Holiday Fiction from Natasha Chesterbrook!

 Happy Tuesday! I can't tell you how delighted I am to have this lovely bit of yuletide joy from our dear friend Natasha Chesterbrook!

Natasha is giving us a holiday peek at Cary and Walter from the short story Slings and Arrows. I know you'll love it. I do. ;-) 

Slings and Arrows Coda

Carey and Walter

 

Christmas Eve

Downtown Hartsburg doesn’t just decorate for Christmas so much as wrap the town up like a yuletide Easter egg. Festive lights, ornamental evergreen, glowing candles – or what passed for fire-lit but without the potential for accidental arson – and decorated trees in all sizes appear everywhere, in every window, on every building front and some rooftops too. No patch is left unadorned, no proprietor to be outdone by his or her neighbor.

 And in a show of solidarity, nature provided the ultimate festive notes as a dusting of frost glittered off tree branches and window ledges alike in the late afternoon sun. Of course, bumper-to-bumper traffic up and down main street made Christmas Eve parking a major pain and even more difficult to find around the only packaging store that still promised Christmas Day delivery – for a hefty fee, of course. Worth it for Carey’s nephew to get the one toy he’d been promised Santa would deliver this year. Even Carey isn’t quite sure what the gizmo does besides blink and make lots of beeping noises. Yet if it wasn’t delivered by tomorrow, no doubt his sister would give him an earful.

After thirty minutes in line to finally ship his package, it was a relief to check that item off Carey’s list. With sunlight fading fast, street lights began to turn on and the store interiors sparkled with full Christmas display. Skirting around a blow-up Santa tilting drunkenly in the chilly breeze, Carey came to a full stop. Just down the block he spied Walter entering the Hartsburg Real Estate building with the look of a man who is about to complete a satisfying purchase – or figured out how to dump his live-in boyfriend of two years. Just find another place to live, right?

Hold on. Let’s back up a little.

 

Two Weeks Before Christmas

That guy looks familiar.

The auditorium doors slam open and expel a swarm of freshmen – they all have that first-time-end-of-semester-exams-are-coming stare – in a rush to get to their next class. Carey knew it was better to just wait than to try swimming upstream against the oncoming rush, so he spent his time eyeing the only other person standing in the hallway. Where had he seen him before? Had they had a class together?

Now that he was employed full time, sitting in a classroom seemed like a distant memory for Carey. If Walter hadn’t been an adjunct professor while working on his PhD, he doubted he’d even have reason to return to campus. His job with a law firm specializing in LGBTQ rights kept him so busy he barely had time to breath. And trying to figure out if this is how he wanted to use his Anthropology degree left him little time to pursue additional coursework.

Then it came to him. He’d seen this guy coming out of Walter’s office about a month ago. Okay, that made sense even if he did look a bit older than the usual undergraduate and was dressed nicer than most college students. His suspicion that the guy was waiting on Walter ended when the last of the students exited and Carey watched him disappear inside the auditorium.

Curious, Carey opened one of the doors in time to see the guy hand Walter a large envelope. He opened it and removed a piece of paper. After taking a moment to read something, Walter nodded and shook the guy’s hand. Carey frowned but stepped back as the stranger emerged into the hallway and walked out of the building.

 When Walter finally met up with Carey, he was as cool as an iceberg which is to say, his normal self.

“Tough crowd?” Carey asked hoping to get Walter talking. It could be a challenge at times.

“No more than usual,” Walter replied, succinct as ever.

 

One Week Before Christmas

What do you get a guy who really doesn’t want anything? Carey was wracking his brain for gift ideas. After dating for more than six months, Carey had moved into Walter’s apartment, and they were now going on two years of cohabitation. It wasn’t always smooth sailing especially now that they both had demanding pursuits, but he thought they made it work. The problem was that Carey still felt he didn’t know Walter much better than he did at the start of their relationship.

Yes, he knew Walter’s habits – fastidious, always on time, not a multi-tasker but also incredibly patient with Carey who could often blow small setbacks out of proportion or whose occasional lapses in tidiness happened on a daily basis. Walter knew all of Carey’s warts yet still seemed to love him. However, knowing the full depths of Walter always seemed just out of reach. Hence finding the perfect Christmas gift was such a challenge.

Just down from the Hartsburg Real Estate building Carey found a parking lot with holiday parking fees so high the whole company should be placed permanently on Santa’s Naughty List. The building itself is the original site of the Hartsburg’s Land Holdings office back in the early 1900s when most of the area was farmland. Now it housed several businesses including the accounting agency Carey’s law firm uses, a posh hair salon, an artisan design studio and, of course, the Hartsburg Real Estate agency.

Rounding the corner of the building Carey stopped in front of the picturesque window showing large easels with placards touting various high-end condominiums and luxury apartments on the market. All appropriately festooned for Christmas, of course. Beyond the layout Carey could see a huge Christmas tree set up in the large atrium of the building. While admiring the beautiful decorations he recognized the same guy he’d seen outside Walter’s lecture hall. Carey watched him get on the elevator to the second floor.

Carey doesn’t think of himself as an imaginative guy. He isn’t given to making up stories but once an idea starts to form in his head, no matter what, he can’t shake it. Something is off between him and Walt.

Last time they’d really dined out together was at Thanksgiving when they went to Carey’s brother’s house. Sure, Walt had spent the early part of the day working on a grant application for new research funding and Carey used the time to brush up on recent statutes enacted both for and against transgender rights. But they’d attended the dinner as a couple. It was a nice evening although Carey had used the time as a de-stressor, ended up drinking too much and falling asleep on the ride home. He never did get to show Walt just how thankful he was.

Walter seems to recognize that every moment they have is precious and not to be taken for granted. If anything, he is more considerate and caring when they do find a few moments together. But at the same time, Carey can’t shake the feeling that Walter has been acting odd – or odder than usual for Walter. Almost secretive except Carey knows Walter is incapable of real deception. Has he been talking to a real estate agent? Does Walt want to move? He’d talk to Carey first, surely. But maybe Walt wants to move without Carey?

Since Thanksgiving, the closest thing to a date they’d had was a visit to the college’s exhibit on Gift Giving through the Ages where Walt seemed more than a little obsessed with the Renaissance period. Now with the upcoming winter break, Carey intended to make this Christmas memorable. Could it be the only memory he’d have is Walt showing him the door?

Carey had a sudden urge to march inside the agency and demand this stranger tell him what is going on. But shouldn’t he really be talking to Walt? Discuss this as adults? Yet what could he say that wouldn’t sound suspicious and untrusting? Carey does trust Walt.

A delicious aroma of tomatoes, garlic, and basil greets Carey when he steps in the door to their apartment. He finds Walter in their kitchen just adding the toppings to a homemade pizza before popping it in the oven. This is one of Carey’s favorites which makes him feel both warm and all the more guilty.

At dinner, the glass of wine disappeared before Carey realized he’d drained it.
“Were you able to find everything on your shopping list?” Walt asked, a slice of pizza dribbling melted cheese rested in his hand.

“Huh? Oh, yeah.” Carey had been watching Walt trying to determine if there is anything suspicious behind those orb-enlarging spectacles he wore. But Walt is just being Walt which meant he was mostly oblivious to Carey’s questioning looks and obvious stress. In that moment Carey vowed to put his concerns to rest and move on. It was almost a relief.

That night they made love and Walt was as remarkable a lover as the first time. Carey not only felt reassured but even a bit ashamed of himself for ever questioning him.

 

Back to Christmas Eve

Carey’s feet are frozen to the sidewalk and not because of the frigid temperatures as he observes Walter through the picturesque windowfront. He watches the same guy gifting Walter with a beautifully wrapped Christmas present. Is that how they transfer property these days?

With more agility than he thought he was able to achieve in that moment, Carey turns and races back to his car. He doesn’t want to go home. He doesn’t want Walter to break up with him. But after two hours, a couple of texts and a call from Walter – all unanswered – he knows he has no choice.

He finds Walter on the sofa reading a book, not an e-book but a real paper and hardcover book. The scene is so familiar and warm that for a moment Carey feels like he’s wakened from a bad dream and everything he thought was wrong has magically fixed itself. Then he notices the wrapped gift he’d spied earlier resting on the end table and he knows this nightmare isn’t over.

The concerned look on Walter’s face confirms it.

“What’s happening, Walter?” The question comes out much harsher and higher pitched than Carey would have wanted.

“What do you mean?” is Walter’s wary reply.

“Are you leaving?” And Carey couldn’t keep the accusation out of his voice this time.

Slowly, as if speaking to a child, Walter says, “Did you want me to leave?”

“No! I’m not…this isn’t… stop answering my questions with questions!”

Walter stands silent and Carey tries to will away the tears that are forming in his eyes.

He practically begs, “Don’t go. I love you, Walter, and we can fix this whatever it is.”

Walter’s arms wrapping around him feel like a warm spring day after several long months of winter freeze. “Why would you think I’m going anywhere?” Walt whispers against his cheek.

Carey’s tongue feels glued to the roof of his mouth, but he manages, “I saw you talking to that real estate agent.” He swallows reflexively. “I thought you’d decided to move.”

He can feel Walt frown, “An agent?”

“At Hartsburg Real Estate…” Carey suddenly feels foolish but plows on. “You came out of their building earlier.”

Walter takes a step back but keeps his hold on Carey. Instead, he hands him the damning present.

“That building houses more than just a real estate agency,” Walter states with dry efficiency. “This is for you.”

Confused and more than a bit overwhelmed, Carey opens the small, gaily wrapped parcel. Inside a box, nestled within a soft cushion of cotton wadding, lays a shiny silver ring of intricate latticework.

Walter breaks the silence. “It’s a Gimmel ring. They were quite popular during the Renaissance period – like the ones we saw in the college exhibit. I had an artisan in the building’s Design House create it for you. Our names are engraved inside.”

Carey remembers this part of the exhibit. A Gimmel ring is a set of interlocking hoops that form one complete ring meant to symbolize the bonds of love. They were commonly used as betrothal rings.

“It’s beautiful, Walter.” Carey hesitates but goes on, “Is this an engagement ring?”

“It can be whatever you want it to be.”