Chapter 16
NIX
I’ve been going to Pride events since my freshman year of college.
It was the first time I had the opportunity to be in a place where my queerness wasn’t merely accepted, but also celebrated.
Since then, I’ve been to ones in various cities.
Sleighbell Springs is small in comparison, but it brings more heart and welcoming arms than anywhere else.
Small towns sometimes get a reputation for being close-minded or conservative. Maybe that’s true in some places, but I’ve never seen that here. Anyone who wants to be here—and loves the Christmas spirit—is welcome.
Seeing Pride through Chase’s eyes reminds me of everything I love about the event. Some years, it feels more like a money grab than a celebration. But standing in the middle of Main Street as the burlesque dancers make their way along the parade route, I’m filled with emotion.
“This is incredible.” Chase’s mouth is open, his blue eyes sparkling as he watches their hips gyrate. “You really do this every year?”
“Yep, every June.” I don’t bother to tell him about the kind of stuff that goes on in December. Maybe he’ll stick around long enough to see it for himself. Or come back and visit.
“Thank you. For bringing me and making it special.” His eyes never leave the performers. Everyone else might be talking and celebrating, only glancing at the main attraction occasionally, but Chase is enraptured.
He also looks incredible, if I do say so myself.
When he first asked for help dressing for the occasion, I wasn’t sure how far he wanted to go.
So I started small with some sparkly bisexual flag temporary tattoos.
As soon as he saw them, Chase insisted they go on his cheeks.
I was thinking arms, but who am I to spoil a good time?
Before long, I had a matching set of rainbow pride ones.
From there, things spiraled out of control quickly.
A few packages appeared on my front porch.
He bought us muscle shirts. Well, his muscle shirt that says If you play for both teams, you’ll always win in purple, pink, and blue ink.
Mine hangs loosely off my body, which doesn’t have nearly enough muscles to fill something out like this, but he was so proud of it that I couldn’t turn him down.
It says Sounds Gay, I’m In in bright rainbow lettering.
I would never pick something like this out for myself, but I’m more than happy to wear it for him.
“What’s your favorite part?” I ask him.
He does a slow look around the area, taking everything in.
The streets are full of people, young and old, wearing a wild assortment of clothing.
Everything from usual casual wear to fetish-style attire.
I’ve gotten used to it, so it’s hard to imagine what someone seeing it for the first time might think.
Chase reaches out and takes my hand, pulling it up to his mouth to give my fingers a kiss. “You. My favorite part is being here with you.”
Well, he certainly knows how to melt my heart. “I’m glad I could be here to help you celebrate your first official Pride.”
“Hey, you two. How are things going?” Kyler approaches us with his daughter, Nora, on his shoulders. She giggles as they approach, clearly enjoying the day.
“We’re great. Enjoying the parade. How about you?”
“I got cotton candy!” Nora exclaims.
“I see that.” Her lips and chin are covered in the remnants of pink sugar.
“I’m never going to get her down for a nap,” Kyler whines. “I don’t suppose the two of you are interested in some babysitting?”
“No way. I’m helping Chase do his first Pride properly, and that does not include anything appropriate for little eyes and ears.”
“TMI.” Kyler laughs. “Wait, are you two a thing?” He motions toward where Chase is still holding my hand.
Guess the cat is out of the bag now. “Yeah. It’s kind of new.” I hope he takes that to mean that he shouldn’t spread it around too much. Though there are a lot of people around, it would be hard for someone to see this as merely a friend thing.
I glance at Chase to see if he’s okay with someone knowing.
We haven’t been hiding things, but we haven’t put out an ad in the paper either.
It’s possible we’ll make the gossip column.
The best we can hope for is that someone else makes a bigger splash than we do.
Chase grins back at me and gives my hand a squeeze. Guess I’ll take that as approval.
“Okay, well, I need to get Nora home and into bed for an n-a-p.”
“No, nap. I not tired.” Nora shakes her head vigorously.
“Good luck with that.” I’m once again incredibly grateful not to be babysitting. “Come on, Chase. Let’s find some food.”
Further down the street, we find a stand offering maple creemees. I’d been hoping they’d be back so I could get Chase one. “They’re a Vermont specialty,” I explain as I hand him one. The sweetness hits my nose and makes my mouth water. “You’re going to love it.”
He sticks his tongue out to lick around the top of the cone. Suddenly, I’m not hungry anymore. I’d rather get him back to my house so I can put those motions to good use.
“Okay, I’ll admit it’s good. You’re all obsessed with maple syrup up here, but I’m willing to admit that it’s delicious.”
My face hurts from smiling so much today. I know we’re both stressed about Russ coming to town tomorrow and what that means for us, but for this little bit of today, we’re just here together.
CHASE
It’s totally different being here as a part of the community, in more than one way. It’s only been a few weeks, but somehow Sleighbell Springs has started to feel like home. Not because I live here—which I guess I do—but because the people are so welcoming.
That’s in large part due to Nix. He only needs to introduce me to someone, and they instantly welcome me. It’s like he’s some sort of wizard who owns the keys to the kingdom. Or something nerdy like that.
“Oh, Geraldine. I love the outfit.” The woman in front of us is dressed in a leather skirt and top with glitter covering most of her face.
“Thanks, Nix. How are things? Reading challenge going well this summer?” She leans in and gives him a peck on the cheek. Some of her glitter transfers over, giving Nix a few extra freckles.
“Same as always. A bunch of your students have finished already. I’m going to need to make an advanced version next year.”
I can’t even imagine. He already does a ton of work for that challenge. It started right when I arrived, but there are people asking questions about it and asking for their prizes nearly every day. And there are still two months to go.
“Well, let me know if you need help with that. Maybe we can tie it in to their summer reading assignments.”
“Geraldine, let me introduce you to my…” Nix pauses and looks at me. We haven’t exactly had this conversation.
“I’m Nix’s boyfriend. Chase Haywood. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Oh, you’re the one I see running in the morning. I recognize your tattoo.”
“Yep, that’s me.” I rub my hand over the owl on my thigh. Maybe not the smartest idea, but I was twenty-one and just won a big track meet. It seemed like a good option.
“Nix told me you’ve started a run coaching business. That’s amazing. Once I get through the final year of my master’s degree, maybe I’ll hit you up. I’ve wanted to focus on it more, but right now classes take up my time.”
“Yeah, anytime. What’s your master’s in?”
“School administration. I’m the principal for the local middle and high school.”
“That’s incredible.” I swear, she looks like she’s twenty-one. “Well, you know where to find me.” At least for now.
The longer I’m here, the less I want to leave. Sleighbell Springs might be weird, but I think I like weird.
“We’ll talk soon. Enjoy the rest of the day.” She gives Nix another kiss before disappearing into the crowd.
“Do you know everyone?” I ask Nix when she’s out of earshot.
“Not everyone.” He blushes, but he doesn’t duck his head the way he often does.
“People need books; I have books. It turns out, small-town folk love having local places to support. It took me a little while to get my footing, but everyone was so nice. They did anything they could to help me out, including talking the store up when they were out in neighboring towns. Some of that’s because of how much they loved my aunt, but I like to think it’s at least a small part because they like me. ”
“It is.” I can say that without a single doubt.
Someone else’s credibility only goes so far.
Sure, they might have given him a chance because of her, but ultimately, they supported Nix because of how kind and generous he is.
He’s gone out of his way to provide what this town needs.
Game nights, book clubs, reading challenges.
If he thinks there’s a place for something new that someone needs, he figures out how to fill the gap.
It’s what he’s done for me, too.
“What?” Nix asks.
“Huh?”
“You’ve got this weird expression on your face. Is something wrong?”
“No, just thinking about what I want to do with you when we get home tonight.”
Nix turns a bright shade of red. “Yeah? What did you have in mind?”
“I was thinking that I could do that thing with my tongue that you like?” I lean in and lick his earlobe to make my point.
“Yeah? I like that idea.” His breath gets a little louder.
“What if I maybe used it on a different part of your body?” Nix gives me a confused look. Okay, a bit too subtle. I let my hand drop and give his ass a squeeze.
“Really?”
I nod.
“Okay, let’s go.” He grabs my hand and pulls me through the crowd, forcing aside anyone who dares to get in his way.
For someone with short legs, he can move pretty quickly. In the street, there’s a new group of performers coming through. It looks interesting, but I have a much better Pride celebration planned. One with a very exclusive guest list.