Broken Memories [Shoey Dawceffa]

Chapter 3

Shane is going to turn ten in a week and he doesn't think about anything else but that. He's on fourth grade and considers himself a man already. He's going to spend the day in his house, so his grandparents are already in Los Angeles, and the best of that is that Shane is going to introduce them to Joey. Shane wants to spend his birthday with Joey so maybe this year he'll manage to do that.

Joey's parents are at work when he goes to Shane's house to eat Christmas' cookies and drink hot chocolate. Shane introduces him to his grandmother with a wild grin in his face. Joey knew the old woman already by how many times Shane talked about her so Joey makes his best not to keep looking at the floor when he shakes her hand with a warm smile on his lips, he knows how important this is for Shane.

Joey keeps looking in awe at Shane's Christmas tree and tells his friend that it's really big, shinning and beautiful. Shane tells him, proudly, that he helped decorating it and Joey tells him that he would love to decorate a Christmas tree one day. Shane would find it weird, if he didn't know Joey this well by now and wasn't so used to the squeeze inside of him when Joey says things like this. But as always, Shane works with his mind to make something to cheer his friend up.

"Let's make our own Christmas tree" He tells Joey and he is sure he never saw the boy looking at him with such green, widen, shining and full of life eyes. His lips form the most enormous grin Shane ever saw.

Shane asks his mother to give him the small Christmas tree he knows they have and some small decorations. Shane makes sure that his grandmother is up to help the two and Joey doesn't seem bothered about that. It's a small tree but enough for them to be occupied for half an hour, working hard so it can looks the best possible. As a result it's full of colourful balls, laces and lights and Shane offers it to Joey saying that is going to be his Christmas's present for him.

"But I don't have anything for you" Joey says worried and holding the tree in his small hands

"It's okay, you can be my Christmas present" Shane smiles and finds Joey's cheeks turning red and maybe it's because of the cold, he thinks. "So come to my birthday."

Joey nods and for the second time that day, he smiles widely at his friend "I'm gonna try." he doesn't promise anything but Shane is sure that he's going to make it, he is going to try his best.

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"So beautiful Joey!" Shane says, standing in front of Joey and leaning his head forward to have a better look to what Joey is drawing on his so familiar black book. Joey jumps from the shock since he wasn't expecting Shane to come back that sooner from his house with the blankets.

Joey tried his best to tell his friend that he was fine and it wasn't that cold, but Shane didn't believe it since his cheeks were flushed, his nose cold, his eyes weird and he was shaking. Shane wouldn't guess - no one would - that Joey was that way because Shane kept leaning too close to his side, touching his cheeks to check if he really was okay, brushing Joey's hair to the side with his soft fingertips when they would fall down in front of his eyes so he couldn't see what he was doing on the paper.

Joey composes himself and offers him a small smile. He doesn't close the book as soon as Shane appears since he was only drawing the Christmas tree Shane gave him. But it sure doesn't look like the same tree because Shane knows that the real one isn't that beautiful and with those amount of details. For a nine years old boy, Joey is a genius in art and Shane doesn't even realise how proud of his friend he is.

Shane puts one blanket around Joey's shoulders and he thanks him, then he does the same with himself sitting next to the other boy, on his previous place. Joey sure feels more comfortable and warm now but he decides not to say it.