the moon [h.s.] - EDITING

forty-eight.

THANKSGIVING
PART TWO

Everyone is sitting around the long rented table Levi and Harry had set up early in the morning. The center of the table had been reserved for the turkey. Harry carries the heavy dish over to the table and places it there. He's pretty proud of his work for someone who suggested a vegan feast.

"Wow, it looks so good," someone tells him.

He smiles at Levi's friend. "Thanks! I'm excited for everyone to eat." He takes a seat in the empty chair reserved for him next to Luna and he smiles. He then smiles over at Nolan who sits on his left.

"Should we go around the table, hold hands, and say what we're thankful for before we dig in? I'll start!" Levi suggests. He holds Jade's hand and Mike's hand as well. Everyone else begins to hold hands. "I'm thankful for this meal, yes, but also for my super hot girlfriend."

Everyone laughs. All eyes then move to Jade. "Um, thanks, Levi. I'm pretty thankful for you, too! Next?"

"My turn?" Gia looks at her sister then smiles shyly at everyone else. "Well, I think I'm thankful for new opportunities. Does that make sense? You never know where it can take us," she says. She's holding onto Zavier's hand.

Harry could feel himself grin from the way Gia looks over at Zavier. He sees it. They could be something. Plus, Zavier has a type and she's it. He just hopes Gia is as kind as she looks.

"It makes sense," Zavier tells her. "I'm thankful for my friends. Luna and Harry, you guys have been good to me the last couple of days..."

Luna and Harry look at each other then smile. "Zavier," Luna says and laughs softly. She then looks over at her brother who is sitting between her and Zavier. "Do you want to say what you're thankful for?"

Santiago is quiet. He looks at Luna then presses his lips together.

"Sorry, he's not much of a talker," Luna then says. She decides to skip him. "But I think I'm thankful for-"

"I'll tell you what I'm not thankful for... quitters. Or, people who don't care if they hurt other people along their way," Santiago interrupts. He doesn't look at Luna, but he's loosely holding her hand. The table falls quiet.

Harry looks over at Santiago and Luna. He could feel their tension. He doesn't know what it's about. Is he referring to her? It seems like, he thinks to himself. "I think that's a reasonable thing to not be thankful over," he tries to keep it light. He smiles when he sees a few nods and agreement from his guests. "Luna? What are you thankful for?"

She clears her throat and sits up in her chair a little. She puts on a smile. "I, um, I'm thankful for what I have right now. I have my brother here, I'm in New York, and I have a pretty cool boyfriend if you ask me. Things are great right now. I'm thankful for right now." She nods then looks at Harry when it's his turn.

He smiles. "Aw, babe... Ah, where do I start? You know, a year ago, I wouldn't have imagined myself sitting here with you guys. A year ago, Zavier and I were on different paths. We're here now and honestly, there's nowhere else I'd rather be. I'm thankful for right now, too." He squeezes Luna's hand lightly.

"That's adorable, sir... I mean, Harry. Let's see, I'm thankful for the LGBTQ plus community. I'm thankful that we have a whole month dedicated to our love and our pride. Listen, there is still some hatred out there... but we've come so far. So, I'm also thankful that I found my love at this moment in time and I'm going to make the best of it," Nolan says with a huge smile on his face. He's looking at Logan, his grinning-from-ear-to-ear boyfriend.

Harry smiles wide at the pair. "That's sweet Nolan," he says and everyone else at the table agrees.

"I couldn't have said it better myself. I'm thankful for it, too. I'm thankful for you most of all," Logan says to Nolan. With that, everyone is in awe.

"Can we dig in now?"

"Yes! Let's finally dig in. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!" Harry says. He smiles as everyone lets go of each other's hands. Harry stands up to start cutting slices of the turkey. He ends up placing turkey slices on everyone's plate. He finally sits down and smiles at Luna when she hands him a bowl of peas. "Thanks! You didn't want any peas?" He asks when he notices she doesn't serve herself any.

Luna shakes her head and smiles at him. "I'm not a big fan of peas," she tells him. She holds onto the plate of roasted potatoes that came her way and she serves herself some. "Mm, but I do like potatoes."

"Really? I love peas!" He says while serving himself a little too many peas. He then passes the bowl to Nolan.

"Harry, no one needs to eat that many peas!" Luna says. She's looking at the large spoonful on his plate and laughs from it. She hands the potatoes over and shakes her head.

"Oh my gosh, the food! Harry, are you a professional chef?"

Harry smiles at Talia from her question. He smiles even more as everyone around him seems to agree with her, too.

"My roommate's the best," he hears Levi say.

"Thanks, Levi..." He tells his loving roommate. He then responds to Talia. "I've always enjoyed cooking. My mum's an amazing cook. She taught me everything she knows. So no, I'm not a professional chef. Thank you, though! I'm actually a writer for a magazine."

"Ooh, which magazine?!" Gia is quick to ask.

"À La Mode," he answers.

She gasps. "No way! I'm set to model for À La Mode next week."

"You're a model?" Zavier then asks Gia.

"Yup! I'm new to the modeling world actually, but this agency signed me and now I'm gonna be in À La Mode," she informs him and smiles at him. They both keep smiling at each other. After a short moment, Gia looks at Harry again. "So, what do you write?"

"Uh, a mix of stuff really," Harry says. He doesn't know Gia well enough to tell her about his well-known column. Maybe she hasn't even read it, but still.

"Harry's a great writer. He's lately been mentoring, isn't that right, boss? I'm just an intern, but he's really been taking me under his wing! I only hope to be as good as him someday."

He smiles and looks over at him. "I really see potential in you. Honestly, you would make an amazing editor-in-chief someday." He tells Nolan. He reaches for his glass of wine to take a sip from.

Nolan gives him nothing but a wide smile. Everyone else continues to eat their Thanksgiving feast and it goes just as Harry had hoped it would.