Misfit Toys (Sean)

[Joshua Bernstein]

Ramadan had come and gone, as had Halloween. Thanksgiving wasn't two weeks away (of course he was obligated to spend it with his parents, a fact he had no objections to) and then Hanukkah and Christmas, which in a rare synchronicity overlapped this year.

It was, in short, the endless parade of holidays that marked the end of the year.

Josh had suggested they festoon the house in silver and blue to mark Hanukkah, which had resulted in a trip to the mall as Sean didn't exactly have boxes of Hanukkah decorations around, and Josh had all of one Menorah.

It wasn't even Thanksgiving, and yet while there were a few paltry displays of brown and orange involving turkeys and pilgrims and generically dressed Native Americans the stores were overwhelmingly red and green and gold. Santa and reindeer and angels greeted him at every turn, and the tunes playing were decidedly Christmasy in nature.

There was no Hallelujah Chorus, nor Come, O Come, Emanuel or In the Bleak Midwinter or The Holly and the Ivy or even Bring a torch, Jeannette! Isabella. No, the tunes playing were wholly secular in nature, such as Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer and Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree and I'm dreaming of a white Christmas. But the fact remained that they were Christmas songs, and Christmas was a religious holiday in his public square, and the stores didn't even have the decency to wait until December to start tossing up garlands and snowflakes and trees sparkling with lights.

At least the only nativities he'd seen had been in his neighbor's yard, which as private property was entirely within their right.

This did not stop him from glowering at a snowman in a red Santa hat peeking out at mall patrons from a window display. Snow and holly were painted on the window, complete with a cheerful Merry Christmas.

"Every year." He complained, edging closer to Sean to escape the display lest it taint him. "Every. Year. Have the managers not yet gotten the memo that not everyone celebrates their religious holiday yet?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean observed a secular Christmas holiday. Christmas was his family’s holiday, and after he had left the Church and become an atheist, he had still had family obligations. When his parents had been alive, he had been expected to come down to New York for the day; he came in the late morning and would stay past supper. With his parents’ passing and his estrangement from his sister, he went to James Campbell’s for Christmas. There he drank eggnog and exchanged presents, had supper and engaged in conversation. It was nice bonding time but of no real significance to him.

This was why he was happy to accommodate Josh’s desire to decorate their home to his heart’s content with blue and silver for Chanukah, and why they had come to the mall for decorations. After all, there were only a few traditions from Christmas that Sean found useful in life, and he doubted Josh would object to them when he put them up...in December.

Despite his atheism, Christmas was more his holiday than it was Josh and to some extent he took less offense to the so-called Christmas season. In that he found it possible to observe a secular Christmas.

But he understood his partner’s frustration, and he shared it in some respects. That the Macy’s had put Christmas decorations up in September was unnecessary. He was also long-used to Josh’s opinions on the matter, which was why the moment they had stepped into the mall and the opening riff to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer reached his ears, the telepath had prepared himself for the other man to comment.

As expected, the comments came coupled with Josh edging away from the garland, and Sean wrapped an arm around his waist as though to protect him. “Evidently it hasn’t affected sales, otherwise they would wait.”

The recession didn’t help. Sean had noticed that stores were more desperate these past few years, which caused the shopping season to begin all the earlier.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"It's simply ridiculous." Josh muttered, glowering at the snowman as if it had personally offended him by its very existence. Which, of course, it had.

Sean's reassurances were logical, but that did not make him any happier about conceding the point. "I know." He grudgingly acknowledged, heaving a sigh of regret. "But that shouldn't be the only thing they take into consideration."

Practicality had never won out over ideals where Josh was concerned, and so he had difficulty at times coming to grips with the fact that other people frequently had more immediate concerns. Or even didn't agree with the ideals he championed.

"I suppose we'll start with JC Penney. Or do you want to check out Hallmark, first?"

Despite his complaint regarding the ubiquitousness of Christmas he couldn't deny that most (if not all) stores made sure to cater to their Jewish patrons, as well, with brightly stocked Hanukkah displays. Of course, the Hanukkah section was never as overwhelming as that for Christmas, and was sometimes shoved in the corner, but they did tend to have them.

And some stores even had Menorahs painted beside Santa and snowmen. He wasn't sure whether to grumble about token efforts or be pleased.

It was so difficult being aware sometimes.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean was long-used to this conversation, because he and Josh had it every year. Before the attorney had moved to Pilot Ridge, they had frequent telephone conversations to erase the hundreds of miles between them, and they had emailed and visited for weekends as much as possible. The holiday tirade was simply part of the year, as much as mall Santa Claus and peppermint-flavored ice cream.

It was best to let Josh get it out of his system now, rather than allow it to build.

“I know, but stores care about sales and consumers; that’s how they’re designed.” They both knew that.

The telepath shook his head in response to the second question. While he had no objection to Hallmark, there was no reason to begin there since the store was smaller than JC Penney. Additionally, Hallmark prided itself on its Christmas ornament collection and considering Josh was already offended by the bombardment of Christmas decorations, the telepath believed avoiding the store until Josh had calmed a bit was for the best. “JC Penney is fine. I’m sure they’ll have something there.”

After all, Chanukah had also become more commercialized these past years and thus there were more decorations available. If JC Penney had nothing, there were other options.

With that, Sean steered them in the direction of the appropriate department store; because it was an anchor, it was all the way at the end of the mall.

[Joshua Bernstein]

"Christians aren't their only customers." Josh returned snidely. The fact that they had this discussion every year did nothing to discourage him from having it once again, as if perhaps he expected the facts to change. That didn't seem unreasonable to him: after all, the facts had gradually been changing about race relations and gender equality and gay and transgender rights, so he felt that an epiphany that Christians didn't run the show would be nice.

Besides, they were in Vermont, one of the bluest of the blue states. They ought to be a little more enlightened than this. Then again, even New York was susceptible, and with a large Jewish population (among other non-Christians) and an even larger Liberal population, he felt they should have been light years ahead of rural areas like Vermont.

And yet he still had to have this conversation, because nothing had changed.

Josh followed Sean down the mall corridors, past cardboard sleighs and tinseled snowflakes and red-and-green sweaters, mentally grumbling. There wasn't a manger or wiseman to be seen, though there were the occasional stars that he was sure were stand-ins for the star of Bethlehem; he gave them death glares, though a few of those glares melted into looks of discomfort rather than annoyance when he noticed the star of David's next to them.

Maybe things were changing a little bit.

"It's like a gauntlet." He complained, "A Christmas-themed gauntlet of vexation and religion masquerading as peace and good cheer."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Josh was correct in that Christians weren’t the only customers at these stores, but they lived in a country that – while absent a state-sanctioned religion – contained a Christian majority. Moreover, Vermont wasn’t known for its high percentage of people of other religions. Non-religious people made up the second-largest portion of people in Vermont, and most of them tended to be more like Sean, in that they viewed Christmas as vaguely secular and took less offense to the notion than Josh did.

Or if they were offended they fueled their energy into more important endeavors, such as fighting against the perspective that not praying was a character flaw.

Because Sean was used to this rant, he merely nodded and replied, “I know that.”

The telepath largely ignored the decorations they passed, but he knew that they affected his partner, who noticed each and every one. Sean kept his arm around Josh’s waist as they walked, and he gave the other man a light squeeze. “It will be over in less than two months.”

That was far too long for Josh, he knew, but Sean was trying.

When they reached JC Penney, they came through the clothing entrance, thankfully. No Christmas decorations in sight, merely women’s clothing.

[Joshua Bernstein]

The entrance to JC Penney was like a pleasant oasis surrounded by a red-and-green dessert. There were no Santa Clauses, no reindeer, not even any snowflakes or holly or lights. The mannequins were dressed in slacks and sleek, chic sweaters but while there was some red there was little green; most of the outfits were some combination of black and gold, with the occasional navy blue. The clothing on the racks suggested fashionable adult women who probably had professional jobs rather than festivity.

The sounds of Britney Spears singing about Christmas romance could still be heard wafting in from outside, but as they wound farther into the store she was overtaken by music better suited to clubbing than the mall.

He breathed an audible sigh of relief.

"I don't suppose you know your way around..." He asked, looking up at the signs pointing in varying directions, labels suggesting that this floor was entirely dominated by the opposite gender. He could see escalators beyond, and as the only way available was up he supposed they ought to try that, though whether they would have to go up yet another floor after remained a mystery to him.

"I am so indebted to JC Penney, I should do all my shopping here."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

One could always thank department stores for compartmentalizing their holiday displays away from other areas. As a result, the women’s clothing section was filled with women’s clothing. While there were winter clothing displays, there weren’t reindeer and elves dangling from the ceiling or from the sweaters and skirts. The telepath was relieved, because it meant that Josh would be calm for a few minutes.

Sean couldn’t guarantee that the rest of the store was equally Christmas-free; considering Macy’s, he had his doubts of that, in fact. But Josh could take comfort in the square-footage of this section where he was free from the Christmas assault. Hearing his partner’s sigh, Sean knew that he did take comfort.

He shook his head in response to the question. “Only somewhat. I don’t spend a lot of time here.” He did his clothing shopping through catalogues or went to the Men’s Big and Tall for his suits. “But I think there are directories near the escalators.”

That would tell them where they needed to go to find decorations. And there was a large, helpful sign pointing them in the direction of the escalators.

“I suppose we could do that, although I don’t think this is the place you want to buy books.” Or liquor.

[Joshua Bernstein]

So Sean didn't know everything after all. This had come as a shock to him as a young man, and even now his inclination was to assume that no matter what information he was after Sean would know. That included finding his way around a department store he shopped at only infrequently; the admission that his partner was only vaguely familiar with the layout was a reminder that the other man was only human, after all, if a more competent one than average.

He strode toward the escalators, sighting the upright rectangle that served as a map as they moved closer. Decades of shopping and Christmas experience did little to quell his hopes that JC Penney would continue to provide an escape from the Santas and angels occupying the rest of the mall.

He peered at the brightly colored sections of the map. Home goods, second floor. It was fortunately rather impossible to mess up such things as which floor they were on, even if he was likely to go off to the right when the map said to go to the left.

"Up we go." He announced, stepping onto the escalator with a great deal more cheer than he had shown during their trek to the store. "I suppose you have a point, the bookstore is far superior at providing books. But their so-called holiday display is entirely Christmas-themed." Which meant he was avoiding the bookstore until the season had passed; possibly even until January. Not that he really needed any new books; his library had been getting out of hand even before he'd moved in with Sean and had to share shelf space.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean never claimed to be anything but human, albeit a psychic one. He hoped that before he and Josh found themselves living at the retirement home, the other man would learn that lesson. His students hadn’t either, but that was to be expected; they were students.

The telepath walked with his partner toward the escalators and stepped back while the other man examined the map. Although maps weren’t always Josh’s strong suit, Sean trusted him to decipher the store directory in JC Penney. That proved valid, since Josh declared that they were to go up to the next floor, and Sean followed him onto the escalator, settling on the step beneath him.

For the moment, at least, Josh appeared to be in better spirits. For however long that lasted.

“I noticed,” Sean replied. He had noticed independently when they had last gone to the bookstore, but Josh’s comments had made it impossible to forget. The telepath had no reason to avoid the bookstore for the next two months and had no intention of doing so, but he made a mental note to not ask Josh along with him during the next trip. Thus was the difficulty with navigating a small town during the holiday season and its prelude.

Reaching the second floor, Sean stepped off the escalator and looked at the signs pointing towards the home good section, and away from the electronics. “If shelf space is a problem, we can buy another bookcase; we have the room.”

[Joshua Bernstein]

Josh followed Sean's gaze to the home goods sign. Arrows were easier to follow than maps, fortunately, and so he headed off in the appropriate direction, shaking his head at the idea they might need more shelves. "We have enough shelves." That wasn't entirely true; half his collection remained in boxes because he hadn't quite found the space for them otherwise. That, however, was merely a sign that he had far too many books. Perhaps he should go through them and give away anything he wasn't planning on reading again. "Unless our books start reproducing I don't think we'll have a problem."

Unlike the women's clothing section, the home goods section returned to the great Christmas war that was being waged in the rest of the mall. Christmas tree shaped cookie trays, cheese spreaders with nutcracker handles, and boxes upon boxes of decorative glass balls all paid homage to the season. His shoulders tensed at the display, but he said nothing. At least JC Penney wasn't overgrown with the holiday, and it did make sense they would sell Christmas goods.

It was just a shame he had to pass them to find the blue and silver that signified the Hanukkah section.

"We need another Menorah." He informed his partner as he distanced himself from the Christmas section with alacrity. "And...." His gaze strayed upon a section of nothing but different Hanukkah-themed gingerbread house kits. This was going to be as much fun as carving pumpkins together. "A gingerbread house."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean was of the opinion that one couldn’t have too many books in the abstract. In practice, one could only have too many books if one lacked space. Shelves aside, they had more than enough space in the house. They could easily buy more shelves and accommodate the rest of the books. However, he wouldn’t argue with the other man about this; this was a matter where he would simply order more shelves from Ikea. “Considering some of the books that we have, reproduction is a distinct possibility.”

At least there was no Christmas music, which the telepath assumed would help a bit with Josh’s mood. The Christmas decorations in the home goods section were to be expected, and Sean glanced at a few since he would have to bring something for James’s party next month. There was no reason to buy now, but he liked to be aware.

Following the attorney, Sean reached the Chanukah section and looked around at the offerings. Less than what was available for Christmas, but still a strong selection. “I’m sure we can find another Menorah,” he began, parting from the other man towards the display of Menorahs. One caught his eye that the telepath recognized as the Tree of Life, and he turned it over in his hands.

The remark of gingerbread houses caught his attention, and he turned his head. “We can get a gingerbread house if you want. Do you plan to have a decoration party?”

[Joshua Bernstein]

"A decoration party?" Josh repeated quizzically. He had assumed this would be a private affair between himself and Sean rather than a full-fledged party; he couldn't believe he'd allowed his partner to think of the idea of a party first. "...perhaps."

If they were to have a Hanukkah decorating party then he would keep his guest list confined to friends from temple, which put Danny Silverman at the top of his list. He briefly considered inviting his mother, but no -- if decorating were involved that would give her too much opportunity to pry, and while the idea of finally coming out to her had been on his mind, that wasn't the ideal way for her to find out in his opinion.

Of course, if they were going to have a party then he would have to make a list of guests and then come back for the kits; he couldn't just purchase a whole bunch of them without knowing how many he needed. If he'd thought of this sooner (or Sean had mentioned the idea sooner) then they needn't make multiple treks through Christmas Land, but that wasn't to be. He supposed he would survive a second trip.

He turned his attention from the gingerbread house kits to Sean, then, catching sight of the Menorah in his hands. "That's interesting, I like it."

Trust the telepath to find exactly what was needed, and for it to be gorgeous.

He gave his partner a teasing grin. "I knew there was a reason I let you come with me."

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean hadn’t been serious. Not only had he not been serious, but judging from his partner’s thoughts, his comment had also been misinterpreted. The telepath had intended that to mean whether they were making a production of decorating, the same way they had with Halloween. Sean was happy to do that, if it was what Josh wanted, and given his desire to make a gingerbread house, he assumed it was true.

They already had a pre-Thanksgiving supper – he wouldn’t call it a party but it was a gathering – on the horizon. He supposed they could have a decorating party; he certainly enjoyed parties, both hosting and attending them. But Sean would far prefer that this remained the two of them; there was comfort in the domesticity and he wished to enjoy that. But Sean would bring that up later, if it was necessary, if Josh decided to buy more decorations than otherwise needed.

“I’m gratified,” the telepath said with a smile. He turned and held the Menorah out to the other man, offering it to him to examine if he so desired.

The comment was met with a smile of his own. “Aside from the fact that I drove, you mean?”

[Joshua Bernstein]

Josh accepted the Menorah without comment, inspecting it in admiration. "You did drive here." He admitted, "And I'm grateful, but don't think I wouldn't have come on my own if you hadn't been available." He had cycled to the mall on many an occasion, regardless of weather. In fact, he'd cycled to the mall last year around this time regardless of the fact that he wasn't even supposed to be out of bed.

Of course, Sean wasn't supposed to know about that since he'd been at work at the time.

"But I do appreciate the escort service you provide, Jeeves. I may have to utilize it more often. Unless your driver's ed school is open for service again?" It had been over a year since he had made that one paltry attempt to learn how to drive, and despite the fact that the idea absolutely terrified him he supposed he ought to give it another try. After all, as much as he enjoyed having an excuse for Sean to go with him on errands it would be better to be a little more self-sufficient, and the environment friendly factor couldn't compete with the reality that cycling around Pilot Ridge (and having to take a cab to his parents in Burlington) was more burdensome than if he'd had the ability to drive himself. His lack of car had worked when he'd lived in the City, but Vermont didn't have the same dedicated public transportation system.

"I don't suppose JC Penney would have any garlands?" He didn't see anything that looked like a garland that wasn't being used in the displays, and he doubted those were the holiday equivalent of floor models.

There was a nice display of silver and blue Mezuzah, and he wondered briefly if he could get away with displaying one for the holiday. He'd not even asked about the one he'd brought with him when he'd moved in, not wishing to impose his religious symbols on his partner except during holidays. instead affixing it on the door outside his bedroom. This didn't stop him from fingering one with longing; the cases were beautifully crafted.

"Do we have appropriately colored candle sticks?" That was a safer question than do you mind if I place my religious symbol outside the door of our shared home until the end of Hanukkah?