Blitzed(165)

Christmas day, we celebrated together in the main living room, exchanging gifts and spending time together. While Jordan may not have been interested in the church, she found her faith in some part again and joined in the singing and celebrations as much as the rest of us. She even joined me in an impromptu duet, as I had secretly been practicing my violin to play for her. It was only fair, after all, and our mothers enjoyed the small Christmas performance.

Later that night, Jordan came into the living room, where Syeira, Charani and I were gathered around the large fireplace. We were sharing mugs of spiced mulled wine, a family tradition that we'd kept for years. “Hey beautiful,” I said, holding up a mug. “Want to join us?”

“I . . . I can't,” Jordan said, her eyes wide and unbelieving. “Uhm, Felix, Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas to you too, honey.”

Jordan came over and took a seat next to me on the couch, taking my hands. “I have two pieces of news, one very good, the other important but no less good,” she said smiling, making me even more curious. “Which would you like first?”

“The good news first, I guess,” I said, perplexed. “What is it?”

Jordan nodded, grinning. “Congratulations, Felix. You're going to be a father. I had a feeling, but I wanted to confirm it first.”

I stood there, stupefied, before breaking into a huge smile and pulling Jordan in for a hug. “Thank you, my love,” I said, holding her tight. “For the greatest gift ever.”

Jordan returned the hug, then laughed. “You know, with our luck, we're going to have twins.”

“I'm fine with that,” Charani said. “In fact, I think it'd be fun.”

“Well then, that settles it,” I laughed, “but what is the important yet no less good news?”

Jordan smiled again, “we need to think about baby names. I have something in mind if it’s a boy, but we need to cover all the bases.”

“Please don’t tell me Felix Hardy Jr.,” I replied laughing.

“Nicolas.”

All four of us smiled and came together for a group hug. “Nicolas. It’s great and close to Nicolae, a name that's dear to my heart,” Charani said.