Wolves of the Pacific

by greenpeach20

In 1902, Renesmee Cullen grew tired of the tedious life of moving around with her family and decided to make the journey west as a mail order bride. Yet a chance encounter with a reddish brown wolf would change her life forever.

159. Chapter 159

Chapter 159

"Oh God, I sound like such a brat," Jaedynn said. She and ivory were at the bar together finally able to have a night out and, in lieu of recent events (several weddings/imprints, babies on the way etc.) Jaedynn was in desperate need of someone to vent to. The moment they'd met up at Ada's bar, she'd gone on an emotional tirade of frustration and after thirty minutes of talking and three margaritas in, she realized how she must sound.

"It's okay, Jaedynn. I'm not judging. Just let it out," Ivory said.

"I've been letting it out," Jaedynn groaned. Her head was spinning from all the tequila in her system but it wasn't enough to make her feel better. "What's wrong with me, Ivory?"

"Nothing is wrong with you!" Ivory said. "Jaedynn, not finding your imprint yet doesn't mean there's something wrong with you. It just means you've not crossed paths with him."

"Or he's not born yet," Jaedynn lamented and, seeing the waitress, waived her over. "Another margarita please."

"She'll have water," Ivory said to the waitress who nodded and walked away to get a glass.

"I'm not that drunk," Jaedynn said.

"Yeah, but if you keep this up, you will be," Ivory said. "I know this is frustrating, but the only thing I can say – any of us can say – is be patient. Keep looking. You'll find him."

"When?"

"When you need him the most," Ivory said. "I know we didn't get to go to New York this summer like we planned, but this time? Nothing's stopping us. In fact," Ivory had a bright smile and moved her chair closer, "To hell with it! Let's go for Christmas!"

"I thought you had to work all December except Christmas Day."

"That's when I worked in Home Deliveries. Now? I work in the claims department, so I'm allowed to take time off during Christmas. What do you say? Let's go on a vacation for Christmas."

Jaedynn thought it over and then finally smiled, "Sure. Let's go vacationing for Christmas."

"That's the spirit! We'll stay at Uncle Kevin's apartment and have the time of our lives," Ivory said and gave Jaedynn a hug. "And hey: this trip isn't about finding your imprint, okay? It's about having a good time."

"Got it," Jaedynn said and gulped down her water once the waitress had brought it over.

Nathan wasn't especially on board with his daughters' plan to go to New York for Christmas, but he relented. Jaedynn had been in low spirits for months and anything that helped her to feel better was a welcome distraction, so he promised to allow Jaedynn however much time off she wanted come December. All that was left was for Ivory to secure her own time off. Come October and just in time of Tristan's birthday, he and Lee finally got the confirmation that their bones were completely healed and Kyle removed their casts. Both casts were now covered up and down with signatures from people at their schools, so they ended up keeping them as mementoes. That first day that his cast was off, Lee couldn't sit still and was eager for Hockey practice that day. His coach knew his cast was to come off that day and promised Lee would have plenty to do for practice. About that time, Levi received an enormous package in the mail that Kevin had laid on Levi's desk for him to find. The first thing he did was open the large package and inside was a reel. He turned the case to see written on a label was The Devils in Nadja's handwriting. Then he opened the letter from her.

Dear Levi,

DO NOT under any circumstance watch this in a group before you've watched this on your own first. Trust me! This is not a family movie. I'm fortunate that I went to see this without my parents. I think if daddy saw this movie, there would not be enough holy water in the world to make him feel clean again. That said, I cannot wait for you to watch this movie. It is a wonderfully done adaptation. Oliver Reed as Urbain Grandier and Vanessa Redgrave as Sister Jeanne was spectacular. You must tell me what you think of it the moment you've watched it. I will eagerly await your reaction.

I hear A Clockwork Orange is also getting a movie adaptation, so we have that to look forward to as well. However, there's a catch. I hear rumors that the movie is cutting out the last chapter of the book! So it's adapting the American version which is most unfortunate. Once it's out and we've both seen it, we will discuss the movie further.

The remainder of her letter was a recounting of recent events in her life including news that rehearsal for the musical (she'd gotten the part which she was delighted about) were going very well and they would have their first show come end of October. She was also already trying out for a part in A Christmas Carol which she was looking forward to. After reading her letter, Levi went downstairs to find Kevin still in his office to ask if they had a projector. Sadly they did not. It had to wait until the weekend, but that Saturday after Levi got off work, he went all over town looking for a projector to buy so he could watch the movie Nadja had sent him. When he finally found a store that sold them, he picked the best one that was available, had the salesperson show him how to use it properly, and then returned home with it and got it set up in Anatoli's old room so he wouldn't be disturbing anyone when he watched it that night. He got a white sheet set up and that night when everyone had gone to bed, Levi went downstairs and got the reel set up.

He was giddy as he got the reel set up. He'd been waiting all week to watch the movie and, by virtue, write Nadja back about what he thought of it. From the first scene, he knew he was going to love it. The movie opened first with a message. With a blue backdrop and orange letters, the message read:

This film is based upon historical fact. The principal characters lived and the major events depicted in the film actually took place.

Then after the message faded, what proceeded was a reenactment of the birth of Venus. The role of Venus was being played by a mostly naked man immediately praised as 'his majesty' wearing a cape and a crown on his head and a seashell bra and codpiece. All the while, the camera would focus on a clergyman, Cardinal Richelieu, who was in the front row of the performance and even yawned at one point as he made no attempt to appear interested in the King's little play. After the reenactment, the man playing Venus on stage approached the camera and was addressed by Richelieu proclaiming a happy union between Church and State. He had to force himself not to laugh out loud at this old man that could not give less of a fuck about the king's performance offering his red gloved, ringed hand to the king wearing his crown, cape and seashell outfit. It was absolutely ridiculous and almost as funny as when the book had recounted the application of a holy water enema.

He continued to watch the movie intently, watching as Urbain Grandier (Oliver Reed) marched through the streets for a procession as a large group of nuns stared out the window of their nunnery desperate to see the man. Sister Jeanne (Vanessa Redgrave) appeared on camera chastising the other nuns, emitting this horrible, uncomfortable and condescending laugh as she ordered them to return to their duties, only for her to sneak off to another part of the nunnery so she herself could see Urbain walking through the streets. What followed was a hallucination of Sister Jeanne on a lake front and Urbain nailed to the cross like the figure of Jesus Christ. Urbain left the cross and went to the shore front to meet Sister Jeanne who proceeded to make out with Urbain, then start to lower to her knees. Levi went wide eyed thinking there was no way they were about to have Vanessa Redgrave give Oliver Reed a blowjob on camera. They did not. What they did have her do was much, much weirder. Once she was on her knees, she pressed her tongue into an open wound in the spot that was depicted on the cross, then a group of women appeared and began to chastise Sister Jeanne. It eventually returned to reality, but Sister Jeanne looked as though she were having a panic attack.

Then, it continued to follow Urbain as he impregnated his friend's sixteen year old daughter, then abandoned her, which brought the ire of this girl's father on his shoulders therefore beginning his downfall. The man from the beginning (King Louis XIII) had two more scenes in the entire movie. The second of which showed him shooting at Protestants forced to dress as birds while the Cardinal was trying to convince him that the destruction of the Loudon castles was acceptable only for the king to not only tell him no, but brush him off in a way one might imagine a king like Louis of France to do: with virtually no concern. His third and final scene followed after a scene that made Levi's jaw drop.

In the midst of the mass exorcism of the nuns, the king arrived on the scene proceeding to claim to have a family heirloom and what followed made Levi release a laugh he couldn't hold back. King Louis claimed to have a box which contained inside it a vile of blood that belonged to Jesus Christ himself. The exorcist went mad over the news and looked like he wanted to touch the gold box but felt unworthy to do so. King Louis asked the exorcist if it could expel the demons.

The exorcist said, "Yes, it absolutely would your majesty, though I cannot promise it will keep them away permanently."

"No, of course not. That would be asking too much," the king answered with a completely straight face.

At that point, the exorcist took the box and presented it to Sister Jeanne who convulsed and screamed like a demon was being expelled then, as though the demon were finally gone, she returned to 'normal' and went to the king's knees to kiss his hand with gratefulness in a bizarrely sensual manner. The exorcist requested to see the vile of blood. The king agreed and opened the box only to reveal the box had been empty the whole time and the king burst into laughter. So did Levi. Then his laughter left as he proceeded to watch what could possibly be the most sacrilegious display he'd ever seen. The nuns afflicted ripped off their clothes shrieking as they got naked in a large church with spectators all over. One nun was off to the side doing what could only be described as jerking off a candle while a group of about seven nuns had forcefully pulled down and then proceeded to, for lack of a better term, fuck the statue of Jesus on the cross whether it was his thumb that one nun gyrated on, his foot that another nun was rubbing against and even his face. One nun that remained clothed was tearing out and burning pages of the bible, one priest climbed up a latter to escape what was happening only to look down on it all and start jerking off; It was pure chaos.

Urbain barged into the church and after that, it moved on to Urbain's arrest, his trial, his sentencing (by which point Oliver Reed had been completely and totally shaved of his hair and beard) and then the torture scene which was actually uncomfortable to watch. Oliver Reed delivered a convincing and haunting performance making Levi believe he was watching a man get his legs and knees crushed by a torture device called The Boot. He was then paraded around the town as he was brought to the square where he would be burned and it was awful to watch. Urbain, as he'd done in the book and in real life, had refused to confess to possessing the nuns or being affiliated with the Devil. He would not admit to anything he didn't do and it caused him great, excruciating pain. The movie wrapped up with Sister Jeanne being presented with the burnt remains of Grandier's femur bone and his secret wife wearing all white as she looked out onto a grey expanse of ash.

"Holy shit," Levi muttered after the movie was over.

He'd never watched anything so scandalous in his life. He took down the reel and projector and ran everything back up to his room. He hid the reel away as though scared someone would see it and know its contents. Then, well into the wee hours of the morning, Levi wrote his reply to Nadja. He expressed the wish that they could have watched the movie together and that it had been a strange experience to watch something so horrible only to enjoy it so thoroughly. The shock value aside, it really was a fascinating character study of an anti-hero that was a sinner in the role of a holy man that truly did express remorse for his sins. The ones he actually committed that is. Levi only wished that he had a movie of equal quality and shock value to send her in return. He promised that he would do research on the topic and would send her his results as soon as he found it. In the meantime, he would await the release of the movie adaptation of A Clockwork Orange and they would write each other about it. He sent his reply that Sunday and was exited for her next letter. As to showing the movie to anyone, Levi was very selective of who he showed it to.

He reached out to Caleb first telling him about the movie and he agreed he wanted to see it, but they needed to watch it somewhere that their parents wouldn't be at risk of seeing it. So Levi called Jae Sun, told him about the movie and requested if they could watch it at his apartment. Jae Sun agreed and promised to provide ample food for the occasion, however he was of the opinion that libations would be appropriate. So Levi called Salem, told him about the movie and he agreed that so long as he got to enjoy the show with them, he'd bring beer. Sergei was, of course, invited and they all picked a weekend to go up to Jae Sun's apartment. They all met on a Saturday evening, ordered in a bunch of pizzas, Salem brought beer and using a white sheet they turned Jae Sun's living room into a little theatre for themselves.

"Thanks for bringing beer, Salem," Levi said to Salem as they were getting the kitchen table full of their food and beer.

"Just don't go advertising I brought alcohol to an apartment full of minors, okay?" Salem laughed.

"It's just beer, Uncle Salem; it barely counts," Jae Sun said.

"With that logic, I'm sure the cops will let you off easy," Salem teased.

"How's Yvonne doing?" Caleb asked.

"She's doing great," Salem said. "She's still getting sick but Kyle's herbal tea has helped a lot with that. We got another picture this morning of her and we finally bought our kid's baby book so tomorrow we're going to start adding them to the book in order."

"Did you two find out the gender or are you waiting to be surprised like Taraq and Uilette?" Jae Sun asked.

"We find out next appointment," Salem said. "Bayaq and Cidelle found out yesterday and I think mom said they're having a boy."

"What do you think you and Yvonne are having?" Caleb asked.

"She thinks it's a boy, but I'm betting it's a girl," Salem said. "We've already picked what room we're making the baby's, so now we just need to know what color to paint it."

"How've you guys adjusted to the new house?" Sergei asked.

"We finally got everything unpacked, but now we need to get to work on assembling our new furniture."

"You mean you need to?" Levi laughed.

"Yes, 'I' need to," Salem smiled. "Our living room is a mess right now."

"It's alright. You've got until May, right?" Jae Sun said.

"Yeah, thankfully," Salem said with a small groan. "We're excited, but Yvonne's ready to not be pregnant anymore. Everything's sore, she can't stand the smell of anything these days and I'm still waiting for Oscar to ship me the rattle snake and scorpions. She's been craving that like crazy. Then when I said I was doing that, Bayaq and Taraq both informed me that Cidelle and Uilette were also craving scorpions with rattle snake stew and to request Oscar send enough that we can all have some."

"Don't let the Tistilal kids find out you're doing that or there'll be a mutiny," Caleb chuckled. "As far as I know, Grandma Nessie is arranging for scorpions and rattle snake to be ordered so they can make them stew and fried scorpions for Thanksgiving."

"That'll be nice for them," Salem said.

"I don't know if it'll be nice for us. You can tell they're all brothers, sisters and cousins. They bicker constantly on the best of days so imagine how they'll be when there's competition for a beloved dish," Caleb said.

"You're being nice to these kids I hope," Salem said and uncapped a few bottles before handing them out.

"Yes, Salem, we're being nice to them," Caleb said. "Even the ones that are brats."

"Who do you mean?" Levi asked.

"Shyann," both Caleb and Sergei said at once then Caleb elaborated, "the other day there was this huge upheaval because she'd apparently stolen Mr. Lake's hair clippers and no one found out about it until she walked out of her room with part of her head shaved on her right side. Emma Leigh had to fix it for her, but she insisted she not only wanted to keep the style she'd made up, but she wanted the portion she'd shaved to be a different color."

"The hair she shaved is bleach blonde now," Sergei continued. "Now the hair she has long is always braided and to one side."

"Sounds like a fun hairstyle if you ask me," Salem laughed.

"So if Yvonne came home with that hair-"

"Don't even joke," Salem interrupted Caleb. "So she did something funky with her hair. How does that make her a brat?"

"Apparently she was gifted a radio not long ago and ever since then, she blasts music at all hours until Mr. or Mrs. Lake tell her to 'turn it the fuck off'. Mr. Lake's words. Not mine," Caleb said. "Emma Leigh taught the girls how to apply makeup and gifted them some eye shadows and stuff. Ever since, Shyann's always got something on her face too."

"You realize you're just describing the average 12 year old, right?" Salem said.

"She's an exaggeration of the average 12 year old," Sergei said. "Or is she thirteen by now?"

"Okay; she gets along with everyone fine, though, doesn't she?" Salem asked.

"Yeah, she gets along fine with us. She's just eccentric," Caleb said.

"Well, there you go: nothing wrong with eccentric," Salem said and took his spot on the couch in Jae Sun's living room. "Everyone have a beer and plate of pizza?"

"Yeah," the all answered.

"Good. Then play the movie," Salem said and Levi got the reel playing from the beginning and paid attention to everyone's reactions while the movie was playing, especially during the more scandalous scenes.

As they had planned, Ivory got herself a week off for the week of the 25th and their first Saturday off, they would take a plane to New York and Kevin promised he'd call ahead to the apartments to let them know that his nieces were coming and had his permission to stay there, however he stipulated that they were the only ones allowed in the apartment. Since it was his senior year, Kevin sat Levi down so they could talk about what his plan was for after he graduated high school. His only plan for sure was the desire to get a degree in something that involved mathematics. That much Levi was sure of.

"Becoming a numbers nerd like your grandpa?" Kevin teased as they sat together in his home office.

"I don't know if I want to go into accounting like he'd done," Levi said. "I might start with a general math degree and expand from there."

"So aside from the obvious accounting and teaching, what other careers have you considered?" Kevin asked.

"I haven't decided yet," Levi said.

"Indecisiveness the first year of college isn't so bad, but you want to make a decision as early as you can," Kevin said. "Do you want to go to Yale?"

"No," Levi said and Kevin almost laughed a little. "I don't want to deal with the hurtles required to get into Yale. I'd just as soon rather a more laid back entry experience. But I also want to go somewhere out of state."

Kevin looked at Levi a little strangely, "Why's that?"

"A change of pace," Levi said. "I was thinking about maybe applying to colleges in New York."

"Ah," Kevin said, "I see. You just want an excuse to live in the fancy apartment by yourself. I swear, I should start charging you all for how often I let family stay there."

"Trust me: the fancy apartment has nothing to do with it, though I won't turn it down if you're offering," Levi said and this time Kevin did laugh.

"So long as you're going to school while you're living there," Kevin said, "Although don't think I'll go easy on you. Once we know what your class schedule is like, I might expect you to get a job and pay rent."

"I'll need a job anyway so I can pay for books and stuff. And food."

"Yes, food is important," Kevin smiled. "So you don't want to be a lawyer?" he asked jokingly.

"Oma has already said that's expressly verboten," Levi chuckled. "Also, I don't know if I have the patience that you have."

"It's not patience; it's a paycheck," Kevin said. "That and keeping my eye on what's important. I can tolerate representing a few assholes so long as it means I have the clout and the power to defend the tribe in a court of law. Representing assholes does wonders in that respect I'm afraid."

"I know," Levi smiled. "I'd just as soon study numbers. Numbers don't lie to you."

"I suppose that's true," Kevin said. "Well, I say as soon as it's January, start applying. The sooner you start, the more options you'll have at your disposal. And your grades are excellent, so I'm sure you won't have any problem getting accepted. You may have more trouble deciding where you want to go."

"Let's hope so," Levi said.

"And Levi, one more thing," Kevin said, "Don't start hosting screenings of that Devil movie your girlfriend sent you, okay?"

"What?" Levi said, baffled and trying to play dumb.

"You know what I'm talking about, Levi," Kevin said, but he didn't look angry.

"Okay," Levi finally said, then continued, "Seriously, dad, she's not my girlfriend. We're just pen pals."

"If you say so," Kevin smiled and ruffled Levi's hair. "Now get to bed. You've got school in the morning."

"What about you? Don't you have to go to court tomorrow?"

"I'm preparing my case," Kevin said. "Good talk, Levi. Keep me posted, okay?"

"Sure, dad," Levi answered and left Kevin's office to go to bed.

The closer it came to December, large buses were rented to take the kids on the long drive back to Arizona for the holidays. Thankfully for Shyann, her parents were warned previously that she'd done something drastic with her hair. She'd even maintained the look with the exception of the bleach job. That was gone within a few weeks of application given she had to trim the spot over and over to keep the desired edgy look. However, there was no guarantee that she'd not be in for a 'world of hurt', as Dakota claimed, once they got home.

Since breaking up with Caroline, Evalynn did her best to nosedive into her school work. She and Caroline still talked and even went shopping together from time to time, remaining friends like they'd said they would, but she missed the previously frequent companionship. She missed having someone that she could cuddle with when watching a movie, she missed going out every weekend, she missed the affection, the intimacy, the sex: she missed having a girlfriend. While she didn't rub it in, Caroline was already seeing someone. She'd not even been the one to bring it up. Her father had. Caroline asked Evalynn if she wanted to go shopping together and when her father dropped her off, he was teasing her about wanting to find a nice outfit for her date with a guy she'd been seeing recently. Caroline made a point not to bring it up again. Evalynn didn't even know the guy's name. It didn't change that it hurt that she'd already moved on even if Evalynn didn't say anything. She was determined to be an adult about this and stay friends.

It was November and Evalynn, needing some personal time, went to a farmer's market to get things for Thanksgiving. Luke had offered her to come to his family's house for Thanksgiving (while she'd not told him the full story, Luke knew that Evalynn and 'Carl' had broken up) but she politely declined, stating she needed time to herself. While she was at the farmer's market picking apples of a small apple tart for herself, a woman caught her eye. She was a lovely woman but Evalynn didn't pay her any mind until she realized this woman was checking her out. At least she thought the woman was checking her out. Was she? Their eyes ended up meeting and the woman smiled and even winked at her. 'That's it', Evalynn thought. 'This woman is flirting with me. She must be'. She was getting ready to approach when a young girl and a man ran up to her and hugged her. Just like that, her spirits fell, Evalynn sighed to herself and walked away after selecting and paying for the apples she wanted. She moved on to the vendor that sold some herbs and recipes browsing for what she wanted. Then she felt a presence near her. She glanced to her right and there was the woman browsing the same selection. She was older Evalynn realized, but she couldn't be far into her thirties. She had shoulder length light brown hair, a rounded face and she wore lip gloss that Evalynn only knew was there because she could smell the scent of eucalyptus and bees wax. The woman looked at Evalynn, shining brown eyes, and smiled.

"Beautiful afternoon for shopping outdoors isn't it?" the woman asked.

"Yeah," Evalynn said. The woman smiled a little brighter and offered her hand to Evalynn.

"I'm Elizabeth Harris. You can call me Liz," she said.

"Evalynn Black. Evalynn is preferred," she answered as she summoned up her confidence. She glanced at the man she'd seen before and the little girl. "So is that your husband and daughter?"

"Yeah," she answered, "My husband is Arnold and that's our daughter Chloe. She turned eight in August."

"She's adorable," Evalynn smiled. "She looks just like her daddy."

"Yes, I know," Liz giggled. "You should see her when she wears her father's wigs."

"I'm sorry?" Evalynn asked.

"My husband is an entertainer," Liz explained. "What are you looking to buy? It'll be on me."

"Oh, no, you don't have to do that," Evalynn said.

"No, please, I insist," she said.

"Well, I just need a sweet potato and a regular potato," Evalynn said. "It's just me for Thanksgiving."

"Just you? Are you far from home?" Liz said after placing the order for all the items.

"All the way across the country from them," Evalynn said. "My family's in Washington state. I'm here for school. I attend Yale Medical School." Liz rose a brow, very impressed.

"You're studying to be a doctor?"

"A malpractice attorney actually. Once I have my medical degree, I'll be reapplying to Yale for Law School. My counselors are already aware so they've got the whole outline of my courses planned out for me," Evalynn said.

"A woman with drive; I like that," she said and handed Evalynn what she'd asked for. Evalynn was a little surprised by what Liz said. "So Wednesday before Thanksgiving, the club my husband entertains at is having a special party. Would you like to come? You are 18, right?"

"Yes," Evalynn said, "Sure that sounds like fun. What's the name of the place?"

"It's The Marmalade Bar on the corner of Elm St. and Howe St. It's a little hard to see; you'll need to look for a brick building with a canopy that has Marmalade Bar written across it. You'll be asked to present an ID and you'll be asked to say who referred you. Tell them you heard of the place from Liz Harris and Auntie Mame."

"Auntie Mame, the film character?"

"No," Liz giggled, "That's how the name was inspired, though. That's my husband's stage name," Liz smiled. "The party starts at 7:00. We'll see you there?"

"Yeah, absolutely," Evalynn said and Liz waved goodbye to her before walking away to return to her husband and daughter.

The encounter stuck in Evalynn's mind for the rest of the week. She didn't sense any danger, but she also knew if she relayed what happened to her grandparents, they would have a wildly different opinion. So when telling them she would be going to a party, she only said that her study group had invited her out to the bar, but told them the actual location and address. Just in case. When it was the day of the party, she got back to her apartment just in time to give herself an hour to get ready. She washed and styled her hair in record time, wore her black and white plaid bellbottom pants, a white long sleeved tight fitting sweater and an orange scarf, and she kept her face extremely simple but applied a bold, chocolate brown lipstick – something that Caroline had picked out for her. She told Heidi and Dimitri that she'd be late but would return before morning and left. She knew the general direction of where to go and went on foot. When she reached Elm St. and started walking closer and closer to Howe St. she started to hear music. The music faded briefly but returned by the time she'd made it to the corner.

Across the street was the little canopy sign on a place that looked to once be a bakery of which the sign was never changed: Marmalade Bar. She crossed the street once it was safe and tentatively walked in through the door. Right as she entered, there was a flight of stairs going down and there was already a line of people. What took her by surprise was a gay couple just a few spaces ahead of her. The two of them were just talking, but she noticed them holding hands. She waited in line with a small group entering right behind her. Each person ahead of her presented a little card to the bouncer and only then were they given entry. Each time the door was unlocked and opened, the music blasted through, then softened again as the door was closed. It finally came to be her turn and she was met by a man with thick brown hair and a clean shaven face.

"Can I see your card, Miss?" he said when Evalynn approached.

"Sure," she said and pulled out her ID.

"I mean your club card, dear," he said.

"Oh..I'm sorry, I don't have one. This is my first time here."

"Were you invited?"

"Yes, by a Liz Harris and Auntie Mame?" The man grabbed something that he glanced through quickly.

"Evalynn Black?"

"Yes," she said, surprised he knew.

"Well then, step right in, Miss Black. And welcome to The Marmalade Bar," he said and pressed a button to unlock the door so she could step in. The music was dying down as she stepped in and there was a man….no, wait.

"Ladies and Gentleman and everyone in between, please put your hands together for the lovely and talented Auntie Mame!" the announcer's voice was extremely feminine, but the person wore a suit that fit perfectly with the sleeves rolled up and no suit jacket and had facial hair. The announcer stepped off stage and on came what Evalynn realized was a man, but he was dressed very convincingly. He wore a blonde, beautifully styled wig, had exaggerated make up and a dress that was orange with a jack-o-lantern face on the midriff and a jack-o-lantern hat on.

"Fuck you; to me it's always Halloween," Auntie Mame said as soon as he got on stage and the whole room laughed. "Welcome, welcome everyone. It's so good to see you. Enjoy me while you can. Tomorrow, I'll be stuffed fuller than the bird and I won't be going anywhere unless you carry me by wheel barrel." The room laughed again and Evalynn got a giggle. "Do you all like my wig?" The room said yes. "You'd better, you bitches. I almost lost this wig. My daughter was going through all my things and thought it'd be fun to put on daddy's wig, started putting on daddy's make up like she's the one keeping the Mary Kay lady afloat; Let me tell you something: when you have a kid, nothing is yours anymore. Daddy's high heeled shoes? Oh, those are mine now. Daddy's wigs? Oh, those are mine now. Daddy's tucking stockings? It's okay, daddy; you can keep those." This time, Evalynn laughed along with the crowd and started to finally feel a little more relaxed.

"Evalynn!" she heard her name and looked in the direction of the sound to see Liz at the bar waving her over. She was sitting with a few other woman and men dressed as women and a woman dressed as a man. Unless that man happened to just be shorter than everyone. Evalynn approached and Liz gave her a big smile. "I'm so happy you came. You didn't have a hard time finding the place, did you?"

"No, thankfully not," Evalynn said. "So your husband's a female impersonator?"

"A Drag Queen, yes," Liz smiled. "You should see him when he's impersonating Marilyn Monroe."

"Aren't you going to introduce us, Liz?" one of the impersonators asked.

"Oh, yes, of course, where are my manners? Everyone, this is Evalynn Black. She's the woman I met at the farmer's market that I told you about. The one going to Yale for her medical and law degree," Liz said.

"It's a pleasure," the male impersonator said and offered a hand that Evalynn accepted. "My name's Jessica, but while I'm in drag, you can call me Jessie."

"Nice to meet you, Jessie," Evalynn said.

"I'm Susie Q," one of the Queens said. He wore an apron over a black dress with white polka dots and a set of pearls wearing a brown wig done up in curls.

"Fran Tier," another Queen said. This one was in a neon green, bell bottomed body suit and a black afro wig that suited his dark skin.

"I'm Lady Marmalade," the last Queen said, dressed it a poufy dress that landed at his thighs, white nylon stockings with white high heels and the dress itself was red and black and he wore a crown in a mess of full blonde hair. "I'm also the owner of this fine establishment."

"So," Evalynn looked at everyone fearing this was too good to be true, "I'm not crazy? This is a gay bar?"

"Gay as a sunny Tuesday afternoon in June," Lady Marmalade answered.

"How did you know I was a lesbian?" Evalynn asked Liz who winked.

"Call it a hunch," she smiled.

"Can I buy you a drink?" Jessie asked.

"Sure," Evalynn said and took a seat at the bar while Jessie ordered them drinks. Keeping it simple for now, she just ordered the same beer that Jessie got.

"Now, Jessie, you be nice to her," Lady Marmalade said. "You know how I feel about making a good impression."

"You got it, Boss," Jessie said.

"So Evalynn," Susie Q said, "You're studying to get your medical degree and your law degree?" Evalynn realized Susie Q had a very thick Boston accent and it was actually really precious.

"Yes, right now I'm studying Medicine and once I've gotten my Medical degree, I'll take the LSATs and get into Yale Law School. That won't take nearly so long as Medical school."

"So you're basically a professional student at the moment?" Fran Tier asked.

"Pretty much," Evalynn said.

"Does that pay well?" Jessie joked and Evalynn laughed.

"I'm afraid I'm the one paying them," Evalynn said.

"Well that's a shitty job," Jessie said.

"So….are you bisexual? I'm sorry to ask; I'm just curious," Evalynn asked Liz.

"Dear God, no," Liz said with a smile. "Arnold and I grew up together. We were in the same Youth Group when we were kids and he was my best friend. At one point or another, we both realized that we're gay, but try telling that to devout Baptists and a household with a Republican elected official. We decided that we loved each other as best friends and that marrying one another was a good course of action. Keeps our families none the wiser and we get to be ourselves behind closed doors without anyone thinking twice about us."

"For the rest of us, this bar's the only way we get to be ourselves," Jessie said.

"What a place to be yourself, right?" Liz said. "So M 'Lady, does Evalynn have the green light to get her own Marmalade card?"

"Is that what you need to get into the club?" Evalynn asked.

"Yes ma'am," Lady Marmalade said. "The safety of my patrons is of utmost importance to me, so not just anyone is allowed to come here. You have to have been invited and once you're invited and the coast is clear, you're given a Marmalade Card. So next time you want to come, just present it to Bill and he'll let you in once you pay the entry fee."

"$5 right?" Evalynn asked, remembering the sign.

"Yes ma'am," Lady Marmalade smiled. "One minute while I grab that for you." Lady Marmalade walked off for a moment leaving the group to chat some more.

"How long has he owned this place?" Evalynn asked.

"We've owned it about ten years," Liz said. "My husband and I met Jared – that's his name – back when Arnold and I first married and moved out here. We were fortunate enough to meet and became good friends, then Jared's father passed away leaving him with about $25,000, so Arnold and I pitched in our own savings and bought this place together."

"Did this used to be a Bakery?"

"Yes, it did," Liz smiled. "The owner couldn't afford to keep the place so we got a really good deal on it. We did a complete overhaul of the building, converted it to a nightclub and all our friends became respected patrons gifted with a Marmalade Card. Arnold and Jared both liked performing but they never had a safe place they could perform in drag, so that was incorporated with our entertainment."

"That's amazing," Evalynn smiled. "So I take it Jared became Lady Marmalade to honor the building?"

"Yup. And Arnold became Auntie Mame because that's his favorite movie," Liz said.

"Have all of you been performing here since this place opened?" Evalynn asked the group.

"All except me," Susie Q said. "I started performing here about five years ago. I've been coming here for eight years though."

"Miss Black," Lady Marmalade appeared behind Evalynn getting her attention, "I just need you to write down your name for me." Evalynn wrote her name down on the paper Lady Marmalade offered and he looked at it and whistled. "Thank God I asked. I would have never guessed that's how it's spelled. I'll be right back," then he walked away again.

"E-V-A-L-Y-N-N?" Jessie asked, having glanced at the paper.

"Yeah. My mother is Evalina and my dad wanted to name me after her," Evalynn said.

"It's a beautiful name," Jessie smiled.

"Down boy," Susie Q poked fun. "So Evalynn, what do you do for work when you're not at school?"

"I actually don't work," Evalynn said. "I'm always at school or studying and this past summer, I didn't go home because I'd been able to get a volunteer position at the hospital. Dad has been paying the rent for my apartment and my Aunt and Uncle stay with me too."

"Oh wow," Susie Q said. "So do they know?"

"That I'm gay you mean?" Evalynn asked. "Yeah, my family knows."

"And they're still helping you?" Jessie asked.

"I'm fortunate enough to have a family that accepts me for who I am," Evalynn said.

"Fortunate indeed," Liz said. "And they don't judge you or anything?"

"No," Evalynn said. "I'd been so scared they would, so for a long time, the only person that knew was my cousin Heather. Then when it was time to go to college, I felt like I needed to come clean and I told my dad."

"What did he say?" Fran Tier asked.

"He'd said he had a feeling I was but didn't want to assume and he was happy I felt comfortable telling him," Evalynn said and the group just gawked at her.

"You lucky bitch," Susie Q said. "My father still thinks I'm living the bachelor's life because I haven't met the right girl."

"When I came out to my mom, she threw me out on my ass and hasn't spoken to me since," Jessie said. "And here we'd thought Fran was the lucky one."

"What lucky? I told my mother in tears and she told me that if I just work hard, I could be 'cured'. She's still holding onto that hope," Fran Tier said.

"At least they're talking to you," Jessie said.

"Ladies, that's enough. What did I say about making a good impression?" Lady Marmalade said when he'd returned and handed Evalynn her Marmalade Card. It was a black, laminated card with her name written on it in bright, neon pink and the logo above it that said Marmalade Bar. "Here's your card, Evalynn. It's good to have a new member of the Marmalade Bar."

"It's a pleasure," Evalynn said. "One second, I'll get out some money for the entry."

"No, no, it's alright. The first time's always paid for by the one that invited you," Lady Marmalade said. "Going forward, though, it's $5."

"Are you sure I can't reimburse you?" Evalynn asked Liz.

"Please, it's my treat tonight," Liz said.

"M 'Lady," someone said as they stepped out of a room in the back. She was a woman with blonde hair braided to be out of her way and wore a white shirt, black pants and an apron. "Do you have a moment?"

"If it's bad news, you're fired," Lady Marmalade joked.

"Then consider this my letter of resignation. We're out of tequila," the woman said and Lady Marmalade sighed.

"Alright. Put a note on my desk and either Liz or I will order more tomorrow," Marmalade said.

"Trouble in the kitchen, babe?" Liz asked the woman.

"When is there not trouble?" she answered, gave Liz a kiss and then ran off to return to the back.

"That's my girlfriend, Linda," Liz said to Evalynn. "When she's free, I'll make sure the two of you are introduced properly."

"Did she buy the place with you?"

"No, no, we hired her after we could afford to add a full kitchen," Liz said. "She's been working here about 7 years. We've been dating for four." They were interrupted when the crowd began to cheer and clap and they saw Auntie Mame waving goodnight to the audience. "Alright, Jessie. You'll be up soon," Liz said.

"Are you a comedian too?" Evalynn asked.

"Nope; I'm actually talented," Jessie said and Lady Marmalade shoved her making Jessie laugh.

"Watch your mouth, young man," Lady Marmalade said. "Now get up there."

"Will you watch me play?" Jessie asked Evalynn.

"Absolutely," Evalynn replied and just like that, Jessie walked away in time for Auntie Mame to welcome Jessie to the stage. Jessie grabbed a guitar from off stage and was getting the area set up.

"You came," Auntie Mame said and gave Evalynn a hug.

"It was a pleasure to be invited," Evalynn said. She was surprised by the hug but grateful for the warm welcome all the same. "I'm so sorry, I didn't hear most of your routine. I was getting acquainted with everyone."

"It's alright, you didn't miss anything," Fran Tier poked fun and they all laughed.

"I promised Jessie I'd pay attention to her routine," Evalynn said.

"I had a feeling she'd take a shine to you," Auntie Mame said. "You go have a seat. Did you want to order another drink and I'll bring it to you?"

"Surprise me and I'll pay?" Evalynn suggested.

"Loaded request, honey, but I'll deliver," Auntie Mame said and encouraged Evalynn to go to one of the tables. Evalynn got a chair at a table near the stage just as Jessie had gotten everything set up.

"So do I have any requests before I ignore you and play whatever the hell I want?" Jessie said.

"Play some Diana Ross!" someone shouted and the room laughed.

"Alright, everyone, you heard the man. American Pie by Don McLean it is," Jessie said and made everyone laugh a little more and then cheer. "All eight minutes of it."

The crowd whistled and cheered then finally died down when Jessie began to play the guitar and sing. Evalynn had not heard the song all the way through. She'd heard bits and pieces of it and when it had played on the radio in Caroline's dad's car, it was the abridged version. Auntie Mame came to Evalynn's table with a bright blue drink that Evalynn had never seen before and when she took one sip, it tasted like it would get her drunk by ¼ of the glass. It was really sweet but the alcohol was unmistakable. She'd have to nurse that for the rest of the night. Jessie played the entire song on the guitar and actually had a really nice singing voice. It was unmistakably a woman's voice, but she had a lower alto that allowed her to sing effortlessly. When the first chorus began, Lady Marmalade came on stage and silently encouraged everyone to sing along and clap their hands when appropriate and those that already knew the words did. By the second chorus, the whole bar was singing along when the chorus played. Just like she promised, Jessie played the full song entirely on the guitar and when the song ended, the bar filled with applause.

"Thank you," Jessie said into the mic. "Now that we're done with the warm up, let's start dancing."

Just like that, she started playing Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl. Evalynn stayed seated but a good chunk of the other patrons got up from their chairs and started dancing together. Evalynn hummed along, liking this song a lot, and when it got to the chorus, a bunch of people, herself included, started singing along. Jessie played two more upbeat songs that involved dancing and getting the crowd involved before her turn was done.

"Thank you so much for listening, ladies and gentlemen," Jessie said. "Now, I'd thought I heard someone say something about wanting to hear Diana Ross and we live to please. Fran Tier! Get up here!" Jessie directed and Fran Tier pretended to be shy for a moment but it passed very quickly as Fran Tier ran up to the stage in his platform high heeled shoes and took the mic from Jessie who stepped off the stage. Fran Tier went back stage for a moment then ran out just in time for Stop in the Name of Love to begin playing. Fran Tier moved his lips along with the song and danced on stage. "So how'd you like it?" Jessie asked when she'd come to Evalynn's table.

"You were great," Evalynn said.

"I see Auntie Mame brought you a Blue Motherfucker," Jessie said and sat down next to Evalynn.

"What's in this thing?"

"It'd be faster to say what isn't in this thing," Jessie said with a laugh. "So tell me Evalynn: how long have you been going to Yale? It's Yale you said, right?"

"Yes, and this is my 2nd year," Evalynn said. "If all goes well, I'll have my Medical degree by '78 and my Law Degree by '81."

"Couldn't just pick one I see," Jessie said. "How old are you?"

"I'm 19," Evalynn said.

"19?"

"Yeah. I graduated from high school early and was able to get into Yale by the time I was 17 going on 18," Evalynn said.

"Hot damn," Jessie said. "Well, fuck me; what am I doing with my life?"

"How old are you?" Evalynn asked after laughing a little at Jessie's joke.

"I'm 32," she said. "So just a bit older than you."

"Just a little," Evalynn said. "So you've been working here 10 years if I heard correctly?"

"Ten years in April next year," Jessie said. "I started working here as a bartender and then became interested in doing drag and I did my first performance a few years ago. I'll still bartend here and there, but drag is my favorite thing to do. If I could do it for a living, I would."

"So doing drag isn't your job?"

"I'm afraid not. I work as a consultant at a wedding dress store," Jessie said and laughed when Evalynn was visibly surprised. "Yes, that's the reaction I usually get. I've been working for that bridal shop since I started doing drag. I get some money and we get tips, but it's not enough to keep food on the table so most of us have two or more jobs. The owners of this place juggle keeping this place open and supplied as well as their own day jobs."

"What else do they do?"

"During the day, Lady Marmalade works as a manager at a distribution company, Susie Q works for a local firm as a paralegal, Auntie Mame works for a Christian radio station and trust me they do not know about this, Fran Tier up there actually works for the bookstore at Yale and Liz is a receptionist for the local elementary school where her daughter goes." That surprised Evalynn to hear one of the queens worked at her school's bookstore and she looked at Fran Tier and looked really closely until she realized she indeed recognized him.

"Wait, is that Mr. Freeman?"

"Gerald Freeman is his real name, yes," Jessie said. "I'm surprised he didn't recognize you."

"I don't blame him; I don't know if I've actually spoken with him. I just know of him," Evalynn said. "Liz's daughter's name is Chloe right?"

"Yeah."

"She looks just like Arnold," Evalynn said.

"Yeah, she does. Maybe the only time those two ever had sex was to produce Chloe, though if you're listening to Auntie Mame's stand up, he'll tell you he jerked off into a turkey baster and just shoved it in."

"They didn't actually do that did they?"

"No," Jessie laughed, "But it's funnier if they say they did. Chloe was enough to keep their families off their backs. I mean, that's not the reason they had Chloe; they really wanted a baby but their families were getting on their case about having a kid."

"I'm sorry they have to lie at all," Evalynn said.

"What can you do?" Jessie shrugged. "I haven't spoken to my parents in about 13 years. Not since I came out. And by 'came out' I mean my mom returned home unexpectedly, came into my room without knocking and caught me giving cuntilingus to my girlfriend at the time. Before I knew it, my mom was crying on the couch asking me why I was doing this and when I tried to explain it's just the way I am, she kicked me out."

"I'm really sorry," Evalynn said.

"Don't be," Jessie said. "Honestly, I'd rather be honest and my mother not speak to me than live a lie. I already live a lie during the day with my coworkers."

"I take it they're baffled that you're 32 and not married?"

"Gob smacked by it," Jessie said with a smile. "One of my managers actually told me my eggs are getting old and I need to get married and have kids right away. I just told her I don't want kids and she hasn't brought it up since."

"Whatever works," Evalynn said.

"So are you single?" Jessie asked with a light smile.

"Yes," Evalynn said and Jessie caught the sad tone.

"Recently I take it?"

"Yeah," Evalynn said. "Today would have been our one year anniversary of when we met actually."

"Shit, I'm so sorry," Jessie said.

"It's okay. It was bound to happen in retrospect. I met her during a football game. She was a cheerleader and I thought she was really cute so I took a chance and talked to her. We went out to get coffee and we were dating until just a few weeks ago."

"Why did you break up?"

"She'd brought up that she wants kids and while I was thinking it over, I told her I'd be alright with kids but it had to wait until I had my career. It turned into a heart to heart about not expecting kids with me, how she couldn't keep lying to her parents forever and that she'd wanted to be with me until her parents started getting on her about getting married and so on. When I realized that our relationship really was temporary, I decided we were better off ending things now. We're still friends, but she's already seeing someone else."

"A guy?" Evalynn nodded to Jessie's question. "So is she bisexual?"

"Yeah," Evalynn said. "I'm doing my best to not let it bother me, but…you know."

"It still hurts?" Jessie said and Evalynn nodded. "Yeah, I know how you feel. The first girl I ever liked was straight but try getting that through my thick 16 year old skull. I was too scared to tell her how I felt so instead I just hung out with her like I would any other friend and had to watch as she had her boyfriends. I didn't start seeing my first girlfriend until my senior year of high school and seeing each other was ridiculous. Neither of us had a car or anything so we had to get creative if we wanted to be intimate."

"Is she the same girl that your mother caught you with?"

"Yup," Jessie said. "Sadly, my mother called her parents and told them. While I told mom I can't change, Matilda was quick to promise she would change. She's married with three kids now and fucking miserable. Me? I may be cut off from my family, but at least I'm not in a loveless marriage." Evalynn rose a brow and Jessie scratched her neck. "Sorry; I'm still a little bitter. I really loved her."

"I get you," Evalynn said. "So are you seeing anyone now?"

"Not at the moment," Jessie said and finally smirked seductively. "Are you free on Sundays? Maybe you and I could hang out. See where the day takes us."

"I should be free Sunday," Evalynn said. She wasn't used to Jessie's forwardness but it felt nice to be pursued and by an older woman no less. For some reason, the age difference made it a little more exciting. Maybe it was childish of her, but she also just wanted to be able to say she'd moved on too. "What did you have in mind?"

"How about coffee?"

"That would be nice," Evalynn agreed.

Evalynn ended up staying at the bar until 1 in the morning. She'd nursed the Blue Motherfucker the whole night and after a full glass of water, she was fine to walk home. Before she left, Evalynn and Jessie exchanged numbers and agreed on a time to meet. When she returned home, Heidi and Dimitri were in the living room waiting for her. She was exhausted when she got home, so Heidi and Dimitri let her go right to bed to get some sleep. By the time Evalynn woke up, her Thanksgiving dinner was already almost ready for her. She kept her date to herself for the time being since she wasn't sure if anything would end up coming of her going on a date with Jessie. Or Jessica since she'd be in her day clothes. When Sunday came, she went to her usual coffee shop during the time they'd agreed and bought herself some coffee and a coffee cake. When she found her seat, a woman walked in that Evalynn recognized after a moment. Her brown hair was in a pixie cut and she had a pretty face that was now free of any facial hair. She didn't wear makeup and she was wearing jeans and a heavy sweater that was too big for her. She went to get herself some coffee and once she had it, she came to the table sitting across from Evalynn.

"You clean up nicely," Evalynn joked and Jessica laughed.

"Yes, I'm told I'm pretty when I don't have pubic hair glued to my face."

"Wait, seriously?"

"I'm joking," Jessica said. "It's synthetic hair."

"Okay," Evalynn said. "Otherwise I was about to ask how you keep your skin so clean."

"Soap and water, baby," Jessica said and Evalynn smiled. "So did you get this cake to share?"

"I did," Evalynn said and handed her a plastic fork. "So how was your thanksgiving?"

"Fantastic. Linda cooks a mean turkey," Jessica said.

"Linda is Liz's girlfriend right?"

"Yeah, she is. Thank God too. Liz can't cook for shit I swear. How was your Thanksgiving?"

"Relaxing," Evalynn said. "Then Friday, my Genetics instructor gave us a surprise test."

"What an asshole," Jessica smiled. "So tell me about yourself. Do you have any siblings?"

"I have a little brother. Caleb," Evalynn said. "How about you?"

"Two older sisters," Jessica said. "What inspired you to pursue a degree in Medicine and Law?"

"My father is a doctor and runs the hospital at our tribe and my Uncle Kevin is a lawyer. I had a great deal of interest in both but I could never decide what I wanted to do. My Uncle suggested malpractice and after I researched it, I knew it was what I wanted to do."

"You said tribe: you're Native American?"

"Quileute," Evalynn said. "My dad is half Quileute and my mother is a mixed bag. We know for sure she's Russian, Scottish and Italian, but if there's anything else, we aren't sure."

"That is quite a mixed bag. And when you say your Uncle Kevin, you wouldn't happen to be referring to Kevin Black with Heidelberg and Black would you?" Jessica asked.

"Yes as a matter of fact," Evalynn said. "You know about him?"

"Hell yeah I know about him. Susie Q used to work at his law firm for a few years before he moved back to New Haven to help take care of his grandma. I'll tell you what: Susie Q has a giant crush on your uncle. Mr. Heidelberg, on the other hand, he has called on multiple occasions 'a cuck'."

Evalynn laughed, "That's 'Uncle Heidelberg' to us. He's not actually our uncle, but he and Uncle Kevin went to Yale together and are really close friends. He's also gay for the record."

"See, that's why you've got to be really nice to your boss, because if Susie Q had been nice and played his cards right, he'd be shacked up with a rich lawyer."

"A retired rich lawyer that's enjoying his twilight years at a house in the Hamptons he had built to replicate his family's old cabin home in Austria," Evalynn said and Jessica stared at her wide eyed.

"Shit, I might marry him for all that," she said.

"The man would sooner marry a toad after Ana," Evalynn said. "I don't know if I ever met her. If I did, I was a kid and I don't remember, but right now she's in France last I heard. The two of them had as close to a divorce as Uncle Alphonse would allow and that man was on cloud nine from the moment Ana was in her own house and he didn't have to share a space with her anymore."

"That bad, huh?"

"Oh yeah," Evalynn said. "My Uncle once had to bribe Ana to stay in America. Back when the Stock Market crashed, Uncle Alphonse lost everything. His inheritance, his own money: everything. He nearly shot himself but Uncle Kevin was able to stop him and found out Ana left with their daughter and was planning to flee to France. Uncle Kevin went after her and paid her $10,000 to stay home. That was a lot more money back then than it is now."

"Wow," Jessica said. "I see why Susie had such a big crush on him. Wait, how old is your uncle?"

"He's 68," Evalynn said, "and is showing no signs of stopping or slowing down. My uncle looks very young for his age. So does my dad for that matter."

"Yeah, that's what Susie said. He never knew how old his boss was, but he knew his boss was much older than he looked."

"Yeah, and my Uncle had his law degree and was working for a really good Law Firm by the time he was 19," Evalynn said.

"You said your family is open and understanding about you?"

"Yeah," Evalynn said.

"Sounds to me like your family should come visit the Marmalade Bar. If you tell Susie Q you're planning to invite your uncle, he'll spread like peanut butter on warm toast."

Evalynn laughed, "I'm sorry, but Uncle Kevin doesn't swing that way."

"Can't blame a girl for trying," Jessica joked. "In all seriousness, though, if you get the okay from Lady Marmalade, we'd make sure your relatives had an amazing time."

"I'll make sure to let them know," Evalynn said. "So what is Susie's real name; I'll find out if Uncle Kevin remembers him."

"Oh, your uncle will remember him. Ed Maxwell is his name."

They sat together at the shop for over an hour talking and getting to know one another before they walked out of the shop and walked around town together. It was refreshing to be on a date again, especially with someone that didn't answer to anyone. Jessica could be out whenever she wanted however long she wanted and there was no fear about a father or mother finding out. Jessica eventually walked Evalynn back to her apartment and they agreed on another day when they could meet aside from Evalynn returning to the Marmalade Bar some time that week even if only for an hour. By the time it was Christmas, she'd gone on several dates with Jessica and had even spent the night at her apartment several times. She wasn't sure how long it would last, but she was going to enjoy it while it lasted. She far more so enjoyed having a bar that she could go to where she could unwind and even sit down with her girlfriend – or whatever she and Jessica were calling themselves – and kiss here and there, though Lady Marmalade had a strict 'no fucking on the dance floor' policy as he worded it. When she landed in Washington come the Saturday before Christmas, Caleb was there to pick her up.

"So how're you feeling? We haven't talked since you called the house," Caleb said.

"I'm alright," Evalynn said. "I'm actually seeing someone."

"Wait, already? How'd that happen you hussy?" Caleb said and Evalynn swatted his shoulder.

"Shut up," she laughed. "So what happened is I was at the Farmer's Market day before Thanksgiving and this woman named Liz invited me to a club that she co-owns. Turns out it's a gay club: The Marmalade Bar. It used to be a bakery that Liz, her husband Arnold and their friend Jared bought and converted to a bar. Somehow, she knew I'm a lesbian and invited me to go there. Arnold and Jared are drag queens and there's a whole community that goes to that bar."

"What's a Drag Queen?"

"It's a female impersonator. A male impersonator is a Drag King. That's what Jessica is."

"Hold on: you are dating a male impersonator? Why?"

"Hey, when she's dressed as a woman, she's really attractive and she's been great. She's older too."

"Define 'older'," Caleb said.

"32," Evalynn said and Caleb whistled.

"Yeah, that's older," Caleb said. "So is it serious?"

"Not really," Evalynn said. "Honestly, her heart belongs to a woman she'd dated and lost in High School and she's made that pretty clear to me since we started seeing each other. Honestly, after Caroline, I'm not interested in anything serious either. It's just nice to have a companion."

"A fuck buddy you mean?" Caleb said.

"I wasn't going to word it that way, but sure," Evalynn said. "Also, one of the Queens is a Paralegal and actually used to work at Uncle Kevin's law firm."

"No shit?"

"No shit," Evalynn said. "Had an enormous crush on him too."

"Dare to dream," Caleb smiled. "Well, it's good to have you home. We all missed you a lot."

"I missed you too," Evalynn said. "So how have the Tistilal kids been doing since moving to Washington?"

"They're alright," Caleb said. "They're all related so it didn't take much for them to get comfortable and Grandma and Grandpa made sure that they got associated with everyone at school so they'd have some friends before the school year started."

"That's good to hear. Will I meet them?"

"Not this time. They've all been driven back for Christmas. They aren't coming back until January. I'm sure you'll end up meeting them eventually."

"Are they excited to go back home?" Evalynn asked.

"As far as I know," Caleb said. "Sergei and I don't really talk to them as much as Lee does."

"Speaking of, how's his leg? It was the leg, right? Tristan broke his arm?"

"Yeah," Caleb said, "They got their casts taken off weeks ago and they're good as new. Oh, and while you're home, Levi and I need to make you watch The Devils."

"You mean that Nun-exploitation film I've heard so much about?" Evalynn asked. "One of the guys at the bar had tried getting their hands on it but when they did, it was edited down so much that it didn't make much sense and he said it was hardly 'scandalous'."

"Trust me: it's scandalous. Levi got it from Nadja as a belated birthday present and it's as close to the full movie as one can get unless you're the actual film maker. Ever since, Levi's been searching for a movie to send back to her but so far A Clockwork Orange is the only really shocking movie but that'll be available in the US and the UK, so there's no reason to send it."

"I'm sure he'll find something," Evalynn said. "So are you and Ashley still planning to get married right after high school?"

"We'll wait until we have our own place, but the sooner the better. Ashley's been working at the movie theatre in town so we're saving up to buy our own place. Phil already promised that once I graduate High School there'll be a full time job waiting for me, so that's good."

"Phil's your boss?"

"Yeah," Caleb said. "It'll be really good pay, benefits, insurance; the whole nine yards."

"Are you planning to keep Ashley barefoot and pregnant?" Evalynn teased and made Caleb smile nervously.

"No, but we'll have kids eventually. As to whether she'll be a stay at home mom or work is yet to be decided. Honestly, I think she would really rather work and I don't blame her. She doesn't want to have to rely on me like that, you know?"

"Understandable," Evalynn said. "Well, you know mom and dad won't rush the two of you to have kids."

"It's appreciated, trust me. The idea of kids is still a bit intimidating to me to say the least."

"You're 17, of course the idea of kids is intimidating," Evalynn said. "You're still just a baby yourself."

"Shut up; I'm not a baby," Caleb argued. "We did have a….'scare' for lack of a better word though."

"Bet that bit you in the ass pretty hard," Evalynn said.

"It did," Caleb said. "She'd said she missed her period and she was going to get a pregnancy test and she says I was white as a sheet of paper when she told me. Thankfully, it was negative but still."

"Does dad know?"

"Oh yeah, he knows. Chewed me a new asshole for it too. Honestly, one time we have sex without protection; fucking one!"

"Once is all it takes, kiddo," Evalynn said.

"Well, it hasn't happened again since," Caleb said. "We're being really, really careful. We're not having kids until we're good and ready."

"Do Henry and Uileila know?"

"You kidding me? If they knew, my skin would be hanging on Henry's wall right about now. Honestly, sometimes I think her dad doesn't like me. Ashley swears he likes me fine, but I don't know. He didn't stop referring to me as the 'bone head' until I gave Ashley a ring and a bracelet."

"Ashley's their only child; try to be patient," Evalynn said. "So how's her grandma doing?"

"She's alright," Caleb said. "She's still speaking English at least."

"Pardon?"

Caleb was quiet a moment before saying, "Levi's grandma had another stroke. This time it was more serious. Her and Amber were at the Synagogue with Levi, Heather and the twins when she started feeling numbness, she was dizzy and disoriented and Levi screamed for someone to call an ambulance. There was a doctor present so he was able to help but her right hand is still numb."

"Have they found a nurse to stay with her?"

"They finally found a nurse that speaks German fluently and is qualified. She's with Anna throughout the day and Levi moved in with her so there's someone with her during the night. Otherwise, Aunt Amber's with her in the afternoon. Apparently Anna's getting really frustrated with all this attention."

"Who could blame her," Evalynn said. "Has dad seen her?"

"Yeah, he has," Caleb said. "She's on medication now and the nurse has helped her a lot despite Anna getting snappy with her a lot more often than not. The nurse is patient as a saint. Ellen I think her name is."

"Good to know Anna's being taken care of. I hope she realizes everyone's trying to help."

"Anna knows, but she's still really frustrated. Levi says she feels like she's being treated like a child and she doesn't like it. After her latest episode, Uncle Kevin basically put his foot down and told Anna that once Levi leaves for college, she's moving in with him and Amber and what followed was quite an argument. Worse, when Kevin told her he and Amber were just looking out for her best interest, she accused Kevin of 'dragging her back to Auschwitz'."

"Fuck," Evalynn said.

"Yeah, Uncle Kevin didn't take that well at all. I don't think he even said anything; he just left the house and shifted somewhere so he wouldn't end up yelling at Anna. Made Aunt Amber cry and Levi had to basically defuse the situation. He's been walking on eggshells ever since."

"Will they be able to come to Forks for Christmas?"

"Levi said that he's staying in the city with Anna but everyone else is coming down to Forks. They've been going all out for Hanukah trying to help Anna feel better and it's helped. Sergei and I are going to Seattle after we've all opened presents and we're having a 'Jewish Christmas'."

"What's a Jewish Christmas?"

"It's ordering Chinese Food and watching a movie," Caleb said. "I'm sure Levi would be happy to replay The Devils if you want to come."

"That sounds like fun; I think I will," Evalynn said.

Sadly Travis and Oscar were not able to be in Washington for Christmas but promised they'd come visit next year. Oscar didn't really want to go to the tribe to visit either, though. By that time, they'd finally found and moved into a different apartment claiming to be cousins that were roommates ensuring no one batted an eye at two unmarried grown men living together. They'd decided to use their Christmas to stay in and watch Christmas movies in the background. Oscar had another reason for wanting to stay in, though. Since the two of them moved in together, everything just felt right. Travis acclimated to Oscar's circle of friends easily. Their friends were always either at their apartment for a game night and so on, out to dinner, out bowling and whenever they weren't out with friends, they were enjoying time alone. It was comfortable and Oscar loved it. In all honesty, it felt as though he and Travis were a childless married couple; but they weren't married. To him, it was time to change that in the only way he really could. They couldn't get married in a conventional, legal sense, but they could be married in the eyes of their tribes and that was more than enough.

So Oscar started planning. He obtained materials and during his lunch hour at work when he knew there was no way Travis might catch him, Oscar constructed a bracelet. It seemed silly to him at first to make a bracelet, but he enlisted the assistance of his great granddaughters when he was able to get away to help him make something appropriate. He'd gotten black leather and, again with the assistance of his granddaughters to make something creative, braided together the strips of leather into a thick band. It was three rows of braids that had been linked together and there were no rocks or any other ornaments attached. Despite requiring all the dexterity he could muster, the bracelet itself was very simple looking and that was what he'd wanted. When it was Christmas Eve, Oscar couldn't sleep. Once he'd finished the bracelet, he'd kept it in hiding until they'd put up a tiny tree (nothing large or spectacular) in the corner of their living room and then had it wrapped and put under the tree labeled as 'Special'. He wanted the day to be as special as possible and, given he couldn't sleep anyway, Oscar woke up bright and early Christmas morning to brew some coffee. He made eggnog that they could pour into their coffee and waffles using Richard's old recipe. He waited to start cooking the waffles until he heard Travis get out of bed and go to the shower so that breakfast was ready by the time he left their bedroom. Oscar had the radio turned on to play gentle Christmas music and the table was filled with a pitcher of eggnog creamer spiked with rum, brewed coffee and a platter of waffles and some maple syrup.

"You made breakfast?" Travis asked once he was in the tiny dining room.

"I did," Oscar said. "I thought we could make our first Christmas together special. Or…I guess our first Christmas home…you know what I mean."

"You alright?" Travis asked as he took a seat at the table. "You seem like you're nervous."

"I'm alright," Oscar promised. "I'm more worried I somehow found a way to screw up making waffles."

"Richard's recipe right?" Oscar nodded. "If you followed the recipe, they'll be good." Travis helped himself to some butter and syrup, poured himself coffee with some eggnog creamer and dug in.

"How are they?"

"Great," Travis said. There was some pounding upstairs and little shrieks from a kid that had clearly received a desired toy and it made Travis smile. "That kid's usually so well behaved; I don't hear him most of the time."

"Better a kid screaming with joy then a domestic I guess," Oscar said.

"Much better," Travis agreed. "Can I ask you a dumb question?"

"What?"

"What's it like having kids?" Travis said.

"Um," Oscar started and then shrugged, "I mean, Genevieve was a great kid. That had more to do with Wisteria than it ever did me. I might have been more hands off than I should have been in retrospect. Kids are a lot of work, but I was either absent or less involved throughout Genevieve's life. If I could do it over, I'd like to be a better father, but she grew up to be a good woman. If anything, I'm pleased with myself that I was able to determine Takara would be a good match for her. I knew my daughter better than I'd thought I did, but still. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know," Travis shrugged. "I just wondered what it's like. I know how it is for my pack that have kids. There's definitely frustration to high hell, but the sense of satisfaction and pride they have…I guess I just think it'd be nice."

"Maybe one day we'll find a way to have kids," Oscar said. "I'd like to enjoy it just being you and I right now."

"I know," Travis said. "There's really no rush; just something I've been feeling."

"Calm down your ovaries, Travis."

"Shut up," Travis said with a laugh and kicked Oscar's foot.

They ate all the waffles Oscar had made and brought their pitcher of eggnog and coffee to the living room where they had their little tree. Oscar distributed the gifts putting the 'special' present in his pile and they began opening their gifts. Neither of them had very many presents; mostly practical things the other had asked for. He kept the bracelet he made out of sight until they'd opened all their presents.

"So Travis," Oscar started after a moment, "Wisteria and I got a divorce earlier this year."

"What?" Travis said.

"Yeah, back in July," Oscar said.

After a moment of silence Travis asked, "Why now?"

"She and I talked and Wisteria agreed we both deserve to be happy," Oscar said and reached for the present that he offered Travis, "So that's what I'm doing." Travis accepted the present at a loss for words. He assumed there was no way this was a bracelet as he tore away the paper. But when he opened the box, nestled inside was a black leather bracelet. "I know we can't get married in the legal sense, but I would like to marry you any way I can."

"You're asking me to marry you?" Travis muttered still in disbelief.

"Yeah, I am," Oscar smiled. Travis didn't answer right away. He was in shock. He'd never expected Oscar would ask to marry him so staring at the bracelet right in front of him didn't feel real. But there it was: simple, masculine and unmistakable in its intent. "Travis?" Oscar said, getting really nervous after the long silence.

"Yes," Travis finally answered and came to Oscar to hug him.

"You were scaring me there for a moment," Oscar managed to joke as he hugged Travis back. "I should have done this years ago-"

"It doesn't matter anymore," Travis said. "We're together now and we're getting married now. That's what matters." Oscar hugged Travis a little tighter and they eventually released each other so Oscar could get the bracelet on Travis's left wrist per tradition. "I should make you a matching one."

"Here's hoping your craft skills are better than mine," Oscar said. "I have leftover materials so there's enough to make another one."

"Good. Show me how you did it and I'll make you one," Travis said and stared down at it. He still couldn't believe it, but he was so happy. "When should we go to the tribe and have a moon ceremony? We need to give everyone enough notice to come."

"Would you be mad at me if I said I really don't want a big ceremony? I'd just as soon rather go to Owota and have him perform the marriage rites just you and I."

"Can he do that?"

"He said he could," Oscar said. "We can have a little reception with our friends later."

"Yeah, we'll all need to get dinner together or something," Travis smiled. He started getting watery eyed despite his best efforts and Oscar took Travis in his arms. "I love you, Oscar," Travis said.

"I love you too," Oscar said. "I loved you the moment you sucked my dick in that utility closet." Travis laughed out loud, a few tears finally falling, and hugged Oscar back.

"Always the hopeless romantic," Travis said.

Meanwhile leading up to Christmas same day that Evalynn had flown into Washington, Ivory and Jaedynn flew out that morning for New York. Kevin made the front desk aware and they had a spare key prepared for when Ivory and Jaedynn arrived. They would need to present ID and the front desk would call him for the sake of being thorough. Anatoli drove them to the airport and kissed Ivory goodbye lamenting that Christmas just wouldn't be the same without her and he and Argo would miss her dearly until she returned. Jaedynn advised them to 'get a room' then dragged Ivory into the airport so they could catch their flight. She'd been looking forward to this trip for months and nothing was getting in her way. When they arrived in New York, they got a taxi to take them to Kevin's apartment building where, as previously warned, they were asked to present their IDs to confirm they were both indeed Jaedynn Black and Ivory Dymek and Kevin was called to affirm they could be given the spare key.

"Jesus, does Nixon live here or something?" Jaedynn asked once they'd finally been given access.

"I doubt it; let's just get our things upstairs. I'm beat," Ivory said and they went to the elevator, rode to one of the top floors and let themselves into the apartment. "Look at that view," Ivory said when she saw out the window. Jaedynn dropped her suitcases and ran to the window to get a better look. Central Park was right there covered in snow and there were Christmas lights lining the streets. Every department store they'd passed on the way was decorated for the time and there were carolers everywhere.

"I'm glad we decided to do this for Christmas," Jaedynn said. "We need to go back to see that giant Christmas tree."

"Absolutely," Ivory agreed. "What do you say we stay in tonight, order some food and see if we can find some Christmas movies?"

"Sounds like a dream to me," Jaedynn agreed.

They contacted the front desk to find out about ordering from somewhere and were given the number to a pizza place that evidently a number of residences that lived in that building enjoyed. They placed the order and then ran downstairs to find out where the closest liquor store was. Jaedynn offered to go out to buy some booze while Ivory stayed at the apartment to accept and pay for the pizza once it arrived. Thankfully, there was a liquor store within walking distance so she carefully walked down the road. She arrived and surveyed the space to find the section there the wine was and went straight for it. She stuck with the Rosé knowing that was a wine she and Ivory could agree on and picked one that was inexpensive but looked pretty good. Then, thinking it might be fun to have some mix drinks, Jaedynn started browsing the hard liquors. While she was browsing, she felt someone's eyes on her and looked up to see a man across the aisle from her.

She could tell right away he was Hispanic. He had tan skin, black hair and brown eyes with a square chin and jaw. He had a five o'clock shadow that accentuated his features and when he looked at her, he gave her a charming smile. She blushed and looked away but couldn't resist looking at him again. When she did, he was starting to approach her and she bit her lip a little. Sure, he wasn't her imprint. She didn't feel that pull that she knew was supposed to happen, but this trip wasn't about finding her imprint. And she'd gotten real sick and tired of everyone else finding love and her not even finding some attention. So she stayed put and smiled at him as he approached her. She caught his scent and noticed it was slightly sweet. It wasn't a man's cologne but his own natural scent. He had an air about him that made her tremble as he approached.

"So what are you shopping for?" the man asked. He had a rich voice with a distinct New Yorker's accent and a very handsome smile. "Besides the pink stuff."

"I haven't decided yet," Jaedynn said. "Any suggestions?" His smile broadened as he released a breathy laugh.

"You're not from around here are you?"

"How'd you know?"

"You're accent of course," he said. "So where are you from?"

"Washington State," she answered.

"Oh yeah? And what brings you to the Capital of the World?"

"My sister and I are just vacationing for Christmas," she said.

"Where are you staying?"

"We're staying at my uncle's apartment up the block. We're in the apartment overlooking Central Park."

He whistled, "So you're staying where the fat cats sleep."

"Yeah," Jaedynn giggled, "I guess we are."

"How long are you here for?"

"We're here through Christmas. We'll fly back home on the 27th," Jaedynn said.

"One week isn't enough time to experience all that New York has to offer," he said.

"It'll have to do for now," Jaedynn said. "If we have a good time, I'll probably come back to New York again."

"I'll just need to make sure you have a really good time then," he said and then lifted his hand to her. "Name's Alex Vayez. You?"

"Jaedynn Black," she accepted his hand and they shook.

"Beautiful name," he smiled charmingly. Then he reached into his back pocket to pull out a huge wad of cash that made Jaedynn's eyes go wide. He pulled out a $50 bill and offered it to her. "Drinks are on me. Get some Whiskey, Angora bitters, sweet red vermouth and some maraschino cherries and make yourself a Manhattan. There's a recipe pamphlet up front."

"You don't have to buy my drinks."

"Please, I insist. Consider it a welcoming and a hope that this won't be the last time we see each other," Alex said. Jaedynn timidly accepted the moment and when she looked up at him again, his grin dazzled her again. Then he took out a pen out of the inner pocket of his leather jacket and grabbed Jaedynn's free hand, writing something down. "This is the number to where I'm staying at the moment. Call me tonight?"

"Sure," Jaedynn answered in a daze.

"I can't wait," he smirked. "I'll talk to you tonight, Buttercup."

Just like that, Alex walked away and out of the liquor store. She stared at the number on her hand and felt a rush of excitement. She bought the ingredients he'd recommended along with a little leaflet that had the recipe for a Manhattan cocktail and by the time she returned to the apartment, their pizza had arrived and Ivory already had the TV on. There were no Christmas movies at the moment; it was the news, but commercials promised Christmas movies would begin around five 'for the whole family to enjoy'.

"What did you get?" Ivory asked Jaedynn once she'd returned to the apartment.

"I got us Rosé that I knew we would like and the ingredients for a Manhattan cocktail that were suggested to me," Jaedynn said.

"Wine and cocktails? Sounds like a party to me," Ivory said as she grabbed some wine glasses from the cabinet. When they were setting up, Ivory noticed the writing on Jaedynn's hand and looked at her strangely. "Who's number is that?"

"Just some guy," Jaedynn smiled. "He was the one that recommended I get the ingredients for a Manhattan. He gave me his number and asked me to call him tonight. He's really cute. Alex is his name."

"Jaedynn, we didn't come to New York to chase boys; we came to have a good time," Ivory said.

"Exactly," Jaedynn smiled. "It was nice to be flirted with and I flirted back. Nothing wrong with that, right?"

"I suppose," Ivory said. "Also, I got our luggage put away so once we're too tired to party anymore, we can just plop into bed."

"I like the sound of that," Jaedynn smiled.

The two of them ate their pizza and drank their wine talking and making plans for what they would do. By the time the Christmas movie marathon had begun, they'd found Amber's pitcher and compounded the recipe on the leaflet to make a giant batch of Manhattans that they could pour and share at their leisure. It also got them both very, very inebriated. Jaedynn forgot all about the phone number she'd received and that guy's request that she call that night. By the time they got to bed, it was midnight and they didn't wake up until midday. When they did get out of bed, they both had pounding headaches.

"I think we drank too much," Jaedynn mumbled as she came into the kitchen. Ivory was already brewing coffee.

"Yeah, I'd say that's accurate," she said and groaned. "Will you be mad if I ask that we stay in for the day? Recover from our hangovers?"

"You won't hear a peep of complaint from me," Jaedynn said.

And so the two of them stayed in that day drinking plenty of coffee and nibbling on their leftover pizza from the night before. By the time it was evening, they felt much better and got to bed at a reasonable time. Finally, the next day, they left the apartment and decided they would go on a walk through Central Park. There were bands playing, kids running around in the snow covered head to toe in winter clothes, there were horse drawn buggies and restaurants within the park. It was so relaxing. Despite the bitter cold, the snowfall added to the relaxation and even the blare of car horns from the street couldn't dampen the mood.

"Are you hungry? I can smell a hotdog vendor is near," Ivory said.

"That sounds amazing actually," Jaedynn agreed and they started walking in the direction of the smell. When they reached the vendor, they waited in line to get their share. While they waited, Jaedynn looked around and was surprised when her eyes fell on Alex. He seemed preoccupied with something and she remembered that she'd forgotten to call him. While she lamented, she figured it was probably best not to do anything and returned her eyes forward. That is until she felt like she was being stared at. She lifted her head again and saw that Alex noticed her. He had a straight face and his mouth was a hard line. He must have taken offense that she'd not called him. "I just remembered I didn't call that guy from the liquor store," she said to Ivory.

"What?"

"Remember that guy I told you about from the liquor store? I forgot to call him. I just saw him and I think I hurt his feelings."

"Whatever; we're vacationing remember?"

"You're right," Jaedynn shrugged. Once they finally got their hotdogs, the two of them started walking along at a slow pace while they talked. As they were walking, Jaedynn realized there was a scent of someone behind them that she remembered and as soon as she caught the scent, she felt someone tap her shoulder and she turned around to see Alex. "Hey," she said once she and Ivory turned.

"Who's this?" Ivory asked.

"This is Alex: that guy I told you about," Jaedynn said. "Alex, this is my sister Ivory Dymek. Ivory, this is Alex Vayez."

"Pleasure to meet you," Alex said and that charming smile she'd remembered returned with a vengeance. "I didn't hear from you."

"I know; I'm really sorry. When I got back to the apartment, my sister and I had that whole bottle of Rosé and a pitcher of Manhattans so we were sloshed by the end of the night."

"Oh yeah?" he said with a chuckle. "So that drink I recommended was a rollicking success?"

"Definitely," Jaedynn said. "Yesterday we were so hung over that we just didn't want to do anything but drink coffee and lay around."

"Drinking coffee and laying around are two of my favorite things, so I can't say I blame you," Alex said. "So what's the plan for today?"

"We're just walking around Central Park and then we'll see about going to one of the museums," Ivory said.

"Sounds downright touristy," Alex said. "Make sure you go visit the Statue of Liberty. It's the prettiest useless thing we ever got from the French."

"It's on the agenda," Ivory said with a smile. "Seeing as we're apparently doing 'touristy' things as you put it, do you have any recommendations?"

"Harlem," Alex said. "They've got the best Jazz bars in the city. Great drinks, good music, a banging good time. My favorite spot is called the Sax. It's on Broadway. If you're up for it, I can take you there. New York can be hard to navigate if you're not from around here."

"That actually sounds like fun," Jaedynn said. "What do you say, Ivory?"

"I guess a tour guide might be useful," Ivory said. "Where should we meet and what time?"

"How about in front of your apartment at 7?"

"Sure," Jaedynn said. "We're at the-"

"I remember, you told me," Alex smiled. "Let me give you my number again."

"Thank you. Sorry, it got washed off," Jaedynn said. Alex smiled and pulled a pen out of his leather jacket pocket and took Jaedynn's hand to write his number again. She glanced at it, but it didn't look familiar. "Is this a different number than what you gave me before?"

"I move around a lot," Alex said. "My friends call me the Harlem Drifter. Well ladies, I'll pick you up at 7 tonight."

"Can't wait," Ivory said.

"Good to meet you," he directed at Ivory then looked at Jaedynn, "and good seeing you again, Buttercup," Alex said and then walked away. Once he was gone, Ivory gave Jaedynn a strange look.

"Buttercup?"

Jaedynn shrugged, "Maybe he's just a pet-name kind of guy. This is exciting! A local is showing us a popular bar."

"It certainly makes our trip less 'touristy' I guess," Ivory said. "Well, if you hurt his feelings, he's certainly not showing it."

"That's a relief. He's really cute don't you think?"

"Yeah, he's a looker," Ivory said. "Come on; let's get ourselves a taxi and we'll go to the museum."

They left the park and caught a Taxi who took them to a museum that the driver recommended and the two of them stayed there for several hours. Jaedynn kept an eye on the clock and when it was about five, they left to return to the apartment and get ready. Not wanting to leave their guide waiting too long, Jaedynn made sure they were downstairs by 6:50 and they waited in the lobby of the building until they saw Alex step up to the apartment building and he smiled at Jaedynn as they stepped outside to meet him.

"About time you got out here; I've been waiting out here for hours," he joked.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Jaedynn played along. "So should we call a Taxi?"

"We don't need a Taxi, Buttercup. We can take the subway. Come with me," he said and they followed after him.

He led them to the nearest underground entry to the subway and paid for their tickets. They got on and it was absolutely packed with people. It felt like they were being sandwiched together and Alex was right behind them to 'make sure they don't get pick-pocketed' but he was closest to Jaedynn through the whole ride. Once they reached the appropriate stop, he guided them off the train and back above ground, then guided them down Broadway until they made it to a bar with a big Sax sign on it. They could already hear the music playing and there were people huddled outside having a cigarette and enjoying the cold night air. Alex got them inside, they presented their IDs and found a table once given entry.

"So what can I get you ladies?" Alex asked.

"I'd actually love a margarita," Jaedynn said. "What about you?" she asked Ivory.

"Dirty martini, extra olives, stirred not shaken," Ivory said.

"I like you already," Alex said, "I'll be right back." He stepped away to get the drinks while Ivory and Jaedynn watched the band play. Alex soon returned first with the margarita and martini, then walked away to get his drink returning with a tall glass of beer. "So you're both from Washington right?"

"Born and raised," Jaedynn said, "Ivory lives in Washington now but she grew up in Nevada. She used to work for a casino."

"Sounds like a good time," Alex said. "Me? I'm a born and raised New Yorker. I was born in Brooklyn, quickly realized it was shitty and moved myself to the Island of Manhattan and I've been moving around the island for the past twenty or so years."

"How old are you if you don't mind me asking?" Jaedynn asked.

"I'm twenty eight," he said.

"So you are a half breed then?" Jaedynn asked. "Sorry, I noticed you have a sweet smell," she continued when she noticed he looked surprised for just a moment.

"If by 'half-breed' you mean by birthfather was a vampire, then yes," Alex said. "How do you know about half breeds?"

"We have a number of them in the family," Jaedynn said. "So you've been on your own your whole life?"

"More or less," Alex said. "I mean, I changed my mom to a vampire, but that's about all I changed. By the time I was walking, I was more or less on my own. Call me a regular hood rat," Alex continued with that same charming smile. "So how do you like the music so far?"

"It's strangely chaotic; I like it," Jaedynn said. "So what's wrong with Brooklyn?"

"Everything's wrong with Brooklyn," Alex said. "So on the island, there's no place that's not about a half hour away at most. It's easy to get anywhere you want thanks to the subway. Brooklyn on the other hand? The train to get there's shit and it takes forever. It ain't worth it. if you want New York, you need to be on the island. Anywhere else, you may as well fall off the face of the earth."

"Strong words," Ivory said.

"So you said you're staying at your Uncle's place right? What does he do that he can afford those bigwig apartments overlooking Central Park?"

"He owns a Law Firm. Heidelberg and Black," Jaedynn said. "Their first firm they opened in Seattle and then they expanded their practice to include New York."

"Fancy," Alex said.

"So what do you do for a living?" Ivory asked.

"I work in sales," Alex said. "I don't really have the traditional office job. My work takes me all over the island and I like it that way."

"Sounds exciting," Jaedynn said. "What company do you work for?"

"No one in particular. I do a lot of for hire work."

"So you're a Temp?" Ivory asked, a little confused.

"Oh no, I'm permanent," Alex said. "So Jaedynn, what about you? What do you do?"

"I work as a dispatcher for our tribe's police station," Jaedynn said.

"Your tribe?"

"Yeah, I'm Quileute."

"You're an Indian?"

"Native American, yes," Jaedynn smiled.

"Shit, I would have never guessed. Pale skin like yours, I'd thought you were a white girl," Alex said.

"My birth mother was French and there's British and Scottish on my father's side. Daddy looks distinctly Native American, but when I came out, I was pretty white. I look like my dad, just pale."

"It looks good on you," Alex said flirtatiously. "So do you two have a different mom or something?"

"We all have different moms," Jaedynn said. "When daddy was younger, he was married and had our oldest sister Scarlet. His wife passed away and he traveled, met Ivory's mom and the two of them had her a few years later. He went to Brazil and met Ada, that's his current wife, and she gave him our brothers Ariel and Gabriel, daddy fought during the Second World War, had a one night stand with my mom and when he found out, he helped her get to Washington to give birth to me and she ran off to Canada I think."

"So daddy was a Wanderer I take it?" Alex joked.

"Our dad went through a hard time," Ivory spoke up, not appreciating the implication. "Regardless, we're a tight knit family."

"Wasn't trying to imply you weren't," Alex answered and spoke calmly.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but did you ever know your dad?" Jaedynn asked.

"I knew his name was 'Vayez' and he's from Puerto Rico. That's all I know," Alex said. "Mom's Puerto Rican too. So I'm a Puertorriqueño de Nueva York. The best kind."

"Hablas Español?" Ivory asked.

"Sí, ¿y tú?"

"Un pequeño," Ivory said.

"Hey, don't leave me out, alright?" Jaedynn said. "I might be the only kid in the family that doesn't speak Spanish."

"That's easy to fix," Alex said and even winked at her. "So do you speak French?"

"Not a word," Jaedynn asked with an embarrassed blush. "I speak English and our Native language: Quileute. That's it."

"I don't imagine Quileutes terribly useful outside your tribe," Alex said. The music changed to something slower, so he stood from the table. "So do you dance, Buttercup?"

"Not really," Jaedynn said.

"Make an exception for me?" he asked and held out his hand. She smiled and accepted it, following him onto the dance floor getting lost in the crowd. "This is more like it; just you and me having a good time."

"This is nice," Jaedynn said. "Thanks for taking us here. This bar's really nice. Our cousin Birdie took his wife to New York for their honeymoon. I wonder if he knew about this place. He'd love it."

"Birdie?"

"That's his nickname," Jaedynn said. "His name is Blu Jae but our grandma called him Birdie as a cutesy nickname and it just stuck."

"I get it," Alex said. "So is 'Jae' some kind of language prefix or suffix or something?"

"No," Jaedynn said with a giggle. "You see, our Aunt Natalie was married to a guy name Jae. He and daddy were best friends as kids and they fought together in the War. Jae was killed in the line of action and to honor him, a number of us are named after him. In fact, the day I was conceived was within a week or so of his death I think it was. When daddy found out about me, he felt like it was meant to be and he'd said boy or girl, my name would be Jaedynn. Aunt Natalie named their son Jay Jacob, but that was when Uncle Jae was alive. We have a JJ, me, a Blu Jae, a Jae Sun and our cousin Salem and his wife are having a baby who, if it's a boy, will be named Jae."

"That's a lot of Jae," Alex said, "He must have been one hell of a guy."

"To know Jae was to love him as we're told. I never met him, but I know him by stories alone. Most of us do."

"So how old are you? Twenty something, right?"

"Yeah, I'm 26," Ivory said. "So you were just a kid when the war started right?"

"I was born April 1943," Alex said. "So yeah, the war was ongoing by the time I came around. Not that I'd have joined the army anyway. I never cared for the idea of the army. Having someone tell me what to do, when I can do it – all that shit: it never appealed to me."

"The army offers structure I hear," Jaedynn said. "We have a lot of veterans in the family, so I admit to having a soft spot in my heart for a man in uniform."

"How about a Puerto Rican in leather?" Alex asked and Jaedynn giggled.

"Mr. Vayez, you're trying to seduce me," Jaedynn smiled.

"You caught me," he said. "So long as I'm clear."

"Are you always so forward when seducing a lady?"

"You leave the 27th. I don't have much time to work with. I think you're attractive; so sue me," Alex said.

"I'll get a hold of my uncle and see if I have a case," Jaedynn joked.

"So what do you say we ditch your sister and have a good time?" Alex suggested.

"That would be shamefully rude," Jaedynn said. "This trip is about having a good time together. I can't just abandon her in a strange bar. Maybe we can do something together again? Maybe you can take us on a tour of the Statue of Liberty since you were so kind to suggest it."

"I can arrange that," Alex said. The music picked up and like that, he started spinning her around with him dancing with more enthusiasm. By the time they returned to the table, Ivory was three drinks in and staring at her drink when they approached.

"You two have fun?" Ivory asked once they returned.

"Yeah, Alex is a great dancer," Jaedynn said.

"If I'd have known this would happen, I'd have asked Anatoli to come to New York with us," Ivory said.

"Sorry, Ivory. Did you want to dance with me?" Jaedynn asked. "I can't promise I'll be as good a dance partner but we can have fun."

"Honestly, I've had too much hard liquor to be a coordinated dancer," Ivory said.

"If that's the case, how about you and I just go back out there?" Alex asked Jaedynn. She looked at Alex then looked at Ivory.

"Will you-"

"It's fine: go ahead," Ivory said and waved her hand.

"Good enough for me; come on, I love this song," Alex said and took a hold of Jaedynn back onto the dance floor.

Ivory sighed heavily, crossing her legs and arms as she watched Jaedynn and Alex dance. She was doing her best not to get frustrated. The whole point of them going to New York for Christmas was to help Jaedynn unwind and feel better and so far that had certainly occurred, but Ivory wasn't very happy about being made a third wheel to a guy Jaedynn had literally just met. All the same, it was just one night. After this, she'd thank Alex for showing them a new hangout and that'd be the last they saw of him. She certainly wasn't going to invite him elsewhere; that was for sure. She ended up sitting at the table by herself for another hour watching them dancing or stand around talking. She'd taken a deep breath, feeling like she was at the end of her rope when she'd opened her eyes again only to see Jaedynn and Alex were gone, sending her into a full panic.

After the two of them had danced, they stood by the bar to talk a little more. It was a lot of flirtation combed through asking Jaedynn about herself as well as eagerly making plans for when he'd see her again reminding her that he only had until the 27th. Then he suggested that they go outside for a moment which Jaedynn agreed to, but he didn't take her through the front. He led her through an area that went to the back ally which made her a little nervous.

"So what are we doing out here?" Jaedynn asked, hiding her nervousness and trying to sound relaxed.

"I just wanted some alone time," Alex said. "I didn't really like your sister hovering over us."

"She wasn't hovering," Jaedynn defended, then realized, "Oh God, how long did we leave her at that table?"

"She's alright," Alex said and began to approach her which took Jaedynn by surprise. "Truth is I'm a bit infatuated with you. You're gorgeous, Buttercup."

"That's very sweet of you to say," Jaedynn answered, still extremely ill at ease but relaxing when he'd complimented her. "Maybe we should get back inside."

"In a minute," Alex said and closed the distance to give her a kiss. She gawked wide eyed at him as his lips pressed to hers. She'd not been expecting him to kiss her and now that he was, she wasn't sure how to react. His scent filled her nose and was pleasant and his lips were so warm. How long had it been since she'd been on a date? Kissed a guy? Hell, slept with a guy? She'd still been rationalizing everything in her head when Alex took his lips away and was smirking at her like a boy that had gotten away with doing something bad. "You taste better. Just like the candy," he said.

Jaedynn smiled shyly, "Thank you."

Alex's smile broadened and it gave her butterflies in her stomach. He was so handsome and charming, so when he brought his lips to hers again, she didn't fight him. She didn't even fight him when he started pressing her against the brick wall. He was so gentle at first but it was no time before his kiss became more aggressive, pushing his tongue past her lips and grabbing a hold of her hips. It was thrilling at first, but then she realized where they were and she pressed against his chest. She needed to press against him with more force when he didn't respond at first but he finally did.

"Something wrong, Buttercup?" he asked.

"We shouldn't do this here," Jaedynn said. He looked around to see no one there, but he shrugged and returned his gaze to her.

"I guess it is a little out in the open. I'm staying nearby if you want to go somewhere more private."

"Jaedynn!" Jaedynn jumped when she heard Ivory yell her name and looked to her right to see Ivory approaching from the street. "There you are! You scared the shit out of me!"

"Sorry, Ivory," Jaedynn got out of Alex's arms and approached her sister. "We just came out here for some air is all."

"Don't walk away without telling me, Jaedynn. Seriously," Ivory said and looked at Alex. "Thank you for the good time, but I think we'll get going home."

"Already? The night's still young," Alex said.

"We need to get back," Ivory said. "Come on, Jaedynn. Let's get ourselves a taxi."

"Sure," Jaedynn said and looked back at Alex. "It was good seeing you again."

"Likewise," he said. "You got my number?"

"Yes, I do," Jaedynn said. "I'll call you later, okay?"

"I look forward to it," he said. Ivory pulled Jaedynn with her to the street and waved down a taxi. Once they were inside, Ivory was done being nice.

"Jaedynn, what the hell! First you leave me at the table to drink while you're dancing, then you abandon me in the bar; I don't know where the hell you are! I had to pay for ALL our drinks cause Romeo back there didn't leave them with a card or any money; and that wasn't cheap I'll have you know!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Jaedynn said, trying to calm Ivory down. She reached into her purse to pull out the change from the $50 Alex had given her. "How much was the tab? I'll pay you back."

"I don't want YOU to pay me back; if anyone owes me back, it's him," Ivory said.

"Well, this is the money he gave me, so in effect he is," Jaedynn said.

"Wait, the money he gave you? Jaedynn what the hell are you talking about?!"

"He gave it to me when we were at the liquor store; relax," Jaedynn said.

"No, Jaedynn, I will not relax. You don't seem to realize that when you and that asshole disappeared, he could have run off with you and could fucking murdered you for all I know!"

"I said I'm sorry, Ivory. I didn't mean to scare you," Jaedynn said. Ivory took a deep breath and rubbed her temple.

"It's okay. Just don't do that again, please? You really scared me."

"I'm sorry, Ivory. It won't happen again," Jaedynn said and gave her sister a big hug.

When they finally returned to the apartment and paid for their taxi, the two of them were getting ready for bed. Ivory took a shower first and Jaedynn wrote down the latest number so it wouldn't wash off when she took her shower and put it in her room. Once it was her turn, she showered and eventually the two of them got to bed. Jaedynn waited about an hour before retreating to Kevin's and Amber's bedroom where there was a phone in an effort to have some privacy. She picked up the phone and took it with her to the closet and closed the door behind her. She dialed the number on the paper and waited a moment while it rang.

"¿Órale?" came a woman's voice.

"Hi," Jaedynn said, "Sorry, this is Jaedynn. I'm trying to reach Alex?"

"Hold on," the woman said, there was some Spanish spoken in the background and then on the other end, she heard Alex say, "Finally decided to call me did you?" he said. His voice was sensual and she couldn't help smiling a little.

"Yeah," Jaedynn said, "I wanted to wait until Ivory was asleep. She got really upset about me leaving her especially when she had to pay the tab."

"Tell her I'll pay her back," Alex said. "So listen, when can I take you somewhere? Just the two of us?"

"I don't think I should. When we snuck off, Ivory really got mad at me. I scared her pretty bad; I don't want to do that again," Jaedynn said. "I really just wanted to let you know I had a great time tonight."

"We could have a great time again," Alex said.

"Maybe," Jaedynn blushed. "Your kiss took me by surprise, though."

"Did it?"

"Yeah," Jaedynn said. "I mean….it was nice once the surprise wore off."

"Surprise is the spice of life, Buttercup," Alex said. "So when can I see you?"

"I don't know," Jaedynn said hesitantly. "I know we're definitely going to see the Christmas tree come Christmas Eve. The plan is to go out to dinner and then see the tree."

"It'll be packed," Alex warned. "It'll be hard for me to find you, but I'll try my best."

"Okay," Jaedynn laughed just a little.

"What? You don't think I will? I'll hunt you down, baby," Alex said.

"No need for that," Jaedynn said. "Well, it was really good talking to you."

"Ending the call so soon?"

"Yeah, I should get to bed. And I don't want Ivory catching me on the phone. She's pissed, remember?"

"Fair enough. Sweet dreams, Buttercup," Alex said. Jaedynn rose a brow, realizing he'd not once addressed her by her name.

"What's my name?" she asked and Alex actually laughed a little.

"Jaedynn, baby," Alex said. "Don't worry, I'm not juggling you if that's what you're thinking."

Jaedynn smiled, feeling much better, "Just checking. Good night, Alex."

"Good night, Jaedynn," she said and she put down the phone.

She put the phone back where she'd found it and snuck back to Levi's room where she was sleeping. The next day, the two of them went to another museum and then went to the Macy's to do some shopping. The store was absolutely packed. There was barely any breathing room as they walked through the store and when they finally picked things they wanted to get, they were waiting in the check-out line for about an hour. After leaving Macy's, they went out to eat somewhere and then returned to the apartment to relax. That cycle repeated until it was Friday and Christmas Eve. They stayed in for most of the day until then sun had gone down and made the long walk to the famous Rockefeller Christmas Tree. Again, it was absolutely packed. There were children everywhere, vendors, families, street performers, and everything in between. At one end of the attraction was a giant choir of Christmas Carolers singing O Holy Night when they'd arrived.

"This is so beautiful," Ivory said once they'd gotten as close to the tree as they were going to. They'd bought themselves some hot chocolate and were enjoying that.

"It is," Jaedynn smiled. "If I thought Uncle Kevin would let me, I'd move into his apartment and just live here."

"He'll charge you rent and that man won't let you off easy," Ivory said. "Tomorrow, let's make ourselves some chocolate chip pancakes and eggnog."

"Do you actually have Ariel's recipe?"

"Yes, Jaedynn, I do," Ivory said. "And I'll make it from scratch too."

"In that case, that sounds amazing," Jaedynn smiled. "I was going to say: you were at risk of not getting eggnog this year."

"A catastrophe that will be mercifully avoided," Ivory said. Then she looked her smile and groaned. "God damn it."

"What?" Jaedynn glanced where Ivory was looking at saw Alex walking their way.

"I finally found you," Alex said once he'd approached.

"Good to see you too," Jaedynn said. "So how are you enjoying the tree?"

"Same as I do everywhere. It's there? Good. Time to go home," Alex said and Jaedynn giggled.

"Well, we've never seen it before," Jaedynn said. "I've heard of it but I've never seen it."

"It's a Christmas tree," Alex shrugged. "So how have you enjoyed your first Christmas in New York?"

"Very much, thank you," Jaedynn said. "So are you going to Brooklyn for Christmas?"

"I'd sooner go to Jersey for Christmas," Alex said. "I'll be in Harlem. That's where I'm staying right now."

"Does your mother live with you?" Ivory asked.

"Rita lives wherever she wants to," Alex said.

"Rita?" Ivory asked.

"My mom's name," Alex said.

"You call your mother by her name?" Jaedynn asked, surprised. "That's…interesting."

"Like I said: from the time I was walking, I was more or less on my own," Alex said. "So enough about that. The tree's not doing anything interesting. How about we all go somewhere?"

"That's alright, Alex. We'll stick around and enjoy the Christmas tree," Ivory said. "Thank you for the invitation, though."

"Any time," Alex said and walked a little closer. He was close enough that he was able to slip something in Jaedynn's coat pocket and he grinned at her. "Nice to see you again, Buttercup." Then he walked away.

"That was weird," Ivory said once Alex was finally gone. "What did he mean 'I finally found you'? How did he know we were going to be here?"

"I'm sure he was here for the same reason everyone else was," Jaedynn said, omitting the fact that she'd called him. Whatever he'd given her was burning a hole in her pocket and she wanted to look at it so badly, but she didn't. If she looked now, Ivory might see it and she could tell Ivory wasn't very fond of Alex. "Let's find those Christmas Carolers and enjoy the music. I love this song," she said, referring to We Three Kings which the choir was now singing.

"Sure," Ivory said and they walked around through the crowd to the carolers.

Eventually, they decided to go home and made the long walk back to the apartment. Ivory was desperate for a hot shower and retreated to the bathroom shortly after they'd returned home. While she was alone, Jaedynn pulled out the note Alex had given her and unfolded it to see the message:

"I will be at the entrance of your building at Midnight.

See you then Buttercup"

Jaedynn gawked at the note and then at the clock. It was still eight. It was so brazen and presumptuous that he'd assume she'd just go down to meet him. She almost determined for that alone she would not meet him. Then she got curious. She could always demand to know what he wanted, right? They'd be in front of the building, so all she needed to do was tell him to leave and go back inside. The doorman wouldn't let him into the building after all. When she heard Ivory open the door to the bathroom, Jaedynn shoved the note into her pocket and they enjoyed the night until going to bed.

Jaedynn listened for when Ivory was asleep and when it was 11:30, Jaedynn got herself dolled up as quietly as she could and into something warm, but simple. She made sure she was as quiet as possible and then left the apartment, again, being quiet as possible. She took the elevator downstairs and realized she was feeling really nervous. Her heart was racing and she was thinking about their kiss. It had definitely come out of nowhere, but it had felt so nice. She'd spent so much time deciding, 'I will have my imprint or I will have no one' that she'd never really entertained anyone's advances. Now that she was, it was exciting. Just because she wanted her imprint didn't mean she couldn't have fun right? She'd done that enough in High School; why not now? When she made it downstairs, it was 11:50, but she could already see Alex outside waiting and she stepped outside to meet him. He smiled at her and she licked her lips, feeling the excitement.

"Hey," Jaedynn said.

"Hey," Alex said and walked a little closer. "I believe I owe you a trip to the Statue of Liberty."

"Would it be open to the public at this hour?"

"I'll take care of it," Alex winked and took a hold of her hand. "Shall we go?" Jaedynn hesitated. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know….we barely know each other. And I'm in a strange city. Maybe we should stay close," Jaedynn said.

"I see," Alex said. "You're scared I'm a killer or something."

"It's not….well…"

"Hey, no offense," Alex said and leaned down, "For the record, you're perfectly safe with me. So what do you say? Come with me to pay respect to Lady Liberty."

Jaedynn gently bit her bottom lip and then finally smiled, "Okay."

"Perfect," he said and then led her with him to the subway.

It took them less than a half hour despite their next stop being clear on the other side of Manhattan. The ferries that went to Liberty Island were closed, but Alex already had a little boat ready for them. It was a teeny tiny row boat, purely for practical use. He got them to the statue and they snuck around until Alex was able to break in.

"Should we really be doing this?" Jaedynn asked as he was picking a lock.

"It's okay; we aren't stealing anything. Just taking advantage of their down time," Alex said.

The elevators were operational, but if they used them, security would catch them, so Alex got them into the stairwell and they made the grueling climb up to the crown. It took almost as long to climb the stairs as it did to take the subway to the other side of the island and by the time they got to the top, Jaedynn was absolutely exhausted. But when she was able to look around taking in the view from the window, it all felt worth it. It was extremely cramped. There was a curve of windows that looked out onto the harbor and the city. One couldn't fit more than maybe a family of five in this spot but since it was just her and Alex, it wasn't so bad. But from this view looking at the city, she could see all the lights that were shining and the buildings all looked like shining jewels. It was breathtaking.

"Didn't I tell you it's a spectacular view?" Alex said, walking up behind her.

"It really is," Jaedynn said. "Almost makes climbing all those fucking stairs worth it."

"It's only 365 steps, calm down," Alex chuckled. "You know, I've been to the top of this bitch hundreds of times, but the view has never been this breathtaking."

"I guess seeing it at night when no one's here makes it extra beautiful," Jaedynn said.

"I was referring to your inclusion to the view," Alex said and Jaedynn blushed. Then he stepped up behind her and put his hands on her hips. She felt her heart start pounding again and then she felt his lips lower to her neck. Jaedynn felt herself become putty in his hands and she wasn't entirely sure she disliked it. "God, you smell good," he said between plants of kisses, "you smell so woodsy."

"Thank you," Jaedynn said. "I hope you're not planning to bite me and drink my blood."

"I already drank," Alex said and trailed his tongue along her neck, "I have not, however, eaten anything and I'm craving buttercups."

"You're so cheesy," Jaedynn giggled both from what he said and the feel of him tickling her neck while also pleasuring her. His hands came forward to start unbuttoning her winter coat and once that was unbuttoned, he grabbed the hem of her sweater and lifted it up so all that was left was her bra. "Alex," she started.

"It's alright," he whispered. "No one will catch us."

He then pushed a hand into the cup of her bra to touch her breast while his other hand started unbuttoning and unzipping her jeans. His hand dipped down into her jeans and Jaedynn was torn between the arousal of what they were doing and feeling like this was going too fast. But his lips felt so good and when his fingers started to touch her intimately, it felt even better.

She eventually realized and managed to say, "Alex, stop. I didn't bring anything to.."

"I've got condoms, it's fine," Alex said and just like that, he slipped his fingers inside her making her whimper.

The desperation she'd heard in his voice passed away from her mind and she laid her head back against his shoulder while he continued touching her. Deciding she would just enjoy this, she reached behind her so she could touch him as he touched her and before she knew it, he'd forced her jeans and panties down, undid his own jeans, she heard a wrapper being torn open and like that, he had her holding onto the rails around the windows while he was thrusting into her over and over. It had been so long since she'd been with anyone and he was tending to her needs touching between her legs from time to time to keep her climbing closer and closer but as slowly as possible until she felt an intense implosion. Her body shook and she cried out with pleasure and Alex wasn't far behind. He grabbed a fist full of her hair which took her out of the moment almost as quickly as it happened and grabbed his hand trying to soften the grip as he climbed to his own climax. He reached it but didn't immediately release his hold on her hair.

"Alex," she said, "you're pulling my hair too hard." He released her at last and she got her hands back against the glass to get herself stable again. She stood back up, got all her clothes returned to their proper place as did Alex and when she was no longer panting she said, "That was exciting."

"The best view I've had from the crown," Alex smirked.

"I'd better get back before Ivory wakes up and sees that I'm not home," Jaedynn said.

"I'll get you back to Manhattan," Alex said and they made the slightly less tiresome but no less time consuming climb down the statue making sure to avoid detection and Alex brought them back to the island in the boat he'd procured.

Once they were back, they got on the subway and it was no longer completely packed. There were homeless people sleeping on the seats, people with late night jobs, but it was open enough that most could get seating. Ivory groaned a little when she finally saw a clock and realized it was almost five in the morning by the time they'd gotten on the subway. Once they were finally back at the apartment, Alex was still holding her hand and stopped her from getting into the building by keeping a hold of her hand.

"Do you suppose I could see you before you leave?" Alex said.

"Not like this," Jaedynn said. "I suspect tomorrow Ivory and I will just want to stay in and get our things packed and then on Monday we're flying back to Washington."

"Well," Alex said and brought his face closer to hers, "I had a great time, Buttercup. What time will you be back in Washington?"

"Um…probably by the afternoon some time. Why?"

"I was hoping maybe you could call me. Let me know you got home safe."

"Alex…..I mean, I guess so but…I'm not really in the market for a long distance relationship. Tonight was a lot of fun, but once I'm home, it'll be back to business as usual."

"Do you really want business as usual?" Alex asked. The honest answer was no and he seemed to be able to tell that's what she felt. "The number I gave you will be good through New Year's. Call me Monday evening at 10."

"Eastern or Western time? There's a 2 hour difference."

"My time," Alex said and then pressed another kiss to her lips. "I'll wait to hear from you Buttercup. And Marry Christmas."

He finally let go of her hand and walked away leaving her in front of the apartment building. She smiled a little with the excitement of it all. He was right: she was tired of business as usual. 'Business as usual' had left her sitting around while everyone around her met the loves of their lives. He wasn't her imprint but at this point? She didn't care. What was the harm in calling him? What was the harm in having a long distance boyfriend? It would last a few months at best before they ended things most likely due to the distance and she'd be left with a fond memory of a one night stand atop the crown of Lady Liberty. In her mind, that wasn't half bad. So she went back into the apartment with a little spring in her step and managed to get back before Ivory work and they began their planned Christmas morning of chocolate chip pancakes, eggnog and Christmas movies.