the twenty-first century ellinghams

chapter seven: love actually

     the fun had to come to an end eventually. there was dinner, and packing, and baths. all clean, frosting remnants scrubbed away, david and stevie tucked them into bed. first henry, and then dana. kids successfully asleep, they began packing the car. they had to take many trips to get all of the packages and boxes into the garage, as quickly and quietly as possible. once in the garage, they were able to breathe a little easier, placing them carefully into the trunk with the suitcases.
     "i think i've got it from here," stevie says, once there were just a few packages left to sort out.
     "you sure?" david asks. she nods, and he walks back into the house. she adjusts the presents and suitcases until they all fit. as she closes the trunk, david appears in the doorway, two mugs in hand. she takes one from him.
     "hot chocolate?" she asks, intrigued by the somewhat odd choice. he shrugs.
     "i queued up a movie for us to watch. you up for it?" he asks.
     "that sounds really nice, actually. which movie?" she takes a sip of her hot chocolate.
     "love actually," he replies with a grin. she almost chokes on her hot chocolate, coughing slightly.
     "but you hate love actually!" she says, once she had finished coughing.
     "hate... is a strong word."
     "when we watched it with janelle and vi, you said it was the worst holiday movie you'd ever seen, and it was two and half hours of your life you'd never get back. janelle can vouch for me. you hate love actually."
     "okay, maybe i hate love actually," he admits. "but you don't."
     "well yeah. i love love actually."
     "so let's go watch love actually." he gestures behind him with a thumb, towards the couch. he's clearly trying to act like it was no big deal, but he really had hated that movie. she smiles wide. she walks inside the house, and he drops an arm over her shoulder as they walk in.
     "you want to watch love actually," she says, grinning and shaking her head.
     "it's been awhile since i've seen it. maybe it's grown on me." they place their mugs down on the  coffee table and sit on the couch. she rests against him, and he pulls a blanket over them. she sits up a bit to peck him on the cheek as he presses play on the movie.
     "thank you for watching this with me. it means a lot to me," she says. he turns to her and smiles.
     "don't mention it," he says, putting his arm over her and pulling her closer. the movie begins.
     "whenever i get gloomy with the state of the world, i think about the arrivals gate at heathrow airport..."

     the car ride went surprisingly well considering the fact that they were driving with two children under the age of ten. stevie drove most of the way as david did some work on his laptop. the holiday party had been a huge success, and the gratitude emails from donors were flooding in. it was clear he was trying to get as much work in as possible before being at his mom's. the kids watched various holiday specials off of the screens on the back of the front headrests. it was much more screen time than most doctors would recommend, but it was necessary. no one was exactly pleased this was how they were spending part their christmas eve, but it would be worth it in the end. stevie and david talked about various things in the front seats. david read her excerpts from some of the emails, about how everyone loved her speech. stevie explained that jack, allison's boyfriend of three years, was not holding her back and ruining her life.
     "she's a law student at penn state. he's a bartender," david says, saying the word "bartender" like you would say "professional magician" or "rodeo clown".
     "you're leaving out the fact that he's currently studying for an engineering degree, also at penn state. you're also leaving out his internship at space x. and he's so sweet, and he's so great for allison..." 
     "he's taken, babe."
     "very funny," she says, side eyeing him. "i'm just saying he seems good for her." david scoffs just a little bit, but drops it. stevie knows he'll never approve of anyone who wants to be with allison. anyone that could possibly be like eddie, anyone that could possibly turn allison into becky, was immediately disregarded. though, stevie did not see any clear parallels between jack and eddie; it seemed quite irrational. at around four, they pull into the driveway of becky's house. it was a beautiful two-story brick, almost colonial, style home. allison comes out of the house, and the kids immediately lose their minds at the sight of her. they worshiped the ground allison walked on. she was their super aunt, clad in athletic leggings, penn state hoodie, and messy bun. once car seats were unbuckled, they run up to allison, henry still more waddling than running.
     "munchkins!" she says, crouching down and ensnaring them in a big hug. becky and jack come outside as well. at the sight of grandma, the kids leave allison and run to becky instead. "you little traitors," allison says with a laugh. but in her defense, becky is holding a plate of cookies. allison gets up from her crouch, dusting off her leggings. she hugs stevie.
     "when'd you get in?" stevie asks.
     "yesterday," allison replies. "jack came this morning, though."
     "he isn't sleeping here, is he?" david asks. "because you are way too young to have a-" but he's interrupted by allison hugging him.
     "good to see you too, big bro," she says, squeezing him. "also, i'm twenty-three. i think i can handle myself." david rolls his eyes at this, but says nothing. jack walks over to them, gives stevie a quick, only slightly awkward hug. he and david do that weird guy handshake, to hug, to pat on back thing.
     "can we help you with your bags?" allison asks.
     "that would be great, actually. but, just the bags, not the gifts. those need to be taken care of when certain someones," stevie nods her head towards dana and henry, who were on the porch, nibbling on cookies, "are fast asleep. visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads." allison nods.
     "well let's get started then," she says, popping open the trunk. she gasps dramatically. "this one has my name on it," she says in a sing-song voice.
     "just the suitcases, allison," david reminds, pulling a suitcase out.
     "ugh, i never liked you anyways," she replies, flicking him on the arm, and sticking her tongue out at him. he does it right back.
     "yeah, real mature, guys. way to set an example for the kids," stevie says.
     "sorry," allison and david mutter.