Home for the Holidays

"Oh," Mike was sighing, "that was really, really good." He was giving Tom little kisses down the back, and Tom thought that was a really sissy thing to do, but he was too tired to protest. He had never imagined his body was capable of such pleasure. He was as astonished as Sally had been, a few nights before. Sally was there beside him, and he kissed her, then he kissed Tracy. They all were lying there for a moment, watching the tree, listening to the music, in a mood of perfect, satiated contentment.

The little clock on the mantle started to chime on its way to midnight. One, two, but then it stopped.

"Two o'clock," Sally murmured dreamily. "Time flies when you're having fun."

"Shit!" Tracy was scrambling around, throwing garments at them all.

"What's the matter?"

"Midnight mass is over, for sure. Get some clothes on." A car was coming, and she went into a panic. "It's my fucking parents!" But the car drove by.

Tom desperately needed to clean up. His body was covered with sticky slime. This was his good wool suit, his nice dress shirt, his new silk tie. He gathered them all into a bundle and headed for the bathroom. By the time he got back out, the others were fully dressed, sitting demurely around the cider and donuts. The door was open to try to air out the pot haze, but that wasn't working so well.

"We'd better get going," Tom said. He took a look at Mike, sprawled in the recliner, snoring. "I guess we can walk."

"Sure, we can walk," Sally said. "It's not that far." But when they got outside, she was shivering. That tiny little dress, that little fur wrap, didn't offer much protection from the cold. Tom took his coat, his big leather trench coat, the Storm Trooper coat, Lisa called it, and slipped it over her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said, and gave him a little kiss. "You are such a gentleman." That was enough to make him blush, after all the things they had done together and to each other. "Are you going to be rich and powerful some day?"

"Maybe."

"I'd probably be too old for you by then. You're too nice, anyway."

"Too nice?"

"To have a secret lady."

Lisa, Lisa, what am I doing here? Tom began to shiver.

"You're not too cold without the coat? Here, we'll share it."

She moved in to hold him close to her, and draped the coat over both of their shoulders. It was awkward walking that way, but nice, slow and dreamy. A lot of the houses still had their Christmas lights on, inside lights too as parents struggled to play Santa while their children pretended to sleep. Sally started to sing, "Hey ho, nobody home, hey ho, nobody home. Eat or drink or money have I none. Yet will I be me-e-er-ry." Her voice was sweet and clear, perfectly on key. Beautiful, so beautiful, and Tom began to cry.

"What's the matter? You don't like my singing?"

"I love your singing." I love you. Shit. "Look, there are the three wise men." He pointed out the belt in Orion.

A plane droned overhead. "There's Rudolf!" She pointed at the flashing red light. She started to sing again, Silent Night this time, but when she got to the virgin part she broke into giggles.

"What's the matter?"

"I'm still a virgin! Still a virgin! After all that!"

"Tender and mild?"

"Don't push it."