#emily’s finally found housing after couch surfing at friends’ places for months

[elliesbelle]

emily gwen, the creator of the sunset lesbian flag that we’ve come to commonly use, still continues to live in poverty.

multi-billion dollar companies have used their design and made profit from it, and yet they have not seen a cent for their creation.

i’ve been friends with emily for years, and i have not once seen them be financially stable the entire time. i’ve seen them homeless, unemployed, starving. right now, they need our help more than ever.

please consider donating to emily’s ko-fi, especially if you’ve used their design to create something and profited from it.

#emily’s finally found housing after couch surfing at friends’ places for months #they’ve got a lot of debt rn on top of bills and rent #rn they don’t have food in the house and they’re starving #they don’t deserve this at all they are so kind and i literally hate to see them suffering #please please pleaaase donate and reblog #they don’t ask for much but they deserve the world #mutual aid #crowdfunding #donation post #belle speaks

[roslinadama-sinequanon]

Christmas in Connecticut-Part 3

A few minutes north, at the Attitash Ski Resort, the family broke up into different groups. Sharon, Ricky and Emily were expert skiers, though the black diamond runs were out for Emily. Even if she weren’t rehabbing an injury, now that she was dancing with ABT she had to be careful about partaking in any dangerous sport. So, she would be joining Andy for a few runs on the beginner slope. That ended up working out well as Sharon hadn’t wanted to desert him, but was looking forward to trying out some of the more difficult trails with Ricky.

Rusty, having lived with Sharon for several years now had gone with her a few times to her parent’s time share in Park City, Utah and also to Big Bear Mountain which was only a couple hours from LA and was where she liked to ski in California. She'd hoped he would learn to love the sport as much as the rest of the family did and had paid for him to have private lessons. It had taken some time but he'd finally progressed from beginner to advanced. In the beginning he'd reacted the way he always did to something out of his comfort zone, by being pretty vocal in his dislike of the sport. But the better he got at it the less inferior he felt to his siblings and the more he allowed himself to enjoy it.

Nicole, Dean and the boys had never stepped foot on a ski resort and would spend the day on the bunny slope having lessons.

As for Andy, Sharon had brought him to Big Bear in preparation for this vacation and he’d had a couple lessons. Though, as he’d pointed out to Sharon, growing up in working class Brooklyn meant he’d never even come close to a ski resort, he was athletic, in good shape, and had done some surfing so he did okay. But he was still a beginner and didn’t really aspire to anything greater. Sliding down a mountain on two thin pieces of wood and fiberglass on a beginner slope while five year olds whizzed past him was not his idea of great time. Truthfully, for him, the best part of any ski trip was cuddling up with Sharon in front of the fire at the ski lodge anyway.

They were only a few runs in when Andy noticed Emily rubbing her leg and grimacing a bit.

“Em, you okay?” He asked.

“Yeah, my stupid Achilles is just starting to ache. I don’t want to push it. I think I better call it a day.”

“Okay, let’s head back to the lodge. I could go for a hot chocolate anyway.”

“Oh, no, Andy. Don’t let me ruin your day, you keep going. I figured something like this might happen and I brought my kindle. I’ll just curl up in front of the fire and read.”

“I’ll let you in on a little secret; you’re doing me a favor by ending early.”

“You don’t like skiing?”

“Not really. Your mom took me cross country skiing and I enjoyed that, but downhill is not really my thing.”

“But you planned a ski vacation for all of us. Why would you do that if you don‘t like skiing?”

“Because your mother loves it and I love your mother. And now that we're living together I thought it would be good for us all to spend some time together. Besides, it’s been a rough few months, with the shooting and my little health scare. I think we all needed to get away and relax.”

Emily looked up at him tears shining in her big hazel eyes. Andy frowned. “Are you crying? Did I say something wrong?”

“No, Andy. You said something very, very right. I’m so glad my mom has you in her life now. “

“Well, that’s something I wanted to talk to you about. “

Emily stopped at the door to the lodge and gave him a look of panic. “You’re not breaking up with her are you?”

Andy chuckled. “Hardly. I’m head over heels for that woman.”

Emily smiled with relief. “I can see that. We all can.”

Andy got them each a steaming cup of dark hot chocolate with whipped cream and joined Emily on the couch in front of the fireplace. She had taken her ski boots off and was massaging her foot.

“Here you go,” he handed her the cup.

“Thank you,” she took a sip. “Oh God, this is divine.”

They sat in silence for a few moments, sipping their cocoa. Emily could see that Andy was a little uncomfortable so she gave him a little prod. “You said there was something you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Uh, yes, there is. I’m hoping to talk to your brothers tonight. But, uh, well, I, uh...”

“Andy, just spit it out.”

Andy laughed. She sounded very much like her mother. “It’s just, like I said earlier. I love your mother very much. You know we’re looking to buy a house together?”

“Yeah, I think that’s great. Like I said, my mom is lucky to have you in her life.”

“Thank you, but I’m the lucky one. Your mother is the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. I want to spend the rest of my life with her. What I’m trying to say is…I want to ask your mother to marry me and I was wondering how you’d feel about that?”

Emily’s jaw dropped and she stared at him.

Uncomfortable with her silence and lack of response Andy quickly continued. “I know there are some issues we’ll have to work out. I’m pretty sure your mother would want to get married in the church and of course she‘d want to continue to receive the sacraments. That might require an annulment but with the new pope, he’s giving priests more leeway now when it comes to divorce and--”

“Andy, stop.”

He did, surprised to see a beatific smile softening Emily’s face. “Did you just say you want to ask my mother to marry you?”

“Yes, uh, I guess I did.”

“Oh my GOD!” Emily squealed with delight and threw her arms around him. “Oh, Andy, I think that’s the best news I’ve had in a long time. My mother adores you; I’ve never seen her look at anyone the way she looks at you and I’ve never seen her so happy. I’d LOVE for you guys to get married. When are you going to ask her?”

“I’m not sure; I guess when the time is right. I wanted to talk to all of you first. Of course Sharon would say it‘s her decision, and it is, but I figured it wouldn‘t hurt to cover all my bases.”

“Well, you have my blessing, that’s for sure. My mother deserves to be happy. She‘s spent her whole life taking care of everyone around her. She deserves to have someone taking care of her for a change.”

“Better not let her hear you say that,” Andy grinned. Sharon had spent years without having anyone to lean on and she didn’t always find it easy to admit she needed help.

“Just because you CAN take care of yourself, doesn’t mean you should always HAVE to.” In an instant the light left Emily’s eyes, replaced by a heavy sadness. “My father was pretty terrible to her, you know.” Andy nodded.  “I know a lot of people see mom as this tough police captain, and she can be tough, but she also has a really, really big heart. She’s always been there for me and Ricky and even though she worked full time and was raising us alone she was never too busy to help us or our friends. When I was in high school I had a friend who got pregnant. Her parents were super strict, super conservative and she was terrified to tell them. It was my mother we turned to for help. She didn’t judge Leah; she just wanted to know what she could do to help. She brought her to a doctor and when the pregnancy was confirmed she went with her as a buffer to tell her parents so she didn’t have to do it alone. That’s the kind of person she is. And my dad used that. He used her compassion to get her to help him out of whatever jams he got himself into. He’s pretty good at making people feel sorry for him.”

“Your dad is sick, Em. He’s an alcoholic. I‘m an alcoholic too. I think you know that.”

“I do. And I know you’ve been sober for like 20 years. I don’t know what you were like when you were drinking, but I know what you’re like now and you’re nothing like my father. My father is just as manipulative when he isn’t drinking as when he is. It‘s not the alcohol, it’s just who is. Don’t get me wrong.  I love my father because he’s my father but I’ll never trust him. He uses anyone to get what he wants or needs and he doesn‘t care who he hurts in the process.” She set her mug down surprised by how much she’d revealed. Usually she kept everything bottled up inside.“I‘m sorry, you probably don’t want to hear me going on about all this.”

“It’s okay. You can tell me anything Em. I’d never judge you.”

There was something in the way he said that, something in the way he looked at her, a combination of compassion and earnestness that made her think she really could trust him enough to open up to him.

“I guess I’m still pretty angry with him. I’m sure mom has told you that I…We…went years without speaking with him; he just completely disappeared from our lives. Then one day a few years ago he showed up on mom’s door broke and homeless, needing a place to stay. He wanted her to help him get an apartment, so she bribed him. Told him he could stay with her until he found a place IF he called Ricky and me. Please don’t tell her I know, she’s always tried so hard to protect us.” She waited for Andy’s nod of agreement then continued on. “It came out last Christmas when I had to stay with him for a bit because there was no room at mom’s and he got plastered one night. He gets pretty maudlin when he’s drunk, all sloppy and apologetic. Anyway, I didn’t know mom had to bribe him until then. I was just happy that he wanted to have some kind of contact with me. After that call, I didn’t hear from him for several months, and then out of blue around the time she started proceedings to adopt Rusty, I started getting calls again. It was only later that I found out he was just using me and Ricky to try to wheedle information out of us about you and mom. The divorce really threw him. He’s pretty jealous of you.”

“Well, he should be. He lost something very special.”

“Yeah, he did. He never would have done this, you know.”

“Done what?”

“Put together a vacation like this. Not if it wasn’t something he didn’t want to do. He never did anything just because he loved my mother and wanted to do something nice for her. There always had to be something in it for him. I’m sorry; I really shouldn’t be dumping all this on you. As you can probably tell, I‘m still a little bitter.”

Andy took the young woman’s hand, his heart aching for the pain so evident in the way she spoke of her father. “Like I said, it’s okay. I’m not just here for your mother, I’m here for you and Ricky and Rusty too. I want us to be family. Families dump on each other so feel free to dump away.”

Emily smiled. Andy really was very sweet. It was no wonder her mother had fallen in love with him. Like most children of separated or divorced parents there had been a time she’d hoped her parents would get back together. But that time was long gone and now all she wanted was for her mother to be happy with a man who loved her the way she deserved to be loved.

“The fact that you did all this for my mom, for us, well; it just shows how much you really love her.”

“I do, Emily. What I feel for your mother, it’s stronger than anything I’ve ever felt before. I want to spend the rest of my life making her happy. I can’t promise you that I’ll never hurt her. I’m far from perfect and sometimes we hurt the ones we love without ever intending to. But I do promise that I will never intentionally hurt her. I…”

“Here you two are.”

Emily and Andy looked up to see the subject of their discussion in her white fur trimmed ski parker, her cheeks rosy from the cold and wind, glossy auburn curls spilling out of her ski hat. Andy quickly turned to Emily mouthing “not a word”. She gave a slight nod, barely able to contain her excitement.

“My foot was bothering me so Andy kindly joined me back here and got me a hot chocolate.”

Sharon gazed at Andy with that sappy “Oh you sweet man I love you so much” look that Emily had been referring to earlier.

“Did you need us for something?” Andy asked.

“No, not really. I did a couple runs with Ricky, then a couple with Rusty; I was just coming to do one with the two of you but couldn’t find you. How about heading over to the bunny slope to see how the kids are progressing?”

“Sounds good to me.”

Emily chose to remain behind reading her book while Andy and Sharon left to cheer on the boys who were excited to show Papa Andy and Sharon all they‘d learned.

****

After lunch at the ski lodge and a couple more runs they all went back to the villa to change into swimsuits and try the outdoor pool and hot tub. With the temperature a frigid 9 degrees, the hot water in the pool and hot tub gave off enough steam to make it look like they were entering a fog bank. Much to the boys excitement it began to snow. And, as if that weren’t enough of a novelty for two Southern California boys they were actually SWIMMING while it was snowing!

Andy and Sharon relaxed in the hot tub letting the 104 degree water and powerful jets soothe their aching muscles.

“Did you wear that suit on purpose?” Andy asked.

“What do you mean?” Sharon glanced down through the bubbling water at the low cut black one piece bathing suit she wore. The one that looked a tad conservative from the front but had missing side panels and was held together by sexy criss-crossed ties.

“You really think I’d forget the first time I ever saw you in a bathing suit?”

“Ah, yes, the weekend at the beach bungalow.”

“First time we…you know…” He tapped her toes with his.

“Oh yes, I know,” she purred with a seductive smile.

He started to scoot over closer, leaning in to kiss her but Sharon held him off with a gentle hand, nodding her head toward the pool where their kids were swimming.  “Keep that in mind for later tonight when we’re in our private Jacuzzi. We don’t want to get busted again.”

Andy laughed. “That was a first, huh? “

“And hopefully a last.”

“All those times we were so careful not to get caught by Rusty in the condo, only to get exposed on vacation.”

“Can we please not use that word.” Sharon still flushed with embarrassment when thinking about that morning. “Let’s talk about something else.”

“What would you like to talk about?”

“Emily. You two looked pretty serious when I came into the lodge. Anything I should know?”

“Uh…No, we were just talking, getting to know each other a little better.”

“I’m worried about her.”

“Why?”

“This injury, it doesn’t sound like anything big, but the ballet world is extremely competitive. ABT is one of the flagship ballet companies of the United States. To be out of commission for any amount of time could hurt Emily. And, she just broke up with the guy she’s been dating for several months, so she’s quite vulnerable right now.”

“They wouldn’t hold her spot?”  Andy sounded so affronted it brought a tender smile Sharon’s lips and she took his hand. It was touching to hear him get so offended on her daughter’s behalf.

“Probably not for long.”

“Dirt bags,” he grumbled.

“Ow, ow, ow ow ow.” Ricky made his way over the ice from the pool to the hot tub. “Freezing, freezing, freezing.”

“Don’t put your hand on the metal railing,” Sharon warned. “It will freeze to it.”

Climbing the steps up to the hot tub Ricky heeded his mother’s warning remembering that scene from “A Christmas Story” just in time. “You two are decent in there, aren’t you?” He teased.

“Oh my God, of course we’re decent,” Sharon gasped, then turned to a laughing Andy as Ricky sunk down the hot tub next to them. “We’re never going to live that down, you know?”

“There are worse things to be remembered for than a hot sex life, sweetheart."

****

When they all agreed they were starving after a day of exercise and fresh mountain air, they showered, dressed and made their way into Jackson for supper. They ended up at the recommended Shovel Handle Pub, a restaurant in an old 1800’s restored post and beam barn. A guitarist and fiddler played live music and by the time they got back to the resort Tyler and Scott were more asleep than awake. But when Dean and Andy slid them into bed, they came to life and requested that Sharon read them their bedtime story. Sharon was happy to oblige and that worked out perfectly, because Andy had something to discuss with the Raydor boys.

TBC

#sharon raydor #andy flynn #shandy #Major Crimes #sharon and andy #christmas in connecticut