My Valentine’s Day With Rudolph

The ninth Valentine’s Day I’ve been lucky enough to spend with ‘America’s Mayor’

As the light trickled into my Gramercy apartment this morning, waking me and the millions of other New Yorkers who rise with the sun, I knew that something was awry. My bed, topped with the same reversible, navy blue comforter that I dragged with me from place-to-place throughout my college years, felt looser than usual. When I rolled over to investigate, I discovered the cause: my bedmate, best friend, longtime lover, and America’s Mayor, Rudy Giuliani, was not by my side.

Rudy, who just turned 78, is a heavy sleeper. I almost never get up after him, unless he has night terrors from the November 7th, 2020 press conference at Four Seasons Total Landscaping, in which case his eyes remain wide open throughout the night and into the morning; could you blame him? But today, on Valentine’s Day, no less, he was gone. 

That is, I thought that he was gone, until moments later when he came bursting through the bedroom door wearing nothing but an apron. He was fixing us breakfast in bed, you see. A beautiful spread of scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, fresh fruit from the Union Square Farmers Market (about as fresh as fruit gets while tucked into the gray, wintry, concrete labyrinth of Manhattan), and coffee. Rudolph smiled at me and shrugged.

“Do you like it?” he asked, his voice filled with pride.

“Do I like it, Rudy?… Baby, I love it. I can’t believe you did this for me.”

“Well it’s for us, silly. I’m going to have some too, you know.”

Rudy and I have been an item for close to a decade. We met on Hinge, as many couples do, and from the first time that we hung out together, over drinks at Pete’s Tavern on Irving Place, we knew that we had stumbled upon something special. He was smart, handsome, and his résumé spoke for itself— mayor of the city of New York, successful attorney, doting father, need I continue?

Since then, he has made every day special for me… for both of us. Today was no different. 

After breakfast, Rudy and I set off to complete a busy and carefully orchestrated itinerary of plans. Tea at the Plaza Hotel, a horse drawn carriage ride around Central Park, a shopping spree on Madison Avenue, and an early bird dinner at Peter Luger Steak House. 

I write this as I lay beside Rudolph, strapped delicately into his sleep apnea mask. I feel lucky to be alive, thankful for feeling so loved, and grateful to have spent yet another Valentine’s Day with America’s Mayor.