Very Good Friday
-O-
DISCLAIMER: I am not connected to Emmerdale and its characters, which belong to ITV.
-O-
Jackson was awake first. He smiled as he looked at a slumbering Aaron beside him: he always thought that his boyfriend looked so gorgeous when he was asleep. Awake, he could be unpredictable, but when he slept it was as if his moody and sullen demeanour did not exist.
Aaron roused and saw Jackson staring at him with a goofy grin on his face, "What time is it?" he asked.
"Seven o'clock," Jackson replied.
"SEVEN O'CLOCK!" Aaron exclaimed, "Why didn't you wake me, I'll be late now."
"Late for what?"
"Work, you div."
"It's you that's the div," Jackson said with a self-satisfied smirk, "It's Good Friday, or has Cain got you working on bank holidays now?"
"Oh yeah," Aaron became calmer, "I forgot."
"I've got something for you," Jackson retrieved a paper bag from the bedside cabinet and handed it to his boyfriend.
Aaron put his hand inside the bag and pulled out a Smarties Easter Egg, he looked at it in disbelief as much as surprise, "How old am I? Five?" he said, sarcastically.
"I thought you'd like an egg for Easter," Jackson pouted, "You're never too old for a chocolate fix."
"Well, I suppose so," Aaron looked embarrassed, "I haven't got anything for you though."
"Doesn't matter," Jackson replied, but Aaron knew that it did matter to Jackson and he was determined to do something about it.
"I like Easter," Aaron said.
"What do you like about it?" Jackson was surprised when Aaron actually admitted to liking anything at all.
"Well, its spring, isn't it? Paddy will be busy with the lambing season on the farms and all the trees start to grow their leaves...and then there are hot crossed buns, that sort of thing."
"Hot crossed buns, eh?" Jackson had a wicked gleam in his gorgeous brown eyes, "I'm partial to some hot buns myself!" He made a grab for Aaron's pert buttocks.
Aaron gave Jackson one of his trademark looks, "Trust you, randy sod! I was talking about all the things springing to life...the fresh new beginnings."
"Aaron Livesy, you're a soft git! You'll be telling me you love all the flowers and little bunny rabbits next," Jackson adopted a high-pitched voice.
"Sod off!"
"That's better," Jackson chuckled, "For a minute there I thought you were going to go all weak and feeble on me."
Aaron smirked, "Weak and feeble am I? I'm not when I do a certain thing that bunnies are good at!"
"Oh yeah, I can guess what that is," Jackson's broad grin was unmistakable and he soon had confirmation of Aaron's intimation when his boyfriend pounced on him to give him a demonstration of exactly what it was that rabbits were well known for!
At breakfast, Aaron boiled some eggs while Jackson toasted some slices of bread. They sat at the kitchen table and Aaron placed two eggs in front of Jackson, "Here's your Easter eggs," he said with a grin.
"Well, they're not chocolate ones, but I suppose they're more healthy," Jackson smiled at his boyfriend.
"After you got me that Easter egg, I feel bad not giving you one."
"You 'gave me one' before breakfast!" Jackson had a lecherous grin on his handsome face.
"I was talking about eggs!" Aaron was, unusually, not responding to Jackson's suggestive remarks.
Jackson knew that sometimes Aaron would act all coy and embarrassed, so he did not pursue it any further, "Anyway, I'll eat these and then I'll have to get off to the site," he said.
"But...it's Good Friday," Aaron observed.
"I know, but a lot of builders work on Good Friday, it's sort of a tradition, I'm only doing a few hours and then I'll be all yours!"
A little while later, Jackson left for the building site and Aaron took advantage of his time alone to put a plan into action. He rang a couple of restaurants in Hotten but they were fully booked for the evening, however he eventually found one with a table. He decided to ring Jackson on his mobile to make sure that his boyfriend would keep the evening free.
Jackson sounded suspicious, "What are you up to?"
"Who says I'm up to anything?" Aaron replied, innocently, although he always found it difficult to fool Jackson.
"Aaron!" Jackson frowned, although his facial expression was not visible to his boyfriend, "You're cooking something up in that feverish little brain of yours...now SPILL!"
"All I'll say is that I've got something planned so don't make any arrangements," Aaron was hoping to keep his secret a little longer.
"Why?" Jackson enquired.
"Look, do you have to question everything? I want to surprise you, but you're making it really difficult," Aaron sounded frustrated.
"Alright, I'll play along," Jackson did not want to test Aaron's patience...or lack of it.
"Good! Just do as you're told for once," Aaron had a self-satisfied smirk on his face and knew that he was getting his own way this time.
After he had finished his call, Aaron headed into town. He wanted to buy something for Jackson, to prove how much the young builder meant to him and he wanted their evening together to be really special. He was not usually a very affectionate person, but he knew that Jackson was an incurable romantic and he realised that he would do anything to please his brilliant boyfriend.
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That evening, after arrival home from work, Jackson was dressed up to the nines along with an equally smart Aaron, when they heard a taxi outside sounding its horn. Jackson was still none the wiser as to Aaron's plans, but he knew that his boyfriend wanted to play things close to his chest, so he went along with the game for his sake.
"Taxi's here," Aaron announced.
"Where are we going?" Jackson's curiosity was getting the better of him and he was hoping that he could coax Aaron into telling him about his intentions.
"You know what I said...it's a surprise!" Aaron was staying tight-lipped.
"OK," Jackson gave in. It was obvious that his boyfriend wanted to surprise him and he was enjoying the little cat-and-mouse game that he was playing.
As Aaron had booked over the phone, he had no idea whether the restaurant would be a nice one, but he needn't have worried. It was right on the riverside and the couple were given a window seat overlooking the river and a lovely park on the opposite bank, with neatly-kept lawns surrounded by trees. It was getting dark, but the lamplights along the riverside path and in the park illuminated the scene.
"It's lovely here," Jackson smiled as the waiter showed them to their table, "I could get used to this."
The waiter, a young, dark-haired guy with a nice-looking face and toned body under his tight-fitting uniform, smiled at the couple and gave them each a menu, "Would you like anything to drink, gentlemen?"
Aaron and Jackson ordered a bottle of wine and looked at their menus. The dishy waiter returned with their wine and poured each of them a glass.
"What do you recommend?" Jackson asked the waiter while pointing at his menu.
"The salmon Wellington is very nice," the waiter answered, "The fish is freshly caught locally. Have you decided yet?"
"We'll think about it for a few more minutes," Aaron replied for both of them.
"As you wish, sir," the waiter replied with a smile, "Just let me know when you're ready," he left them to make up their minds.
"I fancy the waiter's recommendation," Aaron announced after some deliberation.
"I thought you were going to say you fancied the waiter, he's quite fit!" Jackson laughed.
"Behave yourself!" Aaron grimaced but chuckled at the same time.
"Anyway, trust you to pick the most expensive thing on there, no wonder the waiter suggested that," Jackson rolled his eyes.
"Doesn't matter...I'm paying."
"Listen Aaron...about that," Jackson turned serious, "You can't afford all this, let's go Dutch."
"But, I want to treat you...for Easter."
Jackson looked fondly at his boyfriend, "You are treating me, giving me this surprise and bringing me here to this lovely restaurant, you don't have to spend a fortune on me."
"I know, but I just felt bad when you bought me an Easter egg and I hadn't got one to give you back," Aaron looked embarrassed.
"I told you it didn't matter! Anyway, this is way too extravagant as a payback for a chocolate egg."
"But, it's not just about the egg," Aaron had also turned serious, "I didn't get you anything for your birthday last year and not much for Christmas either. I know I'm a moody git a lot of the time and I don't tell you how I feel because I often think it's soppy, but I want to show you what you mean to me."
Jackson's beautiful brown eyes looked moist, "You don't have to tell me, Aaron. I do know how you feel...just by the way you are with me. I feel the same."
A silent acknowledgement passed between them as they gazed into each other's eyes.
The waiter served their salmon Wellington and they tucked into their meal with relish. They were both having a good time and they chatted contentedly as they ate and looked through the window at the twilight view outside.
After their main course, they both opted for lemon sorbet for dessert and, once they had enjoyed that, Jackson looked at Aaron fondly and he could tell that his boyfriend had something on his mind, "What are you thinking?" he asked.
"I can never hide anything from you, can I? Except this, perhaps," Aaron took a small bag from under the table and handed it to Jackson.
Jackson opened the bag to find a foil-wrapped chocolate egg inside. He could tell that the foil had previously been unwrapped and then replaced, "Thanks, but you shouldn't have," he chuckled.
"Open it!" Aaron said, impatiently.
"What?" Jackson misunderstood Aaron's instruction.
"Open the egg...there's something inside."
Jackson unwrapped the foil and separated the two halves of the chocolate egg. Inside was a small jeweller's box. Nervously and with his fingers trembling slightly, he opened the box to find a platinum ring.
"It's an eternity ring," Aaron explained, "I want you to wear it...to prove to the world that you're my fella!"
"OH!" Jackson could not find the words. He had always known that Aaron had the capacity to surprise him, but this was beyond all his expectations, "I don't know what to say..."
"Put it on," Aaron was hoping that Jackson liked the ring as well as the gesture and that he had not just made the biggest fool of himself.
Jackson took the ring and slipped it onto his finger, "It fits perfectly," he said as his eyes glistened with the emotion of it all.
"Now, if anyone asks what the ring symbolises, you can tell them," Aaron had an earnest yet soft look on his handsome face, "...it was given to you by your boyfriend, who thinks the world of you."
Jackson was, for once, speechless. Aaron had laid his heart on the line and he had never been happier than he was at that moment, he put his hands across the table to grasp Aaron's in his own.
"So, you like it then?" Aaron asked: eager to please his lover.
Jackson turned his hand so that he could look at the ring on his finger, "It's beautiful, it's the best thing that anyone's ever given me. I love it! I'll never take it off...thank you so much."
Aaron wanted to kiss Jackson but felt that he could not do it in a crowded restaurant, but he knew that he would have his chance later when he and Jackson were alone in their bedroom, which was their little sanctuary away from the prying eyes of the world. For that moment, they were content to gaze longingly into each other's eyes and share in the special moment that would live on in their memories.
-O-
FOOTNOTE: Thank you for reading...happy Easter everyone.