Christmas Trees and First Dates

A/N: I decided y'all needed some Alren with holiday fluff because I'm trash and dragging you all into the Alren dumpster with me, suckers.

Read and enjoy.

*reposted 12/4/22 because I decided it was good enough to make public again*

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"Mani, no one but you will even see it, so why do I have to decorate my apartment?" Lauren whined as they reached her apartment floor. "We're going to be at your place this year anyway. You and Camz are supposed to introduce me to the person who makes up your trio, remember?"

Normani rolled her eyes as she followed the younger girl down the hall. "And you'll still be meeting Dinah then. I promise. However, that doesn't mean your apartment needs to be left undecorated," she argued.

"No one is going to be seeing it. It's not like my family is visiting," Lauren mumbled, looking at the floor.

That was a sore spot. Her parents didn't take her coming out as bisexual just before she left for college very well.

Normani pulled the smaller girl into her side and hugged her sympathetically. "Hey. You're amazing, baby bear. Fuck them for not seeing the amazing, gorgeous, and intelligent daughter they have."

The raven haired girl sighed and leaned further into the older girl. "Love you, Manibear," she whispered.

As they reached Lauren's apartment, the door across the hall opened and a short blonde walked out.

"Hey, Lauren, and Lauren's friend," the girl greeted cheerily, smiling widely. "What are you guys up to?"

"Hi, I'm Normani," the dark skinned girl introduced herself. "Lauren's been living here for months and she hasn't let me meet her neighbor. What a jerk." She turned to the green eyed girl and playfully shoved her.

Lauren appeared to have not been paying attention as she was startled out of a stupor. "S-sorry, Mani. This is Ally," she said, motioning to the shorter blonde in front of them. "Ally, this is my best friend Mani."

Ally chuckled as she offered a hand to the dark skinned girl. "It's nice to officially meet you, Normani. What were you guys up to?"

Normani noticed a slight shade of pink had colored Lauren's cheeks and the girl seemed to be trying not to stare at her neighbor. Deciding to put that observation aside for the moment, she wrapped her arm around the green eyed girl and put her into a playful chokehold. "This grump doesn't want to decorate for Christmas. I'm trying to convince her to do so."

Ally gasped, affronted. "How do you not want to decorate for Christmas?" she asked, her pitch increasing into a slightly accusatory tone.

Lauren groaned and tilted her head back tiredly. "No one else is going to see it. I don't see the point."

Ally scoffed. "Because it's fun! And it makes your apartment feel more festive, and it makes watching Christmas movies and baking cookies even more awesome because it feels festive."

"So if I decorated my apartment, would you want to come over and do that stuff?" Lauren blushed and quickly covered her face with her hands as she realized what she said. "Uh, wait, I didn't mean to actually say that."

"But you thought it?" Ally challenged, quirking an eyebrow.

The green eyed girl shifted on her feet as she looked at the ground. "Maybe," she confessed quietly.

Ally laughed boisterously. "Well, decorate your apartment and maybe I'll consider it."

"Aww, that means I have to go and get shit to decorate with," Lauren whined petulantly.