Christmas Brothers
by Rob Warr
Chapter 10
It was Thursday, two days before Christmas when the call finally came over the intercom, only it wasn't for me.
"Charlie Lyons," please report to my office as soon as possible," came the scratchy voice of Dr. Asher.
"Ohhhh,", you're in big trouble now," the boys in the day room said in a sing-song voice.
"What did you do now?" I joked, but for some reason I didn't think Charlie was being summoned because he'd been bad. As Sherlock Holmes would say, 'something was afoot'.
"Beats me," he said, "maybe it's about that math test I got a D on. You know how he is about that kind of stuff."
"That was a week ago," I reminded him.
He shrugged, "Well, only way to find out is to go see what the old man wants," he chuckled.
I nodded, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to speak. He looked at me strangely as he straightened his shirt and started for the door, then he was gone, and I was left with my gloomy thoughts.
Charlie was gone a long time, so long that I began to wonder if he might have gone back to our dorm instead of returning to the day room. I checked, but the only one there was Johnny, and he said he hadn't seen Charlie since breakfast.
So, I roamed the halls for a bit, daring to approach Dr. Asher's office, but not close enough to get caught if someone suddenly came rushing out the door. Problem was: I was too far away to hear anything, and all I could do was watch the door and wonder what was going on in there.
Even that got to be too much for me after a while, and I finally grabbed my coat and mittens and went outside to get some fresh air. It was cold and fluffy grey clouds threatened us with rain, or perhaps snow, which would have ordinarily been welcomed by me if I hadn't been in such a funk. I loved snow, and snow at Christmas was always a welcome treat. Snow ball fights and snow men, snow forts, igloos...and of course, the beauty of the snow as it reflected the colorful Christmas lights.
I looked up at the sky then and said a prayer, but it wasn't just for me. I asked God to help the Nelsons make the right decision and I promised to go along with it, whatever it was. I also prayed that somehow Charlie and I could stay friends, waxing over the part about us being more than friends, cause I knew God already knew that, and if he didn't like that, well...nothing I could do about that. I prayed for Dr. Asher too, and the other boys at the orphanage, my friends, and even the bullies. I prayed for the staff and thanked him for putting kind people in our paths instead of mean and abusive ones, like you read about in stories. I was just wrapping the prayer up when the first snowflake began to fall and I thanked God for that too, then turned and went inside.
I found Charlie sitting on my bunk in our dorm and when I entered he looked up and smiled, "Where were you? I have some great news."
"I just needed some fresh air. By the way, it's snowing."
"What? Oh cool," he said sounding distracted, "don't you want to hear my great news?"
"Sure, I said hanging my coat on the end of my bunk. Then sitting beside him I turned slightly so I could see his face as he began.
"Well, guess who was in Dr. Asher's office when I was called down there?"
"Smokie the Bear,?" I joked.
"Huh, oh good one," he laughed, "Nah, not even close. It was, ta ta ta ta, the Nelsons."
"What, really?" I blurted out in shock, feeling as if I'd been gut punched.
"Yeah, guess what?" he said grinning, "they want me to come spend Christmas vacation with them. Isn't that great? Aren't you happy for me?"
"Yeah, yeah..." I said, trying not to break down completely. It was my own fault. I'd screwed up my one big chance, and if I didn't want it, no one deserved getting it more than Charlie. So, then why did I feel so angry, so betrayed, so...devastated?
"You don't look happy," Charlie noted, "come on, you didn't want them, and I thought I could use a little vacation in the lap of luxury," he said, almost sounding as if he were rubbing it in.
"Sure, why not?" I said through gritted teeth, "I guess they got tired of waiting for me to make up my mind."
"Yeah, I guess so," Charlie smirked.
This wasn't the Charlie I knew, however. The Charlie I knew and loved would never have agreed to stab me in the back by taking up with the Nelsons, not even for a few days. Something was wrong here.
"So, are you...umm, going back with them...now?"
"Yeah, can you help me pack? Mrs. Nelson said she'd take me shopping tomorrow, so I'll just take a few things..."
"I'm happy for you," I said, my lip quivering and tears streaming down my face.
This apparently was too much for Charlie and he suddenly rushed over and hugged me and was just about to say something when a staticy voice came over the intercom.
"Zeke Evans, please report to my office at once."
Charlie wiped at my tears and then gave me a small smile, "Go on, see what he wants. We'll talk afterwards.
This time he had a shit-eating grin on his face and I wondered what the heck was really going on. I sniffed back a few more tears, wiped my nose and headed to Dr. Asher's office, my head spinning and my guts doing cartwheels. I was a bundle of nerves, and my heart beat so fast I was afraid I'd pass out.
I knocked gently on the door and was again greeted with the word, 'enter'. I pushed open the door to find Dr. Asher behind his desk, Mrs. Nelson seated on the other side, while Mr. Nelson stood at the window behind Dr. Asher staring out at the snow, which was quickly piling up outside.
"Ah, Zeke, have a seat," Dr. Asher said. The only other chair was the one next to Mrs. Nelson and I assumed Mr. Nelson would be sitting back down there, so I took a seat on the leather couch to the right of Mrs. Nelson.
"Hello, Zeke," Mrs. Nelson said following me with her eyes as I crossed to the couch.
"Hello, ma'am."
"Zeke, you look well," Mr. Nelson said walking over to shake my hand. He held it perhaps a moment longer than necessary, then took his seat beside his wife, sharing a smile with her.
"Well, Zeke, here we are again," Dr. Asher chuckled, "only this time things have changed a bit."
I know, I thought, I've been traded in for another, newer model, my best pal, my boyfriend.
"I heard, congratulations," I said to the Nelsons, trying to be gracious, but I wasn't all that good at hiding my emotions, "Charlie is a nice boy."
"Mrs. Nelson reached over and took my hand then, "you don't understand. I don't know what Charlie told you, but we aren't replacing you."
"But...he said...that he was going to spend Christmas break with you..."
"Yes, but not alone. That is if you'll agree to come as well," she said breaking into a mischievous smile, "I'm sorry if we caused you any pain or worry with all this. We should have talked to you first, but after talking to Dr. Asher and learning how you felt and what was holding you back, the answer seemed so simple."
"Yes," Mr. Nelson said, "we were thinking too small when we chose you, Zeke. What's better than one fine son? Why two of course," he chuckled. "If we adopt both of you, the problem is solved, right. You'll be brothers, and no one gets left behind."
"You mean it, we can both come live with you?" I said jumping up and hugging both of them tightly, tears leaking from my eyes again, this time tears of joy.
"If you'll have us," Mrs. Nelson said, "Charlie has already agreed, but on one condition, that you come too."
"That rat," I laughed, "he made me think he was taking my place. I'll get him," I growled.
"So, your first fight as brothers," Mr. Nelson chuckled, "So, what do you think, Zeke, want to come home with us, and your brother, and spend the holiday? Then if you boys decide you want to make it permanent, we can begin the adoption process.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" I cried out with glee.
Then suddenly as if he'd been waiting in the wings and this was some theatrical production, Charlie burst in, took one look at me jumping up and down, and joined in.
"I'll talk to you later, bud," I growled, "but right now I'm too happy to care about the mean thing you did to me."
"I was gonna tell you, then you got paged and I didn't want to spoil the surprise."
"The waiting almost killed me," I scolded, "but I forgive you," I said hugging my new brother. My Christmas Brother, the best gift of all.
Epilogue:
That Christmas was the best Christmas of our lives, but certainly not our last. Looking back I can almost see the smiling faces of the kids on the block, and of course Charlie as we frolicked in the snow doing all the things kids do with that wintry magic.
Afterwards we went in for hot cocoa, made with that wonderful ingredient, Ovaltine, and I took Charlie on a tour of 'our' new home. His only concern was the sleeping arrangements, but fortunately the room that had been decorated for me held a large bed and we had no problem sharing it. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson's only comment was, that if Charlie wanted to pick out one of the other rooms and decorate it to his taste that would be fine too.
Instead, we wound up sharing the one room, but with twin beds. Of course most nights we slept in the same bed, but we always made a point of messing up the other bed for show, though I doubted the Nelsons were fooled. In fact, I know they weren't.
First of all: Dr. Asher had discussed my relationship with Charlie in an attempt to explain my reluctance in accepting their offer, and according to him, they hadn't batted an eye at the news. Secondly: though we tried to keep our hands off each other when not in private, the Nelsons had to see the way we looked at each other, the gentle gestures and the way we treated each other.
Christmas Eve the Nelsons had a party and all the same people who'd helped with the decorating were invited. There was food and punch, and Mrs. Nelson even played the piano while we stood around and sang Christmas carols. After everyone had gone for the night, the four of us sat down in the family room and Mrs. Nelson pulled a gift from under the enormous tree for each of us. I felt kind of bad that we didn't have anything for our prospective parents, but of course they understood.
Our gift was matching transistor radios, the newest fad on the market, and they explained that this way we could each listen to the kind of music we liked. We hugged them and thanked them, then watched as they opened the gifts from each other. I new nightie for her and pair of house slippers for him. A week ago I might have thought of those as boring gifts, but when I saw the genuine joy and gratitude on the two adults' faces I sort of understood that saying, 'it's not the gift, but the thought that counts.'.
We didn't mess around that night, though we did kiss and cuddle. We were too exhausted both physically and emotionally for much else, and we were asleep in record time. I awoke a couple times, disoriented at first, but Charlie's warm body beside me always brought me back to the here and now.
That was fifteen years ago, and much has changed, but I like to think all for the better. I took a fancy to the piano and learned to play, and today I make a living as a studio musician. I don't get top billing, or in some cases, any billing at all, but I've played with some pretty popular bands and musicians and I'm well respected in the industry.
Charlie chose another path and became a teacher. And in case you're wondering, yes, we are still together. We share a small but nice house in a nice neighborhood and when we're not working we spend time with our two dogs and...our two sons, Joseph and Michael, who are 10 and 12 respectively. How, you might wonder did two gay guys wind up with two sons? Well, it turns out that having connections with someone like Dr. Asher and the orphanage has it's advantages. Not to mention having wealthy parents who have some connections of their own.
Mom and dad love those two feisty boys as much as we do, and when Charlie and I are working, good old grandma watches over them. She'd keep them full time if we'd let her, but she's satisfied with the time she does have with them and doesn't spoil them too much.
The boys were orphans themselves, once upon a time, blood brothers who's folks were killed in a botched bank robbery. The story was very sad, and was in all the papers and when no relatives could be found, the boys wound up with Dr. Asher, and well...the rest is history as they say. They were 8 and 10 when we got them, and our love for them grows exponentially as the days pass.
Our lives are happy, but then I guess we've always maintained a degree of happiness in our lives, even when we were orphans. Charlie is a lot like me, we accept what we're given and make the best of it. We were luckier than most kids though, we found a couple who loved us and accepted us with all our warts and gave us a forever home.
We weren't the only kids from the orphanage to do so, however. Last count ten boys had been adopted from the home and two were pending. The numbers at the orphanage swelled in the years after Charlie and I left, and at one time they had thirty boys there, age 7 to 16.
Simon, who'd gone to work for the school after aging out, later received a scholarship at a local university, and there he studied law and became an attorney. He now handles all the legal work for the orphanage, free of charge, as well as managing a lucrative law firm.
Well, that's about it. Our life has been an interesting journey so far, and the future looks just as bright as the past. We live and we love, and we pass that love on to others. We started as one, became two, then four, now we're six, and who knows where that will lead. Families are like that, they grow in number and with each addition a little more love is added to the mix.
We started as friends, became lovers and eventually brothers, Christmas Brothers, and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight. I'm reminded many times of that prayer I prayed just as the snow began to fall that fateful night and I thank God once again for all the blessings and for the people he sent into my life.
Many thanks to my editor and friend, Michael, to Tim, for keeping this valuable resource available for us internet writers, and to all the readers who give us a reason to go on. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all.
Rob Warr 2024
Authors deserve your feedback. It's the only payment they get. If you go to the top of the page you will find the author's name. Click that and you can email the author easily.* Please take a few moments, if you liked the story, to say so.
[For those who use webmail, or whose regular email client opens when they want to use webmail instead: Please right click the author's name. A menu will open in which you can copy the email address (it goes directly to your clipboard without having the courtesy of mentioning that to you) to paste into your webmail system (Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo etc). Each browser is subtly different, each Webmail system is different, or we'd give fuller instructions here. We trust you to know how to use your own system. Note: If the email address pastes or arrives with %40 in the middle, replace that weird set of characters with an @ sign.]
* Some browsers may require a right click instead
