Chapter 15 #2
As he sliced the roast bird, the conversation at the table fell into an easy patter. Jake said a quick prayer of thanks. His grandmother could sometimes be too much for people, but it seemed Purl and Fern were a good foil for her.
And he did want them to get along. He wanted them all to be family.
He hated hiding the big, alien secret from Gram, but he hoped that eventually he’d be able to bring her into the fold.
It had just been Jake and his grandmother for so long.
The prospect of expanding their family was an appealing one.
For him, his little family of two had always been a lifeline, and although that had saved him in many times of crisis, he wondered what it would be like for family to be more of a warm blanket, a quiet fire to return to for comfort.
As much as he adored his grandmother, it had been lonely just the two of them, and if he got to have more, he’d be very grateful.
They were all still learning each other, even as he and Doren were still learning each other, but the potential was there.
The afternoon passed in a haze of food, alcohol, and delightful conversation. Although they were skittish, Jake found Doren’s parents to be warm and kind. They clearly loved their children.
The real surprise of the day, though, was Ren, who hit it off with Jake’s grandmother.
It was as if when Ren left the ocean, they remembered the person they once were.
Doren kept shooting Jake wide-eyed glances at whatever latest raucous story Ren was telling, or when Ren and Gram got into a “who-can-swear-the-most” match.
Gram won, but only by a hair.
Purl and Fern appeared flabbergasted by Ren’s personality emergence, although they said nothing about it.
The only one who was unsurprised was his grandmother, since she’d never met Ren before now and didn’t have Jake’s knowledge of their past. As far as Rhonda knew, this was how Ren had always been.
When the sun had well and truly set, and no one could even consider having more pie, it was time for Doren’s parents to go.
They all exchanged hugs at the door, and Purl shocked them all with her enthusiastic embrace of Jake’s grandmother. When they separated, Purl had tears in her eyes. She looked down at the diminutive woman with gratitude.
“Thank you for welcoming us into your home. We live an isolated existence, and we have our reasons for it. We’ve experienced some horrible behavior. But you’ve shown us warmth and kindness, and proved how good a human can be.”
Rhonda reached out and grasped Purl’s hands in hers with a fierce strength. “I don’t know what you’ve gone through, or why, but there’s nothing more important than family. When I saw how happy Jakey is with Doren, there’s no question. You’re welcome here anytime. You’re one of us now.”
Purl nodded mutely, and Jake’s heart swelled with pride and gratitude. For all the shitty things that had happened to him, his grandmother had been an incredible gift in his life.
Jake embraced Purl and Fern as well. Now that they had relaxed around him, they exuded warmth and care. The final button of the entire exchange was Ren and Rhonda’s hug, which was marked by raucous laughter and some whispering that definitely seemed like the making of mischievous plans.
“This friendship is an absolutely terrible idea,” Doren whispered to him as they watched, a hint of amusement in their voice.
Finally, Purl and Fern headed off with Ren in tow. Doren and Jake finished washing up the dishes and putting away the leftovers even as Gram napped away in her rocking chair.
“She had a lot of wine for someone in her seventies,” Jake whispered to Doren as the alien finished drying a large serving dish.
“I heard that,” Gram croaked from the living room. “Get in here, you two.”
Doren glanced at Jake, a question in their eyes, but Jake just shrugged and went in. He’d long ago stopped trying to predict what his grandmother was up to.
Jake and Doren settled down side by side on the loveseat, upholstered in a fabric of oversized tropical flowers on a beige background.
Persuading her to update her furniture was a lost cause.
It didn’t matter if it had a few holes or if the springs were giving up the ghost, Gram wouldn’t get a new couch until the old one collapsed into dust.
“I got you two a Christmas present.”
“That wasn’t necessary, Rhonda,” Doren said, shifting in their seat.
Gram pointed a crooked finger at Doren, wearing a lopsided grin. “Now, you don’t call me Rhonda. You call me Gram.”
The smile that broke out on Doren’s face was the purest thing Jake had seen in a very long time.
Whenever Jake forgot how lucky he was, he just needed to remember that smile.
He didn’t know what his chubby, depressed ass had done to deserve someone like Doren in his life, but he wouldn’t take it for granted.
“Gram,” Doren said in a low, sweet tone. “If I’d known, I’d have arrived bearing gifts.”
“Don’t be a dumbfuck,” she said, rocking back and forth in malevolent glee.
“Christmas gifts aren’t about an exchange.
It’s not tit-for-tat. Christmas is about finding something that would put a smile on the other person’s face, or make them laugh, or even make them cry.
Something so they feel loved and cared for. We’re not keeping tally.”
“Okay…” Doren still wore a sheepish look, and Jake squeezed their hand. His grandmother didn’t care at all if she got a single gift. She adored giving them.
“Jakey, fetch that one right there from under the tree.” Gram gestured to a medium-sized silver box wrapped in matching silver ribbon. It sat on top of a small pile of other gifts Jake assumed were for her…boyfriends?
He shivered at that thought, then shook it off, grabbing the box and placing it in Doren’s hands.
“You open it,” Jake whispered, putting his arm around Doren’s shoulders.
As Doren tugged on the bow, the ribbon slipped apart. Gram had always been excellent at wrapping. Doren removed the top and parted the tissue paper protecting the gift.
Sitting there in Doren’s lap was a Christmas ornament. It was an arch with a miniature landscape underneath. A sandy beach with a wooden chair perched on it. Santa lounged there on the beach chair. Maybe asleep?
Across the arch in bright gold letters were written the words: “Love Has No Season.”
Jake’s throat closed up, and he blinked to wash away the tears welling up in his eyes. His grandmother might swear like a sailor, but she was perfect where it counted. Love. Family. Home.
Doren was similarly affected, their voice shaking as they spoke. “Gram, this is exquisite. It will adorn the tree we erected at the beach house.”
“I’m glad you like it, sweetie.”
Jake squeezed Doren tighter. That his grandmother had unconditionally accepted them was just another confirmation that Doren was a good person. Alien. A good alien.
Doren blinked a few times and then focused on Jake. “I did bring a present for you. I had it crafted while I was waiting for my parents to make up their mind whether they were journeying here today. It took them forever to decide, even after Ren blackmailed them.”
Reaching into their pocket, Doren brought out a long, thin box wrapped in crinkly gold paper. It was beautiful, although Doren had little experience wrapping presents, if the amount of tape sticking out every which way was any sign.
Jake tore the paper open, revealing a smooth black jewelry box. He shook his head. “You shouldn’t have spent money on me, Doren, I—”
“Stop being an idiot and open the damn present,” Gram barked out, shutting Jake up. He eyed Doren suspiciously, but cracked open the box.
Inside was a simple silver bracelet. The lights of Gram’s Christmas tree reflected off the jewelry, throwing sparks of light all around the living room and transforming it into a field of stars. For a moment, Jake just stared at it. It took him a few seconds to discover the words engraved upon it.
“By Your Side, as Long as You’ll Have Me.”
There was no hiding Jake’s tears now. They streamed down his face, the salty taste hitting his lips as they fell. “Doren…” he croaked.
“My apologies if, uh, if it’s too soon, if I’ve misread the signs.” Doren wrung their hands in their lap, staring at the floor as they spoke. “It is how I feel, but—”
“Nonsense, silly thing,” Gram said, giving Jake a minute to recover. “It’s gorgeous. Jakey just needs to breathe for a sec.”
Jake nodded, not saying anything. He wiped away his tears, which were still falling but had slowed a bit. He ran his thumb over the engraved letters on the bracelet, forcing breath in and out of his body.
“It’s beautiful, Doren. Maybe the nicest thing anyone has ever given me.” For a moment, the image of Phil’s face flashed in his mind. He couldn’t recall the man giving him anything more meaningful than a toaster oven. Which he took with him when he moved out.
Chasing the thought away, Jake stared deep into Doren’s eyes. “But you have to understand what you’re getting into.”
“Jakey—” Jake held up a hand to stop his grandmother. It would upset her, but he had to say the words.
“I’m not getting better. I have good days and bad, good months and bad.
Medication can help. All the other stuff—exercise, meditation—all that can help.
But it’s not a cure. You’ve seen how I can get.
Despondent. Unable to get out of bed. What seems like a quirk right now won’t look so cute in five years, when I’ve lost my job because I couldn’t get myself to the office for two weeks straight. ”
Gram was pushing herself out of her chair now, but Doren waved her off. Any traces of uncertainty on their face were gone, and they sat as solid as an ancient monument as they took both of Jake’s hands in their own.
“I am old, Jake. I have seen a lot of the world, and I’ve often been scared.
You have never scared me. Never once have I felt afraid around you, not for myself, not for anyone else.
Not for you. We haven’t known each other all that long but…
I’m certain of you. I’m falling in love with you, Jake.
Each of us has our secrets. You know mine.
I know yours. I don’t find that terrifying; I find it liberating.
I plan to be by your side as long as you’ll have me. ”
Now it was Jake’s grandmother who was crying, wiping her tears with a tissue she retrieved from her bra. Jake made eye contact with her. He was feeling too much. He didn’t know what to do with it, and he hoped Gram might help him find his way out of the maze of his own emotions.
She wasn’t doing much better, the tears still coming. “Jakey,” she whispered, her compassionate voice broken by age and too much wine, “don’t be a fucking idiot about this.”
The problem was that it was all so new. Jake had never received such complete and honest devotion from a partner. Phil had certainly never been so unabashed. Jake had always been the one who was too much, too depressed, too particular, too hard to deal with.
But Doren didn’t hide behind a facade of sarcasm or forced indifference. Doren was there with him, and had been since the day they’d met. They’d never hidden or backed away. They just did what had to be done and were content to wait for him to catch up when he needed the time.
It was enough to make him ignore the whole tentacled alien shapeshifter thing.
Jake replaced the necklace back in its box and rested his hands on his thighs, palms up. Doren understood what he needed, grabbing his hands and squeezing them tight as he tried to find his voice.
“I think…I’m falling for you too, Doren. I may have already fallen. I’m scared. I’m worried that I’ll be too much for you, that all of it…I’m scared to want it as much as I do. But I can’t help myself.”
With that, Doren’s cool hands were on Jake’s face, their lips on his, soft and sweet and pulsing with emotion. Doren didn’t hold the kiss too long, considering Jake’s grandmother was sitting there watching them, but Doren kept their gaze locked to Jake’s.
“You will never be too much for me.” Doren brushed a finger across Jake’s cheek. “All the traits you dislike about yourself are a part of you. I could never despise any part of you. Please never try to cut away any piece of yourself, because I want it all. Every inch of you belongs to me.”