A/N — today was a rough day and I almost forgot to post, but I'm sneaking in at the last minute. Hoping for the week to improve! xoxo — kals
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Name: Candles, Part 3
Setting: AU where Carlton and Ravit are alive
Prompt: story involving Carlton screwing up Hanukkah trying to impress Ravit.
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Carlton lifted the bowl of Matzah ball soup. "Deck the halls with Maztah balls, falalalala..."
"Maztah is for Passover," Ravit interrupted flatly. Watching him deflate, she gestured towards the boxes. "How about we open a gift a night?"
Carlton brightened, selecting a large, flat box wrapped in what appeared to be Happy Birthday wrapping paper, with the "birthday" crossed out and replaced by "Hanukkah." Ravit rolled her eyes. "Let me guess. This one's from Wolf and Azima."
"Got it in one," Carlton replied. Pulling out his pocket knife, he cut a neat hole in the side of the paper and carefully pulled off the paper, before neatly folding it. Ravit hid her grin. As if they were going to be able to reuse happy-birthday/Hanukkah wrapping paper for anything. Opening the box, Carlton pulled out the item with a puzzled look. "Is this a menorah?"
Ravit stared at the item in question. It had a gold base with several levels — creating a pyramid — as well as space for candles, except that instead of candles, it held red and green bulbs. In turn, each of the bulbs held clear tubes that, upon being screwed in, began bubbling.
Carlton frowned. "Is that...a menorah?"
After staring for a solid minute, Ravit admitted, "I have no idea what that thing is."
Carlton chuckled, then began laughing harder and harder, until he was almost crying. Ravit stood, walking around the table to hit him on the back when he began choking. "It wasn't that funny."
"Actually, it is," Carlton said finally, still half crying. "I planned this perfect night. I thought about the food and the candles and the gifts and it's all been wrong."
Ravit frowned, unable to read Carlton's mood and wondering if she had come across too harshly on the ridiculous Matzah ball song. She sat on her haunches, leaning forward to take his hand. "Remember how last year I thought that the candles on the Christmas tree were supposed to be lit?" At the reminder of how Ravit almost set the tree on fire, Carlton began laughing harder, and even Ravit smiled. "I don't expect you to know my traditions, Carlton, just as I don't know yours. That's why we are doing this, so that we both learn."
After a minute, Carlton leaned back, reaching behind the tower of remaining gifts, to pull out a small box. He held it out. "Ravit Bivas, will you marry me? Even if I did make our house smell like fish and totally botch everything about Hanukkah."
Ravit's shock quickly morphed into joy, and she rose, falling into Carlton's lap. "Yes."
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These bubble light centerpieces are real. At a recent book club, we spent a long time trying to figure out what these things were. My Jewish friends from NYC tell me that they're vintage '60s style urban menorahs. Who knew?