Jack, hands deep in his jacket pockets, walked into the shopping mall, the song "It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas" assaulting his ears. It was snowing hard outside and he was in the mood for it not to be Christmas. He hadn't realized how much he hated winter until he came up here to Iowa. Of course, it was well worth it since he was with Ennis. Too bad they couldn't be down in Texas. It was still cold there, but not as cold as it was here. He had talked to Lureen before leaving the college and she had said it was cold, but not snowing. He hadn't even been here an entire day yet and he already wanted to go home.

Until he thought about Ennis.

Ennis had gotten up around 6:30 and had gone to work at 7. He worked at a sporting goods store here in the mall. Which was the reason Jack was here. He was going to meet up with Ennis for lunch. They had made plans during Ennis' break earlier. Ennis had an hour for lunch and they were going to plan some things for him and Jack to do on his time off. Sadly, he didn't have any days off besides Christmas, next week. Jack would be heading back to Texas the 27th. He wished he could spend New Year's with Ennis, but it couldn't happen. As far as he knew, he would be spending New Year's Eve with Lureen, but that could change at any time.

Jack ran his fingers through his hair, feeling that it was now damp from the melting snow. He lowered his hand and unzipped his jacket, feeling a bit warmer now. He walked into the sporting goods store, seeing Ennis helping a few customers. Ennis was usually quiet, but he was talking freely with these customers. Was this a new side to Ennis that Jack hadn't seen? Or was it just a forced thing? Jack walked around the store, not wanting to interrupt while Ennis was busy. Ennis hadn't really talked about his job, but Jack got the feeling that he was good at it. He smiled to himself. He had a pretty successful boyfriend.

"Hey, you."

Jack turned and smiled as Ennis walked over. "Hey," he said, watching as Ennis glanced at his watch. "Lunch time?" The food court here in the mall was the last place he wanted to eat at, but it was better than nothing.

"Yes," Ennis replied with a nod of his head, sticking his hands in his pants pockets. He was wearing khakis and a pea green shirt that had the logo of the store on it. On anyone else, it would look hideous. Ennis pulled it off really well. But, he looked good in anything. He turned and led the way out of the store. Jack followed beside him, wanting to reach out and take his hand, but Ennis kept his hands in his pockets. How quiet did Ennis want to be about them?

"How's your morning been?" Ennis asked, glancing at Jack as they walked. "Y'know, you don't have to stay in the dorm all day. You could-"

"I was settling in," Jack said. "I talked to my parents for a while. They wanted to know how you were. And then I talked to Lureen. So, I've been kinda busy all morning."

"I don't want ya to be too bored," Ennis said, finally pulling his hands out of his pockets. He stepped onto the escalator and Jack stepped on behind him, meaning to stand too close to him. Ennis didn't say anything and didn't seem bothered. Jack glanced around once, seeing that no one was paying attention to them. So why wasn't Ennis more open about their relationship? "I get off at four, so we've still got a lot of time to spend together."

"You won't be too tired?" Jack asked, resting his chin on Ennis' shoulder.

Ennis turned his head slightly to look at Jack. "For you? No." He stepped off the escalator and Jack followed him over to the food court.

There were several options to choose from. They settled for some bacon cheeseburgers from one place and some Asian rice from another. They sat down at a table away from most of the people.

"So," Jack started after a few bites of food. "What's exciting here? If you just wanna show me around town for the first few days, I'm cool with that." He shrugged, picking up his burger. "I mean, I came up here to be with you. What we do don't matter at all. As long as I'm with you." He took a bite of burger.

"I just wish I had more time off," Ennis said, sounding a bit pouty. He stared down at his rice, just picking at his food. "Which means I don't know when I'll be able to go see you down in Texas."

Jack made sure that didn't bring him down. "Something will work itself out," he said. "If you do good enough, the job will give you better hours and more time off. You deserve it. From what I've seen, you do a damn good job."

"You watched me for like a minute and then roamed the store," Ennis said with a grin as Jack gave him a look that said he hadn't known that Ennis had noticed him. "I pay attention to things, y'know."

"I know," Jack said. "But you were busy at the time."

"Part of my job is to pay attention to customers," Ennis said. "So when I'm through with one, I can go help another at any time."

"You sure you just weren't keepin' an eye out for me?" Jack asked with a small wink and a smirk. He smiled even more at the slight blush that appeared on Ennis' face. "Does your boss tell ya how well you're doing?"

"My boss is hardly ever there," Ennis said, grabbing his drink. "The employees run the store. The boss is usually out runnin' around with his several different mistresses."

"No wonder your job is hell," Jack said. "I'd quit."

"I can't afford to quit."

"Your dad won't help?"

"Dad has pretty much cut me outta his life," Ennis said, not sounding too happy about that. Jack wouldn't be happy if that happened to him either. "He still keeps in touch, but keeps hintin' that I'm a grown man now. Officially on my own."

"Shit," Jack muttered, staring down at his food. "Wish there was somethin' I could do." He looked back at Ennis. "And if you ever need any help with anything-"

"Thanks," Ennis said. "That means a lot, Jack."

Jack nodded his head and they ate in silence for the next few minutes. Then they got to planning on things to do on Ennis' time off. Since it was winter, there wasn't all that much they could do, but they were going to make the best of it. Even though they wouldn't have as much time as they wanted together, they were grateful for the time they did have. It was better than nothing.


Ennis got back to the dorm after work later that afternoon to find Jack asleep, his laptop resting on his chest. Ennis shook his head slightly then slipped quietly into the bathroom to change. When he came out, Jack was still asleep. He walked over to the bed, seeing that Jack had been searching for Christmas presents online. He closed the laptop and set it on the desk then sat down on the edge of the bed and shook Jack gently.

Jack stirred then opened his eyes, seeing Ennis. He checked his phone and gave an expression that he hadn't realized it was that late. He pushed himself up into a sitting position. "Work go good?" he asked around a yawn.

"It was fine," Ennis said, his hand resting on Jack's knee. "Sleep good?"

"I slept fantastic," Jack said, looking around. He then spotted his laptop on the desk. He looked at Ennis. "Did you...?"

"You don't have to Christmas shop online," Ennis said. "You can take Pete's car." He took a ride with a coworker every morning since he didn't have his own car yet. He had been saving up for one.

"What's on the agenda for tonight?" Jack asked, scooting across the bed a bit so he was sitting closer to Ennis. He grinned. "We don't have to leave the dorm."

"I thought we were gonna see a movie?"

"Later tonight," Jack said. "We've still got a few hours."

Ennis grabbed him and pulled him close, kissing him, knowing that he surprised Jack with that. Jack kissed him back immediately, his hand moving up Ennis' chest. Jack smiled into the kiss then pulled him along as he laid back on the bed.


The next few days went by with less going out. With the holiday season, things were getting busier at work. Ennis came home too exhausted to do anything and would pass out on the bed without even changing. He'd probably feel better if he didn't have to go to work so damn early, but Ennis would just do as he was told. No complaining. He was one tough son of a bitch. Jack still kept wishing things were different.

Jack spent his alone time in the dorm watching TV or out shopping. He didn't have too much money on him and had already spent it all buying gifts for Ennis. He wrapped them then hid them under the bed then spent the rest of the time, wondering how to make Christmas the best ever. It would be their first Christmas together. He wished it would be spent somewhere other than a college dorm, but...

An idea occurred to him and he ran over to his phone to call Lureen. Surely her dad knew someone up here in Iowa who would give Jack and Ennis a place to stay for Christmas. He knew Ennis would love that.

He couldn't wait for next week.