A Midnight Thanksgiving (Gay Romance) Read online

  There was a line in front so he and Alex went around to the back. The alley was kind of dank. They passed a dumpster and a few unmarked doors then saw the sign that said Hungry Youth along with information for people delivering donations. They stopped right outside the nondescript metal door. Vaughn stepped up, ready to knock, but Alex blocked the door.

  "What now?" Vaughn wanted to know.

  "You wait out here. I'll go in and talk to Zack. I don't want you getting into a thing with Ellen."

  "I'm not waiting out here," Vaughn said and tried to push past him.

  Alex stood his ground. "I want to talk to Zack, not watch Ellen rip your head off."

  "What about Zack?" Ellen said from behind them and made them both jump.

  She had come around the corner carrying two grocery bags, one in each hand. Vaughn didn't know her well, but he felt a sense of familiarity because she reminded him of Zack. She was blond and skinny just like Zack but about a foot shorter. She might be tiny, but she still managed to put the fear of God into Alex.

  "Hi, Ellen. I'm not with him," he said, disavowing Vaughn. Alex even took a step away from him like he was getting out of her line of fire.

  "Hi, Ellen. I'm sorry if..." Vaughn started to say but she cut him off curtly.

  "What do you want?"

  "We're looking for Zack," he said while Ellen looked them up and down.

  "Come in here. I have a job for the two of you," she said and led the way inside.

  "What?" Alex asked but Ellen ignored him and turned to Vaughn.

  "We almost weren't able to pull together a Thanksgiving dinner because of you. You need to make it up to us for that article you wrote."

  "Every word was..." Vaughn was ready to defend himself but Alex wouldn't let him.

  "Shut up, Vaughn. No one cares. She's giving you a chance to redeem yourself. Get in there," Alex said and pushed him through the door ahead of him.

  "Where's Zack?" Vaughn asked as they went in and he didn't see him among the people working in the kitchen.

  "He went to Paul's party," Ellen said. "At first he was just going to mope around alone somewhere. But I told him no way. He told me if he had to make a choice between that weird potluck thing or real food, he picked Paul's party. That's where you'll find him."

  "No. Paul is the one who sent us out to hunt him down," Alex told her and his face fell.

  "I guess he changed his mind. Try Zack's place then," she said.

  "Just came from there," Vaughn told her. "Zack told one of his roommates that he was coming here to volunteer."

  "No. I was full up until two of our guys had car trouble. That's why I need you guys to pitch in."

  As they looked around the busy and fairly small kitchen, Ellen introduced them to everyone real fast. The oven was going, but a turkey was already being carved up. Big, metal pots were steaming away and people were yelling back and forth. At the serving window, plates were being loaded down with turkey and sides.

  The kitchen was hot so they took their jackets off and hung them up with a bunch of others. After coming in from the cold, the heat in there felt good for about half a minute then it was too much. Ellen led them to the sinks. Seeing two pails of dirty dishes next to them, Alex guessed what fate had in store for them and groaned. He then slumped against Vaughn.

  The move threw Vaughn off balance in more ways than one. Again he had that feeling that gravity had definitely shifted in his world. His awareness was centered on Alex. As Vaughn put his arm around Alex to steady them both, the contact between them became too much.

  Telling himself that he shouldn't feel like this, that this was nothing, didn't help at all. To get himself under control, Vaughn held his breath and waited for the shudder to pass through him. How was Alex doing this to him without even trying?

  "Those two guys I told you about will be here soon," Ellen explained. "You're filling in for them until they get here. Wash those pots, pans and anything else sitting over there." Done giving them instructions, she left them to it.

  "Of course. It would have to be washing dishes, wouldn't it," Alex complained. He had stepped away from Vaughn, but he was still too aware of Alex like an invisible thread still connected them.

  "What did you think we would be doing?" Vaughn asked him while he pushed his shirtsleeves up past his elbows.

  Alex had some ideas. "Acting as food tasters. Maybe garnishing a few things with sprigs of parsley."

  "Roll up your sleeves before you get them wet," Vaughn ordered him.

  Before they started working, Alex took a picture of Vaughn in front of the stack of dirty dishes then pushed his phone at him. "Now you take one of me."

  "Why am I doing this?" Vaughn wanted to know.

  "It's proof that we aren't useless. I want to show Paul that we're doing stuff." Alex then took a pose in front of the sink with his arms flexed and his jaw set.

  Vaughn took the picture, smiled at it then handed the phone back. He caught himself thinking that he should have taken the picture with his own phone, then he could keep it. Alex was making all sorts of stupid thoughts invade his mind.

  Alex immediately grew suspicious. "Did you make me look goofy?" Looking at the picture, he didn't see anything wrong with it. He looked at Vaughn sideways then they got down to business.

  The water was scalding hot and the pots and pans took a lot of scrubbing to get clean. For all his complaining, Alex wasn't a bad worker. Surprisingly, Vaughn didn't mind that Alex chattered non-stop, maybe because he liked the sound of his voice. It had a pleasant depth and resonance.

  As they worked at the sinks, they bumped elbows a lot. Sometimes Alex would push against him deliberately, just to cause trouble. Feeling a little overwhelmed every time they touched made Vaughn wonder why he was so defenseless against him. Thinking back, he realized that this might be the first time he and Alex were spending time alone together. In that way, Alex was a new discovery.

  Being next to Alex made Vaughn lose track of time a little bit, but it wasn't long before the two guys who had car trouble arrived and relieved them. While he and Alex were wiping their hands, Ellen came over to talk about Zack. She started by rattling off the names of people they already talked to.

  "We already hit all the usual suspects," Alex told her. "Not everyone got back to us, but most of them did and they don't know anything." He showed her his most recent messages. "Who is missing?"

  She had to think for a while. "Oh, there is Carlton, this skinny, underaged kid Zack was tutoring in Japanese. They got pretty friendly."

  "Underaged?" Alex asked with a raised eyebrow.

  "He started college at sixteen."

  "He isn't holed up with him somewhere, come on," Vaughn objected.

  "I didn't say he was, but he might know where Zack planned to go. Zack was talking to him just yesterday. And you're in luck. Carlton was volunteering for us so I have his number," she said.

  "Text him. Find out what he knows," Alex told her. When she didn't get an answer, he told her to do it again.

  "You text him. I have my hands full," she said and gave Alex the number then went off to deal with some kind of fracas in front.

  Alex texted that Carlton kid but didn't get a reply. Now they were pestering Ellen once again.

  "You can just go by his house and talk to him. Zack was saying how much he envied their big family dinner so Carlton will definitely be eating at home," she told them. "I had to go and pick up Zack from there once. He texted me the address. Here," she said after she was done searching through her texts.

  As soon as they stepped outside the door of the kitchen, Alex started questioning Vaughn about what they just found out. "So did Zack lie to Ellen and to his roommate about where he was going, or did he change his mind and...?" Alex trailed off while a frown creased his forehead.

  "It might just be a misunderstanding," Vaughn said as he put his jacket on but didn't zip it up. The heat of that kitchen still had him feeling too warm, plus his hands felt like they had been boil
ed.

  "Ellen didn't seem worried," Alex noted.

  "Maybe there is no reason to be."

  Alex seemed to be thinking that over, then he shook his head. "I don't know. Ellen is a very practical, no-nonsense kind of person, and Zack is the opposite of that. I don't know if she understands what a broken heart can do to someone like him," Alex said, looking troubled. They were still lingering in the alley behind the charity kitchen.

  "Don't assume something like that. Just because she isn't all emotional and touchy feely doesn't mean that she doesn't know what it's like to have a broken heart. And Zack is her little brother. She knows him better than we do," Vaughn pointed out.

  "That's true. She does know him, so I should take it as a good sign that she isn't worried, right?" Alex said and stared at Vaughn intently.

  Seeing that he needed reassurance, Vaughn told him, "It's a good sign. If she isn't freaking out, we shouldn't either."

  Alex nodded and smiled. His worry for Zack was so damn endearing, maybe because he seemed so flippant about everything. But obviously, he did care. Maybe that's why Vaughn grabbed his face and kissed him.

  The kiss was too sudden. It made Alex whimper and stumble and grab fistfuls of Vaughn's jacket to hang on. Their chests pressed together. Vaughn's fingers pushed through his hair as he moved his hand to grip the back of his head and deepened their kiss. Vaughn couldn't remember ever wanting to kiss someone and never stop, not even to breathe.

  But they did stop. Their mouths parted. Vaughn's chest expanded with heavy breathing as Alex clung to him. His eyelids fluttered. Their lips still touching, Vaughn stroked Alex's face as he moaned.

  Letting him go wasn't easy, but they had to get going. They walked to the end of the alley together then stopped to consider what they were doing next. But first Alex had to needle him.

  "The last time was an impulse, so what was that all about?" Alex asked and pointed back at the alley.

  "Just trying to distract you and keep you from worrying," Vaughn claimed.

  "And yourself too?" Alex guessed.

  "Maybe."

  "So are we splitting up now?" Alex asked.

  "We should. Since talking to a teenager seems more like your thing, you take this one," Vaughn said and zipped up his jacket.

  "What are you going to do? Walk the streets hoping to run into Zack at random?" Alex said.

  "I might," Vaughn said stubbornly.

  Alex turned to face him and frowned at him. "You're just afraid of me because I got under your skin. You're running away," Alex accused him.

  "No one is running away," Vaughn asserted.

  "Whatever, but I don't want to traipse through the suburbs by myself. And it's not like I know this kid. We can go together. You can be there to back me up," Alex proposed.

  "Together. Fine, but then we split up for good."

  "Won't be soon enough," Alex said.

  After a few steps, Vaughn noticed that Alex's mood had darkened. "I guess my distraction technique wore off."

  "It freaks me out that no one knows where Zack is," Alex said with a sigh. He might be easily distracted, but he was really worried.

  "We'll find him," Vaughn reassured him. He put an arm around Alex and pulled him close.

  "You're too sweet for words."

  "Now you're mocking me?" Vaughn said but he had to suppress a smile.

  Walking with his arm around Alex was kind of nice. The air he breathed was sharp with cold, bare branches were stark against the inky sky, but the night didn't feel lonely. It seemed full of tantalizing possibilities with Alex by his side.

  Chapter 4

  Despite claiming that he couldn't wait for them to split up, Alex was glad that they were sticking together. Maybe he was hoping Vaughn would do something unexpected again. He wanted to kick himself for that. Vaughn wasn't really interested in him. It was just this weird night.

  But did Vaughn have to be such a good kisser? The kiss started fast then turned deep and slow, first passionate then tender. Alex could still feel that kiss right down to his toes.

  The lingering sparks of pleasure were really unsettling. They could barely tolerate each other. It was a terrible idea to get any closer to Vaughn than this half-accidental bumping of shoulders and grazing of their hands when the sidewalks got crowded by the bus depot.

  From the still lively streets of the town at night, they headed to the suburbs. Streets got darker and quieter and dry leaves crunched under their feet loudly. They passed more cars than people. Sometimes they witnessed as cars parked in driveways and whole families spilled out, ready to eat their Thanksgiving dinners. That thought made Alex so hungry.

  He stopped under a streetlight to make sure they were going the right way. Vaughn took the opportunity to bring up something Alex let slip earlier.

  "When you were talking about Zack being brokenhearted, and that Ellen might not understand, you made it sound like maybe you do," Vaughn said.

  Alex made a face and grumbled, but he couldn't deny it. "Kind of. I felt really down after Cole and I broke up. And I was the one who dumped him. It must have been even harder for Zack." The way Alex felt afterward opened his eyes to how hard it was to let go once you give away even the smallest piece of your heart to someone.

  "I thought Zack broke up with Brad. Didn't he?" Vaughn asked.

  "Not exactly," Alex told him as they moved on. "Zack wanted to give him a second chance, but he needed Brad to promise he wouldn't cheat on him again. Brad said that was too much to ask. That Zack had no right to expect him to give up other guys for him. He made it sound like Zack wasn't good enough all by himself. When Zack told me that, I wanted to punch Brad." Alex only punched the air while picturing Brad's smug face.

  "Zack didn't tell me about that. I guess I got the Cliff's Notes version," Vaughn said and looked down at the ground. He obviously didn't like being out of the loop like that.

  "That's because you hated Brad at first sight," Alex told him.

  "I could tell the guy couldn't be trusted. He was too full of himself. Even with Zack right there, he was checking out other guys," Vaughn said with a shake of his head. "But it's not like I was going to yell 'I told you so' in Zack's face."

  "No, but Zack would have heard it even if you didn't say it," Alex told him as gently as he could. "It's hard to talk about a breakup and not feel ashamed and like a failure."

  "You felt that way?" Vaughn seemed genuinely surprised.

  "Yes. Even if the breakup is the right decision, it's not exactly a victory. You want forever and you end up trying to glue your shattered heart back together."

  "Sorry," Vaughn said then he pointed at the house down the block. It was a big, two story house with evergreen bushes lining the path to the front door. They had just stepped on that path when Alex got a call from Val asking for an update.

  "We talked to Ellen and got a lead, maybe," he told her. "And we helped out with the Thanksgiving dinner for the youths."

  "Youths? And stop bragging. You almost dropped a pan on my foot," Vaughn complained.

  "Why do I hear Vaughn grumbling in the background?" Val asked.

  "Because that's all he does. He's a non stop grumbling machine," Alex said.

  "I mean why is he there? You were supposed to split up," Val reminded him.

  "He's helpless without me," Alex claimed and gave Vaughn a big grin.

  "Liar," Vaughn said.

  "So what's the lead?" she asked.

  "We're on our way to see a guy Zack was tutoring. I guess you guys haven't heard anything," Alex said since she wouldn't be asking him for news if they did.

  "Nothing so far, so we're wishing you guys good luck," she said. Then she hung up before he could ask her about dinner.

  "Come on," Vaughn told him and pulled him along to the front door.

  The doorbell played a tune and a middle-aged man with a mustache opened the door. He looked from Vaughn to Alex.

  "Happy Thanksgiving, sorry to bother you. We'd like to speak to Carlton
. We're friends with Zack, his Japanese tutor. We need Carlton's help finding him," Vaughn rattled off, sounding more like a cop than a concerned friend.

  The guy with the mustache looked confused but then he called Carlton's name. After a minute, a skinny teen in an oversized, orange and green sweater and beige slacks came to the front door. His eyes were a very pale blue, his dark hair was slicked to the side and he looked bored.

  "Carlton, right? We're Zack's friends. I'm Vaughn. This is Alex. Do you know where Zack might be?" Vaughn asked him.

  "You came all the way here to ask me that?" Carlton said.

  "We are worried about him," Vaughn said.

  "And we wouldn't have to come all the way here if you answered my texts." Alex held up his phone with the series of unanswered texts stacked up on top of each other.

  "I don't look at texts from strangers," Carlton said as he eyed Alex through half-closed eyes.

  "Like it's so hard to read a text," Alex rebuked him.

  "You don't know what kind of weird texts I get from weird guys," Carlton said and looked him up and down.

  "Don't look at me like that. I'm not weird," Alex said defensively. "And Zack's sister, Ellen, texted you too."

  "She did? My phone is off. House rule on Thanksgiving night. Turkey Day is a deadly serious occasion over here," Carlton explained and pointed behind him into the house.

  "You just said you didn't answer my texts because you thought I was a pervert, but it's really because your phone is off," Alex concluded.

  "It's both," Carlton said just as a lady called him to take out the garbage from the kitchen. He walked outside then over to a side door and the same lady handed him a white bag full of trash. Since the side door was left open, Alex could see inside. It was a door to the kitchen, and it was bustling with activity in there. He went over to peer in and see what was cooking.