There has been a complete lack of Christmas fluff this year. I hope this gets everybody in the holiday spirit.
Merry Christmas redwolffclaw! I hope you enjoy this.
"T'was a few days before Christmas
And all throughout Psych
Not a creature was stirring
Except for Gus dressed in white.
He scurried to and fro,
Making sure everything was just right
For today was the day
Of our annual Christmas movie night
Suddenly he turned
And glared at his friend.
He opened his mouth
And here is what he said:"
"Shawn, this would go a lot faster if you helped me. Get off your lazy butt and get to work."
Shawn tsked, looking irritably at Gus. "Dude, that didn't even rhyme. You ruined the whole story."
"I ruined the story? Your rhymes are horrible and I'm not even wearing white," Gus said.
"It's called poetic license, Gus," Shawn explained. "And it still doesn't excuse what you did. I was really on a roll."
"I don't care. You're the one who invited Juliet. You're the one who made a mess of the office." Gus held up three smoothie cups as evidence before dumping them in a large black trash bag.
"You're the one who cares," Shawn said, watching Gus clean from the comfort of his desk chair. "I live with Juliet; she already knows what a slob I am."
"And didn't you promise her you would change that?" Gus asked, pausing in his work to give Shawn a pointed look.
Shawn sighed. "I hate it when you're right." He reluctantly got up and walked over to the table by the couch, covered with a week's worth of fast food containers. He picked up a white carton and studied the contents for a moment. "Do you think this was Szechuan chicken or General Tso's chicken?" He asked, holding out the container to Gus.
He shoved Shawn's hand away. "I think it was orange chicken," Gus said.
"But it's got vegetables in it. Look," Shawn said, pointing to a green shape in the container.
Gus sighed but glanced reluctantly into the container. "That's not a vegetable," he said.
Shawn made a face and dropped the container in the trash bag. "You really shouldn't let food sit out so long Gus. It's unsanitary."
Gus picked up another container, which had started to leak, and hurriedly threw it out. "You're the one that said you would clean up after lunch on Tuesday. I told you I had to do my route," Gus said, grabbing the paper towels.
"In my defense, that was the day Mrs. Johansen came in about her mother's missing necklace," Shawn said, chucking another container in the trash. "We made five hundred dollars off that case."
"And almost got arrested snooping around the daughter's room," Gus said. He finished wiping down the table and stood up. "Did you call the pizza in yet?"
Shawn nodded. "It should be here soon."
"Good. I'm going to get out the rest of the food and start setting up," Gus said.
Shawn grabbed one of the shopping bags in the corner and started pouring chips and candy into bowls. "Leave some room on the table. Juliet's bringing something."
"Is it on the list of approved snacks?" Gus asked.
Shawn rolled his eyes. "Seriously dude? You're going to turn down free food if it's not on your list?"
"This marathon is a tradition, which means doing the same thing year after year. We're already changing it enough by inviting Juliet," Gus said.
"Dude, Juliet is practically family. So you'll have to get used to seeing her around more often," Shawn said.
A knock on the door interrupted their argument. Shawn got up to answer it, leaving Gus to finish putting out the food. He returned a minute later with the pizzas. "Where do you want them?"
"Here," Gus said, pointing to an empty spot on the table.
Shawn put the pizzas down before glancing over the rest of the table. "Is that everything?"
"Yes," Gus said. Shawn frowned at the unusually clipped tone to his friend's voice. He also noticed Gus refusing to look in his direction as he put the last few items on the table.
"Dude, what's wrong?"
Gus stepped back from the table, looking everything over one more time before turning to Shawn. "What did you mean, Juliet is practically family?"
Shawn mentally cursed himself for the slip. "She's my girlfriend, Gus. We're living together. All I meant is that she's a bigger part of my life now."
"That's it? Nothing else?" Gus asked.
Shawn heard a car pull up outside. "Dude, can we discuss this later? Juliet's here."
"Just answer one question," Gus said. "Did you ever return that ring to your dad?"
He looked over at Gus, knowing he couldn't lie to his friend about this. "No."
Gus's eyes widened right as Juliet walked through the door balancing a covered pan and a cake tin. Shawn quickly jumped up to help her with them. "Ooo, what did you make?" Shawn asked excitedly. He sniffed the cake tin, a smiling coming over his face. "I smell pineapple." Moving to the pan, his look turned puzzled. "Chocolate and peppermint?"
"Pineapple upside down cake and peppermint brownies," Juliet said.
"The cake I understand, but the brownies?" Gus asked.
"My mom made them every Christmas growing up. They're sort of a family tradition," Juliet said.
"See Gus, they're a tradition. Now you can't ban them," Shawn said. He ignored Juliet's confused look and led her over to the couch. "Let's find a place for them."
"This is all for three people?" Juliet asked.
Shawn surveyed the spread laid out on the table. There were cookies, cake, candy, and chips for junk food. Also jerk chicken, nachos, fries quatro quesos dos fritos, two Hawaiian pizzas and of course, diced pineapple. "You're right. We might not have enough. Gus, run to the story and pick up a couple more bags of candy and some Oreos. And a pineapple." After all, one can never have too much pineapple.
"We have enough food Shawn," Gus said, trying to find room for Juliet's offerings. He had to stack the bowls of candy and chips in order to fit both items on the table.
Shawn sat on the couch, pulling Juliet down next to him. Gus sat in the arm chair next to them. "As you can see, we have quite the lineup for tonight," he said, showing her the stack of movies for tonight.
"Is that Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer?" Juliet asked, pointing to a movie halfway down the pile. "I loved that movie as a kid. Can we watch it first?"
"Ah, you see Juliet, there is a certain order we watch the movies in," Gus said.
"Of course we can watch that one first," Shawn said, cutting him off. He ignored Gus's glare as he got up and put the movie in the player.
As the movie started, Shawn started dishing out the food. "Pizza, milady?" he asked, presenting Juliet with a plate.
"Why, thank you good sir," she said, playing along.
Gus sighed as Shawn handed him a plate as well. "How you going to be doing this the whole time?"
"Probably," Shawn said.
"Just don't drown out the movie," Gus said in resignation.
They settled down to watch, steadily eating through most of the two pizzas. Rudolph had just gotten to the Island of Misfit Toys when Juliet's cell phone rang. Shawn groaned as she checked who was calling. "It's Carlton. I need to take this," she said, getting up from the couch.
"He's calling her in," he complained to Gus. "I can't believe this. He knows we had plans today. He just can't stand he wasn't invited so has to ruin it for everyone."
"That sounds like something you would do," Gus said.
"I would never do something that cruel," Shawn said.
"Joey's birthday party, 5th grade," Gus said. "You called in a bomb threat to the bowling alley where the party was being held."
"That was never proven," Shawn said.
"Your dad still grounded you for three weeks," Gus said.
"My dad was always grounding me for something," Shawn said.
Gus snorted. "You know that's right."
Juliet hung up and walked back over to them. "Sorry Shawn, I have to go. Carlton needs my help on a case," she said apologetically.
"It's OK. I know work has to come first," he said, forcing a smile on his face.
"I'll be quick. Save me some of the cake." She gave Shawn a quick kiss and headed out the door.
Shawn slumped down onto the couch, sighing heavily.
"Cheer up dude. She'll be back soon." Gus said.
"Yeah, you're right," Shawn said. He grabbed a bowl of chips, munching them quietly as they watched the movie.
"So, you're going to ask her then?" Gus asked after a few minutes.
"I'm waiting for the right time," Shawn said.
"And is that time going to be soon?" Gus asked quietly.
"I think it will," Shawn said. He looked over at his best friend, feeling familiar doubts starting to surface. "Do you think I'm making the right decision?"
"What if she says no?" Gus asked.
Shawn's heart clenched at that painful possibility. "I'll just keep trying to convince her until she says yes."
"And if she never does?" Gus asked.
Shawn looked away, a lump in his throat. "Then I'll let her go to be with someone else. More than anything, I want her to be happy."
"Then you're ready," Gus said.
Shawn nodded, the support of his friend meaning a lot to him.
"That cake looks good," Gus said, switching topics "You want a slice?"
Shawn grinned. "When have I ever turned down a slice of cake, especially with pineapple?" He took the offered piece, sitting back to enjoy his little slice of heaven. He looked back over at Gus after the third mouthful. "Thanks man."
"No problem," Gus said.
They turned back to their movie, watching Rudolph save the day with his bright red nose.
Carlton's quick lead ended up taking several hours. He hadn't mentioned on the phone the hour long drive to where the suspect was last seen or that the guy providing the tip was holding back in order to make a deal for his girlfriend, who was in on possession charges. She almost wasn't surprised the suspect had been last seen leaving his apartment and had yet to return.
She knew Marlowe was out of town visiting relatives and that Carlton was lonely but she drew the line when Carlton suggested staking out the guy's place for when he returned. It wasn't a high priority case; the man had stolen the Christmas decorations off of someone's front yard. It could have waited until Monday. Carlton wasn't happy, but agreed to drive her back to the station before staking the apartment out himself.
It was strangely quiet when Juliet entered the Psych office. She didn't see either man, though a movie was still playing on the wide screen TV. A Charlie Brown Christmas by the look of it. "Shawn?" she called out hesitantly.
A low moan answered her. She froze for a moment, trying to locate where the noise had come from. A second moan, this one recognizable as from Shawn, had her rushing quickly over to the couch, hand on her gun. She stopped short at the site that met her eyes. "You have got to be kidding me."
The table of food had been decimated. A few chips and some grease stains were all that was left of the real food. The bowls of chips and candy were mostly empty, there were candy wrappers everywhere and crumbs covered the table, the floor, and the furniture.
Gus was slumped down in the chair. His eyes flickered open, giving a start when he noticed Juliet standing there. "Juliet, you're back," he said, struggling to sit up in his chair. He brushed the crumbs off of himself while he tried to tuck his shirt back in.
Another moan brought Juliet's attention to the figure laying on the couch. Shawn was clutching a pillow to his stomach, eyes closed. He swatted at Gus's hand as his friend tried to get his attention. "Leave me alone," he whined.
"Get up Shawn," Gus said.
"No," Shawn said stubbornly. Juliet sighed, the sound causing Shawn to open his eyes. "You're back," he said with surprise. His tone turned accusing. "I thought you said it was going to be quick."
"Carlton failed to fill me in on a few details over the phone," she said, her annoyance at her partner leaking into her tone. "Don't worry, I'm free for the rest of the night."
"Told you," Shawn said to Gus. Before she could ask what he meant, he suddenly moaned, clutching the pillow tightly.
"Shawn?" Juliet asked worriedly. She looked at Gus, hoping he knew what was wrong with her boyfriend.
"He ate too much," Gus said, shaking his head in disgust. "I warned him not to, but he didn't listen."
"Jules, my tummy hurts," Shawn complained. He looked pitifully up at her. "Make it better?"
Juliet sighed and sat down on the couch next to Shawn. "You really are an idiot, you know that?"
Shawn reached over and grabbed her hand. "But I'm your idiot," he said, smiling up at her.
She couldn't hold back her own smile. "Yes, you are."
Gus gagged next to them. "You guys are making me feel even more nauseous."
Shawn moved so she could sit back against the couch. Once she got settled, he lay back down, using her lap as a pillow. She ran her fingers lightly through his hair. "Better?"
Shawn sighed happily. "Much better."
"Is there any cake left?" she asked Gus.
He got up and passed her the last piece. "I made sure Shawn left you some."
"Liar. You were totally eying that piece," Shawn said from her lap. He titled his head to look up at her. "I had to defend it vigorously. I knew how much you wanted it."
Gus snorted. "How were you defending anything lying there comatose on the couch?"
"I have my ways," Shawn said mysteriously.
"Enough you two," Juliet said, ending the argument. She knew better by now than to take sides. Besides, there was a kernel of truth in both there statements and she just considered herself lucky to have gotten any cake at all with those two around.
After the cake, she snagged a candy cane off the table. She unwrapped the long stem, leaving the curved portion covered in plastic to keep her hands from getting sticky. She loved peppermint around Christmas time and happily enjoyed her candy through the last few minutes of the movie.
"Can I pick which one we watch next?" she asked when the credits started to roll.
Gus sighed, but handed her the stack of movies. "Go ahead."
She flipped through the pile, recognizing many childhood favorites. "Did you watch The Year Without a Santa Claus yet?" When she received no answer from Shawn, she looked down at him.
He was staring at her. Or more accurately, her mouth. She removed the candy cane, noticing how his eyes followed its movement. "Shawn?"
His eyes snapped back to her face. "Um, right, the movie. Which one was it again?"
She moved the candy closer to her mouth, his eyes immediately darting towards it. Juliet fought to hide a smirk. "The Year Without a Santa Claus."
"Yeah, that one." He swallowed hard as she brought the candy to her lips before moving it away again.
"We watched it already," Gus said, when it became obvious Shawn wasn't going to reply.
Juliet brought the candy back to her mouth. She licked along the length of the candy a few times, watching Shawn closely. He licked his lips as if he could taste the peppermint himself. His eyes glazed over when she slipped it into her mouth, gently sucking on it as she slid it in and out.
Shawn sat up suddenly and gave a fake yawn. "Well, I'm beat. How about we call it a night? Jules and I should probably go home and get to bed." He jumped up from the couch, pulling Juliet up with him, and tried to drag her towards the door.
"Oh no you don't, Shawn," Gus said, leaping up after them. "You are not leaving me to clean up this mess."
"But Gus," Shawn whined, sounding almost desperate.
Gus grabbed a broom and handed it to Shawn. "Clean first. Then you can leave."
Shawn looked pleadingly at Juliet, who shook her head. "He has a point," she said.
Shawn sighed, taking the broom from Gus. "Fine," he said sullenly.
Juliet had never seen Shawn move so quickly. In almost no time at all, the leftover food was packed up and put away and all the garbage had been bagged up. She thought Shawn was going to throw a fit when Gus insisted they vacuum the floor. He managed to keep himself under control, pulling out the vacuum and whipping it quickly around the room.
Gus's smirk as he glanced at her said he knew exactly how much Shawn wanted to leave and was enjoying torturing his friend. She hid her own smile and went to bring the garbage outside.
Finally, the office was clean. Shawn grabbed her purse and jacket, shoving them into her arms. "Well, buddy, that was fun but we really must be going now," he said as he pushed Juliet towards the door. "Juliet and I have our own celebrating to do. In bed. Naked."
"Shawn," Juliet admonished, feeling herself start to blush.
"I really did not need to hear that," Gus said.
"You'll be doing more than hearing about it if we don't leave now," Shawn said, his voice dropping into that husky tone Juliet loved.
She took a deep breath, reminding herself that Gus was still standing there. "Shawn's right. We should go," Juliet said. She turned to look at her boyfriend's best friend. "Bye Gus. Thank you for inviting me."
"Bye Juliet," he called after them as Shawn finally succeeded in getting her out the door.
Shawn dragged her to the car, waiting impatiently for her to unlock it. "Do you think you can use your lights and sirens?" he asked when they were both inside.
"They're for emergencies only," she reminded him.
"This is an emergency. If I don't see you naked in the next ten minutes, I'm going to explode," Shawn said seriously. She could feel the heat of his gaze on her as she pulled out onto the road.
"I doubt it," she said. She did, however, drive faster than necessary to get back to their home. And if they arrived within the ten minute timeframe, that was just a coincidence.
Shawn looked over as Juliet came back from the bathroom and slipped under the sheets. She cuddled up against him, his arm curling automatically around her. "So, did you enjoy yourself today?" he asked.
"Right now, or back at Psych?" Juliet asked cheekily.
"Both."
"Then yes to both," she said. "Though maybe next time you could watch how much you eat."
"But pigging out until you burst is part of the tradition," Shawn protested.
"But if you hadn't eaten so much, we could have done more," Juliet said in a sultry voice.
Shawn turned his head to look at her. "More, huh?"
"Oh yes," Juliet said with a smile. "Much more."
"I'll take it into consideration for next year," Shawn said. He looked at the woman next to him, smiling and relaxed in his arms, and knew now was the time. "I think it's about time we started our own tradition."
"And what would we be celebrating?" Juliet asked.
"Our anniversary."
"We started dating in the fall," Juliet said, puzzled. "Unless this is one of those obscure anniversaries like our first milkshake or the first time we watched a John Hughes movie together."
Shawn sat up and pulled away from Juliet, reaching into the nightstand. He looked at the object in his hand for a moment, gathering his courage. This was it, the moment of truth.
He turned back to Juliet and opened the box. "How about the day I proposed?"
Juliet gasped, sitting up and staring at the ring. "Shawn," she said softly.
Shawn took her hand, looking into her eyes as he started talking. "We've been through a lot in the past few years; serial killers, you finding out I was lying, and more near death experiences than twenty people see in a lifetime. The only thing that has made it worth it is that you've been there the entire time by my side. I want you to continue to be there for many years to come."
"I may not have always been the best boyfriend. I forget to take out the trash, never do the dishes, and leave my stuff lying around everywhere. I'm lazy, immature, and normally don't plan ahead. I lived that way for thirty-six years. But for you, as your husband, I'm willing to change all that."
Throughout the entire speech Juliet just sat there with a stunned look on her face. He took a deep breath before asking the most important question in his life.
"Juliet O'Hara, will you marry me?"
Juliet smiled, eyes bright with tears of happiness, before answering with the most perfect word in the English language.
"Yes."
Grinning broadly, he took the ring out of the box and placed it on her finger. "So who should we call first, future Mrs. Spencer?" he asked. He was bursting with happiness and couldn't wait to share the great news with everyone.
Juliet studied the ring for a moment, then looked up at Shawn. The intensity of her gaze sent shivers down his spine. "Telling people can wait until tomorrow. Right now we need to celebrate."
"OK, what do you want to –" His question was cut short when she locked her lips onto his, pushing him down onto the bed. "I like the way you think," he panted when they came up for air.
"No more talking," Juliet said, diving back down for another kiss.
Not wanting to start off their engagement with a fight, Shawn did as he was told.
Shawn looked down at the sleeping woman in his arms. Her hand was laying on his chest, ring clearly visible. His ring.
It didn't quite feel real yet, that Juliet was now his. It had been a long road to get here, filled with potholes and wrong turns and the occasional homicidal hitchhiker. He just couldn't believe it had finally happened.
He could think of one thing he could do to make this feel more official. He carefully grabbed his phone off the night stand, sending a quick message one handed. Making sure the phone was on vibrate, he put it down and waited for the response.
Gus grumbled as he heard a text message come in. He considered ignoring it, but his friend had a bad habit of getting into trouble in the middle of the night. He rolled over and grabbed the phone off the nightstand, squinting to read the message.
A broad grin came over his face as he read the three words on the screen.
She said yes.
He typed out a reply, chuckling as he hit send. Then he put the phone down and tried to get back to sleep. Knowing Shawn, he was going to need all the rest he could get for tomorrow.
Shawn's phone buzzed on the table as Gus's reply came in. He grabbed it quickly before the noise could wake Juliet.
Make sure I'm there when you guys tell Lassiter.
Snorting softly, Shawn put the phone down. That was going to be a priceless moment. Maybe he would have Gus bring his video camera to capture the historic event.
Juliet shifted in his arms, curling tighter against his side. Right now, he was going to go he would deal with telling everyone the news and starting on wedding plans. There was a lot that still needed to be sorted out, though he was sure about one thing.
This would certainly be a Christmas to remember.
I did not originally plan for Shawn to propose, it sort of just happened. But who am I to deny him when he clearly loves Juliet?
Merry Christmas everyone!