Vlogmas: a YouTube Christmas Special [YouTube]

Day 3

On the third day of Vlogmas, YouTube gave to me:

My Name is Chrios Kendallas and I Am Now an Angel (Chris Kendall and Jimmy Hill [crabstickz, jimmy0010])

***

"A little more to the right, please," you call, hands cupped around your mouth for extra volume.

Chris looks down at you incredulously from his perch on the roof of your house. "You just said move it to the left!" he yells, throwing his left hand outward in an exasperated motion.

"Yeah, my left. You went to my right."

"So you want it more to your right?"

"No!" You make a sound of frustration. "I switched directions for you! I want it more to your right!"

Jimmy claps a hand on Chris's shoulder. "The lady's always right, mate. Move it back." You can tell he's laughing at the two of you. You and Chris have barely stopped bickering since he set foot on the ladder.

"Yeah, sure. The lady's always right until she's left," Chris retorts, making sure to shout the last half so you can hear. You chuckle under your breath, stomping your feet to keep warm while you watch them shuffle back across the rooftop. You can't imagine how cold the boys are up there.

The front door shuts heavily, attracting your attention. It's Heidi, looking anxiously up at Chris and Jimmy over her shoulder as she bounces over to you.

"Those two are going to fall and break their necks," she mutters for the millionth time. She's been darting outside at the slightest thump on the roof to predict their imminent doom. You doubt she's even taken off her puffy pink coat and chunky knit scarf the whole while, ready to zoom off to A&E at the drop of a pin.

"Heidi says to be careful," you dutifully inform the light crew. They wave in acknowledgement but don't bother answering, although Chris is halfway down the ladder to retrieve something from inside - probably more nails. The worrisome blonde scuttles back indoors as well.

Jimmy glances down at the yard. "Is she gone?" he checks. When you give him the thumbs up, he waves for you to come up the ladder. "I could use a quick hand on this next bit, if you don't mind."

"Can't you just wait for Chris?" you ask, eyeing the ladder dubiously.

"It'll just take a second, come on."

You reluctantly comply, scaling the ladder, which seems infinitely more rickety now that you're the one climbing it. Stopping on the second to last rung, you keep both hands tightly on the sides of the ladder.

"All the way up, y'little pussy," Jimmy teases.

Up one more rung, then. The shingled roof is cold, even through your gloves.

Jimmy nods toward his right hand which is keeping a string of lights up. "Just hold this in place for a tick, please." You have to stretch away from the ladder to reach the part he's holding. It wobbles precariously, but you've watched Chris do this dozens of times today without accident. The ladder held Chris and the ladder will hold you. You chant that over and over in your head.

When the tack temporarily holding the other half of the string in place pops out, you don't think twice about lunging to catch the lights before they slip, and even though you save them, your moment of triumph is brief. The ladder teeters and then tilts in slow-motion, toppling towards the ground, and you're falling away from it. You're too surprised to scream; all you can get out is a tiny gasp as your stomach drops.

Chris's noise is a lot louder, a big grunt muffled under a mouthful of your sleeve. There's a loud crack and then a subsequent chorus of smaller cracks and a lot of oomph-ing and rustling of fabric against fabric against foliage as the bush crumples under your combined weight. By the time everything settles, Jimmy is halfway down the ladder, swearing loudly and profusely, but you and Chris just lay there, stunned. It takes a few seconds of Jimmy's cursing for it to click: I just fell off a roof.

"Chris!" Your head pops up in alarm, searching for his face. You find it and immediately start checking for signs of... well, you don't really know. Just, signs. "Oh my god, are you okay?!"

He winces, sitting up with some difficulty, as he has to roll the majority of your weight off of him first. "I'm fine." He waves his hand dismissively. "But you're okay? Are you sure you're not hurt?"

Jimmy grabs you both by the arm and hauls you out of the now-flattened shrub. Still swearing, he half-carries the pair of you back into the house.

The moment you hit the entry hall Heidi is there, hovering like she'd been waiting by the door this whole time (and maybe she had). Her frets and Jimmy's expletives tangle and fill up all the empty space to be had. Upon getting to the kitchen, Jimmy sits both of you down and Heidi flaps around like a hen, mothering and worrying and generally being in the way. You know you're fine, just a few scratches and bruises, so you immediately turn all of your focus to Chris.

"Are you sure you're okay? I fell onto you from a bleeding roof."

He glares at you from the side of his vision. "Yeah, I felt it. You know you could've died, right? You could be dead right now."

"I'm so sorry, Chris, this is all my fault. Are you sure you're fine? Did you hit your head?"

This repeats several times in a loop in slightly different language each time before Chris puts his hand out to stop you.

"Stop freaking out. I'm fine. Everything works. I might be sore for a few days, but so will you." He shrugs. "If you're fine, I'm fine."

You study his carefully passive face for a few moments and then attack him with possibly the tightest hug you have ever given. "You are an angel from heaven, Christopher Kendall."

"Don't exaggerate. I'm at most a low-level cherub."

The guys decide to take a break from putting up the lights and instead the four of you drink Heidi's special hot cocoa and play five-card poker using fun-size candy canes as chips. When Ezra gets home from work looking puzzled by the half-hung Christmas lights dangling from the eaves, Heidi launches into a full-blown overdramatised Heidi-version of the story, even trailing outside after Jimmy and Ezra when they go out to finish the job.

You watch Chris over your mug. He's idly twisting a candy came between his long fingers, gazing out the window by the table and humming along to the Christmas carols playing softly from the radio in the corner under his breath. You can't help but think he looks kind of handsome, even with the dark circles under his eyes and the pink flower plaster on his cheekbone (Heidi insisted). You lean forward in your chair and flick one of your candy canes at him.

"Hey."

He throws it back. "Klutz."

You smile. "I never said I had good balance. Only that I kick ass at poker." You indicate your large pile of sweets.

"You owe me," Chris tells you, raising his eyebrows smugly as he deftly unwraps his peppermint. "You can't deny that you owe me."

You grimace and Chris laughs. "I cringe to think what that may mean."

He points at you with the end of his candy cane. "One date. You owe me one date night, and then we're even."

"So my life is directly proportionate to one date with you?"

Chris shrugs. "It'll be a nice date," he assures you around the candy cane in his mouth.

You mull it over, examining your mug. "Is it a platonic date night?"

He scoffs. "Of course." The candy cane comes out of his mouth with a pop. "Do we have a deal?"

You shake hands. "I believe we do."

Chris sits back again, tipping his chair on two legs. "I'm holding you to that," he warns.

"I'm counting on it."

The lights look beautiful.

***

A/N:

Same as always: any suggestions?? I've prewritten several but it's not too late! :)

Happy Christmas
virtues