after the little boy politely greeted her, "and look at the little Princesa! Vera's getting to be so beautiful! She looks so much like you, Galina."
"Huh," Red scoffed, "my little Solnyshko's beauty is in a class of its own, Lourdes." However, Red looked quite satisfied about the comment on their likeness. There was no doubting who Vera's grandmother truly was. Klara shared no genetics with her. The hypocrisy of this thought was completely lost on Red, as she inwardly savoured the advantage she felt she had. Nicky would have had a field day if she could have read her mother's mind.
"Sit down," Red said, glancing over at Benny who had been leaning against the door frame with folded arms. "Do you want something to eat or drink?" Shooting her a look of deepest loathing, Benny ignored her question as he slouched past her and slumped into the nearest chair. He reached into the pocket of the black dress pants Lourdes had made him wear and pulled out his cell phone.
Lourdes tutted and shot Red an apologetic glance, "I would have had him wait in the car, but it's too cold out." Nicky, who had remained silent since their arrival, glanced at Benny out of the corner of her eye and saw the way he seemed to retreat even more into himself as his aunt spoke about him like he wasn't even there. She felt a rush of sympathy for him and knew how uncomfortable he must be in this house. How much he reminded Nicky of herself at that age and she knew what a difference it would have made if Lourdes had comforted Benny rather than apologize for his presence. How could he not be feeling judged?
"Never mind," Red said softly, speaking barely above a whisper. She caught sight of Julio staring worriedly at her and immediately went to him. She stood behind his chair and laid her hands on his shoulders. Red could tell that Julio was worried that his brother had upset her, which he had. It was hard not to take such blatant hatred personally and it was becoming increasingly difficult to be sympathetic to a boy acting out when she compared him to his brother, who behaved so differently.
Nicky raised her eyebrows meaningfully at Red who frowned, not understanding what her daughter was trying to convey. Nicky motioned with her eyes over at Benny who was still sitting hunched over in the chair, his eyes on his phone but not moving. Red shrugged, she didn't see what could be done about that. "Whose turn is it?" Red asked the group at the table in a thick accent.
"Mine," said Nicky gruffly, as she reached for her card. She seemed annoyed, about what Red couldn't comprehend. The game proceeded as if nobody had interrupted them. Julio was perhaps a little pink around the ears, but Nicky had seen him visibly relax when Red had gone to him. If only as much could be said for the boy in the corner, whom everyone seemed to have decided to leave be to his surliness. Nobody was certain how to approach him and consequently chose not to try.
"I have presents for these two little darlings," Lourdes announced to Red, "they're in the car." She whirled around to stare at Benny who glowered as he felt his aunt's eyes upon him.
"What?" he asked resentfully, when he couldn't ignore her staring any longer.
"Will you go out to the car and get the Christmas presents for the children?" Lourdes asked him patiently.
Benny shoved his phone back into his pocket and stood up slowly. "You could have just had me bring them in right when we got here," he said bitterly, "now I have to put my shoes and coat back on."
"I'm sure you'll survive," Lourdes told him patronizingly.
"Grandma, can I go outside too?" Alexei pleaded, getting to his feet and jumping up and down, "I want to help get the presents."
"No, honey," Red shook her head.
"He can come if he wants to," Benny said stiffly, watching the little boy start to tug at Red's blouse imploringly, "I don't care."
"Well, if it's alright with you," Red replied taken-a-back, as Alexei let out a cheer and ran out of the room to fetch his boots, "Just make sure he stays away from the road."
"Obviously," Benny said sarcastically, "if you don't trust me, feel free to watch us from the window." Wisely, Red decided not to reply. She sat down on the edge of the coffee table. Alexei returned and climbed up on her lap so that she could help him with his boots. It was still a challenge for him to put them on by himself.
"Listen to Benny," Red called after Alexei, as he followed the older boy out of the room. When they were gone, Red stood up from her perch on the coffee table.
"Whatever you do, do NOT watch them from the window," Nicky told her bluntly, peering at Red over her hand of cards that were held up to her face. She was worried that her brother had been cheating.
"I'm not going to watch them," Red scoffed, rocking on the balls of her feet.
"I'm just making sure," Nicky laughed unabashedly, "because it's a trap, not an invitation."
"I don't know what I'm going to do with him," Lourdes sighed as she sat down in Benny's vacant chair. "I miss them being this innocent and cute," she added, as Vera walked over to her and offered the older woman the spatula she had been teething on. "Thank you, sweetie," Lourdes smiled as she took the child's gift. Then she pulled Vera onto her lap and snuggled her.
"She's very cuddly," Red agreed, as she sat down on the end of the couch near Lida's feet. Even with the arrival of newcomers, Lida hadn't stirred and Red couldn't decide whether to wake her daughter-in-law and send her to bed, or just leave her be. "It doesn't last long though," Red proceeded to say, "Alexei rarely stops moving so usually the only cuddles I get from him are when he falls asleep."
"I know," Lourdes sighed, "sometimes you wish you could just freeze time." She smoothed her hand over Vera's adorable pigtails and then gave Red a scrutinizing look, "now why don't you tell me that apparently long story, Galina? Or at least give me the cliff notes."
Red rolled her eyes and glared pointedly at Klara's back. "She and Dmitri had more than a fifteen-year affair behind my back," she whispered, so that nobody could overhear.
"Oh," Lourdes murmured, "well I can see why you're upset, but did you actually expect for him to remain faithful? You were in prison for a long time, dear."
"I sort of did," Red admitted with a noise that sounded somewhere between a chuckle and a sob, "if only because I couldn't imagine any woman actually wanting him."
"You did," Lourdes stated pointedly, as Vera took back the spatula she had shared and slid off her lap. The two women watched as the little girl toddled over to the play kitchen, set up for her in the corner of the living room.
"Well...that's another story," Red sighed, running her fingers through her hair, "but I guess this is Dmitri's way of punishing me from the grave."
"I don't think he ever intended to punish you, Galina," Lourdes said gently, "I'm sure he would say—" she broke off as Benny came breathlessly back into the room, holding two packages and carrying Alexei on his back. He dropped the two presents onto the coffee table and then helped Alexei climb down. Alexei was talking a mile a minute to Benny and making such a raucous of noise that Daisy started barking, which woke up Lida.
"Can I open my present now, Benny?" asked Alexei eagerly. He clearly was infatuated by the older boy and had enjoyed his brief adventure with him.
Lida blinked and sat up into a sitting position, "you should have woken me up," she said lightly to Red, "how long was I out for?"
"Not long," Red replied, "and that's okay. You needed to get some rest. I bet you feel better now."
"Yeah," Lida agreed, she yawned and then blinked as she looked around the room at the newcomers. "Sorry Lourdes," she giggled, "I can't believe I slept through you guys getting here. I hope I wasn't snoring."
"You were," Benny said seriously, "so loudly I was afraid the pictures were going to get knocked off of the wall."
Lida blushed, "really?"
"Benjamin!" reprimanded Lourdes.
"What?" Benny scoffed, "she made it too easy."
"That's so nice of you to get the kids presents," Lida smiled at Lourdes, "you didn't need to do that."
"It's just something small," Lourdes said dismissively with a wave of her hand, "I couldn't resist. They're so adorable."
"Can I let him open his now?" Benny asked, glancing in mock exasperation at Alexei, who was jumping up and down trying to grab the package that Benny was holding high above his head for safe keeping.
"Yes," Lourdes nodded, "give it to him." Benny lowered the package and gave it to the little boy, who instantly began tearing off the wrapping paper.
"A truck!" Alexei exclaimed happily, "look Grandma, I got a truck!" He walked over to Red and showed her the box.
"It's not a truck, it's a car," Benny corrected him, "you use a remote control to make it move."
"Oh, he'll love that!" Lida exclaimed, smiling at Lourdes, "very cool. Thank you."
"I didn't pick it out," Lourdes said, "Benny did."
"Aww, Benny!" Lida said affectionately.
"I just thought he would like it," Benny said stiffly, reaching out to take the box back from Red. He sat cross-legged down on the floor and began working to free the car from its restraints. Alexei sat down beside him and tried to help.
"What do you say, Alexei?" prompted Red.
"Thank you," Alexei said automatically.
"Vera," Lida called to her daughter, "come open your present. You got something too!" Vera shrieked and walked back over. "Look, baby," Lida gasped in excitement as she helped Vera unwrap her package. It was a battery-operated train that moved across the floor by itself and had several different buttons for her to push.
"Aww, she loves it!" Lida smiled over at Lourdes after she took out the toy and showed Vera how it worked. Vera clapped her hands together with joy as her choo-choo-train passed by her playing music. "It was so nice of you to think of them," she added.
"Game's over," Julio announced, dropping down on the floor between the couch and the arm chair that Lourdes was sitting in.
"Who won?" asked Red.
"Nicky," Julio sighed.
"I guess it's time to go now that you're finished," Lourdes told him gently, patting him on the shoulder.
"Church doesn't start for an hour," Julio argued, pointing at the clock on the wall which read seven o'clock.
"I need to show Alexei how to work his car first," Benny added, which took Red by surprise. She had been discreetly watching Gloria's youngest son play with her grandson, and had enjoyed seeing the softer side of Benny that he used with the little boy. Still, it surprised her that he wasn't running out the door at the first chance he could get. He was actually bidding for more time.
"It's Christmas Eve," Lourdes reminded him, "we have to get there early if we want to get a seat."
"There's still time to get there early enough," Julio persisted, "it's just around the corner."
"Fine," Lourdes gave in. Benny handed Alexei the remote control and showed him how to push the button that would make it go and how to turn the wheel so that he could steer. The little car jetted across the living room and Daisy leaped off of Nicky's lap and began barking madly at the toy.
"Daisy," Nicky scolded, "not for you." She scooped the dog back into her arms and then wiggled herself onto the couch between Red and Lida, so that Lida was forced to move over to make room.
"Benny, we should make a ramp for it to go over," Julio grinned at his brother, "remember when we did that at home?"
"Sure," Benny agreed, bestowing his brother with a small smile. He turned to Lida, "can we borrow some of your books?"
"Go ahead," Lida chuckled, "just try not to ruffle any pages."
"We'll only use hardcover ones," Julio replied, getting to his feet and walking over to the bookshelf to select some volumes that would make a sturdy ramp for the car. Choosing five, he brought them over to his brother and then kneeled down on the floor to construct a ramp.
"So, you push the gas button really hard and it will go up the ramp and fly through the air," Benny instructed Alexei, "okay?"
Alexei nodded. His bit his tongue in concentration and then pushed the button as hard as he could. The car sped up the book-made ramp and flew impressively into the air. Everyone at the table had turned around to watch, just as the car crashed into the wall.
"Oops," Julio laughed nervously, "I didn't think it would go that far."
"We don't care," Lida assured him, "toys get crashed into that wall everyday."
"We should make it higher this time," Vasily said excitedly, grabbing another stack of books off of the shelf and then kneeling down on the floor next to Julio, Benny, and Alexei.
"Vasily," Lida said tiredly.
"What?" laughed Vasily, "we'll build it further back this time so that it doesn't hit the wall. Come on guys help me," he motioned to the boys.
"I guess some boys never grow up," Lourdes said quietly to Red, chuckling in amusement.
Nicky leaned in closer to Red, "I guess it's making you happy to see them getting along," she said quietly, "you should do the same and throw Klara a bone. That would be a Christmas miracle."
"I miss Gloria," Red said quietly, ignoring Nicky's suggestion. She bowed her head and stared at her hands folded neatly in her lap. "she'd be so happy if she could see her sons right now."
"We're seeing her tomorrow," Nicky reminded her mother, "do you think Benny's going to go?"
"I don't know," Red murmured, she turned to look at Lourdes, touching the woman's arm to get her attention. "Has Benny said anything more about coming to see his mother tomorrow?" she asked quietly.
Lourdes pursed her lips, "I don't know," she admitted, "I'm sort of afraid to bring the subject up because that's what set him off yesterday. You know, when Julio took off for your place."
Red nodded slowly, "what do you think could be done to convince him to come?" she asked, "it will break Gloria's heart if he isn't there."
"I think that's why he's holding out," Lourdes said, shaking her head as she pinched the bridge of her nose.
"You think he's trying to punish Gloria?" Red asked quietly, watching with sad eyes as Benny lined up the car and took his turn racing it over the ramp.
"Lourdes, will you come to the kitchen and let me pack up some sweets for you and the boys to take?" Lida asked, "we have so much and it's just going to go to waste if it stays here."
"Thank you, dear," Lourdes smiled, standing up and walking out of the room with Lida.
"He's going," Nicky murmured in Red's ear with confidence.
"Who?" Red asked, "Benny?"
Nicky nodded.
"How do you know?" asked Red in wonder.
"He's just scared," Nicky said softly, "I know because I was him. Just keep giving him this space to be a kid and have a family when he's willing, and when he's being a jerk you need to not take it personally and find a way to let him know that you're going to be there for him." She looked at Red knowingly in the eye, "he doesn't actually have a problem with you. He doesn't even know you! But you're paying the price for what Gloria's old boyfriend did and for what Gloria herself did. It's up to you to make him realize that you're not going to hurt him. Just don't expect that to happen overnight."
"We've talked about this before Nicky," Red said tiredly.
"I think you need to hear it again," Nicky admonished, "I saw the look on your face when Benny wouldn't talk to you when he got here. I felt so bad for him sitting in that chair all alone. It reminded me of when Marka would tell me to go to my room if I wouldn't be all talkative to her boyfriend when she brought him around."
"He chose to sit there alone," Red whispered, "Maxim tried to get him to join everybody at the table and he said no. What was I supposed to do?"
"Well, if it were me sitting there," Nicky said thoughtfully, "it would have meant a lot to me if you had still gone and brought the snack like you offered. I probably still wouldn't have eaten it, but it would have made me feel a little more welcome and like you cared."
"Okay, I get that," sighed Red, "but how do we get him to go see Gloria with us tomorrow?"
"You can't force him to," Nicky replied, "He has to decide to go for himself and I'm sure he wants to. Just don't draw to much attention to anything negative and don't hold grudges. He's just a kid!"
"Alright boys," Lourdes called, walking back into the living room with Lida at her heel, "it's really time to go."
"Okay," Julio said reluctantly, getting to his feet. Benny silently followed suit.
"This was fun guys," Vasily told them, "come back and hang out anytime."
"Benny, will you come back and play with me?" Alexei asked.
"Maybe," Benny said awkwardly. He had enjoyed the hour he had spent there but was fully aware of the eyes all upon him. It made him feel uncomfortable, as though they were all thinking behind their friendly demeanours that they had gotten one over on him, had made a significant crack in the stubborn and difficult shell that he cast around himself. People always thought they could eventually manipulate him to come around and get him to be more like his brother. Benny hung back as he watched Julio and Lourdes say friendly goodbyes to everybody present.
Everybody always liked Julio better than him. As small children, his brother had always easily made friends with everybody on the playground and Benny had struggled to find his footing, often retreating back to the park bench where his mom would be watching him, ready to give a reassuring squeeze and tell him that he was just like her. At the time, it had made him feel good, but now he knew he didn't want to be like her anymore. Gloria made a mess of everything she touched and she brought her children down with her. She also was a liar. After Arturo, her former boyfriend, had struck him across the face, Gloria had promised that she'd never let anybody hurt him or come between them ever again. Yet, here Galina Reznikov was. Benny had been foolish to ever believe his mother had been serious when she said that he would always be her number one priority. He wasn't, he never had been, and now he couldn't decide whether it would be better to wave a white flag and surrender defeat by learning to live with all of these new intruders in his life, or should he stand by his principles and give up on ever actually being happy. It wasn't much of a choice.
"I'm glad you all came," Red was saying as she saw them to the door. Benny bit back a snarky retort. He had seen the way she had looked at him when he arrived. Lourdes had too, which was why she had even apologized to Red for his presence. He was feeling too tired to point her hypocrisy out though. He wasn't in the mood for the verbal thrashing he knew his aunt would give him in the car if he did.
"What time are we going to see mom tomorrow?" asked Julio as he wiggled his feet into his boots so he wouldn't have to untie them.
"Early," Red said firmly, as she rested her back against the bannister of the stairs.
"How early?" asked Lourdes, as she began to button up her coat, "we can't see her until noon."
"There will probably be traffic on Christmas morning because everybody is travelling to visit family and there will probably be a lot more people needing to be swept through security," Red said determinedly, "we need to make sure we're not late seeing her." She reached through the rails into her purse that was sitting on the stairs. She pulled out two red envelopes.
"You're probably right," Lourdes sighed, "oh well, it will be nice to see her. I haven't been able to visit Gloria for a couple of months. Is Nicky still planning to come?" She tied her gray scarf in a knot around her throat.
"Oh, yes," Red replied, as she smoothed her thumb over the paper in her hand. Benny was standing in front of the door with both his hands in his pocket as he looked up at the ceiling. He looked as though he was pleading with some entity up there for the strength and patience to get through these final moments with Red. Julio zipped up his jacket and stood beside his aunt with his arms loose and relaxed at his side.
"I really like her," Lourdes said, "she's a bright girl but oh she must keep you busy, Galina."
"She makes Vasily seem calm and quiet," Red smiled, beginning to tap the envelopes on her alternate hand with more fervour. She seemed to be growing more anxious by the second. "But I'd be lost without her," Red said weakly. She hesitated and then said, "before you go. I wanted to give you boys your Christmas presents. I thought tomorrow would be too hectic."
"You shouldn't have got me a present," Benny croaked without skipping a beat. He looked incredibly uncomfortable. He resented everything about this woman and had spent the better part of a year telling her in every way possible to stay away from him, and now she wanted to give him a gift.
"I left the present for you under the tree at your apartment," Julio said as he took the card that Red held out to him, "I didn't know you were going to do this now." He began to tear open the tightly sealed envelope.
"Benny?" Red said softly, turning to him and holding out the card that was identical to the one she had just given Julio.
Benny shook his head solemnly and did not reach out for the offering, "you shouldn't have done that."
"I wanted to," Red told him firmly. Lourdes licked her lips and tugged on a loose thread of the scarf that she had knitted herself. She had known that Red was planning to do this and she had also warned the woman not to bother. Benny's love couldn't be bought, it couldn't even be earned.
"I don't see why you would," Benny said, his eyes on the red envelope in Red's hand, "it's pretty weird."
"It's not weird," Red persisted, attempting to remain calm. She swallowed as she remembered how Nicky had told her that she needed to not take his behaviour personally. So much easier said than done, when she was offering kindness and being called weird for her effort. Red took a deep breath, "you gave my grandchildren gifts and I did the same for you. It doesn't mean anything more than that."
"You mean you didn't just get me something because my mom is getting out soon and you still haven't given up on trying to befriend me yet?" Benny said, his eyes still glued to the envelope in Red's hand.
"Benny," Lourdes sighed, "be reasonable."
Red resumed her anxious tapping of the envelope against her hand and looked over at Julio who was staring at a single ticket in his hand in awestruck incredulity. "Benny, it's our favourite band!" he held up an AC/DC concert ticket for his brother to see. Benny raised his eyebrows in genuine surprise. Tickets like that weren't cheap and he knew Red must have cut a lot of corners to be able to afford these for him and his brother. He flushed with shame because he knew he didn't deserve such a gift. He also didn't want it, as much as he did, because it was just too much and then she would own him. Benny didn't want to give Red that sort of power.
"It's on New Years Eve," Red told Julio, "I knew you both liked them and when Maxim told me that they were coming to New York, I just thought that would be a fun thing for you two to—"
Her words were cut off as Julio walked forward and hugged her. "Oh," Red breathed, as her heart swelled. She hadn't realized how much she needed this hug. A reminder that as hard as everything was, there were some parts of it that were good. She caressed the back of Julio's head as her other arm wrapped around his back firmly. Red looked over Julio's shoulder and her eyes met Benny's who was watching his brother with a look of betrayal on his face.
Looking away as though the eye contact had burned him, Benny opened the door of the house and walked outside. The frigid air blew into the house and Julio pulled away blushing. He hadn't planned on hugging her but for a brief moment he had enjoyed how warm and soft she had felt. He was glad he had done it, albeit a bit embarrassed about it now.
"I'll give this to you," Red said to Julio, handing him Benny's card, "hopefully he'll come, I think it would be really good for you boys to do that together, but if he won't then you can get a friend to go with you instead." Julio nodded agreeably.
"I'll talk to Benny," Lourdes told Red, "I've said it to you before Galina but it's not just you. He's like this with everybody."
"It's okay," Red said, doing her best to seem not bothered. She believed Nicky when she said his behaviour was like her own had been when faced with a similar predicament. It just was much easier to be Nicky's supportive adoptive mother on the outside then be the person right in the middle of all the drama.
"What are you going to do now?" Julio asked Red.
"Me?" Red blinked, "I don't know. Probably go home now with Nicky."
"You should come with us to church," Julio said and Red did a double take. She had not been expecting him to say that. Evidently, neither had Lourdes who smiled at her great nephew's words.
"I don't go to church," Red stammered awkwardly, her expression a mixture of surprise and amusement. She couldn't fathom why he would want her there although it pleased her heart to know that he did.
"Oh," Julio shrugged, "my mom does though. And she'd probably be happy if you went with us. She's going to want you to go with her next year anyways and this way it will seem sincerer when you do."
"Very impressive argument," Red told him, sounding bemused, "alright, I'll go."
"Really?" asked Julio, his astonishment obvious. He hadn't expected her to say yes, he had just wanted to invite her. Red had done everything to make him feel like a part of her family and he wanted to do something that would let her know that she was invited into theirs, despite Benny.
"Sure," Red shrugged, "but if I burst into flames when I walk over the threshold of the church I am holding you personally responsible."
"Well, you'd be dead," Julio retorted with a grin, "so you couldn't actually do anything to me, unless you came back as a ghost or a daemon."
"Don't give me ideas," Red told him with a tentative smile, "just give me a moment to say goodbye to everybody."
"We'll wait in the car," Lourdes said, "I want to make sure that's where Benny went."
"You should give this to Benny yourself when you see him," Julio said nervously, as he handed Red back the card.
Red raised her eyebrows, "your brother wouldn't take it from me," she said stiffly.
"I don't know," Julio shrugged, "I think you should try again. If you don't mind that is." Red's eyes squinted at Julio, but she took back the card and tucked it away in her purse.
"Okay," she nodded. She walked back into the living room where her family was all relaxing in front of the television. Nicky was lounging in one of the two arm chairs, lying horizontally with her legs over the arm and Daisy curled up on her lap. Klara sat in the adjacent chair, her legs crossed and a tranquil expression upon her face. Yuri sat in a chair at the now bare table. Vasily, Lida, Maxim, and Luca were all squeezed onto the couch together with the two sleeping kids. Vera was in her mother's arms and Alexei was lying draped across his two uncles' laps.
"Are they gone?" Nicky asked, tilting her head back to look at Red.
"They're outside," Red told her, "but I'm leaving too. Somehow I actually committed myself to attending Christmas mass with them." She walked into the center of the living room with her hands folded together.
"You're going to church?" Maxim asked in disbelief. He had grown up with his mother and father taking him and his brothers to church every week, but the practice had died away. At first Red had just reasoned that it would be very profitable to keep the store open on Sundays and that any reasonable God wouldn't condemn them for trying to keep a roof over their heads. As time had passed Red grew even more disengaged and they had even stopped attending on Christmas and Easter. Red had called it a waste of time.
"Yes," Red rolled her eyes, "I don't know why. I think the whole thing is sort of stupid, personally, but Julio asked and—"
"I think that's great," Lida smiled, "you going will mean a lot to him and it's a nice tradition to have. We go on Christmas morning." She didn't add that they went on Christmas mornings with Klara, and had regularly gone with Dmitri before he passed away.
"I suppose some people might feel that way," Red said gruffly, readjusting the purse that she had slung over her shoulder. "So, Nicky…." Red said sweetly.
Nicky leaned her head back again to look up at her mother. "What?" she asked suspiciously.
"Get your coat and shoes on because you're going with me," Red told her
"Why do I have to go?" Nicky complained, sitting up straight in her chair and swinging her legs back down to the floor. "You're the one who agreed to go because you wanted to look good for Gloria's family. What's that got to do with me?"
"I'm not going by myself," Red told her, rubbing the palms of her hand together. She couldn't fully explain why she was going at all. It wasn't just about Gloria, although Julio might believe that that had convinced her. It had just touched her to be asked, to be wanted, and to be accepted by Julio as part of the family. She also felt compelled to not allow Benny to isolate and disengage. Giving him space had not helped soothe his resentment, perhaps it was time to just learn how to live with it.
Nicky groaned loudly, "but what about Daisy?" she asked pitifully, stroking her puppy's coat lovingly, "I'm a mommy now, I can't just abandon my baby."
"I'll look after her" Yuri grinned, "I'm leaving soon and I could walk her to the apartment. She could probably use a walk anyways."
"See?" Red said as though that settled everything, "Yuri will watch Daisy and he'll let Duke out for a walk to stretch his legs too, won't you honey?"
"Of course, Ma," Yuri said dutifully.
"Now, run along like a good little church girl, Nicky," Vasily teased.
"I hate you," Nicky told Vasily. She gave Daisy a loving kiss and put her on her brother's lap, "take good care of her," she said.
"I promise," Yuri said, as Daisy licked his hand.
"If this doesn't prove to you how much I love you, mom," Nicky said with anxious eyes on her dog, "then I don't think anything could."
"She'll be fine," Red said impatiently, "come on, let's go."
"Are you going to come back tomorrow evening after you get back from seeing Gloria?" Lida asked Red, as she stood up with Vera in her arms to give her mother-in-law a kiss.
"Depends how tired we are, I guess," Red said, "I'll call you tomorrow to check in regardless. See how the kids like their presents."
"Sounds like a plan," said Lida.
Vasily gave his mother a big hug and then moved over to hug Nicky goodbye. "You're in charge of escorting mom on her next outing," Nicky grumbled in his ear, "I'm volunteering you."
"I don't know about that," Vasily joked, ruffling Nicky's messy hair playfully.
Behind them, Red had leaned down to kiss Maxim, Luca, and Alexei goodbye. She turned to walk over and kiss Yuri goodbye, who was cradling Daisy in his arms like an actual baby. "I'm sort of fond of my new niece," Yuri joked to his mother, "she's quieter than the other two."
"Give Feliks and Ivanna my love tomorrow when you go see them," Red said, leaning down to kiss her oldest son, "tell them I'll see them soon and that I hope they like their presents."
"I will, Ma," Yuri promised.
"Okay," Red nodded, running her thumb gently over his cheek, "and try not to let Anna upset you. Just focus on the kids."
Yuri nodded.
"I need to go," Red said, "they're waiting." Nicky had already gone to the door to put on her coats and boots like an obedient daughter.
"Merry Christmas, everyone," Red said, looking around the room at each member of her family. Her eyes met Klara's and her heart began beating faster. Before she knew what she was doing, she had given Klara a single nod of acknowledgement. Klara's eyes softened and Red's cheeks reddened significantly. Apparently, she was getting soft in her old age. Or perhaps she just recognized that being a good mother and setting a good example were more important than holding a grudge against her dead husband and the woman she knew had loved Dmitri the way that she never had. Without another word, Red walked away. It was enough.