Sander and Robbe, Minute by Minute

Presents Night

It was 5 December, Thursday evening and Sander was just knocking on Robbe's flat door. Milan opened the door for him.

"Hey Sander!" Milan greeted him cheerfully.

"Hey! Everything all right?"

"Yeah for sure."

Sander asked, "Is Robbe in his room or?"

"Yaps!"

"Did he prepare his shoes already?"

Milan smiled and shaked his head lightly, "Uhm, I don't know."

Sander smiled back and walked to Robbe's room.

Opening the door, he said to Robbe, sitting on his couch, "Did you prepare your shoe yet?"

Robbe looked up from his phone and grimaced uncertainly, "Eh.. no.."

Sander arched an eyebrow, "Shouldn't you get on that then?"

Robbe put his phone on the table and got up.

"The Sint won't bring you anything otherwise." Robbe walked to him lazily with an expression in his face, which was clearly saying, that he still thought the whole thing was childish.

Sander continued saying, "And I've got it in good authority that you were good this year."

"Hmpff." Robbe looked at him, smiling lazily, tilting his face to him expectantly.

Sander walked to him, leaning in close, but he pulled his head back and turned Robbe's face to the side with his finger, when the boy was about to kiss him.

"Woah, wait. First thing first, your shoe."

He took off his jacket and threw it on the couch. There was a pair of shoes on the carpet.

"Oh, but look, we've got a prime example right here! Perfect!"

Robbe chuckled.

Sander picked one up, "There we go. And then the sugar cube and carrot."

Sander walked back to him. Robbe was rolling his eyes.

"What?" Cmmon Robbe, be a child, isn't it wonderful?

Robbe gave him another dubious look, like he didn't see the point of doing all that just for Sander to give him his present.

"Aawww, don't you want to get anything from Sinterklaas?"

He shrugged, "I do."

Sander walked closer, licking his lower lip, looking down at Robbe's mouth and hovering there for a couple second. Robbe's lips were parting and Sander moved his head away.

"Let's go then." Grinning, he walked to the door, pulling Robbe's hand with him.

"But Sander.."

Walking into the kitchen, Sander said to Milan, "He didn't prepare his shoes. What did I tell you?"

"What, Robbe? No shoes on presents night?"

"But.." Robbe whined. He went to sit on the counter. Milan chuckled.

"Presents night.." He repeated with an ironic tone.

"How dare you," Milan mock-scolded him.

Sander opened the fridge and started to rummage around. He could not find a single carrot.

He turned around and looked at them, "You guys don't have carrot?"

"Ehh.. I don't know," Milan grimaced in amusement.

Robbe giggled, "I don't think so."

Sander rummaged again. He hold up a cucumber and shrugged, "This will do."

"I am sure he will like that as well," Milan said with smile in his voice.

Sander closed the fridge, "And sugar cube.." He walked across to other cabinet and took two from the sugar boxes.

"Well, he sure is putting in a lot of effort," Milan said in wry amusement.

Robbe chuckled, "Yeah, tell me about it. Our artist."

Sander snorted a laugh at that. He put the shoe on the table, put the cucumber inside and the sugar cubes on top of it. "And there we go."

Sander walked back to Robbe, "Was that so hard, putting up your shoe?"

Robbe was smiling and Sander kissed him fondly, picking him up from the counter. Still kissing, they were about to walk out of the kitchen, when Milan cried out, "Hey, hey, is that all?"

Sander stopped and turned his head, "What?"

"Shouldn't you guys sing?"

"Oh right," Sander grinned at Robbe.

"We always have to sing for presents night," Milan said.

Robbe was shaking his head and Sander grinned broader.

"At least one song," Milan continued and they both looked at Robbe.

"No, I am not singing." Robbe kept shaking his head.

"Yes you are," Milan laughed, "At least one song. Okay, De Stoombot." He nodded excitedly.

"De Stoombot," Sander chuckled and turned Robbe around.

Milan was saying, "We'll sing that right now."

"Come," Sander coaxed Robbe, stirring him toward Milan.

Robbe was whinning, "No. I'll listen. I'll listen."

Milan insisted, "No, you're joining in." He started counting, "Three."

And Sander continued, "Two. One."

He and Milan started singing, gesturing, looking at Robbe, motioning for him to join in. Robbe was smiling in amusement but also shyness, he didn't open his mouth. Sander, taking his shoulders with his hands, kept singing and encouraging him. Robbe sighed but he started singing in a small voice. Sander was waving Robbe's hand around to the music, singing louder. Milan had stopped singing and giggling at Robbe, which made him stopped.

Sander didn't laugh, and kept singing, encouraging him, "Louder." Milan was singing along again.

"Come on guys," Robbe complained and was turning around to walk out of the kitchen.

Sander caught him, turning him back and hugging him to his shoulder, and the three of them— well, mostly he and Milan— finished the song in merriment.

*

He stayed for a while in Robbe's room and just made out and talked a bit. Robbe asked about school and home. They looked at some pictures from the boys vlog, or some that Robbe took and discussed over them. Robbe asked to see his sketch book and Sander teased him a bit before showing him some of his drawings.

Robbe had fallen asleep in his arm; Sander had been dozing on and off. It was past eleven, when he slowly detached himself from Robbe, and took his jacket and bag. There was no one in the kitchen and it was quiet in the flat. Sander— he was the Sinterklaas tonight— started to take out all the chocolates, biscuits and sweets, arranging them on the table and on top of the counters. He spreaded the banner that he painted on one side of the table, putting the gold-red-white paper Sinterklaases over them, more pepernoten and biscuits. He hung another banners with painted night sky and shadowed city buildings, Sinterklaas on his white horse and Zwarte Piet carrying bags, over the counters, on two sides of the kitchen. When he was finished, the kitchen was fulled with sweets and colors. It would probably took a week for them to finish them all. Sander smiled gleefully, seeing their surprise faces and joy in his head. He finally took the letter he wrote on a card for Robbe, rolling it, took out the cucumber and sugar cubes, and stuck the letter into the shoes. The letter contained the instruction for Robbe to get his present tomorrow night. Grinning, he left and went home.