Let Me Take You There - Plain White T's

Chapter Sixteen: Nora's Wondrous World

The day of the Christmas dinner, I found myself in the Norris' backyard setting up the picnic tables by laying down the tablecloth and putting plates and utensils on it. Nora was busy putting up little Christmas decorations on the clothesline, humming Christmas carols as she worked her decoration magic.

"It has to be perfect," she said when the last decoration was hung up. "I want everything to be perfect for when the guests arrive-and that means the table has to be set perfectly too."

I glanced down at my work; crooked tablecloth, plates uneven, utensils in a disarray. "It's just my brother and family showing up. I doubt he cares whether or not the fork and knife are on their proper sides."

Nora rolled her eyes. "Well I do. I want to impress your family so that they don't think mine are complete slobs."

I snorted. "Slobs? Your mom has eight kids. Of course you're slobs." I laughed as she shot me a disgusted look. "Nora. Relax. It's just dinner. We're all going to enjoy a delicious meal, share stories and have a grand old time. Trust me."

This seemed to relax her somewhat. After a deep breath, she nodded and smiled. "You're right. It's just a Christmas dinner. I shouldn't be worrying so much."

I pat her on the back. "That's the spirit! Besides. Your mom's cooking is badass. If I thought her vegetable alfredo was delicious, I'm ready for this dinner to blow my socks off."

Nora giggled uncontrollably just as Anya stepped out into the backyard carrying Jesse in her arms. "Hi Anya! You look beautiful!"

Anya twirled. "Thank you. I've been saving this dress for a special occasion. Josh can't keep his eyes off me," she smirked and pecked Jesse on the cheek. "This little man here didn't want to wear his bow tie but daddy forced him into it, didn't he?"

Jesse looked both cross and ready for a nap but the little red bow tie looked so adorable on him. He even wore a Christmas sweater with reindeer on it.

"Oh Nora. Your mom needs your help in the kitchen. She told me to come get you," Anya said to Nora.

"Okay. Laney, can you fix the tablecloth? It's crooked," Nora told me before slipping back inside the house. So much for not everything has to be perfect....

"How was Christmas morning?" Anya asked me. "Josh and I would've dropped in for a visit but he had to stay with your father in the hospital....you weren't lonely were you?"

I shrugged. Earlier that morning I had woken up to a very empty house and a very bare Christmas tree that I put up myself the day before. Since there were no gifts to unwrap, I made myself some waffles and ate in front of the tv while watching Christmas movies.

Anya frowned. "I'm so sorry, Lane. I should've came to the house and spent some time with you. Jesse would've loved that." She placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. "If it's any consolation, I have your Christmas gift right here."

I turned to see her reaching into her purse for something. "You didn't have to get me anything. Seriously. The peace and solitude I got this morning was a gift all in itself."

"Don't be foolish. Here. I, uh....left the gift back at the house because I knew there were eight kids here. It was a disaster waiting to happen and trust me....you don't want to break this gift."

She handed me a thin sheet of paper. "A receipt?" I laughed. "Just what I wanted. Thank you."

"Read what it says, you goof."

So I did. My eyes nearly bugged out of my head in shock. "You got me the camera I was getting for college next year?!"

Anya nodded, a big broad smile on her face. "Josh did. He knew you were applying to film school and wanted to pitch in. Save you the trouble of spending money on one less school supply. Is that the exact one you were looking for?"

It was. The one camera I had my eye on for months was now mine for keeps. Goodbye old shitty camera, hello new HD heaven. "It is. Thank you so much, big sis."

We hugged but it was cut off as Jesse let out a wail from between us. He probably got squished from our hug and couldn't breathe.

"Oops!" Anya laughed, pulling away to reveal a squished boy between us. "I'm so sorry, little man! Mommy didn't mean to squish you. At least you're vocal." She laughed again as she fixed Jesse in her arms. "He's had a long morning. Up at six and opened presents an hour later. He's very invested in the box that the toy you gave him came in."

"I....didn't pay $35 for him to play with the box," I snorted. My nephew was looking at me with such big brown eyes that I couldn't be mad. "But hey. Whatever floats his boat. Which oddly enough is what I got him...."

The patio door slid open again and Nora shuffled back out carrying napkins and extra glasses. "Hello again. Mom asked me to bring these out before dinner is served. Did you or Jesse want anything to drink while you're waiting?"

"Oh no. We're fine. Jesse had a drink of water before we left so he should be good until dinner time," Anya gave Nora a smile before heading back inside.

Nora set down the napkins and glasses on the table. "Everything is just about ready. Mom just needs us to go in and gather up the quints to set them up in their high chairs."

I sniffed the air and sighed as the sweet aroma of Christmas dinner reached my nostrils. "Damn. Don't be surprised if I end up in a turkey coma later on. It smells amazing."

She blushed. "My mom really knows her cooking. I'm trying to learn from her but I'm too impatient to wait thirty or more minutes for something to cook. I like salads or peanut butter sandwiches."

This made me think about all the takeout and microwave dinners that I eat in a week but decided to say nothing about it in case I humiliated myself. "Not me. I'm the most patient person in the world."

She snorted. "Yeah. Okay. And I'm the queen of England."

We went inside the house to pick up the quints. My brother was sitting on the couch beside Peter, sharing a beer and probably talking about whatever it is that guys talk about. Anya was engaged with Mary as she helped take out the dressing and stir it up with a wooden spoon. Jesse was on the floor watching Charlie throw a tantrum at Emma for taking his toy from him.

"Everyone! Dinner will be ready in a few so if you want to go grab a seat outside now you can-oh Laney. Grab June for me, would you? She's reaching for the Christmas tree again."

One of the quints was crawling her way towards the Christmas tree but I scooped her up just in time. She squealed in delight and her chubby face jiggled as she made fart noises with her mouth.

"And what exactly did you hope to accomplish here?" I whispered to her, booping her tiny nose. Being around Nora for so long and hanging out at her place practically every day had helped me learn the differences between the quints and tell them apart. The quint I was holding now, Juniper, had a small beauty mark on the left side of her neck. She was the main troublemaker of the siblings.

"Turkey is done!" Mary sang out. "Everyone to the backyard!"

The entire household made their way outside and took their seats at the picnic tables. I sat next to Nora after helping put the little ones in their high chairs while Josh sat at the adjoining table with Anya and Jesse. It was a nice setup and everyone had enough room for their elbows and legs.

"Ah. There we go. Is everyone comfortable?" Mary smiled as she set the turkey down on the table. "Let us say a short prayer before Peter cuts the turkey."

"Mom. It's not Thanksgiving," Emma whispered in protest but her mother didn't listen.

As we all began to hold hands, it suddenly struck me that I had to hold Nora's left hand. When she offered it to me, I hesitated at first and wondered if she'd be uncomfortable with my suddenly sweating hands. Eventually I caved and took her hand in my own, mentally cringing as she gave my fingers a gentle squeeze.

"Oh God above," Mary began once we had all adjoined hands. "We thank you for the meal you have provided us today. We also thank you for joining two families together and for sharing your love and kindness with us. Amen."

"Amen," everyone mumbled. Peter stood up and began to slice the turkey with a long knife. It cut through so easily that the sight of it made me drool in anticipation.

"It looks delicious, Mare. It's beyond tender," Peter handed the plate of meat to his wife. "You did an amazing job."

"Thank you. I don't make turkey often so I wasn't sure if it was going to turn out right or not. Turkey, Laney?"

Hell yeah.

When we all had food on our plates, we dove right in. It was incredible; the turkey melted in your mouth, the potatoes were amazingly creamy and fresh, and the vegetables were cooked to perfection. The only other person I knew who could cook something as delicious as this was my brother and judging by the satisfied look on his face right now, it wasn't hard to tell that he was enjoying his meal. Everyone was.

"How's your dad doing, Laney? He hanging in there?" Peter asked during our meal.

Josh spoke before I could. "The doctors have him stabilized for now but they say he only has maybe a month or two left. Three at the most. But at the moment he seems to be doing fine. Still as grumpy as ever."

I bowed my head. I overheard Josh talking to the doctors one day that our dad didn't have much time left and it honestly seemed unreal that my old man, who I once thought was immortal, was going to die. Even now it still hasn't fully settled in and it felt wrong for me to be sitting here eating a Christmas dinner while my dad lay dying in a hospital bed.

"Anya and I are going to go the hospital later to spend some time with him. You wouldn't mind if Laney and Jesse stayed with you guys?"

I opened my mouth to protest but Mary said something before I could. "Absolutely. She can stay for as long as she wants. Same with Jesse. Nora loves their company."

Nora smiled through a mouthful of potato. "We can watch a movie later! Your pick!"

We all laughed as potato flew out of her mouth and onto my face. My laughter quickly died as I thought about why I wasn't going with my brother to see our dad.

We finished eating, and Nora offered to do the dishes. I helped her by drying them and putting them back into the cupboards and drawers while her parents and my siblings sat in the living room, chatting in hushed voices. The kids were all down for a nap (turkey coma probably) so it just left me, Nora and Emma in the kitchen.

"Why is your hair blue?" Emma asked me. She was drawing at the table, tapping her lead pencils on the wood in a steady rhythm.

"Because I'm secretly an undercover agent and I need a disguise to hide my true identity," I responded. She stuck her tongue out at me as I laughed. "I'm kidding. I just like the color blue. Why?"

She shrugged. "Just wondering. I think it's pretty cool. My mom won't let us dye our hair because she says it destroys your roots."

I glanced at Nora. She rolled her eyes. "Well, your mom right. The more you bleach your hair, the more you're destroying it. Highlights are fine but dyeing your entire head is always a risk."

"I hadn't thought about highlights...." Emma cocked her head before turning to look at her parents in the living room. "Mom! Can I get highlights?"

I tuned out Emma after that and helped Nora with the rest of the dishes. By the time we were done my brother had already left for the hospital, leaving Jesse here with me and the Norris family. He didn't seem to mind. He was sleeping anyway.

"Whew. Glad that's out of the way." Nora collapsed onto her bed with a heavy sigh. "How was the dinner? Did you enjoy it?"

I sat on the floor next to her. "Dude. My brother can't even cook that well. Your mom should seriously work with your dad in the restaurant when the kids are older and in school."

She laughed at this and nodded. "She mentioned that once or twice before. Dad wants her to because her cooking is obviously amazing but she feels that it's not what her heart wants. Her words, not mine."

I leaned my chin on the bed. "And what does your mom want?"

Nora did the same, our faces just barely inches apart. "She wants to be an artist. Before she had me, she was going to an art school-that's how her and dad met. She was studying art while he was studying trades. When she had me she ended up having to quit because paying her student loans and other things while paying for baby stuff was too expensive. So she dropped out and eventually married my dad while he finished school and worked."

Wow. I had no idea that Mary was an artist. "So the artwork around the house....."

"All hers," Nora nodded. "She doesn't sell them because she firmly believes that her art is boring. I tell her all the time that there's no such thing as boring art. Just boring people."

"Makes sense. I'm no art expert myself but I always did like looking at the art in your house. It looks....different. But a good kind of different, you know? It catches the eye and really makes you think."

Nora beamed, a loose strand of blonde hair falling into her face. "I'll tell her you said that. She'll be over the moon that someone admires her work." She sighed. "If I had the money, I'd fly her to Paris to see all the famous paintings in the Louvre. She'd love that."

I was suddenly reminded of something so I flew to my feet and raced out to the living room where my coat was hung up on the hook in the small porch. I grabbed what I needed from my pocket and rushed back in, Nora's face a look of pure confusion.

"I forgot to give this to you," I said, handing her an envelope. "Merry Christmas."

She slowly took the envelope from me, eyeing it dubiously. "What is it?"

"Open and find out, dummy."

So she opened it and pulled out its contents. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers as she read what she pulled out before snapping her attention up to me.

"Is this real?!" She breathed.

"Why wouldn't it be?" I snorted. "I thought you might want to go Hogwarts with me for New Years."

So this is what I got Nora for Christmas: after calling my Nana in Florida and asking if me and a friend could stay at her place, I booked two tickets to Orlando and two tickets to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. We'd be there for the New Years ceremony so I expected it would nothing short of spectacular. I mean....it is the Harry Potter resort. The fireworks alone were going to be amazing. 

To my surprise, Nora suddenly burst into tears on her bed. She covered her face with both hands and cried into them which left me awkward and uncomfortable in her room. What was I supposed to do? Pat her on the shoulder? Hug her? I don't handle people crying very well. Never did.

"Uh....you okay?" Was the best thing I could manage to say.

She wiped her tears and nodded. "Yes. I'm fine. These are tears of joy, by the way. Not tears of sadness." She blew her nose and gathered herself before speaking to me again. "I have to ask you though because if I don't I'll regret it in the future."

"Ask me what?"

"Why?"

I shrugged. "Why what?"

She threw a pillow at me. "Why the grand gesture, obviously! Why did you get me such an extravagant gift when all I did was get you books?! I can't pay you back for this Laney-"

"Don't. It's a gift from me to you. I know how bad you wanted this so I wanted to do this for you. Don't worry about returning the favor. This is my treat."

She looked back down at the tickets and sighed. "It's so expensive though....the money you spent on all this. What about hotel accommodations? Food?"

"Don't worry about that. Luckily for us I have family in Orlando. My nana and grandfather live out there so we'll be staying with them the whole time. My nana's actually thrilled that I'll be visiting-and she knows you're coming of course so be prepared for the full Chinese treatment. My grandfather is sort of old school."

I found myself in Nora's tight embrace as she jumped from her bed and wrapped me in a bear hug.

"Thank you so much, Laney. You didn't have to do this for me. None of this. But you did it anyway and I'll be forever grateful. You made my dreams come true."

I eventually relaxed and hugged her back. "No problem. It'd be nice to get away for a week. Just you and me chilling at Hogwarts for New Years. Pretty dreamy, huh?"

She laughed and wiped the remains of her tears from her face. "Oh for sure. I can't imagine a better way to spend the beginning of the new year." She gently took my hand and pulled me along behind her. "Come on. Let's go break the news to my parents."
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Tada! That's what Laney got Nora for Christmas! I didn't exactly look up prices and stuff for the trip so just use your imagination for it. It's not cheap, I know that much for sure.

If you got an extravagant gift like the one Laney gave to Nora would you accept it or try to give it back?

Leave a comment a vote!