[ - ]
Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story
- Text Size +
Chapter 32

“She’s sleeping but I’ll tell her you said Merry Christmas” I heard groggily in that space between sleep and awake

“Nick?” I asked, confused

“No, it’s me. Though I am interested to hear about your bath with one Nick Carter” Aj said sitting next to me and helping me sit up too

“Where is everyone?” I asked through a yawn “What time is it?”

“Well I killed Nick. He’s buried in the backyard somewhere” Aj joked and I gave him a look

“Are you really angry at him? He didn’t see a thing” I said rubbing sleep out of my eyes

“No, I’m just messing around” Aj said with a smile that jumped off of his lips and onto mine

“Messing around? That sounds like something someone would do who had a good time out of the house” I said nudging him “Who was right?”

“You were my love. As usual” Aj said sweetly

“So where is everyone really?” I asked

“I kicked them out. You slept through the night and it is Christmas Eve Day so I wanted to spend it with you. I told them they could come back on Christmas day to eat and party” Aj said

“I slept through the whole night? Holy cow” I said looking around, still trying to get my bearings

“Yeah, and you didn’t have any flashbacks either!” Aj said happily

“I know! Babe! I didn’t have any flashbacks!” I said with a huge smile, only just now realizing how big a deal that was. It was months before I could sleep without medication and not dream of Rich the last time something like this had gone down. And now look at me! A little over a week and I was flashback free!

“You’re adorable. Do you want to see the surprise Nick, Mollee and I cooked up for you?” Aj asked and I nodded quickly. He brought me the wheelchair and helped me in it before wheeling me down the hall to the main staircase.

What I saw was incredible. To say the house had been decorated was the understatement of the century. It had been completely transformed. A huge Christmas tree stood in the entryway, so tall it almost touched the ceiling of the second floor hallway. It was decorated in my favorite colors with icy blue and silver baubles as big as softballs hanging evenly throughout the branches as silver and white lights twinkled beneath silver and white tinsel.

As Aj wheeled me around the house I saw that every room had been given this specific Christmas treatment. Blue and silver wreaths hung from doors, blue and silver candles adorned windows with blue and silver glass snowflakes glittering on sills and glass icicles shining in corners. Mistletoe hung in door frames and blue and silver garlands snaked their way down handrails and up walls. Classic Christmas music played softly and the smell of fresh baked cookies met my nose

“This is incredible” I said once I had managed to close my mouth and gain the ability to speak again “How long did this take you?”

“It wasn’t too bad with the three of us. We were happy you slept so soundly through it all or we would never have pulled it off” Aj said squatting down in front of me so he could meet my eyes “Do you really like it?”

“Aj I love it” I said pulling him in for a tender kiss. My fingers laced themselves in his hair and his hands found their way to my cheeks as our kiss deepened

“We’re alone” Aj said provocatively pulling back after a minute

“We are” I answered in kind before pulling his lips back to mine to make out some more. Things began to heat up but after the third attempt to move without hurting me failed we both pulled back with sighs and giggles

“It seems your body has not caught up with your libido” Aj said planting a sweet kiss on my nose “this may have to wait”

“Bummer” I said unable to find a more appropriate word for the disappointment coursing through my simmering blood “I’d settle for some cuddling and a movie I guess”

“Is this what you were thinking of?” Aj asked pulling a DVD off of the counter behind him

“A Christmas Story, how did you know?” I squealed

“Your sister and I do talk you know” Aj said rolling his eyes at me. Every year that we could remember our parents had sat Mollee and I down on Christmas Eve to watch A Christmas Story. It kept us from bouncing off of the walls from the anticipation of presents the next morning and allowed them some time to finish up last minute wrapping without interruption. On top of everything else we usually fell asleep before the end so my memories of Christmas Eve were of my favorite Christmas movie morphing seamlessly into Christmas morning.

“Can we bring some food?” I asked as my stomach rumbled, adding its two cents

“Would you like curry and maple sweet potato soup, Eggnog and Christmas cookies?” Aj asked pointing to a tray that was already set up behind him

“That Mollee” I said with a grin

“Hey, I helped! I pealed the potatoes and mixed and everything!” He said happily and I couldn’t help but laugh

“I’m sure it’ll be extra good. Alright, let’s go!” I said spinning my chair while Aj grabbed the tray. Just like many Christmas’s before and hopefully more to come I fell asleep cuddled with someone I loved with a belly full of wonderful food and the sounds of “you’ll put your eye out with that thing!” And like many Christmas’s before and hopefully more to come, I woke up to my sister giggling in my ear

“It’s Christmas!” She laughed as I blinked sleep out of my eyes. My weird sleep schedule was making times and places increasingly difficult to keep up with

“It is?” I asked sitting up a little, expecting a protest from my ribs, but none came “Huh”

“Are you ok?” She asked, smile fading a bit

“Yeah, I can sit up now” I said even more confused than before. I looked around and placed myself in Aj’s bedroom as Mollee pressed the button to open the window wall and light streamed in

“It’s a Christmas miracle” Mollee said with her smile back in force

“Where are the boys and how did you get in here?” I asked stretching my arms and feeling that familiar ache from my side. Oh well, baby steps

“We got here really early, woke Aj up, and then I kicked him out so I could wake you up in our usual Christmas fashion” Mollee said simply like it was completely normal for adult sisters to kick adult men out of their own beds on Christmas morning “I also have a surprise for them”

“Oh?” I asked recognizing the evil glint in my sister’s eyes. She hopped over the bed and grabbed a shopping bag that was waiting by the door. As I recognized a local costume shop logo my heart accelerated and I was instantly wide awake “No way. There’s no way that you found our Christmas outfits”

“Am I best sister, or am I the best sister?” Mollee asked dumping the contents of the bag out onto the bed. Lying there, like they had been for all the Christmas’s I could remember, were matching elf costumes. As we had gotten older the skirts had gotten shorter and the shirts a little tighter, but generally it was tradition that Mollee and I dress as elves all Christmas long “Green or red?”

“Green” I said immediately grabbing the outfit that was mostly green crushed velvet with red accents. Mollee grabbed the compliment, mostly red with green accents, and then hurried to undress. I attempted to lift my shirt over my head but was met with resistance from my ribs and I couldn’t bend down enough to begin on the tights so I waited patiently for Mollee to realize I needed help

“What do you think?” She asked showing off her ensemble. The red dress was long sleeved but with a short skirt that flared out over sparkling green tights. There was a white fluffy lining around the low neckline, edge of the skirt, and around the wrists that blew around in little puffs as Mollee turned for me

“Beautiful. Now you help me with mine. Carefully, please” I said weary of Mollee’s excitement which was making it hard for her to stand still, let along maneuver a tight dress over bruised ribs

“I’m not going to hurt you” Mollee said pretending to be insulted but laughing all the same. After a little work I was clothed and then rushed to the bathroom so we could curl each other’s hair and pin on matching crushed velvet elf hats in our respective colors. Some light sparkly makeup and stilettos finished the look before Mollee wheeled me in front of the full length mirror and squatted beside me

“The boys are going to flip out” I said happily

“Let’s go show off how adorable we are” Mollee said taking control of the wheel chair. She hooked me in at the top of the staircase and accompanied me down the stairs and into the living room where Nick and Aj were sitting, both with festive (and terrible) Christmas sweaters and glasses of eggnog in their hands. Mollee cleared her throat and the boys turned to us, eyes getting slightly bigger and mouths dropping open as we took turns twirling (me a little awkwardly with my chair) to show off our costumes

“I knew I should have let Mollee dress me instead of Nick” Aj said after a moment of shocked silence. He stood up and I took in his truly terrible Christmas sweater. It was knit with fuzzy white wool and had a large Rudolph face in the middle, complete with a sparkling sequin nose.

“Hey. It is a tradition in the Carter household to wear ugly Christmas sweaters on Christmas. Though seeing you girls in your traditional outfits has me rethinking my tradition entirely” Nick said standing as well. I giggled as I took in his terrible sweater, a green wool atrocity with Santa’s big face in the middle saying a sequined ‘Ho! Ho! Ho!’

“The wheelchair makes the whole sexy outfit null in void, huh?” I asked as Aj approached me for a hug

“Your wheelchair reminds me how brave and strong you are surviving what you did. It elevates the whole thing. Merry Christmas my sexy little elf” He whispered gruffly into my ear before pressing a sweet kiss to my lips

“Well it’s about 10 so we really need to get going on our Christmas meal if we expect to cook it and have it last all day. Nick, can you grab the turkey from the basement? Aj, will you get the grocery bags from the front hall? I’ll get some tunes going” Mollee ordered in her mom mode.

“Have you been brining a turkey in the basement?” I asked her with a smile as I wheeled my way into the kitchen and slid carefully onto one of the bar stools

“Sure have” She said proudly locating aprons and tossing one to me

“You are so much like mom” I said with a sad smile. Mollee paused in her flurry of movement and came to stand in front of me

“I always miss them the most on Christmas” She said quietly playing with my hair

“I do too. But at least we have each other. And the guys” I said trying to keep the tears in my eyes from falling down my cheeks

“Yeah and mom and dad would be proud of our little family” She said with equally shining eyes

“And especially proud if you manage to pull off this turkey” I joked to keep us both from crying

“Not like you’ll even taste it, Ms. Vegetarian” She teased busying herself with pulling out appropriate pots and pans for her menu

“No, but I’ll be polling the meat eaters afterwards. What are we making?” I asked as Nick and Aj returned from their errands with full arms.

“Enough to feed an army if these bags are any indication” Aj said lowering no fewer than five full bags of groceries to the floor

“It has to last all day! In New Hampshire most Christmases you’d be snowed in and that Christmas meal would have to last!” Mollee said finally locating the button to play the music “Ah, I love this one!”

“Grandma got run over by a reindeer is one of your favorite Christmas songs? Now I know you’re perfect for me” Nick smirked beginning to do a very strange rendition of the song with Mollee using wooden spoons as microphones

“We have very interesting friends” I said to Aj who nodded and wrapped his arms around me from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder

“Still, I think this might just end up being the best Christmas ever” He whispered in my ear before placing a kiss on my cheek

“Certainly some wonderful company” I added kissing him back. Once the song had ended Mollee doled out jobs for each of us. She worked hard on the turkey and stuffing, Nick was assigned to apple pie, I got salads, cranberry sauce and any vegetable side dishes, and Aj got stuck with mashed potatoes because, as Mollee put it, he did so well peeling them for the soup. Aj was not terribly pleased but he got into the spirit fast enough when he saw how many apples Nick had to peel.

After a few hours of hard work and singing, everything was in various ovens and Mollee lead us to the dining room. The large table had been dressed for the occasion, set with fine silverware over lovely table cloths and napkins (all in my blue and white Christmas theme). On the far end from where we would be eating were large sheets of gingerbread and an assortment of candies and frosting

“Get ready from some serious gingerbread house making” Mollee said taking a seat in front of the gingerbread set up

“You’ve got to be kidding. This is amazing” I said wheeling my chair next to her and allowing Aj to help me into a seat before seating himself on my other side

“Who is up for a little competition to add to the fun?” Nick asked before placing non-alcoholic eggnog in front of all of us and taking his seat on Mollee’s other side, opposite me.

“Whichever couple builds the best gingerbread house is the winner?” Aj offered

“But the losers deserve some sort of punishment” Mollee said with a competitive glint in her eye

“Losers have to do the dishes” I said happily

“You’re on. We have an hour. Go!” Nick said starting the timer on his watch before launching into hushed construction plans with Mollee.

“Do you have any ideas?” I whispered excitedly turning to Aj

“The only thing I can think of is to make a castle” Aj whispered back seriously but I couldn’t help but laugh

“I can’t imagine why…” I trailed off, looking around at his medieval candelabras, table, and generally the décor of the entire house

“Ok wise guy. What’s your idea?” He asked

“I like the castle idea I just think it needs details” I explained “It needs a story line…”

“What if there was a bloody battle happening?” Aj asked excitedly picking up a tube of red frosting and letting it squirt in the air dramatically. It fell on the head of one of the little gingerbread figures and I smiled

“Perfect”

When the hour timer rang Aj and I stepped back to admire our work. There was red frosting and sprinkles all over our side of the table but it was nothing to the carnage on our gingerbread castle. The castle had three tiers and an outdoor torture chamber. The top tier was on fire, yellow and orange frosting flames licking up the walls and around several spires as a terrified gingerbread queen hung out a window with a baby in her arms. The middle tier had been smashed by archers, sugar “windows” were broken and candy “arrows” stuck out at odd angles. Half eaten gingerbread bodies hung out of windows with missing limbs and heads. The bottom tier had been tagged with heavy graffiti; pictures in frosting of the bloody battle that had happened there plastered the walls as well as some bloody hand prints for good measure.

But the outdoor torture chamber was really where our genius soared. All kinds of torture were being practiced on our poor, unfortunate gingerbread men. Racks stretched limbs, gallows hung, and pikes with gingerbread heads were found inside its gates. Our secret weapon stood behind the entire compound. A large gingerbread man, cut out of a remaining sheet of gingerbread, stood in full knight’s armor. A quiver full of arrows was slung over his back and a bow hung out of his other hand (made of licorice, of course). The chain mail had been painstakingly added (by yours truly) with small metal looking silver candy balls.

“Jesus Christ you guys, Merry flippin’ Christmas” Nick said in awe looking over at our macabre masterpiece. I checked out his work and it was a very impressive North Pole with Santa’s workshop and little elves assembling toys and even reindeer in a stable. Mollee’s mouth was open for a while until she coughed

“You guys are so messed up. We’re doing dishes because I’m scared what you might do to us if we refused” She said and I squealed and hugged Aj

“Good job love!” I said giving him a high five

“I couldn’t have done it without you, my lady” He replied bowing to me which caused me to giggle. A timer went off in the kitchen and Mollee snapped out of her slight disgust.

“Clear everything up, our Christmas meal is almost ready!” She said in an uncanny imitation of our mother. Nick followed her into the kitchen shaking his head at our gingerbread slaughter which only made Aj and I laugh harder. We cleared away the candy and then placed the two finished products on a side table by the window

“I don’t know what they are so upset about, I think it’s very festive” Aj said stepping back to admire our work in its new spot

“They’re just jealous” I said with a smirk allowing Aj to wheel me back to the table and get me settled at the spot next to the head of the table before he took a seat at it.

“Dinner is served my two severely messed up friends” Nick said bringing in a beautiful looking turkey. Mollee followed with salads and Aj got up from his spot to help bring in the rest of our meal. The table was filled to the brim with steaming, lovely food and my stomach growled.

“This looks amazing” I said “Mollee, you really did a fantastic job”

“Hey, we all worked together. Ok, before we eat, let’s go around and say one thing we’re thankful for this Christmas” Mollee said and I smiled

“It’s not Thanksgiving” Nick teased but he smiled all the same

“Well I’ll start and get the big one of the way” I said sheepishly “I’m thankful to be here, alive and on the mend. I’m sure I’ll be back to normal in no time and that is something I can never stop being grateful for”

“Here, here!” Aj said lifting his drink and we all did the same

“I’m thankful for new traditions and an extended family to celebrate with this season. Thanks for dealing with our craziness boys” Mollee said with a nod to both Aj and Nick

“Well I’m thankful that this leg of the tour brought us such beautiful, talented, caring, and fun sisters” Nick said sincerely causing Mollee and I to blush identically

“She blushes like you!” Aj said happily and I smirked

“Not often but don’t let her fool you. She’s every bit as much of a mess as I am” I said and Mollee shot me a playful look

“Well I’m thankful to have a house full of such love this season. I’m thankful that all of my friends and family are safe and sound and that our tour has been going so well. I’m thankful to have found the love of my life and I’m sure I’m not the only one at this table who feels that way” Aj said inclining his head towards Nick and Mollee “So here’s to a Merry Christmas”

“And a happy New Year!” I added as we clinked glasses and took big gulps of our drinks

“Let’s eat!” Nick said happily as we all dug in.

The merriment around that table was truly what the doctor ordered. For the first time since everything had happened, I was able to forget that I was in a wheelchair and it seemed everyone else in attendance was able to as well. It was what I had hoped this break would be; a chance for everyone to just relax with each other. Mollee and Aj spoke and teased like nothing had ever come between them, Nick and Mollee were adorable and loving, Mollee and I were back to being as close as ever and Aj and I were basking in our love for one another.

As we stuffed ourselves with great food I had to take moments to bask in the holiday glow. As night fell and we all settled in for Christmas movies I willed myself to stay awake so the day wouldn’t have to end. My body was putting up a serious fight, not ready to really spend an entire day awake with no rest in its injured form, but I stuck with it all the way through the original Frosty the Snowman cartoon. When it ended, however, Mollee stood up and acknowledged the inevitable, that I was exhausted and it was probably time for her and Nick to go.

“I’m fine! Really! We can watch another!” I attempted but Nick laughed a little and kneeled down to my level in my wheelchair

“We’re not going far. We still have a few weeks of our break left and we will be here more than you could ever want” He said with a smile

“I know but today was perfect. Really guys, thank you so much for everything” I said sincerely looking to my three closest friends in the world

“It was worth it just to see you smiling. And you know what? You don’t look so bad anymore. It’s like there’s a light in your eyes again. It’s just lovely” Nick said sweetly and I blushed, eliciting a giggle from everyone

“Alright sister of mine, I love you. I am going to be with Nick’s family tomorrow but I’ll be back the day after. Call me after your doctor’s appointment” She said and I frowned

“That’s tomorrow? Already?” I asked and she gave me a small smile and squeezed my shoulder

“Do you want me to stay? I can stay” She offered but I shook my head

“No, it’s ok. I’m just worried they’ll say I’m not getting better or something” I confessed and she pulled me into a gentle hug

“Everything is going to be fine. I’m no doctor and I already know you’re getting better. Plus, Aj will be there and he’ll take good care of you” Mollee said before planting a kiss on my head

“Alright, get out of here, drive safe, and Merry Christmas” Aj said walking Mollee and Nick to the door. I rolled behind them and we waved until their car cleared the top of the hill

“I’m exhausted” I said through a yawn that Aj returned

“I’m tired too. Would you like Christmas cuddles in my bed or yours?” Aj asked and I couldn’t help but smile at his cute mood

“Your bedroom sounds like the perfect place for Christmas cuddles” I said and without another word Aj scooped me into his arms, kissed me sweetly on the lips, and carried me up to his room. After tenderly undressing me and then doing the same himself, he slid into bed beside me and we stared at each other in the semi darkness of the room.

“It was really nice to see you so happy today” Aj said quietly stroking my hair and sending chills down my back with each touch

“It was really nice to feel so happy today. The three of you have done so much, I don’t know how I can ever thank you” I whispered back leaning into his caress

“Just keep getting better. That’s enough for any of us” Aj said with a small smile. We sat there, memorizing the planes of each other’s faces in the shadows of the night until a thought struck me

“Can I ask you a question about that day?” I asked shyly, not knowing if he’d want to talk about it after such a good Christmas

“Yeah, if you’re sure you want to think about it so close to bed” Aj said with worry

“Did you really think that I called Josh because I realized I love him more than you?” I asked carefully

“Honestly?” He asked and I nodded. He paused and broke eye contact “Yeah”

“My love” I sighed putting my hand on his bare chest. He covered it with his and took a deep breath

“It was a chaotic time. We had no idea where you went and we were about to get the police involved and then I get paged to the counter and it’s Josh saying you called him and Rich had you” Aj said quickly, not noticing that Rich’s name had given me visible chills

“But we are doing so well, why would you question that the only person I would want in a time of extreme need would be you?” I asked feeling his heart pulse through my fingers

“Doing well or not, Josh is something that is always going to make me a little crazy. I know” He quieted me as I tried to interject “I know he’s a good guy. I even like him for everything he went through that day, both with you and with me. But I can’t shake the fact that he almost stole your heart from me. There was a time when I looked in your eyes and your heart was with him. My brain just can’t convince my heart that it won’t happen again”

“I guess we both have our anxiety with this relationship, huh?” I asked quietly meeting his eyes

“Yeah but now we’re talking about it with one another. That’s a step in the right direction, right?” Aj asked quietly and a small smile came to my lips

“Yeah, I think it is” I said softly. I inched forward on the bed and pressed my lips to his. I felt his whole body tense and then relax in a rush as he breathed into the kiss, putting everything he had in his heart through his lips and mine. He brought his hands to my cheeks as I ran my fingers through his hair and then began to run his touch down my body. His hands lingered on the side of my breasts and I inhaled sharply in response which simultaneously jostled my poor ribs

“Are you ok?” Aj asked quickly removing his hands

“Yeah I’m ok. I just wish my side would hurry up and heal so we can really touch each other again” I said with a pout that caused Aj to let out a short laugh

“We’ll get there precious. We have all the time in the world” He said helping me get comfortable in his arms before kissing me and turning out the lights. I sat there, staring into the darkness, a little worried about what would be waiting for me when I closed my eyes

“Hey J?” I asked into the dark

“Mmhm?” He mumbled into my back

“Can you tell me that I’m an Amazon and Rich cannot defeat me?” I asked feeling a little silly

“You’re a what?” Aj asked

“An Amazon. It’s something Nick told me about and it helped me not have nightmares. Will you do it for me? Please?” I asked shyly

“Ok. Yeah. Whatever helps you my love. You’re an Amazon and…” Aj trailed off

“And he cannot defeat me” I whispered closing my eyes

“You’re an Amazon and he cannot defeat you” Aj said quietly

“Again?”

“You’re an Amazon and he cannot defeat you” And with that I was ready to face the battle in my head for one more night.