“In 20 minutes or so,” Troy responds.
“Do you and Troy have lists, too?” I ask Zander.
“We do,” he smiles.
We’re soon in our vehicles, heading back to Alex’s house. Bay's already here, and we find him, Alex, E, and Steven in the livingroom drinking coffee. Steven's not joining us, but offered breakfast after we finish shopping. We’re taking Alex’s SUV, Zander’s truck, and Troy’s SUV shopping.
“Just a friendly reminder, we have the buddy system in place tonight. Don’t go anywhere alone, including the washroom. Keep your phones turned up and on vibrate. Darling, some stores will have sizeable crowds, so stay close, please,” Zander announces.
We all nod, then pile into our vehicles. Our first stop is an outdoor mall in Charleston. Fortunately, not all the stores are opening simultaneously, but we'll need to split up later tonight. We’ve designated a large toy store for purchasing gifts for the group home and orphanage children, and that'll be our first stop.
The parking lot is already half full when we arrive, despite all the stores being closed. We get in line behind other shoppers waiting at the toy store. We all dressed in warm clothes, knowing we'd have to wait outside. Gabby turns on some music with her phone, just loud enough for us to hear, as everyone else surrounds us. We chat about school, gossip, sports, work, and everything else as we wait in line. We’ve compared lists and decided to split up when we enter the store. Zander and Troy will go to the left, while the rest of us will hit the right side of the store.
It’s a good thing we arrived when we did. The line to enter has wrapped around the building and is out of sight as it gets closer to the store opening, with about 30 people ahead of us.
When the doors finally open, Gabby and I are surrounded by the guys, and it’s a good thing, as people are aggressively pushing inside. Gabby and Seb know exactly where to go, so I follow along. Bay and Alex leave to grab carts once we're in the aisles and the crowd has spread out. Gabby hands Seb, E, and me the toys from our list, and our hands are full by the time Alex and Bay find us. I offer to push one cart, which will help keep people away from me. Bay stays at my side while Alex follows behind me with the second cart. It’s a mad rush around this side of the store to get everythingwe want. Luckily, we don’t need specific items, as some shelves are empty by the time we get to them.
Once we’re done, we get in line to check out. There are people everywhere, but all the lanes are open. Zander and Troy find us while we wait. Alex and Troy are paying for all the gifts, and we'll divide up the costs later.
After dropping off the shopping bags, we hit store after store at the mall, choosing to walk to each one. Zander and Troy get into his truck and drive between stores so we can drop off bags as we go.
The entire night is an exhausting whirlwind, but we're all in high spirits. E brought a thermos of tea and two of coffee, plus snacks, so we can keep hydrated and fueled. I get most of my list completed despite the crowds. Most of the other stores were open by the time we left the toy store, so the crowds were better.
By the time we're finished, it’s close to 4am and despite the snacks and drinks, I’m exhausted. We split into vehicles and drive back to Alex’s house. I ask Zander how he’s still so awake as he drives us.
“I was often awake for 24 hours in the Army, darling. That, and coffee works well,” he smiles.
When we arrive, everyone helps unload all the bags into their respective vehicles. The rest goes into the garage to sort through later.
Steven meets us at the front door, ushering us into the dining room, with a breakfast buffet set up along the wall. We each grab a plate and dig in, most of us too tired to say much. “Did you have a successful night?” Steven asks us.
“Very,” Seb answers. “We got so much stuff. It was great.”
After breakfast, we thank Steven and all drive home to sleep.
Our shopping bags make it to the foyer before I start to crash. “I’ll deal with this later, Dad. I need to sleep,” I mumble, waving as Iwalk towards my room.
I hear him chuckle. I strip in my closet and pull on some pajamas before crawling into bed and falling asleep. What a crazy night.
Chapter 44
Summer
I wake to someone sitting on my bed, brushing my hair away from my face. Blinking my eyes open, I see Seb watching me. “Time to get up, Sunshine,” he singsongs.
“Ugh,” I mumble. “What time is it?”
“Just after lunchtime. Gabs and Troy are here too. We usually spend the day together organizing the gifts, and we barbecue for dinner.”
Sitting up, I rub my eyes and yawn. “Okay,” I reply. “Need to shower first, Hurry.”
He leans over and kisses my cheek. “Come out when you’re ready.” Seb stands and walks back out into the hall.
Grabbing some clothes, I clean up in the bathroom, including taking a hot shower, before heading for the living room. “Hi everyone,” I wave.
Zander passes a tea across the island to me along with a turkey sandwich. “Troy made sandwiches for everyone with the leftover turkey,” he tells me.
“Thanks, Troy,” I smile. The sandwich is superb and hits the spot. Once I’ve finished eating, Seb helps me gather all the bags from the front foyer area and haul them into the living room.
