Hey everyone! So just to satiate some of you I decided I'd write a Thanksgiving short story (which has not been looked over at all... so pardon any mistakes). This is an M/M Romance story, this section contains no sexual content. This is the shortest story part of Road of Life to date, but it's meant to be. Enjoy everyone!

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~ The Road Of Life ~

~Thanksgiving Short Story~

Thanksgiving, a time where we were supposed to take note of the things we were grateful for. In my youth I had never had much to be thankful for, every thanksgiving I would be beaten and starve, just like every other day. I opened my eyes to see my mate still asleep next to me, he looked so cute when he slept. After about a half hour of watching him he began to wake.

"Hey handsome." I said as his eyes fluttered open.

"Hey.." he replied, a tired sound in his voice.

We both got up and got ready for the day. This Thanksgiving would be so much different, I finally had someone to spend it with who wouldn't beat me to near death. The morning was spent running a few errands at the grocery store to get the last minute things Carol needed to make the Thanksgiving meal we'd share later on that evening. The lines at the grocery store were just horrible, packed with furs getting the last minute things they needed for their own meals. When we returned home Carol thanked us both and rewarded us by giving us both some money to go see a movie. Andrew and I decided to go and see 'The Muppets' that had just come out today.

When we got to the theater it seemed almost as packed as the grocery store had been. Luckily when we got to the ticket booth there were some seats still available for our show. We paid the cashier and then headed to the concession stands to get popcorn and drinks before heading in to seat ourselves and watch the show. The show lasted about two hours and upon exiting Andrew and I both agreed the director had done a good job.

On the long walk back home my mind began to cross over to times of the past. I remembered the fear, the pain, the hunger that I had felt on Thanksgiving. I was so lucky to have Andrew, to this point he'd been the best thing to happen to me. I held hands with him and he must have noticed that I was thinking too much because of the look of sorrow he caught in my eyes.

"Everything alright?" he asked, giving me a slightly concerned look.

"Oh, I'm fine." I stated, reassuring him with a smile. "I was just thinking about the past.."

"What was Thanksgiving like for you?" he asked hesitantly.

"Well.. lonely, painful and I usually starved." I stated, taking a breath before continuing, "Bob, my step-dad, often treated it just like any other day, beat me most the day and refused to allow me to eat."

Andrew frowned, hugging my arm, "I'm so sorry..."

I smiled at him, "It's alright.. before all that, before my real dad died, I remember we used to have a huge Thanksgiving meal and we'd take turns saying what we were grateful for. I always used to give the same answers."

I took a short breath, reflecting for a moment, "Grateful for food, a bed and my mom and dad.. later on I learned just how much I should have appreciated those simple few things.."

Andrew looked at me, a sad look in his eyes. He didn't like how I'd suffered in my past, but just having him there made up for all the sorrow I had experienced.

"It's been a long time since I've had a decent Thanksgiving.."

Andrew smiled at me, "Well, this Thanksgiving you're with us, you won't have to starve another Thanksgiving."

The rest of the way we walked in silence, just enjoying the other's company. Later that evening we sat down at the table, earlier I had noticed Andrew talking with his mom about something but I hadn't paid it any attention. We all started to eat the feast Carol had spent the day preparing which consisted of the traditional turkey, yams, mashed potatoes and gravy and for desert some pumpkin pie. After dinner and desert Carol spoke up.

"So, Andrew talked to me earlier and I think his idea is a splendid one. We should start a new tradition, saying one thing that we're grateful for."

It took me a moment to register things and then I looked to Andrew, smiling a bit. Each of us took turns saying what we were thankful for. James was thankful for his wonderful family, Carol was thankful for their home and Andrew was thankful for Life. It took me a moment to think of what to say.

"I'm thankful for you all, without Andrew I might not still be here today, or I'd still be lost. Without you both.." I said, turning my attention to Carol and James, "I wouldn't have a safe place to stay, thank you for your hospitality."

The rest of the evening was spent chatting amongst ourselves and playing some games, filling the night with laughter and good memories. It was just like old times, when I had a family of my own, I wasn't alone anymore, and for that I would always be grateful. In this one moment I learned to cherish everything I had, to be thankful for every small detail. In life it's hard to be positive and thankful as we as fur kind tend to think negatively and concentrate solely on the bad aspects of life. Even though it's hard, even when we struggle, we should find at least one thing to be grateful for. Later that night I told my mate that during the Thanksgivings spent with Bob, the one thing I was always grateful for at the end of the day was...

"I was grateful to be alive."

TO BE CONTINUED....

Happy Thanksgiving! Remember, Today is a day to be grateful for what we have!