Family Ties
Soren sat on the spacious couch that provided the main seating for the living area. He was staring at his email inbox, as if he was willing incoming mail to come faster than the senders could write it. He was sitting like this for about fifteen minutes already. Nothing could distract him. Not games, reading, music, nothing. All he could think about was that incoming email.
Eli came up behind him without making a sound. He gently reached out his hands and placed them on Soren's silver shoulders. "Are you ok, Soren? You've been staring at that screen for ages."
Soren sighed. "Aunt Aly emailed me. She was released from treatment this week."
"After seven months? She fought it off fast," said Eli. He vaulted over the back of the couch and hugged Soren, resting his muzzle on Soren's shoulder.
Soren smiled. "They found it early, and she reacted well to treatment. For now she's a survivor, but they want to check up on her monthly for a while, as it's likely to come back again. I don't blame them. I'd say it's too good to be true, but I'm not complaining." At that point he heard the bing on his laptop, alerting him of new mail. He opened it eagerly, his eyes flicking through the text. He let Eli read it. It wasn't anything too personal. "Do we have any plans this weekend?"
Eli shook his head. "It's fine if you go up there this Saturday. I've got nothing either. You want company?"
Soren thought about it. "I think I'll go this alone. Aly wouldn't mind, but if we ran into... someone else... things could get more complicated than they already are. Sorry."
Eli nodded. Soren felt that Eli knew who he meant by "someone else." Soren check his watch. It was half past seven. He closed his computer and unwrapped himself around Eli. "I better get started on cooking then. I wanna leave early tomorrow." Eli raised an eyebrow quizzically. "I think the reason Aly let me stay with her so long is because she loved my cooking. I thought I would bring some meals for her to make her life easier for a bit."
Eli brought over the recipe box and flicked through them with Soren, helping him make decisions based on what they both liked. They went for Jeanne's meatloaf, the maple sweet potatoes from thanksgiving, lemon garlic chicken, a jar of Soren's homemade red sauce, Soren's favorite lemon-chocolate marble cake, and ingredients for his chocolate fondue mix. Eli then dug through the spacious fridge to see if all the ingredients were there. Laying them on the counter, Soren dug through them. "We're short on butter and ground beef. Also I need another lemon," said Soren as he went through his mental checklist. "Can you grab those while I get started?"
Eli threw on his jacket and was out the door in no time. Soren took his grandma's chef knife, trimmer, and paring knife and set the vegetables aside. He figured he'd start prepping the red sauce. Washing all the vegetables, he began peeling and seeding the tomatoes, throwing the flesh into a bowl, ready to be smashed. He then diced carrots, peppers, garlic and grape tomatoes and set them aside to be mixed in. smashing the tomatoes together to create a fine paste. Mixing all of it together with olive oil and water, he gave it all a thorough stirring before sealing it in a glass jar.
The chicken was easy. He took four chicken breasts and laid them in a pan with washed and trimmed green beans and red potato slices. Juicing the lemon into a bowl of olive oil, he mixed in black peppers, the more of his minced garlic, a bit of salt, and then covered it all with zest from the juiced lemon. He covered the pan and wrote instructions on the tin foil for how to cook it.
Soren then started on the sweet potatoes. He prepped the potatoes and got the ingredients for the sauce together, but Aly would have to heat it up on her stove for the best results. It only took a minute or two anyway.
Eli was back by now. He laid the lemon and ground beef on the counter. "Any way I can help."
Soren knew this was tempting fate, but he nodded his head. He handed Eli the cheese grater and the lemon. "Zest this and then slice it into rings. Keep the zest aside and slip the rings inside the chicken pan."
Soren went to start the fondue mix. He took his enormous slab of milk chocolate that he kept in the freezer and broke off numerous pieces. He then found his dark baking chocolate and took a few pieces of that as well. Taking an 8 ounce carton of heavy cream, he threw the chunks in a bag along with instructions on how to melt the chocolate. Soren also included numerous pre-cut strawberries, bananas, and a bag of marshmallows. All Aly needed to do now was melt it together and the fondue would be ready.
Eli was now done with the lemon by now. "Should I get the ingredients out for the cake?"
Soren nodded. Now it was time for the meatloaf. Mincing onions, celery, garlic, peppers, and carrots, he smashed them I with eggs and the ground beef, mixing bread crumbs in liberally as well as ketchup. Packing it thickly into a pan, he covered it with foil and wrote instructions on top, like he did with the chicken.
Now for the best part, the cake. "Eli, sift the flour and stuff for me," said Soren. That wasn't something that even Eli could mess up... he hoped. He watched carefully to see if Eli took the time to measure properly. Sometimes Eli forgot the difference between cooking and baking. Cooking was art, with endless variations and permutations of a single recipe, all with the potential to improve it. Baking was science. If you failed to heed the instructions, be prepared for disastrous results.
Soren preheated the oven, then stirred together cocoa, sugar, some baking soda, and some water. Eli successfully sifted the dry ingredients, so Soren could mix them with sum creamed butter and add the eggs. He put about 2/3 of the batter in a bowl to be mixed with lemon zest, and the rest to be mixed with the cocoa. A quick mix later and the lemon and chocolate batters were ready. Eli helped Soren put the two batters together in segments. Soren handed a butter knife to Eli. "Alright mister painter, use this to make a pattern in the batter."
Soren smiled as Eli happily got to work, creating an elegant vortex pattern within the yellow and black-brown batters. It didn't take him long to be done. Soren put the cake in the oven and started cleanup with Eli. Both of them enjoyed a couple of licks of cake batter off the mixer. It didn't matter that both of them were in their twenties, when Soren baked, neither of them could resist. "I hope you can fend for yourself for a day or two. I'd hate to see the building burned down when I get back."
Eli lightly punched him in the shoulder. "I'm not that bad. But I can deal with it." With nothing left to do but wait for the cake, the two foxes washed their hands and cuddled on the couch for a while, entwining both their bodies and their tails around each other. Eli smelled like the lemons he was working with. It mixed well with the citrus-chocolate odors wafting from the oven as well as the natural sweetness of his body. They lay there in silence for a while, basking in each others presence. "How long do you think you'll be gone," asked Eli. "And when do you need to leave?"
Soren stroked Eli's beige arm. "Not too long. Just a day and a half. I should leave by nine-ish. It's a long drive and I don't wanna show up too late. I might even drive back on the same day if I feel up to it. I'd hate to trespass on her hospitality."
Eli kissed Soren on the cheek. "Don't run yourself into the ground. Try to sleep there if you can. I don't mind if you're gone. That's at least sixteen hours round trip." Eli rolled away from Soren so that he could check the oven.
Soren got up. The cake was perfect. He put all the food into two coolers and threw them into the fridge to chill. He checked the clock. It was 9:30 already. He had a habit of oversleeping on weekends, so it would probably be best to go to bed soon. He kissed Eli on the cheek. "I'm going to bed now. I've got a long drive tomorrow." Returning to the bedroom, he set his alarm for 8:00 and got into bed. Eli wasn't far behind, and Soren smiled as Eli wrapped him slim body around him.
Eli got up with Soren. He said he wanted to finish off some paintings and then meet some friends for lunch somewhere, but Soren had a feeling he just wanted to see him off. Soren cooked them breakfast then grabbed his coolers and a backpack with a change of clothes. Eli got him his jacket and keys, and gave him a long goodbye kiss. Soren savored that kiss as Eli ran his hands down his back. It was a much better pick-me-up than the morning coffee. "Have a safe trip."
"Thanks, Eli," said Soren with a smile. He kissed him again on the cheek and turned to leave. "See you sometime tomorrow."
The drive was uneventful, but long. The back of Soren's little blue car was filled with empty soda bottles. There was something about distance driving that made him incredibly thirsty and worn. He was still listening to swing music, even after that competition. It was almost addicting. Not that he minded at all.
It was approaching 4:00 as he pulled into the little town of Lassaire. Soren realized how long it had been since he had been back. It was getting close to five years. Aunt Aly had been in Kansas while he was staying with her, and moved back to Wisconsin for a new job. It also made visitation a lot easier. She had gotten divorced from his Uncle Alexander, but that was probably all for the best. They were cordial with each other now, but living together was a bit too... intense for them both to be healthy. Also, if they had been together when Soren was searching for help, Alexander might not have tolerated Soren.
Soren pulled automatically up to the cul-de-sac where Aunt Aly lived, and was about to get out of his car when he noticed something odd. There were a lot of cars parked around here. And he knew those cars. One of them belonged to his parents, there was even that little ding that Chris put in the bumper when learning to drive. Soren quickly restarted his car and pulled up and around the corner. Parking two blocks down, he whipped out his phone and sent Aly a quick text. "the party time was moved?"
Soren waited a few minutes and his phone buzzed. "Sorry. It was last minute. Please come back around 11. I'll make sure they all leave. I'm so sorry, but please don't come now." Soren ground his teeth in frustration. He wasn't mad at Aly, but at his own family's petty intolerance. If he walked in now, chaos would erupt. Violently so.
He decided to send Eli a text. "What's Sasha's new address?" Once again, it didn't take long for a reply. Soren drove off. It was across town, but that was hardly a distance in this po-dunk Milwaukee suburb. Soren soon arrived at a slightly shabby looking apartment complex. He climbed to the third floor and knocked on door 7.
After a few minutes that felt like hours, a lithe and graceful Linoone opened the door. Her mouth fell into a surprised "o" as her eyes widened. Soren hugged her, as Sasha's own hands were covered in clay.
"Come inside, please," said Sasha. She made to wash her hands, but Soren stopped her.
"If you are in the middle of a project, finish that first," said Soren. "Eli hates to leave stuff half done, and I can assume you are the same way." Soren followed Sasha into a small room that smelled pleasantly of ceramic and clay. "It's good to see you again."
Sasha began to work at the pottery wheel again. "What brings you here. We haven't had a proper talk in ages."
"I'm sorry about that," said Soren. He frowned and looked down. "There... there was a lot of shit that went down on my last semester."
Sasha nodded coldly. "I overheard when I came home. Chris was talking to a friend."
"They were that public about it," said Soren in amazement. "I'd think they would have kept it deadly secret."
Sasha had a cold glint in her eye. "From what I hear they seem to be proud of hating you. I'm surprised you kept it hidden for so long. I figured you out long before you told me. And Di and Danny had figured you out before you started dating Milo."
Soren smiled. "I can't thank you enough for that. Being with him made me really happy. Even if it did end... poorly."
Sasha nodded. "But why'd you lose touch? We only really started talking again a few months ago."
Soren looked down. "Well, I was hoping to go to grad school, but my parents stopped any plans of that. And being home... shit, it was just like I had just told them that i stopped believing in god again. They treated me like... like I was sick or something. I had to get away from that. And once I got my lab job, I was working my ass off trying to get enough money to not have to sleep on Aly's couch. I just sort of forgot about everything. I'm really sorry. That's no way to treat a best friend."
Sasha smiled. "I get it. You should have asked me. We would have taken you." To Soren's relief she didn't sound angry at all.
Soren frowned a bit. "The whole thing felt so raw and personal. I didn't want to drag your family into my family's convoluted and idiotic politics. The whole thing was an ordeal, even if we didn't like each other much in the first place."
Sasha nodded gravely. "How's Eli?"
Soren lit up a bit. "He's great. His painting has taken off like a rocket. If you get the time you should come visit us."
Sasha laughed. "More like if I get the cash. Gas aint cheap. I'm not doing too well right now. I just managed to get a job for my sculpting. For a while I was getting by as a waitress. But enough about me. What's dating him like? I'm surprised you didn't catch on about him until a while ago."
Soren scratched the back of his head. "It's nice. I kinda guessed, but I didn't wanna make assumptions. Besides, you know I get really anxious at the thought of asking someone out. He's really sweet, though. I went to his place for Thanksgiving. His whole family treated me like one of them. It felt really good. I also got to show off my cooking a bit, which was fun."
Sasha grinned again, but this time mischievously. "I heard your relationship started off with a bang."
Soren blushed visibly. "Eli's quite the little gossip isn't he... when did he tell you that?"
"When you started dating," said Sasha. "He'd been crushing on you for ages. You can be so oblivious Soren." She paused for a minute to reshape the pot she was working with. "Was it good?"
Soren almost fell off his stool in surprise. He rebalanced himself, blushing even more visibly. He had never talked about sex with anyone other than Eli. He smiled awkwardly. "Yeah... we were both kinda drunk though. We probably would never have started dating if we weren't celebrating his first auction. But sex with Eli is just sort of an added benefit of dating him. I just love to be around him."
Sasha peered around the pot and looked at Soren. "I know you were both drunk. He told me. I don't believe it. When did you start breaking your 'two drinks' rule?"
Soren laughed. "Just the once. We both got carried away. I'm glad we did though."
Sasha shook her head and giggled as she finished the pot she was working on. "Well, I'm glad for you. From what I hear you're both really happy."
Soren smiled but scratched the back of his head, "You wanna go to dinner? My treat."
Sasha smiled as she washed her hands. "Can we go to Rosie's place? I just feel like pub'n'grub tonight. I love their burgers."
Soren nodded. Red Rosie's Garden was a favorite haunt of his when he was dating Milo. Just far enough from town that it wasn't a long drive, but people from their school wouldn't be there. He wondered if Sasha remembered this. Of course she did. She drove them there half the time. "I'll drive."
Red Rosie's was about 10 miles from downtown Lassaire. It didn't take long to get to the little pub. Not that it mattered. Soren had time to kill. They slipped into the red velvet seats of a small booth. A Roserade bartender waved at both of them. "Long time no see," she smiled.
Soren and Sasha didn't even need menus. Rosie sat down with some waters and a note book. "Soren it's been too long. It's been at least 3 or 4 years. What's going on? I've heard some awful things. Stop me if I am asking too much."
Soren shook his head. "I don't have a home here anymore. That's all. I came to visit some people." Soren knew that Rosie knew he was gay. Hell, she sat and chatted with him and Milo when things got slow. "My family didn't take my coming out too well," he said with a cold smile.
Rosie frowned. "That's not fair. I've heard them say terrible things. I knew none of it was true. Whatcha want sweetie?"
Sasha and Soren both ordered the Western Burger and fires. Sasha went for a red wine, but Soren just ordered a coke.
Soren took a sip of his water and turned back to Sasha. "How's life in this little town. It looks like it was built up a bit."
Sasha nodded. "Some new businesses managed to open up. Mostly large chains though. Champ's hardware store went under. A home depot ran him out of business."
Soren frowned at this. They were a bit pricey, but the service was wonderful, not to mention that Champ himself was one of nicest fellows you'd ever meet. "Are there any people still around from High School?"
Sasha stirred the ice in her water. "Most of them actually. A lot of them are having kids." she listed numerous names.
Soren raised an eyebrow. "Owen? That big brute of an Exploud having kids? That's just weird. And with that little Flaffy, Maya? What a weird couple."
Sasha sighed. "Yeah. It seems most of our class ended up back here. It's like this town is a black hole. I wanna get out, but I don't have the money right now."
Soren thought of his family, all concentrated near this little town. He didn't blame her for wanting to leave. "How's your sculpting?"
"Bad," groaned Sasha. "No one wants to showcase my artsy stuff, so I just make shitty pots for a souvenir shop to get by. I still need to keep my waitress job for a while to put some more money in the bank, and maybe I can get the hell out of here."
Soren frowned. "I'll have Eli talk to Vincent. Vincent knows everyone in the art world it seems. Maybe he can find someone who can get your foot in the door."
Sasha smiled. "That's sweet. I hope you're right."
The food came, and they sat there, their conversations coming and going in odd stints. The hours ticked by, but at 9:00, Sasha said she needed to get going. Soren drove them home. Hugging Sasha goodbye, he returned to his car. He still had over an hour to just wait. He ended up driving to Aly's place and skulking, waiting for the cars to leave.
Soren tried calling Eli to chat for a bit, but Eli was with some friends and couldn't chat long. He ended up just trying to let the swing calm him, but all he could think about was the injustice of his situation. The rest of his family was inside that house celebrating Aly's victory over her illness. But while they were having fun he was forced to sit skulking in front of his Aunt's house like a criminal.
Slowly, the cars were leaving. One by one by one. Soren willed his so-called family to get tired and go faster, but they all seemed to be dragging their feet. He kept his head down as the cars pulled past him. Still, he thought that his parents might have recognized his little blue car, especially because it had a Kansas license plate. Finally, at 11:30, the last car left.
Soren finally pulled up to the driveway. He hadn't been to her new house since she moved. He hadn't felt comfortable going anywhere near this town for a long time. He knocked on the door, his coolers under his arms.
The door opened, revealing a tall Zangoose, her eyes somewhat sagging with tiredness and her fur looking ragged and shorter than normal. She smiled as she embraced Soren. "I'm so sorry. I completely forgot. I hope you had somewhere to go for a while."
Soren hugged his Aunt back. "It's no big deal. I'm glad you're OK. How are you feeling?"
Aly laughed. "I've been answering that all night. I'm fine. Tired, but fine. I was really lucky to have kicked it so fast. Come on in. There's still some food leftover if you want it."
Soren smiled and accepted a glass of wine from his aunt along with a small plate of leftover appetizers. He didn't need too much. Rosie's burgers always filled him up. "I'm sorry I couldn't visit you while you were sick."
Aly frowned. "I'm glad you didn't. You were the butt of every other joke here. I tried to stop it, but Alexander was the only one who would listen. They gave me weird looks whenever I tried. If you showed up tonight or at the hospital, I wouldn't be surprised if things ended up coming to blows."
Soren sighed. He really didn't care about what they thought of him anymore. "I just wish I could've supported you beyond our illicit phone chats." He perked up his head as he noticed two Growlith girls poking their heads around a corner. They both took after their father. He smiled and waved at his two cousins. He turned back to Aly. "How old are they now? Surely Sammy and Rachel would have evolved by now?"
Aly smiled. "Sammy is a junior and Rachel just started high school. And you didn't evolve till after your senior year. But you're right. I am just grateful you're here now. What's in those coolers, by the way?"
Soren grinned. He wanted to show off just a bit. He placed the coolers on the tray, the ice packs thawed but the contents still chilled. "I thought I'd make you dinner for a couple days." He smiled as Aly's eyes widened as he pulled out the meatloaf, sauce, chicken, and potatoes. "These are all ready for heating. Let the sauce simmer all day if you can get away with it, and put half of the syrup on the potatoes before baking, and then add the nuts and remaining sauce once they are out of the oven." Aly got up and hugged Soren. "I'm not done," he said as he pulled up the smaller cooler. "I baked you a cake too. There's also an easy fondue that you can melt down."
Aly hugged Soren again. "Thanks. That makes my life easier for the next few days. I can't believe you made that all for me."
Soren chuckled. "It was fun. And Eli is making progress. He managed to help with the cake without making it combust."
"Is he your boyfriend you were telling me about," asked Aly. "What's he like."
"He's a painter, a dancer, and a kitchen nightmare," said Soren with a grin. "He's really sweet, and we both geek out over the same stuff. Living with him has been really nice. I've been really happy with him."
"I'm glad," said Aly genuinely. "The guest room is open. Take that. You look beat."
"Thanks," said Soren. He turned and walked up the stairs, dragging his feet and tails a bit. Aly wasn't far behind. "Good night."
Soren shut the door and changed into his too-short pajama pants. He flopped on the bed, still a bit miffed and feeling lonely without Eli laying next to him.