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Two weeks until Christmas, and Bal didn’t even have their tree up yet.
Normally it would be up at the start of the month, but between work and then being whipped out for a week with the flu, Bal could never get around to it. It made their living room feel… empty, almost. As a kid, their family went all out for Christmas with decorations and sweets. It was tradition for them. When Bal moved out it was no different. It was practically ingrained into their very genes to go all out.
Which is why this tree thing was bothering them so much.
“I don’t know why it bothers me so much,” Bal was saying to Blake on the phone. They had just finished work for the day and were packing up their things. “It just does.”
“It makes sense. This is all you’ve ever known,” Blake consoled. “Do you have plans for supper yet?”
“Not yet. Probably will make something that I can just throw together and put into the oven for an hour. Save me the brain power.”
“That sounds good, yeah. Then we can spend the time doing other things.”
“We?” Bal asked, putting on their jacket. “I thought you had to be somewhere tonight?”
“Plans changed. I’ll see you at home, yeah?”
“Yeah. See you soon, love you.” “Love you too.”
Blake hung up the phone after that. Bal wondered idly how Blake was able to clear his plans so easily, but decided not to dwell on it much. He was always the mysterious type, and they came to terms a long time ago that they may not know everything about their love. That was alright by them, so long as he told them the important things.
Bal got into their car and drove home.
________
Bal opened the front door, being greeted with a warm house and the smell of food cooking in the kitchen. Their brows knit together as they took off their things.
“Blake? Are you here?”
“Coming!” Blake called back, which was followed by the telltale signs of his footsteps.
Just as Bal was stepping away from the doormat to investigate, Blake showed up. He was smiling ear to ear—and that was all they could see before they were being pulled into a kiss.
“Hi to you too,” Bal joked when they broke apart. “What are you doing? And what is that smell? It"s making me hungry.”
“I know the kind of day you were having at work, so I decided to take care of dinner,” Blake explained. “I also ended up tidying the kitchen right before you got home since the food was in the oven,”
“Oh, you didn’t have to do that,” Bal said, chest warming.
“Wanted to,” Blake said with a shrug. “And, I have a surprise for you.”
Bal raised an eyebrow, “A surprise?”
“Yeah! Come on.”
Blake took their hand, tugging them toward the living room. On the way, Bal noticed that all the Christmas lights they put up were on, another thing they would have been doing after work if Blake didn’t get to it first. He always does the small things for them, and somehow it means a lot more than someone could think. Once in the living room, Blake pulled to a stop, not letting go of Bal’s hand, and made a gesture towards Bal’s now standing tree. Last Bal saw this it was still in its box in the attic. Beside it were the totes that held Bal’s Christmas ornaments that they’ve inherited over the years.
“When did you have time for this?” Bal asked, incredulous. Blake shrugged.
“I know it’s been bothering you, so I brought down everything,” he said. “And now, we get to decorate it after dinner.”
“Why after?”
“Because it’s going to be done in, like, ten minutes and as much of an expert you are on decorating I don’t think that’s enough time.”
He had a point.
So, they got dinner ready and sat down to eat together. The food was delicious, and Bal was grateful they didn’t have to cook. They’ll take over dishes in return for the work Blake put in. Once the dishes were away and the dishwasher turned on, Bal found Blake in the living room setting up. The TV was set to the yule log channel, and Blake had a soft Christmas playlist on as well. Bal smiled, coming over to see what box he was digging in now.
“How do these lights get tangled? We put them away perfectly last year,” Blake grumbled.
“It’s part of Christmas,” Bal joked, sitting down beside him. They reached over to tackle the knot as well. “Besides, you know how you were getting at the end of taking down all these decorations. Sometimes things just fall through the cracks. Or get jumbled around while being put away.”
“I guess.”
Bal chuckled, getting started on their lump. Their fingers worked deftly, working with muscle memory more than anything. “You know, we used to have competitions as kids to see who can unknot their string of lights the fastest.”
“Really?”
Bal nodded. “I think it was just so my parents didn’t have to. I was reigning champ three years in a row, though. Got overthrown by my baby brother who was finally old enough to grasp the contest.”
“Was there a strategy?” Blake asked, looking at his tangle dejectedly.
Bal laughed, much to Blake’s dismay. “There really isn’t. But, it just takes some patience, and the knowledge that it really isn’t that bad.”
Bal held up their recent accomplishment—a perfectly untangled portion of lights—with a smile. Blake just rolled his eyes before continuing with his own. Bal moved on to the next. By the end, Bal was sure that they did the bulk of the work, but they weren’t going to tell Blake that. He wouldn’t take the defeat easily.
“Help me get these around the tree? We’ll start from the top, I think,” Bal said, examining the tree. “I will probably need the step ladder though, wherever that is…”
“Right here?” Blake said, and sure enough, when Bal turned around he was holding it in his hand. He had a small grin on his face, and Bal knew he was revelling in this.
“You just think of everything, huh?” Bal teased, rolling their eyes.
“Not everything, but yes,” Blake said, setting up the ladder for them.
“Just get over there,” Bal said, hip-checking him out of the way.
Blake chuckled but did as he was told. Bal coached him through how they wanted the lights, sometimes coming over to take over completely. Blake always took it in stride, going as far as to tease them as well. Bal didn’t care, this was their thing, and Blake knew what he was getting into when he signed up for this. With the lights around the tree, they moved on to the decorations. Some were family heirlooms, some that they bought for themselves, but all of them were able to fir onto the tree. Blake pulled out an ornament and smiled down at it. Bal just caught this out of the corner of their eye and turned to look at what he had.
“What’s that one?” they asked, and Blake held it up to them. It was the ornament that Blake gave them last year, the first one on their tree that was, well, theirs. It meant something special to them to have it. Made them feel like they were finally building a home with Blake.
And, really, what else could they ask for this Christmas?
“Aw,” Bal cooed, “I was wondering when we’d come across that one.”
“Do you want to do the honours?”
Bal thought about it for a moment before shaking their head. They had a different idea. “You do it. Pick anywhere. I’ll be right back though.”
As Blake moved forward, Bal bounced out of the room. They ran upstairs to their room and dug around in their nightstand for a moment. Then, they were able to pull out the ornament that they bought a few weeks ago while in the mall. It was a simple, elegant sword. The seller said they rebranded some of their usual merchandise for Christmas, and this is one of them. It wasn’t a lot, but it did incorporate their and Blake’s favourite colour. It was perfect in their eyes, and they couldn’t wait to show Blake.
Hopping back into the living room, Bal held the small box behind their back, grinning from ear to ear.
“What do you have?” Blake asked.
“The last ornament that is going on our tree,” Bal said, holding it out.
Blake picked up the box gently, a small smile on his face. He examined the ornament as he continued. “You got this?” “Mhm. There was a small market a few weeks ago and I found it. I figured since it kinda incorporates different things we liked, it would make a good couples ornament.” “I love it,” Blake said, leaning in to kiss them gently.
“I’m glad,” Bal beamed. “Go on, put it on the tree.”
“We’re gonna start an annual thing with this, aren’t we,” Blake commented, warmth dripping from his voice.
“Maybe.” “I’m okay with that.”
Bal was too.
Blake placed the ornament on a branch front and center in the tree, and it was the perfect spot for it. Bal might have been a bit biased but the tree seemed empty before that was added. After a few moments, Blake stepped back, looking at Bal.
“Alright, now that everything is on, do you want to do the honours of turning the lights on?”
Bal squealed, dancing over to the switch that sat on the floor. They couldn’t wait a moment longer before pressing the button with their foot and seeing the tree light up in pretty colours. Bal was beaming once more as they stepped around the boxes to get back to Blake to admire their work together. Bal couldn’t describe it, but something felt complete with the tree up now. Especially since Blake helped them. It felt like a new tradition in the making.
“It looks good,” Blake breathed, reaching for their hand again. Bal nodded in agreement. They felt their fingers instinctively intertwine with his, and they pulled his arm closer, hugging it.
“It looks really good,” they agreed. “Thank you for helping.”
“Of course,” Blake kissed the top of their head. “Anything for you.”
Bal stood there, basking in not only the warmth of Blake beside them, but also the warmth radiating from their chest. This was perfect, to them. Even if it wasn’t the original plan, or what they normally do, being here with Blake was enough. And they couldn’t wait to make this a new Christmas Tradition.
“Do you want me to make some hot chocolate?” Blake asked them quietly.
Of course, the answer was yes.