Boyxboy Holiday Specials

Christmas- Ethan&Will

I was dressed neatly as we entered my grandma's house. I followed my parents down to the basement, wishing Will was here, but also dreading it a little.

My family moved around the large basement, talking and laughing loudly. The older men gathered at the mini bar in the corner whole the rest mingled around tables. I had no cousins around my age on this side of my family, which meant I was alone.

My family came over, greeting us, briefly saying hi to me before talking to my parents. I went over to a table and sat down by myself, watching my family.

Normally, I enjoyed seeing my family. But this year, anxiety had been eating away at me. My mom had invited Will to come here tonight.

The fact that I was gay didn't come up much around my family since I'd never exactly been able to get a boyfriend. But now that I had one, one that my family was about to meet, they couldn't pretend I was straight anymore.

"Ethan! Have you gotten even smaller?" my grandma asked in surprise, noticing me.

"The weight of adulthood has shrunk me," I said.

"You're so small. When I put dinner out, you better eat at least two full plates," she said sternly.

"Only if you want me to throw up all over the place," I said.

She pushed a tray of cookies towards me. "Eat!"

With that commandment, she walked away from me. I stared at the cookies, but I had no appetite. I was so nervous for when Will got here. What if my family was mean to him just because they didn't want me to be gay?

I looked around the room, seeing how happy they all were as they mingled. I was going to ruin that. My sexuality was going to send those loud voices to whispers as they watched me.

Feeling my breathing hitch a little, I hastily got up. I went up the stairs, knowing that no one would notice that I was gone.

I went into the living room, looking at the pictures on the wall. Pictures of the grandkids, with my senior picture being at the top since it was the most recent. I sat on the couch, raking my hands through my hair, trying to calm myself.

But my thoughts were exploding, pumping anxiety through me. I got up and slipped out of the front door, sitting on the porch.

It was snowing lightly and I shivered, having left my jacket in the basement. But it didn't matter. The cold air helped ease me a little.

I closed my eyes, tilting my face up and letting the snowflakes fall on it, feeling them catch my lashes and stick to my hair. My body trembled lightly with the cold.

The door behind me opened after a few minutes, but I kept my eyes closed. Probably just a cousin coming out to smoke.

"Ethan."

I opened my eyes, looking up at Will. "Hey, you're not my grandma."

"I would hope not." He sat down next to me. "I got here a minute ago. I came in through the back."

"You always do," I said, winking.

He rolled his eyes and shrugged his jacket off, draping it over my shoulders. "You're shivering." He scowled at me. "Stop being so damn stupid. You're going to get sick."

Will put his arm around me, pulling me closer and letting me lean against him. He brushed the snow out of my hair before kissing my head.

"Merry Christmas," he said.

"Feliz Navidad," I said.

"Stop it. We're not Spanish," he said. "Why are you out here alone? You..." He glanced away from me, forcing a scowl. "You look lonely."

"My family isn't going to be thrilled that I'm dating a man," I said with a shrug. "They're all happy down there. Me slutting it up with my homo ways might ruin the mood a bit."

"My Uncle was talking about faggots," Will said quietly. "Last night, at a family party. My parents went off on him." He pulled me a little closer. "He apologized for it. I told him...that I didn't care what he thought. I'm happy with you."

"You're so sappy," I groaned, banging my head against his shoulder. "Is that my Christmas present? That you publicly admitted that I don't make you cry yourself to sleep every night because of how much you hate me?"

"I brought you a present. It's in the basement with your mom," he said.

"I hope it's not inappropriate," I said.

"I wouldn't leave it with your mom if it was." He squinted up at the sky, blinking as snow caught on his lashes. "It's nice out tonight."

"Hey, thanks for coming," I said. "I didn't know if I'd see you on Christmas."

"Well, here I am. Acting as your damn space heater since you're too stupid to wear a jacket," he said.

"Kind as always," I said.

"Don't worry about your family. Everything will be fine," he said, kissing me.

Now that Will was here, my anxiety was dissolving. I was just overthinking things. Will was right; it would be fine.

"I want to stay out here a little longer," I said. "This is one of those rare times where white stuff sticking to me is beautiful instead of life scarring."

"I'm going to kill you and leave your body to be found in the spring when the snow melts," he said.

"Romantic." I moved closer to him, pulling his jacket tighter around me. It was warm and smelled like him. "Merry Christmas, Will."

"Merry Christmas, Ethan." He kissed me, holding me close as we sat there in comfortable silence, just watching the snow fall as we kept each other warm.

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A.N.- Merry Christmas everyone! Have a great day!