Chapter 25 #2
“Bode,” he said, his voice carrying a slight accent. “Good, you’re here. We need to talk about Wrangell.” He dropped a heavy backpack onto the floor. “I leave for Alaska in three days. You’re coming with me. Already added your name to the permits.”
The color drained completely from Bode’s face.
His breath came in short, shallow gasps, his eyes wide with something between panic and fury.
His hands started to shake, and I recognized the signs of an impending panic attack.
Wade saw it too, I could tell by the way he immediately started moving toward Bode, all thoughts of our just-revealed relationship forgotten in the face of Bode’s distress.
I looked between them, Wade, heartbroken that we’d been hiding our relationship but still prioritizing Bode’s needs; and Bode, spiraling into panic at the shock of his father’s unexpected demands. Something hot and fierce rose in my chest. Something that had been building for months, years maybe.
Before I fully realized what I was doing, I set down the pie, climbed onto the nearest chair, and raised my voice above the din.
“EVERYONE SHUT UP!”
The room fell silent, all eyes turning to me. I took a deep breath, suddenly aware of how ridiculous I must look standing on a dining chair, yelling at our families. Wade looked up at me, eyes wide.
“I’ve been trying to make this whole family holiday work,” I said. “Trying to keep the peace. But the thing is, it’s hurting the people I care about most. Because we shouldn’t have to hide who we are.”
“Yeah, Lucky!” Emily whooped, and I shot her a look. She mimed zipping her lips, still bouncing a little with excitement.
“So I’m going to lay it all out for you.
Bode and Wade are my boyfriends,” I said clearly.
“And my boyfriends are boyfriends with each other. Wade and I sleep in Bode’s room, so you can all stop fucking arguing about beds.
There are four bedrooms upstairs. Pick any of them!
And if anyone doesn’t want to accept us as a throuple, there’s the door.
Good luck finding a hotel room in Elkhead on Christmas. ”
I turned to Hans, fixing him with a glare that channeled every ounce of dominance I usually saved for the bedroom.
“And Bode is not fucking going to Alaska. He’s promised me that he's going to stay the winter with us.” I swallowed hard, my voice getting a little shaky.
“We’ve only just found him, and he’s still healing.
We need more time with him. So you can just take your permits and your last-minute demands and fuck right off. ”
The silence that followed was absolute. I could hear the refrigerator humming and the faint sound of the wind outside. My heart pounded so hard I was sure everyone could hear it.
Then my father cleared his throat. “The dal is almost ready,” he said casually, as if I hadn’t just announced a polyamorous relationship to an entire room of relatives. “We should probably set the table. Obviously, the throuple will want to sit together.”
Taro nodded, clapping his hands. “Everyone, let’s get the plates out, the silverware is in the drawer by the dishwasher. Come on! My wife’s food waits for no man.”
Something in the room shifted, tension dissipating like steam from a pressure cooker that had finally been vented.
Carol stepped forward, her face working through a series of emotions before settling into something warm and determined.
She walked to me as I climbed down from the chair, pulling me into a tight hug.
“It’s nice to finally meet Wade’s girlfriend,” she said quietly. “Not quite how I expected it to happen, but he’s talked about you for years, you know.”
When she released me, she turned to Bode, hesitating for just a moment before giving him an awkward half-hug. “And, um, his boyfriend too, I suppose. Bode, right? He mentions you all of the time.”
Bode’s laugh was startled but genuine. He swept Carol up in a bear hug that lifted her feet off the ground, his face breaking into a smile so brilliant it transformed him. She giggled, and then patted his arm, looking flustered.
“Well, then. I’d better go finish the pierogi, don’t you think?” With that, she bustled off.
Bode leaned in and kissed the top of my head. “Thank you,” he whispered against my hair.
Carol laughed as he set her down, her cheeks pink. “Well, I always wanted more children,” she said, patting his arm.
“This is so unfair,” Chitra announced from her position against the wall. “How does Lucky get two hot guys when there’s barely enough to go around?”
Wade, who had moved to stand beside Bode, whispered something to her. His voice wasn‘t quite low enough, and I caught “suck each other’s cocks too much to be separated, or I’d consider it.”
Chitra’s shocked laughter broke the last of the tension. Even my mother cracked a smile, though she quickly tried to hide it.
Hans stood by the door, looking completely wrong-footed for the first time since I’d seen him. Sachi stepped up to him, her expression unreadable. “You should have called first,” she said simply. “You always did have terrible timing.”
“Apparently,” he muttered, looking around the room with new eyes.
In the kitchen, Fumiko had begun arranging plates alongside my father, the two of them falling into an unexpected rhythm as they prepared to serve a bizarre fusion of Japanese and Indian dishes.
Carol joined them, contributing her pierogies to the eclectic feast, while Emily hovered nearby, offering her pie and asking a million questions about the food.
Henry, who had come in from the deck during the commotion, caught Wade’s eye and gave him a nod that seemed to say volumes. Wade’s shoulders relaxed visibly at the gesture.
I made my way to Bode’s side, taking his hand in mine. His breathing had steadied, but I could still feel the faint tremor in his fingers. Wade moved to his other side, his hand resting protectively on the small of Bode’s back.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I didn‘t mean to out us like that, but—“
“Don‘t apologize,” Bode said, his voice rough with emotion. “That was fucking hot.”
Wade laughed softly. “It really was. Very ‘Duchess’ energy.”
“I couldn’t stand seeing you both hurting,” I admitted, squeezing Bode’s hand. “And I’m tired of hiding.”
Bode leaned down to press his forehead against mine. “Thank you for telling my dad to fuck right off,” he whispered.
“I can’t believe I said that to Hans Eriksen. THE Hans Eriksen. Backcountry legend.”
“The Hans Eriksen is kind of a dick,” Wade said.
Sachi who was standing close enough to hear, barked a laugh. “I’ll toast to that!”
Wade’s arm encircled both of us. “Family dinner’s going to be interesting,” he said, glancing toward the table where our relatives were beginning to gather.
“Understatement of the century,” I replied, but I found I wasn’t afraid anymore. We were together, out in the open. Whatever came next, we’d face it as a unit.
“Dinner!” my father called, gesturing expansively at the feast now spread across the counter. “Come, everyone! Food fixes everything.”
I wasn’t sure that was entirely true, but as I watched our families awkwardly navigating this new reality, Chitra pestering Wade with inappropriate questions, my mother attempting a stilted conversation with Bode’s grandparents, Hans hovering uncertainly at the periphery, I thought maybe it was a start.