Page 152 of Lessons in Chemistry

AUGGIE

After a lovely meal at Casey’s house on Christmas Eve, I wake up at Emory’s on Christmas morning to find a stocking waiting for me under the tree, stuffed with thoughtful little gifts. Knowing that Emory’s parents went to the trouble of getting me presents brings a tear to my eyes. Emory and I don’t exchange gifts, having decided to wait until we’re with Casey to do so.

We spend the day with Emory’s family. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so welcomed in my life. Yes, his parents, Patrick and Jean, were initially hesitant about the thought of their son being in a triad, but they seem to have got used to the idea. Or at least they’ve got used to me, and they already loved Casey.

The day is full of laughter. The only thing that’s missing is Casey, but we keep up a near-constant stream of text messages with him. Emory’s parents have invited Casey and his parents for a buffet lunch tomorrow, and I intend to sleep at his tonight. Of course when I do, it’ll be Emory I miss. My gut aches, reminding me that this isn’t what Christmases are like for me. Mine are lonely. Correction. Mine were lonely. I’m with Emory and Casey now. They don’t need to be lonely again.

In the evening, Emory comes with me to Casey’s so we can exchange gifts. We get intercepted by his parents, Neil and Philipa, the moment we walk through the door.

“Happy Christmas,” Philipa says, hugging Emory and then me. “It’s so lovely to see you again.”

“You saw them less than twenty-four hours ago,” Casey says.

His mum hushes him. “We’ve got gifts for you.”

“They’re under the tree,” Neil says.

We go into the sitting room, where two brightly wrapped presents are waiting under the tree. We sit on their sofa, along with Casey, and open our presents. They’ve given each of us a T-shirt. Emory’s has a nerdy slogan on it, while mine has black geometric patterns in shades of blue and teal.

“We weren’t sure what you’d like,” Philipa says.

“I hope it’s the right size,” Neil says.

My chest feels tight. “It’s amazing, thank you. You didn’t have to go to any trouble.” They must have bought it yesterday, between Casey arriving home and me and Emory coming over for dinner.

Philipa waves her hand. “It was no trouble at all.”

“We were going to go for a stroll. We’ll be about an hour,” Neil says.

“Bye,” Philipa says as they head for the door.

“Subtle. You did tell them you’re ace, didn’t you?” I say once they’ve left the house.

“Yes, but you’re not.”

“Did you tell them that?”

Casey laughs and shakes his head. “No. Are you complaining that we’ve got the house to ourselves for an hour?”

“I’m not,” Emory says.

Casey stands and holds his hands out to us. “Let’s go to my room.”

Casey’s room is exactly how I imagined it: neat and tidy, with posters of Olympic swimmers on the wall and swimming medals and trophies on display. Like Emory, he only has a single bed. At Emory’s, I slept on a pull-out bed in his room. Well, that’s where I started. I ended up in bed with him. Casey doesn’t seem to have a similar set-up.

He sits on his bed and holds a gift out to each of us. Emory takes four presents out of the rucksack he brought with him. Once all the gifts have been given to the right person, we join Casey on the bed and begin a grand unwrapping.

The first thing I open is a personalised wooden chopping board. It has my name and ‘Head Chef’ engraved on it. “This is from you, isn’t it?” I ask Emory.

He blushes and nods.

“It’s a hint that he wants you to do all the cooking,” Casey says.

“I already do.”

“Hey. I do some too.”

I kiss Casey’s cheek. “I know you do. Thank you.”