Your Love Is Sunlight

Twelve

This chapter contains some Polish, as both Elio and his family are Polish and Jewish. I will put all single-word translations at the bottom of the chapter and all full-sentence translations underneath the paragraph.

—꧁—꧂—

After the stunt he pulled a few days ago, Elio insisted Andrew come to work with him before dinner that night. It was a Sunday, so there wasn't much going on and they wouldn't be spotted together.

He snuck Andrew through a back door that led straight to the hallway where his office was located, since all of the staff were given keys to the building's exterior doors. He often entered through those doors anyways, so no one would be suspicious.

Andrew was silent as he looked around Elio's office, taking everything in. "You can sit down wherever you'd like, and there's snacks in that drawer," he told Andrew, pointing to a small end table.

He sat down at his desk and began signing into his desktop while Andrew searched through the drawer, pulling out a small bag of tayto crisps. "Is it just paperwork, or are you doing something fun," Andrew asked him, curious to learn what Elio did all day.

"I'm doing paperwork for something fun," Elio answered, searching through his drawers for a file he'd stashed in there on Thursday. "I'm trying to convince my boss to let Angela and I organize a bake sale for Halloween."

"I thought you did case work."

Elio shook his head. "Annette reassigned me after what happened with my kid," he explained. "I still give counseling, but she wants me to focus more on community outreach for now. She pulled Angela out, too."

He took out a packet of papers from his desk drawer and flipped through them, frowning at the sight of so many empty lines. In the end, paperwork for something fun was still paperwork.

—꧁—꧂—

Elio finished submitting his proposal and grabbed his coat, groaning when his knees popped from sitting too long. "Ready to go," he asked Andrew, who looked up at him, smiling, and nodded.

They walked out of the LGBT Center hand-in-hand. Elio drove while Andrew manned the Bluetooth again, a habit they'd fallen into since having dinner with Andrew's parents. Elio liked the control he felt while driving, and Andrew liked the distraction.

He parked and they both got out, Andrew opening the apartment door for him once they got to the top of the stairs. Andrew sat on the side of Elio's bed while he changed for dinner, shedding his usual t-shirt and replacing it with a simple black turtleneck sweater.

It was the most conservative he'd ever seen Elio dressed: no makeup, nothing special done to his hair, no earrings or necklace except for his Star of David. Elio sensed his confusion immediately. "What's up?"

"You're dressed differently," Andrew responded, stating the obvious. "Is your grandmother not okay with how you usually look?"

Elio slid his ring back on from where it sat on his dresser. "No, babcia doesn't care what I wear, but I try to dress modest when I'm participating in religious events and such. Those parts of my personality are typically kept separate."

Andrew nodded. "And, ehm, I don't know what it's called... the thing on your head?"

"It's a kippah. I'm supposed to keep my head covered during holidays. You don't have to wear one since you aren't religious, but I have a few more if you decide you want to," Elio offered. "It's completely your choice."