Look who's back from the frickin' dead.
"God, I love the smell of Christmas trees," Kurt said, taking a deep breath and smiling widely. "Remind me how happy I was in this moment when I inevitably bitch about how much this thing sheds in a few weeks, okay?"
"Only if you promise not to shiv me with one of the branches," Blaine teased. "You get cranky when your socks are full of pine needles."
"I'll do my best," Kurt teased back. "Now: lights, then tinsel, then ornaments?"
"Is there any other way?" Blaine asked. "C'mon, help me unearth our lights."
They headed over to the first of their three boxes of Christmas decorations and got to work. Kurt had rarely been more appreciative of the years they'd been together - they barely even had to speak when they were winding strands of lights and tinsel around their (admittedly oversized) tree. Instead, they could sing random snippets of Christmas carols and enjoy the "Yule Log" that the Hallmark channel was broadcasting.
"Okay, I'm a little parched," Blaine said once they'd finished. "Cocoa sound good?"
"Yes, especially if it's extra festive," Kurt said, shooting a playful half-smile at Blaine.
"You sure we can handle drinking and hanging ornaments at the same time?"
"I'll hang the really special ones while you make the drinks."
"See, that's not any less dangerous," Blaine teased, heading toward the kitchen. "I seem to remember you claiming the reason you tripped over nothing recently was because one of the floorboards had actually shifted upward half an inch."
"And I'm still going to measure that," Kurt sniffed. "Disrespect me in my own home, why I oughta..."
"Our home," Blaine said, walking back to kiss Kurt on the cheek. "Our home that I absolutely trust you to decorate regardless of sobriety."
"That's more like it," Kurt said, pecking Blaine's forehead in return.
"Remember, be careful with-"
"Your great-grandma's crystal icicles, I know," Kurt finished as Blaine entered the kitchen. He turned to their final box full of items and started carefully sorting out the old or fragile ornaments from the rest, making sure nothing had gotten damaged by the trip from their storage unit to the apartment. By the time Blaine came back with their drinks, most of their more delicate ornaments had been hung with pride.
"Looks fantastic already. Honestly, we could probably stop here," Blaine said, handing Kurt a steaming hot mug.
Kurt glared at him before taking a sip and letting out an ahhh of appreciation.
"I know, I know, I see the bare spots. Plus, all of our ornaments are special - of course I want to see all of them go up," Blaine said before sipping out of his own mug.
"Good thing we've got about three-quarters of a box left, then," Kurt said. "Did you have a particular theme in mind for the tree this year?"
"I was thinking color-blocking," Blaine said, turning to squint at the tree appraisingly. "Reds at the top, purples at the bottom, and run through the rainbow from there. Silvers and golds mixed throughout."
"Fun yet tasteful. I like it," Kurt said. "We'll have to move a couple of the fragile ones around to make it work, but that's not a problem."
"Glad you approve," Blaine said with a smile.
"Of you? Always."
Blaine's smile widened slightly. "I love you. Game plan in mind? It's go time."
"Please never use that phrase again," Kurt said with a snort before picking up a couple of ornaments and getting to work.
"Go time," Blaine repeated in a huskier voice. He added vroom noises that made Kurt snort even harder.
"You're the worst."
"I don't see you coming up with a tree theme," Blaine said, hanging a couple of ornaments. He hip-checked Kurt gently as they crossed paths to switch from the tree to the box of decorations.
Kurt just stuck out his tongue and hung his ornaments.
They teased and flirted in between sips of their cocoa, working their way through their box of ornaments fairly quickly. Before Kurt knew it, the only thing left was-
"The star on top!" Blaine said excitedly. He pulled out their glittery gold star from the box before continuing, "Hey, babe, c'mere."
"What?" Kurt asked, wandering over.
"Hold still,' Blaine said, prompting Kurt to quirk an eyebrow in confusion. Blaine got on his tiptoes and planted the star directly on top of Kurt's head. "A star for my star."
"Blaine," Kurt said, a soft smile appearing on his face. "You're ridiculous."
"Ridiculously in love," Blaine replied with a smirk.
"You sound like an off-brand Beyonce song," Kurt teased. He reached up to grab the star off his head before leaning in to kiss Blaine. "But I love it. And you, of course."
Blaine smiled into the kiss. "I love you too - wha?!"
"I'm not the only star in this house," Kurt said, smiling at the sight of Blaine with the star atop his gelled curls. "You need a chance to wear it, too."
"Does this mean we need a second tree topper so we can both be stars at the same time?" Blaine asked.
"I don't think I'll forget," Kurt said, smiling.
"Neither will I."
They exchanged one more sweet kiss before Blaine demanded they try to take a selfie with both of them balancing the star on their heads simultaneously. The somewhat blurry yet adorable photo went on their Christmas cards.