Trevon Carter

"That's him," Arthur said as we entered the restaurant. I looked to where Arthur indicated. There were two men at the table and I didn't know which one was Scott and which one was his boyfriend. One was in jeans, a gray t-shirt, and a leather jacket. The other was a cowboy complete with a button up flannel shirt and a tan cowboy hat next to him on the table. He even had on cowboy boots. As we got closer I could see he even had one of those large belt buckles with an elk etched into it.

The cowboy smiled and got to his feet when he saw us. "Arty," he greeted when we got close.

"Scotty," Arthur said. The two of them hugged in a crushing embrace that made me jealous and from the looks of the other man at the table, it made him jealous too. He stood and came to stand next to Scott as the hug went on too long.

I tugged on Arthur's jacket until he let go and stepped back beside me. He didn't realize I was jealous. I was beginning to regret agreeing to meet with his old friend because this wasn't just an old friend. This was an old boyfriend. His first real boyfriend. The first love of his life. I tried to tell myself it didn't matter because I was going to be the last love of his life, but it wasn't working. Arthur had told me since we planned to meet my friends we had to meet his as well. Except the only friend he wanted to introduce me to was Scott.

The man with Scott tugged on Scott's sleeve. "Introduce us," he whispered.

"Oh, right. Arthur, this is Elliott."

"It's nice to meet you, Elliott," Arthur said. He shook Elliott's hand briefly. "This is my boyfriend, Trevon." He said and looped his arm in the crook of my elbow.

"Nice to meet you," I extended a hand to Scott. He shook my hand with a firm grasp that left me wondering if he always gave such firm handshakes or if he was trying to prove something to me.

"I haven't been here in forever," Arthur said as we all slid into the booth. It was one of those tables where the bench formed a half circle around the table so Arthur and Scott sat directly next to each other. I wasn't sure how I felt about that. Elliott exchanged a knowing glance with me before he slipped his hand into Scott's resting on the table.

"Yeah. Since high school," Scott said as he looked around the room.

We had to drive two towns over to meet since Scott still hadn't come out to anyone. Arthur had told me we were meeting at a restaurant they had often come to when they were dating secretly in high school.

The server came to our table and we ordered. I got carbonara. Arthur got a salad because his cheat day wasn't until tomorrow when we would be celebrating Christmas Eve with his family. Then we would wake up early the next morning and drive six hours to spend Christmas day with my family.

"You're still watching what you eat?" Scott asked him.

"Yeah," Arthur said. "I've got to if I want to be my best self for dance."

The corners of Sott's mouth twitched up. "You always were a beautiful dancer."

"Still am," Arthur said proudly.

My jealousy skyrocketed. Elliott's grip on Scott's hand tightened. His jaw clenched. He was jealous too. I put my arm around Arthur's shoulders. Normally Arthur would melt into my side, but not this time. He didn't even seem to notice my touch.

"Maybe I can see him dance some time too," Elliott said effectively drawing Scott's attention to him. Scott smiled tenderly at Elliott and my jealousy eased slightly. Scott didn't look at Arthur the way he looked at Elliott.

"Trevon surprised me by coming to both of my year end performances." Arthur finally looked at me. He smiled the smile that was reserved for me with love radiating from his beautiful brown eyes. My arm around his shoulders tightened and I couldn't help but smile back. His fingers reached up and cupped my chin.

I relaxed considerably after that exchange. There was no reason for me to be jealous. Arthur and Scott only thought of each other as friends now. Scott and I even bonded a little as we ate. He knew every constellation and what time of year you could see them best in the night sky.

When dinner was through and we were back in my car, Arthur said, "We haven't had sex yet this week."

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"There's been no opportunity," I said. We had been at his family house most of the time or surrounded by his family in some capacity or another.

"We don't have to go back quite yet," he said. He slid his hand along my thigh as I pulled out of the parking lot.

His touch spread heat throughout me. It really hadn't been that long. A week wasn't long, but it felt like an eternity to me too.

"We can't just do it in the car," I said.

I glanced at him and knew I was going to lose out to whatever he was about to say by the sly smile on his face. "Yes we can," he said. "There's a place not too far from here. It's just a little way into the woods, but not that far from civilization. Scott used to take me there."

"I'm not going to take you somewhere you used to have sex with your high school boyfriend," I said firmly.

He shrugged innocently, but his eyes watched me not so innocently. "Fine," he said. "I just thought you might want to make a new memory there so that whenever I think about it, I think about you instead."

Dammit. I lost. "Where is it?"

I followed his directions until we got to a secluded place surrounded by trees. I briefly thought that this was the time in a horror movie where the killer would come out and kill us both. Arthur got out of and went into the back. I forgot all about the potential of a killer when he stripped out of his shirt and started unbuttoning his pants. I quickly joined him in the back seat. I wasn't sure how the details were going to work out. I never thought sex in a car sounded comfortable, but Arthur took care of it by having me sit and him riding me. His face was always close to mine so he wouldn't hit his head on the ceiling. It was cold at first, but our bodies quickly warmed the back of the car.

When we were finished, he clung onto my neck and stayed on me while we both panted. The windows were fogged up. I remembered horror movies and killers again. Or this was the time in non horror movies where the police came knocking at the window. I stared at the window and waited, but neither of those things happened. Arthur kissed me gently and slid off.

"Let's go home," he said.

We cleaned ourselves off and got dressed. Even though it was my car, he drove home. That was fine with me as he was more familiar with the area than I was.

The next day was Christmas Eve and my last day at the Sakho's house. His family had welcomed me and made me feel comfortable. It had been an easy week and I looked forward to the next visit. I hoped my own family visit with Arthur would be just as comfortable, but I doubted it. Maybe my sisters would love him and be cordial with him. It could happen.

In the evening, everyone came over. Lizzy didn't have to work Christmas Eve so she was there too. Eva's Ashley came too. I was glad to meet them. The Sakho family treated them well too. They were one big family of love.

After dinner, we went into the family room and sat around the Christmas tree. We sang Christmas songs like Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer, Jingle Bells, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, etc. There was no accompaniment and Arthur's dad and Ashley were terribly off tune, but it didn't matter because they sang with gusto. And their terrible singing seemed to bond the two of them even more.

At some point during the singing, Jade left her spot between her mom and dad and sat in my lap. She really was adorable. I was glad she was comfortable with me.

When we finished singing the Twelve Days of Christmas, Jade sprang to her feet and stood in front of all of us with her hands outstretched as if to say stop. "Presents?" she asked hopefully eliciting a laugh from all of us.

"Yes," Arthur's mom said, "presents."

There were presents for everyone. Even Ashley and I got a few. I brought a small gift for everyone. Even one for Ashley in case they came. They were generic presents because I didn't know what everyone liked, but everyone seemed happy with their presents. Jade wouldn't put down the soft baby doll I got her.

"We have one last present for everyone," Lizzy said when all the presents were open. Jade was rocking her baby doll in her arms, but she paused at her mother's words.

"It's a family present," Joseph said. "You'll get it in about six months. Jade, do you want to tell everyone what they are getting."

Jade shyly rocked the baby in her arms now that all the attention was on her.

"Do you remember what to say?" Lizzy asked her.

Jade nodded. "I'm going to be a big sister," she said with the widest smile on her face I had seen yet.

Arthur's mom and sisters all squealed as one and hopped to their feet. "You're pregnant?" Arthur's mom asked.

Lizzy stood and nodded with a wide smile on her face too. Then she was surrounded by the women in Arthur's family as they gave her one big great hug. Arthur quickly joined their hug. The five of them bounced as they twirled together in the hug.

Arthur's dad picked up Jade and hugged her tight. "You're going to be the best big sister," he said to her.

"Congratulations," David said to Joseph. Ashley and I stood by not sure what to do, but we both had smiles on our faces too.

"Next is your turn," Arthur's mom said to Maria.

"Hold on," Maria said as they broke the hug. "I'm not even married yet. I don't even have a boyfriend."

"Get working on it," Arthur's mom said. "I want to have lots of grandkids to spoil. That goes for all of you," she said.

"I can't get pregnant," Arthur said.

"I'm sure not for lacking of trying though," Eva said with a knowing smirk. It should have made me blush, but it didn't. Ashley however, went bright red even though they weren't the topic of the conversation.

"You can adopt when the time comes," Arthur's mom said to Arthur. "You are expected to give me grandkids soon too, David," Arthur's mom said.

"Don't you think you're pushing this too fast?" David asked.

"No," Arthur's mom said. "Eva and Arthur can wait. They are still in college, but not the rest of you. Get working on it."

I couldn't help but laugh as the siblings broke out into an argument with their mother. Arthur's dad carried Jade to Joseph and Lizzy and congratulated them. And Ashley stood by my side seeming to grow more and more embarrassed but I wasn't sure why. Overall it was a good Christmas celebration and I was glad I celebrated it with Arthur's family.