The Future Awaits
The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's
consent. Comments are appreciated at...
Chapter 19
Mike and I enjoy our time at home with Tor, having Thanksgiving dinner with Dave and Martha. Tor spends Friday helping Mike set their train layout back up in a way that still leaves room outside our labs for an office. Even so, it's astonishing how we all miss the quiet presence of Tommy. Mike especially, for during the drive Sunday afternoon he tells me he hopes Tommy's home when we get there. I have to remind him several times about his speed.
When we take our bags into the lobby, Tommy's waiting for the lift. "Tommy!" Mike yells, dropping his bag and running over to hug him.
The guy on the desk says, "Quiet, please," and looks startled when Mike tells him to stuff it. Mike starts to bombard Tommy with questions in the lift, but I tell him it can wait until we're home.
"Oh, man, it was great. I was scared when I looked at that big house, but her folks are real nice. Her old man didn't say much, but he thinks I'm gonna be a good librarian, 'cause I helped him arrange all his books so they'd be easy to find. Her mom's real nice, too, and she really liked the flowers. I'm glad you told me to get them."
"Did you go anywhere fancy?" Mike asks.
"Yeah. But they got a maid and all to serve dinner." He gives me a happy smile. "I'm glad we went to that swell restaurant, cause I didn't even have to watch what they was doin' an' all. After we went to church, we went to this fancy country club for dinner today. Her mama looked real happy at the way people was looking at me and Andrea when we went in. A lot of 'em come by the table when we was eatin', an' I met so many I don't remember none of their names."
"They ask you back?"
"Sure did. Her dad told me he's glad I'm Indian, and her mama said my manners were real good. What did you do?"
"Had dinner with Dave and Martha like always, and Tor helped me set up my trains again. That's about all."
"Dave and Martha said tell you they missed you, Tommy. They send their love." I add.
"I had a good time, but I sure missed you all."
The last few days of school before the Christmas break, I'm almost as antsy to get home as the boys. While I grade lab work, the boys check the objective part of my last stack of exams against the key I made up for them. Once I turn my grades in, we can leave.
"Oh, wow!" Mike exclaims when we pull in the drive. Tor has put electric candles in each window and a large wreath on the front door. It's a welcoming sight, especially when the door swings open and Tor is there with a big smile.
Mike grabs him in a hug. "Did you get a tree?"
"Waited for you guys." Tor hugs Tommy, then gives me a kiss. "Welcome home, love."
He's so eager to get a tree, Mike practically drags us out of the house before we've had time for a second cup of coffee the next morning. The wind is damp and chill and I'm freezing, but I wouldn't have missed watching Mike and Tor arguing over which of the four trees they like. It only gets more amusing when they get Tommy into the argument, but finally they reach a unanimous decision.
"How you gonna get it home?" Tommy asks, after the man says he doesn't deliver.
"Gary?" Mike asks.
Tor shakes his head. "He'll be busy." He snaps his fingers. "I'll ask Dave if I can use the maintenance truck." He pays for the tree and tells the man we'll be back shortly.
Tommy's expression is incredulous when they finally have the tree set up in the living room, for it nearly touches the ceiling. "Man, that's somethin'."
"Biggest one we ever had," Mike says. "Hope we've got enough stuff to go on it."
I spend the rest of the day keeping them supplied with cocoa, while they decorate it. Tommy's hesitant at first, but joins in the fun after Tor tells him it's as much his tree as it is Mike's.
When the last ornament is hung, Tommy disappears, only to return holding a cookie-tin. The blistered paint tells me it's one of the few things he found in the remains of his cabin. "You think I could put these on the tree?" He asks Tor, and opens the tin revealing a nice collection of perfect arrowheads.
Tor puts his arm around Tommy's shoulders. "It's yours and Mike's, babe. Do what you want."
Tommy asks for the car and comes back an hour later with several yards of narrow red ribbon. He and Mike use it to tie the arrowheads to the tree. Some of the heads made of clear quartz sparkle in the lights.
"Hey, neat," Mike says, standing back to see the result. "Bet we're the only ones with an Indian Christmas tree."
Tommy smiles.
There's so much Tommy needs, Tor and I have had a talk with Mike, who falls in with our plan to go heavy on gifts for him. Mike and I have already bought him more clothing and brought it along and his big present was delivered to the Curtises to keep him from seeing the distinctive box it was shipped in. It's nice to have room enough that we can all scatter to wrap gifts in privacy. Though I hear a lot of excited chatter from the boys' room, Tommy grows quieter as the pile under the tree grows larger.
Christmas Eve we go to midnight Mass. Mike is organist for part of the service, but when he gets off the organ bench for communion, Tommy slips from our pew and joins him at the rail. I'm surprised and pleased when Tommy's shy reserve slips enough for him to put his arm around Mike when they rise.
It's all I can do to get Mike to eat breakfast, he's so eager to get to the gifts on Christmas morning, but the way Tommy holds back, I can't help but wonder what's going on in his mind. When we're all sitting on the floor around the tree, with a fire blazing on the hearth, and Christmas music playing, Tommy seems even more reluctant to open his gifts.
"Come on, Tommy, let's see what you got," Mike exclaims.
He silently opens each with a solemn expression that doesn't change, but when he opens the last one, the lap-top computer we've gotten for him, tears come to his eyes. He jumps up and runs from the room. The three of us look at each other in astonishment. Tor finally nods at me. "You go, Drew."
I tap on the door to the boys' room and open it to see Tommy lying on his bed, shaking with silent sobs. I go over and sit down beside him, putting my hand on his shoulder. When I do, he sits up and hugs me tightly. It's quite a while before he finally says, "You all really like me that much?"
"You're our son, Tommy. What's wrong?"
He sniffles and wipes his nose with the back of his hand. "Ain't nobody ever treated me the way you all do. You done give me way more than you give Mike."
"Mike has everything he needs. We're just making up for when you couldn't be with us last year."
He hugs me tighter. "I ain't never had any Christmas before, 'cept what little the church back home give me."
"We love you, Tommy. Let's go back downstairs."
"That's the best thing I ever got. Gimme a minute." I kiss him on the forehead and go back to Tor and Mike while Tommy washes his face.
"What?" Mike asks.
"This is his first real Christmas, so he's a little overwhelmed. Please don't tease him when he comes down, Mike."
"No way. I won't ever forget my first Christmas with you guys. It was special, too."
Tommy comes down with a brave smile and hugs us before he sits down on the floor and opens the computer. Mike stretches out of the floor beside him and they look at the software that came installed. "Wow, man, this is better than mine. Want to trade?"
"You can have it if you want. I'll use your old one."
Mike puts his arm around Tommy's shoulders and squeezes. "No way. This one's yours and mine's fine. I love you."
"I love you, too, my brother."
We enjoy our traditional Christmas dinner with the Dave and Martha and the time with them after seems to fly by. The smile on Tommy's usually solemn face never falters, even when he asks Martha if they can talk for a few minutes and they disappear into her study. When we're ready to go back home, I'm surprised to see Tommy hug Martha and her pleased smile. She tells me she wants to talk with me before the boys and I leave for school.
A few days later, Martha pours us coffee then sits down across from me at the kitchen table. "Drew, if anyone ever did good things for others, you and Tor have done them by giving two of the finest young men I've ever met a chance at life."
"You saw Mike from the first. Would you have abandoned a kid to the hell he was living in?"
"No," she answers slowly, "I suppose not, but I'm not sure that I would have been willing to risk everything for him the way you and Tor did. Tommy is older though."
"In years, maybe, but he was alone just as I was until I ran away. He thought no one other than his own people would give him a chance, if then, because of his feet. Even Mike felt it."
"He would. That's why I wanted to talk to you. The first time I saw Tommy, I knew immediately he was full of resentment at life for what he perceived as its unfairness. I doubt he had thought much about it until he got to college and was surrounded by people who to his eyes were privileged beyond his dreams. Now that he's responding to the love he receives from all of you, the anger is gone. When he talked to me Christmas day, he offered Dave and me the most wonderful gift he could have." She smiles. "He has no concept of godparents, but he asked me if he took instruction and was confirmed, would Dave and I be his uncle and aunt as we are Mike's. You know there's nothing would please us more."
"I had no idea. He and Mike go to Mass occasionally, but he never says much. He does seem proud when Mike plays the service."
"He feels a very strong affinity with Mike and says if they're real brothers then it should be in every way."
"That's the way Tor and I want him to feel. We both know that, unlike Mike, Tommy will never be more than a good average student, but we try to make no difference between them. Tommy is so unselfish and giving by nature that it's hard to get him to accept what we want to give him. I would think it would be the opposite when he's had so little."
"From what I've learned about him, I believe he's had to be self-sufficient for so much of his life he's proud of what little he's had. I wouldn't have that pride destroyed for anything, but he's learning everything about family life from you. Keep encouraging him and you'll see him maturing more than you though possible."
"You know we'll do that."
"I do. Encourage him to come see Dave and me any time you're here. We want him to let us love him as we do Mike."
I get up and kiss her on the cheek. "If it hadn't been for you and Dave helping, we wouldn't have a son like Mike. Thanks."
As soon as we're back home in the flat, Tommy picks up the phone and calls Andrea. After a few words, he hangs up with a smile. "Got a date tomorrow night."
"Some guys have all the luck." Mike says enviously.
Tommy shrugs. "Some of us got it and some don't."
"Yeah. I just get the losers."
"Give it time, babe," I tell him. "You'll find one sooner or later. I'd prefer it be later, young as you are. But I'm pleased with the way your grades have come up."
"I wish you wouldn't keep reminding me of my age. Yeah, I know grades are important, but I'm missing out on a lot of fun. Maybe there'll be somebody in class this semester."
"If you find one in my class, I'll make her your lab partner, provided you keep your work up. And no helping her like you did Sandra. It had to be you, because her grades dropped after you broke up."
"I guess I did give her a lot of help. Thanks, dad."
To be continued...
Feedback always
welcome:
Chapters 19-34 Posted: 09/28/07