The Sound of Us

Thirteen

I was sitting at my kitchen counter with a coffee, waiting for Amir. I'd offered to drive him to the airport and we had to leave in less than an hour.

The concierge rang.

When I opened the door, I found Amir holding a shoe box.

"It's very difficult to get a Christmas present for someone who already has everything," he said, putting down his box. "So I made you a few things."

He'd made gifts for me? When was the last time that happened? I honestly couldn't recall.

"I don't know what to say..." I mumbled.

First, he handed me a notebook.

"I wrote you two short stories to keep you 'warm' whilst I'm gone. They're kind of... smutty," he said with a devious grin.

"How scandalous," I said, taking a quick look.

The pages were filled with neatly flowing cursive. Did they even teach that to his generation? I couldn't wait to read them, I felt like a kid on Christmas day. What else was in the magic box?

"I'm sure you remember these," he said, holding up... a CD?

"I'm not sure I even have a way to play this," I lied.

"Uh, huh. Sure," he said, already moving on to the next item.

"This is so you'll stop polishing off my drinks," he said, passing me two heavy tumblers. One had the word "Mine" engraved on it, the other "His".

"How did I never know I needed these?!" I said, hugging them to my chest.

"Last and most certainly not least, I made you this."

"You knitted me a scarf?" I asked in incredulity.

He nodded enthusiastically.

"It's the ugliest thing I've ever seen, I absolutely love it!" I said, winding it around my neck.

"Merry Christmas!" he said, leaning in for a kiss.

"I'm deeply touched by all the effort you put into this," I said, grabbing his hand. "Now, I feel bad for not getting you anything."

"Baby, all I need for Christmas is... yoouuuu!" he sang, deliberately out of tune.

"Just kidding! Did you really think I'd let you go empty handed?" I said, grabbing my gift from its hiding place.

Amir weighed it in his hand before tearing off the paper. He stared at me in shock.

"Is it the right one?" I asked.

"I can't accept this Ethan," he said, holding out the iPhone Pro Max. "This is too much!"

"Money is only money, and life is about joy," I said, trying to imitate the way he'd said it. "Just the look on your face when you opened it, gave me all the joy in the world."

"Do you know what this makes you?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A cool boyfriend," I stated proudly.

"More like a sugar daddy," Amir teased.