Merry Christmas, Elijah Lucas
by DJ Adams
December 12th, Part 2
If you had told Bruno 24 hours earlier that he would be holding Elijah's hand in the backseat of his Mother's SUV, he certainly would've called you cruel for making such a joke. Now that it was actually happening, he was beside himself. He turned to look over at Elijah and Elijah was already staring at him, smiling softly with love-sick eyes. Bruno grinned broadly and squeezed Elijah's hand in the darkness; Elijah squeezed back.
Bruno glanced up and saw his Mom looking back at him through the rearview mirror. Before he had a chance to react, Mrs. Jørgensen smirked at him and winked, before turning her attention back to the road ahead. Bruno smiled to himself. That was one hurdle that was inadvertently handled – If his Mom knew something then his Father always knew soon after – So he wouldn't have to worry about some awkward 'coming out' conversation or something, now. He didn't fear them or anything; His parents were awesome and he knew they'd accept him – He just hadn't gotten around to telling them yet. No matter. They 'both' knew, now.
Their SUV pulled up in front of a local seafood joint. Just because it was the winter didn't mean that there weren't fish in-season.
On his way out of the car, Mrs. Jørgensen said to Bruno, "Have fun. Be careful but enjoy yourself and have fun."
Bruno laughed. "I'll be a gentleman, Mom."
She grinned at him. "Call me when you two lovebirds are ready to come home."
"Mom!!" Bruno blushed and Elijah giggled.
"Thanks for the ride, Mrs. Jørgensen!!" Elijah called from behind the embarrassed Bruno.
She winked at him and gave Bruno an impish grin as he stuck his tongue out at her and closed the door. The SUV drove away and they two walked inside.
The place was a smaller-sized restaurant but it had a perfect vibe for a first date: Low-lit and intimate. The hostess appeared at her podium and asked the boys to follow her. In a moment of boldness, Bruno grabbed Elijah's hand and laced their fingers together. Elijah blushed at the gesture but wasn't the least bit concerned with who in the restaurant may see them or what they thought; He was with his boy right now and this was their time to really get to know each other. The hostess led them to their table with Bruno following and Elijah in tow.
The two climbed into their booth and took in the setting. The place had a nautical theme, as most establishments in New England do. There was a continuous shelf on all the walls, just below the ceiling, that held model ships and lobster cages and other little items. A giant ore hung from the ceiling, some netting from the walls and there was a ship's captain's wheel, too. The table even had a small kerosene lantern for lighting. It was all reminiscent of the small fishing village that the town once was.
And then there was Elijah – Sitting there with the dim light of the lantern flickering, casting golden hughes across his porcelain face; His wavy hair appearing to be without a single strand out of place; His long, delicate lashes upon his breath-taking eyes; His small and plump little lips and his 'happy glow' radiating outwardly and lighting the room about as much as the lanterns did… And all he was doing was reading the menu!!
He glanced up and caught Bruno's soft, dreamlike gaze and smiled softly at him. Bruno reached his hands across the table and took Elijah's in his own, still looking into Elijah's eyes and soul all the while. If there were such a thing as transcendence, the boys would be a world away. Scratch that, they WERE a world away – In their own haven with each other. Bruno wanted the boy across the table from him more than he wanted the very air he needed to breathe. There was a stirring in his pants while Elijah's thumb stoked the top of his hand. Bruno would've loved nothing more than really show Elijah just how special he was and how much he'd come to mean to him in just a short matter of time.
"Would you two like a minute?" A teenage blond waitress asked them, snapping them back into reality. The boys looked at her, not having heard what she'd said. "I can come back if you'd like." She smiled.
Both boys knew what they wanted – The Haddock was in season and arguably the best fish that New England has to offer. The orders were placed and the waitress headed off to send in the order, leaving the boys alone.
They talked about anything and everything, getting to know one another better. It turned out that they had a lot in common. Who knew that two 13 year-olds loved to be in the kitchen? Bruno liked cooking 'main meals' and Elijah preferring to bake. Elijah joked that the next date should be at one of their houses with the two of them in the kitchen together preparing everything. Bruno jumped at the idea and they decided that it was exactly what the next would entail.
Chatter of other topics followed, such as their mutual appetite for a good book, their adoration of Little League baseball, and even Elijah's new Crash Bandicoot game – That one made Bruno laugh. The two went on through dinner and their shared hot fudge sundae dessert until the waitress kindly alerted them to the fact that it was 10:45 and the restaurant needed to close soon. Bruno asked if they could wait inside for his Mom to drive there and pick them up, to which the waitress agreed with a wink. Bruno sent the text and Mrs. Jørgensen was there in a matter of 10 minutes.
Mr. Jørgensen was kind enough to place Elijah's bike in the back of Mrs. Jørgensen's SUV so it would go home with him after his date with Bruno. Hand-in-hand, Elijah and Bruno sat contently in the back seat on the way over to Elijah's house. They pulled up into the drive and Elijah unbuckled his seatbelt.
"Hey. I'll walk you to your door." Bruno grinned.
In a flash, Bruno was out of the car and the lift gate was open so he could retrieve Elijah's bike for him.
"Thank you." Elijah said.
"No problem." Bruno returned.
Elijah walked the bike to the garage and laid it alongside. He returned to Bruno and took his hand as the pair walked up to Elijah's front door. The boys faced each other and were so close that they were nearly sharing breath.
"I had an absolutely wonderful day with you, today. Thank you for everything, Bruno." Elijah said sweetly.
"I wouldn't rather have spent the day with anyone else, Elijah." He replied while Elijah blushed.
The two boys leaned in and met in the middle with a sweet lip-lock before Elijah opened the door and slipped inside. "Goodnight, Bruno." He said, blowing him one last kiss.
"Goodnight, Elijah." Bruno said back with a smile.
The door closed.
Bruno sat quietly with a giant grin on his face for most of the ride home. Finally, his Mom piped up.
"I think I have a pretty good idea of how things went but I'll bite and ask: What do you think of Elijah?" She asked.
"I'm in love… "
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