23 December 2014

There was never any doubt in Craig's mind as to how he wanted to answer John Paul's question. Still, he wondered whether John Paul was in the right frame of mind to actually make this decision, so he'd hesitantly asked whether he really meant what he was saying. Seeing the eager and honest smile on John Paul's face as he nodded in affirmation, he put aside any misgivings and simply said "Yes."

And here he was now, waking up next to the man he'd loved for almost eight years on the day before Christmas Eve, their son still sound asleep in his own bed nearby. Craig quietly breathed in the smell of room. It was a mixture of musky male sweat, his and John Paul's perfumes, Matthew's dirty nappy, perhaps not the nicest odour in the world, but to him it felt like one thing – home.

He sensed John Paul stirring and moved to embrace him and gave him a kiss. "Morning, my love," he whispered.

John Paul kissed him back and snuggled towards his embrace, eyes closed but a wide smile on his lips. "I love the Holidays," he sighed. "I could so get used to this."

"Well, you don't have an option. You're mine from now on. End off." Craig joked.

"Deal!" John Paul imitated the catchphrase from the popular game show.

"Do you think you'll regret not knowing what's in those other sealed boxes?" Craig continued the joke, albeit in a serious tone.

"I might." John Paul replied truthfully. "But that offer just beats everything I could possibly dream of. Raising our son with you by my side, planning a future together. No unknown box could surpass that." He became more serious. "Any doubts, Craig? You totally on board? You wanna open any more of your own boxes?"

Craig searched his mind, not speaking for some time. He felt content. Nowhere could he locate a shred of a doubt. Any possible future different from one including John Paul and Matthew held no appeal to him. There really were no red boxes in sight. "No," he said calmly.

Myra was the first person out of bed in the McQueen household. It was still dark outside, but she sensed the dawn as she was pottering about in the kitchen. Knowing that the rest of the family would be up before long she made coffee and was preparing to make a full English when she realised why the fridge had seemed more empty than the previous night. All the meat was gone. The bacon, the big ham, even the turkey was gone.

Not again, she thought to herself. Was this Christmas going to be like that time when that toe rag had stolen all the booze and the presents? How can this keep happening to us? she wondered. Thank god, it's still two days to get another turkey. But what to do with breakfast? She put her disappointment aside and looked around the fridge. There was some cheese there, the mushrooms had been left, and there was a bag of hashbrowns in the freezer. Even a few frozen sausages. She quickly put them in the microwave to defreeze.

When the family members started coming down, one by one, there was plenty of food for everyone.

"I can't believe we couldn't find a turkey in any of the supermarkets." John Paul complained as he entered the Dog in the Pond along with Craig and little Matthew late in the afternoon.

"What's that?" Frankie asked from where she'd been clearing glasses off the tables near the entrance. "You don't have any turkey yet? That woman…" She shook her head in disbelief.

"It's not like that, mum." Craig explained. "Myra'd already bought a massive turkey for Christmas. I saw it with my own eyes in the fridge last night." He paused for a moment. "This morning, gone!" He made a magician-like gesture.

"What? Are you telling me that someone broke in and stole the turkey from the fridge?" An astonished Frankie asked.

"Well, we don't exactly know." John Paul replied. "The door was locked and only the window in our room was open. But nothing but meat was missing. It's all a big mystery. Mum even rang my dad but he's somewhere abroad so it couldn't be him… this time." He added the last two words in a lower voice.

"And all the supermarkets were out?" Frankie asked in a business-like tone.

"Yeah. We asked how come, but they couldn't really explain why they didn't have any. They're hoping to get some more before tomorrow, as there were loads of people asking for turkeys, but they weren't sure they'd get enough." Craig told her.

"Well, leave it with me. I'll sort something out. I'll contact our suppliers and arrange an extra turkey for us." Frankie said firmly. "John Paul, I just had an idea. Why don't all of you just come over here and we'll have a big family Christmas dinner here in the pub? I guess the pair of you won't be separated so that way Myra and I won't be disappointed that you'll be with the other one."

Surprised by the suggestion, John Paul didn't reply straight away. Craig did on his behalf. "Thanks, mum, I think it's a fantastic idea. John Paul, don't you agree?"

His boyfriend nodded his approval.

"That's settled. We'll talk with Myra. I'm sure she won't mind." Craig said with certainty and gave his mother a grateful smile.