"Where are we going, Sam?" Artie asks excitedly.
Sam turns to smile at his boyfriend before watching the road again.
"I told you, it's a secret! But it's something that you said that you loved to do when you were little." Sam says.
Silence falls as Artie puts two and two together.
"Sam…" Artie says slowly, "Are you taking me sledding?"
The blonde nods, slightly concerned about Artie's lack of excitement.
"But if you don't want to, I have other plans we can do too. There's a new sci-fi movie we can catch, with dinner after. Or we can have a Star Wars marathon and order pizza and you can pick all the toppings you want." Sam rushes on. "I just wanted to do something really special for our first Christmas together."
Artie asks quietly, "But how's it going to work?"
"I bought three sleds, two normal ones and a larger one. I mean, I figure you can go down by yourself pretty easily, but personally I think going down together would be more fun. Then I can either pull you up the hill while you sit on the sled or I can carry you up. It's your Christmas present so whatever you want is completely fine with me," Sam says with a smile.
Artie is silent for a long minute. Sam glances over at him, but Artie's face is turned slightly away from him so he can't see anything. He starts slowing the car so he can pull over, worried that he's crossed a boundary.
"You really arranged all that for me? Not just the sledding itself, but the backup plans just in case?" Artie asks in disbelief.
"Yeah," Sam says, "I didn't know if the sledding would make you uncomfortable or something, so I wanted to make sure there were alternatives. But you've talked about sledding sometimes and how you loved how it felt but that your parents were never willing to take you, so I thought you might want to go with me."
When they've stopped, Artie places his hand on Sam's cheek and turns him. Sam's overwhelmed by the bright blue of Artie's eyes and the wide smile on his face. Artie leans in and captures Sam's lips. Artie's lips are soft and move slowly against his. Sam moans softly as Artie brings his other hand up to cup Sam's other cheek and pulls them closer.
Artie pulls back and presses their foreheads together. Artie pecks him on the lips quickly and pulls back. He grabs Sam's hand and cocks his head.
"Let's go sledding, yo!"
Sam starts driving again while Artie is hums happily beside him.
"You don't have to worry about bringing those two separate sleds," Artie says. "But I hope you're ready to carry me."
"Pimpin' style, of course," Sam says.
"Yeah," Artie says with a laugh, "Pimping style. Or superhero style, whichever."
They arrive at the hill and Artie's bouncing up and down excitedly in his seat. Sam looks over at Artie and smiles. He really loves his boyfriend, especially when he's like this: guard down and just happy. It always gives Sam a warm glow to know that he's one of the few people that Artie feels safe around.
"I'm going to grab the sled and then get you, okay?" Sam asks.
Artie nods. Sam gets out of the car and opens the trunk. He suppresses a smile as he looks at the package hidden behind the the sleds.
Sam grabs the bigger sled, attaches it to a belt he designed especially for today, and walks around to Artie's side of the car. He pulls the door open to see Artie smiling widely at him. Sam's always blown away by how cute Artie is. Even without his wide smile and bright eyes, Artie's floppy eared hat (complete with puff balls), striped mittens, and eccentric but Artie-typical fleece make him irresistibly adorable. Artie looks at Sam curiously.
"Is there something wrong?" he asks.
Sam shakes his head quickly. "No, no way. I was just… You look really hot."
Artie ducks his head and blushes.
"Stop it. I'm not hot. Let's go sledding," Artie says, reaching out for Sam.
Sam releases a little sigh as he lifts Artie. He cuddles him close to his chest and relishes the feeling of Artie wrapping his arms around his neck.
"Are you okay?" Artie asks. "That sigh didn't sound good, dude."
Sam internally debates whether or not he wants to risk ruining the whole afternoon for this. He goes for it anyway, speaking urgently.
"It's just that you really are hot, Artie. I honestly find you incredibly sexy. And when I tell you, you always brush it off like it's a lie or something. It isn't, though, I swear on my Avatar DVDs." Sam blurts out.
Artie smiles shyly. "Your Avatar DVDs? Really?" "Avatar, Star Wars, and all my comics," Sam responds sincerely.
Artie brushes Sam's cheek with a gloved hand and pulls himself up to kiss Sam. It's soft and sweet. Sam feels light on the inside because maybe this time Artie believes him.
When Artie pulls away, he says, "I want to go sledding with you, Sam Evans, my wonderful boyfriend."
Sam pulls Artie even closer, feeling his warmth even through the layers of clothing. He begins walking up the hill, and he's a little slow because the snow is thick, but Sam doesn't mind. When they reach the top of the hill, Sam pauses for a minute. He hasn't figured out exactly how he is going to arrange this part.
"Why don't you set me down, get the sled in place, and then we can go from there?" Artie says.
Sam agrees and sets him down gently. He unhooks and adjusts the sled. Artie scoots himself over and gestures at Sam to get on. He does and Artie settles himself onto Sam's lap. Sam hands Artie the reigns and wraps his arms around him.
Artie turns and looks at Sam.
"Are you ready?" he asks.
Sam nods and kisses his cheek.
"Ready when you are," Sam says.
Artie leans forward and pushes off. They teeter for second before they fall. Artie whoops as they start picking up speed and Sam laughs at him because he sounds so happy and at ease. They slide a little past the bottom of the hill. Once they come to a stop, Artie turns around and looks into Sam's eyes.
Sam is blown away as always by how blue and clear Artie's eyes are. They're always blue, of course, but too often they're clouded by sadness and hurt. Today, though, his eyes are as bright and clear as Sam has ever seen them.
"Can we go again?" Artie asks.
"Of course!" Sam replies.
He stands up, hooks the sled up, and picks Artie up again. He walks up the hill and they repeat the same process several times.
Eventually, they decide to go down a different part of the hill. They build up speed quickly and Artie starts trying to steer them hard to the right when Sam realizes that they're about to hit a rather large rock. Sam braces himself because he knows they aren't going to be able to avoid it. They're on a cheap sled; it doesn't actually steer all that much.
When they hit the rock, the sled flies off to who knows where and Sam and Artie tumble around. Sam's disoriented, but realizes he's still holding Artie. Sam loosens his grip and Artie turns so they're chest to chest. They're both panting heavily, a sudden adrenaline rush leaving them breathless.
Artie's cheeks and nose are red from the cold and both of their teeth are chattering. The snow is seeping through Sam's jacket. Suddenly, Artie grabs Sam's face and leans down to kiss him. Sam moves his hands to Artie's waist and kisses him back. Artie's tongue enters his mouth and Sam suddenly doesn't feel cold anymore as Artie explores his mouth. He pulls Artie closer by his hips. Artie feels so small against him, but he also feels so powerful. Sam's on fire as Artie deepens the kiss, pushing his tongue further into Sam's mouth.
Eventually Artie pulls back, putting his forehead to Sam's with a satisfied smirk on his face. They lay there, panting, and Artie tilts his head every once in a while for a quick kiss. Sam pulls his gloves off and keeps his hands warm by slipping them under Artie's layers and rubbing circles onto Artie's back. Artie's hands have slipped down to Sam's shoulders and his face is buried in Sam's neck. He starts humming a tune and Sam can feel the vibrations in his neck. There's no sound Sam loves more than Artie's singing voice, except maybe the sound of his laughter.
The cold starts to re-emerge and Sam shivers. Artie props himself up and looks at Sam. He looks so happy that Sam wishes they never had to move.
"Do you wanna get up? You look frozen." Artie asks.
"Yes and no. I want to get out of the cold, and I have hot chocolate in the car to warm us up, but I love lying here with you like this." Sam says.
"Well," Artie quips, "why don't we go back to the car, drink some hot chocolate, and you can take me to your house? Maybe you can spoil me a bit and give me that Star Wars marathon too? We can get some pizza like you said and snuggle on your couch? Then you can be warm."
"You definitely deserve to be spoiled. Although I'm warning you my motives might not be entirely pure. It'll be a gift to myself just as much as you," Sam says.
"That's acceptable, I suppose. So let's go!" Artie says, giving Sam a quick peck on the lips before sitting up.
"Um, Artie," Sam wheezes, "You're kind of sitting on my stomach and I can't breathe."
"Oops, sorry man," Artie says, sliding off.
Sam stands and picks Artie up. Instead of wrapping his arms around Sam, he just holds them in his lap.
When Sam looks down at him questioningly, Artie just shrugs and says, "I know you won't let me fall."
Sam just smiles. They reach the car and Sam slides Artie into the passenger's seat. He goes around back and puts the sled away. The box is sitting there, wrapped up neatly, but Sam decides to wait until they start the marathon. He grabs the thermos and closes the trunk.
He settles himself in the front seat and pours a cup for Artie. Sam shakes because his clothes are soaked in the back. Artie turns up the heat and sips his hot chocolate.
"Don't you have a cup for yourself?" Artie asks.
"Nah, there's only one," Sam says.
Artie holds the cup out to him.
"Are you asking me to say what's up to your cup?" Sam asks with a laugh.
Artie groans at him and pulls it back.
"You're lucky this is a hot beverage and I happen to like your pretty face."
"What do you mean? I thought it was awesome! If we had sung that, we totally would have won Nationals. I mean, if you had sung lead on anything, we would have had it in the bag," Sam says.
Artie rolls his eyes and keeps sipping his drink.
"Maybe something other than My Cup would have been better," Artie says.
He hands Sam the cup and this time Sam takes it.
"I'm serious Artie. You have the best voice in Glee club," Sam says.
"Doesn't matter either way," Artie says without a second thought, "I'm never going to be lead in any kind of competition. It's… whatever."
Artie sounds so down that Sam regrets bringing the whole thing up. He files the conversation away though, and begins thinking of ways he can fix this. It's their senior year; Artie deserves a competition solo at least. Sam can tell that he doesn't want to keep talking about it, though.
"What toppings do you want on your pizza?" Sam asks.
Artie snaps out of his reverie.
"You can have whatever you want. You already gave me a Christmas present, so you can pick the toppings since you're paying," Artie says.
"Well what if the toppings I want just so happen to be the toppings you want? Would you tell me then?" Sam says.
Artie looks at him with a smile.
"I want half cheese and thin crust and only a little bit of sauce," Artie says.
That's Sam's usual order.
"What if I want extra cheese, stuffed crust, extra pepperoni and some breadsticks too?" Sam asks.
Artie glares playfully at Sam, most of the heavy sadness gone.
"Well then I would say that you said I can order what I want since you've extended my Christmas gift to include this too," he retorts.
"I'm paying though. Our rule is whomever pays gets to choose the toppings. And these are the ones I'm choosing," Sam says.
"You still said it was my Christmas gift."
"But I know what you really want. Extra cheese, stuffed crust, extra pepperoni and some breadsticks, even though they aren't Breadstix breadsticks."
Artie holds his hands up in mock surrender. "You've got me. I guess you know me too well. My favorite pizza it is then."
Sam puts in the order and they pick it up as they drive by. Artie holds the pizza box and takes a peek.
"Hungry?" Sam asks.
"Yeah, but I can wait," Artie says.
"I am awestruck by your love for me. Truly touched," Sam says.
"You should be. You're the only person I would wait for, with this pizza in my lap, so that we could eat it together. You're just that dope, Sam Evans," Artie says.
Sam reaches over and grabs Artie's hand and holds it in his lap. He strokes the back of Artie's hand with his thumb and Artie squeezes back. They drive the rest of the way in a comfortable silence. When they arrive at Sam's house, Artie gets his chair out and transfers into it while Sam holds the pizza for a second. He gets out of the car and hands Artie the pizza back.
"Go on ahead. I've got fix something first," Sam says.
When Artie wheels safely out of sight, Sam grabs the gift out of the back. He walks slowly into the house, trying to decide whether or not to give Artie his gift now. Since they're about to eat anyway, Sam decides to wait and he puts it in a closet. To be honest, he's worried that Artie will think the gift is super lame. Sam walks into the living room and Artie's already set up dinner for them and blankets for them to cuddle under. He's taken off his outerwear and he's sitting on the couch in a sweater and pants.
Sam sneaks into his bedroom to change into dry clothes. He then goes back to the living room where Artie's sitting over by the DVD player, sorting out the movies.
"Which order do you want to watch them in? I kind of want to be sure we watch the originals so can we start with those?" Artie asks.
"My parents are out of town with Stevie and Stacy," Sam says.
Artie squints at him. "I'm not following, yo."
Sam scratches his neck nervously. They had been dating for almost a year, but Artie hadn't ever spent the night at his house.
"I was just thinking, maybe we could watch them all. You could spend the night. I mean if you want to of course," Sam adds quickly.
Artie looks up at him in surprise.
"I mean this isn't me trying to pressure you into sex or anything since we've only talked about it a little; I just thought that watching them all at once would be fun and that would work best if you stayed the night," Sam adds, not wanting Artie to get the wrong idea.
Artie nods to himself absent-mindedly.
"I'd love to spend the night. Let me just call home to let them know where I'll be and then we can start the marathon from the beginning."
He gets into his chair and rolls into the next room. As Sam puts the first DVD in the player, he can't help but overhear Artie's strained conversation. Sam sighs when his boyfriend comes in with a tight smile on his face, but he knows better than to ask. He knows that things aren't really all that great between Artie and his parents, but he refuses to talk about it.
"They said I can stay," is all Artie says.
He transfers back to the couch. Sam settles down on the couch right next to him and Artie hands him a plate with pizza on it. Artie snuggles into his side and starts to eat. They watch the movie and argue occasionally about this or that little detail and Sam's relieved to see the brightness is back in Artie's eyes.
They finish eating and toss their plates to the side. Sam throws them out when he gets up to change the DVD. When he gets back, he pulls Artie into his lap and covers them with blankets. Part way through Artie reaches up and kisses Sam's cheek. He looks down at Artie.
"What was that for?" Sam asks.
"For being you, in all your wonderfully dorky ways." Sam bends down and kisses Artie gently on the lips in response.
"That's for being the best boyfriend."
Artie pulls Sam down so he can kiss him properly. Sam maneuvers them so Artie's lying on top of him. Artie kisses him gently and strokes his cheeks. Sam runs his hand up and down Artie's back as Artie deepens the kiss. They make out until the movie ends.
"Aw dang it, missed the end of the movie," Artie says.
"This one isn't so great anyway," Sam says. "Making out with you was way better."
Artie says, "I agree. Never really dug this one. Always really dug you. Don't expect that during the next one though. It's best of the prequels and it has that epic fight scene at the end."
Sam laughs as he sits them up and changes the DVD.
When it's over, Sam goes to the closet and gets the gift, telling Artie he'll be right back. Somehow between the prequels and the originals seemed right. He bites his lip as he approaches Artie.
"What's that?" Artie asks.
"I got you a gift. I bought it before I thought up the whole sledding thing. It's kind of lame," Sam says.
Artie just shakes his head and reaches out for the gift.
"Sam, I'm sure it'll be dope. Now let me see," Artie says, reaching out for the gift.
Sam hands it to him and busies himself with putting the next DVD. He listens to Artie unwrap his presents. Artie gasps.
"Sam, I love it. Thank you," he says softly.
He turns around to see Artie smiling widely at the two items on his lap: Star Wars: The Jedi Path- The Jedi Training Manual and a mini build-your-own-lightsaber kit.
"Do you really? You don't think it's lame?" Sam asks.
Artie beckons him over and Sam sits down next to him.
"Sam, it's a Saturday night, I just watched the prequel trilogy of Star Wars with you and we're about to start watching the original trilogy in full, unless we fall asleep. Do you really think I find Star Wars lame?" Artie says.
Sam smiles shyly.
"I guess not. I just want to be sure. I really love you Artie, and I don't want to mess this up," Sam says.
"I love you too, and I promise you that Star Wars, of all things, isn't going to mess us up. Especially after the afternoon and evening you've given me." Artie says. "Now onto a New Hope!"
Sam turns it on. Artie nods off halfway through, and Sam turns to look at the sleeping boy. Glasses slightly askew, hair sticking out at random angles, and his even breathing only add to Artie's peaceful image. He kisses the top of Artie's head and covers them with another layer of blankets.
Sam lies next to his boyfriend and strokes his brown hair until he too falls into a deep sleep.