The Cozy Christmas Cabin

"Oh!" Xandre was shocked to hear that. He reached over to grab his phone to see that indeed, it was December 20th. "I completely forgot it was my birthday today," Xandre said as he rubbed his eyes again.

Brandon was also slowly waking up. Once he also sat up and stretched, he said, "Good morning Alexandre. Happy birthday."

"Thank you... thank you both kindly," said Xandre. He turned to Beatrice and said, "There is nothing I wish more than to stay longer with you in bed, but it's my turn to make breakfast today. I'll have to go to the gym now if I am to start my assigned duty in a timely manner."

Beatrice nodded, where Xandre gave her one last embrace. It was hard for either of them to let each other go, especially with the slightly frostier air outside of their cocoon made out of the comforter and body heat.

*

Xandre was the first one in the gym, where not too long after, Asher joined him. The young man with the dark hair and bright brown eyes just gave an acknowledgement nod before hopping onto the treadmill.

Forty five minutes later, Xandre completed his routine and was about to leave. This time however, Asher stopped his sprinting on the treadmill and immediately jumped onto the ground after turning off the machine. Then he called out to the blond, "Xandre, can you spot me?"

Xandre was surprised to hear that, as Asher usually didn't do any heavy lifting as part of his workout regime. "Certainly," he agreed. He glanced at the clock, and he had a few minutes to spare.

After spending an extra fifteen minutes with Asher, Xandre went upstairs to see Silas, who was baking muffins for breakfast. The aroma of freshly baked goods was in the air, which was tantalizing for the hungry young man. "Hey Xandre," Silas greeted his friend, "I got this for now, if you want to go and take a shower."

Xandre raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah. The muffins are baking, and I'll get the eggs and bacon going. You can cut the fruit and toast the bread when you come back," said Silas.

"I'll have to protest and inform you that our workload does not appear to be fair to you," said Xandre, "Cutting fruit and toasting already baked bread are relatively easy tasks compared to what you have assigned yourself."

"Nah," said Silas as he opened up a carton of eggs, "Doralee hates cooking and she's terrible at it. I'm used to doing almost all of it, and I really don't mind. Besides, it's supposed to be the three of us, and Doralee hasn't been feeling her best today. I'm happy to pull my weight on behalf of my darling girlfriend."

"Well..." Xandre was hesitant. Then he shrugged and said, "If you insist. I will quickly have my shower and join you."

"Take your time man," said Silas as he cracked eggs in a bowl.

Xandre left to go upstairs, where as soon as Silas heard the faint distant sound of Xandre closing his bedroom door, he sighed in relief. Then he quickly opened the oven to reveal a pan of brown cake batter that was baked to perfection.

"Whew. If he would have stayed longer, it would have burned," Silas mumbled to himself. Then he closed the oven to allow the muffins to bake longer, while he hid the cake in the warming drawer.

*

It was not too long after breakfast, when Xandre was busy cleaning the dishes in the kitchen. Silas glanced at his watch, and then asked Asher, "Hey buddy. Do you want to play a board game?"

Asher looked towards Elise and Doralee, who were busy chatting away on the loveseat sofa, while Clarence and Tyra were having their own conversation at the three seater. Then he turned his head to make sure at the distance that he could see the light inside the oven. His turkey was roasting beautifully. He then turned back to Silas and said, "Fine."

"Great. You can pick any game you want," said Silas.

"You're not going to ask Beatrice or Brandon to join?" Asher asked.

Silas froze for a moment, because he knew Brandon was supposed to meet them in the basement very shortly and didn't want to bother looking for him. As for Beatrice, she would likely show up on her own anyway, when she gets a whiff of a board game happening. "Oh yeah. Uh... let's check out the games first though," he said, "Then we can tell Brandon and Beatrice what we're playing."

Asher nodded in agreement, and both him and Silas went down the stairs to the basement. They looked through the board game shelf together for a moment, when they heard Beatrice coming down the stairs. With sparkles in her dark grey eyes, she asked with her monotone voice, "Are you planning to play a board game?"

"Yeah Beatrice," said Silas as he winked, "Wanna watch?"

"Yes," Beatrice said as she nodded and with a little smile on her face. She sat on the sectional couch and waited for Asher to pick a game.

Then Silas peeked at his watch. 'Perfect timing', he thought.

Not a second too soon, more steps were heard coming down the stairs. It was Brandon, carrying his laptop and several pieces of paper with pens. Silas exhaled in relief, but simultaneously, he wasn't feeling that particularly anxious in the first place. Brandon was almost exactly the same as Beatrice in her mannerisms, and her punctuality was always noted. Even when the task seemed impossible to complete at a designated time, if she claimed she could complete it, she always did without fail.

"Silas, Asher and Beatrice," Brandon said, "I would appreciate it if you can participate in my newest lecture, and provide constructive feedback."

"A lecture you say?" Silas said, "How long is it?"

"Thirty minutes, with ten minutes of questions and answers in the end. My online survey should not take longer than five minutes to complete," Brandon replied.

Beatrice didn't waste any time and didn't even wait for anyone's answer. She took the pens and papers from Brandon, and then handed them out to Asher and Silas. She sat on the floor to use the coffee table to write on.

Before Asher knew what was happening, Silas also sat down on the ground, where he urged his friend to do the same. He was in automatic mode and complied with the suggestion, while thinking that listening to a lecture was not the way he wanted to spend a holiday.

Then again, Brandon was always courteous, pulled his weight in managing the household for the last several days, and had a calm, neutral attitude, which Asher appreciated. So he changed his mind and thought that spending less than an hour listening to a lecture wouldn't kill him.

Brandon placed his laptop on a side table, and casted his powerpoint slide on the TV screen. It was blank and nothing was on. Silas realized Brandon was starting his lectures the way he always did on his Youtube videos and smirked on the side.

"Hello. Welcome to my presentation. My name is Brandon Reisen," Brandon introduced himself to everyone who already knew who he was, "Today, the title of the lecture is...," Then the TV screen showed the slide that contained the title as he read outloud, "'How to be an Effective Lover in a Committed and Romantic Relationship'."

'What?" Asher almost gasped and straightened his back, as he was surprised to hear the lecture was going to be about sex. He checked his peripheral vision to see that on his right, Beatrice already wrote down the title of the lecture on top of the page. On the left, Silas just rested his chin on his palm while having a serious expression. He tried to avoid eye contact with Asher so that he wouldn't burst out laughing and give any sort of hint that he was involved in this scheme.

"Please refrain from asking questions until the lecture has reached its conclusion," Brandon said, "The piece of paper and pen are to be used to write notes, questions and feedback. I will be sending out an email for an anonymous survey once everyone has finished their inquiries."

Asher was stunned and dumbfounded, but simultaneously, he was somewhat intrigued at the possibility of learning would be important in maintaining, or perhaps even enhancing his relationship with Elise. This could be the answer he was waiting for.

In his velvety, soothing tone, Brandon began his lecture. Like in all lectures, Beatrice's eyes were either on the presenter or the slides. Silas would take a peek to see how Asher was taking this all in, and much to his relief, he seemed to be very attentive, although he didn't write any notes down.

"Being an effective lover does not start at the moment you mutually agree to be intimate. The following actions are encouraged to be included in your daily routine, in order to communicate to your partner on how desirable they are," Brandon explained, "Small, caring gestures are proven to be effective ways to show your partner how important they are to you. An example may include saying good morning to them with a cup of coffee. Sincere compliments are often appreciated, no matter how long you have been in the relationship. A good opportunity to do this may be when they wear a new outfit."

The longer the lecture went on, the more Asher was intrigued. The topic was relevant, but Brandon also made the presentation organized and interesting. Not to mention he always had a straight face and an unwavering tone of voice where he was clearly confident and did not find any humour in what he was presenting, which Asher appreciated.

"For the purpose of this lecture, we will use the bedroom as the location that the couple would choose to be intimate," Brandon said, "Before initiating any sexual encounters, there are several recommended steps to be followed."

Several minutes went by, as Brandon explained various topics on how to 'improve the mood' in the bedroom, so to speak. Then he led to the bread and butter of the presentation; the foreplay and the sexual intercourse.

Silas almost smirked when he saw that Asher leaned forward as he rested his head on his chin. The young man with the dark hair was completely absorbed into the lecture, and listening to every word.

"As I mentioned before, this is where communication is important. Watch for any visual and listen for verbal cues to see if your partner is aroused, and be open to receive any feedback," Brandon said.

Beatrice continued to write down the jot notes, as if she wanted to remember these points before the next time she would engage in sexual intercourse.

At exactly thirty minutes after the presentation began, the lecture concluded. Brandon then said, "I am available for any questions, and I will answer them to the best of my ability."

Asher didn't raise his hand, where Silas was hoping he would be wanting to ask something. Beatrice didn't seem to have any pressing matters she wanted to address either.

"I see that there are no questions," said Brandon. Then he opened up his phone and said, "I will send you a survey through your email. I would appreciate it if you can complete it at your earliest convenience." After sending the email to the three of them, he bowed and said, "That concludes my lecture today. Thank you all for being part of the audience." Then he closed his laptop, and went upstairs.

Silas, Asher and Beatrice sat quietly together for several minutes to complete the survey. Once they finished, Silas asked the others, "So, what did you think of the lecture?"

"It was educational," said Beatrice, "I learned useful information that I could apply to my life."

"Yeah, that's for sure. I think I could walk out of here as a better lover for Doralee," said Silas as he placed his hands behind his head, "Well, at least when her Aunt Flo is done with her visit."

Beatrice blinked. "Aunt Flo? You have a visitor coming?"

Silas smirked and said, "Aunt Flo is not a real person, you see. She's sort of a... metaphor for Doralee having her... period." Then he blushed for a quick second and explained, "Er... she tends to come and go as she pleases. She apparently came back in full swing, after the exams and the stress that came with it for Doralee."

"Oh," said Beatrice, "I've never heard of that expression before. That is something else I learned today."

Asher couldn't help but crack a smile from the amusement, but remained silent.

"That won't stop me from romancing her, even if it means we won't er... get busy on those nights. If I bank some 'good boy' points, I'm sure she'll remember it. Maybe I'll try to bake some meat pies for her more often, because she craves those like crazy when she has Aunt Flo over," Silas explained.

The man with the dark hair and amber eyes glanced at the screen of his phone. "I have to go and check on the turkey," he announced as he got up to go up the stairs.

Before Asher disappeared, Silas took a quick glance at the young man's face. It indicated a contemplative mood, a mind full of ideas and thoughts. That relieved Silas, as he knew Asher was definitely going to be a man of action tonight.

'Oh Doralee... can't wait until I spend those good boy points', Silas thought as he smirked.

*

It was early evening, when the aroma of the delicious food was in the air. Asher placed the roasted turkey on the large serving dish, while Clarence arranged the potatoes and carrots around it. Then Asher made his way up the stairs to get changed into the dinner party attire.

The dining table had a red table cloth, with a green table runner that had silver trims. A centerpiece containing pine branches, red and white sparkly decorative balls were in a small fish bowl that was tied in the middle with a thick green ribbon. It was a personal touch that Doralee left, along with the napkins that were folded into a neat rectangle that had a pouch for the cutlery. Red and green lit tea lights were scattered randomly in the ledges of the dining room and the living room.

The ladies were upstairs in the red room and all dressed in their Christmas outfits. Tyra chose to wear a simple burgundy red velvet dress with a black belt that accentuated her ample bosom and bottom. Beatrice had a long-sleeve black form fitting sweater, with a high waisted laced up red plaid skirt. Since Elise and Beatrice hardly knew anything about applying makeup, Doralee applied some on Elise, while Tyra did on Beatrice. It was a Christmas party, so just basic blush, mascara and eyeliner was applied to all the girls.

Then Doralee had the biggest grin on her face when all the girls were done with their makeup. Elise knew what was coming; Doralee's favourite moment of dressing up had finally arrived.

"Accessories!" Doralee squealed as she unzipped a medium sized toiletry travel bag, "Well, Christmas accessories to be more precise." Inside had sections divided, where each square contained hair accessories, earrings, necklaces and bracelets. She glanced towards Beatrice, who hardly ever wears accessories. She selected a red plaid headband that had a similar pattern as Beatrice's skirt. "Borrow this for tonight," she ordered.

Beatrice took the headband, and carefully placed it on her head. "Is this on straight?" she asked Elise.

The blonde took a quick look, where the headband was off centre. Then she asked, "May I fix it?" Beatrice nodded and Elise adjusted it a little bit and said, "Yes, it is now."

"Oh, look at these," Tyra cooed as she lifted two hair ties with a large green ribbon on each of them, "I hope you don't mind if I take these for myself."

"Take whatever you like," said Doralee. Tyra braided her straight light blonde hair into two pigtails, while Doralee selected a silver necklace that had a green and red Christmas tree. As for Elise, she chose snowflake earrings, made out of silver.

When Beatrice remained sitting on the edge of the bed, Tyra, Doralee and Elise took one last look at each other to make sure their clothing and accessories were free of any lint and worn correctly. Then the noirette said to the girls, "You all look very attractive."

Elise blushed, where Tyra gave a smile in return. "Aw Beatrice," Doralee said as she winked, "So do you, hun."

One by one, they left the girls' room, where Tyra took the lead and Elise was the last one to stagger out into the hallway. When she was about to walk down the stairs, Asher opened the door to his bedroom. He was wearing a simple green sweater, with a white collared shirt underneath, along with black jeans. As soon as he closed the door behind him and looked ahead, he saw Elise with her form-fitting red sweater and her long, green plaid skirt. Her borrowed snowflake earrings were dangling down her lobes, which were standing out more as her mermaid-style wavy hair was tied up in a low ponytail.

Elise smiled when she saw her boyfriend, where he responded by saying, "You look really great."

"Oh!" Elise said as she blushed, "This is... just an old outfit I had for years. But thank you, I appreciate the compliment." Then she gave another smile and said, "You look great too." She meant it too, of course.

As for Asher, Elise was the most beautiful woman in the world to him. She could be wearing a potato sack, and he would still never need to look at anyone else ever again.

Remembering what Brandon taught him and his friends earlier today, Asher decided to finally make a move. He stepped towards Elise, who was standing by the stairs and waiting for him. Instead of putting his hand on the small of her back like he would normally do, he wrapped his arms around her waist. His lips brushed against Elise's neck, where she naturally extended it to allow him to gain access. She was pleasantly surprised at Asher's rather sensual gesture, and wholeheartedly welcomed it. A quiet moan escaped her lips when the young man kissed and the tip of his tongue rode up to her jaw.

After one last gentle kiss, a long embrace followed. Elise buried her face in Asher's neck and took a deep inhale, where she could smell his signature scent of a small hint of soap and his natural pheromones. It smelled so good to her. It smelled like home.

Elise paused to savour the moment, but also to ponder why Asher was behaving in a way where it was clearly to arouse her. She whispered in his ear, "I want you..."

This time, Asher whispered back, "I want you too," as his arms tightened around her thin frame.

"Hey love birds!" a voice called out from the bottom of the stairs.

The young couple perked up and glanced down to see that it was Clarence. The milk chocolate skinned man, wearing a black dress shirt with golden snowflakes and blue jeans silently mouthed, 'Get the guitar!' Then he walked back to the dining room.

"I'll get it for you," Asher volunteered, "Where is it?"

"It's in Clarence's closet," Elise replied as she started to head downstairs, "Do you mind just leaving it in the kitchen? And if you can try not to let Xandre see it..."

"No problem," Asher said as he turned around to head the opposite direction and down the second floor hallway.

*

The three girls walked into the dining room, where Silas, Brandon and Xandre were setting down all the food for their Christmas feast, with the exception of the roast turkey. That was left for Asher to bring to the table. Silas had a traditional red Christmas sweater with a pixelated brown reindeer, along with a pair of black jeans. As for Brandon, he wore a black dress shirt, black dress pants, but a patterned green vest with a red and white zigzag design running across horizontally.

When the young blond man glanced up, the first thing he saw was Beatrice. Her black sweater hugged tight against her thin body and accentuated her round and ample bosom. Her dark grey eyes sparkled on her luminous visage, which seemed to emit a certain innocence about her. Someone who always has the best intentions. Someone who has nothing to hide.

"Beatrice..." Xandre said as he smiled. He himself was wearing a royal blue sweater with white snowflakes aligned horizontally, and black dress pants. He walked towards his girlfriend and gently reached out with his hand. She took it and gazed into his sky blue eyes. "You look so... incredibly beautiful," he said quietly.