Work Text:
It was almost Christmas time
And there I stood in another line
Trying to buy that last gift or two
Not really in the Christmas mood
Christian Smythe sighed as he checked his watch for what he was sure was at least the tenth time. He knew that he shouldn’t have waited until Christmas Eve to get some last minute presents. He’d been putting in a lot of hours at the office and, though he didn’t want to admit it, these presents were to bribe his eight year old son, Sebastian, to forgive him for not being home.
And standin right in front of me was a
Little boy waiting anxiously
Pacin’ around like little boys do
And in his hands he held
A pair of shoes
This boy with short brown hair who was in front of Christian, biting his lip and looking nervously around. He kept looking around the line to see how many more people there were until it was his turn at the counter. When Christian caught a glimpse of his eyes, he could see the anxious look in the glasz color.
And His clothes were worn and old
He was dirty from head to toe
And when it came his time to pay
I couldn’t believe what I heard him say
He didn’t look at all like anyone Christian or his family would associate with. They were usually with the higher class, but this boy… there was something about him. He didn’t look like he was a bad kid, just someone who had been handed the wrong cards.
Sir I wanna buy these shoes
For my mama. please
It’s Christmas eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry sir
Daddy says there’s not much time
You see,
She’s been sick for quite a while And I
know these shoes will make her smile And I
Want her to look beautiful
If mama meets Jesus tonight
His mother was going to die on Christmas eve. Christian couldn’t believe the words that were coming out of this eight year old’s mouth. To be so young, not to mention losing someone so important on Christmas eve. He couldn’t even imagine having to go through that himself or have to tell Sebastian any of that.
They counted penny’s for what seemed like years then the
Cashier said, “Son, there’s not enough here.”
He searched his pockets frantically
Then he turned and he looked at me and he said
“Mama made Christmas good at our house though
Most years she just did without, Tell me sir,
What am I gonna do?
Somehow I gotta buy her these Christmas shoes.”
As soon as the cashier told him he didn’t have enough money, the boy started digging through his pockets with tears in his eyes. He really did want to give his mother one last night thing for Christmas, even if she would only enjoy it for a few moments.
The boy looked at Christian, asking about what he should do. Christian didn’t know how to respond as the words were caught in his throat.
So I laid the money down
I just had to help him out
And I’ll never forget the look on his face when he said,
“Mama’s gonna look so great.”
The bright look on the boy’s face as he wiped away the tears made Christian’s heart swell. The boy looked so happy that he could have one last gift.
Sir I wanna buy these shoes
For my mama. please
It’s Christmas eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry sir
Daddy says there’s not much time
You see,
She’s been sick for quite a while And I
know these shoes will make her smile And I
Want her to look beautiful
If mama meets Jesus tonight
I knew I’d caught a glimpse of heaven’s love as he thanked me and ran out
I knew that God had sent me that little boy to remind me what Christmas is all about
“That was a nice thing you did,” the cashier said with a kind smile. “Kurt’s a local kid and I felt bad about telling him no, but there was nothing I could have done.”
“His mom’s really sick then?” Christian asked.
The cashier nodded his head. “His mom, Liz, has cancer. She’s been in the hospital for the past couple weeks after she’s gotten worse. Wouldn’t be surprised if she was already gone by the time he got back to the hospital.”
“Thanks,” Christian muttered as he collected his bags.
“Merry Christmas,” the cashier called out as he left the store.
The drive home was long and, when Christian reached his house to find his wife and son curled up and watching some Christmas movie, he couldn’t help but sigh in relief. He walked over and kissed his wife, ruffling Sebastian’s hair with a weak smile.
“Merry Christmas, Kiddo.”
Sir I wanna buy these shoes
For my mama. please
It’s Christmas eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry sir
Daddy says there’s not much time
You see,
She’s been sick for quite a while And I
know these shoes will make her smile And I
Want her to look beautiful
If mama meets Jesus tonight
~10 YEARS LATER~
Christian sighed as he heard the doorbell ring. It was Christmas eve and his son was coming over with his boyfriend for Christmas dinner. He didn’t want to deal with anyone, even if it was the holidays. He just wanted to be left alone.
“Dad, this is Kurt Hummel,” Sebastian introduced with a smile as Christian came downstairs. “Kurt, this is my dad Christian Smythe.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir,” Kurt said with a bright smile.
Christian swallowed at the smile, his mind returning to that little boy so many years ago in the store with the box of shoes for his mother. The smile was almost the exact same one he’d seen previously.
“You both look like you’ve been out in the snow,” Jessica Smythe said with a concerned look. His daughter was always the worrier, especially when it came to her younger brother. “What were you doing?”
“We stopped by to say hi to Kurt’s mom,” Sebastian explained with a shrug.
“You don’t live with your parents?” Christian wondered.
Kurt shook his head with a small frown. “No, sir. My mom passed away on Christmas eve ten years ago.”
“Kurt has this awesome story about it,” Sebastian told his parents as they all moved to the dining room.
Kurt blushed as Jessica prompted him for it. Christian’s heart dropped as Kurt told about how his last Christmas eve with his mother, he’d gone to buy her a new pair of shoes. This was the same boy Christian had met all those years ago.
Kurt smiled sadly as he said, “I just wish I could thank him for what he did. He doesn’t know how much he changed my life that night.”
“I’m sure he knows,” Christian assured him.
I Want her to look beautiful
If mama meets Jesus tonight