𝐆𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐇 // 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐡𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐬

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲

THE BOXES OF DECORATIONS were heavy, and Eila was well aware of it — which was why Connor had been put to the task of it. He paced back and forth in the living room, only carrying boxes half the distance he walked, his arms feeling as if they got several inches longer per box he carried. "How many decorations do you have?" The surgeon chuckled as he placed the last box in front of the tree, looking at Eila.

"Probably more than I need."

Eila smiled sheepishly as she turned to look at Connor, and for a brief second, the surgeon was sure she was glancing down on his lips. Truth was, after hearing Jonathan's words at the hospital — the words that confirmed Eila felt the same thing about Connor, that he felt about her — he hadn't been able to look at her the same way. His heart would skip a beat, and his stomach would feel funny ( Connor had found himself googling, coming to realize what he felt was butterflies in his stomach ).

               "We should probably get started then, huh?"

               Connor got the honour of opening boxes, while Eila turned, tapping on her phone. Shortly after, soft tunes of Christmas-music — even songs Connor recognized from his top ten list — echoed through the living room. He chuckled softly, bringing the lights out of its own little container. Carefully, he moved around the tree, throwing glances in Eila's direction, hoping to get any type of guidance as he moved around the tree, gently placing the lights.

               They continued in silence once the lights were in place, moving around each other as the decorations were placed on the tree. However, that stopped once Connor picked up a string of glitter, a cheeky smile spreading on his lips as he started twirling it around Eila.

               "What are you—,"

                "All ready," Connor chuckled, hanging an ornament on the glitter, after tying a bow on it. "I mean, there should be a star on your head — but then again, it's kind of hard to make it stay on your head without putting in hard work for a star-suitable helmet." He took a step back, only to realize that he too had been tangled up in the glitter, forcing him to step even closer to Eila.

She became very well aware of how close he was as he stood there, the heat radiating off his body as he untangled himself from the glitter, the gentle smell of his cologne filling the air between them. It couldn't have been much more than just a few inches between their faces, and though she tried, she couldn't get her eyes off his lips; her mind pacing through all the possible ways she could feel them on her own.

Though Connor didn't notice her stare, he was deeply stuck in a similar mindset of his own, desperately trying to focus on the glitter. His hands were shaky, and so was his breathing, as he tried to fumble his way out of the glitter.

"There we go." He cleared his throat, taking a few steps back, running his hands through his hair. Connor had no idea how long he had been standing close to Eila, how many minutes his brain had been carrying out a fantasy he could have made an actual thing in his head. He was about to step forward with an offer to help Eila too get untangled, though she waved her hand, signalling he didn't need to.

"It's okay." She smiled, slowly untying the bow he had made, noticing how he nodded, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

The surgeon had not intended for it to become awkward between the two of them, but he had no control over his feelings — and he knew very well the next thing he'd be losing control over, was his actions, and God forbid he lost control of his actions near the woman he was head over heels in love with.

                Only minutes later, Eila had placed the glitter on the tree, and hung the ornament near the very middle of the tree, before turning to Connor. "You know, that'll be your special ornament now." She chuckled, smiling softly at him. "That way, no matter where we are in the world, I'll always have you with me. Even at Christmas."