Unexpected Love

Chapter 24: Christmas

  I slowly open my eyes and wake up to feel of something poking me. Tessa is kneeling beside the bed and pokes me cheek again. Mason is asleep next to me, one arm over me.
  "Wake up, it's Christmas." She whispers with a smile on her face.
  "It's also 7 in the morning." I mumble after glancing at the clock by the bed side.
  "What's your point?" She asks.
  "I'm tired." I grumble.
  "Come on, get up." She says tugging on my arm.
  "Okay, okay. Give us a second." I give in and slowly sit up as she skips out of the room.
  I look over at Mason who's sound asleep. He's so peaceful and so comfortable, I don't want to wake him up. I lean over and kiss him awake. He wakes up and smiles.
  "Merry Christmas." I whisper.
  "Tessa wake you up already?" He asks.
  "Yeah. I'm sorry it's so early." I run my hand through his hair and then kiss him again.
  "It's alright. I couldn't have asked for a better wake up." He smiles and sits up.
  We both get dressed and head down stairs together. Tessa already has the fire place going. It's lightly snowing outside, and there's already a few inches from last night. Mason and I sit on the couch and wait for everyone else. Tessa runs down the stairs and sits by the tree. My parents slowly follow and sit on the other couch. One thing I've always loved about Tessa is that no matter how old she gets, she still seems so optimistic and childish.
  After presents my parents cook breakfast as a part of our family tradition. Then after breakfast, Tessa drags Mason and I outside. She's been dying to spend time with us and hasn't had much time due to family reasons. I'm not sure why she wants us outside considering how cold it is until she leads us to the front of the ranch.
  Standing there is Mason's parents, smiling. I see a nervous and scared look cross his face. I look at Tessa for reassurance. Mason fears his dad ever since he almost beat him to death and tried to hit me. I really can't blame him for the anger he feels. Mason's dad walks over to us and hugs Mason, but Mason stands there as if the cold weather froze him. His dad laughs and pulls away, holding his shoulders and smiling. Mason isn't quite sure what to do, so he gives him a nervous smile in return.
  "I thought you hated me." Mason laughs nervously, sounding scared.
  "Son, I made a huge mistake. What I did wasn't right at all. I should have been more accepting. Your mother and Rosie convinced me. I shouldn't be mad, you're happy being you." He explains.
  "Not to mention my dad also knocked some sense into you, too." Tessa states.
  "Literally. Tyler's dad punched me as soon as I stood up after you kicked me." He laughs.
  "Oh, and about that, I'm so sorry Tyler. I used your dad as a way to get to you. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have tried to hit you." He looks at me and smiles.
  "You two have made each other very happy, I've heard. I'm happy for you both. Could you ever forgive me?" He asks.
  I look at Mason, and he turns to look at me too. The decision is up to him. I could easily forgive him, but after what he did to Mason, I won't bother unless Mason decides he wants to forgive him. Mason turns his head back to face him and stands tall.
  "I forgive you." He smiles.
  His dad smiles back and they hug. His dad turns to face me and grins.
  "And you?" He asks.
  "I forgive you too." I say.
  He hugs me too then pulls away to look at his wife. Mason's mom smiles and pulls both Mason and I into a hug. She steps back and places a hand on our shoulders.
  "You boys are cute together. Tyler, thank you for taking care of my son and making him the happiest he's ever been." She says patting me on the shoulder.
  I blush and I'm speechless. The happiest he's ever been. Mason looks at me and smiles, blushing as well. His mom hugs us again and then looks at both of us.
  "We have friends we're meeting up with soon. It was nice to meet you Tyler. I want both of you to tell me as soon as you plan on getting married. Mason, take care of this sweet boy. I can see it in his eyes that you're everything to him." She winks and kisses both of are cheeks and walks off with her husband.
  Mason turns to Tessa. "Thank you for that. It's actually nice knowing that my parents support me."
  "Of course!" Tessa giggles and hugs Mason.
  The three of us spend the rest of the day watching Christmas movies while my parents prepare dinner. More family members start arriving around 6 and they're all over Mason and I until dinner is done.
   Dinner is ready soon and we're all dressed nice.  I notice that Mason looks nervous. I'm not sure why. I also notice that Mason and my parents are exchanging looks the whole time. I look at Tessa, and exchange looks as well, both of us trying to figure out what's going on. I don't know what's happening, and I'm surprised Tessa doesn't know either. Usually everyone tells Tessa because she's trustworthy and is willing to help out in any way she can.
  Hours after dinner ends, Mason's worried looks have intensified. Tessa and I still have no clue what's going on. My dad walks in to the room and instructs us all to get our coats and. We're then told to follow him and we all do. None of us have a single clue about what's happening. We walk a little ways into the forest and stop st the river that's frozen over. We all stop and my dad walks out in front of us and he clears his throat.
  "During the summer, my wife, daughter and I were all out, leaving Tyler home alone. Little did we know, Tyler and Mason went on their first date. They raced to this same river with horses. Mason." My dad walks back to the group when he's done talking and Mason takes his place.
  I can feel my heart racing. Mason looks terrified. When he takes his place, my dad plugs in a few cords and the trees around us are lit in Christmas lights. Behind Mason, on the other side of the river, Christmas lights light up in red, in the shape of a heart. I can feel my cheeks turning red and my eyes beginning to tear up.
  "Mr. Cina is right. At that moment when we stopped here, we looked at each other and that's when I realized I like him. That like turned into a love. That love grew into our relationship. Tyler became my best friend. My boyfriend. I want to thank you all for trusting me and letting me love Tyler. Without him I'd be nothing and he makes me very happy." He smiles the time while looking at me.
  My dad whispers something into Tessa's ear and she nods. She walks over and grabs my hand. Mason turns to the side and Tessa walks me in front of him. She let's go and skips back. Mason's smile gets bigger and all of the worry on his face disappears.
  "Tyler, you've made me the happiest I've ever been. You've changed my entire life. I can't thank you enough. Tyler Cina..." He pulls something out of his pocket.
  He gets down on one knee. My heart is beating fast as I realize what's happening. I'm blushing and smiling like crazy, holding back every tear.
  "Will you marry me?" He asks.
  "Yes, of course." I reply with the biggest smile ever.
  My family begins cheering. Mason stands up and we pull each other in. We kiss each other, and it's one of our most genuine kisses ever. My family awes and cheers even more. We slowly pull away from our kiss and I begin crying tears of joy. I can't believe I'm gonna be spending the rest of my life with the man I love, so, so much.