Chris, Buck, Nathan, and JD sat outside the hotel, watching the rest of the world go by. Things were quiet. Most people were either in church, where Josiah was conducting services, or still sleeping off last night's Christmas revelry.
"Mornin', Ezra," smiled Buck as the gambler approached. "Looks like you got drug through a knothole backwards."
"I blush at your compliment," Ezra replied caustically. He settled into a chair. "My constitution was never meant to handle the cheap liquor that's available in this community."
Buck snorted. "Right."
"Merry Christmas, boys," Vin greeted them. A chorus of voices responded in kind as he settled into an empty chair. "I take it Josiah's still in church?"
Chris nodded. "And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people."
The others, with the exception of Buck, looked at him in surprise.
He smiled. "It's Luke 2:10."
Buck nodded. "Sarah used to read the Christmas story every Christmas Eve and morning. It was her favorite. I remember."
"Sounds like you've had some really nice Christmases, Chris," said JD.
"Nah. Not always. Some good, some bad."
"No?" JD looked at him curiously. "Like what? Tell us."
"Yes, Mr. Larabee," Ezra joined in. "Regale us with some examples. You're among friends."
Chris looked at them. Yes, he was. He tipped his chair back and thought a moment.
"Well, the worst one was...the first Christmas a year after Adam was born."
Buck looked at him sharply. "What? The worst? You mean the best, don't you?
Chris shook his head. "The worst. Adam was collicky, screaming all the time. Sarah and I were arguing..."
"Over what?"
Chris smiled. "I bought her a horse. It was a fine animal. Very expensive. I really wanted her to have it but she didn't approve of me spending so much money without telling her,"
he sighed sadly.
"She was a strong, feisty woman," Buck agreed, looking at the others. "That's why they were so perfect for each other."
"That she was. Made me sleep in the barn that night. Coldest night you can imagine, too, right through your bones. I can't remember a time when I was ever so miserable."
The others listened sympathetically. "What happened?" asked Nathan.
Chris shrugged. "I did what I had to. Swallowed my pride and sold the horse. Took me all Christmas day to find someone to buy it, but I wasn't spendin' another night in that barn."
"That would be a bad Christmas, all right," agreed Ezra. "What was the best?"
"The first Christmas without them."
A silence hung in the air. He looked around at their startled faces.
"I think you'd best explain that one," said Buck.
Chris paused a long time, blinking rapidly. His voice became soft and he seemed to forget his friends were there as he continued. "It was hard. I never...I never felt so alone. I came from a big family back in Indiana. And I had Sarah and Adam for
six years. That first Christmas alone...I'd never spent a Christmas alone...I was so...angry...so..." He took a deep breath. "I never thought a man could die of loneliness till then. I was sure I was going to."
"Sounds like another worst Christmas to me," said JD.
"No. No, it wasn't. I was in this room in some backwater town - I can't even tell you where it was. I was thinking I'd probably die there - when someone busted into my room. It was Buck here, in a Father Christmas costume. God knows where he got it."
Buck smiled broadly. "It had been for a Christmas play. Church ladies are no less friendly than any other kind."
"Anyway, Mr. Charm here hauled me outta bed and helped me get cleaned up. Took me to around with him all day, handin' out candy and fruit to the kids. A lot of 'em had no mama or daddy after a fever had hit the town, and nobody'd paid much attention to 'em. Wish you coulda seen their faces when you'd hand 'em an orange or something. How they'd light up..."
"You shoulda seen 'em," Buck said. "They'd hug me an' him and call 'im 'Uncle Chris.'"
Chris nodded. "Times like that it's hard to be lost in yer own misery. We ended up at the local preacher's. He had a big family and was havin' a party of his own. Made us feel right at home. Even let us stay the night." He stretched out his legs and sighed, giving Buck a sidelong glance. "I realized I wasn't as alone as I thought." He reached out and laid a hand on Buck's shoulder. "And with friends like you, I ain't gonna be. Merry Christmas, Buck."
"Merry Christmas, Chris."
The End
