"Go on, bud," she said, snapping him out of his daze.
He ripped off the paper, producing what looked like a jewelry box.
I was proven right a moment later when I saw a round necklace pendant with a black background and a silver cross on the front.
"Open it," she suggested softly. "The little button on the side," she added when he fumbled.
I had no idea what he found inside, but his eyes immediately welled up.
"So you can have her close to you all the time," Alessa explained a second before Avi launched himself at her, crying into her shoulder.
"Thank... you," he managed between sniffles.
Alessa's arm held him tight, her own eyes glassy as she reached to flip the pendant toward me, showing me the picture of Brit she'd had placed inside.
God, this woman.
I didn't know what I'd done in my life to deserve her, but I would never stop being thankful that she was there. With me. And with Avi. Who she loved as much as she would love her own.
At that moment, I didn't care so much about being careful.
I turned and wrapped my arms around both of them and held on tight, pressing a kiss to Alessa's forehead as she rested her cheek against Avi's head.
"Who could that be?" Alessa asked at the unexpected knock at the door that made all of us break apart.
"That's for me," Avi declared, hopping off of Alessa's lap, wiping hard at his cheeks with his sleeves, still gripping his necklace in his fist as he moved across the apartment to the door, opening it for Brio. Of all people.
"Merry merry, all," Brio declared, walking in with a, I shit you not, a red Santa hat on. "I'm on my way to Celeste's," he said. "But the little man needed me to stop by to drop off Alessa's present," he said, handing the box he was holding off to Avi. "Easy, man," he instructed, getting a serious nod from Avi before he turned to walk back into the living room.
"Close your eyes," Avi demanded. "Both of you," he added firmly when only Alessa shut hers.
"You really didn't have to get me anything, bud," she said, voice soft.
"I wanted to," Avi said. "Okay. Open," he said.
I saw it the same second Alessa did, sucking in her breath on a loud gasp.
"Oh, oh you saint of a child," she gushed, eyes wet as she looked at the snow-white, blue-eyed bunny in his hands.
"Uncle Brio worked really hard to find it," Avi said, a little uncomfortable as Alessa's tears started to slide down her cheeks as she reached for the rabbit, pulling it to her chest, and resting her cheek against its soft fur.
"Had to go to Bumfuck Nowhere, Jersey to some little farm to get it," Brio said, smiling huge, glad to be a part of the scheme to get Alessa the same kind of bunny she'd wanted as a little girl.
"Do you like it?" Avi asked, shifting his feet.
"No," Alessa said, shooting him a big smile, dimples on full display. "I love it."
"Got you all the shit to go with it," Brio added, waving toward the crate we'd both been eyeing from him earlier.
"This was why I kept catching you two whispering," I said, looking over at Brio.
"The kid and I, we hatched the idea after Alessa got shot," Brio explained. That explained his strange questions about her school class rabbit when Avi had been picking out a stuffed rabbit for Alessa's flower arrangement.
"Well, this is a great time to give you my present then," Alessa declared, getting up with the rabbit clutched to her chest, and finding the one for Brio amongst the pile we had for my family.
Brio opened it with a boyish enthusiasm, eyes brightening as he looked at the massive encyclopedia-length book. "Torture Through the Ages," he read off the title, shooting Alessa a big smile. "You get me."
"I do," she agreed, leaning over to press a kiss to his cheek. "Thank you," she said, voice a little thick.
"You're welcome. It's a girl, by the way. Figure you're surrounded with enough dudes in this Family. I have to get going, though. Salvatore and I are helping Mama Dukes set up for dinner," he said, meaning my mother, who had become a sort of adopted mother to the two practically orphaned men. "Merry Christmas," he said, head, heading toward the door.
"So, what are you gonna name it?" Avi asked as she sat back down.
"I have no idea. Do you have any ideas?" she asked.
"We can call her Mopsy," Avi said. "From the Peter Cottontail book," he explained. "He had two sisters. Flopsy and Mopsy. Or their mom was Josephine."
"I like that. That's pretty," Alessa decided. "What do you think?" she asked, looking down at the rabbit. "Are you a Josephine?" she asked. "She said yes," Alessa declared. "Do you want to hold her?" she asked to an enthusiastic Avi who got down on the floor to hold the rabbit.