Fanboy (boyxboy)

Closer to the Edge

"Hey, come 'ere," Gideon tapped Eli's arm one morning after Eli had finished an oil change. It was two days to Christmas and there wasn't much going on in the garage.

"Why? You wanna ruin my life some more?"

"Nevermind. Stay on yer back then."

"Fine," Eli tucked the filthy rag he was using to wipe his hands back in his pocket. Thank goodness for coveralls. Everything he wore into the garage was instantly stained beyond repair.

"You got good hands," Gideon took Eli to the car that was in for body work. "I think you might be real good at this stuff."

"I am good with my hands," Eli agreed, admiring Gideon's black eye. It was still healing.

Eli couldn't deny that he'd been so satisfied the day he'd walked into the garage and hit his older brother right in the eye. The day after their dad confronted him about being gay, Eli went right to Gideon as soon as he got home from school and clocked him square in the face. Levi's fighting lessons paid off 100%. To make it more perfect, when Gideon begged their dad to punish Eli for hitting him, he refused.

"Okay, so I kin help you take the door off, and then we'll fix everythin' together this time," Gideon explained.

It was the first time in years that Eli could remember Gideon saying more than a few words to him. He didn't act like it was so terrible either. Gideon was almost as good of a teacher as Levi and by the end of the day, Eli was surprised to find out it was time to close up for the night.

"I felt like I was watchin' a real live Lifetime movie," Levi teased as Eli started dinner. "One of them movie moments where you two was workin' on a car but we find out after you was really workin' on your relationship."

"Ugh, shut up."

"I'm gonna git some frilly music to play next time."

"You are literally the worst."

"Hey, uh, should we git a tree you think?" Levi stopped laughing. "It don't much feel like Christmas without it."

"I dunno," Eli looked out to the family room where the tree normally sat. "Dad's been doing really well lately. I don't know how he would feel."

"I know, I jus," Levi paused and took a deep breath. "I feel like Mama would want the tree up already."

"Yeah, and what would she say about last year when we didn't have one at all?"

"I know she'd understand that."

"Get a tree," Eli decided. "If Dad hates it we can put it away."

Eli texted Jack a picture of their tree later that night when he and Levi finished decorating. Their dad hadn't said a word about the tree when he came home from his meeting - which was pretty much how he'd been since the conversation the day Eli came home from visiting Jack.

His father pretty much hadn't spoken to Eli since that day. Aside from the occasional comment here and there, usually only if one of them had a question they couldn't avoid asking each other, they didn't speak. Eli was too surprised to try and fight it. Deep down he'd always figured his dad would just accept him. Maybe because that's what his mom promised.

Christmas passed, not quite as sad as the year before but almost. It felt a lot more like they were pretending it was Christmas than anything else. Without his mom, the whole thing seemed fake and stupid. Especially without having the whole family over to open presents. Eli got little things from Jack, Maddox, Levi and Isaiah but nothing from his dad.

"Are you watching?" Jack asked on New Year's Eve. "I'm so bummed Dax and Brent aren't together tonight. Can you imagine if they were?"

"Yeah, I'm watching," Eli was settled in on the couch. Levi was in Savannah for the night and Eli's dad was in the shower, insisting he was just going to go to bed early. "Maybe they'll do a thing together next year."