Page 87 of A Little Bit Naughty

Remi hadn’t smiled so much in months. Or at least not since Isaac had been in Oregon with him. “Let’s go down together. I won’t try to carry the table,” he added quickly. Isaac had been fiercely protective of letting him lift anything, and they both knew he was near his limits.

They quickly rounded up the folding chairs, table, and a few other odds and ends that Isaac wanted for decorations, and had them piled up near the elevator.

“Hang on,” Isaac told him. “I want to grab a sweatshirt. It’s getting cold up there.”

“Good idea. I should take some more pain meds, too. Can you grab my sweater?”

They went back into the apartment. Remi found his backpack where he’d left it in the tiny living room, then went to the kitchen for a glass of water.

When he was done, though, he still hadn’t heard from Isaac. Remi smiled. He’d probably thought of another decoration.

He meandered back to Isaac’s bedroom to find him on his knees in front of Remi’s open suitcase.

Isaac looked up, like he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Sorry. I couldn’t find your sweater so I…” He gestured down toward the suitcase.

Remi looked first at the bed—he was sure the sweater was there somewhere, but maybe it was hidden under the covers—and then where Isaac was looking.

Ah. Right. “Those are for you,” Remi said, voice a little strained. They still hadn’t talked about age play head-on. They still hadn’t talked about anything. They were just friends.

Isaac lifted out the first package with reverence, then gasped when he saw the second one below. A children’s felt version of the Sukkot plants and bumpy lemon, and beneath it a wooden toy version of two candles, a wine cup, and a braided loaf of bread. To Remi’s mind, it seemed almost sacrilegious to make toy versions of holy objects, but clearly they were big sellers among Jewish kids, so he figured it was alright.

What he wasn’t sure about was giving them to Isaac. He’d planned on keeping them in his suitcase until after they’d had a conversation. Maybe he’d even fly home with them. Or give them to Isaac as a parting gift on his way out the door.

“Daddy!” Isaac, no, Izzy, shrieked. Because he was certainly Izzy now. He dropped both packages to the floor and raced toward Remi, knocking him lightly into the wall. “Daddy! You got me a sukkah and a lulav and an etrog just for me to play with. And a kiddush set. And we’re really going to make kiddush because it’s Shabbat and…”

Izzy seemed to run out of words, but then he was covering Remi’s face with kisses. Remi tried to kiss him back, but he was moving too fast. His bundle of joy. His baby boy who was calling him Daddy again. Just like it was always meant to be.

“Look!” Izzy darted away. “There are even candle sticks for the candles. And do you think we can put real grape juice in here?”

Remi had gotten red wine for the evening, but now he would know what to do for next time. “I’ll check the instructions, sweet boy.” God, did it feel good to finally say that. “I don’t want you drinking any yucky chemicals or hurting your new cup.”

“OK, Daddy. But we have to hurry. It’s almost sunset.”

Apparently that was important, too. “Alright, sweetheart. Let’s go put up the lights and the… the top of the sukkah.” Whatever it was called, with all the throat-clearing sounds. “Do you think you can be safe on the ladder if I hold you?”

Izzy’s chest puffed up. “I can be so safe. You just have to sit in the chair and watch me.” His brow wrinkled adorably. “And plug in the electricity.”

“Of course. Let’s go.”

Izzy gathered up his packages, completely forgetting about the sweaters, which Remi had to grab. He just trailed in Izzy’s wake feeling… awed. Enamored. Probably in love.

On the roof, Izzy was a whirl of energy. “Look at me, Daddy! Am I so safe?” He was perched on the small ladder, stringing up the holiday lights across the wooden beams.

“Very safe, busy Izzy. I’m proud of you.”

Izzy giggled at the nickname. “Busy Izzy, busy Izzy,” he chanted. “Busy Izzy like a bee! Bzzzzzzzz!”

That led into an up-tempo song in a minor key with the words all in… Hebrew? Yiddish? Izzy happily sang over the smooth syllables and harsh gutturals of a few sounds as he attached the curtains and then tied the bamboo mat down to the flat top.

Remi just stood and watched, handing Izzy bungee cords and soaking in his presence. He was already planning out just how many weekends he could visit Boston. Every weekend would be too much for his teaching schedule—and his back. And he had that conference in October. But maybe if he came out once in October, then had Isaac join him for Thanksgiving and—he stopped himself before he thought of Christmas—but the winter holiday break. He could fly out three more times in between. And that conference was in New York. Maybe Isaac could meet him there for a day or two?

“Daddy! I’m all done with the schach! Now we have to test it!”

His baby boy clearly wasn’t thinking about future plans. He was completely in the present, right where Remi should be. “Test it?” He could just imagine Izzy swinging from the beams or something equally ridiculous. The frame hadn’t been built to support his weight.

Isaac pulled Remi by the hand under the roof, then melted into his arms. “Look up, Daddy. Can you see the stars?”

He rustled his hand over Izzy’s hair, messing it up. “No, you goof. It’s not dark yet and the lights are on.” But oh, were there stars in his baby boy’s eyes.