Pal-entine's for Single Parents

"Oh, it's not bad," I said. "I just think these should bespecial clothes, right? Sleepovers and movie nights only, that way they stay nice and they don't get dirty when we're doing arts and crafts or going outside."

"I think that's an excellent idea," Olivia backed me up, and the girls quickly agreed. I had another sneaky smile exchange with Olivia; neither of the girls knew that we'd bought our own Kigurumi as well, and at our movie night that was planned for tomorrow we would bust them out to surprise the girls as a lion and a tiger.

Carmen came back and got pictures of the girls together, then insisted on a few of the four of us together to memorialise the moment for the girls. She was gushing over the fact that the girls would be friends for life - something I hoped was true, but I also knew could fall apart considering middle school and then high school both did things to girls and their friendships - when a short, thin man of clearly Japanese descent came down the stairs from the second floor and made the turn into the living room.

"Dad, this is Adrian," Olivia said, gesturing to me. "Adrian, this is my Dad, Sota."

"Nice to meet you, sir," I said, going to him and offering him my hand.

"Please, son, call me Sota," he said, his English strong and unaccented. "It's good to finally meet the man who my daughter and granddaughter can't stop talking about."

"Dad!" Olivia groaned. "Jesus, both of you make it sound like- ugh."

Sota grinned in a way that first told me that he was where Olivia got her attractive smile, and second that he'd said it on purpose just to tease his daughter. The girls, still in their onesies, went back to May's other presents and were talking excitedly as I quickly fell into small talk with Sota and Olivia while Carmen went to get some Christmas cookies for everyone. I got the update on how Olivia's father was doing after his surgery, though I already knew most of it from her. Single-bypass, and they installed a pacemaker as well. Something about a long-dormant minor genetic defect that exacerbated with age. He'd been a runner all his life so it had come out of nowhere when he'd gotten worked up over a Japanese drama show he liked - something he blushed to admit, but also laughed over.

Carmen came back with the cookies, and we shifted a bit as the girls insisted that if they were wearing their onesies then, by the rules, theyhad to watch a movie. A look from Carmen and Sota assured me we were welcome for the length of a kid's movie at least, and we still had time before June and I needed to head to my own parents' place for family dinner and gifts that evening, so soon Elf was playing on the TV as we adults chatted in the background.

More cookies came out part way through, and I had to tell Carmen that she made thesecond-best cookies I'd ever tasted - second only to my own Mother. That got a laugh out of her, and I could tell she had the same sense of humour as her daughter. About two-thirds of the way through the movie, while Olivia had been answering a question from the girls and her parents had both gone back into the kitchen, I was busy looking at the books on the bookshelf tucked into the back wall of the room when Sota came back in and gasped dramatically. I looked over and he was looking at me with big eyes.

"Uh-oh," he said.

"Hmm?" I hummed, immediately feeling like I'd done something wrong.

"Dad," Olivia groaned.

Sota pointed up above my head, and I followed the line of his finger up to where, hanging just above the bookshelf, was a sprig of mistletoe. That made me groan and chuckle as well.

"You know the rule," Sota said, wagging his finger at me as he smirked.

"Dad, come on," Olivia said. "He didn't know it was there."

"Ah-ah," Sota said, and I got the immediate sense that this was one of those family traditions that went back decades and had been long fought over. "Stand under the mistletoe and you gotta be kissed." He turned to me. "So, who's it going to be? You gonna kiss my wife, my daughter, or pucker up for me?"

I couldn't help but laugh at his teasing, trying not to snort as I also tried to shove my embarrassment down deep.

Olivia sighed, rolling her eyes as she stepped between me and her father. "Not appropriate, Dad," she said.

"Fine," Sota said with a grin and a shrug. "You don't want me kissing him, then you kiss him. Otherwise, thewhole holiday will be ruined from bad karma."

Olivia turned back to me, her cheeks probably feeling about as hot as my own. "I'm so sorry about this," she said.

"It's OK," I chuckled, shaking my head. "If it's tradition, it's tradition. Call your Mom in here."

Olivia dropped her jaw in shock and after a moment slapped my arm as Sota started laughing behind her.

"Come here so I can shut him up," Olivia said, doing the opposite and stepping up to me. She reached up to wrap a hand around the back of my neck while I lightly took her by the waist and bent to meet her.

Our lips touched, pressing together smoothly, and my nose filled with the smell of her. It wasn't that I hadn't smelled her shampoo or mild perfume before - being in cars together, sitting in the stands at the girls' gymnastics side-by-side, I'd caught whiffs here and there. This was different though, and I was filled with the mixed smells of her. She made it clear very early that this wasn't a peck - obviously that wouldn't 'shut him up' like she intended. The kiss also didn't get sexual though. No tongue. Our lips worked gently, soft suction in a give and take, and the nails on her hand gently pulled across the back of my neck until they slipped from my skin, just the heel of her hand against the side of my neck.

"Eeeeeeewww!" Both girls chorused from over on the couch and started giggling.

The moment ended and we both pulled back from the kiss, laughing. Her hand came down from my neck to my arm. My one hand stayed on her waist for a long moment.

"What?" I asked the girls. "You think getting a kiss from me is that gross? Come here, you little dragon!" I stalked over to the girls, followed by Olivia as she went for her own daughter. I caught my giggling girl and leaned over the couch, planting kisses across her forehead and cheeks with loud kissy sounds, and Olivia did the same with May as they squirmed around until they fell out of reach as they rolled to the floor, still laughing hard.

"Good," Sota grinned as he came over, slapping me on the back. "Karma is restored, Christmas is saved."

"That's not a real thing, Dad," Olivia sighed with another roll of her eyes for the old man.

"Says you," Sota chuckled.

- - - - -

"I still can't believe you got this back here without me even knowing," Olivia said as she handed me the steaming mug of cocoa and sat down next to me.

I'd built the new swinging chair over the last month in my garage - once I'd found the design online it hadn't been that difficult since I already had the basic knowhow and tools. It wasn't a masterpiece that would become a family heirloom, but I'd built it strong and sleek and it fit the spot on her back porch perfectly.

"Well, June helped," I said with a grin.

"Oh, yeah, I'm sure she did," Olivia chuckled, looking out at the girls as they were building miniature snowmen across her backyard. Each one was maybe only a foot and a half tall and there were already a half dozen of them. "But seriously, you spent your Christmas morning doing this? I didn't even notice it until late this morning."

Again I couldn't help but smirk a little. "Just accept your Christmas gift, Livvy."

She rolled her eyes and then took a sip of her cocoa. "Thank you, Adrian," she said.

"You're welcome."

We just sat quietly for a moment, watching the girls, and then Livvy sighed. "We should talk about the elephant in the room."

"The kiss?" I asked.

"I'm sorry that my Dad made it a whole thing," she said. "And I'm sorry I might have made it weird. We could have gotten away with a peck, but I wanted to shut him up. My parents worry and nag me about being single and I just wanted to shut him up and show him we were friends and it wouldn't be a big deal."

"I get it," I said. "Rebecca has tried to set me up with a couple of people she knows in town and I've... resisted. I'm not looking to add someone into my life right now. I've got family, I've got good friends like you. Dating just feels like..."

"A waste of time?" Olivia suggested.

"Exactly," I said. "My life is already full. Trying to cram in dating would just take away from other important things, I think."

"God, you and me both," Olivia said, leaning into me just a little as she moved the swinging chair into motion. "I'd never want to take time away from May."

"So we're good on the kiss thing?" I asked. "No lingering awkwardness?"

"Not from my end," she said. "It was just a kiss."

"Alright," I said, bringing my arm back, wrapping it around her shoulders and pulling her into a side hug. She patted my shoulder and leaned her head against me more in response. We separated after a long moment, and I chuckled.

"What?" she asked.

"For 'just a kiss,' it was a pretty good one," I teased her.

She laughed and gave me a shove on the arm.

- - - - -

"The girls are all tucked in?" Rebecca asked as I walked into the kitchen. My parents had kept up their tradition of hosting New Year's parties for all their friends and family and the house was full between the living room, dining room and basement lounge areas.

"Olivia is doing last good nights," I said, opening the fridge and pulling out a beer.

"I like her," my sister said. "Good mom, good person, doesn't take any shit from the Mom groups."

I smirked and shook my head. Ever since they'd met on Halloween briefly, Olivia and Rebecca had been trading stories about being moms. My sister was a few years older than me, and I was a few years older than Olivia, so I felt like Olivia was getting some much-needed mom-support that wasn't from her own Mother. The fact that I also got the benefit of Rebecca's Mom-based suggestions had been a big help in relating to June over the years.

"Yeah, I'm glad we met," I said. "And June and May..."

"So cute together," Rebecca agreed with a grin. "I wish my Nat or Parker had friends like those two have in each other."

"Oh, come on," I said. "Natalie has her whole school band, I saw the way she was a leader with them at the winter concert. And Parker has her soccer team."

"Not the same," Rebecca smiled at me in that 'you know nothing, John Snow' kind of way. "So when are you going to nut up and ask Olivia out?"

I coughed on the sip of beer I was taking and glared at Rebecca as I tried to clear my throat, knowing she'd asked me while I was drinking on purpose. "We aren't like that," I managed to croak out before clearing my throat fully. "We're just good friends."

"Sure, sure," Rebecca said. "And I'm the Queen of England. Jesus, Adrian, your last two relationshipssucked and you jumped into them with both feet. Now you have a woman like Olivia right in front of you and you can't pull the trigger?"

"We're just friends, Rebecca," I said sternly.

"You can't tell me you haven't thought about it," she challenged me. "She'sthat pretty, andthat sexy, andthat good with your kid?"

I flushed and glanced away. "Idle thoughts aside, we're good how we are."

Rebecca sighed and let me change the subject, and soon enough Olivia came looking for me to let me know that the girls were down. They'd made it all the way to 11 PM before they crashed and we'd carried them up to my old room - now a guest room - to tuck them in.

We filtered out of the kitchen and back into the party. Only about half the crowd were our parent's age; my Mother went big for New Year and had for years, so neighbours and the now-grown-up kids of her friends were invited as well. I ended up in a conversation with a couple of guys who I'd grown up with and one of their wives, while Olivia was chatting with a few of my cousins.

When my mother came by, hooking my arm and tugging me away from the guys, I figured she just needed some help with a new batch of appetisers or something. I followed her to the kitchen.

"What's up?" I asked.

"We need to talk about Olivia," she said.

I frowned. "Did something happen?"

"No," my Mother said, though I could tell she was frustrated with me for some reason. "Not yet, at least."

"What does that mean, Mom?"

She sighed and shook her head at me, and I recognized my own mannerisms in her. It was the same look I sometimes had to give June when she was doing something that was obviously the harder method of accomplishing something just because she was being a little stubborn. "Are you planning to kiss her for New Year?" My Mom asked.

"I- We're not together," I said. "Why does everyone keep trying to push us towards that?"

She gave me a look. "I'm not pushing you two together," she said. "Not that I think you two wouldn't work out - between what you and Rebecca have told me about her, and meeting her tonight, she's absolutely lovely and you'd be lucky to have her. But," she held up a finger to stop my interruption. "Teddy has been flirting with her all night, and I would bet dollars to donuts he'll make a move on her for the ball drop in ten minutes."

I drew in a breath and let it out slowly. "Teddy is a drunk and an ass, and Olivia wouldn't ever put up with either of those things."

"He's a charming drunk like tonight when he isn't completely shitfaced, and it takes time for people to realise he's an ass," my Mom pointed out. "You've known him as your cousin since you were a kid so you justknow that stuff, but Olivia doesn't."

"Fuck, Mom," I sighed.

"I just wanted you to know in case you might want to head it off," she said. "For whatever reason you want to put on it."

"You know I'm happy with my life now, right?" I asked. "Being back here, close to you and Dad and Rebecca and her girls. Having a good friend like Olivia."

"I know, sweetie," my Mom said, rubbing my arm. "I promise I'm not trying to be pushy. Yet."

"Great," I deadpanned. "Can't wait for when you try."

She laughed and winked at me before heading back out into the party, and I followed her. There were about five minutes left; the TVs in the house were all tuned to the Times Square broadcast but on mute, and the timer in the corner suddenly felt like a countdown on a timebomb for me. The last fucking thing I needed was Teddy trying to get involved with Olivia - Mom was right, hewas a charming drunk. He had a string of short-term relationships to prove it dating all the way back to high school.

Not that I'd be jealous or anything, I told myself. I just knew Olivia wouldn't want the full-court press that Teddy would lay out if he was shot down lightly. And if shedid entertain him even for a hot minute, well, I didn't need Teddy asking me how she was every time I saw him at a family function.

I found Olivia in the basement lounge talking with Teddy, a couple of the younger neighbours on my parents' block, and Rebecca's husband Carl. As I approached Olivia noticed me coming and smiled with her lips, but I could tell from her eyes that she was looking for an out. Teddy was standing close to her - not quite invading her personal space, but the body language was obvious that he was interested in her.

"Hey," I said, stepping right up and wrapping my arm around Olivia's shoulders, pulling her into a side hug. "What are we talking about?"

Olivia slid her arm back and put her hand on my lower back, catching me up on the conversation and laughing with Carl and the neighbours as they recounted a story Carl had told about Rebecca facing down Francine earlier in the year. Teddy pivoted the topic to something about him standing up to his boss at work, most of his focus on Olivia as he told it clearly trying to impress everyone with how he'd 'saved the business.'

It was entirely possible that he had, to be fair. Teddy wasn't a dumb guy.

The end of his story got cut off as folks realised that the final countdown was happening on the TVs and everyone got excited. A couple of older folks started counting down from thirty, which was abit much, and Rebecca came down the stairs looking for her husband and joined our circle.

We all started counting down at 10, and it was one of those moments where it should have felt corny but with everyone in on it, it just felt like a special tradition.

"Happy New Year!" We all called loudly as the timer hit 0, the noise all over the house as some folks let loose with noisemakers and I could even hear my Dad popping a couple of streamer-shooters upstairs. Rebecca had pulled Carl into a kiss, and the neighbour couple were doing the same.

I turned to Olivia and she was looking up at me with a grin, this time with it reaching up to her eyes as I leaned in to kiss her. She raised both arms over my shoulders, crossing her wrists behind my neck.

Again, I was struck by the smell of her filling my nostrils. She'd been drinking wine and I could taste that on her lips. I rubbed her hip gently as we kissed and she leaned into me a little. Just before we pulled away I thought I felt a flick of her tongue against my lip.

"Happy New Year," she said, still holding me close.

"Happy New Year," I replied.

"Thanks," she said a little quieter, flicking her eyes to the side in the direction of Teddy.

I winked and then leaned in and kissed the tip of her nose. "Just traditions and stuff."

"And stuff," she smirked and chuckled. Then she brought her arms down and put one hand on my chest gently. I hadn't removed mine from her hip. "We should probably go check on the girls, that probably woke them up."

'True," I said. "Let's go celebrate and tuck them back in."

I never could remember if Teddy had looked put out or not at me blocking his own New Year Kiss attempt. I never bothered to check.

- - - - -

January

The girls, and I guess we parents, were back into the routine by mid-January. Early morning Saturday gymnastics was still a bit of a bitch, especially now that we were in the middle of winter and it wasfucking cold. People I'd known who had never left California, or the lower States, never really understood that multiple States other than Alaska were actually further north than the most populated parts of Canada.

The snow was piled high, the temperature was 'freeze your nipples off' cold, but there Olivia and I were with our butts planted on the cold bleachers while the girls got their latest lessons from the college coeds. We'd gotten through our initial coffees from the Dunkin' on our way out and I'd just gotten back from getting us refills from the dispenser in the lobby when the Head Coach came around having just finished speaking to a couple of other people.

"Hey folks," she said with a broad smile. "I just wanted to let everyone know that we're going to start prepping for the end-of-season celebration. Every level we teach will do a performance, and the coaches will do a demonstration of their college routines as well - just something to inspire the kids and show where they can go if they stick with the program. I know it's a little early, but we like to stay ahead of things."

"Sounds great," I said. "Do we need to do anything?"

The coach smiled. "We ask every household to help a little with some fundraising so we can upgrade a piece of equipment here at the centre every year and show it off at the celebration. Can I put y'all down to sell some chocolate almonds? We're asking each family to try and sell at least twenty boxes, but the more the better for the program obviously. I'm sure between the two of you that shouldn't be too hard, would it?"

"Oh, we're-" I started.