A Very Rosewick Christmas

That tree looked dangerous. At least, Roman thought so. It looked more like the result of a three year-old's arts and crafts project than it did a conifer, if you asked him. If it didn't topple over under the weight of the ornaments strewn across its fake branches, it might catch on fire from an electrical spark. One thing was for sure though. Roman would never, ever trust Ruby or any of her friends with interior design after seeing this abominable insult to fake foliage.

"D'you have some sort of fascination with Christmas trees?"

Roman glanced over at Ruby, who had only just stirred from bed and was looking at him with somewhat drowsy eyes. "Actually, I'm simply wondering which of you is responsible for this hideous brain child," he remarked as he gestured to the tree.

"Hey!"

"Oh…were you the mastermind behind this monstrosity? Seems my guess was right on the money." Ruby growled a little as he chuckled and knelt down to look at the space beneath the tree. "Where are all the presents?"

"They don't get put out until Christmas Eve!"

"Ah. So one more night then." Roman smirked and strolled over to Ruby's bed, lifting himself up onto the bedframe beneath it. He had since grown comfortable enough with their makeshift furnishings to justify leaning on her bed. "Did you get anything for me?"

"You still haven't told me where we're meeting."

"You know the way to my place."

"So Olive and I are just supposed to meet you there?"

"Precisely."

"Huh," Ruby leaned towards Roman and brushed her lips lightly against his. "Out of curiosity, have you decorated at all since the last time I saw your apartment?"

"Not even a little."

"We're going to have to fix that."

"I'm not stringing up little lights in my house just for two days of the year, especially when I'm this busy. I'm letting you come to the gift exchange, don't push it."

"It's not Christmas without a Christmas tree."

"Then I suppose you aren't celebrating Christmas either, because the glittery mess behind me is anything but a Christmas tree."

Ruby scowled and nudged Roman, making him stumble back off the bedframe as he laughed. "Don't make fun of my Christmas tree!" She slipped off the bed after him and aimed a few kicks at his shins, and he continued to snicker as she successfully backed him up against the bookshelf.

"Alright Red, it can pass for a Christmas tree," he smirked and pulled her close to him by the waist. "But you still aren't decorating my apartment."

"Yes I am."

"No you aren't."

"I will."

"You won't."

"Fine, I won't."

"There we go…"

"I'll have Olive do it instead. She'll be able to sneak out to your apartment tomorrow rather easily." A smirk played at Ruby's lips as she watched Roman's eyes narrow at that.

"I won't let her in."

"That'd be a bad idea."

"How so?"

"I didn't tell you what Olive does when you lock a door on her, did I?"

"No…should I be worried?"

"If the possibility of Olive loudly wailing 'I'm Henry the Eighth I Am' on your doorstep would draw to much attention to you then…yeah, I think it'd be alright to worry."

Roman groaned. "Really?"

"Yeah."

Roman sighed and held the bridge of his nose with his free hand. "Of all the possible reactions to being locked out…fine, but you are not making my house throw up Christmas the same way your dorm did." he nodded to the heavily decorated room around him, as every surface had been lined with tinsel and holly of every imaginable shiny color. How any of them managed to sleep in a place as loud and clustered as this was a mystery to him.

"Well Yang and Weiss won't be helping us decorate so that won't be a problem." Ruby rested her chin on his chest and he glanced down at her. "Why are you such a Scrooge about Christmas anyhow?"

"I'm not really, I just got used to not celebrating it this much when I was little. Junior and I started exchanging gifts a few years back and that's the only holiday tradition I have. And as far as I'm concerned, it's enough."

Ruby puffed her cheeks out childishly. "But you keep trying to avoid decorating."

"Because it's a hassle."

"No, it's fun. And you didn't bake any cookies!"

"Because I can't bake."

"I could have helped you!"

"You were always busy when I was free, remember? Why are you so stuck on this?"

"Because I don't like having a Scrooge for a boyfriend."

Roman laughed and patted Ruby's head as she let out a slight childish whine. "If I were a Scrooge, I would be working on Christmas Day."

"You might as well be with you pitiful amount of Christmas cheer."

"Oy," Roman lifted her head away from his chest and pressed his forehead against hers, smirking all the while. "I'm letting you decorate, don't push your luck."

Red responded with a small peck on the lips and a grin. "Only telling the truth," she giggled as she pulled away.

"No, you're teasing."

"Even if I was, you do it to me all the time."

"No I don't."

"That is such a lie!"

"Alright, alright, I admit it," Roman gave Ruby another slow lingering kiss before pulling away slightly. "I make fun of you a lot."

"Meanie."

"It's your own fault, you make it so easy."

"I do not!"

"You do too."

Ruby puffed her cheeks out again and Roman chuckled.

"You really are too adorable sometimes Red."

"Shut up."

"Make me."

He smirked as Red pouted a little more before crushing her lips against his in a near aggressive fashion, her lips parted just enough to let his tongue through and her stifled moan barely audible enough to excite him. He pulled her closer; his hands traced her spine lightly before flattening firmly on the line and holding her up against him. Roman smiled a little as he felt Ruby trail her arms up his torso and over his shoulders. The kissing lasted a few moments longer, each one became a little more heated than the last until their lips came together for a lingering kiss. They broke apart slowly with somewhat goofy smiles and matching red-tinted cheeks, their breath still a little heavy as Roman pressed his forehead back against hers.

"You are getting remarkably good at silencing me," he murmured with a smirk.

"I've had a lot of practice by now," Red replied.

"This is true," Roman chuckled, "So I'll see you tomorrow evening and the night after?"

"Tomorrow if I can get there."

"It's a date then."

oooOOOooo

Ruby left the room a little early the next morning, mostly out of courtesy for her still comatose teammates but also because she and Olive's whereabouts the following evening were somewhat of a secret. Well, that was the nice way of saying that Ruby had lied again. So here she was, sitting comfortably outside her room at some odd hour of the morning, waiting for Olive to pick up her scroll.

"Come on Olive, wake up…"

["Mnnm?"]

"Olive! Hi, we need to talk."

["…Ruby…? Whattimeizzsshhit…?"]

"About quarter to five in the morning, look I need your help."

["…can it wait…? M'sposed togetthere atten…"]

"Roman's apartment isn't decorated for the holidays yet," Ruby explained quickly.

She paused a moment while the speaker on Olive's scroll muffled with the sound of moving sheets as the girl on the end of the line sprung awake.

["Repeat that."]

"Roman hasn't decorated his apartment at all."

Olive gasped loudly on the other end. ["Blasphemy!"]

"Can you fix it?"

["I may or may not be able to definitely solve this dilemma."]

"I take it that's a yes."

["I'll get go fetch the emergency tinsel! Is it alright if I don't pay you a visit at Beacon?"]

"It's fine," Ruby chuckled, "So long as my boyfriend's apartment becomes all Christmas-ey."

["What's the excuse for me crashing at Roman's again?"]

"You're staying with your cousins in Vale."

["…But I don't have any cousins in Vale."]

"My team and the others don't know that."

["Not even Yang?"]

"Yang tries really hard to forget that you're friends with me whenever you aren't around."

["Ouch. She still doesn't like me?"]

"Normally I don't think it would matter to her much but I think she still hasn't forgiven you for your prank phase and that one incident involving her hair."

["But that was an accident!"]

"She was Signal's best joke for two weeks because of it."

["I was eight!"]

"Her first crush called her lame because of it."

["Oh…uh…didn't I apologize…?"]

"Yeah but I think she still wanted me to let her beat you up."

["Oh. Well anyway, I have tinsel and ornaments to gather and you need to go back in and pretend we aren't visiting your secret boyfriend tomorrow."]

"Heh. Thanks Olive. I'll try to stop by sometime this evening to see how everything's going."

["Okay! See you!"]

"Bye bye," Ruby smiled as her friend hung up and did a small stretch. She yawned and rose to enter her dorm room. It wouldn't hurt to get a little more sleep.

oooOOOooo

"For the last time, Olive, you have put up more than enough tinsel and you are not putting up any mistletoe," Roman rubbed his temples in an attempt to release his frustration without blowing a new hole into Olive, whose aggravating persistence had fit his apartment with lights, stockings and a kitchen buried in cookies for Santa.

"Mistletoe is a Christmas must-have, Roman!" Olive stomped her foot childishly and Roman let out a long sigh.

"I would not mind the addition of mistletoe all over my house if not for the fact that of the four of you that will be here for the gift exchange, there are three of you that I never ever want to kiss while I'm still living."

"Tongue is optional, you know."

"Whether or not tongue is optional is irrelevant, I refuse to allow any object that might force me to kiss you, Neo, or Junior, actually, especially Junior," Roman re-opened the book on his lap and glared up at Olive one last time. "I said no, I meant it."

She whined childishly, and shuffled into the adjacent room. "You really are a Scrooge."

"If banning mistletoe is what it takes, so be it."

Olive let out another whine just as someone knocked on the door.

"Do you think you could make yourself useful, and get that, Olive?"

"Fine…"

Roman smiled and read a few more sentences of his book as Olive shuffled over to the door and opened it. Sadly he was ill-prepared for the ungodly commotion that followed.

"NEO!" a loud thwack resonated through the apartment and was followed by a loud sigh from Junior.

"Christ kid, at least let us get through the door first!"

"You got my message!"

"This thing is not light for either of us and you're not helping, kid."

Roman put down his book at that. Thing…? Did he…? Roman stood from his recliner and walked into the hall to see Junior and Neo struggling to carry a somewhat large Christmas tree as Olive latched onto Neo and threatened to topple them all. He nearly laughed but instead he let out a low groan. "I feel betrayed now. You two are supposed to be my friends."

"Well we are your friends, and frankly I've been trying to get you to decorate for years now, I'm not going to miss the opportunity," Junior managed a slight shrug before glaring down at Olive, "Seriously, kid, I'm beginning to lose my balance here, get off!"

"Olive, please, detach yourself from Neo until they've carried that in."

"Oh. Oopsie." Olive let go of Neo and scuttled out of the doorway, earning a short glare from the woman before she and Junior continued to haul the tree inside.

"Where do you want it?" Junior grunted.

"Not in my apartment."

"Roman."

"Fine…the living room."

"Alright." Junior and Neo turned for the living area and Roman heard a familiar giggle; he tilted his head to look past the tree and smirked at the sight of Ruby, despite the fact that she was carrying a large box of what was probably ornaments and the stand for the Christmas tree.

"Aren't you a little early?"

"It's nearly seven," Red smiled and stepped through the door, "I told everyone that I was checking to make sure Olive got here okay, so I have a little bit of time."

"And what exactly are you carrying?"

"Well, I kinda ran into Junior and Neo on the way over and they had a lot of stuff, so I offered to be their little helper."

"Are you saying you aren't responsible for the tree they're trying to set up in my living area?"

"Well I didn't tell Junior to bring it," Ruby smirked.

"Nope, I asked him to!" Olive interjected, stepping in between the two momentarily to grab the tree stand. "Swiped Roman's scroll to give him a call. Now I'll help set up the tree so you two lovebirds can get back to what you're doing…" Olive winked at her friend just as she left the room, causing a severe blush to sprout on her face.

"Olive!"

Roman laughed as Red's gaze shot back towards him and she began sputtering madly. "Well I'll give your friend credit on one account, she does know when to remove herself from the equation. But I thought we agreed that my home wasn't going to throw up Christmas like your dorm did." Roman gestured to the lights and various holiday themed wreaths hung on the doors in the hallway.

Ruby merely smiled and shook her head. "This isn't Christmas puke, this is actually quite nice. Elegant even. Fits in with your normal décor."

He squinted at that. "Christmas puke?"

"Well you did say 'throw up Christmas'."

"Well that phrasing made it sound ten times worse…"

"It means the same thing!"

"Christ, Red, you simply aren't good with words, are you?"

Ruby puffed out her cheeks childishly. "Shut up."

Roman chuckled at that and leaned towards her. "It's kinda cute, you know."

"You're teasing again."

"I can't help myself when you make it this easy."

She looked away at that. "Meanie."

"Aw come on," he smirked and pressed hand against Red's cheek and her gaze came back to him just as he leaned in to kiss her. She returned the affection, leaning her cheek into his palm as he held her there for a few more moments. They parted slowly, sharing small smiles before the sound of someone clearing their throat forced them to return to reality. Roman sighed and straightened himself before turning to Junior, who was leaning on the entrance to the living room. "Yes?"

"Need I say jail bait?" Junior asked as he crossed his arms.

"The definition of jail baiting does not include five second kisses, Junior."

"Are you certain about that?"

"Very."

"Well regardless, can you keep the public displays of affection to a minimum?"

"And since when was it your job to be my personal chaperone?"

"Since you decided to be an idiot and date a fifteen year old."

"You know, I've been waiting for you to get over that for months now," Roman sighed. "Fine. I won't kiss her in your presence, now can we get this decorating nightmare over with?"

"Sure, if you can try to have a little more Christmas cheer."

"I'm not cheerful for a good reason!" Roman insisted as he pushed past Junior. "You're my best friend and yet you're helping my girlfriend's friend put an obnoxiously large pine tree in my living room against my will! Did I mention the obnoxiously large part?" Roman gestured to the tree one last time for emphasis.

"Isn't your favorite saying 'Go big of go home'?"

Roman groaned and stomped over to his recliner, slumping back into it and retrieving his book from the arm. "Fine. Do what you want, just don't break anything." Roman went back to reading his book as the group talked amongst themselves and continued setting up without him. He honestly didn't mind their enthusiasm about Christmas all that much, he just didn't like the prospect of cleaning up the mess in a few days' time. But he elected to say nothing more on the matter as Ruby and the others gleefully hung ornaments on the tree, only looking up from his book momentarily and snorting a bit at the sight of Olive lifting Neo onto her shoulders so the shorter women could put the star on the tree. But Roman didn't say a word and returned to his book; he had made it through several chapters before Ruby finally came up to him.

"Whatcha reading?"

"Murder mystery," Roman said shortly.

"Is it good?"

"It's not bad."

"Hm. Uh, we finished the tree, by the way."

Roman looked up nonchalantly and indeed found a fully decorated tree in the middle of his living area. "Lovely." He could nearly feel Red fidgeting nervously as he looked back down at his book.

"…Are you still angry?"

"About what?"

"About the decorating."

"Slightly irked, admittedly," Roman looked over at Ruby, "What time is it?"

"Almost half past eight."

He stared at her a moment before the information registered. "You have to go."

"Yeah…wouldn't want my friends to start looking for me…"

"Did I literally just spend your entire visit sulking?"

"Yup."

"Huh." He gazed at Red thoughtfully for a moment before reaching out and pulling her close to him by the waist. She squeaked a little in surprise as he pulled her onto his lap, blushing profusely from the contact. "I suppose I'll have to be quick then?"

"I-I have to go, Roman," Ruby managed.

"Can I have a goodbye kiss first?"

She blushed a little brighter at that, but nonetheless leaned in to place a slow kiss on his lips. They lingered for a moment before parting, and Roman brought both hands up to her cheeks as he placed another kiss on her forehead. "I have to go now," she murmured lightly.

"See you tomorrow?"

"Right after dinner?"

"Yeah."

"Okay," Ruby placed another peck on Roman's lips before standing and moving towards the door. "Oh, one last thing."

"Yes?"

"Merry Christmas."

He smiled at her a moment, pausing only a moment before responding.

"Merry Christmas, Red."