George - Chapter Twenty Five: Piece By Piece

This chapter has been a long time coming. I've jokingly started calling it the "cursed chapter" since every time I tried to take pictures for it either my game would have issues (which led to me reinstalling the game three times) or life got crazy. Thankfully, the game issues seem to be resolved. 

Speaking of resolutions, I've made one for the new year that includes posting chapters more frequently. I've been dragging my feet with this generation, not wanting to end their story, but it's time and I've made my peace with that. Unless someone (either George or Steph) tell me differently, there will be two more chapters and then a finale to this generation. 

The short version: I'm resolving to post more often, finish this generation so the next can start, and this generation will end soon.

Thank you for being patient with me, for continuing to read this story (even with my sporadic posting), and for loving these characters with me. :)

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God bless Kelly Clarkson for putting into words what so few of us can. Her song speaks to both Steph's and my heart and was an inspiration in writing this chapter.

Special Thank You To LateKnightSimmer for making the tipping hat pose!!! Love You Sweet Lady!!!
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****Steph****

“They’re adorable!” Inside the most recent bag, sat two onesies, both white; one with small blue airplanes and one with tiny pink flowers. The cuteness of each one was too much not share with everyone and I reached inside, holding them up for everyone to see. Those gathered in the family room for my baby shower agreed, and I smiled even more thinking about each baby wearing them. But they looked bigger outside the bag and even though the size on the tag said “newborn”, I couldn’t imagine that each of them would be big enough to fit into them when they were born. That thought made me panic for a moment and I looked down at my huge belly, wondering how much bigger it would need to grow for them to reach that size.

“They grow so much in the last months.” Bridge offered and I glanced up from my belly to see her watching me from across the room.

I nodded and smiled over at her. “I read that in one of the “What to Expect” books, but I still have trouble imagining me getting any larger.” I half joked and chuckles sounded around the family room.

“I felt like I was going to bust during my last month.” I turned to see Emily rubbing a hand over her barely noticeable bump. “It’s amazing to think how much they grow in just nine short months.”

“This isn’t making me feel any better about what’s ahead.” Charlotte somewhat joked as she looked down at her also barely there bump.

“It’s all worth it.” Bridge patted Charlotte’s hand and Emily nodded. “The uncomfortableness you feel in the last months becomes a distant memory as you hold your little one. . .” She smiled at me. “. . .or little ones, and your heart feels like it’s going to burst from the love that you feel whenever you hold them in your arms.”

Daydreams of George and I holding tiny babies moments after being born were interrupted by Charlotte placing another baby present in my lap and I set my attention back to opening them. Before long, they were all unwrapped, the guests full from enjoying tea, cupcakes and other treats, and little by little friends began to leave until all that remained were family.

The guys kept themselves busy doing “guy activities” until the shower ended and their thunderous return proved that they had a good time.  “I swear! I wasn’t peeking!” Trev’s loud voice was the first heard as they exited the elevator. “Willie’s just not very good at surprising people!” The laughter that rang out made us women look and smile at each other; something that caused the men to stop dead in their tracks after filing through the door.

“Why are you all smiling like that?” Will wondered and we couldn’t contain our laughter any longer.

“It’s just nice to hear the four of you having fun.” Emily’s reassurance once we stopped laughing broke them out of their frozen state and each one made their way over to join us. As the conversation continued, I looked around the room and drank in the sight of the warm, caring family and each of the happy couples. 

The latest addition was among the Christmas surprises of learning that Charlotte and Emily were pregnant. Trev’s admission that he meant to bring a guest with him on Christmas Eve caused a buzz through the family. It didn’t take us long to realize though that Trev had met his match with Pamela, an old college friend of his.

It was something that was common with every couple sitting there, how once each couple got together it didn’t take long for them to move to the next step, and my tiny chuckle didn’t go unnoticed by George. The small turn of his head in my direction caught my eye and when our eyes met, a whole conversation took place where I told him that I’d reveal later what had caused my runaway chuckle, and his eyes showed that he couldn’t wait to hear about it.

The thought that the two of us could have a conversation like that made a soul-warming contentment spread through me, and if I had known how short-lived it would be, I would’ve tried to relish it even more. As was common at that point in my pregnancy, my mind jumped from one thought and memory to another and it wasn’t long before I remembered the moment that I first witnessed him having a silent conversation with Charlotte. . .the night that George and I first opened up about our pasts. . .when I first told him about my parents.

It seemed like anything could send my mind on a path that led to some memory or conversation about my childhood and cause an unsettling feeling to fester deep inside.  Every time, I tried to push it even further down, but my attempts became less and less successful and I worried about my ability to keep it hidden. Especially from George.

The moment that everyone left was the when my worry became a reality. His attention turned away from the elevator doors and I knew from the intense focus I saw when his eyes met mine that he had zeroed in on something.

George - Chapter Twenty Four: Brother, Son, Husband, Father

This chapter can be read on it's own, or can be read with Trev's chapter which can be found here. It's the one time that the two stories have chapters for the same event so it just made sense to me to publish them at the same time. While the event is the same, their reactions and experiences are different and I think each chapter shows just how different George and Trev are by revealing what each chose to center their thoughts and attention on.

While I'm disclosing things, I might as well mention that there's one picture that might be considered NSFW and as always, this is a long chapter with a ton of pictures. 

Hope you enjoy it! Thanks so much for reading!

****George****

“Steph? Are you home?” Only a few lights were on in the apartment which meant more than likely she wasn’t, but I wanted to be sure. Soon after we returned from our honeymoon I came home to a similar sight and assumed that she wasn’t there. The scare I gave her as I entered our bedroom made her jump and scream loud enough that I wondered if the whole city heard it. She spent the next several minutes playfully scolding me and smacking my arm.  I had learned my lesson that day, always let her know when you’re home.

The memory made me chuckle as I made my way up the stairs to change clothes. This had been the normal lately. I’d return home to an empty apartment, change, start dinner, and Steph would come rushing into the apartment like a car on two wheels. I was glad for it though. She and Ethan began the prep work for their catering business after we returned from Italy and even though it was hard work and she was exhausted most nights, it was worth it to see her happy doing what she dreamt of for so long.

After changing I made my way back down to the kitchen and took inventory of what food we had in the fridge. One of the drawers contained a block of parmesan and it reminded me that we had ingredients for pasta sauce. I had enough time to cut everything up, place it in a pot, and start simmering it before I heard the sound of the elevator dinging and her rushed footsteps on the wood floor.

“Shitfire I’m sorry!” She rushed to the kitchen, flung her bags down on the floor, and quickly placed a kiss on my cheek.  “I was about to walk out the door when Ethan asked me if I’d look over some numbers with him. Which I told him wasn’t necessary since I trust him and know that he’ll keep us on track financially, but he insisted.”

Her rushed entrance made her cheeks flush and eyes dance, making her look completely adorable and too irresistible not to touch. My hand hooked around her waist and pulled her closer. “He just wants to make sure that you’re both on the same page.”

A playful smile appeared on her lips as she moved even closer. “I know. . .” She studied her hands as they started to rub my chest, making every nerve in my body tingle with anticipation. “I just wanted to get home.” Her eyes crept up, and the suggestive way they peeked through her lashes at me and the huskiness in her voice made any reassuring words about Ethan and the catering business or thoughts about the simmering dinner vanish.

“I’m glad you’re home.” The drop in my voice made her smile widen and my hold on her tightened to press her body into mine. There were several moments of the day that I looked forward to; waking up to find her in my arms, sitting down to eat dinner with her, and our first kiss after returning home from a busy day apart. It never failed in melting away the stress and worries of the day. Our kiss that night did just that and deepened into something more just as the sauce started to sputter, interrupting what could have been.

“You’re making spaghetti?” She stood on her tiptoes to peek over my shoulder and I nodded. “If I’d gotten home sooner I could’ve helped you.” She somewhat whined as her shoulders sank in disappointment.

“You’ve been cooking all day; and I wanted to make dinner for you.” She spent the previous two weeks tweaking recipes so they could be produced in larger quantities for catering events and I knew she had to be somewhat burned out on cooking.

“You do make a delicious pasta sauce. . .” She somewhat gave in and I gave her another quick kiss before she rushed upstairs to change. By the time she returned, dinner was ready and waiting on the table.

“Thank you for making dinner.” She smiled at me as we both sat down.

“It brought back some memories.” I admitted and her smile turned into an ear to ear grin. “I didn’t hand pick the tomatoes or cook it on a stove in a Tuscan villa, but hopefully it’s just as good.” During our last night in Tuscany we had a romantic spaghetti dinner that we picked vegetables for and I somehow convinced her to let me cook for her. It had been a fitting end to our time there before the second half of our honeymoon in Venice.

I anxiously waited for the verdict as she leaned over her plate and took a bite. “It’s just as delicious as it was then.” She smiled up at me and I couldn’t help but feel a small sense of satisfaction from her praise. I joined her in sampling the sauce and several minutes of contented silence passed before she inquired about my day.

“Did you have a lot of patients today?” She asked as she twirled some spaghetti onto her fork.

“About the same as I usually do.” I looked down at my plate before continuing, knowing that what I told her next would make me revisit a part of my day I didn’t really want to. “I did receive an interesting call though. . .” The sudden halt of her twirling fork was enough to tempt me to glance up at her and she raised her eyebrow, coaxing me to continue. “Mom called me.”

Her head snapped back a little. “At work?”

I nodded. “I was just as surprised as you are.” Mom never called me when I was working, and just like Steph, it had made me worry. “She wanted to ask me something and it was important enough that she wanted to ask as soon as possible.”

“What did she ask you?”

George - Chapter Twenty One: I Promise You

Some NSFW pics

This chapter, like many before it, was inspired by a specific song. I've provided it here for you to enjoy while you read.   Long chapter, lots of pictures. . .It's what I do. Lol!

Thanks so much for reading!

****George****

As we stood watching the different sizes and colors of luggage travel along the belt at the baggage claim, I couldn’t help but feel slightly worried about ours. The sooner I had it back in my possession and able to check its contents, the better. When I had originally planned out this week, I hadn’t taken into account how I would get the most important item there without her knowing. I couldn’t keep it in a pocket or carry on thanks to airport screening which left me with only one option, putting it in the luggage.

Everything about getting it there had been stressful; as we packed I had placed it in the suitcase after I was sure that she had packed everything, and of course, she immediately had gone to open the bag again to place something else in it. I thought back to that moment and how I had held my breath and prayed that she wouldn’t open that one section. Once she had finally zipped the bag back up and left the bedroom I had let out a sigh of relief. The worry over her finding it in the bag had now been replaced with fear of the luggage being lost on our way there.

So there I stood, at the baggage claim in Paradise Island, praying the next bag that came around the curve happened to be ours. I intently stared at each bag and startled when a hand touched my arm.

“You know, they say a watched kettle never boils. . .” She joked and I jerked my head to look at her and she jumped a little. “Are you always so stressed about finding your luggage?” She joked again. If she had only known the item that I had placed in there, she wouldn’t have joked about it. 

I tried to smile. “It’s just that we’ve seen some of these bags before and I’m starting to wonder why it’s taking so long for ours. . .Trev already has his.” I looked over at Trev. His bag had been one of the first to come down the line and he had moved off to the side to get out of other people’s way. 

“Hmmm. . .well, I don’t think we’re going to have to wait much longer. . .” I turned to quickly look at her and she pointed down the way at our bag. I impatiently waited for it to come slowly down the belt to where we stood and snatched it up the first moment I could reach for it. We walked over to where Trev had moved to and I couldn’t believe my luck when Steph whispered to me that she needed to use the restroom. I waited until she had gone inside before I made a mad dash to open the suitcase.

George - Chapter Twenty: New Beginnings

****Some possible NSFW pics. ****

****George****

I stood in the bathroom and looked at my reflection in the mirror. I didn’t usually stress over what to wear, but today was a big day; it was my first day of work at the hospital. I had always tried to dress professionally when I worked at my practice in Appaloosa, but I could have dressed however I liked since it was my own. With now working for someone and meeting with patients who didn’t know me, I felt I needed to make sure I was presentable. I was finally satisfied with the image that stared back at me and I opened the bathroom door. The sight I saw made me smile; Steph had woken up and was cooking us breakfast.

“You don’t have to cook breakfast.” I tried to reason with her.

“Nonsense! It’s your first day! You can’t go to work hungry.” She argued. 

“But you worked last night.” 

“So.” She stopped what she was doing and turned around. “You can stop trying to convince me to not make you breakfast, it’s not going to work.” She said and smiled at me.

I laughed and decided to make us some tea while she finished cooking. 

“Are you nervous?” She asked as we sat down to eat.

“A little.” I admitted. “But also excited.” 

“You’ll be great!” She enthused.

George - Chapter Eleven: An Amazing Woman

A little note before getting into the chapter; this chapter and the next were originally written as one. Once I saw how long it was, I decided to split it into two chapters but they really go together. So I'm releasing this chapter and the next together. They're long and very picture heavy and at the end of this chapter there's some unclothed sims. Thanks for reading!

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I felt George grab my arm and I immediately stopped. I wasn’t sure why he had done it and when I turned around to look at him, I was even more confused by the expression on his face. He looked almost determined and it didn’t make any sense to me. Before I had time to think about what was happening he was standing inches from me and I was looking into his light blue eyes, wishing that we would kiss. I could feel my heart start to beat faster and faster as I noticed that he was starting to lean forward and I came to the realization that my wish seemed to be coming true. I started to lean forward and we were a second away from kissing when I heard Charlotte’s voice.

“Dammit, George! Have you not been checking your phone?!”

We both quickly pulled away and I wanted to complain to Charlotte for her incredibly bad timing. George immediately looked angrily at Charlotte who was joined by Ethan and Trev. “Since when do you care if I’ve been checking my phone?”

“Since Mom has been trying to reach you. Didn’t you get her last text message that she just sent to all of us?”

I noticed George quickly reach into his pocket and look at his phone. “Oh my God.” He whispered as he read the text message. 

He looked back up at Charlotte and Trev and that’s when I noticed the pained expression on both their faces.

“What is it?” I asked and George handed me his phone before walking over to Charlotte and Trev. I looked down and read the text message.

I tried to call George several times but only got his voice mail. Grandma Hobble was rushed to the hospital this evening complaining of having chest pains. After arriving at the hospital she had a massive heart attack and passed away. Please call when you receive this message.  Mom.

It was sent to all three of them which I figured was how Charlotte knew that George hadn’t been checking his phone. I stood there shocked, still holding George’s phone as Ethan walked over to me. 

“I don’t know what they’re planning to do, but I know one thing; I’m going to go to Appaloosa for at least the service.” I looked at him and nodded. “I’ll make sure yours and Charlotte’s shifts are covered for the next several days. You and I could ride together up and back, if you want.” I again nodded and looked back over at George, Charlotte and Trev. Charlotte was crying, Trev had his arm around her, and George was whispering to both of them. After a minute he came back over and Ethan walked back to where Charlotte and Trev were standing.

“I should have checked my phone. I felt it buzz a little bit ago and I ignored it. I even ignored Mom’s call earlier. I figured she was just calling to make sure I made it here okay.” I handed him his phone back and then placed one of my hands on his arm.

“You couldn’t have known. You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.”

“Why? I let Mom down. I wasn’t there when she needed me.” I had never seen this side of him; had never seen him be so hard on himself.

“George. . .”

“I need to call home.” He interrupted me and then selected his mom’s number. After talking with her for a minute he put her on speaker phone so the three of them could talk to her at the same time.

“What happened, Mom?” Trev asked and I walked a little closer so I could hear.

“I had just checked on George’s cats and decided to stop by the ranch to see Grandma, Grandpa and everyone else. Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Charlie and I were standing in the kitchen when Grandma put one of her hands up to her chest and complained that her chest hurt. She started to sweat and that’s when we called for an ambulance. They arrived quickly and then took her to the hospital. Dad went with the ambulance and Charlie and I followed, with Jeff meeting us at the hospital. We sat with Dad in the waiting room for a while before a doctor came out and told us that she had suffered a massive heart attack and they couldn’t do anything for her. They tried but they weren’t able to revive her.” I heard their mom’s voice crack at the end and Charlotte started to cry even harder. I noticed that Trev also had tears in his eyes. 

“Mom, I’m so sorry I didn’t answer when you called or respond to your texts.” George said. Even though his back was to me I could tell that he was as upset as Charlotte and Trev.

“You’ve all been busy, and really, there’s nothing that you could have done. . .” She started to say before George cut her off.

“Yeah, but I’m sure that probably added to the stress you were already feeling. Have you called Will?”

“I did and Emily is pushing him to come but with the baby due in the next week, I just don’t see him coming. He needs to stay with her and be there in case the baby’s born.”

“We’re going to pack up and head there as soon as all three of us are ready.” Charlotte said.

“The three of you should get some sleep. There’s plenty of time for you to make the trip home. We won’t be able to make arrangements until businesses open anyways.” She tried to reason with them.

“No, Mom, we’re coming as soon as we get ready.” George told her.

“Well, whatever you do, please be careful driving.”

They said goodbye and as soon as George hung up the phone they were planning their next move. Ethan offered to give me and Charlotte a ride back to our apartment building. George and Trev decided to meet us there after Trev had gotten his stuff together. After Ethan, Charlotte and I arrived at her apartment, he and I spent the whole time trying to comfort her as she started packing her things.

“I can’t believe this is happening! Not Grandma! Poor Mom! The whole family is going to be devastated.” I watched as Ethan walked over to her and hugged her. I wanted to help her in some way so I started to pack what she had gotten out to put in her suitcase. I had just finished when I heard George enter the apartment.

“Are you ready?”

Charlotte nodded and looked up at Ethan. I watched as he whispered something to her and she nodded. I didn’t even notice George walk over to me.

“Sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to snap at you.”

I was stunned. His grandmother had just passed away and he was apologizing to me about acting upset. “It’s completely understandable. You’re upset, you shouldn’t apologize for that.”

“I shouldn’t have taken it out on you though.”

I stood there for a moment wondering if he was serious. I finally came to the conclusion that he was.  “I understand, George.”

He nodded and we stood there for a moment looking at each other, neither one of us seeming to know what to say. I was finally able to think of something.  “Will one of you call either Ethan or me when you get there?”

“I’ll call you. I wouldn’t be surprised if Charlotte calls Ethan, but I’ll call you.” He gently grabbed my hand and I felt butterflies start to dance around in my stomach.

George - Chapter Nine: Christmas Surprises - A Christmas Full of Surprises

I woke up on Christmas morning and as I stood up from the bed, I looked around my old room. Even though I had been over to the house many times since moving out, I hadn’t seen my room very many times, let alone sleep in it. Mom had been true to her word, she hadn’t touched anything. There was still the cork board with pictures from high school, pictures of people I didn’t see anymore. My old rocking horse was still sitting in the corner. I wondered if she kept everything the same to help her remember the times when we were all here together. 

I got my clothes out and walked towards the bathroom that was in between Charlotte’s and my room. I stopped right before entering and couldn’t help but chuckle. There had been a handful of times growing up that I had barged into the bathroom while Charlotte was in there. Thankfully, I hadn’t seen anything but I learned after a couple of times to knock first before entering. I knocked lightly on the door and listened for any signs that Charlotte was in there. I didn’t hear anything and was relieved when I opened the door and no one was there.

As I stepped into the hot water, I thought back to the previous morning when I had run into Steph making tea in my kitchen. I wondered if she would be downstairs when I ventured down there. I was hoping she was, and that she was alone so I could talk to her.  After I had talked about Christine and me, she had acted differently, which I was sure had to do with her opinion of me changing. I didn’t think that my talking with her would change her mind, but I hoped that she would at least give me the opportunity to tell her the whole story. Not that it excused my stupidity, but to help shed light on my mind set at that point.

I finished getting ready and headed downstairs. I was disappointed to hear more than one voice as I rounded the corner to enter the kitchen. 

“Ah! There’s my early riser! The only one of my children who gets up at a decent time.” Mom joked. I should have figured that she’d at least be up since she had always woken up even before the sun came up.

“That was always fun when we were in school.” I looked at Steph. “I was the one that was sent upstairs to wake everyone else up. I had several pillows, alarm clocks, anything that any of them could reach, thrown at me for being the ‘wake up brigade’”

Steph chuckled and I was relieved that she seemed to be more relaxed this morning.

“Merry Christmas.” Mom said and gave me a hug.

“Merry Christmas, Mom.” I hugged her back.

As we pulled away she was already starting about her presents. Something that Dad had always given her a hard time about; her inability to handle having something be a secret, even if it was good. “So. . .what did you get me?”

I laughed. “Wow, Mom. You know, Dad would give you one of his lectures right now. . .”

She smiled and nodded. “Yeah, he would.”

“Wasn’t Will and Emily coming here enough?” I joked with her.

“Of course it is, it’s more than enough.” She admitted as I walked over to make myself some tea.

Her thoughts about presents were interrupted. “Did you know that Steph likes tea, too?”

I had to stop myself from chuckling as I remembered walking into the kitchen the morning before, startling Steph and watching her almost spill the creamer.

“Yes, it’s something I learned yesterday morning.” I said as I looked over at Steph. I noticed that she blushed slightly when we made eye contact and then she quickly looked away.

Mom smiled and I instantly recognized it as her meddlesome smile and at that moment I was very glad that Steph didn’t know Mom very well. It was so obvious what she was up to.

“I just think it’s interesting. I mean, not very many people drink tea in the morning. . .”

“That’s true.” I said as I turned my back to Steph so only Mom could see me. I gave her a warning look and she nodded.

“Well, I guess I’ll go get ready. I hope the others wake up soon. We have a busy day ahead.” She walked back up the stairs and I waited till I heard her door open and close before I started talking to Steph.

“How long had the two of you been down here?” I wondered as I sat down next to her.

“I heard her messing around in the kitchen around 5:30. I finally gave in around 6:30.”

“Yeah, it probably wasn’t the smartest design to put the guest room next to the kitchen. Sorry about that. She has always woken up early; she and Dad both.” I took a sip of tea and then continued. 


“So what have you two been up to for the last hour?”

She got a mischievous grin on her face. “She pulled out picture albums and told me several interesting stories. . .”

I about spit the tea out that I had just drank. “Oh. . .Do I want to know?” I winced.

She laughed. “Well, let’s just say that I’m actually very thankful right now that I don’t have any old pictures for family members to show others. Especially ones where I’m taking a bath. . .”

I hung my head down and shook my head. Why did parents feel the need to take pictures of their children taking baths and then years later show them to nonfamily members.  I chuckled. “I’m going to take a guess and say that I was in one of those. . .?”

“That college education is really paying off for you.”

I was once again relieved that she seemed to be more relaxed today and even joking around. It had been obvious that something wasn’t quite right yesterday afternoon and as much as I was enjoying our banter, I knew I needed to talk to her about yesterday.

“About what happened yesterday. . .”

“You don’t have to explain. It’s really something that should have been discussed with family and I feel horrible that I was there.” She interrupted me.

“I wanted. . .wait. . .so you felt uncomfortable, like you were intruding?” She nodded and I started thinking back to how she had been acting yesterday. Had I misread her quietness, or was it a combination of feeling out of place and that her opinion of me had changed. Once again I was finding that what I thought about her was not really the case. 

I was about to ask her about it when I heard Trev’s boisterous  voice. “Merry Christmas, you two! Whose ready for some presents?” I shook my head at Trev’s crappy timing but also couldn’t help but be amused at his enthusiasm. 

“What are you doing up?” I asked him.

“There’s presents that need to be opened. . .why wouldn’t I be up?!”

I looked at Steph. “Mark it on the calendar. This is the only day of the year that you’ll see Trev up early.” I joked.

“That’s not true, I get up plenty of times during football season.” 

“Oh, my bad.” I said sarcastically and Steph laughed.

“What’s so funny?” Charlotte asked as she came into the kitchen. It looked like that if I wanted to have a conversation only with Steph it was going to have to wait.

“George was giving Trev a hard time for waking up early.” Steph filled Charlotte in.

“We all know it’s for the presents. . .” Will added as he and Emily also made their way down the stairs.

The kitchen became a mad house and we were all scrambling around trying to get breakfast when we all stopped at the sound of hearing laughter. We looked over at Emily and Steph and they seemed to be laughing at us.

“What’s so funny?” Will asked.

“It’s just that it’s like a crazy zoo in there with the four of you scrambling around. It’s kind of funny to watch.” Emily said and Steph nodded in agreement.

“I personally think it’s a wonderful sight.” Mom said as she came back into the room. “It’s been a long time since the four of you have been in the kitchen together; scrounging for food.”

“When are we opening presents?” Trev asked with a mouthful of cereal.

“Trev, really? No one wants to see your food.” Charlotte complained. Trev got closer to her and started making smacking noises as he ate. “STOP!” Charlotte complained.

I had moved out of the kitchen and near Steph and Emily. Steph turned around. “Was this what it was like growing up with the four of you?”

“Pretty much.” I confessed. “Lots of complaining, poking fun, annoying each other, getting on each other’s nerves. . .”

“Surely you didn’t give people a hard time.” She half joked and everyone in the kitchen stopped.

Trev started laughing. “You’ve got to be kidding! George is the most sarcastic out of all of us and can definitely be a pain in the ass.” He looked over at Mom after he said ‘ass’ and she threw up her hands.

“I figure they know how we are by this point so there’s no reason to keep up a good appearance.” She laughed.

“Wait. . .” Steph turned back around and looked at me. “You’re the most sarcastic?! Is that some kind of BS?” She turned back around towards Trev.

“No, and don’t forget the pain in the ass part too.” Trev smiled at her.

“Oh, I believe that part.” She joked.

“What the hell is this? Pick on George day?” I jokingly complained.

“Really, why don’t we stop picking on George, even if it is true, so we can get to opening presents.” Will suggested.

“Umm. . .thanks bro.” I said.

Everyone started laughing and finished their breakfast. Once everything was cleaned up, we gathered in the family room and Mom asked us guys to pass out the presents from under the tree. We started putting the presents in piles and noticed one under the tree for Steph. As I walked over to where she was sitting she looked at me surprised.

“What’s this?”

“Surely you didn’t think you’d come here and not get something. That’s not the way our family works. I wouldn’t be surprised if you have another gift at the ranch.” I confessed as I placed the bag down in front of her.  I turned back around to see that all of the presents had been given out and looked around to try to find my pile of gifts. I noticed Trev point and smirk as I realized that my pile had been placed so I would be sitting next to Steph.  I sat down next to her and waited for Mom. We had all agreed the night before to have her open up her gifts from all of us first.

“What are you all waiting for?” She asked.

“We want you to open up your presents first.” Will admitted.

“Wha. . .Why?”

“Just do it.” Charlotte said while grinning like a cheshire cat.

We all watched as Mom unwrapped the smaller of the two boxes and watched as she pulled out a bracelet that we had all pitched in to get her. She turned it around in her hand as she examined it.


“This is beautiful! Thank you so much!” She said and looked at each of us.  She put the bracelet on and then picked up the big gift. I wasn’t sure how she was going to respond. It was something that I had found one time when I was snooping in the house and I had asked the others if they thought it was a good idea. They had agreed but I was still a little worried.