KISS One-Shots

Bruce and Paul

I sat at the kitchen table, fidgeting with my sleeves. "Are you sure this is gonna work?" I asked. Eric nodded, giving me a grin as he pulled the turkey out of the oven. "I'm positive! I mean just think about it! You're already dating him, you guys both love each other and stuff!" he said cheerfully. "Well yeah but dating is one thing! Proposing is an entirely different issue!" I cried. Rolling his eyes, he walked over to me, putting his hands on my shoulders and giving them a squeeze. "Here's what's gonna happen, dumbass. We're all gonna go around the table and say what we're thankful for and so you're gonna go 'I'm thankful for my boyfriend Paul, which is why I wanted to ask if he'd become my husband. Paul Stanley, will you marry me?' and then he says yes and it's all sweet and stuff." 

Heaving a sigh, I buried my face in my hands. "But what if he says no?!" "He won't! Besides, you can't be nervous otherwise you're gonna give it away! Now come on, help me with the mashed potatoes. Dinner isn't gonna make itself," he said, letting go of me and going back to the stove. "Sorry, sorry, I'll help. Thanks for doing dinner, by the way!" I said. "Hey, I fucking love Thanksgiving. I can't trust anyone else to make it the way I want it to be made," he said with a shrug, stirring the bubbling pot of gravy. 

"You do always go all out," I mused, looking at the trays of food that filled up all the counters in his kitchen. "I mean damn Eric, what all have you made?" His face absolutely lit up and he gave me a huge smile. "Okay so! We've got a turkey and a ham and mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts and stuffing and rolls and cranberry sauce and gravy and pumpkin pie and pecan pie and then some like sparkling cider and some wine and stuff!" "Damn, Eric! You did all of this on your own?" I cried, and he nodded. "Yep! Well some of it I can make in advance," he said. "I mean that's true. But still, you didn't need to go this all out," I said, shaking my head and stirring the mashed potatoes absentmindedly. 

"Bruce what are you doing?! You're gonna burn them!" he cried, smacking my hand and pulling the spoon away from me. I just held up my hands with a laugh, taking a step back. "Sorry, sorry. But seriously, you don't need to work this hard!" "I absolutely do. There's gonna be eight of us, eight fully grown men, most of whom are over six feet, eat a lot of food. I mean shit, Gene alone eats for two," he said with a shrug. "And you eat enough for three," I teased, ruffling his hair. "Oh shut up and go be useful. Go set the table," he snapped. 

Smiling, I walked into the dining room, grabbing a handful of silverware and starting to lay it out on the tabletop. The doorbell rang just as I finished setting down the last knife. "Bruce! Go get the door!" Eric shouted from the kitchen. "Got it!" I called back, walking to the front door and pulling it open, hoping it wasn't Paul. I was almost immediately tackled by Ace throwing his arms around me, pulling me into a tight hug. "Happy birthday curly!" he cried. Peter rolled his eyes, nudging his boyfriend. "It's Thanksgiving, dumbass, not his birthday." "Oops," Ace said, giving me a huge smile and stepping back, picking up Peter's hand. "Anyway! Happy Thanksgiving then!" 

"Happy Thanksgiving to y'all too," I said, opening the door wider and ushering them inside. "Here, you guys want anything to drink yet? Or do you just want to wait until dinner?" "Oh here, I brought a bottle of wine, we can break into that one!" Peter said, moving to the bar counter to uncork the bottle. The doorbell rang again and I opened it, giving Gene a smile. "Oh hey Gene, happy Thanksgiving," I said. He grinned back. "Yeah, happy Thanksgiving. Where's Eric? Kitchen?" "Yep, where he's been all day. He's made an impressive amount of food." 

Before Gene could respond, Eric ran out of the kitchen, jumping up into his arms and giving him a kiss. "Hey babe!" he said. "Hello you," Gene said with a fond smile, carrying Eric back into the kitchen. The doorbell rang again and I ushered in Tommy and Eric Singer, getting them set up in the living room with Ace and Peter. The only person who wasn't here yet was Paul. Frowning, I glanced at the clock, feeling the ring in my pocket. He had to hurry up and get here, this wasn't a dinner he was allowed to miss. 

Finally, the doorbell rang for a fourth time and I yanked the front door open, giving Paul a smile. "Hey babe, happy Thanksgiving," I said. Returning my smile, he slipped his arms around my neck, giving me a soft kiss. "Happy Thanksgiving. Sorry I'm late, hit some traffic." "Hey, better late than never. As long as you're here, I'm happy," I said, grabbing his hand and leading him inside. 

Eric and Gene had brought all the food to the table by the time we reached the dining room. "Alright let's sit down and start dinner!" Eric said, giving us all a wide smile. The eight of us took our seats, staring hungrily at the food. "Alright but before we can eat everyone has to say what they're thankful for this year!" Eric said, giving me a pointed look. "Aw but curly! It all smells so good!" Ace protested. "Well I had to smell it all cooking but I didn't eat any. I'll go first. I'm thankful for good friends, good food, and family," Eric said, giving Gene's hand a squeeze. "I'm thankful for another successful year in the band. And for you, of course," Gene said, giving Eric a smile. 

We went around the table, saying what we were thankful for, but I couldn't really pay attention to what everyone else was saying. I was just trying desperately not to freak out. Finally, it was my turn. Everyone turned to look at me, and I took a deep breath. "Well, I'm...I'm thankful for friends and family of course! And I'm really thankful for my boyfriend Paul, which uh..." I trailed off, starting to lose my nerve, before catching Eric's eye. He nodded, giving me an encouraging smile, and I took another deep breath, steeling my nerves. "Which is why I wanna marry you. So Paul Stanley, will you marry me?" I asked, pulling the ring out of my pocket. 

Paul let out a stunned laugh before jumping out of his chair and throwing his arms around me. "Absolutely!" he cried, kissing me. I slipped the ring on his finger, heart melting, and kissed him back. "Well now that that's taken care of, let's eat!" Eric said. Smiling at Paul, face a happy pink, I nodded, lacing my fingers through his. "Let's eat." 

A/N: Happy Thanksgiving y'all!!! 🧡💛💓🤎