Professional Disaster

Chapter 25

"Mum." Arabella whisper-yelled. "Mum! Wake up!" She pushed her face closer to her sleeping mother.

Kim squealed and shot her head forward, accidentally head-butting her daughter in defence and shock.

Arabella fell back on her ass, holding her head in pain.

"What?!" Robert shot up at the sudden loud noises, his arms shooting to shield Kimberly from any danger.

"Mum head-butted me!" Arabella whined.

"She got in my face and scared me awake!" Kim whined back in defence, sounding more like she was Ari's sister than her Mother.

Jenkin's soft laughter could be heard from across the room in the open doorway. "Santa's been." He spoke in a teasing voice, using the same phrase his Mother had said to him when he was just a little boy.

"What time is it?" Kim groaned. She wasn't up for waking up early, even on Christmas morning.

"Six." Ari jumped up to her feet, still dressed in her Christmas pyjamas.

Kim groaned again making Robert chuckle to himself. He stood from his bed wearing the same as Jenkin - a pair of simple grey joggers. "Come on." He lifted a sleepy Kimberly from the bed bridal style and began waking to the door of their bedroom.

Arabella had a skip in her step as she stepped to her brother, raising her arms in the air.

"What?" He squinted his eyes.

"I'm tired too." She spoke cheekily.

Jenkin chuckled and rolled his eyes playfully. He lifted his little sister and followed his Father. "You know how annoying you are?"

"Almost as annoying as you?"

*****

"I'm stuffing my face today and no one can say any different." Arabella smiled as she finished opening her gifts. "Thank you so much." She stood to her feet and hugged her Mother and Father at the same time.

"Merry Christmas, princess." Kim kissed her daughter's forehead.

Then Jenkin stood to his feet and copied his little sister in hugging his parents. "Thank you."

"Merry Christmas." Robert rested back in his comfy seat. Although Arabella was eighteen in four months and Jenkinwas already twenty-five, Robert enjoyed making a big deal out of the holiday. Every year he always had the kids sit on the floor with their piles of gifts so he and his wife could watch as the kids could finally see what they had gotten. Then the piles would stay there for a few hours until someone - most likely Kimberly - shot from her seat and started bossing everyone around for the day.

"I better get started on dinner. I'm hoping Elijah will be here soon to lend a hand."

"I need to head over to Cole's to help him lug over the alcohol. Want to come, son?" Robert stretched out his back and turned his look at his kid. He wasn't exactly asking, and Jenkin was more than aware of that.

"Yeah, I'll help." Jenkin stood to his feet, also breaking out a stretch. "I'm not getting dressed though."

"Just throw a shirt on." Robert grabbed a hoodie from under the staircase, not even bothering with shoes, deciding to stick with his slippers to get him the short distance from one house to another.

Jenkin shook his head. "I'll be fine." He headed for the door.

"We'll be back soon." Kim received a kiss from her husband. She smiled back in return and began walking off towards the kitchen to begin their Christmas dinner.