Post by Danielle Basch on Dec 28, 2017 0:11:12 GMT -5
Basch Private Jet
Somewhere in the Sky
December 27, 2017
Danielle is relaxing on the large white sofa in the main salon of the jet, resting her back against the plush pillows as she flips through a collection of travel brochures. Another stack of brochures sits on the cushion beside her, until it’s moved aside by her husband Donovan, who hands her a cocktail as he sits down.
Donovan: And how is my beautiful bride enjoying the flight?
Danielle looks at Donovan and smiles as she takes the beverage and gives it a quick sniff.
Danielle: Ooh... Pomegranate margarita!
Donovan: I hope they got the mix right... the mixologist said he’d never made one before.
Danielle: You could have fooled me... he absolutely nailed it! This is the best margarita I’ve ever tasted!
Donovan: I’ll make sure to tell him you said so.
Danielle: No need; I’ll tell him myself once we land.
Donovan: That reminds me; by the time we land in Zurich, it’ll already be into the wee hours of Wednesday morning. In fact...
Donovan pauses to pull out his cell phone, quickly reaching the Cerberus app on his home screen.
Donovan: Cerberus, switch time to reflect the Central European Time Zone.
His phone beeps, prompting him to look at the screen.
Danielle: Not a bad idea. I was going to wait to do that once we landed, but doing it sooner would be one less thing to worry about.
Donovan: No need... look at your screen.
She looks down, her eyes widening as she notices that her clock has already changed over. She looks up at her husband, offering a sheepish smile.
Danielle: Oops... forgot we were both synced to the plane’s wi-fi.
Donovan: Look at it this way; now we can simply sit back and enjoy the rest of the flight. And since we have plenty of time to kill, I’m curious. What was one of your favorite Christmas memories?
Danielle: Well, without a doubt, it was just yesterday morning, when I woke up and saw you lying there beside me.
Donovan chuckles as he reaches over to lightly graze his finger against his wife’s cheek.
Donovan: And you call ME the flatterer....
Danielle: But, if we’re talking childhood Christmas memories, then one year in particular stands out among the rest....
LeBlanc Residence
El Segundo, CA
December 25, 2006
The sun had just barely begun to shine through my bedroom window, but the second my eyes opened, I threw the covers off of my bed and ran like a cat at 3 am into the living room. At the foot of the tree sat clusters of carefully-wrapped presents, but there was one in particular I had been eyeballing ever since it had appeared just two weeks prior. It had been crammed behind the tree, as close to the wall as possible, and packed tightly on all sides with other gifts, where no matter how careful I was, any investigation on my part would have been all too obvious.
My mom was one crafty woman....
Of course, the house rule was always “Breakfast first, then presents.” And as always, Mom was already in the kitchen; I could smell the cinnamon from the French Toast she had been cooking.
Marie: Breakfast will be ready in a minute, Danni.
Danielle: I hope so! I’m hungry!
Marie: Sure you are... more like hungry to tear into the presents under the tree.
She looked at me with her dark, all-knowing, brown eyes. I knew she saw right through me. Nevertheless, I took my seat at the table, and a few seconds later, made quick work of my breakfast.
After I put my plate in the sink, I tore through the house back to the living room, heading straight for the mystery box in the back. I ripped through the paper, ignoring the sting of the paper cut on my finger from my over enthusiastic efforts.
There it was, in all its black glossy-coated cardboard glory, the familiar emblem of the Playstation logo in the upper right corner. I ripped off the rest of the paper to fully reveal my prize; a gleaming black console with a 60GB hard drive....
Present Day
Donovan: 60GB? The thing only had 60GB?
Donovan sits back against the sofa, a fist clenched as he holds it in front of his mouth and snickers.
Danielle: Don’t laugh; that’s what they all came with back then. Besides, for a game console, that’s a lot of storage! Or at least it was at the time....
Donovan: Ah, my sweet Nixy... that’s one of the many reasons I love you. Your childhood was... let’s just say full of far more innocence than mine was. In a way, I envy you.
Danielle: You? Envy ME? I find that hard to believe.
Donovan: Well then, since you shared a Christmas memory from your childhood, I suppose it’s only fair that I do the same.
Danielle: Come to think about it, any time you talk about your childhood should be interesting. Do tell....
Donovan: Well...
Basch Residence
Oceanside, California
Christmas Morning, 2001
Christmas morning was just a bit different than other mornings in our household. The household staff was a little more lively than normal. Along with my normal breakfast, our chef had included a small plate of freshly baked holiday cookies. While I was eating, my father walked into the dining room.
Nathaniel: Merry Christmas, Donovan…
Hearing his voice, I got out of my chair and gave him a big hug.
Donovan: Merry Christmas, Father…
My father shook his head.
Nathaniel: You’re not in school, son. No need to be so formal.
Donovan: It’s a force of habit. Will Moth… er, Mom be joining us?
I watched as the look on my father’s face soured at the mention of my mother.
Nathaniel: No, son. She’s feeling a bit.. under the weather.
Donovan: She seemed fine last night….
Dad paused for a second before saying anything.
Nathaniel: It must’ve been something she ate at the Wentworth’s party.
I knew better. The Wentworths were another well-to-do family that my parents often associated with. At the time, they had a son that was barely into his 20’s. I could tell that my dad was lying to protect me from the reality of what was going on between him and my mother, but the Basch men had a knack for seeing through such things.
Nathaniel: But that doesn’t mean that you and I can’t enjoy the day ourselves. So what do you say, sport? After you finish eating and opening your presents, I’m sure we can find something fun to do….
Donovan: Sport? Dad, I’m not 6 years old anymore…
Nathaniel: (chuckling) You’re right, Donovan.
He reached over and snagged one of the cookies off the plate.
Donovan: Hey! Armand made those for me!
I glared at my father in protest, but he just reached up and put a hand on my head and messed up my hair as he laughed.
Present Day
Donovan: Needless to say, my father and I were a lot closer than I ever was to my mother… Not much longer after that, my parents divorced. Dad had… has… a VERY good team of lawyers working for him. And I’m pretty sure you know the rest of the story as far as that is concerned.
Danielle: Yeah… your Dad seems a lot happier now.
Donovan: My mother... was a major source of his stress, to say the least.
Danielle: How long has it been since you talked to her?
Donovan: Honestly, I haven't seen her since…
Danielle: Don't you think it might be time to work on that?
Donovan glares at his wife at the thought.
Donovan: So, after 15 years, I should just let her walk back into my life as if nothing has happened? Tell me, how would you feel if I suggested you make the same effort with your father?
Danielle lets out a deep sigh, nodding her head as she casts her eyes to the floor.
Danielle: I suppose you’re right. My father made his decision to stay out of my life long before I was even born. If your mother chose to stay away for as long as she has, then I can see why you’d prefer to keep it that way. Still, don’t you sometimes wonder… “what if?”
Donovan: Not very often, Nixy. Now, we’re supposed to be having a good time, right? So what do you say we concentrate on that, Mrs. Basch…
Danielle looks into her husband’s eyes and smiles before taking another sip of her margarita.
Danielle: Say that again….
Donovan: Certainly…. Mrs Basch…
Donovan carefully takes the drink from Danielle’s hand and moves it to the table. Standing up from his seat, he scoops up his giggling bride and carries her out of the room.
Danielle: Hey, my drink!
Donovan: It’ll still be there….