Getting Ready for Christmas Day (Josh)

[Dr. Sean Neville]

((OOC: This occurs on December 1.))

Holidays didn’t have the traditional significance to Sean that they did to many people who had a holiday that synced with their beliefs. While he had been raised Catholic, Christmas had only a secular significance to him; it had once meant family gatherings, and after his falling out with Kathleen, had become a day he spent with the Campbell family. As such, he tended to celebrate whatever holidays his partner at the time of the holidays celebrated.

For Josh, this meant Chanukah instead of Christmas. In fact, his partner took great offense to the notion of Christmas, which the telepath understood on some level, and sympathized with in some areas, but overall he had a more laissez-faire attitude toward it. In fact, there were still some aspects of Christmas that the telepath enjoyed: eggnog, for instance, and certain types of cookies and pastries. He had dated an Italian woman and her family had engaged in the Feast of Seven Fishes, which he had enjoyed but that hadn’t been part of his own family’s celebration.

There were some other aspects as well: the tradition of mistletoe, and the telepath had purchased a few strands to hang. He refused to hang Christmas decorations before December began, and since it was only the first now, it could wait for the weekend, except for the one that he had put in the kitchen.

One tradition that he had enjoyed as a child had been that of the Advent Calendar, the ability to count down to the Christmas holiday with a small treat each day. Josh had no similar tradition, and Chanukah and Christmas overlapped this year. This had resulted in an inspired idea for one of the presents the telepath would give his partner, and he had settled upon it. As a result, he had worked in the garage with some of his tools when Josh had gone out with friends – they both kept active social lives, together and apart. Over a period of days and weeks, he had sawed, carved, sandpapered, and painted the gift, then he had hinged the doors, and filled each compartment with a hand-written “treat.”

Then he had wrapped the entire thing in the generic white “Happy Holidays” wrapping paper that he and Josh had bought.

As with every morning, he had woken early, before the other man. He had tended to his grooming and then padded downstairs to put on the coffee and start breakfast. The wrapped present sat at Josh’s place at the kitchen table, waiting for the other man.

[Joshua Bernstein]

Josh would not have counted himself among the morning people of the world; if allowed, he would have stayed up into the wee hours of the morning, and slept until noon. As it was, he had a job that required him to be awake with the rest of the world, and while he occasionally shrugged off responsibility in other areas of his life, he tried very much to do right by work.

This did not, however, prevent him from waking up at the last possible minute, having discovered long years ago just how much time was needed to shave (very little, as he desired more facial hair than he was capable of growing) and grooming and ironing and getting dressed. While he awoke earlier now than he had while living at home, because living at home he had passed on breakfast and taken his first coffee at the office, he still frequently woke after Sean was already downstairs.

Even had it been the weekend, with plenty of time to sleep in, the aroma of coffee would have stirred him from his slumber. He trudged down the stairs, adjusting his tie and sniffing in appreciation at the scents wafting from the kitchen.

"Good mor---" he began, then stopped as he took in the package sitting at his place by the table. He scrutinized it in blatant curiosity, "Hello! Looks like you've replaced me with a fancily wrapped box."

He sidled toward the cabinets, rummaging for a mug, "I suppose it's more fun to unwrap things with paper and bows than clothes."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

“Good morning,” the telepath spoke over his shoulder. He turned briefly to glance at where Josh was in the room, noting that he was nowhere near the mistletoe, and then he turned his attention back to the toaster oven where he was tending to the English muffins.

“So I have. And I filled it with a law book, some of Dennis Kucinich’s campaign literature, and a bottle of scotch. Soon I won’t need you at all anymore.” The comment was followed by a warm chuckle, to convey that Sean was merely joking, as if it wasn’t already evident.

With the English muffins sliced in half and set in the toaster oven, he set the timer and moved away from the counter, turning to face his partner. The coffee was just about ready, and Sean already had the Half and Half and sugar out for himself, although he knew Josh preferred to take his coffee black. The butter and jam were also on the table for the muffins when they had toasted.

He pulled a banana off the hanger and began to peel it, before taking a bite. He swallowed and then smiled over at the other man. “You’ll have to tell me which you prefer later. But the present is for you.”

[Joshua Bernstein]

Josh raised an eyebrow at Sean's summary of his most important (or most obvious) traits. "I see. I suppose I'm going to have to inform Greg he's getting a roommate soon, then." He sighed, taking his mug to wait by the coffee maker.

The remark that the present was for him made him wrinkle his forehead in confusion. "You're twenty days too early." He commented, setting his mug beside the coffee maker and moving to circle his gift with interest. It was very nicely wrapped, which wasn't a surprise; If Sean did anything then he took the time to do it well. "So a law book, Dennis Kucinich literature and a bottle of scotch, you say? It's almost like you know the way to my heart."

The excitement of a present was enough to distract him from the food available; not a particularly difficult task anyway, as he hadn't made a habit of breakfast before moving in with Sean, and he tended to be excitable with difficulty focusing whether there were presents available or not.

"If I already know what is in it then I suppose there is no harm in opening it early."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

“I’m sure Greg won’t mind. And if he does, tell him that he can move here with me. It will be just like college again that way.” The telepath took another bite of banana and then set the half-eaten fruit down on the counter. He picked up the coffee mug that had been set down by the coffee maker and he filled it, before filling his own. Sean then brought both mugs over to the table, setting Josh’s down beside the present, and his own by his regular seat.

This was followed by the process of pouring in his Half and Half and taking two sugar cubes to stir in.

“Am I now?” The telepath feigned surprise at that revelation, his brow wrinkling in confusion. “You know that counting and reading calendars are far beyond my capabilities, so I suppose I’ll just have to put that back in the closet and make sure you don’t remember seeing it.”

He rolled his eyes, his expression returning to normal, before he took a sip of his coffee. It was sweet enough.

“No, I suppose there isn’t any harm. And I’d prefer you opened it now before work. If it’s all the same to you.”

The telepath had put a great deal of work into it. And by its design, it was necessary for his partner to open it before work, so that he understood what it was. As it was, since Josh didn’t have an advent calendar tradition in his childhood, Sean knew he might have to explain what the box was for.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"That isn't what I meant," He muttered in objection to the sarcastic response. Sean was, in fact, much better than he was as far as calendars, beginning with the fact that he actually remembered to look at them.

As the other man placed his coffee beside the present he looked up in surprise. "Oh! Thank you. I could have got that." But his attention was once again diverted to the gift with the request that he open it before work.

"I suppose I will, then." He agreed, ripping through ribbon and paper with enthusiasm. "You know, had I known we were exchanging presents already I would have one for you." But the one he'd been working on wasn't precisely ready yet, and he had little control over when it would be.

Once the paper was scattered about his feet on the floor he turned his attention to the gift itself. It was a very nice wooden box, with 25 numbered drawers. He wanted to be enthusiastic about it, but he had no idea what purpose it held: it didn't look like it was meant to be a container.

"Ahhh. It's....nice." He commented, turning it over in his hands, "Did you make it?" It was no secret that his partner had some woodworking skills, though he didn't know when the telepath would have had the time to make something like this. "Am I supposed to put jewelry in it? Or candy?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean shook his head, denying the other man’s comment about having a present for the telepath in return. “We’re not exchanging early, so don’t worry about it.” It wasn’t as though he didn’t have presents for the actual holiday near the end of the month. This was merely special.

The telepath remained seated, sipping his coffee while he watched his partner open the present. He wasn’t worried that the other man wouldn’t like it; rather, he was concerned that Josh wouldn’t know what it was. That concern proved corrected when he heard the queries in the other man’s thoughts.

This was to be expected, given that Josh had no tradition of advent calendars; and since he ignored everything that had to do with Christmas, it was nothing he would have picked up along the way, either. There was time to explain, however. That was why he had wanted to do this before work.

Sean nodded in affirmation. “I did make it.” It wasn’t smooth or perfect enough to have been made in a factory, and if he had wanted to buy one, it most likely would have been in the shape of a Christmas tree. At the least, there would have been Christmas colors that he would have had to paint over. He didn’t chuckle at the question, because he had no expectation that Josh would know its purpose. “You don’t put anything in it. It’s a calendar. Each door corresponds to a day of the month. And since today is the first, you should open that door and see what’s inside.”

His tone conveyed that there was something inside. The folded slip of paper with today’s “treat” described.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"A calendar!" Josh repeated in faint surprise. That certainly explained the numbers, although...."But December has thirty-one days in it." And Hanukkah didn't even end until the twenty-eighth, so they were still short three days if that was the reason for ending at twenty-five.

However, curiosity over what was in the drawers won out over why Sean had chosen to only go up to twenty-five, and he tugged open the door. Inside was a slip of paper which he unfolded to find a handwritten note. A very intriguing handwritten note. "Will we, now?" He quirked an eyebrow at his partner, suddenly forgetting the mystery of twenty-five for the contents of the message. "Am I to understand that the rest of the drawers contain the same type of....missive?" He asked, waving the slip of paper in Sean's direction. If that was the case then he had a lot to look forward to in the next twenty-five days.

He placed the paper back in its drawer, placing the box in the middle of the table so that he wouldn't spill coffee on it. "This was such a creative idea."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

The telepath nodded in confirmation. It was indeed a calendar, albeit not a proper Gregorian one; and he was aware of how many days December contained. However, there would be other ways to entertain themselves after the 25th passed, including Boxing Day (he had his own idea for that day) and then preparing for New Year’s Eve. Also eating as many leftovers as they took home from the Campbell’s Christmas party.

Sean waited and watched while his partner opened the first of the drawers, removed the slip of paper, and read about what his “treat” would be. He nodded again, this time smiling a coy grin. “Yes, we will. We have to; it’s been foretold.”

Another nod, and his grin widened. “Every single one,” he confirmed. All twenty-five of them. “Some are more exciting than others I admit, but all of them are similarly themed.”

The telepath had thoroughly enjoyed himself with the exercise of deciding what each “treat” would be. He had been careful to make sure that there was no repetition, and he expected that Josh would thoroughly enjoy the treats as much as Sean had creating them.

In that way, it was a present for both of them.

The telepath reached for his mug and took another sip, the smile still on his lips. “I’m glad that you like it.”

[Joshua Bernstein]

"I like this theme." Josh proclaimed, raising his own mug to his lips, delighting in the heady bitterness of his uncorrupted black coffee. The implication that there was a variety, and that the variety might include some more plain flavors, did nothing to diminish his interest. "Vanilla is delicious, too. If I've given off the impression that I require exciting and exotic to be happy I'm very sorry."

The only unfortunate part of all this was that he wasn't sure if he could wait to know what each surprise was; he was very, very curious to know what Sean had come up with for this month's game. He wondered if keeping each slip of paper and putting them in a jar to pull from next year would be acceptable; he liked fun and games.

"You really do know me well." He laughed, placing his mug back on the table. He could only hope that Sean enjoyed his presents as much as he enjoyed this one. "I love it. And you went through all the trouble to make it yourself. You never cease to amaze me." He shook his head in awe, pushing himself to his feet and making his way over toward the bananas; now that the unwrapping was over it occurred to him that perhaps he ought to eat.

"I'm not going to be able to concentrate at work," He commented as he began to unpeel his banana. "I'll be worse than Vincent."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean shook his head, waving off the fake apology with the hand not holding his coffee mug. “You’ve given off no such impressions, so don’t worry about it. I’m just giving you a fair outline of what to expect without ruining the surprise.”

The surprise was important. And the telepath smiled wider when his partner told him that he liked the present, since that had been his goal. “I’m gratified. And I promise you it isn’t all that amazing. That said, I won’t let that stop you from thanking me properly.”

Keeping the slips in a jar hadn’t occurred to Sean as something to do, but he supposed they could work it out. Then again, since he had thought of all of the treats himself, it wasn’t as though they were at a disadvantage for inspiration.

“While you’re up, can you check on the English muffins?” The telepath asked. He would do it himself, but Josh was already standing and near the toaster oven. The plates were already out from when he had been at the counter before the other man came down, so it should be a simple exercise.

At the other man’s comment, he shook his head to himself. “If you find yourself worse than Vincent at anything, I owe you an apology. I certainly didn’t want to over excite you, but I did want you to see this before you left. You need to get into the habit of checking the calendar for the month as soon as you wake up in the morning, because some of these are time-sensitive.”

Sean had designed them deliberately to be time sensitive, because that was the nature of some of the “treats.” Others, like today’s, were designed for tonight, but that allowed for Josh to enjoy the sense of anticipation associated with them. Not everything was about instant gratification.

[Joshua Bernstein]

At the mention of proper thanks Josh glanced at his watch. "That may have to wait until after work." He wouldn't be working late tonight if he had to kill himself to get everything done in a timely manner. If he could somehow manage to get off early, then even better, but he knew better than to expect such a miracle.

He nodded at his partner's request, making no verbal acknowledgment because he had a mouth full of banana. Instead he moved toward the toaster oven to remove the english muffins and place them on the plates Sean had left out.

"Time sensitive, you say?" He echoed after swallowing his banana. That was an interesting thought. Perhaps he would move it up beside his bed and use it as a glasses perch so that he had to interact with it; otherwise he was likely to forget, as this wasn't within his normal routine. However, anything exciting that was time sensitive he didn't want to miss out on, and so unless he caught ill he was determined to remember.

"Is there anything else you need while I'm up?" He asked before gently holding the remainder of his banana in his teeth so that he could pick up the plates and bring them back to the table. He slid one in front of Sean and carefully lowered the other to sit beside his mug of coffee.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

The telepath lifted one hand, his acknowledgment of the other man’s remark that proper thanks would have to wait until this evening. “I fully expected that, so don’t worry about it. There will be plenty of time later.” If he had required gratitude this morning, he would have woken Josh, rather than letting him sleep.

That was followed by a nod of affirmation that some of the treats were time sensitive, since he had written them to be. It wasn’t many of them, but it was enough, and one for tomorrow that he hoped that his partner would remember to check every day. That was the entire point of the advent calendar. “Yes. But you’ll have to keep up with it to find out which ones are and which ones aren’t.”

Sean shook his head, declining the offer for anything else. Now that he had his English muffin and his coffee, there was nothing further that he required. Instead, he reached for the jar of strawberry jam and the knife beside it, prepared to coat one face of his muffin with the preserves. “Thank you.”

When he finished with the jam, he set it back in the center of the table. This was followed by taking a bite of his muffin.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"A challenge." Josh noted. "Very well, I shall keep up with this calendar of yours. Does it start over when we reach twenty-five?" He could be optimistic.

While Sean began to spread jam over his muffin Josh had finished his banana, and so instead of sitting back down he wandered toward the trash can to dispose of his peel. "Is it truly thirty-two degrees out?" He sighed, peering at the thermometer outside the window. If the snow dusting the ground and falling lightly from the sky was any indication it really was, but he was going to have to go back upstairs to find a winter coat and scarf before heading out. In fact, he probably should have gotten up sooner than he had; cycling in the snow was never an easy task.

"I am so grateful for central heating." He commented, pressing his face against the kitchen window to admire the snow. It would put a bit of a damper on their evening plans if the house wasn't heated.

"And speaking of heating, my coffee is probably cold by now. If I bring the pot around do you want a top off?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

The question was met with a shake of his head and a chuckle. “No. When we reach twenty-five, it will be Boxing Day, and we’ll be left to our own devices. I’m sure we can think of something to replace it.” They’d managed this for several months thus far without getting bored, and he had confidence in their abilities to continue.

“It probably is.” Sean hadn’t glanced at the thermometer, but he had checked the weather report last night. Thirty-two degrees sounded accurate for the weather they had; it was December after all, albeit the earliest of December. Snow was to be expected, as was ice on the roads and cold temperatures. “Do you want me to drive you to work today?”

It wasn’t something that Sean could do every day without Josh waking earlier; the psychiatrist’s days tended to begin before his partner’s. However, he knew for a fact that his first session was a little later than usual, and thus he could make the excursion for his partner. It would save Josh the effort of cycling in the snow, and it would make Sean feel better for his partner’s safety.

“Please,” the telepath said with a nod. He had managed to drink about half of the coffee in his mug, and he needed at least a cup and a half to get through the morning. As such, the top off would be greatly appreciated. To demonstrate that, he nudged his coffee mug nearer to the edge of the table in anticipation.