Chapter 12
(Robbie)
“Do you have any plans for Christmas?” I asked over the sound of the surf lapping against the sand, rhythmic and gentle.
I knew it was late to be asking, but I hadn’t celebrated Christmas in so long that I’d let days slip past before it dawned on me that tomorrow was Christmas Eve.
I didn’t even have a gift for Nova yet, though I had a few good ideas in mind that I intended to pick up in the morning.
Yeah, I knew the risks of last-minute shopping, but I’d brave the insanity anyway, just to see a smile on his face on Christmas Day, provided I got to spend it with him.
“Would you consider movies and room service a plan?” he asked as I played with his hair.
Stretched out on a blanket, his head on my lap, we were the picture of tranquil ease as we lay sprawled together on the stretch of beach behind the house.
“Definitely.”
“Then yup, I have a plan; there’s just one problem with it that maybe you can help me solve.”
“And what would that be?” I asked.
“It wouldn’t be very fun if I had to spend the day alone,” he explained. “So, I was wondering if you’d like to spend the day in bed with me, err, watching movies and pigging out.”
I chuckled at that and brushed a lock of hair back from his forehead.
“I can think of no better way to spend Christmas Day than in bed with you,” I replied. “I’ll bring the refreshments so we can keep the refrigerator stocked with drinks and between-meal snacks. What time were you thinking of starting the movie marathon?”
“Tomorrow night.”
“I see. Were you thinking about a sleepover or texting me when you got up in the morning?”
“I wouldn’t be opposed to you sleeping over,” he said. “We don’t even have to wait until nighttime to start watching movies, but I do have a few things I’d like to run out and pick up in the morning,” he admitted.
“Same,” I replied.
“Could we, um, meet up at three at the hotel?” he asked. “That would give me plenty of time to take care of everything and get the room set up the way I want it.”
“Sounds good to me,” I replied. “Want me to grab a few slices of that fluffy rainbow-colored cake you’ve grown so fond of?”
“Yes please, and a couple slices of red velvet too,” he said. “The hotel’s version is good, but the local bakery’s is a thousand times better.”
“There hasn’t been a single thing I’ve tried from that bakery that hasn’t been positively amazing,” I admitted. “I can’t wait to introduce you to more delectable treats.”
“And I can’t wait for you to feed them to me,” he said.
“So, what movies did you have in mind?” I asked. “Do you have a particular lineup planned, or are we just going to see where the stations take us?”
“Totally random and based entirely on what’s playing on the networks,” he explained.
“I don’t think I can name a single Christmas movie that I don’t like, and I love seeing the new ones they introduce each year, from Hallmark movies to Die Hard and Lethal Weapon.
Bring on all the holiday madness, joy, and explosions. ”
Chuckling, I toyed with his hair, eyes on the horizon as we enjoyed yet another sunset.
He reached for the container of steak tips on the edge of the blanket and held one to my lips, sticky teriyaki juice coating his fingers, which I happily licked off.
I nibbled on the ends of his fingers even after the juice was gone, just to make him giggle.
“Add yet another thing to the growing list of things we have in common,” I said. “I’m a sucker for holiday movies, especially the comedies where everything is going wrong and the protagonists have to work through a mess of shit just to finally make it home for the holidays.”
“Or score the holiday toy they were hunting.”
“Or win their families back after they drove them off with insane amounts of Christmas lights and feuds with the neighbors.”
“I love Deck the Halls,” he said. “And Christmas Vacation. His battle with those lights was legendary. Last year they came out with a new movie about a guy who wanted to keep his Christmas lights up all year. It was called Bad Tidings, and it was hilarious. I hope they play it this year.”
“I’ve never even heard of that one,” I replied. “Now you’ve got me sharing the same hope, just so I can check it out.”
“Every year I try to watch a mix of new ones and classics,” he explained. “When I was a kid, one of my favorite things to do was try and watch as many versions of A Christmas Carol as possible, mostly because that was the movie they made the most versions of.”
“So, who was your favorite Scrooge?” I asked.
“Uncle Scrooge McDuck,” he replied. “I loved Mickey’s Christmas Carol; that was my be-all and end-all favorite, but The Muppet Christmas Carol and the animated version of A Christmas Carol with Jim Carrey as the voice of Scrooge were always tied for second.
The old black and white versions were fun too, though.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved watching them, but there was something about the animated versions that lightened up the gloomy parts. ”
“I can see that,” I replied. “For me it was always the original animated version of The Grinch, right up until they did the live-action version. I watch that one four or five times a year. Now that they’ve come out with a new animated version that kind of expands on the story and tells it in a bit of a different way, I’ve added it to my rewatch list too. ”
“Oh my god, I love the way they gave the Grinch a backstory without ever making it feel forced. Like, there had to be a reason for him to be all grumpy and hating on the Whos and how happy they were. It felt right to me to have them make the Grinch a sympathetic character, because otherwise, he’d just be standing up there hating the Whos for being happy because he hates anything joyful, and that just doesn’t sit right with me. ”
“No, that’s a hard one to swallow,” I said.
“I mean, I’ll be the first to say that pragmatically perky people can be hard as hell to be around, but mostly because it comes across as forced, at least to me.
Like you’ve got to go out of your way to constantly run around with a smile on your face, even when the sky is shitting on you.
But I still don’t hate those people. I just wish they’d be honest, flip off the universe, snarl up at the sky, and admit that sometimes shit just sucks and smiling about it changes nothing. ”
“See, now I could see where that might piss off the Grinch,” he replied. “Like, if the Whos are always smiling when everything was going wrong, while making the Grinch feel like there was something wrong with him for being upset about things.”
“True, especially if they’d made him feel isolated due to his feelings,” I said.
“I took a college class for an English elective that was all about the social commentary in Dr. Seuss books. The north-and south-going Zax were a great example of how stubbornness for stubbornness's sake never got anyone anywhere.”
“Literally,” I replied. “A whole city was built around them while they stood there like statues, staring at one another, neither wanting to be the one to budge from their position.”
“Because it would have been seen as losing.”
“Yeah.”
“A friend once told me that until we could learn how to accept our losses, all we’d ever be hit with were losses,” he said.
“It’s a bitter pill to swallow sometimes, but she did have a point.
Guess she might have been on to something when she’d added a bit about holding on to things long after they were good for us.
I suppose grudges could fit in that too.
Wow, I didn’t think about that in reference to the Grinch.
He was holding a grudge against his classmates for laughing at him, at least in the live-action version. ”
“And in the new animation, he was sad and lonely because no one had ever come and spent time with him on Christmas,” I reminded him.
“Both movies are a reminder to treat others with kindness,” he said.
“Not just on the holidays, but year-round. They show what happens when you exclude people and make them feel like no one cares. Like, it feels like that’s what the whole stealing Christmas part is all about, that the Grinch felt like the Whos only cared about presents, not people.
Look at the way folks get so twisted up in knots and crazy this time of year, trying to afford a bunch of stuff when they’ve got bills to pay, working a ton of overtime when they could have been doing fun stuff with family.
I love the Christmas at the Kranks movie because they tried to get away from all that spending and just go away and do something nice for themselves.
It sucks that people gave them such a hard time for it.
Like, who were all those neighbors to try and interfere with the way the Kranks spent the holidays?
It was weird, but it was also an example of entitlement and expectations.
No one owns their time, their Frosty, or even their donations. ”
Watching him get all feisty and riled up got my blood pumping.
“If this is what it’s going to be like, dissecting movies with you, I am going to love our debates and discussions.
For the record, I happen to agree with you about the Kranks.
People should be able to do things for themselves without being made to feel like they’re doing something wrong. ”
He beamed up at me, and I know he was thinking about the early days of his vacation and all those texts he’d received from his job.
“Sometimes movies get me all worked up,” he admitted.
“I don’t mean to get bent out of shape over something that’s supposed to be fun and entertaining, but oh my god, there are times when I just want to scream, shake the television, and holler about there being space for two people on the paneling. Jack didn’t have to die.”
“Ohh, man, thank you! I’m tired of people trying to argue that the panel would have flipped or sunk. They’ve even done tests to prove it wouldn’t have.” I said as the sun reached its full majesty of colors now, painting the horizon in shades of red and orange.
The bottoms of the clouds, what few there were, glowed a deep pink with yellow hues streaked through the orange and rose. The colors were just stunningly beautiful as it stretched out across the sky.
“Do you watch those movie sciences explained podcasts?” he asked.
“I do indeed,” I replied. “Ever since I came across my first one a few years back. I love the way they break down and analyze things that we were already wondering about.”
“I’ve only seen a handful, but I’d love to check out a few with you sometime,” he said.
“Bet.”
He giggled and lightly rubbed his fingers over my leg, head still pillowed in my lap as he lounged on me.
“Whenever I run into one of those slideshows about movie plot holes that were too big for audiences to ignore, I totally fall down a rabbit hole of scrolling and seeing where the next one they suggest takes me.”
“Yeah, see, I’m guilty of that too, especially in the evening, when I’ve got my ass parked in a lawn chair while I’m waiting for dinner to cook,” I said.
“A few make zero sense, like, why train roughnecks to go into space to drill into an asteroid? Why not just teach the astronauts how to use the drilling equipment?”
“That’s a lot of specialized skills in one movie,” he replied. “I don’t know anything about the rigors of going into space or what it takes to handle an oil drill, so I was okay with them sending a mixed team of astronauts and drillers.”
Chuckling I stroked his hair. “I’m really going to enjoy watching movies with you.”
“Same.”
“You’ve got me looking forward to tomorrow,” I said. “Snuggled up in bed with you, nibbling delicious food, occasionally shooting questioning looks at one another over something unfolding on the screen. I expect it will be both fun, relaxing, and enlightening.”
“Especially once you feel how soft the bed is,” he said. “Seriously one of the softest mattresses I’ve ever laid on and plenty of room too; I always get a king when there is one available.”
“Let me guess, it’s because you like to sleep sideways.”
“There could be some truth to that. I’m a sprawler too.”
Chuckling, I just mussed up his hair and tickled him a little. “Of course you are.”
He rolled until he could shove his fingers up my tank top, finding all my ticklish spots too, until we were wiggling around, half on and half off the blankets, staring into each other’s eyes, with the darkening sky above us.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better Christmas than what we’ve got planned,” he murmured. “I picked the best beach in the world when I decided to go build a sandcastle on yours.”
“You really did, and not just because the surf out there is awesome. It’s got one spectacular view, too.”
“I’ll say. The rolling waves were beautiful; I loved how blue the water was and the way the sand squished between my toes. The sky was a perfect backdrop too, it was the picture-perfect beach scene, complete with the hot surfer showing off for me.”
“Oh, you caught that, did you?”
“You were pouting after you wiped out,” he said.
“That’s what gave it away. I was glad you decided to get out right in front of me, instead of further up the beach.
I don’t know if I would have had the courage to call out to you if you’d emerged closer to your truck.
I think I’d have just sat there, finished eating, and gone for a walk, instead of sticking around and building a sandcastle. ”
“What made you stay?”
He chuckled, then reached up so he could trace his finger over my cheek.
“You. I-I sort of hoped that maybe you’d stop at some place nearby, somewhere close enough that you’d decide to grab some food and bring it down to the beach with you so we could eat together. I even ate super slow, just in case.”
“Damn, I never even considered that,” I said. “We could have had a whole extra evening together.”
“Maybe the universe will decide to help us out with that and give us all the extra evenings we could ever wish for.”
“I could work with that.”
“Me too,” he said. “Speaking of wishes, I haven’t spotted the first star yet, but as soon as I do, I’m sending up an extra special wish.”
“Are you allowed to tell me what it is, or will I have to wait around to see if it comes true before you’ll be willing to share?”
“I’ll share,” he replied. “I’m going to wish for yearly naked Christmas movie marathons and Smorgasburg’s with you.”
Tugging him into a kiss, I tried to convey just how much his wish, and the sentiment behind it, meant to me. That he was going to wish for a future for us meant the world to me. I couldn’t wait for tomorrow to kickstart what I hoped would become an annual tradition for us.