Lonely Father Christmas

Knock..knock..

Ding..dong..ding..dong..

What is it? Why can't people let me sleep in peace? The man groggily got up from the sofa. David almost knocked over mountains of plates that hadn't been washed for two days. He wobbled towards the door while patting his costume.

There's nothing wrong with being a little decent, especially after two days of wearing the same costume over and over. The salary was little, but at least it was enough to get by. The sweat didn't help, either. Who is actually enjoying a summer Christmas? Oh, I wish for a white Christmas at least once.

He opened the door.

"Surprise!" 

Ah, who likes surprises? He tried putting on his best smile and tried his best to greet the guest with his best attitude.

"What can I help you?"

"Would you, sir, be willing to donate for the less unfortunate? The charity is for..."

"No!" he said while slammed the door in the kids' faces. At least the term 'bitter old man' will definitely fit him better now.

Obviously, after being awakened, he couldn't fall back to sleep no matter what. So he headed to the bathroom to wash all the grime and sweat. It's time to burn the costume anyway. 

The bathroom was only two by three meters wide. He was greeted by his sight on the mirror. He didn't look that bad. Apart from his uncombed hair and his overgrown beard, he looked younger than his actual age. He saw several aging lines around his eyes and couple of strand of hair that looked grey, he could pass for a zaddy. 

I wish I had the money to dye these. David tried plucking several grey strand to no avail. Shrugging, he took off his costume and threw it on the floor. He turned the faucet waiting until the water got a little bit colder.

Fuck this, I'm selling the house. Caravan could work. But then again I won't have anymore things on me. For emergency fund at least. Life has been unfair to me, so it will definitely bite me back later. He thought for a second. Let's save it.

Trying to feel the water again and knowing that it was cold enough he slowly put his body under the water. 

Shit. Fuck my life. He tried to stand back up, but it was hard. So he slowly crawled out. His old back was hurting and the new bruise he gained from knocking his butt on the floor didn't help either. 

It took him about thirty minutes with some rest in between the crawling and cursing. He hated Christmas ever as long as he remembered. His coming out story didn't help either. He remembered his parents' disappointed gaze thrown at him. Luckily, the pair passed when he was about twenty, leaving him with quite inheritance.

As a tenager, David thought by then, gay was being happy. Getting rejected over and over again because of the toxic community made him to learn to hide his sorrow. He was too busy during other days, working, he could only go out on a date during holidays. So the rejection happens mostly on Christmas. He knew that he didn't have the best look or anything, but he had his money so he drowned himself on booze for every rejection he got. 

When his parents passed, even though he didn't like them, he spent his salary on drugs to forget his sorrow. The lifestyle lasted him years, until finally when he was thirty, he almost lost his life to drugs and alcohol. The money he got from his inheritance was enough for him to get into rehab. He was okay for now, but he went back to his old house, he inherited from his parents.

Afterwards, being healty, he faced a lot of rejection because the gap on his resume. He explained and most companies rejected him knowing his past. So, he got by using his experience in some odd jobs, including becoming the father figure for Christmas. 

The water in the bathroom was still running when he finally reached his phone. A simple button helped him to explain his embarrassing situation to the operator. He only had his motto to not offend most people 'Fake it, 'till you make it'. He tried to chuckle, so the operator worked fast to help the frail old man. 

Knock..knock.. A little knock on the door five minutes later made him exhale the breath he had been holding. 

"COME IN! IT'S NOT LOCKED!" David shouted, so the firefighters could help him. 

Instead a whole group, a guy burst through the door. He was wearing his full uniform in the hot weather running towards a bare naked old guy sprawling on the floor. 

With the powerful arms David managed to regain his bearing on the sofa without trying to cover his genital while mouthed the word thanks to the kind strong guy who helped him.

"No worries, I'll put my number here. Call me if you need anything," the guy smiled. He went inside David's toilet and took the towel and spread it gently over David's naked body.

David was dumbstruck and only nodded his head. The smile and the gesture lit up a little hope inside his hopeless heart. 

"I can't stay long, I need to finish my shift first. Apparently, a lot of hot guys needed saving during the holidays," said the smiling guy.

"I wish they could be as hot as you," he continued.

Waving he closed the door behind him, leaving David to be alone again. Even though it was Summer, he felt that the warm was enough to accompany him to regain his bearing. Grimacing, he tried to get up, and limped toward the bathroom again. Knowing that he couldn't shower standing, he took the footstool next to the toilet and sat on it.

When the water brushed through his skin, he winced from the occasional pain. It took him longer than normal to finish cleaning himself up. After knowing that he looked clean and more presentable, he grasped the sink to help shove him upwards.

Looking at himself on the mirror, David tried to make himself better. Sigh, I can't change anything. He stared at the fat around his belly and pinched it.

After he wore his normal shirt, he sat back down at the sofa that was still wet from the accident. His belly growled which made him realise that he hadn't had anything since he woke up. He needed food fast. Staring at the fridge, he felt that it was gonna be a long walk. Not counting the preparation and the cooking itself. 

He tried remembering some number to call for delivery but couldn't recall anything. His sight caught the slip of paper on the table. He reached for the paper and saw the number on it. The handsome firefighter. Should I call him?

It took him longer, and his experiences made him to abandon the thoughts. He thought that he was gonna feel disappointment all over again. 

But then another knock on the door stopped him from dwelling in the sorrow. Slowly he got up and walked toward the door. He didn't have any peephole, so he was forced to open the door slightly.

What greeted him was a sight of a muscle guy wearing a blue T-shirt that made the guy look bigger. David was tall. The guy by the door was shorter but still looked bigger than David because of his muscle. The cute thing was the guy was holding a pink plastic bag. 

"Can I come in?" said the firefighter.

"Y..yes of c..course," David stammered.

"I brought you something, I hope that I'm not going to intrude."

"No, of course, I was just..." David was speechless. "I was just trying to figure out what to eat," he tried being honest for once.

"That's a coincidence. This is for you," the guy handled David the bag. "Enjoy!" the firefighter smiled and scratched his head, he then waved his hand and turned back.

"No! Wait! I thought you wanted to go in?" Asked David.

The firefighter turned, "Ooops, I was nervous." He scratched his head again.

"Me too! Thank you for everything, you didn't need to come," said David while ushering the guy to the sofa.

"No, it was my duty to help you," a red blush appeared on the guy's face. The firefighter looked different when he was not wearing his uniform. He looked meek and not as confident but still cute.

"Let's just eat together," David said, opening the bag on the coffee table by the sofa.

A drop of water fell down, followed by a drizzle on the hot Summer day. The cloud covered the sun. The water reflected the sun, creating a beautiful colour in the sky.

After a long time, for the first time, David hoped that this Christmas was the first of many.