Clover Undercover

CHRISTMAS MIRACLE

"A sprinkle of salt," Nonna clarifies to Elliot.

I look over my book at them and Eli's grinning ear to ear.

The image of him in the kitchen doing anything other than sulk is something I could watch all day long. Nonna's dragged him into the kitchen to help her cook one thing or another almost every day since she's been here. That bossy little old lady has been doing wonders for him.

She has no idea she's rekindling a part of him that lost its spark when mom died.

I don't think she'll ever truly understand how much healing she's bringing to all of us. Luca included. He's been so much more at ease since she's been here to act as a second set of hands while he gets his bearings on the whole fatherhood thing.

"What's next?" Eli asks.

"Next.. next.." The woman's age shows itself from time to time when she forgets what she's doing in the middle of doing it, so I've been keeping the directions for whatever they're making at the time on hand.

"Google says stir the dry and wet ingredients together," I say after checking my phone.

"Meh," she makes a dismissive waving motion with her hand. "Google doesn't know how to cook. You fold the ingredients, Elliot, and when I tell you there's a difference, you taste this when we finish. You'll see. To fold is like eating ravioli served by Massimo Bottura. To stir is like eating ravioli served by Chef Boyardee."

She makes a face as she says it and visibly shivers, which sends Elliot into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

Even Bella stops playing with her barbies to watch and listen to Eli laugh.

Nonna keeps on making comparisons that get sillier and sillier until Elliot's almost doubled over gasping for air and Luca's come to lean against the wall to listen.

I watch the look on our father's face, hearing his son laugh like that for the first time and I feel that familiar lump form in my throat.

One day these won't be firsts.

One day they'll come and go and we won't have to stop and cherish the moments; though I hope we always do.

*

Luca and I left Eli and Bella with Nonna to do some last-minute Christmas shopping, and I'm grateful for the breather.

"How're you holding up?" Luca asks as we drive home,

"Well, considering we checked our list twice and got everything we needed, I'd say it was a success, so, I'm holding up pretty good."

Luca glances at me briefly before focusing back on the road. "Not what I meant."

I look out the window and the sight makes me scrunch my nose. "Tomorrow's Christmas and everything is so... green. I hate it."

He chuckles but doesn't entertain me. "Again, not what I meant."

Letting my head fall back on the seat, I sigh and finally look at him. "I'm holding myself together no matter what."

The car slows and he puts his directional on to turn into the neighborhood. He doesn't look at me and I think it's because he probably knows my mask will crack if he does. "You fall apart whenever you need to, Clover. I'll always be here to help put you back together again."

"You poor man.. you've adopted Humpty Dumpty."

Luca's eyes snap to me in a mixture of horror and humor. He bursts into laughter and shakes his head. "You don't adopt your own.. ya know what, never mind. I'm glad I have my own little Humpty Dumpty. Should I call Dumpty for short?"