The Boy [mxb]

13

Ciel wakes up before me on Christmas morning, thrumming with energy.

Blinking groggily, I reach to the other side of the bed. It's empty. I glance out the window at the snowfall, smiling at the sight of soft flakes of snow melting on the glass. I get out of bed and head downstairs to find Ciel.

He's standing with his palms pressed against the balcony door, leaving fingerprints in the glass I just cleaned the other day.

Ciel turns around and smiles at me. He looks beautiful in the golden sunrise glow. He's wearing the festive hat and Christmas frog sweater I bought for him. He looks adorable. I walk up to him and gather him in my arms but he won't hold still as I try to kiss his cheek, squirming and wriggling out of my grasp.

Smiling, I turn my cheek for him to kiss it. He complies sweetly, then scrambles out of my grasp a hot skinny mess and scampers away.

My family comes over later. My turn to host Christmas.

Ari grins at the antler ears I'm wearing.

"That's a good look for you, Dare."

"Aha, shut the fuck up. Ciel made me wear it."

"He's still here." My sister cocks an eyebrow. She gives me a look that tells me she has questions. "And you still don't know anything about him."

"So? I know he... Probably slept in churches, on the subway. Stole food, wallets, whatever he could..."

"He could be a serial killer with a pretty face. You don't know who you let under your roof."

"Ari! He's like a character out of Dickens. No parents, no family..."

"Dare-"

"All I'm doing is enrolling him in school, getting him some clothes, making sure he's up to date on his shots."

"Dare, you have a fucking saving complex a mile wide. I get that. But... think about it. Beautiful, flirty boy like that, he could've gotten picked up by whoever he wanted. I don't think anyone he approached would've said no. So why you? A cop."

"What are you saying? You think he's some undercover mafioso out to kill me? This isn't Italy-"

"All I'm saying is that there are a lot of people out there who don't like cops-"

"So what? My job is to protect their ass, not kiss it. And you're nuts. If Ciel wanted to infiltrate the NYPD and kill me, he could've done it a million times by now."

"Bro, I'm just thinking out loud."

"Look," I say. "It's like this. Say there was a stray kitty in a park who chose you as its human and wouldn't let you go, started following you..."

"I'd call animal control."

"Which, analogously, is the police. Except, I am the police." I shake my head. "I'm not getting attached. I'm just helping him."

Having finally captured him, my mom attacks Ciel with kisses. He's over the trauma minutes later when she's got him elbow deep in floury dough, teaching him how to make Christmas cookies.