Deck the Halls

Merry & Bright

I step through the front door into a room full of laughing, mingling people. I've arrived a little later than everyone else it would appear. I sidle my way through the crowd, eyes roaming for any familiar face.

A hand drops onto my shoulder and I turn around to find Dave grinning drunkenly at me.

"Ronnieeee, my man! How the hell are ya?" he slurringly shouts, maybe a little more loudly than necessary to be heard over the Christmas music.

I shake my head at him and grin. "Looks like you've been enjoying yourself!"

"Duh," Dave rolls his eyes before throwing his head back and drinking deeply from his cup.

"Hey, have you seen the other guys? Where are Brandon and Mark?"

"You don't wanna know where Mark is!" Dave giggles, swaying.

"Ooookay, thanks buddy. Just... uh, keep on partying." I pat him on the shoulder.

"Eh-yup!" Dave stumbles off as I start looking over people's heads again.

Sighing, I decide to just enjoy myself. I'll find him eventually. I make my way over to the refreshments table, helping myself to some warm cider. There's a party game set up on a nearby table next to the Christmas tree, and I wander over to investigate. There's a big bowl and instructions to write your guess of how many ornaments there are on the tree. I smile. Of course he would come up with such a cute game. I scribble a number down and toss it into the bowl.

"Hey!" A soft voice behind me says. I turn around and almost laugh at the sight. Brandon's all bundled up in an ugly green sweater that has flashing lights all over it.

"That's... something."

"What? You don't like it?" He teases.

"I love it, actually." He blushes at that and clears his throat, taking a sip of his cider. His eyes drop to my neck and light up.

"You're wearing my scarf!"

Now it's my turn to blush as I reach up and adjust it self-consciously. "Well, yeah um, of course."

He giggles at my flustered expression and scoots up next to me.

"Come on, I wanna show you around."

--

Me and Brandon sit on the couch, laughing tipsily as we chat and watch Christmas movies. Flames are roaring in the fireplace and it's pleasantly warm and cozy, nice and quiet in this room, separate from most of the guests and partying.

I drape my arm across the back of the couch behind Brandon and, to my surprise, he leans into me, snuggling up against my side with a yawn. My heart is kicking as I gently bring my arm down to wrap around his shoulder, eyes darting to the few people in the room. But none of them seem to notice or care.

"Thank you for coming," Brandon mumbles sleepily. He looks up at me with heavy-lidded eyes and I absolutely melt, filled to the brim with happiness.

"Of course," I say quietly. He smiles charmingly up at me, one corner of his mouth quirking up, and any coherent thought in my head disappears.

A clock strikes midnight somewhere in the house, marking Christmas Day. The guests all cheer and the gentle clinking of glasses fills the house before everyone begins to make their way out into the snowy night.

Brandon stretches and rises to his feet, reaching a hand down and pulling me lightly up. We drift slowly toward the door until finally we're the only ones left. When I open the door the world is peacefully quiet, muffled by the snow, and lights are twinkling on every house.

"Ronnie."

I turn to look at him. Ugh, he's just so adorable. His hair is endearingly ruffled and he still looks sleepy, cheeks and nose slightly pink from the cold. His eyes flit to something over our heads and, looking up, I see a bundle of mistletoe hanging from the door frame. My eyes dart back down to see Brandon's shy, pleased little smile. He quickly rises to his toes and presses his lips gently to mine. I reach up, cupping his face as I kiss him. After a moment he breaks away with a contented sigh. I trace my thumb gently across his cheekbone and he grins softly.

"Merry Christmas, Ronnie."

A/N: This was supposed to go up on Christmas. But that didn't happen, so Happy New Year!