Kiss Me Tenderly

Today was the day.
Alex was all of a flutter: rushing around the house, straightening pictures, running damp rags over every surface prodding the children to pick up their play clothes and coloring books.
Zack was finally in town.
And he was coming over to our house.
Tomorrow.
Alex had finally told me the story behind him and Zack, during the quiet, wee hours of the morning we had alone together.They had grown up as next door neighbors in England and when Alex moved here to Maryland when he was eight, they kept in contact and Zack would even spend every summer with the Gaskarths. This continued until Zack began his studies at uni and they gradually lost contact, both because of distance, other responsibilities, and of course, Alex’s toxic relationship with Nick.
Last week was the one of first times they had spoken in over two and a half years.
I endured the nervous cleaning patiently, assisting in scrubbing the house from top to bottom, doing everything Alex requested of me, thought I was apprehensive.
What if he doesn’t like me?
Would he try to break us up if he really doesn’t like me?
And then I remembered something I had been desperately trying to forget: we were going to meet at Alex’s parents for dinner.
Alex’s parents
Fuck me.
That brought up a whole different host of questions.
What if they don’t like me?
What if they don’t like my girls?
What will happen?
What if?...
I knew I was being silly, Alex had reassured me that his parents, Peter and Isobel, loved everyone and trusted him not to bring crazy axe wielding murderers to dinner. But this didn’t stop me from sweating bullets as I straightened the purple tie I spent ten minutes fumbling with in nervous anticipation. I looked at myself in the mirror and sighed, brushing my black and blonde streaked hair up out of my face.
Suddenly, I could feel arms encircling my waist, a chin on my shoulder, could hear Alex’s voice in my ear.
“Hey, handsome,” he breathed, smiling at me in the mirror as he kissed behind my ear. “Ready to go?”
Turning around, I gathered him in my arms, kissing him on the forehead. “As ready as I’ll ever be. Are the kids ready?” My eyes lingered on his appearance: he was wearing a simple white dress shirt, the same as I was, a red bow tie, and dark jeans. His eyes glowed a burnt caramel underneath his fringe of hair that he had redyed dark brown. I sighed in my head; he looked amazing and I told him so.
Alex grinned up at me mischievously. “Kids?” he called down the hallway.
Three little heads popped around the doorway. “Yeah?” they chorused.
“Come show us what you look like, guys, don’t be shy,” he laughed, beckoning them to come around the corner.
Cautiously, they stepped around the corner and I could feel myself about to cry at how adorable they looked. Somehow, Alex had, without my knowledge, gotten Sassy, Missy, and Owen all to wear slightly formal-ish clothes. Sassy wore a red fluffy dress covered in sparkles, a red bow holding her black hair back, like a bird about to take flight. Missy was wearing a similar outfit, just in ocean blue. Owen, I thought, looked just adorable in a little pink tuxedo. I looked down at Alex, cocking an eyebrow.
He shrugged, lips curling up in a smile. “I wanted them to look nice and Owen wanted to wear a pink tux,” he said offhandedly. Love welled up in me, making me feel like I was going to fly right off the ground.
Would he ever cease to amaze me?
I released Alex after giving him another peck to the cheek and knelt to the ground, gathering the kids in my arms. “You guys look so cute,” I grinned, squeezing them to me, feeling three little arms wind their way around my neck. I kissed the top of their heads before letting go.
“You look nice too, Daddy,” Sassy looked up at me with shining eyes, hand clamped on my black dress pants. Owen and Missy both nodded furiously, voicing their opinions on how we were dressed.
“Thanks, little angel,” I said, taking her hand and looking over at Alex.
“Let’s go.”
----------------------------------
I turned off the ignition and took in a shaky breath. We were sitting outside of a beautiful home, lush green lawn, crawling ivy on the brick work, little windows peeping out, there was even a little turret attached to the home. Flowers bloomed underneath the windows and the gate that fenced the property looked rustic and charming.
Alex looked at me anxiously, no doubt worried that I wouldn’t like the home he grew up in. My fingers found his over the console and I squeezed our palms together, giving him a shaky smile, trying to both reassure him and myself.
Breathing in deeply, I gripped at Alex’s hand to steady myself and turned to the backseat. All three children were seated quietly in their booster seats, their eyes wide.
“Sassy, Missy, remember to mind your manners, okay? Don’t go running around, don’t be loud, and don’t pull the dog’s tail, okay?” I went over basic rules with them, the two girls nodding along. “And when you say hello, say ‘Hello, Mr. Gaskarth. Hello, Mrs. Gaskarth.’ Okay?”
Sassy and Missy agreed and each held out a pinky. A smile spread across my face and we all hooked pinkies. I felt a soft touch on my elbow and looked over to see Alex, also smiling at us.
“Let’s go inside?” He suggested, the passenger door already clicking open.
Another shaky breath.
“Let’s do this.”
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Alex’s fingers squeezed in mine, silently reminding me to breath as his free hand reached out into the void and rang the door bell.
A second passed.
A dog could be heard barking a long ways off, a shushing, and the sound of two pairs of footsteps drew nearer to the door.
And nearer.
And nearer.
Light flooded the front porch and I caught the silhouette of a man and a woman. The woman, who I was assuming was Isobel, starting talking happily.
“Hi guys! Wow, look at all of you! Alex, what have you done to your hair this time?” Without waiting for an answer from her son, Isobel plowed on merrily. “Owen, my favorite grandson, you look so cute! Who dressed you?”
As his wife cooed over Owen and his continually reddening face, Peter smiled at me and offered me his hand.
“Peter Gaskarth, hi, nice to meet you. You’re Jack?”
I shook his hand, his grip firm in my shaky one. “Yes, I’m Jack Barakat. It’s so nice to finally meet you,” I offered a smile, albeit a scared looking one. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest and hoped to god that they couldn’t hear it. Thankfully, the only one who could hear it was me.
By the time I got over my little panic attack over whether or not Alex’s parents could sense nervousness, Isobel had straightened up and now, her smile was aimed at me.
“You must be the boy Alex won’t shut up about, Jack!” She thrust her hand out to me. “Isobel Gaskarth, so glad that Alex has finally settled down with someone he really likes.” Now it was Alex’s turn to blush as Isobel and I shook hands.
“Moommm,” he complained, practically cringing with embarassment.
“Don’t be silly, Alex, you talk about him so much, I was getting curiouser and curiouser,” she scolded, wagging a finger at him, a smile still on her face. Her eyes lit on Sassy and Missy, brightening like she had just noticed them. “And who might these two pretty little girls be?” Isobel crouched down to a five year olds height, looking from one twin to the next.
I placed a hand on each twin’s shoulder; I could tell they were nervous about meeting new people.
“These are my beautiful daughters, Sassacaia and Elliot, but they prefer to be called Sassy and Missy, respectively,” I told them, seeing both Peter and Isobel’s eyes crinkle up at the corners in amusement.
Sassy, true to her name, stuck out a little hand and I saw what looked like sparkly nail polish smudged on her nails. “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Gaskarth, I’m Sassy, I’m the big twin,” she announced proudly. Everyone laughed and Isobel took her small hand in hers, shaking it.
Not wanting to be left out, Missy put her own little hand out too, announcing that she was the little twin. More laughter. Peter had taken Missy’s hand to shake and both girls looked up for my approval. I nodded and gave a silent smile to tell them they had done well. Their smiles stretched across their faces and I laughed to myself. They were such Daddy’s girls.
“Shall we go inside then?” Alex’s voice broke in and I shook myself out of my stupor.
“Of course, of course, c’mon in guys! Oh, and Jack, Sassy, Missy, please, call us Peter and Isobel,” she smiled at us, gesturing us to follow Peter into the home.
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We had finished a delicious dinner cooked by Isobel and the kids were playing in the living room with the Cocker Spaniel named Daisy, leaving the grown ups to their own devices. I was in the kitchen with Alex, Peter, and Isobel, helping Isobel with the dishes even though she insisted that she had it under control. I insisted that I help, otherwise I would feel bad and she laughed and congratulated Alex on bringing home such a nice boy. It was now my turn to turn crimson but Alex nudged me with his hip in a silent ‘I told you they’d like you’ sort of way. I nudged back, pressing a swift kiss to his hair before rolling up my sleeves to get on the task of the dishes. The air in the rather homey kitchen was soon filled with talk about how our kids got along, how the living arrangements were. Alex eventually snuck his hand into my pocket to retrieve my phone so the grandparents could aw over Owen in a dress and tie.
Alex had just gotten to the pictures we had sneakily taken of each other doing things like playing with the kids – supplemented by his own store of pictures on his phone – when the doorbell rang.
Isobel frowned. “Who in the world could that be? I don’t think we’re expecting anyone this late,” she muttered, already moving to answer the door, her husband not far behind. I continued drying the dishes and Alex continued scrolling through library, chuckling at one every so often.
I could hear the click of the door.
A gasp.
Laughter.
A deep voice. “Hello, Isobel. It’s nice to see you again.” More light laughter.
The reaction was instantaneous and predictable. Alex’s head jerked up and his eyes lit up like fucking Christmas, hands almost dropping the phones in surprise.
“Zack!” both he and Isobel squealed at almost the same moment and in a flash, my boyfriend had disppeared out of the kitchen, leaving the smell of his cologne lingering, the phone’s abandoned on the tiled counter.
I sighed, setting the last dish down on the rack, along with the damp dish towel. A surge of almost jealousy surged up, making my throat swell in a ghost of anger but I swallowed it down. The taste of salt was harder to get rid of and I quickly reached for a glass to fill with tap water so I could wash the offending taste down. I quickly gulped down the liquid, felt it slide down my throat, soothing, and I leaned against the counter for support, staring up at the ceiling, needing a moment to gather my thoughts.
I will not be jealous. I will be a good boyfriend. I will be a good boyfriend.
And with that in mind, I took a deep breath in through my nose and made my way to the front hallway to meet the ever elusive ‘Zack’.