Splinters: Part One

Part One | 21

"Hey, I'm just kidding. C'mon, I didn't send us here for no reason."

I shook my head. He was behind me as I looked on the shelves.

"There's nothing in here that Collie would like."

I spun around when I heard Andrew chuckling, holding up a certain object I really didn't know what was for. He pointed at it with his finger once he saw my face.

"No?"

I sighed, putting my hands on my head and walking out the store. Andrew put the item back on the shelf behind me and followed me out. When I sat next to my sister on a bench, I put my head in my hands.

"I'm never gonna find something for her."

Andrew's eyes searched anywhere but at me. I could almost hear him think. He put his hands on his hips as Ursanne and I peered at him. He lifted a finger as his facial expression changed.

"There's one more place. C'mon."

He began walking and turned left, Ursanne and I right behind his feet. We went down an escalator and hurriedly entered a store on our right called Charlie's.

"Charlie's will totally have something."

Charlie's was crowded, too, only this place was filled with older people. Home decor, cooking supplies, stuffed animals, and more were scattered all around. It smelled like sage, too, which wasn't a scent I really liked. It smelled like our backyard if you went close to the trees.

"Alright," Andrew held out his hands. "Spread out."

Ursanne smiled at him much to my annoyance and did as he said. So did I.

"What about this?" Andrew held up a stitched pillow that said "I love you". 

I scowled at him and he put it back on the shelf. He then showed me two mugs that said "Mr. Right." and "Mrs. Right." I frowned at him and glared.

"We're not a married couple having our thirtieth anniversary, Andrew."

He laughed at that and went back to searching.

"Hey!" Ursanne shouted from the other side of the store.

Andrew and I went towards her voice. She stood next to a shelf holding a small white colored bear with a heart. 

"It's a put-it-together teddy bear!" she explained. "I have an idea."

I smiled and nodded. 

...

Two days before Christmas, I began Collie's present. After purchasing the bear, we went and bought a red stuffed elf and put them both in a green box and tied it with a red ribbon. The gift sat underneath my bed, untouched, and it was almost finished. Almost.

I felt that because Collie knows the real me now, I needed to tell her things that I would never be able to say face to face. Since meeting her parents and since the massive snowfall yesterday, it's been difficult to see her so we've just been texting each other. Unfortunately, she had to take a shower so I was left to my own company.

I decided to write to her. If I can do anything, I can write. I'm not amazing, but it's easier for me to put things down on paper. Much easier. So I got up and I went towards my desk. Ripping some lined paper from a notebook, I grasped a pencil and wrote.

It took maybe thirty minutes to write because of all the mistakes I made. About half an eraser gone and one side of the paper full, I read it aloud.

Dear Collie, 

This is the first gift I've ever given and I want you to know the reason why I chose it. Well, truthfully, Ursanne helped me out, but I accepted it to be your gift. It's okay if you didn't get me one. I don't want anything. Well, to make it simpler, I don't need anything. I have all I wanted and more now.

This teddy bear reminds me of me kind of. There are all these parts that make a whole, but they're not put together. But they're going to be. Ursanne and Melissa represent both of the halves and you represent the heart, because I love you. I love them too, but I love you differently.

The point is, you guys all found me broken. You all found me not together. But with all of your help, you're fixing me. You guys are putting me back together. You're making me good.

Thank you. If it weren't for you Collie, I'd probably not be as happy as I am. I'm really happy that I met you. You make me really happy.

I know we had some issues in the beginning, but if it weren't for them, I'm afraid to believe we wouldn't be with each other and that makes me sad. I really care about you and I hope you really care about me, too. I know you do, but it's weird believing that someone does.

It's hard for me to talk about my childhood and my life before Barrington and Constance, but as time goes on, I promise I'll be able to tell you more about it. It's just difficult for now. 

I know you'll keep it all to yourself though and I appreciate that. I want you to know that I appreciate you a lot. Merry Christmas, Collie.

Brayden

I folded the paper in half and slid off the chair, kneeling down under my bed. I pulled out the box and took off the top and laid the paper inside. Then I pushed the box back under the bed until I needed it for Collie.