Her EX, Her BF

Chapter 10

To Kristine's relief, the phone actually arrived on Christmas Eve night. That meant she got to take the Google Pixel to her brother that morning.

Christmas Eve had gone relatively well since they all sat and watched a bunch of Christmas movies and had cookies and hot chocolate. Not much was said, but Kristine could still feel the tension radiating off them. They all didn't mention it for the sake of trying to have a decent Christmas.

It was eight o'clock when she drove into the driveway and she picked up Jordan's present on the way out. She let herself in the door. The first person she saw was Jordan, who was still in his Mandalorian Pajamas. He turned in her direction while taking a drink of orange juice.

"Oh, hey. Debi made cinnamon rolls. Pick your poison."

Kristine chuckled. She walked over and picked one up. "So were you waiting on me for presents?"

"Nah. Dad's not up yet."

"Oh. Well, I'm going to put this under the tree." She winked as she teasingly held the wrapped gift in front of him.

"I thought you already got me a gift under the tree," Jordan said.

"Yeah, well, I thought this was big enough to be wrapped. Just came in last night while I was with you all. Have to wait until Dad gets up."

"Oh, the suffering!" Jordan replied, purposely adding the dramatics.

"Ever thought about trying our drama in school?" Kristine teased.

"Nah. I got enough drama at home. Don't need it at school too."

"Good point."

They both sat down in the living room. Jordan looked over at the stockings that lined the entertainment center for decoration.

"Remember when Mom would have us leave out cookies for Santa? Then one night we came down here to see if Santa left anything and we found Mom eating the cookies? You knew Santa wasn't real, but you were being a good sport and went with me since I was too scared to go alone. Then Mom convinced me that Santa was in a hurry and didn't get to finish the cookies. Then she let us have a few before we went to bed again."

Kristine smiled at the memory. "Yeah. That was one of my favorite Christmases. Those were good times."

"It's times like this when I really miss her, you know?"

"Me too. She was the closest person to a mom I ever had. She was awesome. I wish I was more like her. You're like her sometimes."

"I hope to be."

Debi came in and sat in the recliner, making them end their conversation. Their Dad soon followed with his cup of coffee. Kristine handed him his gift first. It was a sweater. She got Debi a couple candles and Jordan a book full of music sheets. Then she handed him the phone.

He opened it and she grinned when he realized what it was. "Kris. When you promised not to get me the one I had, I didn't mean go more expensive."

She laughed. "I know. Don't think about and don't even try to pay me back."

He passed her that look that could make anyone smile. Full of gratitude and happiness when he couldn't express words. At least she was able to make his Christmas special since it had been a pretty rough season.

They finished exchanging presents, then her and Jordan started playing video games together. Their Dad even joined in a few Smash Bros rounds, playing as Donkey Kong. He was surprisingly good for someone who didn't play often.

When it started getting dark, they went to the town light display. They walked around, bundled warmly and tried not the shiver in the cold air.

Too Kristine and Jordan's surprise, Debi was extra sweet and there was no drama, arguing or any negativity. Maybe she understood that she needed to lie low if she wanted to make it. Because it was obvious that both of her step children were onto her and were ready to throw hands.

Obviously, their father may refused look further into the cheating situation. However, he seemed to be a little distant as if he knew that she really was, but refused to accept it. After all, he loved his first wife, but he had to divorce her for the sake of his kids. Then he married Dixie and was truly happy with her and loved her. Then she died and he had Debi. Their father had already been through too much heartbreak.

Finally, Kristine bid everyone goodnight before heading out. Levi called her while she was in the car, so she put it on speaker as she drove home. "Hey. How was your Christmas?"

"It was great. Yours?"

"It went pretty smoothly. No fuss from Debi and I actually enjoyed myself. Dumbass-I mean Jordan-was super excited about his phone. He really appreciated it. Thanks for letting me borrow a little money so close to Christmas."

"No problem. I know how much Jordan means to you. He's pretty cool. If I had a younger brother, it would be Jordan."

"Well, you could always dub each other honorary brothers," Kristine pointed out.

"That would be fun. Then we could both spoil him with no questions asked."

She laughed. "Right. He wouldn't know what to do with himself. Only so much he can handle."

Levi chuckled. "Maybe. Maybe not."