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#Yes they are making cookies in Dex's diner
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The next chapter of Blind!Obi-Wan is up, have a snippet and read it here (read from the beginning here).
"Chocolate chip cookies?" Cody read out, looking at the ingredients. Well, they seemed simple enough. "Cyare, I'm not sure why this is a secret."
"Who am I to attempt to look into the mind of the culinary genius that is Dex?" Obi-Wan asked, hands cautiously running over the surface to find the bowl and spoon.
"A literal mind reader, my love," Cody pointed out, getting a laugh out of his Jedi, and putting the bowl in front of him with the wooden spoon already inside. "Here, do you want me to measure out the ingredients?"
"That depends, who's creaming the butter and sugar together?"
"Why, the one with surprisingly toned arms," Cody slipped behind him, wrapping his arms around Obi-Wan's waist and pressing a kiss to a bare shoulder, trailing a few kisses down his upper arm. "If you want to?"
"I do, but we're both going to end up covered in flour."
"I'll take that risk, cyare." Cody lifted his head and kissed Obi-Wan's cheek before stepping over to the ingredients with the mixing bowl that had been in front of the Jedi, weighing out butter and white and brown sugar into it, before returning it.
Obi-Wan started to cream together the butter and sugars, relaxing and letting his mind wander as he worked it to a smooth paste until he could feel no more grains of sugar within the mix. At some point, he'd started humming softly, and Cody just worked around him, pouring in the vanilla extract and adding an egg to the mix as Obi-Wan stirred.
It had been months since his Jedi had relaxed enough to drop his guard entirely. Even on leave, he'd still retained a little bit of tension, as if waiting for something to go wrong.
Here? Humming, smiling with his eyes closed and his posture lax. Here, Obi-Wan was completely relaxed in a way that Cody hoped he would be every day after the war.
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amukmuk · 4 years
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3 or 46 for foxiyo, for the writing prompt thing, if that's alright?
Of course!! Thank you so much @flyawaybluebirdie for sending a prompt! I actually ended up combining them because I love a challenge. 
For the Prompts Touch & Blanket | Ao3
One
Fox stands at the landing pad, ready to welcome yet another freshly elected senator. As if he doesn’t have enough to do as it is, he also serves as the resident tour guide for all the shiny senators. Beneath his bucket, he rolls his eyes.
As the ramp lowers on the Pantoran ship, Senator Riyo Chuchi appears. He has read her file, acquainted himself with her appearance to ensure that he isn’t welcoming separatist scum with open arms. But, for some reason, Fox is shocked by how small she is. She’s petite and blue and looks like she wants to be just here as much as Fox does.
“Senator. Welcome to Coruscant,” Fox greets. He stands at formal parade rest and prepares for her to brush him off because he’s just a clone, and that’s what every other senator does.
“Thank you.” She holds out her hand. “I’m Riyo Chuchi.”
He stares at her hand, her fingers are slender and are adorned with petite golden rings. Slowly, probably resembling a robot that he is thought to be, he takes her hand. “Commander Fox, ma’am.”
“Lovely to make your acquaintance, Commander.” She says as she gives his hand a few shakes up and down.
“Likewise, Senator,” he states and for the first time in his life, he thinks he may actually mean those words.
Two
There is a knock at his door and Fox instantly feels homicidal. If someone is coming in here to tell him that he is late on the paperwork he is filling out right now he’s going to kill them. He would have been done by now except he had to keep taking breaks to babysit the damned, shiny Senators. “Enter,” he growls.
“Hi Commander,” Senator Chuchi is standing at his door, holding a tin can of something .
Oh no .
Please don’t let this be a package she was delivered. They will have to lock down the whole area, the bombsquad will be called in and then he really won’t get this paperwork done.
Wearing a smile that only worsens his anxiety, she enters his cluttered, supply closet-sized office and stands in front of his desk.  
“Can I help you with something, Senator?” He bites.
Her smile falters. “I just wanted to say thank you. I know you’re busy, but I just wanted to properly thank you for showing me around. Without you, I would be, in quite the literal sense of the word, lost.”
He stares at her. Thanking him? Thanking him?  
She clears her throat and shifts her weight back and forth between her feet. “Anyway, thanks.” She thrusts the tin box at him. “I baked some traditional Pantoran cookies. They’re my favorite.”
Hesitant, he accepts the box from her, their fingers brushing. To his surprise, however, she doesn’t flinch away from his accident touch. Most senators do. “Thanks… This is very nice of you.”
She beams. “Anyway, I will let you get back to work. It was lovely seeing you again, Commander.” And she darts away, leaving Fox standing in his office staring down at a tin of cookies like they may hold the meaning of life.
Three
Fox breathes a sigh of relief as the elevator door closes. If he is being honest with himself, he is not doing well. He hasn’t slept in three days and he is getting really tired of senators referring to him as just ‘clone’ or whatever other derogatory terms they come up with. Finally, in the peaceful quiet of an empty, descending elevator - he is alone. He slouches, his back aching from standing impossibly straight all day.
To his absolute and total dismay, the elevator lurches and the doors slide open, revealing Senator Chuchi. Her face lights up immediately and Fox feels nothing but dread. Normally, he can partake in some chipper small talk that she likes to make, but he is tired and he just wants to get to his office so he can take a shot of brandy and fall asleep on his desk.
“Hello, Commander!” She chirps as she steps into the elevator.
“Senator,” he greets with a nod.
“How are you today?” He’s gotten used to her asking this question. The first time she had asked, his brain had almost stopped working altogether. Now, he has a canned response.
“I’m fine, ma’am, and you?”
“Doing well, thank you.”
Silence falls between them as the floors tick down.
“You seem like you have a lot on your mind, Fox. Are you sure you are alright?”
He looks over at her. He is always ready for everything, but Riyo always seems to catch him off guard. “What?”
“I’m sorry, I do not mean to pry, how rude of me.”
The elevator dings; they’ve reached her floor.
Placing a gentle hand upon his upper arm, she says, “I hope whatever is troubling you passes easily and without grief. Have a wonderful day, Commander.”
The doors are already sliding shut when he musters up the coherency to tell her to have a good day as well.
Four
Fox signs his number for the last time and exhales a heavy sigh of relief. Senator Chuchi had asked if she could stop by for lunch and while he had initially told her no, after about a week of her asking, he finally conceded. Now he finds himself rushing to get his work done so that she can still come by.
When she knocks on the door, he straightens up his desk haphazardly and calls for her to enter.
She stands there with multiple bags of food and a tray of drinks. “Good afternoon, Fox. How are you today?”
“I’m fine, thank you. How are you?” He pulls his chair around to the other side of the desk for her to sit in. It’s not the most comfortable thing, but it is a far cry better than his guest chair that has a broken leg and wobbles enough to make even him a little seasick sitting in it.
“I’m doing quite wonderfully now,” she smiles, and puts her bags on top of his desk, minding the datapads. “I hope you enjoy greasy diner food. Ahsoka showed me this place called Dex’s and while it is in absolute violation of every health code, his food is amazing. I got a couple things. I didn’t know what you liked.”
“I’ll eat anything, ma’am.”
“Fox, how many times do I need to tell you to call me Riyo? We’re friends!” She lightly smacks his wrist and he lets himself smile.
“Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s a habit.”
Five
The unnatural warmth and claminess of his right hand pulls him into consciousness. Blinking awake, he is welcomed by the harsh fluorescent lights above him. He groans and rolls his head over to the right, eyeing the culprit guilty of ruining the first good night’s sleep he’s gotten in months. A small smile creeps to his lips when he sees Riyo fast asleep at the edge of his cot, his hand entrapped in hers.
“Riyo?” He whispers and she sits bolt upright, releasing his hand - much to his own dismay - and straightening her hair.
“Fox. I’m so glad you are alright.”
“Can’t get rid of me that easily,” he huffs, suddenly aware of the ribs broken by the blast.  
“Good, you’re a very dear friend. I would be lost without you.”
He takes her in. She looks like she has hardly slept and her hair is sticking up out of her golden headpiece. He has an overwhelming urge to reach up and tuck it back to where it belongs. He has so many things he wants to say, like that she’s his friend too and that he would be lost without her too because she is the only good thing he has. “Thank you,” he whispers instead, hoping his meaning is still relayed.
Her eyes widen. “For what?”
“For staying,” he whispers, turning his hand over as an invitation for her to hold it again.
Luckily she catches on and does. “You’re very welcome.”
+ One
Honestly, she shouldn’t be surprised that their ship got shot down. When the gunship crashed into the snow, she had thought that it was the end - she had finally died. But then she comes to with Fox shaking her awake.
“Riyo. Riyo!”
She blinks a couple times. “I’m fine. I’m awake,” she swats him away.
He lets out a harsh exhale and his shoulders fall from his ears just a pinch. “We need to move out. Seppies may come to scout the wreckage.”
She nods. “Any survivors?”
“Just you and me. Can you stand?”
Easing herself up she gives him another nod, “Yes. I’m alright. Where do we go?”
“Scanners picked up some caves over to the east. If we move quickly we should make it by nightfall.”
“Okay. Lead the way, Commander.”
With a grunt, he heaves a pack onto his back and pulls himself out of the overturned gunship. She tries not to look at the twisted and contorted bodies at her feet as she accepts his hand and is hauled out. The icy wind of this planet takes her breath away and she gasps.
“Sure you’re alright?” He questions.
In the daylight, she sees the way he is hunched forward slightly, cradling one arm closer to himself than normal. His armor is significantly more scratched and some of the red paint has been chipped off. “I should be asking the same to you.”
He shrugs with the arm he isn’t cradling. “I’ll live.”
“Then I will as well. Let us find these caves.”
They walk in tense silence. When they finally reach an ominous opening to the belly of a mountain, he turns on the lights attached to his helmet and enters. “No life signs. We should be safe here for the night. I sent out a distress signal when we crashed. A squadron will be here by tomorrow morning.”
“That is good news,” she manages through a shiver. It is so, so cold here. Wrapping her arms around herself she tries to suppress even more convulsions.
“I have a blanket, and,” he trails off pulling his pack off of his back. “A small heater. It probably has enough juice to last until pick up. I haven’t seen anything around here that we could burn.”
Night falls quickly and it makes Riyo desperately wish for the sun. If Fox is cold, he isn’t showing it - at least not in the same convulsive manner that she is. She can hardly keep her teeth from chattering. They each have a blanket; she has knees folded up so that the blanket fully envelops her and he has his draped around his shoulders. Wordlessly, Fox rises, shrugging off the blanket, and begins pulling off his armor. He hisses a little when he moves his injured arm and then he is wrapping himself back up in the blanket and crossing the cave floor.
He eases himself down next to her and opens his arms. “Come here,” he grunts.
She doesn’t need to be told twice.
Oh and he is so warm. She drapes her blanket over their legs and he wraps his around their arms. He pulls her into his chest and she folds herself tightly around him. Never in her life has she felt safer than she has in his arms.
“This is nice,” Riyo murmurs.
Fox hums in the affirmative and runs his hands through her hair. “Yeah, this is nice.”
She falls asleep like this, curled in his arms, his fingers in her hair, and waiting for help to come in the morning.
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justlookfrightened · 7 years
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Second part of Neighbors AU, Epilogue
Read the earlier chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Or read it on AO3
It happened on a Tuesday. Well, really, it happened on a Monday, but it didn't really blow up until Tuesday.
Jack had his last day off before the playoffs started on the Monday, and since the bakery was closed, they spent the day together. They'd slept in until 8, gone for an easy run -- Jack had been told in no uncertain terms to take a break from the ice for a day -- and had brunch at the diner that had become one of their places. The diner also had started buying pies and other baked goods from Sugar ‘n’ Spice, to Eric’s immense pleasure -- not least because Eric had gotten Matthew to agree to give him a commission on off-site sales just as he did for catering jobs.
They’d taken coffee to go and wandered the riverside, pausing often for Jack to take photographs in the clear April light.
After an hour or so, when Eric was feeling a little chilled by the early spring breeze, they'd turned into Eric’s favorite market and bought the ingredients for a couple of pies for Jack to take to the team tomorrow.
Turning onto the street as they left the market, their fingers had tangled together. Looking back, Eric didn't even know who had reached for whom -- just that neither of them had let go.
When they got to Jack’s apartment, Eric had called Dex to make sure he'd swing by the bakery that evening to make sure everything was in order for the morning, using the detailed checklist that Eric had made. Then he'd turned notifications off on his phone, turned music on, and baked an apple pie and a lemon meringue pie with Jack. Doing it with Jack -- well, it took a bit longer, but with all the chirping, casual touches and even brief kisses, it was so much more fun.
Then Jack had made a simple dinner (“I am an adult human, and feeding myself is an essential survival skill”) with Eric’s help, they’d eaten, and gone to bed early.
Eric had read a text or two, but he'd never even been tempted to check his social media feeds.
The next morning, Eric slipped out of Jack's bed before his alarm went off, went to his own apartment to shower and dress, and was unlocking the door to Sugar ‘n’ Spice at 5. He fired up the oven, slid the first batches of muffins and scones in and opened Twitter on his phone. Then his jaw dropped.
There was a picture of him and Jack walking home from the market, their linked hands clearly visible between them, each holding in bag of groceries in their free hands.
The tweet that had come up in Eric’s feed was a reply to an earlier tweet, asking if that was really Jack Zimmermann of the Falconers, and who was that guy whose hand he was holding?
It looked like one of his regulars had responded, tagging both Eric’s Twitter handle and Sugar ‘n’ Spice.
As Eric worked backwards through the thread, he saw that the picture -- originally posted by the someone whose name he didn’t recognize --had been first posted the night before, and had already been shared several hundred times. More than a dozen people had identified him, either by Twitter handle, place of employment or actual name. There really wasn’t going to be any way to keep this quiet.
So far, at least, there was very little in the way of hate. Curiosity, yes, even intrusiveness, but no one looking forward to their eternal damnation or anything like that.
It was 5:30 a.m.; whom should he call?
“Jack,” he said, as soon as his boyfriend picked up the phone. “I’m sorry to wake you, honey, but before you leave, you should know that someone got a picture of us holding hands when we were walking home yesterday. It’s starting to get spread around, and people are gonna know, so you should be ready for that.”
“OK,” Jack said.
“I know it’s, well, not ideal with the playoffs starting this week,” Eric said. “I’m so sorry.”
Jack sounded almost annoyed when he said, “No need to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. Really.”
“OK, then. I'm sorry for being sorry?”
Jack's sigh was perfectly audible over the phone line.
“It's fine, Eric. I'm not mad at you. Just, you're right, the timing isn't great. Have you talked to anyone from the Falcs yet?”
“Jack, it's 5:35 a.m.”
“Right. Well, I'm going to call PR. I'm sure they'll be getting in touch. Sit tight, all right? It’ll all be fine.”
So Eric closed Twitter and kept baking. He resolutely ignored the notifications from his old Samwell Hockey group chat -- just until he knew what he was allowed to say -- and didn't respond to other texts immediately. At 7, he did call his mother, to let her know that a) he had a boyfriend; b) it might be of interest to tabloids or tabloid TV; and c) she shouldn't talk to anyone about it.
“No, mother, I really am happy, and he's wonderful, but right now is not a great time,” he said.
“You want me to bring him down to visit? Um, I’m not sure he can get away until summer. Fourth of July? I can ask him.”
“Mother, I'm at work.”
That got her off the phone just in time for him to answer Matthew’s call. Matthew started with, “Eric, I had nothing to do with this!”
Having looked at the Twitter users in the thread, he'd already come to that conclusion and said as much.
“Is everything OK there? Are you insanely busy?” Matthew asked.
“Maybe a little busier than usual,” he allowed. “Nurse came in with Chowder, so they're handling the front.”
“You should probably get out there to restock or something,” Matthew said. “Let people see you.”
“Matthew.”
“Kidding! I was kidding!”
“If there's nothing else, I have work to do.”
But the work -- additional muffins, some lemon bars and cookies and mini-pies for later -- would have to wait, because Jamie was calling from the Falc’s PR office.
“I talked to Jack and took a look at what’s out there, and it could be worse,” Jamie said. “Honestly, the picture is kind of sweet.”
“Because we weren’t making out in a grainy photo from a bar?”
“Well, yes, that,” Jamie said. “It’s just so domestic. But really, it’s that you both look so happy.”
“So Jack said you had a plan?”
“We’ll have a plan. What time can you leave the bakery?”
“I usually leave at 2:30, but I could probably get out around 2. Maybe 1:30.”
“Two should be fine,” Jamie said. “Can you get yourself over here? Normally, I’m sure Jack would pick you up, but maybe not today? And maybe not an Uber or anything just yet?”
“I can ask Lardo,” Eric said. “She has a car.”
“When you get here, I’ll sit down with you and Jack and explain what the plan is. It’s still being worked out, and Jack will meet with the whole PR team and management before you get here.”
“He’s not -- ” In trouble was what Eric wanted to say, but it sounded too juvenile. “It’s not -- Y’all’ll be nice to him, right?”
Jamie laughed.
“No one’s upset with Jack, or with you, Eric,” Jamie said. “We just want to make sure we’re all on the same page. From what Jack has said before, he’s not going to be denying that he’s in a relationship with you. I need to know -- you need to be honest -- is that how you want to proceed?”
Eric breathed in and out, then said, “Yes. Absolutely.”
“OK, then. See you this afternoon.”
The plan turned out to be deceptively simple. First, everyone involved would ignore all tweets, other social media or regular media reports based on the picture from Monday. Instead, Jack would (finally!) start his own Twitter and Instagram accounts (“I think Instagram will really be your medium,” Eric said.) and post a photo of him and Eric. Then he would resolutely ignore the comments (“We’ll monitor them, and if you give us the password, we can block anyone we think we need to,” Jamie said.)
The Falconers’ official account would retweet Jack’s tweet, with a statement of support, and so would Jack’s teammates. Eric, his friends and even the bakery should react, too, Jamie said.
Then, she said, came the hard part for Jack: To connect with fans, to win them over and seem human, to get them on his side, he had to keep posting things -- not usually about Eric -- maybe once or twice a week.
(“Once or twice a week?” Eric said. “People will think you’ve died in between.”)
Jamie looked at Eric. “We’re hoping you’ll help Jack decide what to post and show him how to put an effective tweet together.”
Eric smirked. “I can do that,” he said.
“I know what I want the first picture to be,” Jack said, breaking into the conversation for almost the first time. He fiddled with his phone for a moment and showed Eric and Jamie a photo. It was a selfie Eric had taken of the two of them yesterday, in the park. Eric was grinning into the camera, sun glinting on his golden hair, brown eyes sparkling, cheeks pink in the spring chill. Jack’s face was over his shoulder, a more gentle smile lighting his features, his blue eyes matching the sky.
“Can I use this?” he asked.
“Sure,” Jamie said. “What do you want to say?”
So the picture went out with the message, I’m a lucky man! @omgcheckplease
Eric immediately liked and retweeted, with the comment, .@jackzimmermann1, not as lucky as I am!
The three months since then hadn’t always been easy. Eric never thought there would be paparazzi staking out his place of work, and he most definitely did not give them free baked goods. Most people were pleasant and kind, if curious, about him and Jack, though not all. He got to experience Jack in playoff mode (“Now I get the hockey robot thing.”) and in post-playoff-loss mode.
But at the same time, there was Jack’s dry sense of humor on Twitter, and Jack’s warm smiles and warmer touches in person, and really just more sweetness and light than any one person had a right to.
Now that Jack had worked through his post-season slump (and sleep), they were getting ready for the next milestone: meeting Eric’s parents.
**************************
Jack was throwing shorts into a suitcase when his phone rang.
Eric had insisted that long pants wouldn’t be necessary, unless he planned to go to church, and even then, nice shorts -- “the kind that need a belt, Jack” -- would be fine. And it wasn’t an issue anyway, because they were flying down Sunday morning, taking advantage of the Sugar ‘n’ Spice’s usual Sunday-Monday closure. The bakery would remain closed on Tuesday, the actual Fourth of July, and Dex would handle things Wednesday. They were flying home Wednesday night, and Eric planned to be back on the premises at 5 a.m. Thursday.
“Why don’t you give yourself one more day?” Jack asked. “Just to unpack and relax.”
“Says the man who played the last three games of the playoffs with a broken finger,” Eric had said, unimpressed.
“It was the playoffs!”
Jack glanced at the screen before picking up, and was just saying, “Salut, Papa! Ça va?”
At the same moment, he heard the door to his apartment open and Eric call out, “Jack, you home?”
“In the bedroom,” Jack said. “On the phone.”
He heard Eric moving around in the kitchen and turned his attention back to his father, who was going on about real estate, for some reason. Jack knew his father had invested in some properties in Montreal, and his impression was that it had gone well, but it wasn’t a usual topic of conversation.
But his father seemed to be talking about the Providence real estate market.
“Papa, are you trying to get me to invest in real estate too? Because I really can’t --”
“Now that would have been an idea,” his father said. “And yes, you can, while you’re still playing. That what advisors and management companies are for. But if you just want to sit on your money --”
Jack was glad his father couldn’t hear his eyes rolling. As if his father had a thought to spare for anything but hockey during his playing career. Wait -- that was unfair. Papa had always, always paid attention to Jack and Alicia, at least as much as was physically possible during the season. Even when he was away, he would talk to Jack on the phone, be interested in what he had learned in school as well as what he had done in his last hockey game. But that wasn’t the point.
“Wait -- if it’s not for me, why are you talking about the market in Providence?”
“Because I just bought a building there,” his father said. “It’s not very big, but the people I worked with said it generates a nice little income, and will likely appreciate quite a bit over the next few years. Commercial on the first floor and two flats above.”
“So what made you --”
“Aren’t you going to ask what’s in it now?”
“Fine,” Jack said. “I would have asked the address first, but what’s there now?”
“The flats are pretty normal. The commercial space has this sweet little bakery, becoming very well-known,” his father said. “It’s apparently frequented by lots of hockey players.”
“You didn’t,” Jack said.
“I did,” his father said, almost smug. “I plan to introduce myself to my new tenant -- the bakery owner, apparently he lives in Boston and leaves most of the business to a very talented manager -- next week. That is when you and Eric will be gone, right?”
“Ouais, Papa, but remember Tuesday is a holiday here,” Jack said.
“I know. And I don’t intend to turn this Matthew out on his ear -- although the second Eric wants to run his own bakery, Matthew’s lease won’t be up for renewal. But I do want him to know that I can yank his chain if he tries anything else,” his father said.
“You’re evil,” Jack said. “In a good way. Can I tell Eric?”
“I insist,” his father said.
Eric came in, drying his hands on a dish towel.
“My dad,” Jack said.
“Hi, Bob!” Eric said, loudly enough for Jack’s dad to hear him.
“Is that Eric?” Bob asked. “Put him on. Don’t worry -- you can tell him about the building.”
Eric was making grabby hands at the phone, too, so Jack relinquished it.
“Happy Canada Day!” Eric said. “Y’all doing anything special?”
Eric was quiet for a moment, no doubt listening to Jack’s father tell him about the traditional neighborhood gathering.
“You made the blueberry?” Eric asked. “How did it come out? Great! Uh-huh. OK. Remember the trick with that cake is to pour the icing over it when the cake is still warm. When it’s cooled off, it’ll have a smooth, shiny finish.”
Jack finished packing while Eric chatted to his father, wondering how he had ended up with a life that included his boyfriend (his gorgeous, warm, kind boyfriend) sharing recipes with his father. However it happened, it was grateful.
“Well, thanks, Bob,” Eric said. “I’m sure the trip will be fine. You too. Say hi to Alicia for me.”
Eric was handing the phone back, but not before Jack heard the shift in tone in Eric’s voice. He was definitely nervous.
“OK, Papa, Ouais. Je t’aime.”
He put the phone on the night table and zipped his bag.
“Are we gonna get to a rink there?” he asked. “If we are, I’m going to have to check a bag with my skates.”
“Yeah, I called ahead and we’ll be able to get some ice time Monday,” Eric said. “I’ll have to check a bag too -- I don’t have any skates down there that fit anymore.”
“It’ll be OK,” Jack said. “I can tell you’re nervous. But they asked us to come. They want us there. And you know your parents love you.”
“What if it’s just too much for them, to see us together?” Eric asked. “Because I am not going to stop holding your hand or anything. And that includes at the community picnic. I suppose one good thing about being outed the way we were is no one can say they didn’t already know.”
“Then we decide what to do,” Jack said. “We can get a hotel room, we can come back early. But Eric, I’ve talked to your mom on the phone and on Skype. I think she’s OK with it.”
“There’s also my dad.”
“Who’s also made sure to say we’re welcome.”
“It just feels so weird,” Eric said. “I worked so hard to not let anyone know about me for so long. Then when I did tell my parents, they didn’t want me to come out to anyone else in the family. I’m not sure how to act.”
Jack took both of Eric’s hands in his.
“Act like yourself,” Jack said. “Kill them with kindness. And with a sharp tongue if necessary. But remember you won’t be alone.”
Eric still looked uncertain, and Jack’s felt his heart twist a little.
He was almost certain it would be fine. Suzanne -- Eric’s mother -- had been effusive in her overtures over the phone and over Skype, when Jack happened to be there during one of their calls. His father -- “You can call me ‘Coach.’ Pretty much everyone does” -- seemed phlegmatic, but not unfriendly. And Jack knew that Eric still spoke to his father at least once a week or so, even if it was usually a matter of Suzanne handing the phone to her husband during one of her and Eric’s many conversations.
“I know Mama and Coach will be fine,” Eric said. “I mean, they’ve gotten more comfortable with the idea of me being gay, especially since we got together and I talk about you all the time. But everyone else -- well, let’s just say it was far more socially acceptable to be homophobic than to be gay. But I don’t want to not go and see my family because I’m scared.”
“Come here,” Jack said, opening his arms to Eric.
Eric stepped close, resting his head against Jack’s shoulder and wrapping his arms around his waist.
“We’ll be fine,” Jack said. “If it’s too much, we’ll leave. And it will be their loss.”
Jack reached down and tilted Eric’s chin up so he could bend down and kiss him.
“I still think I’m the luckiest guy in the world,” he said when he pulled back. “I get to kiss Eric Bittle.”
“Mmmm,” Eric said. “You’re wrong. I’m luckier. I get to kiss Jack Zimmermann.”
He leaned up to kiss Jack again.
“I don’t know,” Jack said. “I get pie.”
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