Surprises and Treats (Sean)

Sean had finished with his shopping weeks ago. Though he had many people for whom to shop, he was organized and had developed a system to make holiday shopping as free of stress as possible. He had given Josh his presents last week during Chanukah, as well as to their other Jewish friends, such as Danny. Other presents, cards, and donations had already been mailed, to guarantee that the recipients could enjoy them by the day of Christmas proper. The remaining presents were at home, wrapped already, and simply awaiting the opportunity for him to give them to his friends and coworkers.

Yet, despite this system, Sean still found himself at the mall four days before Christmas.

Today, his trip brought him out to buy alcohol for the house; he and Josh had been enjoying cocktails a bit more frequently, as was the season, and they had run dry. While out, he thought he might as well buy a few decorations for New Year’s, and a few other items, since the plan still involved Ryan and Shiya coming to visit. Unless there was a last-minute change of plans

In the midst of his perusing, he decided it was time to take advantage of the seasonal café selections. Taking the escalator to the food court, he started for one of the stands. In doing so, he caught sight of a familiar face, and he waved to get her attention. “Hello!”

“You’re looking well,” Sean remarked, the gentle smile still on his lips. Since he had caught her attention, they could talk or share a cup of coffee, assuming that she had the same general destination and goal as he did. Otherwise, he didn’t mind taking a detour, as long as she didn’t mind his company. Josh wouldn’t be home until his typical hour this evening, which meant that the telepath had a couple of hours of downtime.

At the question, he lifted his bag to show off the contents. “I had to pick up a few things for the house. Primarily some liquor for end of the year specials.” His smile widened as he thought of the other night. “Josh and I have been putting a bit of a dent in our reserves this month.”

What little else that he had purchased couldn’t qualify as interesting, although he was happy to discuss specifics if she displayed any curiosity. However, he was more interested in her afternoon plans. “And what brings you here? Catching up before the holiday?”

Or a completely different reason. There were many reasons to take advantage of the mall, not limited to the mere existence of end of the year sale prices.

“That sounds great,” Sean answered, as they walked in the direction of the coffee shop on the food court. “I’d been on my way to find coffee myself, and there’s always room for a pastry or a muffin.” He could always use a glucose boost, and being able to indulge his sweet tooth in the process was all the better.

The telepath’s smile widened at the joke, and he nodded a single time in the affirmative. “You could say that. I don’t have the skills to brew my own, so I have to rely on the experts to do it for me.” Not that he was displeased with that state of affairs. Sean felt no shame in bowing to the knowledge and ability of those more qualified than he was. Particularly in a trade as intricate as crafting fine liquor.

Sean nodded his understanding. “It can be hard to find the time to shop when one has a family,” he remarked sympathetically. He didn’t have that concern during his pattern as a bachelor, but he and Josh had to take separate trips now that they were together. “At least Vincent is patient, so you don’t have to worry about him trying to spoil the surprise by peeking.”

The mention of his partner caused his smile to widen. “We’re doing fine. The primary holiday is over in our house, so now he’s grudgingly trying to get through the next four days. I’m largely along for the ride.”

Sean joined in the laughter, although his was a light chuckle. “Josh used to say the same thing about cooking, before he started his baking lessons.” Time and again, his partner had expressed discomfort in the kitchen. The attorney had been sure that nothing he cooked would resemble the food it was intended to be, and that was in the best of circumstances. In the worst of circumstances had been the persistent fear of burning down the house.

The telepath nodded in comprehension. “Sometimes it takes a while for us to develop that type of patience. And there’s something to be said for knowing as much as one can.” He was in that latter category, although through necessity than pure desire. At least at first; the two had merged now.

Sean no longer subscribed to any organized religion, and all religious inclinations had dissipated decades ago. However, he celebrated a secular Christmas by custom, and he had no qualms discussing matters pertaining either to culture or to religion. “Josh is Jewish,” he explained, since that was necessary context for their winter rituals. “So we celebrate Chanukah; that ended five days ago.”

Their decorations were still in place; they could remove them after the New Year, which was the custom with Christmas decorations. The telepath didn’t mind keeping them up, just as he didn’t mind decorating in the first place.

“We go to the Campbells for Christmas,” he added. “James and I were raised in the same religion, although Christmas isn’t secular to him.”

“We all have our skills,” Sean remarked sagely. While he was committed to self-improvement, he didn’t think that anyone was obligated to operate outside of their comfort zone, when they had nobody else to provide for (in the case of children) or they could rely on someone who had skills that one lacked. In several past relationships, the telepath had been the one to cook, and that had suited him fine, because everyone’s needs were met in one way or another. “What do you garden?” He was genuinely interested to hear what she grew.

Upon reaching the café, Sean came to a halt. He peered over the people in front of them to study the menu options. As expected, there were several holiday-related specialties, and he turned his consideration to those. Not because the holidays were as important to him as they were to James, who needed to relate everything to Christmas during December, but because he enjoyed trying new things, and they were available for a limited time only.

The telepath nodded his acknowledgment. “I’ve heard that about Japan, although you would know far more about it than me. Celebrating Christmas where I grew up was much the opposite; everyone was Christian and invested in both the holiday as well as the faith.”

Sean smiled, listening to her describe her home garden. “That sounds wonderful,” he remarked. He liked the idea of gardening, although he hadn’t done it effectively since his box garden in New York. Ironically, given the size of his backyard in Vermont.

“I do, but I’m told that it’s acquired,” Sean warned her. He had grown up with eggnog available, and thus he liked it, but others without that exposure objected to its heaviness. “It’s heavily dairy but sweetened and usually has a kick to it.”

The telepath nodded, considering the open invitation to that. He’d heard of the parties, although he had yet to actually attend one of them. “I’ll have to float that by Josh tonight, to see if we can make it to the next one. Is there one for the New Year, by any chance?”

His partner would have his fill of Christmas parties by the time they left the Campbell residence, but New Year was a more neutral holiday. It also involved massive drinking and an excuse to kiss at midnight, so Josh’s fondness was guaranteed.

He then shook his head, immediately denying the notion that he still subscribed to Catholicism, or Christianity broadly. “No. I came from a Catholic family, which is particularly bound up in hierarchy. I fundamentally disagreed with many of the teachings and then drifted away from the Church when I was younger.”

He hadn’t looked back. Despite what he had thought as a boy, he also didn’t miss it.

“Certainly,” Sean agreed with a smile.

“I can always bring you some eggnog, so you can try it on your own time, if you’d like,” he offered. He kept some during the holidays, and he had a friend who brewed her own from a family recipe. She distributed it as part of Christmas presents, and he was always happy to share. In the meantime, there were other flavors to enjoy. The gingerbread latte interesting, and it combined a holiday treat with an afternoon pick-me-up.

“I’d like that,” he said with a smile of gratitude. “I’m sure that Josh would like to go as well, although I have to run it by him first.” Sean tried not to make plans for both of them without confirming with his partner first. However, a family party with friends was right up his alley, as was the ability to share in other people’s cultures and customs.

“Catholicism has a rich history of dichotomy between very conservative positions and very liberal ones. They tend to create a peculiar tapestry while simultaneously canceling out one another in the political sphere,” Sean explained. He didn’t often have the ability to discuss the history of his childhood religion, since he tried to avoid arguing and lecturing strangers, Josh knew more than enough on the topic, and friends already had their opinions. Nothing was gained from debating the matter with James, for instance, because the parish in Pilot Ridge was liberal, and James had found a way to accept both his love and his faith without compromising one for the other. “Some of it is inspirational, but I’ve found that too much of it has been used to corrupt for too long. Some of that has to do with position in the hierarchy.”

The telepath shook his head to himself, remembering the long debates he’d had on this topic years ago. “From what I remember, the Russian Orthodox Church has many teachings in common with the Roman Catholic Church, for better or for worse. Although, most Catholics I know are accepting of meta-human status.”

Most. His sister and her husband could not be counted among that number.