A Fresh Start

ELEVEN

"We have three hours, people. Get a move on!" Mitch shouted through the house. It was three days before Christmas and both Mitch and Avi's families were coming to stay for a week.

Scotty was just finishing making the last bed when Avi was scrubbing paint off of the wall in the basement. Mitch picked up his phone and ordered a few pizzas and some sides to be delivered in three hours while scrubbing down the toilet by the guest bedrooms.

In a fury of cleaning supplies, the three plopped down on the couch with 45 minutes to spare. Wyatt was playfully swatting at Scotty's tail, making all three of them laugh.

"Are you gong to tell your family I'm a neko?" Scott asked while his eyes were still on Wyatt.

"They'll be here for a week. It'll be hard to hide it for that long," Avi thought out loud, "especially because you don't like wearing hats."

"It kind feels like coming out all over again, ya know?" Mitch admitted, "But I guess I never really came out. I just brought home a boy and held his hand and called him my boyfriend, and I ended married this hairy fellow I met in college.

"But back to your question. I think we should. Just tell them once everyone is here and get it out of the way. And Scotty, they may want to pull and pole at you. It's totally your choice how to respond, but no one will try to hurt you."

---

Scott had a festive hat on to cover his ears while people were arriving. It was an odd hat that Avi had made. It was a red Santa hat decorated with blue menorahs.

Scott greeted each new person will a smile and a hug. He recited names in his head, Mike and Nel have a daughter who's not here, Michael and Shelly, Esther and Darien. Esther is Avi's older sister, and they have a brother who's not here. He had originally insisted that he call the parents by more formal names, but each one brushed it off with a wave of the hand and a hug. Scotty was family.

Once the pizza arrived, they sat around the dining room table. The dreaded subject was brought up innocently by Mike.

"So how did you two meet Scotty?"

"Damn it" Mitch whispered. They had agreed the parent that asked determined who answered the questions. Thanks Mike for being so chatty.

"Um, well, we kinda need to talk about this. Scotty, can you take your hat off for me?"

Scott did so, and then maintained eye contact with Avi. Once his ears popped out, Mitch spoke before anyone else could.

"Scotty here is a neko. He's a regular person with cat ears and a tail. He's a sweet heart and Avi and I love him very much."

"Can I see the tail?" Darien asked with wide eyes.

Scotty stood up and wiggled his tail until it unfurled over the waistband of his jeans. He swished it around and blushed, watching Darien with a nervous eye.

"Holy Hell, that's amazing"

Scotty wasn't sure who said it, but it made him feel a little better. He sat down again, and Mitch reached over to hold his hand. Avi stood from his seat and pet behind Scott's ears, causing him to close his eyes and purr.

"That's proof enough for me!" Nel said, "He's got ears and a tail that move and I can feel the purr's vibrations from here." She stated.

Avi smoothed Scotty's hair down before giving the top of his head a kiss.

Shelly didn't seem quite on board yet. "I apologize if this is invasive, but how exactly does this relationship work?"

Avi's turn to answer. "Mitch adopted him. Technically, I guess he's a pet, but we don't see him that way. Scotty does seem more like a child sometimes, but he truly is our friend. Like soul-mate level friend. If that makes him a part of this marriage, then so be it. We haven't really defined it because he fits into our life in a unique way."

Shelly smiled at her son before returning to her food. Everyone else followed suit and Mike and Michael started talking about snow blowers and Darien and Nel talked about Esther and Darien's new puppy, who could be heard playing with Kirstie downstairs.

"Can I go get Kevin?" Scott whispered to Mitch.

"Sure baby. If you need a minute to yourself, that's okay too."

"I'm okay. I just feel bad he isn't here. He's my family."

Avi and Mitch smiled at there boy when he returned to the table and set Kevin in his lap before eating his food.