Page 16 of To Cuddle A Gremlin

“Oh, how sweet. You didn’t have to go out of your way for me. I could have—” Sebastian blew out air and tried again. “Thank you.”

“You are very welcome. How about we sit at the table over there and enjoy a snack?” Isadore looped his hand throughSebastian’s arm and led him to a picnic area near the park entrance. Sebastian marvelled at how easy Isadore was about bodily contact. He was tactile and not afraid to show affection. Sebastian liked the touches, the holds. Isadore reminded Sebastian of solid friendship and reassurance.

“Sounds great. Let’s sit, and you can tell me about anything new and interesting that’s happened.” Isadore swept the seat and faced the quiet river. Sebastian settled beside him. The placement was different from what he was comfortable with, but he wanted to see what Isadore saw, and he was being brave.

“We’re in the process of preparing crafts for children for the town festival. Decorating the library and all that fun stuff. We have a lot of Christmas-minded people in this branch, so they’re chafing at the bit to get started.” Sebastian sipped the hot mocha and sighed as it warmed him from the inside out. “Good drink.”

“I’ll let the barista know. Explain this Christmas thing. I don’t quite get the meaning.” Isadore scratched his head, his claws more obvious than Sebastian had previously seen. He peeked at Isadore’s ears and blinked at how long and pointed they were.

“Christmas is a religious holiday that celebrates the birth of a child. We give gifts and have a big feast. A lot of people observe the winter solstice, which is the shortest day of the day, light-wise. We have many major religious holidays at the same time, but Christmas seems to be the name we’ve stuck with. We have a month of celebrations and solemnity,” Sebastian explained. He stared at the lampposts in the park decorated with pine garlands and lights entwined around them. Ice sprites were dancing on the needles, giving them a permanent frosted look.

“That sounds like a lot,” Isadore said. “What do you do?”

Sebastian nibbled his cinnamon scone as he thought about his holiday season. He’d go to his parents’ house in the country for Christmas Eve and Day. Be by himself on Boxing Day to recover from the forced socialization. Sebastian then decidednot to share his family drama with Isadore. Sebastian sensed Isadore would become upset at how alone among his family Sebastian would be. They didn’t need to rehash Sebastian’s history on their first true date. “Sammi and I make a date and exchange gifts at the Nokk Inn. Lya has a delicious spread for anyone who wants to visit during December.”

“Oh, I love that place. Even Tony enjoys their ambiance, and he’s notoriously fickle.” Isadore dropped his head on his fist and smiled at Sebastian. The blast of warmth aimed at Sebastian made the butterflies in his stomach flutter madly. “This is nice.”

“It is, isn’t it?” Everything was going well, and Sebastian hadn’t stammered or made an ass of himself yet. This might be considered a successful date. “Did you celebrate the Winter Solstice?”

“We have a winter holiday, but it’s a sombre affair. We remember those lost to the demons and to the dark. We light candles and offer the names of those who left us too soon,” Isadore explained. This was the first time Sebastian had seen a downcast expression on Isadore’s face. It was humbling.

“And here I am blathering on about a happy, joyful holiday, and this isn’t what you—” Sebastian tried to apologize. He didn’t mean for Isadore to be sad.

“No, no, sweets. It’s okay. There are commonalities between our peoples. You don’t need to be sorry for something you have no control over. I think we can be happy and introspective at the same time. Meld the two styles together.”

Sebastian grudgingly allowed the concession, though in the back of his head, he wished he hadn’t asked. “A lot of people do that, actually.”

“See? We’re already progressing. Now, come on, show me your park. Tell me about this festival. Tara has committed the café’s resources to a booth, and I’d like to understand what that means.”

“You are very involved with the backroom aspects of the café. Is that just because of Tony?” Sebastian asked. God, he hoped he wasn’t being invasive.

“Mostly. She asked if I could help set up a contactless and wireless situation for her. She wanted to not depend on the public Wi-Fi for transactions,” Isadore explained. He offered his hand to Sebastian and helped him get up from the picnic table. Isadore never released Sebastian and kept his hand tucked with his arm. “Okay, tour guide, show me where the festival will be.”

Sebastian directed him to the entrance to the Riverside Park, where paths leading to and from the river were laid out. He paused at the Light Up Night memorial and shook his head. He shuddered. During the fight between Darius and Hastur, Granite had been under such a terrible pall that Sebastian worried that their lives would be irrevocably destroyed. But Darius and his friends managed to send Hastur back to hell. Bowing his head, Sebastian asked the demons or gods to maintain the locked barrier around Hastur and his ilk. He never had any dealings with the demon, but he remembered the devastation. Some people still hadn’t forgiven Darius for destroying their town or inviting the demons to Granite, though the events weren’t his fault.

“Is this where the thing happened?” Isadore asked, hushed. He knelt on one knee and bowed his head.

“The chamber of commerce thought it would be a good way to remind people that their lives can change so fast,” Sebastian explained. “A lot of the townsfolk wanted to get rid of the statue as a bad memory, but we decided we needed a reminder. And we won.”

“My people are grateful that a door opened for us. We have blossomed living here in this community.” Isadore brushed the frost crystals from his knees.

“Do you have humans still crossing the street when they see you? A few cryptid patrons have complained about silly humans.” Sebastian scowled. Bigoted people were bigoted, and he wished they’d go away.

“Not in a while. People have been positive and kind. I was talking to Isaac at the centre, and he said there has been an uptick in human/cryptid relations. He’d seemed thrilled with how busy he was.”

“I like Isaac and Adam. They’re nice.” They all had gone to the local high school, though Sebastian was in the same grade as Darius. He knew the other two in passing.

“Sebastian? Is that you?” Sebastian’s back crawled as a familiar voice screeched out his name. He had hoped his date would end well. But the presence of his cousin jogging toward them warned him shit was about to happen.

“Who’s she?” Isadore askedsotto voce. Distaste changed how he stood and how he spoke to Sebastian.

“My cousin, Meggz. She’s… I’m sorry.” Sebastian didn’t know how to describe his family to Isadore, but Meggz talking to him would explain a lot, probably too much.

“Why are you apologizing? Not necessary.” Isadore patted Sebastian’s hand.

“Are you on a date? OMG, for reals? I thought you told everyone you were the bad luck king. Isn’t that what you told your mom?” Meggz ran up to Sebastian and pulled him away from Isadore with force. “Never imagined you’d find a date willing to be seen with you in public.”

“Thanks, Meggz.” Her words dug a hole within his chest and twisted. She knew the best way to hurt him. He yanked his arm away from her inch-long claws. She, as always, was dressed to impress. She wore tight, distressed jeans with a fluffy white coat. Meggz’s hair was artfully loose around her face but sprayed withan inch of its life with hairspray. Makeup caked her skin, and mascara clumped on her lashes. “What’re you doing outside?”

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