the display light, but still.
“ That is the best damned dollhouse I have ever seen,” he said, ignoring the fact that he had never really looked at a dollhouse until this point in his life. It was immaterial. The house itself was made of wood, but it was sized to accommodate everything from Barbie dolls to Bratz, although Hank was pretty partial to the smaller, detailed wooden dolls that came with it. He looked up from his gift trance and was disoriented for a moment, because Justin had disappeared again. Before Hank could even look around for him, he came back, pushing the cart through the crowded store with all the aplomb of a Maharajah in the Imperial Bazaar.
“Here we go,” Justin said, squatting down and pulling out the first dollhouse on the shelf—and then setting it aside.
“What are you doing?” Hank asked. He loved this gift. He wanted to hold it to his chest and hiss at anybody who came to touch it. Well, maybe he’d let Justin touch it. And Josie of course. Definitely Josie. But seriously, only the three of them. That was the circle of dollhouse trust. Anyone else was not invited.
“We don’t want the first one,” Justin said logically. “It’s been picked up and looked at and fondled and rattled. We want the second or third one on the shelf—and here you are, my little beauty, come to Uncle Justin!”
Justin straightened triumphantly, and Hank had never seen a more beautiful heart than the one Justin wore out for anyone to see in his smile.
“Okay, we’ve got the house. Now the—”
“And we want this one, and this one, and this one—” Justin was already picking out the accessories; Hank had to act fast or get left in the dust!
“You want a big brother doll?” That was a little out of Josie’s detail range, wasn’t it?
“It’s an Uncle Justin doll. And see here? It’s an Uncle Hank doll. He’s even got your scowl.”
“Well, Uncle Justin has nothing near your smile,” Hank said without thinking, and his reward was that same smile, amped to the brightness scale of a solar flare, softened only by shining blue eyes.
“You like my smile?” Justin asked wistfully, and Hank nodded, suddenly tongue-tied.
“Very much,” he said, gnawing on his lower lip out of sheer shyness.
If Justin hadn’t stood on tiptoe and kissed him right then, in the middle of Toys “R” Us, Hank might have been blind for life. But that was okay. It was a very nice kiss.
T HEY cleaned out Toys “R” Us. Well, not exactly, there were a lot of toys, and the boys side of the store was definitely untouched (although Hank set his eye on a set of three Nerf air-soft pistols to give Justin, because he thought those looked like fun) but generally, after the triumph of the dollhouse, they’d gone a little nuts.
Everything.
Hank wanted to buy her everything.
He had not forgotten his common sense, though, and he did draw the line about ten gifts before Justin would have, but Hank figured that if he was tired shopping for the gifts, then Josie would be tired opening them on Christmas day.
“But…” Justin whined as they cleared checkout. “What are we going to look for now?”
Hank grinned at him, suddenly feeling like a kid playing hooky.
“Anything we want!” he said, surprised, and Justin giggled.
And then they went shopping.
Oh, it was fun. They didn’t actually buy much, but they wandered into almost every store, picking things up and commenting and cracking random, juvenile jokes, revealing hidden things about each other just by talking. Hank learned that Justin had failed algebra twice, until his father just started feeding him answers to get him through, and that a complete helplessness with math was one of the reasons he wanted to teach the very young children instead of the older ones. He learned that Justin had one older sister still at home (which he’d known) and two older brothers who were still in the area (which he had surmised) and that his parents had set up a
“ That is the best damned dollhouse I have ever seen,” he said, ignoring the fact that he had never really looked at a dollhouse until this point in his life. It was immaterial. The house itself was made of wood, but it was sized to accommodate everything from Barbie dolls to Bratz, although Hank was pretty partial to the smaller, detailed wooden dolls that came with it. He looked up from his gift trance and was disoriented for a moment, because Justin had disappeared again. Before Hank could even look around for him, he came back, pushing the cart through the crowded store with all the aplomb of a Maharajah in the Imperial Bazaar.
“Here we go,” Justin said, squatting down and pulling out the first dollhouse on the shelf—and then setting it aside.
“What are you doing?” Hank asked. He loved this gift. He wanted to hold it to his chest and hiss at anybody who came to touch it. Well, maybe he’d let Justin touch it. And Josie of course. Definitely Josie. But seriously, only the three of them. That was the circle of dollhouse trust. Anyone else was not invited.
“We don’t want the first one,” Justin said logically. “It’s been picked up and looked at and fondled and rattled. We want the second or third one on the shelf—and here you are, my little beauty, come to Uncle Justin!”
Justin straightened triumphantly, and Hank had never seen a more beautiful heart than the one Justin wore out for anyone to see in his smile.
“Okay, we’ve got the house. Now the—”
“And we want this one, and this one, and this one—” Justin was already picking out the accessories; Hank had to act fast or get left in the dust!
“You want a big brother doll?” That was a little out of Josie’s detail range, wasn’t it?
“It’s an Uncle Justin doll. And see here? It’s an Uncle Hank doll. He’s even got your scowl.”
“Well, Uncle Justin has nothing near your smile,” Hank said without thinking, and his reward was that same smile, amped to the brightness scale of a solar flare, softened only by shining blue eyes.
“You like my smile?” Justin asked wistfully, and Hank nodded, suddenly tongue-tied.
“Very much,” he said, gnawing on his lower lip out of sheer shyness.
If Justin hadn’t stood on tiptoe and kissed him right then, in the middle of Toys “R” Us, Hank might have been blind for life. But that was okay. It was a very nice kiss.
T HEY cleaned out Toys “R” Us. Well, not exactly, there were a lot of toys, and the boys side of the store was definitely untouched (although Hank set his eye on a set of three Nerf air-soft pistols to give Justin, because he thought those looked like fun) but generally, after the triumph of the dollhouse, they’d gone a little nuts.
Everything.
Hank wanted to buy her everything.
He had not forgotten his common sense, though, and he did draw the line about ten gifts before Justin would have, but Hank figured that if he was tired shopping for the gifts, then Josie would be tired opening them on Christmas day.
“But…” Justin whined as they cleared checkout. “What are we going to look for now?”
Hank grinned at him, suddenly feeling like a kid playing hooky.
“Anything we want!” he said, surprised, and Justin giggled.
And then they went shopping.
Oh, it was fun. They didn’t actually buy much, but they wandered into almost every store, picking things up and commenting and cracking random, juvenile jokes, revealing hidden things about each other just by talking. Hank learned that Justin had failed algebra twice, until his father just started feeding him answers to get him through, and that a complete helplessness with math was one of the reasons he wanted to teach the very young children instead of the older ones. He learned that Justin had one older sister still at home (which he’d known) and two older brothers who were still in the area (which he had surmised) and that his parents had set up a
Similar Books
