Tohis credit,Ansongave me his undivided attention asItold him how things used to be for the less fortunate kids in town.Therehadn’t been a party or anything, but the residents had made sure our parents were able to give us a goodChristmas.Iwanted to do the same but take it to the next level.
Seeingeveryone chatting at theThanksgivingdinner yesterday made me realize how distant everyone had become since technology started ruling our lives.Noone had to get together face to face because they were able to keep in touch through online groups on social media.Andyet, when you did get a group to gather, they had a great time.Iwanted to figure out a way to recreate that same feeling more than once or twice a year.
Todaywas the official start of the holiday season, which meant we’d have to work quickly if we were going to pull off anything for this year, but in my heart,Iknew ifIlet this go as something to be done in the future, it would be forgotten.Itmade the most sense to bring it toAnson’sattention, not only becauseHarmonyHousewas the primary after-school hangout for youth in town but also because it was apparent the community outreach group had some organizational issues.Therewas no way they could take on even more responsibilities right now, especially not on short notice.
“It’snot a horrible idea, but who’s going to organize something like that?Iwouldn’t mind helping out, butIam not the person you want in charge of planning a big party.”Hislack of resistance shocked me.Theidea had come to me this morning whenI’dbeen trying to think of anything other than how badlyIwanted to get off, andIhadn’t been able to stop thinking about it since.Thatdidn’t meanIbelieved anything would come of it.
“Youcould get your brothers and their partners to help, andIwouldn’t have any problem keeping all the details organized, reaching out through social media, and all that.”Sinceit had been my idea,Ifelt obligated to take on as much of the heavy lifting asIcould. “Idon’t want it to be a hardship on anyone, butIthink it’s important that we focus not only on the elderly residents but also those who are going to come of age soon and will be deciding whetherHarmonyGrovewill be their home or simply a place they grew up.”
“Maybeyou’re the one who should go into politics,”Ansonteased.Heshook his head. “You’reawfully persuasive, you know that?”
“Itdoesn’t do any good to sit back when you see things that need to be done.Butno,Iwould be the worst at politics.Icouldn’t handle making decisions that might negatively impact others.”Crap.Ididn’t wantAnsonto think that was howIsaw him.Infact, it was the opposite.He’dbe good at the job because he would look out for ways to helpHarmonyGrovestay alive but wouldn’t let people trample all over him. “Ididn’t mean that the way it came out.Iknow it’s not all about making decisions that upset people, but you have to admit it’s a big part of the job.Nomatter what you do, someone’s going to think it’s a personal affront.That’snot my strong suit.”
Iwould have kept babbling if not forAnsontaking my hand in his and giving it a quick squeeze. “Relax.Iknow what you meant.Andyou’re probably right that it takes a certain type of person to do the job well.Butlet’s not talk about that right now.Doyou really think we could make aChristmasparty for the kids happen if we only have a couple of weeks to plan?”
“Ido.”Ipushed back from the table to grab a scratch pad off the counter.Whilea lot of people preferred taking notes on their phones, there was something about the process of writing everything out by hand that allowed me to get a clearer picture. “Thequestion is, do you think your brothers will go along with it?”
“Leavethat to me.”Heflashed me a confident smile.Givenhis profession,Ihad no doubt he’d be able to convince his brothers to help put together the party.
15
ANSON
Partof me still couldn’t believeI’dagreed to helpKevinplan a holiday party forHarmonyHouse.EventhoughIhadn’t been lying to make him feel better whenItold him it was a good idea, there were a million reasonsIshouldn’t be involved.Atthe top of the list was thatIwasn’t a fan of the season.Overthe years, it had turned into a game of one-upmanship.Housesthat used to be tastefully decorated now had lawns littered with inflatable decorations.Hell, there was one house down the street from us where the owners couldn’t be satisfied with tasteful strands of lights along the roofline.Ithought last year had been bad when the entire front of the house was draped in lights, but this year, they’d added a ridiculously pulsating mailbox to the display.
Sofucking unnecessary.
Anddon’t even get me started on the gifts.WhenIwas a kid, we got four gifts per brother, which was plenty.Ourstockings were filled with candies and a few more small things, but nothing that put our parents in debt.Now, it seemed like parents were trying to prove their love by giving their kids expensive electronics and gaming systems, assuaging their own guilt over the indulgence by claiming they were gifts fromSanta.Nevermind the myriad of issues created when some parents couldn’t go overboard, leaving their kids to believe a fictional character favored other kids over them.
Yeah, not a fan.YetIwas about to walk into my brother’s work to beg him to help.Thatwas likely to go over about as well as a fart in church since he shared my sentiments.
Ireached for the door handle, taking a deep breath before walking into the shop.Rodneypassed, scowling at me.Iwasn’t offended.Theman had a permanent case of resting dick face.
Showtime.IfIwas excited about the party, maybeCarsonwould be too. “Carson!Justthe manIwanted to see.Gota minute?”
“Forthe town’s potential next mayor?Always.What’sup?”Hewiped as much grease as he could from his hands using a shop rag.Irolled my eyes, knowing my brothers would play up the mayor thing as much as they could.They’dbeen giving me shit about it since the dayIchallengedMayorThompson.Thefunny thing was, they all seemed to thinkIshould actually run.
“Gotsomething big in the works.YourememberKevin, right?Hethought we could put together aChristmasevent for the kids atHarmonyHouse.”Ihanded him one of the flyersKevinhad printed out.Theylooked amazing, far more professional than anythingIcould have done.
Carsonquirked an eyebrow as he scanned the information.”Andyou went along with it?What’sthe catch?”
Itapped into the enthusiasmKevinhad when he proposed the event to me and did my best to explain our plans toCarson.AsIspoke,InoticedRodneystanding in the doorway listening to me. “Anotherpolitician trying to woo voters with festivities?Spareme.”
“It’snot about the politics,Rodney.It’sabout bringing a community together and doing some genuine good.Kevinwasn’t wrong to sayIneed to do a better job putting my money where my mouth is.Isn’tthat what most people want politicians to do?”
Overthe weekend,KevinandIhad talked quite a bit about my running for mayor.Insteadof trying to find a way out of the race that wouldn’t make it look likeIwas simply talking shit,Ifound myself wondering ifIhad a real shot at getting the bigoted asshole out of city hall.Fridaynight,I’dfound my way back to his place after helping my brothers put up lights and the rest of the decorations forMom.He’dreheated dinner for himself sinceIwouldn’t get there until late, but the salted peanut butter brownies were a pleasant surprise.Insteadof sitting at opposite ends of the couch to watchTV, he’d curled up against my side.Itfelt good.Right.Andrather than fast-forwarding through the commercials, we’d used those odd minutes to chat.
Ihadn’t hesitated when he’d invited me to spend the night again.Theonly struggle on my part had been not seeming too eager beforeIaccepted.Ithadn’t been out of a desire for a repeat of the night before.I’djust wanted to be close to him as often as possible.Itwas a complete one-eighty on my part, but from the bitI’dbeen reading up on demisexuality, it seemed completely normal.Andyeah,Iwas slowly settling into that as the labelI’deventually slap on my ass.Iwasn’t gay just because there was no placeI’drather bury my dick than inside a man.Myarousal in his presence was a clear indicatorIcould shred the straight label and throw it away.Asit turned out, my sexuality wasn’t connected to gender at all.Itwas completely wrapped up inKevin, which might not be entirely healthy, butIwas trying to avoid overthinking things too much.
Ihadn’t come home until this morning, and even then,Barthad simply glared at me from his dog bed, soI’dleft him behind.Itwas scary how quickly our lives were melding into one.Hewas the personIwanted to talk to about the important things in life, including my potential future in politics.
“Fair, but if you’re being forced to do it, you need to ask why you’re doing it,”Rodneychallenged.Heset a box of parts on the roof of the car. “Andyou have to admit it reeks of desperation that you’re here trying to ropeCarsoninto helping you.”
“Rodney, put a sock in it.”CarsonandRodneywere friends in addition to being boss and employee.Hewas allowed to give me shit, but he wouldn’t stand for it from anyone else. “Ifthey’re doing something forHarmonyHouse, they’re obviously going to rope me in.It’spart of whatIagreed to whenIput my money into the place.Weall knew there’d be times when we’d have to chip in to help.”
“Thisisn’t just a fleeting idea,Carson.Itmight not have been my idea, but it’s a good one.Kevin’sright about there not being much that’s designed with kids in mind, and some of these kids will have a shitChristmasif someone doesn’t step up to the plate.”Heneeded to knowIwas serious about making the event a success.Kevin’sexcitement was infectious, andIwas actually starting to look forward to seeing the look on the kids’ faces just as much as his when we transformed the youth center into a winter wonderland.
Carsonwas less than thrilled whenItold himIneeded him to help with the food.Thatseemed safe enough.HehatedChristmaswith a passion, but he loved food.Plus, it would be fun to watch him interact withShiloh.Forsome reason, the new guy at the bakery got under my brother’s skin like nobody else.Bythe timeIleft, he’d very begrudgingly agreed, leaving me with one less thing on my to-do list for the day.
