A/N: This was the second one I wrote and I've been dying to post it because it was my favorite for the longest time (all eight or nine days), until I wrote Love, Leather, and Family. Now it's my second-favorite. Still. It's a favorite. I hope you all love it as much as I do.
"MERRY CHRISTMAS!"
Derek groaned good-naturedly as Stiles bounded into the kitchen, planting a smacking kiss on his lips before dancing around the island. His boyfriend was goofy and childlike on a regular basis, but never more so than on Christmas. This was their third one together, and it never ceased to amaze Derek how enthusiastic Stiles was about the whole deal. Despite the fact that they typically only had two or three presents each for the other, Stiles acted as if he was being given the moon every Christmas morning.
He smiled into his coffee mug as Stiles tore into the living room. This year his present was going to get a serious reaction, though whether good or bad, Derek had no idea. He was crossing his fingers Stiles would be thrilled by it.
"Do we really have to wait for Scott and Lydia and the rest of the pack to get here?" Stiles asked with an exaggerated sigh, voice taking on a hint of a whine as he looked longingly at the presents under the tree. This year, the entire pack had brought over all their presents for each other and left them so they could have a "family" gift exchange.
Derek smirked. "I was up two hours ago to start preparing this stupid brunch you planned, while you got to sleep in. We're waiting."
Stiles gave a dismissive wave. "You would have been up anyway," he said breezily. "And you like to cook."
"Not for a dozen people," he grumbled. "I like cooking for you."
"Then pretend you cooked for twelve of me," Stiles shot back, giving Derek a bright grin, and he rolled his eyes.
Crossing the kitchen to the Keurig, Derek stuck his mug underneath the spout and programmed his next cup. He wouldn't admit it to Stiles, but he'd been up late agonizing over his present and hadn't gotten much sleep, so he was exhausted. He'd be damned if he'd let his drooping eyelids ruin what he hoped was going to be a fantastic Christmas morning.
The rustling of paper caught his attention and he sighed. "Stiles, knock it off!" he called over his shoulder. "You're not sneaky enough to try to unwrap one of your presents without me hearing."
"Wasn't trying to sneak!" Stiles called back cheerfully. "I just figured your need for caffeine would trump your desire to come smack a box out of my hands."
Derek chuckled quietly, deciding to let it go unchallenged. It was just one present, although if it was one that Scott or Lydia got him, there'd be hell to pay for him not waiting until they got to watch him open it. While Stiles shredded the paper, Derek surveyed his handiwork. They should be arriving any minute and he wanted to make sure everything was ready to go. The eggs and bacon were in warming dishes and the breakfast potatoes were on low heat on the back burner. Carafes of orange juice and water were placed next to a tumbler of ice, and napkins, plates, and silverware were stacked neatly on one end of the counter. The cinnamon rolls were in the oven, icing melted and dripping down the sides. Derek shrugged to himself. It would be good enough, and if anyone wanted to whine, they could go home and cook their own damn breakfast.
He was just getting ready to head into the living room when Stiles' excited shout stopped him in his tracks. "OH MY GOD, DEREK!" he yelled happily, the caps lock evident in his voice. "YOU GOT ME THE NEW PS5! I LOVE YOU!"
Oh, shit. "Stiles, don't open that!" he yelled, panicking. He slammed his mug on the counter, hot coffee sloshing over the rim and burning his fingers. He cursed again as he practically launched himself into the living room, only to see a very quiet, stunned Stiles sitting on the couch and staring down at his hands, the gaming console forgotten.
They were both silent, Stiles looking at the object he held in shock while Derek struggled to find words. He wanted to snatch it away from Stiles, but when he took another step toward him, his boyfriend pulled back and wrapped his fingers around it protectively.
"Is this what I think it is?" Derek nodded numbly. "I'm guessing this was supposed to be the last thing I opened?" he asked quietly, and Derek sighed.
"It was supposed to be in front of everyone."
Stiles uncurled his hand, rolling the shiny onyx ring between his thumb and forefinger. It was a wide band with a narrow strip of sapphire-colored mother-of-pearl around the middle, and it was beautiful. Stiles' fingers trembled as Derek took the ring from him and slid it onto his left hand, which began to shake uncontrollably. Derek sank onto the couch beside him, grabbing his hand and holding it between his own.
"I ruined your proposal," Stiles said hollowly, his eyes shining with regret, and Derek shook his head furiously.
"This isn't how I imagined it going," he admitted ruefully, "but that doesn't matter. We've never been about that perfect moment. Our entire relationship has been about us falling into things together." He grinned sheepishly. "Honestly, I should have expected it to go something like this."
Stiles studied the ring on his finger, testing the weight of it by bouncing his hand lightly. A smile crept onto his face. "I bet you were going to say something cheesy like, 'I want to have your six for the rest of our lives,' weren't you?"
Stiles meant to be teasing, he knew, but Derek flushed a deep crimson; those words had come to mean everything between the two of them. It had started out as a way for Derek to calm Stiles down when they were playing Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. He was always getting shot by snipers and tended to freak out, bouncing around anxiously, and Derek had taken to telling him calmly, "Don't worry, Stiles. I've got your six." And he had. Anytime a sniper showed up, Derek moved in and took him out; their teamwork had relaxed Stiles and made them both better at the game. Since then, the phrase, "Got your six," had come to represent taking care of each other and always being there for the other.
Stiles snickered outright when Derek blushed, crowing, "Oh my God, you were! You were totally going to propose to me with our phrase!"
"Of course I was," he muttered under his breath. "It's special to us."
Giddily, Stiles leaped into Derek's lap and threw his arms around the wolf's neck. "I fucking love you!" he laughed, dropping a trail of kisses over Derek's face before landing on his mouth and fusing their lips together. Derek's arms came up around Stiles' back and he held him tightly, feeling his chest expand with joy almost to the point of bursting.
"Does this mean you're saying yes?" he asked as he pulled back, attempting to keep his voice light while his heart raced in anxious anticipation.
"Yes, you adorably clueless idiot, of course yes! I absolutely will marry you!" He grinned, winking. "And you can work the six line into your wedding vows, since I deprived you of using it in the proposal."
Overwhelmed with happiness, Derek re-ignited their kiss and wrapped his fingers over Stiles' hips. He knew he was likely bruising his boyfriend's-no, fiance's pale skin, but he didn't care one whit. This was a time for marking if there ever was one. Dimly he registered the sounds of feet outside his door and he braced for the knock, but didn't break contact with Stiles.
Surprisingly, the door slid open without a knock and the gang trooped in. Derek heard a loud sigh and smirked against Stiles' mouth; he could practically hear Lydia rolling her eyes.
"Boys. Isn't eight o'clock on Christmas morning a little early, even for you two? I would have thought you'd be able to restrain yourself long enough to unwrap presents and send us on our merry way."
Stiles didn't break the kiss either, he simply lifted his left hand from the back of Derek's neck. Derek could feel him wiggle his fingers and he flinched, just waiting for the reaction.
Lydia didn't disappoint. With a loud screech she rushed over, grabbing at Stiles' hand and yanking him forward until his face was actually mashed rather uncomfortably into Derek's. He sighed, breaking away from the kiss and lifting Stiles until he could scoot out from underneath him. Stiles hung over the back of the couch, happily showing off his hand to Lydia and Kira, who were oohing and aahing over the ring.
"I approve," Lydia said finally, nodding at Derek with an impressed look on her face. "Non-traditional is in."
Derek ducked his head. "Stiles always tells me my wolf eyes are his favorite color," he mumbled. "I wanted that in the ring."
"The black is the same shade as your hair," Kira chimed in.
"And his heart," Isaac snorted, collapsing into the chair across from them and sinking down low, propping his feet on the ottoman. Derek glowered at him and he grinned back cheekily.
Scott leaned over the couch and gave Stiles a huge hug, the smile on his face beaming brightly enough to land a jet plane at midnight. "Congrats, Stiles!" he enthused. "I'm so happy for you both!"
"Oh, right! Me too!" Kira added, sliding in next to Scott and smiling when he slipped his arm around her waist.
Stiles chuckled. "Careful Scotty, you might start finding a lot of hints all over the floor," he teased, and Scott shot him a confused look.
"On the floor? What?"
"He's implying Kira will be dropping them," Lydia clarified dryly, rolling her eyes. "So I'll say it, no hinting. Buy the girl a ring, McCall. She's only been waiting on your dumb ass for five years."
Stiles and Isaac burst into laughter at the chagrined look on Scott's face, while Derek glanced up at the sound of new footsteps. Malia flung the loft door open and strode in, followed by Danny, Ethan, and what Derek had long ago dubbed The Trio-Liam, Hayden, and Mason. The four boys immediately made for the spread in the kitchen while Hayden and Malia joined Kira and Lydia beside the back of the couch. Stiles waggled his hand at them and the squeals began anew, and Derek pretended to scowl but was secretly pleased by how happy everyone seemed to be at the news.
He watched as Stiles' friends-and yeah, okay, his friends too, mostly-snagged plates and filled them with food, chattering about random topics. Lydia, Kira, and Hayden were bubbling over with wedding ideas while Malia rolled her eyes, and Derek couldn't help but smirk because he felt the same way about wedding planning.
Glancing over at Stiles, he saw that his fiancé was beaming happily at the assembled group. Stiles had wanted nothing more than to have all of his friends in one place at a time when none of them was actually in any danger, and Derek hadn't been able to begrudge the pleading request for a pack Christmas. As he listened to the girls rattle off one thought after another on flowers, colors, caterers, photographers, and most importantly of all, the venue, he was almost starting to regret acquiescing.
"Stiles?" he murmured, and Stiles' fingers automatically slid into his, linking them together.
"What?"
"Do me a favor. Don't let Lydia plan a wedding we're going to need a winning lottery ticket and a small island to pull off."
Stiles winked. "Don't worry, Der. I got your six."
Derek broke into a wide grin, squeezing Stiles' hand gently. He was going to marry this man.
Best Christmas ever.