Page 11 of Have a Bear-y Little Christmas

And his appetite for the written word waswaymore reliable than his one for food. He liked fantasy, sci-fi, animal facts, fables, biographies, memoirs. His tutor at the hospital said he was already reading at a seventh-grade level, which honestly felt a bit like fate since I was a freelance editor for multiple clients of different genres. Like mother, like son.

We walked a bit more in silence, just listening to the sounds of the city. Max certainly wasn’t a speed demon, but I couldn’t help but notice he’d walked longer than he ever had before. I was incredibly proud of him, but we were reaching the point where I would need to intervene and make him rest.

Thankfully, it didn’t get to that.

“I think I could use a break now,” he said, stopping and drawing in long breaths.

“Okay, big man, I could use a break, too.” I didn’t really, but there was nothing wrong with a little camaraderie.

I wasn’t exactly excited about the prospect of my son sitting on a bench out in the cold, so I scanned the area and pointed to what I was pretty sure was the community center—or at least a part of it.

“Why don’t we duck in there? Warm up, use the toilet, then we’ll head back?”

That was another thing. While I was always ready to celebrate all his accomplishments, walking a long distance also meant we had to walkback.

Of course, if worse came to worse, I’d carry him. It wouldn’t be easy, but doable. One day he would weigh too much for me to do it—fingers crossed—but we weren’t anywhere near that yet.

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

“Awesome-sauce. Here, take your walker for this last little distance, okay?”

“That’s probably a good idea.” He said it matter-of-factly, but I knew my son well enough to hear the slightest amount of ire in his tone. It wasn’t aimed at me, but I knew what it was about.

“With the way you’re going, soon you’re not gonna need it at all.”

“You think so?” he asked, those little eyebrows of his shooting up.

“Iknowso.”

His eyes brightened at that, and the two of us headed inside. We were at the back entrance of the outdoor ice rink. In the summer, it was a wading area. I’d brought Max here a couple of times in the summer when our AC had broken down and our landlord was dragging his feet to fix it. Too much heat could be just as harmful to a sick kid as too much cold. The water was shallow enough that I could push his wheelchair through to one of the many geysers. It was a godsend. I didn’t knowhowpeople could justify replacing these spaces with parking lots and ugly buildings for corporations. These little spots of joy were all some kids had, and a lot of families depended on them.

“There’s the toilet. I’m gonna go on my own, okay?”

“Go ahead. You’re old enough to handle your business.” Not too long ago, he’d had to use diapers—thankfully, for only a short time—so, I understood why my son wanted to be independent about his bathroom process now.

“Cool, cool.”

I watched him as he rolled off, his steps slow but still steady, and posted myself close enough where I could hear him if he needed me but far enough where I wasn’t the creepy woman waiting outside the men’s restroom.

A bright, colorful flyer pinned to the community board caught my eye, and I moved over to it.

Kids’ Skate Night. Free admission for all kids under twelve. Two-hour children’s skate rental included.

The rink wasn’t expensive—they only charged five dollars for insurance reasons—but with food and renting skates, it was way too much for my budget. But a free night?

I waited until Max exited before hurrying over to him and pointing to the flyer.

“Hey, do you wanna come ice-skating this weekend? They’re having a kids’ night for the holidays.”

I would never,everget tired of seeing his face light up every time he realized he had a chance to do something that would have been impossible when he was at his sickest.

“Yeah! That sounds so cool!”

“I think so too. Now, let’s go sit down at one of the tables. Maybe we can read the first chapter of Shadow Castle before we head back.”

“Awesome! This is the best Christmas ever!”

I could have cried right then and there. I didn’t know what I had done to deserve the angel in front of me, but I would be eternally grateful for him. We’d quite literally been through hell and back together, and somehow, we had come out better on the other side.