West Coast Winter

Like A Tree

Charlie and Henry went home for a while to eat lunch. I went inside and made Nina a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. A few hours later, my mom was just out of the shower and dressed for the trip to the tree lot. I was dreading telling her that I invited our neighbors to join us. She already thinks I want to make a play for Charlie. She's not entirely wrong. I'm trying to not be so obvious about it, but he makes it so damn hard with that goofy boyish smile and eyes that smolder you to death. If I could live anywhere in the world, it would be in Charlie's dimple. Goodness, I'm getting carried away. I open my mouth to tell mom about tonight and Nina leaps from the table and says, "Nana! Henry and his dad are coming with us to pick out a tree! Isn't that amazing?!"
My mother looks at me and says, "Why did you do that? I've never even met this man and he's going to be riding in my truck? That old thing is a disaster. Why didn't you just go with him? I knew it. I knew you were going to jump right into something that you're not prepared for."
"Whoa! Ok, hold up. Wait a minute. I'm not "jumping" into anything. He's a nice man with a cute kid that is friends with Nina. He had been talking about getting a tree. Nina invited them and put me on the spot. What was I supposed to do?", I ask while flinging my arms and hands around ferociously.
"You could have made up some excuse. You could have said, 'Maybe next time', but no, you want so badly to spend time with this man that you'll do anything. I know you, Jack. You remember what happened with the last one. I don't want to see you put through that again", mom says with that knowing look in her eye. It's the look that makes it impossible for me to lie to her.
I feel a cry coming on, but I steel myself and say, "This is not that. You're getting way ahead yourself. Charlie wouldn't be interested in someone like me anyway. He was just being nice."
"I don't care about how he feels or if he likes you. You like him. You have stars in your eyes. You seem like you're somewhere else the last few days. That's not good for you or Nina", my mom says carrying on.
"Ok. Fine. I'll go over and say we canceled our plans for tonight", I say exasperated to my mother.
"Noooo!", Nina jumps in. "I like Henry and Charlie, Nana! I want them to go with us to get a tree!"
My mom just can't say no to Nina's angel face. She has these big pleading eyes and she puts her little hands together up to her chin like a kitten.
I look between both of them and my mom finally concedes, "Ok, just this once. Nina, no more inviting people to go on family outings with us. You ask me or your mom first and not in front of the company you're inviting."
Inside, I'm wearing a big stupid grin on my face. Outside, I'm calm and nonchalant.
"Ok. Let's get you dressed for tree hunting", I say as take Nina's hand and walk down the hall to get her bundled up. My mom shoots me an eye roll and a head shake combo.
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Mom
While Jackie is dressing Nina, I'm sitting on the couch watching my cooking shows. The Kitchen is my favorite. It was about five o'clock when the door bell rang. "Jaaaack! You wanna get that?", I called down the hall.
She responded with, "I doing Nina's hair. Could you get the door, mom?"
"I guess", I say as I get up from my comfy spot on the couch.
I hate answering the door. I don't do well with meeting new people and chit chat, unless I'm working. I'm good at service. I guess I'll just apply the same principle here. I open the door and I'm completely taken aback by how tall this man is. The man is built like a tree. My son is six feet tall, but those extra inches makes a big difference. He has this disarming smile that makes him way more attractive than when he isn't smiling. He has quite a big nose that I've never found attractive on anyone, but he has kind eyes. It's starting to come together why Jackie is so attracted to him. The little boy next to him has much lighter hair and his resemblance to his father lies in his eyes and nose. The boy also has a sweet smile.
"Hello. I'm Charlie and this is my son Henry. Henry, say hello", Charlie instructs Henry to be polite with a pat on his shoulder.
"Hello", Henry says simply.
"Hi. I'm Tina. I'm Jackie's mom. Come in. She's just finishing Nina's hair. Uh, please excuse the house. It's old. I need a lot of repairs done", I say as I walk back to my comfy spot on the couch.
"Oh no, your house is great. I love this great room you have. The ceilings are tall. Not like our place. It's old too, but it's built like a Cracker Jack box. The ceilings are really low and I'm always bumping my head", Charlie says with a nervous laugh and he and Henry take a seat on the love seat against the window.
I try to keep the chit chat going. I hate awkward silences. "Oh no, that's terrible. Are you looking for a new place? Some place with taller ceilings?", I ask hoping he'll answer 'yes, I'm in Escrow.'
"Well, it's mostly just the front door entryway. There's a step up into the house and sometimes   I forget to duck all the way. I really like where we're at. It's a mid century modern house and I've always loved that style. When I get time, I'll probably do some renovations on it", he informs while talking animatedly with his hands like my daughter does.
"So... what do you do for work, Charlie?", I ask as I take a sip of my Diet Pepsi.
"I'm a theater director. I actually have a play set to debut the week before Christmas. I have a residency at UCLA. You should come see it. I'd happily get tickets for you and Jaclyn", Charlie offers.
"That would be nice. Thank you", I answer politely. I've never been to a play aside from my kids' school plays. If I don't have to pay, why not?
"So, Henry... what do you want for Christmas?", I ask trying to keep the silence to a minimum. I'm better with kids.
"Rollerblades, video games, and LEGOs. My dad is a master LEGO builder. We have a collection of builds at mom's house, but I want to build a small city and theme park at my dad's house", Henry informs me while his dad stares lovingly at him with a small smile on his face.
"Henry! You're here! Now we can go", Nina says as she grabs her little silver backpack purse and slings it on to her shoulders.
"Hi", Jack says with a blush creeping up into her cheeks as she smiles at Charlie.
"Hi", Charlie says in turn with that stupidly cute smile of his along with that dimple that could rival the two that I have.
Here we go. Jackie is lying through her teeth about this being innocent.
"Well, lead the way Nina", I say as I follow behind everyone including Charlie. When we get to the door, he stops and holds the door for all of us even though it doesn't move. I don't need to lock up because Bob is here. He's in his room watching tv and I'm surprised he didn't come out when our guest was here. Thank goodness for that because he would have embarrassed the shit out of me.
Jackie had grabbed Nina's extra car seat earlier and set them up side by side. The kids climbed into the truck. Charlie held the passenger side door open for Jackie as I climbed into the driver seat.
Jackie says to Charlie, "Actually Charlie, maybe you should sit up front with mom. There's a lot more leg room. I wouldn't want you to be uncomfortable."
Charlie asks, "Are you sure? I have no problem bending my knees a little."
"I'm sure. You're our guest. I'm short. I'll fit just fine back here", Jackie answers him. She is being overly accommodating as always.
Once everyone is buckled up, I back out of the driveway. I drive down to Sepulveda Blvd. and pull into Shawn's Christmas Trees Lot.
*******************************************
Jaclyn
Chit chat was minimal on the way over to to the lot. Charlie asked mom what she does for a living. She told him how we both work in pediatrics. She kept calling me Jackie as she always does. Charlie noticed.
"So, you call her Jackie I noticed", Charlie observed to my mom as we pulled into the parking area.
"Yeah. I also call her Jack, J, and Mouth", mom so generously informs Charlie.
"Mom!", I exclaim in embarrassment.
Charlie laughs as he asks, "Mouth?"
"Yeah because she never shuts up and she eats a lot", mom says as she searches for the nearest parking space to the entrance. I wish I could disappear at this point as Charlie turns back to look at me while trying to hold in a laugh.
"Hey, don't worry about it", Charlie says laughing in spite of himself. "I think it's cute."
The kids are laughing too. I suddenly feel like I'm in grade school again.
Charlie turns back to mom and asks, "So you never call her Jaclyn?"
"No one calls her Jaclyn. Yes I named her that, but she's always been Jackie. She just introduced herself to you as Jaclyn because she thinks it's more sophisticated and sexy. She's got a crush on you obviously", mom say matter-of-factly and I wish I could teleport myself to my bedroom.
"Do you like my dad?", Henry asks leaning over in his seat.
Nina joins in, "Yeah, mom. Are you gonna marry Charlie?"
I'm being attacked from all angles. I sink as far into the corner of the cab as possible and lean my head against the window. This was a bad idea.
Charlie thankfully changes the subject and announces, "Hey kids, we're here. Aren't you guys excited to pick out your own trees?"
I unbuckle my seatbelt and as I go to open my door, Charlie is one step ahead of me. He opens my door and his hand is extended toward me. I take his hand and hop down from the truck.
I look up at him and say, "Th- thank you."
I quickly turn to help Nina out. Henry had already leapt from the truck with no problem. He's a little older and slightly more athletic than Nina.
The kids run ahead and have started a game of tag up and down the aisles. They are not really concerned with looking for a tree. They are just happy to have a new playground to explore.
Mom is steadily looking for a Douglas Fir. I'm trying to concentrate on choosing a tree, listening and watching out for the kids, and Charlie's fresh laundry scent is making it incredibly difficult. I try not to look at him too much because I'll get caught up in him. We walk side by side and I try to remain attentive to my mom and the kids. How do people with kids date? It seems fucking impossible to me. There's so much to juggle. This isn't a date, but it's really hard to get to know this man. I just want to get lost in a conversation with him.
"So... you have a crush on me", Charlie says bumping my arm with his and giving a sly smirk.
"Mom is being presumptuous. She is trying to push you away from wanting to be friends with me. I've been through a lot and she doesn't want to see me hurt again. She's being completely obnoxious about it though", I say trying to be honest and still run from the obvious truth.
"So... you don't have a crush on me?", Charlie asks and his charm is unbearable.
"I like you a lot. I'll just leave it at that. And the word crush just kind of sounds weird to me. We're in our thirties. We're not thirteen", I say laughing and trying to lighten this topic some more.
"Right? I feel like I'm on a chaperoned date with you right now. It's kind of cool though. The ice was broken for us. Nina proposed to you for me and everything", he finishes with a hearty laugh and his smile reaches his eyes. A loose strand of hair falls forward and he rakes his hand through his thick dark hair before shoving his hands back into his pockets.
"Oh God! I'm so sorry. She's... very outspoken and curious", I say with a laugh.
"No. No. That's a good way to be. Don't be sorry about that. You're raising her well. She's very kind, smart, and polite. She's a real sweetheart", Charlie says and to hear that coming from him somehow means a whole lot.
"Thanks! You're also doing a great job with Henry. He's engaging and so sweet to Nina. He's very considerate. Does he have a lot of extended family?", I ask Charlie.
"Yeah, on Nicole's side. He has a lot of cousins. He spends a lot of time with them when he's with his mom. She's a lot more busy now that she's a director. I don't have much family. The family I do have, I don't speak to very often. It's nice that Henry has made so many new friends here", Charlie says with a somewhat wistful look in his eyes.
"Oh, that right. You guys are originally from New York. Do you miss it?", I somewhat knowingly ask.
"More. Than. You could possibly imagine. Especially this time of year. It's not even cold here really. I mean, don't get me wrong, there's plenty to do and see out here in California I suppose, but New York just has an old soul. It feels old and new at the same time. It's hard to describe the feeling", Charlie finishes with a sigh of longing.
"I know the feeling. I've been to New York... once. I miss it too. I never felt more at home anywhere. I was only there for three days, but it was amazing. I did all the touristy stuff in Manhattan and I always wanted to go back and just live like a local for a few days", I say reminiscing.
"When were you there? Maybe I can try to remember what I was doing on those days", Charlie says with a squint and a smile as if he's trying to look into the past.
"May eighteenth through the twenty first of 2017", I answer him.
"Hmmmm", Charlie ponders with his fingers up to his lips. "I'm really bad at this, but of course I would have been showing a play. I can't for the life of me remember which one right now. I guess it doesn't matter", he says with a chuckle.
"I could have walked right past you on the street", I muse with a smile looking up at him.
"Yeah and things were so hectic at that time. I probably would have been oblivious to everything. I tend to get lost in my own little worlds", Charlie says while looking down at me and I never even noticed that we had stopped walking.
"I do that too. I'm also a writer. Well, I write novels online in my free time", I say with a blush rising to my cheeks.
"Hey! What do you think of this one?", Mom asks holding a tree up. Charlie runs over and holds it upright for her so she can take a good look. He spins it around.
"I think it's gorgeous. It's got wet waxy needles. Love it. What do you think, Nina?", I ask looking down at her beaming face. Her cheeks are rosy and her eyes are wide sparkling emeralds. She looks like a Christmas elf.
"It so beautiful, Mama!", she exclaims while clapping her hands and jumping up and down.
Charlie picks out a tree like ours and while the stands are being put on, we grab coffee and cocoa from the Christmas shop before we pay for the trees. The lot workers load the trees into the truck and we head back home.