by Drew Hunt
Colin was happy. He had his family around him. He was warm, well fed, and best of all, loved. “There’s a couple of crackers left in the box,” he said, picking one up and giving it a shake to see if he could guess what the novelty was inside.
Martin set down his knife and fork. “Go on then, I’ll pull one with you.” He looked over in Harry’s direction. “If that’s okay?”
“No problem. They’d only be packed away until next year.”
Colin smiled and brushed the tip of the cracker against Martin’s hand. Grasping his end, Martin pulled. The cracker let out its snap and Colin was left with the short end, Martin had the part with the novelty.
“Ha!” Harry said, obviously guessing what Colin’s intensions had been.
“What did you get?” Colin asked Martin, who had picked up his cutlery again.
“I’ll have a look when I’ve finished eating.”
Colin tried not to sulk. It was silly. They were only cheap plastic novelties. Then his eye fell on the remaining cracker. He picked it up. “Mum?”
Avril smiled and pulled the cracker with him.
Colin lost again and Harry couldn’t contain his amusement. “Not your day, son.”
“Here, you can have whatever’s in it,” Avril said, handing over her part of the cracker.
“Thanks.” Colin took it, but it wasn’t the same as winning it himself.
As they continued to eat, Colin stole occasional glances over at Martin. In the quiet of the room, he remembered that his husband hadn’t been himself the past couple of days. Colin hoped Martin wasn’t having second thoughts about emigrating.
“Could someone pass the mashed potatoes?” Harry asked.
As Colin was closest, he did the honours.
“Thanks,” Harry said, accepting the dish. “Anyone else?” Everyone shook their heads, so Harry set the bowl down. “Delicious as ever,” he said once he’d sampled his food.
Avril smiled, and Colin felt so at home. This was like Christmases used to be when he was a child. But, no, they were even better. He had Martin in his life now.
“So, did you get up really early this morning to open your presents?” Harry asked Colin, who shook his head and lowered his eyes to his plate.
Martin snorted. “Of course he did. Though he’s getting better. Last year it was six o’clock. I got an extra half hour this year.”
Harry and Avril laughed.
“Some things never change,” Avril said, lifting up the plate of small sausages with bacon wrapped around them. “There’s still some of these left. Colin?”
“Please,” Colin nodded. “They’re my favourite.”
“I know. That’s why I made extra.”
“Thanks, Mum.” Colin swallowed. It was obvious his family had pulled out all the stops to make this a Christmas to remember.
The rest of the meal was filled with conversation. Even Martin seemed to perk up, telling Harry and Avril about a possible job at the doctor’s surgery in a village fairly close to Matt’s sheep station.
“I say close,” Martin said, widening his hands, “Distance is relative down under. It’s about twenty kilometres away.”
Colin watched as his mother bit her lip, but managed to find a smile.
“And there’s absolutely no guarantee I’ll get the job,” Martin continued.
“I have faith in you,” Colin said, patting Martin’s hand.
“Us, too,” Harry told him.
“Anyone for Christmas pudding?” Avril asked, getting to her feet.
Her question was met with groans and three men rubbing their distended bellies.
Colin was about as full as he could ever remember, but he loved his mother’s Christmas pudding, and this would be the last time he’d get to taste it in a while, so he said he’d have some. “Just a bit, though.”
This brought a genuine smile from Avril. “Martin has the recipe, so he’ll be able to make it for you next year.”
Colin groaned. He remembered the meal Nance, Matt’s housekeeper and Bruce’s mother, had made for them. Nance was a wonderful cook, maybe not as wonderful as his mother, but such a heavy meal on one of the hottest days of the year had been too much. Colin had been uncomfortable for several hours afterward.
Avril returned from the kitchen, holding a flaming pudding in front of her. Colin couldn’t remember her setting light to her Christmas puddings before. He guessed this was yet another special thing that was being done for their last Christmas meal as a family. He swallowed as emotion welled up.
“This has been the best meal ever,” Colin said, getting to his feet to hug his mother. “Thank you for making it all so perfect.”
Colin could feel his mother’s shoulders shaking. “You’re welcome.” Her voice was thick with emotion. She pulled away and wiped at her eyes.
Harry got up to comfort his wife and Colin felt bad for being the cause of the upset.
“I’m okay,” Avril insisted, blowing her nose.
Colin didn’t think she was, but thought it better to say something positive to boost her morale. “Anyone going to serve up this pudding before I waste away with hunger?”
This got a laugh from his mother. She served him a large portion, asking if he wanted some brandy butter with it.
“Just a little, please.” Colin knew his mother made her own brandy butter. “That’s probably all there’s room for in the bowl.”
“I can get you a bigger bowl,” Martin said, starting to rise, a mischievous smile on his lips.
“Sit.” Colin put a firm hand on Martin’s shoulder.
Everyone smiled and began the final course of the meal.
* * * *
“I’m definitely full now,” Colin said, letting out a soft burp. He apologised.
“Glad you enjoyed it,” Avril said, beginning to gather up the dishes.
“No, Mum, Martin and I will see to them.”
She sat back down. “You’ll probably have to run the dishwasher a couple of times, there’s quite a few dirty pans in the kitchen.”
“No problem,” Martin piped up, still finishing the last of his Christmas pudding. “I love using your dishwasher. Wish we’d have had room for one back in Yorkshire.”
“Maybe there’ll be room in your kitchen in Australia,” Harry put in.
“Here’s hoping.”
Colin saw his mother’s face drop. Even though she often mentioned the upcoming departure, it seemed there were times she didn’t want to think about it, and this must have been one of them.
“You did yourself proud.” Harry leaned over and kissed his wife’s cheek. “Col was right, the turkey was beautiful.”
“It all was,” Martin added.
Colin nodded. “And your mashed potatoes. So creamy. Not a lump anywhere.”
Several things happened at the same time. Martin let go of his spoon, it clattered against his dish before falling on the floor. Harry gasped and Avril let out a sob.
“What?” Colin looked confusedly between the three other people at the table.
Avril was trying to compose herself, Harry stared down at his plate, and Martin looked uncomfortable, even guilty.
“What?” he asked again, filling the uncomfortable silence. “The potatoes, they were really good. There’s some left, maybe we could have them fried in the morning?”
Martin reached for and found Colin’s hand and gave it a squeeze, but stayed silent. What the hell was going on?
“It’s okay, you weren’t to know,” Avril said, seeming to get a hold of herself.
“Know what?” Colin asked, his concern growing.
“We didn’t want to tell you,” Harry began, putting an arm around Avril’s shoulders. “With you going to Australia and everything.”
“Know what?” Colin asked again. This was scaring him.
Avril glanced at Harry before returning her gaze to Colin. “I went for a breast screening the other week and they found something.”
Despite the warmth of the room, Colin
felt an icy coldness wash over him. Martin’s grip on his hand tightened. Colin opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
“My right breast. A lump. Cancer.”
“No.” The single word sounded loud in Colin’s ears. “No,” he said again because he couldn’t believe this.
“It’s okay,” Martin said quietly, getting up to stand behind Colin’s chair.
“Mum?” Colin turned pleading eyes to his mother.
“They caught it early. There’s every chance I’ll make a full recovery. I just need to have an operation and some chemotherapy.”
Colin’s mind wasn’t processing this. It couldn’t be happening. His maternal grandmother and one of his aunts had died of cancer. Cancer ran in families, didn’t it? He shivered and his eyes filled with tears. He could barely feel Martin’s hands massaging his shoulders.
“Why?” Colin got out. He shook his head. “You can’t.” He stood and pushed away from the table, he had to leave, think. This wasn’t happening, not to his mum. She was too young to die. He still needed her.
“Colin,” his dad said as Colin reached the door to the dining room. “Come back to the table.”
Suddenly Colin felt angry. “You weren’t going to tell me.” He whirled on Martin. “Any of you.”
“Don’t blame Martin,” Avril said, getting to her feet. Out of all of them she seemed the most composed. “I made him promise not to say anything.”
Even so, it still hurt. “How long have you known?” Colin asked his husband.
“A couple of days,” Martin admitted, looking miserable.
Colin shook his head, unable to comprehend how, why, Martin would keep something like that from him, promise or not.
“Martin made me promise I’d tell you before you left,” Avril said, coming to stand next to Colin.
“What? Just before we went through the security barrier at the airport?” Colin snapped, instantly feeling remorse for his harsh words.
“Colin!” Harry warned.
“Sorry, Mum.”
“I just wanted us all to have one last Christmas together.” Avril’s resolve was cracking.
Colin turned to his mother and hugged her. “I thought you said you’d get better. You will, won’t you?”
She smiled up at him through watery eyes and patted his cheek. “Yes, love. I meant that this would be the last Christmas that we’d all be together.”
“Maybe we should go into the front room and talk.” Harry put a hand on Colin’s shoulder. “You’re bound to have a lot of questions. Just know we didn’t make the decision not to tell you lightly.”
* * * *
“Why?” Colin asked for the hundredth time
It was late Christmas Day, or more likely early Boxing day. The two lay in bed, neither ready for sleep.
Colin and Martin had sat in the front room for hours talking with Avril and Harry. At first Colin had said he was cancelling the move to Australia. Avril and Harry had protested against that, while Martin had silently sat next to Colin.
“That decision isn’t just yours to make,” Harry said. “It affects Martin, too.”
Colin took Martin’s hand. “Sorry, love. I just, I…”
“It’s okay,” Martin soothed, knowing Colin had spoken purely on instinct. When he calmed down, Colin would look at things more rationally, and that would include asking for Martin’s input.
“You two need to go,” Avril put in. “I’ll be all right.”
“But, Mum,” Colin started.
The discussion drifted from point to point, Martin doing his best to keep Colin calm.
“Look,” Harry eventually said. “We’re just going round in circles. Let’s go to bed and see what tomorrow brings.”
Everyone agreed, and a subdued Colin led Martin to bed.
“You still awake?” Colin asked in the otherwise quiet room.
Martin answered by kissing the back of Colin’s neck.
“She will be all right, won’t she?”
Martin knew he should tell Colin that he wasn’t a doctor, hadn’t seen Avril’s notes or test results. But for once the boot was on the other foot. Colin was the one needing reassurance.
“Yes. I’m sure she’ll make a full recovery. A lot of advances have been made in breast cancer treatments. Your mum’s has been found early, that’s always a good sign. Also the type of cancer she has is one of the less invasive kinds and responds well to treatment. Her doctors have said the cancer is still localised, hasn’t spread.” Martin hoped he sounded both positive and reassuring. He also hoped he was correct. Avril was very important to Colin. She was also pretty special to Martin.
Colin turned around to face Martin. “Thanks." He kissed Martin softly on the lips. “You’re a rock, you know that?”
Martin kissed Colin back. He left unsaid the fact that Colin was constantly Martin’s rock.
“Make love to me?”
It wasn’t often Colin wanted to bottom, and Martin silently questioned the wisdom of doing so now. But Martin could tell his man needed comfort and reassurance.
“Anything you need,” Martin said, kissing Colin once again.
Their lovemaking was slow, quiet and as gentle as Martin could make it. Colin was tight; Martin had to battle hard not to cum the moment he was fully inside Colin’s warm chute. Martin set up a steady rhythm, all the while caressing Colin’s back muscles, kissing his shoulders, running fingers through the man’s thick hair. Martin whispered words of love and affection into Colin’s ear, punctuating each phrase with a kiss or a lick.
Beneath him, Colin went boneless, tension seeming to flow out of the man’s body.
Reaching under Colin, Martin found his husband’s stiff cock pressed against the bottom sheet. There was little room for him to work.
“You cum first, then I’ll roll over and we can see to me,” Colin said on a groan, Martin guessing he’d just bumped against his man’s prostate.
“Love you,” Martin whispered, knowing he couldn’t hold off much longer.
“Love you, too.”
Colin flexed his anal muscles, squeezing Martin’s cock almost to the edge of pain. It was the final straw. Martin shot several volleys of cum, muffling his moans in Colin’s shoulder.
After resting for a minute on Colin’s back, Martin rolled off and encouraged Colin to turn onto his side so they were face to face.
Martin slid down Colin’s body and engulfed the man’s thick, leaking erection.
Colin whimpered. “Oh, Mart, yes.”
Martin hoped this wouldn’t be one of those times where Colin would ramp up the verbal commentary. It was the middle of the night and they were under the same roof as Colin’s parents, who hopefully were fast asleep.
Martin needn’t have worried. A couple of soft grunts and a sigh and Colin gushed three large loads of cum into Martin’s mouth, Martin savouring each one. Giving Colin’s dick one final lick, Martin slowly eased his way up the bed to share the last bit of semen with his lover, but before he reached Colin’s face, Martin heard steady and gentle snoring. Pulling his husband close, Martin rested his chin on top of Colin’s head and settled down to sleep.
* * * *
Colin and Martin spent Boxing Day wrestling with whether to go or stay. Martin knew he was no help—he kept telling Colin that it was his decision. Avril and Harry remained resolute that they go.
In bed that night, Colin clung to Martin, the latter trying to offer what comfort he could.
“I don’t want to disappoint anyone,” Colin said, breaking the quiet.
Martin cupped Colin’s face in his hands and looked into Colin’s eyes. “You could never disappoint me. Remember what I said in the car coming here? ‘Wither thou goest, I will go?’”
Martin felt Colin nod.
“So no more of this rubbish about disappointing me. You just concentrate on what’s best for you and your mum.”
Colin kissed Martin’s lips. “You’re amazing.”
“Takes one to know one.”
They made love. It helped, for a while, to soothe their fears.
* * * *
The next morning, a decision was no closer. Martin, knowing time was running out, suggested they look into the possibility of postponing their departure until after Avril had had her operation and was out of hospital.
Martin listened as Colin called the airline.
After being held in a queue for the longest time, Martin worrying about the cost on Harry and Avril’s phone bill, Colin began to talk.
“Hello, my husband and I were due to fly out with you on Monday to Sydney, but my mother’s just been diagnosed with breast cancer and…”
Martin squeezed Colin’s hand and listened as Colin and the person on the other end discussed what options were available.
“Thank you. Thank you so much,” Colin eventually said, putting down the receiver and letting out a long breath. “He’s agreed to rebook us on another flight on January 17th.”
There was a collective sigh in the room; Martin could tell Avril was happy that she’d have her son a bit longer. Privately, Martin, Yorkshireman that he was, worried about the cost of the postponement. But Colin’s piece of mind was worth any extra fees.
Later that afternoon, when Harry and Avril had gone out to visit some friends, Colin told Martin more about the deal he’d managed to strike with the airline.
“We’ll only have to pay an extra hundred pounds or so.”
“That’s good.” Martin nodded.
“He was really nice about it. He said that as we were family he’d do all he could to help.”
Martin chuckled. “I don’t think he meant family as in mother and son.”
“Huh?”
“Gay family.”
“Oh. I hadn’t thought of it like that. I’m glad now I told him I was travelling with my husband.”
“Me, too,” Martin said, giving his husband a kiss.
* * * *
“We’ll ring you from Beijing,” Colin said, gently hugging his mother.
“That’ll be too expensive. Just call us when you arrive in Sydney,” Avril told him before kissing his cheek.
“We’re calling from China,” Martin said, and Colin knew that Martin would have researched it and—typical Yorkshireman that he was—would have worked out the cheapest way to do it.
