December 2042

Sam

"He'll be completely surprised," Sam was saying, as he cradled his cell phone on his shoulder while his fourth and final teenager, Summer, gave him a huge eye roll and then turned her back on him. The other three, now young adults, had given him this treatment at one time or another, too, so it was nothing new. He was immune to teenage attitude. Sam said good-bye to his wife and turned his attention back to the task at hand.

His daughter's impatient look told him she didn't appreciate Sam's distracted style of shopping. They were supposed to be just be looking for a new Christmas puzzle, but then Sam had remembered something else. In November, they'd deliberately postponed the celebration of the fortieth anniversary of Artie's accident, so that they could celebrate when everyone was in town for Christmas this year. Artie didn't know, however, that Sam was going to buy a bunch of 'Over The Hill' decorations and go all out for this milestone wheel-birthday. Sam dragged Summer over to the party store to see what they had.

"Remind me again why you celebrate this?" Summer wanted to know, as she watched her dad fill up the shopping cart. "It's the accident that put Uncle Artie in a wheelchair. He nearly died. You throw him a party?"

"Right, because he didn't die," Sam said, as he continued to pile the cart full of much more than they needed. "And that is why we celebrate. You see, Sum, at first, November 24th made your Uncle Artie really sad. One year, on the eleventh anniversary of his accident to be exact, I decided I'd get him a cake and throw a small party. I thought maybe it would backfire, but as it turned out, Uncle Artie had always wanted to do that."

Summer's expression changed and she nodded, in full understanding now. At seventeen, his daughter was becoming a pretty fun person to hang out with, even though Sam had to glare at the guys who stared at her. With her model good-looks, she'd typically been mistaken for older than her actually age for awhile now.

"We should hurry," Summer said. "If we want to get all this hung up before dinner. Plus, Asa will probably be back from the airport with A.J. and what's-her-name, and Mom said to try and beat them home.

"Be nice, Sum," Sam said, as he turned their cart to get into the back of the short line. The party store was one of the few stores that wasn't busy on Christmas Eve. "She may be the girl your brother's going to propose to..."

Summer sighed. "I guess it's about time," she said. "But I've only met Georgia a handful of times. And if they do get engaged, it most definitely means he's going to be moving there for good."

"I know, I know." None of his other kids had moved very far away after high school. Sadie and Asa both attended college at Ohio State, with Sadie set to finish that coming May. Summer was leaning towards the same decision as the other two, though she hadn't made any definite plans yet. She was, by far, their most carefree child. It was, however, her senior year and she needed to decide soon.

"You're sure Uncle Artie's not going to find this, like, offensive?" Summer asked, surveying their cart. "There are... tombstones."

"He's not, I promise."


"Stop just doing all of the easy parts," Sadie complained, as she tried to do the puzzle that her dad and Summer had picked up earlier.

"Let me do it the way I want to," Summer protected, as she continued piecing together the little signs with words on them while leaving Sadie to do the harder parts.

"Girls, we need that table!" Sam stopped to see that they were trying to do a puzzle on their card table. Summer and Sadie both just shrugged and moved it carefully over to the coffee table in the living room instead. "Sadie, please go get the chairs for this, and Summer, please go see what you can help your mother with."

"Feels a bit like we're still twelve sometimes, doesn't it?" Summer commented to her sister.

"Well, we have to have everything perfect for..." And then Sadie slipped effortlessly into the perfect southern accent, crafted during her many years starring in school musicals. "... Miss Georgia Mae Cunningham! Such a pleasure to meet y'all."

Summer doubled over. "Is that actually her full name?" she wanted to know. "Georgia Mae Cunningham? Sounds like something out of a movie!"

"I kid you not, that is the name of the girl our brother wants to marry," Sadie told her sister. "I guess it's fitting that she was just named after the state where she was born, since August was just named after the month."

"Girls, now," Sam urged. "Please?"

But just then, the doorbell rang, and since their aunt, uncle, and cousins weren't due to arrive just yet, it could only mean that Asa had finally returned with their eldest brother and his girlfriend.

At twenty-eight, A.J. was old enough to settle down, and he'd been dating this girl, Georgia, for nearly a year now, so it wouldn't be all that surprising if something happened. It was just that the family hadn't been able to get to know her, so it was going to feel like their son and brother was marrying a stranger.

He came in with Georgia on his arm, and Sam noticed right away, she was not so subtly keeping her left hand tucked into the pocket of her University of Georgia sweatshirt. With her softly curled auburn hair and huge brown eyes, she was undeniably beautiful. She was also the same age as Sadie, a fact that hadn't exactly gone unnoticed by anyone during the previous two times they'd met Georgia.

"Georgia, you remember Sadie," A.J. said. "And Asa. And Summer. And this is my dad, Sam. And here's my mother, Amy."

"Pleasure to see y'all again," she drawled, and Sam personally liked the southern accents, but then, his parents were originally from Tennessee, so he'd always liked the way southerners talked like they weren't in a hurry.

As Amy herded them all into the kitchen, Sam noticed Sadie and Summer mouthing pleasure to meet y'all, mocking Georgia's thick accent behind her back as they went. He gave them both a nudge and a firm shake of the head, on the way.

"August was telling me we're having a birthday party," Georgia said, noticing the decor, which was largely confined to the kitchen, though Sam had put some black balloons in the living room, too. "But, uh, I thought it was for his little cousins?"

"Well, the cousins aren't that little," Amy explained. "They're turning seventeen, actually, and yes, their birthday is tomorrow, on Christmas. But, um, this is for my brother and A.J.'s uncle, Artie, but he's forty-eight. But, well, forty years ago, when he was eight, he was in a serious car accident. He's been in a wheelchair ever since. This is sort of our... traditional celebration of his second chance at life."

"Doesn't explain the tombstones, I know," Summer commented.

Sam knew these were some seriously weird traditions but Georgia took them in stride and didn't look phased by the weird party she was crashing.

"Well, before they get here and we start all that," A.J. interjected, looking nervously at the rest of his family, most of whom seemed to know what was coming. Sam actually saw Amy draw in a deep breath and hold it. "Uh, Georgia and I have an announcement..."

On cue, she beamed ever so brightly and held out her left hand to display the diamond solitaire. "August proposed last night!" exclaimed Georgia Mae Cunningham. "And I said yes!" And she grabbed her fiancé's face and kissed him right there in the kitchen, with his whole family looking on.

Amy was the first to offer congratulations and hugs, with Asa and Sam following suite, and after another nudge from Sam, Sadie and Summer also did the same.

"Are we all calling you August now?" Asa wanted to know, an amused look on his face as his older brother shot a menacing stare in her direction that still meant shut up or else.

But before A.J. or August could clarify what he wished to be called, the doorbell rang again, signaling the arrival of their cousins.

Another thing Georgia didn't act phased by at all was the arrival of Mia, who was much shorter than her twin brother, Mac, and was even shorter than eight-year-old Chance, who had shot up past her at least two years ago.

"Uncle Artie, Aunt Kitty, let me be the first to introduce my fiancé." August/A.J. clearly liked the sound of the word and this was followed by more introductions, as well as oohs and ahhs over the ring.

It was then that Artie noticed the kitchen decor and let out a surprised chuckle. "Oh, we're still doing this?" he laughed a little more. "I really thought you forgot. Which, uh, would be fine but... clearly you didn't."

"Clearly not because there's also a cake." Summer said that last part a bit incredulously. The "wheel-birthday" had largely been an adults only event for the past several years, and not one including the adult children. Consequently, the idea of this cake seemed pretty foreign and strange to her. And... there was a candle with '40' on a tombstone.

"Well, it better not be red velvet," Artie quipped.

"You are weird for hating red velvet," Amy told him. "And no, it's not. So, blow out that burning tombstone and let's eat the dinner I made before it gets cold."


When they were gathered in the living room after dinner and cake, the idea of Christmas karaoke got thrown out for everyone's approval, and most everyone agreed that sounded fun. Georgia Mae Cunningham looked a wee bit uncomfortable, however, but she smiled politely and seemed to be trying to just go with it.

After Chance and Asa finished their rendition of 'Little Saint Nick,' which Chance impressed them all just by knowing, Sadie nudged Mia to go next.

"Sing the one you did at church on Sunday," she urged her, as Mia blushed furiously.

Sam loved hearing her voice. She, Mac, and Summer were now old enough to be in the New Directions. Mia was perhaps their best singer, though her voice was complimented perfectly by Summer's more subtle, subdued alto. Most of the time, she couldn't accept many solos, because her coach was also her mother.

'Oh, Holy Night,' sang Mia. 'The stars were brightly shining. It is the night of our dear Savior's birth...'

Mia did it all. Not only was she the 'new Rachel' of Glee club (and yes, everyone still said that, because Rachel Berry's Broadway stardom and her humble beginnings at McKinley were still known to that day), but she was a Cheerio and she'd even been elected to Homecoming Court as a junior that year. Sam had served as her unofficial physical therapist until he finally got brave enough to say to Artie that he was pretty sure Mia was doing just fine on her own. On top of performing and being athletic, but she was most likely going to be in the running for Valedictorian her senior year.

Sometimes, Mac got forgotten, as everyone focused on his sister and the fact that she did all these things as a Little Person. Mac had his own accomplishments, like being the kicker on the football team, playing competitive club soccer, and being accomplished in martial arts (an excellent and healthy way to channel that natural aggression). He seemed content, as it was, to take the backseat to his sister most of the time, though Sam could occasionally see the cracks.

Mia gave Summer the floor next and insisted she do 'Mary, Did You Know?' This had been her solo in church, and Summer wasn't too shy to show off her own talents next. Summer was known for marching to the beat of her own drum. She would have never been caught dead in Cheerios, but she also didn't judge her cousin for being on the team. She preferred staying in and just hanging out with her family on Saturday nights, as opposed to goingout. Her personality was similar to how Amy's had been when she was in high school. (A freaking long time ago...)

At the urging of the others, one of the last to sing was Georgia, who still looked pretty unsure of herself as she tried to sing a very timid version of 'Jingle Bell Rock.' She was halfway through the song when she covered her mouth and went running for the guest bathroom.

Sam looked from Georgia's retreating back to his wife, who had suddenly gone quite pale. "Excuse me," she said, as she got to her feet slowly and braced herself on the couch for a brief moment before retreating to her room. With a meaningful look, Sam gestured for Artie and Kitty to follow her.

Amy was pacing at the foot of her bed when they joined her. "She's pregnant!" she blurted out. "I know she is. And they're just waiting to drop that bomb on us next."

"Calm down, Grandma," Artie said, wheeling up beside her and getting in her way so that she had to stop pacing. She blew her cheeks out in frustration as her hands went to her hips and she looked at him. "I didn't freak out when I found out about you."

"Yes, you did," said Kitty, Sam, and Amy, in unison.

"Okay, okay, yes I did," Artie admitted, smirking. "But that was different. Sam was nineteen and unemployed. A.J. is a college graduate."

"Gee, thanks," said Sam.

"My point being," Artie went on. "Things turned out okay for you. They'll be fine as well. So, get out there and let's celebrate the new life."

"It wouldn't be Christmas in this family without someone being pregnant," Kitty added, brightly.

There was a knock at the door and the person responsible didn't wait for a response before barging on in. "Georgia Mae Cunningham's feeling better," reported Sadie, and it was clear that she was going to keep using the other girl's full name for awhile. "And she and dear August have a bit more news to share, if y'all can kindly assemble in the livin' room real quick?"


"Grandparents."

Hours later, Kitty and Artie had gone home with their brood. All of Sam and Amy's grown and nearly-grown children were in bed. Now that they'd learned Georgia Mae Cunningham was not only August's future wife, but that she was carrying his child as well, there was no reason not to accept the two of them sharing his childhood bedroom that night.

"I gotta say," Sam said, turning onto his side in bed to stare at his completely gorgeous wife, who couldn't possibly be anyone's grandmother. "I didn't give much thought to being a young grandpa until literally right now, but now that I'm thinking about it, I like the idea."

"Grandparents," Amy said, again, turning on her back and staring at the ceiling fan. "I gotta call Mom tomorrow. I forgot to do it earlier. She's gonna flip when she finds out she's about to be a great-grandmother."

"You're not my grandmother." To prove this point, Sam reached for his wife and cuddled up beside her.

"That's exactly what Steve Martin's character said, in 'Father of the Bride 2,' right before he knocked up Diane Keaton."

"I didn't even steal that movie line on purpose," Sam commented. "Super impressive that you caught my accidental quote though." He nuzzled her. "That's why you're my wife. And that's why I had that vasectomy after Summer, remember?"

"Taking one for the team," Amy said.

"Exactly." He paused. "Merry Christmas, Grandma. Or whatever your grandparent name is going to be."

"Mimi," she said, with a smile. "Just because it's kind of close to my actual name and because it was what we used to call my grandmother on my mom's side. But please, dear Lord, do not ever call me that in bed."

"Deal."