Part 4: December 23rd
Tom stretched awake to hear the joyous shouts of Casey and James from downstairs. He smirked and pulled himself out of bed, noting that it was just about 11AM. Grace was not in the room with him and he assumed she had been the one to wake up early and drag the kids out of bed. He had never been an early riser without an alarm.
He puttered around on the upper level in his morning routine before descending the stairs and rounding into the kitchen. He stared for a long while at the scene presented to him, blinking as he tried to make sense of it. Finally he started laughing and Grace shot him a flour-covered glare.
“What happened?” Tom questioned as he knew Grace was normally very particular about what the children helped with when she baked.
“The bag of flour exploded when I opened it,” Grace admitted wearily.
Tom grabbed a broom and dustpan while chuckling and started to clear the exploded flour. Grace offered him a smile as Casey rushed to grab more rags for Grace to wipe the counter with. James was all ready helping to get the flour out of the decorations on the table where Grace had opened the bag.
“Mommy was going to make a ginger bread house,” Casey informed him with a smile.
“Do we still have enough flour for it or do you need me to venture to the mall for more?” Tom inquired as he dumped the spoiled flour into the garbage container.
“Actually we do need more flour since that was the last bag and there isn’t enough to make the size I want now. Plus we do need more gumdrops and candy canes,” Grace told him with a sheepish grin.
“All right, let me grab some coffee and something to eat and I’ll head down to the grocery store,” Tom offered as he finished clearing the floor.
“I’ll make a list because I’m sure we’re missing something else for dinner,” Grace informed him and turned to open the refrigerator.
Tom merely nodded and poured himself a cup of coffee. Grace handed him a pre-made tuna sandwich and he smirked as he opened the cellophane wrapping. Grace began making her list as Tom ate and the children finished up cleaning.
“So no gingerbread house until Daddy gets back?” Casey inquired with a jutting lower lip.
“Well, we can start wrapping presents while Daddy’s out. When he comes back, we’ll get the dough and icing ready for the house,” Grace told her as she penned down more things on her list.
“Okay,” Casey agreed with a happy nod.
“But the dough takes two hours to set though,” James mentioned with a frown as he remembered from last year.
“Don’t worry kiddo I’ll be back by 2 at the latest. The dough will be finished setting by 6 and you guys can cook it up after dinner,” Tom explained with a smile after he finished swallowing a bite from his sandwich.
“Okay,” James said satisfied.
“All right, I’m ready with my list,” Grace mentioned triumphant and handed the list to Tom.
Tom read over it with a small grin: flour, gravy, salt, milk, soda, (candy store): gumdrops, gummy worms, mini candy canes. He tucked the list into his jeans pocket and finished his sandwich as Grace and the children covered the rest of the ingredients for gingerbread.
“All right I’m heading out now. Don’t have too much fun wrapping gifts without me,” Tom stated as he made his way to the front of the house.
“Don’t have too much fun at the mall,” Grace countered with a wink as she ushered the children into the living room.
“Thanks,” Tom chuckled after he zipped up his coat.
He gave a wave to the children and opened the door. A blast of frigid air caused him to shiver and he tucked himself deeper into his coat to stave off the cold. Jon was inside today and Tom frowned slightly at the thought. He peered up at the sky and noted there would probably be more of the fluffy white stuff by tomorrow morning. The van was started a few minutes later and Tom was scraping frost off his windshield.
A chill tingled down his back and Tom knew it was not from the cold. He turned and stared down the empty street. A few cars passed on the main street in front of his side street but nothing more. He scowled and finished scraping and hurriedly got into the van, not noticing the figure hiding amongst the evergreens. Once he was out of the driveway, the figure made to follow behind him with a crazed smile on its face that would have caused the most hardened man to shiver in fright.
Tom finally found a parking spot after circling the lot for five minutes. He parked gratefully and turned off the van. The wind blasted the door back towards him and he frowned slightly before pushing out of the van and into the blowing snow. The walk to the grocery store took five minutes with how far back he was parked and a few cars followed him, thinking he was leaving.
Tom pointed to the entrance to the grocery store when he noted them and they drove around him after. He disliked giving exasperated shoppers false hope. Heat blasted him a few moments later as he stepped through the sliding doors and into the crowded store. He seized one of the few carts left and navigated in the store as quickly as he could.
There was a line-up in the bakery isle and Tom had to wait five minutes before he could even see the flour. Flour and salt obtained he stood in the soda and water isle for a few minutes deciding what to get. He finally settled on a mixed pack of cream soda, diet soda, regular soda and orange soda.
Gravy was found after touring the isles aimlessly for a few fifteen. He had to wait ten minutes for the milk to be refilled but grabbed a few jugs and some extra eggnog while he was there. He strode down the candy isle and found gumdrops, gummy worms and mini candy canes. He grabbed a bag of chocolate drops and some decorative candy in the shape of Christmas trees before moving to stand in line. The entire process had taken well over an hour.
He checked his cellular phone for messages in case Grace had forgotten to list something and saw nothing. He did see a missed call from an unknown number and frowned at it. He dialed back the number, knowing he had a few minutes to wait and got Grace’s brother’s answering machine.
“Hi Dave, its Tom. I just checked my phone now. I’m at the grocery store so I couldn’t hear it. Dinner’s at 5 on the 25th but you’re welcome to come any time during the day. We’re opening presents early, probably around 8AM on Christmas. Uh, if that’s not what you called about, give me a call back. I’ll keep my cell on. Thanks, bye,” Tom stated as he moved up in the line.
He hung up his phone but kept it in his hand in case Dave decided to call back. Tom knew Grace’s brother was forgetful and had probably misplaced his datebook reminding him what time Christmas dinner was. Tom also knew the two had discussed what Grace wanted for Christmas and they had bought her presents the week before. Unless Dave and his family could not make it, there was no reason for him to call.
Tom’s phone vibrated in his hand but the grocery store was so crowded that the ringer was drowned out. Tom fumbled but managed to answer before it stopped vibrating.
“Hi Tom, its Dave. Yeah, I forgot when dinner was,” Dave said in his deep voice.
“No problem. If you want you can come down to open presents,” Tom told him with a grin.
“Maybe, I’ll talk to Kelly and the kids. I mean, it is only an hour drive but I’m not sure if they’ll want to hoist all their gifts into the car and drive down at stupid o’clock,” Dave laughed lightly.
“Good point, don’t worry about it then,” Tom informed him as he moved up in line.
“We’ll probably come down for 10AM though. I know Samantha and Christian are looking forward to seeing Casey and James again,” Dave revealed in a cheerful voice.
“That’s all Casey has been talking about at bedtime. What she, Samantha and Jackie are going to be playing on Christmas,” Tom chuckled lightly.
“Hey, did you go to Old Man Hubbard’s for your tree this year?” Dave asked slyly.
“Yeah, we got candy apples for everyone too,” Tom mentioned as he smirked.
“Great, I mean, good, anyway. Kelly needs me to help with something or other so I??
?ve got to go,” Dave commented.
“No problem, I’ve got to start unloading the grocery cart, we’ll see you in two days,” Tom told him as he pushed his cart ahead and began unloading it one handed.
“See you in two days, bye,” Dave concluded and hung up.
Tom pressed a button on his phone and tucked it back into its holder. He finished unloading the groceries and grumbled to himself when he realized he had forgotten to bring his own bags. He answered affirmative to the cashiers question about bags and the teen at the end began packing. Tom paid and pushed his cart along back outside.
He made it to the van with a car following him and hastily packed away his groceries and dropped the cart off into the cart holder beside him. He nodded at the other driver and got into his van only to notice another Christmas card under his windshield wiper. With an aggravated grunt, he leaned out the door and snatched the card before starting the van and tossing the very damp card onto the seat beside him.
This card was soaked, in a green envelope and had the same scrawl as the others before it. Tom ignored it until he was out of the parking lot. He then turned onto a side street and parked on the side of the road. The green envelope was ripped open haphazardly and he pulled out a dampened green card with gold ornaments on the front. This card had been sitting on his windshield for at least an hour, long enough for someone to travel to the mall and back home before Tom was able to read the card.
A typical seasons greeting message was inside the card with the scrawl of: “I’ll be home for Christmas,” underneath in the same red marker.
Tom scowled and shredded the card in his hands before shoving it into the glove compartment to hide the pieces. He knew Grace never went in the glove compartment so until he could get to a place with a garbage container on his own, the remains of the card would be well hidden. Tom noted the time to be nearing 2PM and sighed before pulling away from the curb carefully and heading back home.
Tom stacked the last of the now-wrapped presents under the Christmas tree as Grace and the children began to prepare the dough for the gingerbread. The new card was still on his mind but he was trying to ignore it. He wanted to mention it to Grace but did not want both of them suffering through the holidays. He knew that next year he would be looking back at this and laughing at his paranoia.
Once the electric shovel for Jon was in place, Tom carefully went upstairs to begin transferring the rest of Casey and James’ presents from their closet to the hallway closet. The two bicycles had been hidden in the hallway closet as they had been purchased and wrapped two weekends prior when the children had been at Tom’s parent’s home.
Grace had tossed a plastic tarp over them and the children did not notice the new addition under all the winter coats and behind the shoe rack. Tom carefully slid Casey’s pony play set and mermaid doll in the upper part of the closet behind some shoe boxes. James new blanket was tucked behind winter coats, a top the tarp. His game was easily tucked into an empty shoe box.
Tom grinned and peeked into the kitchen to see the children still distracted by mixing dough and icing. He winked at Grace and darted back up the stairs to grab the last of the presents they had bought for the children. Some doll clothes, a painting set and a jewelry making kit for Grace. Some new Creature Capture cards, a remote control monster truck and a model airplane kit for James.
Tom was just sliding in the last gift when a light tapping came to the door. He cursed under his breath and shouted out that he would get it. The last gift was slid into place and he examined the hiding spot for any tell-tale wrapping quickly before closing it and turning to the door. He opened it a moment later, an apology on his lips but only cold air greeted him.
He blinked and looked down to the porch to see nothing but a snow globe sitting in the snow at his feet. He lifted the globe and took a single step outside after sliding into his winter boots but not tying them up. There was no one around and Tom noted none of his neighbours were even out on the street.
He scowled and went back inside. He locked the door, something he and Grace only did at night and glowered at it for a few minutes before toeing off his boots and staring at the snow globe in his hand. The scene in the globe showed a home eerily similar to his and he felt a chill run down his spine.
He calculated the time it took for someone to get to the mall by bus and back to his street. He scowled when he realized that it would take no more than an hour and a half for someone to have followed his van, place the card and sit outside his home.
He turned it over and noted that it had the name of a well-known company that custom made snow globes. He glared at it but resisted the urge to pelt it into the garbage can by the front door. Grace found him frowning at the globe with it half propped to slam into the garbage can.
“Who was it?” Grace asked as she wiped her hands off on a rag.
Tom started and looked up at her. He could not make himself smile as broadly as he normally did and Grace noticed the forced grin immediately. Tom shrugged and placed the snow globe on the table in the front hall as he moved forward.
“Not sure, but they left a snow globe. I think someone is playing a Christmas prank on us. Oh, your brother called while I was out. He’ll be here around 10AM on Christmas day,” Tom informed her and wrapped her in a half hug.
“Okay good. Tomorrow we can decorate the ginger bread house in the morning since it will be too late tonight by the time it’s finished cooking. Then tomorrow afternoon I’ll cook the roast while you and the kids make sure the house is clean,” Grace commented as the two went back into the kitchen.
James and Casey looked up from covering the bowl of gingerbread dough with cellophane wrapping.
“Who was it daddy?” Casey asked with a beaming grin.
“No one was there but I think Santa left us an early Christmas present,” Tom said with a wink.
Both children gasped and he finally revealed the location of aforementioned present after their prompting. They darted into the front room and Tom could hear them chattering about the snow globe. Music started playing and the two rushed back in to show Tom and Grace that the snow globe played Silent Night as well. Tom put on a fake pleased smile for them but Grace could tell something was wrong.
That night the smell of baking gingerbread filled the house after supper. Tom had put in the family’s favorite Christmas movie A Christmas Carol as the gingerbread baked. Grace would intermediately check on it and Casey would get up to follow her with a smile. Hot chocolate was brought out and Tom felt relaxed despite the strangely gifted snow globe that had a new place on the mantle above the television.
Soon it came time to pull the gingerbread out of the oven and allow it to cool. Half an hour later, the movie was paused as the children and Grace began to cut out the shapes they needed for the gingerbread house that would stand a foot tall, a foot long and six inches wide. Casey and James held the patterns to the cool gingerbread as Grace carefully cut along the edges. Tom observed with a smile.
James would carefully take each cut piece and put it to a side to be stored for decorating tomorrow. Soon all the pieces were cut out and the family was munching on the excess gingerbread while finishing the movie. As 9PM approached, Grace informed the children they had to get ready for bed.
A few soft whines of protest came but Grace reminded them that they would have to be up a little earlier so they could finish decorating the gingerbread house before lunch. James and Casey leaped to their feet and ran upstairs at that and Tom snickered a bit as he heard them arguing about needing more room over the sink to brush their teeth.
“We won’t be able to actually relax until Boxing Day,” Tom mentioned as he put the movie away.
“My mother and father are staying here since the drive takes three hours and we all know they won’t leave until 10 or later. So, we’ll probably be going shopping on Boxing Day,” Grace commented.
“Oh right, well, you and your mom can go. Your dad and I can stay and watch the kids,” Tom tried wi
th a grin.
Grace laughed lightly and swatted him on the arm. Tom tackled her onto the couch and dropped a kiss on her lips lightly. She tugged him in closer and Tom hummed in approval as she deepened the kiss. A door closed upstairs and the two jolted up to make sure the children had not wandered back down to see them kissing on the couch.
Another door closed and they waited for a five long minutes. Tom smirked and laid another kiss on Grace’s damp lips. She allowed the contact, drawing him in deeper and wrapping a leg around his waist. Tom moaned lightly at the contact and hugged her tighter to his own body before running a hand down her side.
“We can’t on the couch,” Grace breathed as she broke the kiss with a smirk.
“Sure we can, isn’t this where Casey was conceived?” Tom joked with a wink.
“Very funny, but I’m not as flexible as I was seven years ago. So, we can’t on the couch,” Grace informed him with a wink.
“Hey, for 35 you’re pretty damned flexible. I’m sure some couch wrestling wouldn’t be too much trouble for you,” Tom told her with a grin.
“Okay but the special wrapping paper is upstairs,” Grace remarked and laughed when Tom grumbled.
“Fine, fine, upstairs it is then,” Tom muttered and helped her to her feet.
“Oh please, you’re still getting some,” Grace chuckled as she turned off the television and tidied the coffee table.
“Yeah,” Tom brightened as he took two of the mugs from her hands.
They strode out of the living room and Tom turned off the light. The mugs were deposited in the sink and the light was turned off before they quietly took the stairs two at a time. Tom was the one to skitter almost silently into the bathroom before entering his own room with a happy grin.