Concentration
Chapter 9
Mike carried in the first of several boxes, from his apartment. It was all the Christmas, birthday, and anniversary presents that he had bought from the time he got back to Virginia after the Red Flu until he got the call that his family had been found.
Some of the gifts were kind of juvenile and Mike had considered taking the notes off the packages, but it kind of added to the meaning. Christine was stirring something on the stove and looked at him suspiciously.
"Do you need help?" Christine asked.
"Too heavy for you but you might open the box and start separating everything. The names are on the cards. I'll get the other boxes." Mike explained.
"Are these those gifts you were telling me about? There's more than one box?" Christine asked.
"Eight." Mike answered before heading out the door. He made the trip six more times, carrying two on one trip. By the time he walked in the last time, he was exhausted.
"This is so much." Christine remarked.
"Its six years of birthdays, anniversaries, Mother's Days, graduations…it was a lot." Mike admitted. He hadn't realized how much had accumulated.
"But we have nothing for you." Christine remarked.
"Its alright. Some of the gifts…may not fit or the girls may have outgrew them…maturity wise." Mike remarked. He sat down in his recliner with a cup of iced tea.
"I'll go talk to them and get them down here. Thank you." Christine said. She kissed his temple before heading up the stairs. A few minutes later, both girls and Christine came down the stairs.
He was a little surprised to get hugs from both girls while Christine stirred whatever she cooking. She sat down on the couch and they began slowly reading the cards and opening the gifts. He was also a little surprised how many tears they cried.
"I really liked that blanket you got me, Dad! The one for my fifteenth birthday. Its so soft." Katie said. It made Mike smile.
"I like my art supplies." Hannah said.
"I love all of it. But this sweater is so nice." Christine remarked as she touched the blue sweater jacket she was now wearing. It was huge on her, although she was gaining every day.
"I thought those earrings were pretty." Katie remarked, pointing at the earrings Mike had bought for his and Christine's twentieth anniversary.
"Yes, I am going to need to get my ears pierced again." Christine told her.
"I didn't think about that. Sorry." Mike said. Christine put the letters on the coffee table, stood up, leaned in and whispered in his ear.
"You have nothing to be sorry for. This has been amazing. The girls and I love you so much." Christine whispered.
"I love you too." Mike said.
"I love the notes most." Katie said.
"Me too. Can I keep them forever?" Hannah asked. She was still very child-like but Mike didn't mind.
"Of course." Mike told her. Both girls gave him a hug and kiss before taking their items upstairs. "Do you want me to carry your stuff upstairs?" Mike asked Christine.
"That would be wonderful. Seriously, Mike. Thank you. This has all been wonderful." Christine said before giving him a long kiss.
"Some of the stuff was kind of immature for the girls. I don't think Hannah was very impressed with that doll." Mike admitted.
"Maybe not the doll but she appreciated you thinking about her. I think this proved to the girls…and maybe me, that you didn't just forget us." Christine said.
"Not for one second." Mike told her.
"I just wish we had something for you." Christine remarked.
"I have you all. That's all I need and want." Mike said.
"There has to be something…" Christine said but Mike stopped her.
"Just this. A home. Girls laughing upstairs. You in the kitchen asking me to open a jar for you. Sleeping next to you." Mike answered. He kissed Christine's forehead and smiled down at her.
"I know I shouldn't be okay given everything, but I am happier right now then I remember being in a very long time. I miss Lucas, of course, but I am happy." Christine said.
"Good and I miss him too." Mike said. He gave Christine another kiss before carrying her box of things upstairs and sitting it on their bed. As he walked by Hannah's room, he noticed the doll laying against her pillows. He knocked on the door and smiled at his youngest daughter.
"Is supper almost ready?" Hannah asked.
"Mom's working on it. Honey, you don't have to keep that doll. I bought it when you were much younger. I know you don't like it now." Mike said.
"I do like it. I like that you not only thought about me when we were apart, but also because you kept it. You could have gotten rid of this stuff." Hannah remarked.
"I wouldn't have ever felt right getting rid of it. Love you, sweetheart." Mike said as he kissed the top of Hannah's head.
"I love you too, Daddy." Hannah said.
"I'll call you down for dinner." Mike told her. He got to the bottom of the stairs and noticed that Christine was slowly swaying to some music she had playing. It was amusing to watch and it was a slow song. "You need a partner?" Mike asked as he approached her.
"Only if you're offering?" Christine answered.
"Remember when the kids were young and our date nights were the ballroom dancing lessons because they offered childcare?" Mike said as they began dancing together.
"I always thought you hated it." Christine remarked.
"I wouldn't have told you at the time but I loved it." Mike admitted as he twirled her around.
"I figured it was just because you liked being close." Christine told him.
"I did like that. Why did we stop?" Mike asked her.
"We moved and they didn't offer the classes where we went." Christine reminded him.
"We could have done this." Mike said.
"Mike, we grew apart for a lot of different reasons. I agree, not dancing may have contributed but we had other issues." Christine said.
"Did we fall out of love?" Mike asked. He realized how corny it sounded once he said it, but it was too late.
"Perhaps so. We loved each other but we weren't in love. More like friends. That is probably what saved our marriage." Christine said.
"I…don't want that again. I want this." Mike told her. They had stopped dancing but still had their arms around each other.
"Me too." Christine answered. She put her face into his chest and sighed deeply as they swayed back and forth. It was the first time they had really talked about their marriage before he went to the Arctic.