“Yeah, what do you think?”
“I think you need to have your aunt give me a call.”
20
Landon
I hadn't even bothered to go to the holiday festival last year. I didn't have any reason to, but this year, not only was I going, but I was going with Miller. Out in public. In front of everyone. Since we’d started this thing, we’d been together in the city, The Watering Hole, and the coffee shop, but we hadn't been out like this in front of the whole town. If I was being honest, I'd never been to an event like this with any guy. When I was with the rodeo, I tried to be way more discreet. I never would have done anything like this at home when I was a kid.
Miller had suggested I drive to his house and park there because Main Street would be closed off for the parade. He only lived a few blocks from the courthouse square so we could walk from his place. I didn't even make it out of the truck before he was down the steps, heading towards me. He pulled me into a hug. “You ready to see River Gorge at its most festive?”
“I am. Ripley loves this festival, so I’m excited to see what the big deal is.”
We headed down the sidewalk and turned right to go up to Main Street. “So first, we'll meet the guys in front of Cap’s to watch the parade. Then we can go check out the booths.”
“Maybe I can find something for my mom and dad. They're so hard to buy for because they basically have everything they want.”
We stopped and looked at the crowd trying to spot the guys. It didn't take long to find Ripley in his Christmas hat. We made our way over to them. “Where's Cap?” Miller asked.
“He’s waiting at the start of the parade with Annie,” Frankie said. “Once things get started, he'll rush over here. My job is to take lots of pictures just in case he doesn't make it.”
“He'll make it,” Cap’s mom said. “I remember parade days. They'll get the kids organized and send the parents on their way long before the parade is moving. He's worrying for nothing, but I did the same. We all do.”
“That's the truth,” her boyfriend, Grady, said. “Debbie was always the one who dropped them off, and I was the one saving a spot for her to rush back to so we could cheer the kids on. But she always made it.”
Cap’s mom laughed. “I think Deb and I made that dash together a few times.” They shared a smile and a look that warmed my heart. They’d both lost the people they loved but had managed to find happiness again. A few minutes later, Cap jogged up to us.
“Okay, they’re all situated. Her group is lined up fourth.” We watched as the groups began to make their way down the street. First was a decorated float with what looked like a gingerbread house, followed by a couple of classic cars. Next was the high school marching band and then Annie's dance troupe. She was so cute in her little leotard. We all yelled out her name and cheered for her like she was a superstar, and we were her groupies.
The local riding club was next. “Look at her.” I pointed to a beautiful sorrel colored quarter horse. She was one of the first horses I’d helped train at the ranch, and she was stunning. “I'm glad to see her.”
“I'm just glad they’re behind the dance troupe and the marching band,” Cap said, laughing. “Remember that year they put the riding club first, and the marching band had to march through the horse shit?”
“Lord, that was a mess,” Miller said. “I thought Mr. Rubio was going to have an aneurysm. He just knew the uniforms were ruined.”
We watched a little more of the parade go by, and I could understand what it was that Ripley loved. Most of the social groups in town had floats, all of them decorated to the nines. Eventually, Miller leaned over and asked me if I was ready to head on down to courthouse square where the booths were. We said our goodbyes and started in that direction. At some point, Miller had taken my hand, and while I’d never been a big one for public displays, I didn't mind him letting everyone know we were together.
Apparently, lots of parents only watched the parade until their kids went by because there was a sizable group headed the same direction we were. “When’s the tree lighting? That's the part Ripley keeps talking about,” I said.
“He always did love that part. When we were kids, we would sit up there”—he pointed high on top of a building across the street—“and watch them light the tree. Me, Ripley, and our friends, Beau and Corey, would sneak off together to watch. We did that until high school.”
“What happened in high school to make you stop?”
“Oh, you know, girlfriends and all that other high school crap.”
“Girlfriends?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Well, for Beau and Corey anyway. Ripley and I played along.”
“I never did. Play along, I mean. That's what made it so bad for me. We had a couple of kids who were out, and I think they did okay. But I was never what people thought of when they thought of gay guys, so I didn't fit there. And all the things I loved were the things the straight guys loved. Like Shop and Ag classes and rodeo. They thought I was trying to pretend, like I had been lying about who I was, like I was trying to trick them. I don't know. I didn't fit anywhere, except with the horses.”
“Well, you fit here, now, with me. Now let's go get you some food.”
21
Miller
This was the first time I’d ever been to any event in town with a date. Not that I dated much anyway, but anytime I’d taken a guy out, it had been in the city, not in River Gorge. We were getting some looks, that was for sure, but Landon seemed to be oblivious to them.
We wandered up around the courthouse square looking at all the booths and picking up a few items here or there. It had taken us forever to make our way around. I figured it was a combination of everyone knowing me and my whole family and people being curious about Landon, but either way, everyone wanted to talk.
“People here really like your mom, huh?” he asked the third or fourth time someone asked me about her.
“Yeah, they do,” I said. “It's always been that way. That's what made her so successful. She could charm the pants off a snake. And that has benefits. People were much nicer about me coming out than they would have been if I came from a different family. No one wants to make an enemy out of one of the richest families in town, so that got me a pass of sorts.”
“But I noticed no one said much about your dad.”
“He wasn't from here, she was, and when they divorced, he moved away. He didn't go far, but still, he left River Gorge so that just proved to them he was never really one of them. That matters to the older people in town, but not so much the younger ones. I think that attitude is dying out. I hope so, anyway.”
“I think it is. Oh, speaking of people who aren't from here, look at the line at Donovan's booth.”
“Nice,” I said. “What does he have besides honey, I wonder?”
“I don't know, let's go see.”
We made our way to his booth and stood in line.