The Christmas Tree Guy

by Railyn Stone

  “Oh, honey, I don’t know when Daddy will come see you.” She hated to ever tell them their father wasn’t coming to see them. In all honesty, she didn’t know if, or when, he may come to see his children.

  “Mommy, did we make Daddy mad?”

  “Oh, no, Travis, no. You didn’t make Daddy mad. Daddy decided he just couldn’t live here with us anymore and that’s why he left. It had nothing to do with you or Charlie.” She had decided to take Quinn’s advice to convince them it was not their fault Matt was gone, but to also be truthful with them. She had been through this before and every time they asked if they had done something wrong. It made her mad that Matt would shake their faith in people like this and not even respond when they called or wanted to see him. “You know how Auntie Sara has been coming to stay with you when Mommy goes out with her friend?” She changed the subject quickly before the barrage of questions about Matt began.

  “Uh huh.”

  “Well, Mommy’s friend is pretty special to her and since he’s so special, Mommy wants you guys to meet him. How does that sound?” She wasn’t sure what type of reaction she would get and she waited in anticipation for them to say something. Charlie spoke up first and she was a little shocked by his response.

  “Mommy, is he going to play with us?”

  She had to admit she was relieved at his retort and thought this may bode well for them going forward. “Well, Charlie, he will probably want to get to know you, and what you like and don’t like. He may even want to play games with you. Would you like that?”

  “Can he play video games with us?”

  “I think so.” She smiled back at him.

  “Yay,” he and Travis responded, looking back and forth between each other.

  “When can he come and play with us?”

  “Well, he’s going to come have dinner with us tonight if that’s okay with you.” She grinned at the two who were already planning what games they would play with Quinn.

  “Can we go and pick out what games we want to play, Mommy?” Both of them wiggled off of the sofa and started to jump up and down.

  “Sure,” she laughed, and the two bolted down the hallway to their playroom. She was a little taken aback at their reactions. She wasn’t quite sure how they would respond to her having a new friend. They were young and for the most part, it probably wouldn’t really sink in to them how this may affect their lives, but she was concerned and she didn’t want to confuse them. Just then, the doorbell rang and she walked over to answer the door.

  “Hi.”

  “Hi, come in.” Quinn crossed the threshold and softly kissed her. She felt the familiar butterflies in her stomach from just seeing him. He was dressed casually underneath his jacket in a white t-shirt layered with a light gray pullover, and dark jeans, which was a plus with all of the games and things the boys had in mind. The gray of the shirt nearly matched the color of his eyes and she noticed the way the cotton fabric hugged his brawny chest.

  “I hope I’m not too early. I guess I got a little excited about seeing the boys.”

  “Oh, no, you are right on time.” She took his jacket and placed it in the closet.

  “Where are they?” She stopped him in the hallway to forewarn him of all of the plans the little boys had concocted in the last five minutes. It would be a night he wouldn’t soon forget she was pretty sure.

  “Just let me warn you, you are in for it because they are in the playroom now lining up all of the games they want you to play with them.”

  “Sounds good to me.” Quinn answered, grinning back at her.

  “You have no idea. I’ll go get them.” She laughed, walking to the playroom. “Charlie. Travis. There’s someone here I want you to meet. Come on.” The twins scrambled from their places on the floor in the midst of action figures, matchbox cars and blocks.

  Sydnee ushered Charlie and Travis into the living room. Both of them were on either side of her, holding her hands.

  “Guys, I want you to meet Quinn. This is Mommy’s friend.”

  “Hi Charlie. Hi Travis,” Quinn knelt down to their eye level and smiled.

  Charlie pulled on Sydnee’s hand and looked up at her. Trying to say it in a quiet voice, he said, “Mommy, he brought us our Christmas tree.”

  “That’s right Charlie, he did.” She laughed at her son’s quick recognition of who their guest was. And even though Charlie was trying to whisper, she giggled knowing Quinn had to hear his attempt to only tell her.

  “You hurt your hand when Charlie got hurt. We saw you at the hospital.” Travis looked over at Quinn and then up at Sydnee. Obviously, Quinn had already made an impression on the children.

  “You are right, Travis. You did see me at the hospital. How are you guys doing?”

  “Fine,” they responded, both still tentatively holding on to Sydnee’s hands.

  “I bet both of you like playing video games, don’t you?” Sydnee watched Quinn interacting with the boys and she was surprised at how at ease he was with them.

  “Yes.” Both boys were acting extremely shy and while she was used to the behavior from Charlie, it was a little uncharacteristic for Travis.

  “Well, I thought maybe you could show me how to play this game.” Quinn pulled a video game still in the shrink-wrap out of a toy store bag he held in his hand and she watched their eyes widen.

  “MARIO KART!” Travis yelled as he and Charlie moved closer to look at the box Quinn held in his hands. “Can we play it?”

  “I guess you will have to ask your mommy if we can.” Quinn looked at Sydnee.

  “Can we, Mommy, please, pretty please?” Travis and Charlie pleaded, taking turns tugging on her legs.

  “Are you going to be good?” She looked up to see Quinn grinning at her. The man never ceased to amaze her.

  “Yes.”

  “And are you going to take turns and share?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, I guess you can until dinner’s ready.”

  “Yay,” Travis yelled, and he and Charlie turned their attention back to Quinn.

  “We can play it. Mommy said it’s okay.” As if Quinn hadn’t already heard the exchange between them all. She shook her head at the level of enthusiasm both boys exerted as they chattered on and on about the game.

  “Well, I guess we’d better get started, huh?”

  “C’mon!” Quinn handed the game to Charlie as Travis took his hand and led him over to the TV in the living room. Quinn winked at Sydnee who was enthralled at their interaction. She felt her heart swell watching the boys light up as Quinn talked to both of them. She watched for a few minutes more before she moved into the kitchen to finish dinner. She could hear both Charlie and Travis telling him what to do next; even though she had a feeling he knew what he was doing.

  After about thirty minutes, she let them know it was time for dinner. “Hey, munchkins, go wash up, it’s time for dinner.”

  “But, Mommy, can’t we keep playing?”

  “Travis, what did Mommy say?” Raising an eyebrow, she looked at Travis, who was truly having a wonderful time with Quinn.

  “Yes, ma’am.” Hanging his head for a moment, he and Charlie put down the hand held controllers and ran to the bathroom to wash their hands.

  “Hey, stop running.” She called out to them, shaking her head. “I don’t know why I bother. They run everywhere.” She put bowls on the table.

  “Do you need help?”

  “Oh, no, I’ve got it.” She turned quickly to glare at both of the boys racing back to the kitchen. “Travis, please show Quinn where he can wash his hands?”

  “Okay, Mommy. Come on, Quinn,” Travis led Quinn down the hallway. Charlie stood at her hip fumbling with the knobs on the drawer and she looked down at him with a grin.

  “Did you have fun playing with Quinn?”

  “Uh huh, he’s fun, Mommy. He let Travis and me play a lot and we showed him how to get more points with Mario.” His illuminated face reaffirmed what she had already known. Quinn
was going to be a great addition to their life and she was glad she had made the decision to have him come over and spend time with them.

  “Well that was nice of you to show him how to get points,” she quipped as Quinn and Travis made their way back to the kitchen. “Okay, guys, time to pray.” The boys recited a prayer. They laughed and talked during dinner and the boys seemed captivated by Quinn. He kept them engaged during dinner, and afterwards they went to play as he and Sydnee cleaned the kitchen together.

  “I hope they didn’t ask too many questions.” Sydnee offered as she washed the dishes and Quinn dried them.

  “No, not at all. I had fun. They are really smart little boys. And they kicked my butt in Mario Kart.”

  “Our next door neighbor, Sean, has the same game and they play it a lot with him. I probably should have warned you.”

  “Now you tell me. Ah, I hope it was okay for me to bring it for them. I figured it needed to be something for kids, with no violence or anything like that.” She didn’t know what she liked more. The thoughtfulness of him bringing them a gift or the fact he had put some thought into what it should be. Not many people would go so far as to think about what was appropriate for children and what wasn’t when it came to video games.

  “Oh, yes, it’s fine. I try to limit the amount of time they play video games and have them play with other things to try and expand their imaginations.”

  “I definitely understand that. So, what’s next?” He asked as he folded the towel he was using and hung it on the stove railing.

  “Well, Friday nights are movie nights.” Sydnee placed a bag of popcorn in the microwave and opened the refrigerator, pulling out juice boxes. She had started the tradition with them not long after Matt left. It was a way for them to spend time together and a way for her to relax and unwind from the week and start their weekend off right. The boys seemed to love it and she had to admit it was her favorite night of the week because it meant snuggle time with her two favorite guys. Now she had added a third favorite guy and hoped he would love it just as much as they did.

  “Movie night, huh?”

  “Yes and I must warn you they are big, huge, colossal fans of all of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies so that’s what we usually watch at least two out of four Fridays per month,” she wrinkled her nose, and paused before laughing. “I mean Johnny Depp is easy to look at, but there are only so many times you can watch him get sucked up into the Kraken.”

  “Hmmm, okay. Good to know.”

  “Could you do me a favor and go get them while I get the movie started?”

  “Sure.” Quinn walked out of the living room and down the hallway to where he heard the boys’ voices in the playroom. They were in the middle of an epic battle between GI Joe and the Transformers and it looked like GI Joe was winning.

  “Hey, fellas, your mom wants to know if you’re ready to watch a movie.” Quinn knelt down to where they were.

  “Are you going to watch it with us?” Charlie asked as Travis looked on.

  “Do you want me to?”

  “Yes.” Charlie nodded at Quinn as Travis added, “Please?”

  “Well, how can I say no to that? I would love to watch a movie with you guys.” As he walked with them down the hallway, they each grabbed a hand and walked into the living room. Sydnee had set up their snacks, the movie was beginning and she had taken her usual seat on the sofa. The huge ottoman was pushed closer so they could sit with their feet up and their favorite blankets were in place. “Wow, this is some set up,” Quinn grinned.

  “Quinn, you sit beside Mommy,” Travis directed, as he and Charlie climbed up between the two getting cozy in their laps.

  “Are you comfortable?” Sydnee leaned over to look at Quinn as the four sat back and cuddled under the blankets in the dark as the movie started.

  Looking at her atop the boys’ heads, he said “More comfortable than I have ever been in my life. Thanks for this.”

  “Thank you for wanting it,” she grinned back, as Charlie laid his head back on her shoulder and Travis snuggled closer to Quinn.

  ###

  Sydnee and Quinn were spending even more time together and he seemed to genuinely love spending time with the twins. They, of course, couldn’t get enough rough housing and playing with Quinn. He played games with them, told them stories and read to them. It was like he had stepped in and filled a void their father left. Sydnee didn’t want to put the burden on Quinn and she made sure to let him know she wasn’t expecting that of him, but he quickly let her know it wasn’t a problem and he was truly enjoying himself.

  “Quinn, I just don’t want you to feel obligated or feel like I’m trying to find a new daddy for the boys.” They sat on a park bench watching the kids play. She loved watching the twins and Sean kicking a soccer ball and laughing and squealing the entire time. It had become a ritual each Saturday. They were growing so fast and were becoming more independent every day. It was great to see Charlie becoming much more confident and self-assured. Her gut instinct was he had taken on a lot of the guilt of his father leaving, making him a lot less confident. She knew the turnaround had to do with Quinn and his influence on the little boy. Travis had always been more spontaneous and outgoing, but she was even starting to see him becoming more thoughtful when it came to decision-making. She wanted to make sure both were able to stand up for themselves and be confident of who they were. Spending time with Quinn was helping them and she was grateful for his presence in their lives.

  “Are you kidding?” He looked over at her sitting beside him on the bench. “They are awesome little kids. I don’t feel obligated to do anything. If you want to know the truth, I’m pretty honored you let me get to know them. I know that can’t be easy.”

  “I would be lying if I said it was. I worry about screwing them up. I don’t want to be the reason they don’t turn out to be good people.” She continued watching as Travis threw his hands up in victory at getting the ball past Sean.

  “Syd, you’re doing an awesome job with them. You make sure they have everything they need and you do so much to make sure they are happy. But most of all, you love them and that’s what counts.” She hoped, for their sakes, Quinn was right.

  “Thanks. I wonder if their dad leaving is going to affect them long term, and if it’s okay to introduce them to the people in my life. It’s just so much to think about and I want to make sure I’m making the right decisions when it comes to them.”

  “You have got to stop beating yourself up.” Quinn reached over and rubbed her shoulder. “You didn’t leave. You didn’t walk out on them. Matt did. Don’t take on his guilt. He’s the one that has to answer for what he did to you and the boys.”

  Sydnee moved closer to Quinn and snuggled into his side as they watched the boys play. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but I’m glad I did it.”

  “Funny, I was thinking the same thing.” Leaning over he kissed the top of her head and squeezed her shoulder.

  ###

  “Mother, wha… what are you doing here,” Sydnee stammered, opening the door and watching her mother walk through the threshold. It was definitely a surprise she had come unannounced, especially since she’d just talked to her and Kellen the week before, and neither mentioned she would be visiting.

  “Sweetheart, what is the problem? Can’t a mother come and visit her daughter and grandsons? Well, stop standing there with the door open letting all of the elements in, come and hug your mother,” she said sweetly, pulling her bag into the foyer. Sydnee breathed deeply knowing the woman was sizing up the house, and her, and she braced herself for the critique she knew was soon to come. Usually, if she knew Carroll was coming to town, she would take a day off just to make sure the house was in perfect order. She would be on hands and knees scrubbing baseboards, to washing windows. It wasn’t like she kept a dirty house, but her mother was a stickler for things. Carroll believed if she could keep a spotless house and raise two children, Sydnee should have no problem doing the
same.

  Regaining her ability to speak, Sydnee closed the door and turned to give her mother a stiff hug. “Of course you can visit, Mother, I just, I wasn’t expecting you.”

  “Yes, I can see that,” Carroll responded, one eyebrow perfectly raised, she turned to look at the living room. Sydnee cringed at the less than perfect array of the pillows on the sofa, and the toys stuck in between the cushions. The boys left them there after breakfast and she was too busy to pick them up, catching up on all of the other housework, since she dropped them off at Scott and Monica’s. Taking advantage of the few hours she would have while they were gone to a birthday party, she was using the time to straighten up the house.

  “Uh, can I get you something?” Sydnee busied herself plucking the toys out of the cushions. “Water, coffee, tea?”

  “Oh no, I’m fine.” The salty taste of blood on her tongue made Sydnee realize how hard she was biting the inside of her jaw. She inhaled deeply as Carroll slowly looked around and pulled her finger across the counter before rubbing her index finger with her thumb. “Honey, where are my beautiful grandsons?”

  Flinching at her mother doing her ‘glove inspection’ minus the gloves, Sydnee exhaled and forced a smile. “They are at a birthday party with our next door neighbor, Sean, and should be back soon. Believe me, they will be very excited to see you.”

  “I’m excited to see them. I know they are growing fast and you never bring them to see me. I’m hoping they remember who I am.” She took a seat on one of the barstools; not before wiping it off, and glanced at Sydnee. “So, how are you?”

  “I’m good,” Sydnee self-consciously pushed her hair behind her ear and tried to smooth the wrinkles out of the t-shirt she was wearing. She hadn’t taken much time with her appearance since she planned on cleaning, and now she felt frumpy and a complete mess compared to her mother.

  “Well, you look great.”

  “Oh, uh, thanks.”

  “What have you been doing, working out?”

  “Something like that. I started doing a little more than the usual classes I take.” Sydnee knew she looked a hot mess. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a not so neat topknot. The old Mickey Mouse threadbare t-shirt she wore had a hole near the hem. She could only be happy she was at least wearing a new pair of yoga pants so they at least were in one piece. “I didn’t know you were coming otherwise I would have planned some things for us to do or-”