Chapter 45 #2
“There’s so many cupcakes, my friend,” Jerry said. “I’m sure your momma would’ve gotten you another one.”
Ty wiped his face and cuddled into Jerry’s chest. “I sorry, Grampy.”
Jerry cradled the boy tightly in his arms, his heart soft and full of love for this child. He saw so much of Blaze in him, as Blaze had lived life on the edge from the day he’d been born. He’d had to learn to apologize early and often, and Ty sure seemed to be the same way.
“I know you are, bud.” Jerry pressed a kiss to his grandson’s head. “You tell your momma when she comes back, and then you’ll have to tell Avery too.”
“Is this where we’re hanging out if we’re overwhelmed?”
Jerry looked over to Mav, his beautiful middle son who’d done so much for the family. He smiled at Jerry, who returned it.
“You’re overwhelmed already?” he asked. “You never get overwhelmed.”
“I sorry, Unca Mav,” Ty said, and Mav reached for the little boy.
“Yeah? I’m sure you are.” Mav grinned at his nephew. “I have patience for everyone’s kids but my own.” He cut Jerry a look out of the corner of his eye. “And this is supposed to be a party for me.”
Mav too had been born in November, as had one of his children—his youngest Emilia, who’d be eleven years old this year.
November seemed to have a lot of celebrations, and Jerry was glad he and Cecily had come up with this quarterly party for the family. That allowed her to celebrate with everyone she wanted to, and still gave their son’s individual families time to celebrate how and when they wanted.
Lynnie’s daughter had been born last November, and Jerry sure wished they lived closer so he could see Nora more often. He didn’t drive anymore, and traveling had gone off the table a few years ago.
Matthew had been born just before Thanksgiving, and he’d be three this year. Bryce and Codi were exceptionally good, and they brought their children to see Cecily and Jerry all the time. And of course, Bryce’s half-sister, Pippa, would be ten years old in a couple of months.
Jerry grinned just thinking about the fiery little girl, and he wasn’t surprised at all that she pranced in front of him only a moment later. “Look at my crown, Gramps.”
“It’s beautiful,” he said, his smile only growing.
She came closer and reached out to touch Ty. “You okay, baby?”
Ty simply looked at her, and Jerry loved the way she looked after the cousins younger than her. “He’s all right,” he told Pip. “He just needed a snuggle.”
She looked at him with beautiful brown eyes. “I like snuggling.”
Jerry gestured for her to come closer. “Get in here, then. There’s nothing as good as a Pippa-hug.”
He loved his grandchildren for who they were, and while he knew he wouldn’t be able to be alive to watch them all grow up, God had been very good to him in allowing him to still be here.
“Oh, you got Gramps to hold you.”
Jerry looked up and over his shoulder to Blaze. “He’s ready to apologize.”
Blaze came around and looked at his son. “Are you?”
“Yes, Daddy.” Ty slipped right off Mav’s lap and ran at his father. “I sorry, Daddy. I so sorry.”
Blaze melted into a puddle of marshmallow, which was about how things went with his kids, as he scooped Ty into his arms. “All right. Let’s go find Momma.”
“Yeah, where is she?”
Jerry turned his attention to Cash, who’d just arrived with his new bride, Lark.
“She was getting a crown for Grace,” Blaze said, as his daughter had been born in December.
“Gramps!”
Jerry turned just as OJ came sliding in front of him, shoeless on the bowling alley. He grinned for all he was worth, and the boy also wore a crown. His birthday sat on Christmas Eve, with Bryce’s only a few days later.
“You’re not bowling on lane two,” OJ said matter-of-factly. “Momma sent me over here to help you get to lane seven.”
Jerry nudged Pippa off his lap and used the walker to balance himself as he stood. Blaze moved in closer, and Mav stood too, and Jerry loved his sons.
“Can you get me some bacon cheese fries?” he asked OJ as he started toward lane three—and ultimately seven—with the boy.
“I sure can,” OJ said, his confidence ever-so-high. “Carver and Keri already went over to the café, and they’re doing orders for people with crowns.” He reached up and adjusted his, as if it were his cowboy hat. “So I can get you some bacon cheese fries.”
“Who’s having bacon cheese fries?” Cecily demanded, and Jerry grinned at her.
“OJ,” he managed to say out of the corner of his mouth. “Secret.”
OJ looked between Cecily and Jerry, his eyes getting rounder and rounder with every passing moment. “Um.”
Cecily put her hands on her hips. “I’m sure your grandfather wasn’t trying to get you to get him some bacon cheese fries.” She gave Jerry a slight glare, her expression changing on a dime when she looked at OJ.
“Nope,” OJ said. “He asked, and I said yes. There was no trying, Grams. He did it.”
Jerry laughed right out loud, and he raised his eyebrows at his wife. “Where’s my crown?” he asked. “I should at least get to have one thing I like at this party.” He grinned at her. “It might be my last one.”
“Oh, you.” Cecily extended the paper crown toward him, and Jerry nodded to it as he looked at OJ.
The teen took it and made it into a circle for Jerry, who then put it around the crown of his cowboy hat.
“I’m all out of crowns,” Cecily said, turning to survey the group. “I hope I got everyone.”
“I’m sure you did, dear,” Jerry said, because Cecily didn’t miss details like that. “Who’s that with Boston and Cora?” He spotted them a few lanes down.
“That’s her sister and her husband and their kids,” Cecily said. “Her mother is coming too.”
“No crowns for them?” Jerry moved to his wife’s side, where he’d been for so long—and where he always wanted to be.
“Besides you, I gave my last one to Kassie for Savvy.”
“I’m sure you got them all, hon.” Jerry looked over to her, something soft and lovely moving between them.
He made it to lane seven, and he grinned as Joey and Adam moved out of the way to reveal a big, golden throne. Stickers of all kinds covered it, and OJ put his fingers between his lips and whistled.
“Young cousins!” he yelled. “It’s time! Get on over here!”
“Don’t move, Daddy,” Mav said.
Jerry did what he said, because his family had clearly prepared something for him, and he wasn’t about to ruin it.
Everyone swarmed toward the throne, gathering in groups around it. Jerry watched as littles got grabbed by the bigger cousins or their parents, and then, everyone had assembled, their eyes all shining and looking at him
“All right, now,” OJ said, moving to stand nearly in front of Jerry. “Gramps is gonna be eighty years old next week. Eighty, you guys!”
The smiles on the faces in front of him grew, and he chuckled as he lifted one arm and put it around OJ’s shoulders.
“I can’t even begin to imagine being that old, and—”
“OJ,” Otis coughed out the name, and the boy fell silent. He looked up at Jerry, who smiled benignly down at him.
“We’re gonna sing him happy birthday, and then, he gets to sit in the throne we decorated for him.
” OJ took a step forward, and Jerry dropped his hand back to the walker.
“Now, he’ll want to see all of us bowl, so you’ll come to lane seven—this one right here—when someone comes and gets you.
Gramps will have a treat for you when you do, and Grams wants a picture of everyone with the throne, Gramps, and all of it. Okay?”
“Okay,” a smattering of children echoed back to him.
“Okay,” Cecily called out to the group. “Let’s sing, and then we can do presents for Grandpa, and then the crowned people have gifts on the gift table too!” She looked at OJ, and both of them raised their hands.
“Happy birthday to you,” they sang slowly, conducting the huge, wonderful, extended Young family with their four arms.
Jerry stood there and basked in the goodness of a life well-lived. No, it hadn’t always been easy. Nine sons? There had been plenty of fighting, tons of heartache, a plethora of distress, where Jerry had no idea how to help his boys, support his wife, or call them all back to him.
As it turned out, that hadn’t been his job. God had done that for him, and as the song finished and cowboy yeehaws, cheers, whistles, and applause filled the bowling alley, Jerry could die right then and there and have the biggest heart full of love in the whole world.