Liam has a love hate relationship with his job as hand stamper, because he gets some sick pleasure out of kicking people out of line, but at the same time, all the colorful desserts that go past him makes him want to follow.
"These are obviously store bought." he says firmly to Carl Phillips, owner of the best and only Italian eatery in Melas. "You seriously thought you could pull one over on me, Carl?"
Carl keeps darting looks towards the endless rows of tables the townsfolk are mingling by, laughing and talking and pretending they can't eat another bite, but still manage.
"I'll give you a free meal next time you come in." Carl offers, standing on his tiptoes.
"One for Eli, and throw in a dessert." Liam counters.
"Liam, I can't run a business-"
"Next!" he calls past him.
"Fine, fine! Two free meals, with dessert! Good god, you get worse every year."
"Love you too." Liam smiles, stamping Carl's hand hard enough to make him wince. "Now get going, and dump those in the trash before people see it and think I'm going soft and letting in store bought junk."
Carl grumbles as he moves along, and he smiles at the next family in line as they present their rainbow cheesecake. It's enough to get Liam to seriously consider calling for his replacement when he feels someone tugging at his arm.
"Hey, dad." Eli yawns, as Liam takes note of a smear of something green on the side of his mouth. Briefly, Liam wonders if he should just let his son endure the embarrassment or do his duty as a dad and point it out. Both, he decides, licking his thumb and smudging it off while Eli tries to dodge it.
"Oh god, how long has that been there?" Eli moans, wiping his mouth.
"Have I told you how ruggedly handsome you look?" Liam asks, stamping hands and nodding at all the familiar faces.
"Only every chance you get." Eli replies, straightening his outfit. He's dressed in a typical Pilgrim outfit, same as every year. It started when he was a kid, but he's kept it up every year because of tradition, same as every other little quirk about this town. Just another thing that makes Melas the happiest place on earth outside of Disneyland.
"Oh crap." Eli says abruptly, ducking to hide behind his dad.
"What, what?" Liam asks, looking around. "Please don't tell me Carl put the plastic thing of vanilla cupcakes with pink and blue striped frosting on the table."
"What? No. And I seriously can't believe you let him in." Eli responds, not moving from his hiding spot.
"Explanation now, please."
"Hortrakises, 3 o'clock."
Liam's heart clenches only a little bit. They're moving up the line, Sonny holding a tupperware container in one of his hands, Will's hand clasped on the other, smiling like two lovesick teenagers, but not looking directly at the other. It's funny and just a little adorable, but it also depresses the hell out of Liam. It's only been barely over two months since his thing with Sonny ended, and Liam's still not over it. True, they were only sleeping together, but they were friends first. They still are, thank God, but Sonny hasn't even flirted with him, not even once. It's like Sonny's completely forgotten he's seen Liam completely naked, which is not something just anyone can say. He's a snack, not to toot his own horn.
As for Eli, well, he's not over Will at all. Before Will knew about Eli's crush, before Eli kissed Will when he was drunk (he wanted to murder Logan, and almost let the Hortrakises do it for him.), he was always around. He spent time with Eli at the library, or once in the town square (once when Eli got Will to sit with him at the gazebo, and even Eli could tell how uncomfortable Will was). Sometimes they went to Viv's, and a few times, their own house, when Eli was in town and staying the night. Liam considers it all partially his fault, for not stopping it dead in its tracks, because he just knew, despite Eli's constant protest they were just friends, that his son was truly falling in love for the first time with a man that would never be his. It's not even because of the age difference-- because of Will's heart, and to whom it's always belonged, the man Liam himself has already given a piece of his own heart to.
Liam still smiles, despite the bitterness. Quite a pair he and his son make, so much alike, always exactly the same, even in their faults.
But to finish his thought, WIll had never been anything but nice and kept a respectful distance from Eli, so Liam had just let it happen, hoping Eli would catch on Will was either naive or not interested in him, or both, but he hadn't. Even considering the fact that Eli has a boyfriend who goes to his school, same age as him-- he would've picked Will Hortrakis for his son over that loser any day of the week.
"God, I look ridiculous." Eli moans, fidgeting with his pilgrim hat.
"Time for the understudy." Liam tells him, and Eli grins, relieved. They both turn and call out at the top of their lungs, "VIV!"
In five minutes, Viv has taken over the line, and he and Eli are putting on body glitter in the diner bathroom.
"Why are we even bothering?" Eli asks, as he rubs some rainbow glitter over his cheeks. "It's not like they're going to want us any more than they already do. Or should I say, don't." He frowns in the mirror, before reaching into a bag for a different color glitter.
"It's not for them. It's for us." Liam tells him, leaning against the sink, watching Eli glam himself up for a man that will never see him the way he wants. "It's how we get past it. How we let ourselves be okay with it. We shine like stars so they don't see the cracks. It makes us shine brighter so they can see we're still awesome and happy without them."
"At least you actually had something with Sonny." Eli mumbles, painting some silver on his lips. "All I got was one kiss he didn't even want, and I don't really remember it because I was drunk."
"I think it's worse for me because I actually had something with Sonny for a while." Liam tells his son. He's never given Eli all the details-- they may be close, but Eli's still a virgin, and some things should stay between themselves. Especially since Sonny had been so ridiculously good in bed, like a well oiled machine that had already known what Liam wanted before he even said it. Hard and fast, slow and render, a mouth or a finger, whether he wanted to be on top or wanted Sonny to have his way with him-- Sonny just knew, and he just kept giving and giving until Liam couldn't keep up anymore, and then they'd just sit together the morning after during breakfast at Viv's, making him laugh with stories about his colleagues at Marnie's, or something he'd seen on the news. But mostly, it was about his "cousin".
Just exactly how much Sonny talked about Will should've been a dead giveaway.
"Still the best kiss of my life." Eli says now, pulling Liam out of his head. Eli finally turns away from the mirror, fidgeting. "I think he did want it at first, and that's why-why I can't just move past it. Because if he did, then maybe he'll want it again when I'm older."
"How was it?" Liam asks, smiling at his son, because he's never heard the full story without a lot of crying involved, and he knows Eli has to be dying to tell someone.
"Uh," Eli fiddles with his hair, to make it more messy-ish, and Liam nods in approval. "I kind of threw myself at him. Just leaned across the gear shift and, well-- you know."
"Planted a wet one?" Liam smiles, waggling his eyebrows.
"Yes!" Eli exclaims. "He-- I know his mouth isn't like Sonny's, but Will's got the softest lips. And just the way he tasted. Like a real man, you know? He grabbed me, and my hands were on his chest, and he's so jacked, felt so good, dad--, well you know what I mean. God. He grabbed me tightly, and he actually held me for a few seconds, but it felt like it would go on forever, and his lips were so soft and so hard against mine, then." Eli sighs, losing some of his enthusiasm. "Then he pushed me away. I tried to kiss him again, but he said no. Not just a no, nut in a tone that really means no, and I was utterly humiliated. Then I told him he should figure out his shit with Sonny before they break anyone else's heart. Which yes, I know wasn't fair. Will's only ever been a friend, never even pretended to be anything else, at least not with me, and I fooled myself into thinking he was flirting with me, but really he was just being nice, because that's the kind of guy he is.
"Sounds like one helluva kiss." Is what Liam says after a moment. "And you're right. It really wasn't fair of you to tell him that. But it also wasn't fair of Will and Sonny to present themselves s single gay men when they're clearly devoted to each other. I think they're married, I really do. I think they were in a bad place and came here to work it out, maybe a place that wasn't where they were. Maybe Sonny only used me to make Will jealous, or make him realize he could lose him. Maybe it was Will that wanted them to not be together-- I have no idea. But I know for a fact they can't just be cousins."
"Absolutely not." Eli sighs, rubbing his hands on his arms to get rid of the cold. "Okay, enough hiding."
"Who says we're hiding?" Liam mock protests.
"I am. Cause we are."
"Fine, you're right. We're hiding. Let's go out there and be real men about this. Strong and handsome, and tougher than anything."
"Works for me. Dad?"
"Yeah?" Liam replies, gathering up their things.
"Hug?"
"Always time for a hug." Liam smiles, pulling his best friend, squeezing him hard enough to emphasize he never wants to let go.