runny nose,
my frosty toes
are [getting cold] but i feel alive,
so i smile wide.
As he opened the car door, there was a loud bark that could only be identified as the dog within his childhood home. Luke smiled to himself, missing the sound he once found annoying.
Other doors closed behind him, his parents stepping beside him with grins of their own. Bag hanging off of his shoulder, half-frozen hands gripping the strap, Luke began walking along the driveway of the cozy home.
The old house, with its wildly overgrown garden, appeared silent, secretive. Inside, it was anything but. The Hemmings family was one of proudly dysfunctional upbringings. In this neighborhood, every house that lined the street seemed to out-do the Hemmings' household with consummate decorating. This house, and the one beside it, were the only ones that didn't participate in this community spirit.
If Luke remembered correctly, the house next to his parents' belongs to a family that celebrated Kwanzaa. That is, if the family that lived there when he last visited—four years ago—still does.
When the comforting feeling of heat immediately hit his face, Luke let out a breath, "I'm exhausted." Molly, his small dog, was heard padding quickly into the foyer, immediately jumping up to greet Luke as he laughed.
"You had a long flight," Liz said softly. "Jack and Ben won't be here for another hour, you can sleep if you need to."
Luke frowned, "Are you sure? I want more time to spend with you guys."
"There's nothing to do yet, Luke," Andrew chuckled. "We'll make sure you're up before your brothers get here."
Luke's brothers, Jack and Ben, still lived in Vermont. They only had to drive for twenty minutes, while if Luke had done that it would've taken over eight hours. That's why he flew, that way it would only take an hour and a half.
"Okay, love you guys," he mumbled against his hand, fighting off a yawn. Flying always made him tired.
After hearing his parents reply the same, Luke was off to the basement, where he'd be staying for the entire time he was visiting Vermont.
There was a lingering feeling of nostalgia that came with being back. There are memories that make Luke laugh and memories that make him cry. But, only a handful he refused to remember. Some, he still has remnants of; tangible and buried deeply within his heart.
Luke puts an arm over his face, covering his eyes as he lay on the bed. He doesn't know exactly when he starts to drift off—between thinking about the teenage memories he has and trying to actually sleep, it was difficult to tell when.
But, the sound of loud laughter and a shout of his name jolted Luke from his sleep not long after. He was met with a grinning pair of siblings, and immediately fell backwards onto the mattress with a groan. "You could've been nice about waking me up, you know."
Jack chuckles and says, "But when are we ever?"
"You're right. I should still expect so much less." Sitting back up, Luke rubs his eyes with the heel of his hands, "When did you guys get here?"
"We've both only been here five minutes, Mom told us to wake you."
He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, "What time is it?"
"It's only just past one."
"What? Jesus Christ," Luke exclaimed. He didn't mean to sleep that long, it seemed unfair that he'd gone to sleep as soon as he got home and Liz and Andrew had been waiting.
He got out of bed quickly and tried to ignore the fact that his pants had twisted uncomfortably around his calves in his sleep. "You act like its Christmas day," Ben laughed at him.
"It's Christmas time, though, I should be spending it with you guys," Luke explained, then yawned, "not sleeping."
The three brothers made it back upstairs, maneuvering through decorations as they went to the living room. A green tree was standing tall in the corner, with two red boxes sitting next to it containing the ornaments that were going to be hung tonight. Liz always waited for Luke and his brothers to get there to decorate the tree; it was the last thing to be decorated in the house.
Christmas at the Hemmings residence was actually very fun and joyful, despite what Luke said earlier about their house not living up to the festiveness of the rest of the neighborhood. The holiday spirit was noticeable in the sweaters they wore and the radio playing classic holiday tunes all day, both beginning only a week after Thanksgiving.
When Luke was a kid, he and his brothers would race down the stairs to get a look at the presents under the tree first. Luke, being the first one awake usually, would have to wait an extra hour since Mom and Dad made sure everyone was awake to bring them downstairs. And, even after he and his brothers were awake, the three had to wait for their mother to take pictures of the tree and drink her coffee.
It was still an exciting experience, and even in his adult years Luke was eager for the familiar routine.
"Are we decorating the tree tonight?" Luke asked, a grin on his face that he couldn't keep down. The tree was his favorite part, it has been since he was old enough to be trusted to handle the ornaments and hang them wherever he wanted.
"Of course, we've got the ornaments out already," Liz confirmed, laughing at the excitement of her son. Everyone in the Hemmings family knew Luke acted like a giant child during any holiday, but during the winter holidays it was amplified. He loved Christmas.
"Can we start doing it now?" When everyone laughed, Luke's mother nodded and he made a quick turn toward the two containers full of ornaments collected over the years. Valley View Farms, a place back where Luke lived in Maryland, had all types of Christmas decorations that usually had his entire family anticipating a new thing to hang on the tree from him every year.
This year, it was a small kid in a Santa hat, holding a sign that read, YOUNGEST CHILD (Mom's favorite), and Luke laughed immediately when he saw it. They had ones for the middle child and oldest, but that's not what Luke is. He is the favorite, though.
"You have got to be kidding me," Jack grumbled. There was a hint of a laugh shining through his façade, so Luke grinned.
"Hey, you guys are the ones who tell me to buy one every year to bring home," he shrugged innocently. He hung the ornament up in the very middle of the tree.
Ben rolled his eyes, but stood next to Luke looking at the tree, "You're such a child."
"Hey! It's the holidays; be merry, get holly-jolly," Luke encouraged. He sat on the floor, pulling the caps off of the containers to reveal many different tree decorations. "Now, get over here and help me hang all of these up."
With that, the next two hours were filled with the family time and brotherly teasing that got lost in the last ten years of Luke moving away. It couldn't get any better for him, honestly. He loved this; he loved home.
❅ ❅ ❅
december 18th, 2015.
if you've ever listened to death cab for cutie's albums transatlanticism or codes and keys, then you'll have a pretty solid idea of what this book will be. i mean, unless you're not good at determining symbolism. in that case, you'll find out lol
the rest of the chapters are guaranteed to be much, much longer. the first was planned to be shorter, because i wanted to show a lil bit of family time
