: Two Months Later
Sam
Sam had been more than a bit hesitant to bring Ben to his parents’ house for Christmas. Given the fact that he had lied to them for months, and lied to Ben as well, he figured the entire thing was just a disaster waiting to happen. Surprisingly, though, it turned out better than he thought. It had taken a while to convince the family that he and Ben were actually dating. It had taken an equally long time for them to accept that Ben wasn’t rich and well-known. That had changed, of course, when his dad had shown one of Ben’s pictures to the governor. As it turned out, being rich did have its perks.
From there, Ben’s work had picked up. His first exhibition in New Haven had been at the start of the month, and Sam couldn’t have been prouder. Finally, Ben was getting the recognition he deserved.
They sat in the living room, Sam’s dad asking Ben about the exhibit, while Sam kept his eyes trained on the little box underneath the Christmas tree in their bedroom. They’d both agreed to get each other small gifts for Christmas, and technically, Sam’s gift fit that criteria. After all, they’d never explicitly said the gift had to be inexpensive.
There was a commotion at the doorway, and Sam turned to see Ambra and Matías walk through.
“Sorry we’re late,” she said walking over to give her mother a hug. “Traffic was horrible. Have we missed the presents?”
His mom shook her head. “No, you’re just in time. Dad’s getting ready to play Santa!”
The two settled in while his dad distributed the first round of presents. He ripped the paper off his first package and opened the box to find…no. It couldn’t be. With shaking hands, Sam pulled out a copy of The Hobbit. The inside copyright page confirmed his suspicion—it was a first edition.
“That’s one of the ones you like, isn’t it?” His dad’s voice was oddly hesitant.
His family had never seemed to care about his interests in the past, but this was nice. More than nice. It showed that they were finally willing to accept who he was and what he liked. He nodded in response to the question.
“It’s perfect,” he said with a broad grin.
His dad’s shoulders seemed to relax, as though he’d been worried he’d gotten the wrong thing.
“Oh my god, are you serious?”
Sam turned to find Ben staring at a camera in his lap. From the look on Ben’s face, it was an expensive one.
“What’d you get?” he asked.
“It’s a Canon 1D Mark IV,” Ben said in awe.
Sam blinked. “Pretend I didn’t know anything about cameras.”
Looking sheepish, Ben whispered, “It’s a nice camera.”
That warmed Sam’s heart. His family had always shown their affection buy spending money. The more expensive a gift, the more highly that person was regarded. So to hear that his parents had bought Ben an expensive camera spoke volumes. They were welcoming him to the family, in spite of the fact that his relationship with Sam had started as a lie. He let out a small sigh of relief as another brightly-wrapped box was placed in his lap.
“That one’s from Grandma,” his dad said.
A niggle of disappointment coursed through him that she wasn’t there celebrating with them, but she was with his cousins and Aunt Harper, who had recently announced her separation from George.
He pulled the bow off the package and opened it to find a handwritten note on top of the tissue paper.
Dear Sam,
I’m so sorry that I’m not able to be with you on Christmas, but know that I’m with you in spirit. Tell Ben I said hello and that I miss him, too. He’s a wonderful addition to the family, and I wish you two all the best. Let me know when you’re all moved in to your new place and I’ll come down for a visit. Merry Christmas, my dear.
All my love,
Grandma
P.S. Ben told me how much he loved volunteering in Peru. I hope the two of you enjoy it as much this time around as he did the first time.
Sam blinked back tears as he tucked the note in his pocket. She had always been so giving, and now was no exception. Pulling back the tissue paper, he found a folder labeled Peru. Inside were tickets, hotel confirmations, and an itinerary. That only sparked fresh tears. She’d planned an entire trip for him to take with Ben. Looking over at him, he saw Ben staring down at his lap with what he assumed was the same expression he was wearing.
“Did you open yours from Grandma, too?”
Ben nodded. “I get to show you Peru.” A watery smile spread across his face.
“Our turn!” Ambra stood and grabbed a large tote filled with colorfully-wrapped, thin boxes. Clothing, then. She handed each box to its recipient, and then clapped her hands. “Okay, open them!”
Sam did, tugging at the knotted ribbon before giving up and slicing through it with a pair of scissors on the coffee table. As expected, it was clothing—a shirt with some writing on it. He pulled it out of the box and shook it out. World’s Greatest Uncle.
“Wh—Ambra?”
She was beaming when he looked up at her. “Yep, we’re pregnant!”
“Oh my god, honey, that’s great!” His mom climbed off her chair and walked over to wrap her in a hug.
Sam turned to Ben, to find him looking at his own shirt. “What’s it say?” he asked.
Ben held it up. World’s Other Greatest Uncle. Sam smiled. He’d been so worried that Ben wouldn’t fit in with his family that he’d thought to make it easier by saying Ben was rich. But as it turned out, his family didn’t give a shit about that. All they wanted was for Sam to be happy. And he was.
***
They finally made it back up to their room hours later, after Christmas dinner and a video call with his grandma. Closing the door behind him, he walked over to where Ben sat on the bed. He wrapped his arms around him and leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to Ben’s lips.
“That went better than expected,” he said, resting his forehead against Ben’s.
“I still can’t believe they gave me a camera. And your grandma with the trip to Peru? That’s going to be amazing.”
Sam smiled and brushed their noses together. “I can’t wait for you to show me all the cool things you saw the last time you were there.”
Ben would be able to get so many good nature shots with his new camera, and they would make loads of new memories that Sam knew they would cherish.
“Oh, I will. I’ll show you everything.”
“Good.” Sam kissed him again and then pulled away, walking over to their small, table top Christmas tree. “I got you a little something. You said it had to be small, and I took your instructions very seriously.”
He picked up the little black box and walked over. Ben’s eyes grew wide.
“That better not be what I think it is,” he said softly.
Sam knew what Ben was expecting—a ring. But he wasn’t going to give away the surprise just yet. He pressed the box into Ben’s hand.
“Open it.”
“I don’t know if I want to.”
Sam huffed and rolled his eyes. “Just open the box. You won’t be sorry.”
Hands shaking, Ben did. His eyes narrowed, and he picked up a small, silver key. “What is this?” he asked.
“It’s a key to my apartment. Temporary, of course. I figure we can find somewhere that suits both our needs eventually, but your place is way too small.”
Ben blinked a few times, as though it hadn’t quite sunk in what Sam was saying. “You…want me to move in?”
“Yes,” Sam said with a nod. “I want you to move in. I want you to spend every night in bed with me, no matter where we are. I love you.”
It was comical, the way Ben gaped, clearly still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Sam wanted him to move in. “I said I didn’t want a big gift,” he said eventually, his voice weak.
“And it isn’t. It’s a pretty small key. I was able to fit it in a ring box.”
He was working on a technicality, but hopefully Ben would accept it. After a few seconds, Ben wrapped his fingers around the key. “You want me to move in,” he said, this time a bit more confidently. “Yes, of course I’ll move in with you.”
Sam let himself be pulled into a hug, and Ben kissed him soundly.
“I love you too,” Ben whispered, nuzzling against his neck.
Closing his eyes, Sam sighed, completely content. Maybe it had been wrong to lie about having a boyfriend, and maybe the whole thing had blown up in his face, but it resulted in something greater than he could imagine.
He would do it all over again, as long as it meant that they ended up here. They had the rest of their lives to spend together, and Sam couldn’t wait. This was perfect.
And best of all, it was real.
The End