Title: The Sweet Stuff

Pairing: Player/Elliott

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or the plot of Stardew Valley! This fanfic is written purely for fun.

Author's Note: My first Stardew Valley fanfic! I've waited so long, and I'll admit I've only clocked about 50 hours into the game pretty much completing the Community Center, I keep going back because of how addicting it is! Of course, Elliott also helps.

Also, please note no gender-specific pronouns are used for the farmer. Please feel free to insert yourself or your OC.

Enjoy!

-START-

"Are they done yet?"

"Give them one more minute," Elliott said with a light chuckle as you continued to stare intently through the oven window. "My word, you're so impatient! They'll be ready soon, my dear."

You groaned and took a step back from the red-hot cooking appliance. Inside the old-fashioned oven was a plate of sugar cookies that you had made with your husband about an hour prior. You'd spent a long day on your farm working with the animals and tending to your crops in the greenhouse, so Elliott had snuck out of the cozy abode and ventured into town to buy the ingredients for your favorite holiday treat from Pierre's store.

Upon returning home, you'd found him dressed in an apron with all the ingredients splayed out on the counter. He'd asked you if you'd like to help make the cookies, or if you'd prefer to take a break instead while he cooked.

Of course, you'd jumped at the opportunity to lend your expertise. You'd cooked more than a few sugar cookies before your days living on the farm, and the idea of helping your husband concoct the perfect dough was just the right way to unwind after a long day.

To say that you were enthusiastic about tasting the fruits of your labor would be the understatement of the millennium.

The oven timer let out a loud 'ping!' that caused your cat on the nearby couch to perk up its fiery orange ears.

"Okay, they're ready!" Elliott called out in a jovial, lightly accented voice. "Could you old the oven door, my dear?"

You jumped for joy as your husband donned quilted oven mitts to receive the piping hot tray from the oven.

You shut the door carefully and managed the flames while Elliott placed the perfectly golden cookies atop a cooling rack on the kitchen countertop. Almost immediately, the kitchen was filled with the sweet aroma of cloves, cinnamon and vanilla.

"They look so good," you said, thrilled beyond belief that your recipe had turned out well. You were a little worried about how the traditional, wood-burning oven would bake the cookies. Your last oven in your old apartment had obviously been from Joja, after all.

"We're not done yet," Elliott cautioned before you could reach out and pop one in your mouth. "We still have to frost them, of course."

Ah, of course.

"Oh, come on…" you said with a sly smile. "It's always tradition to eat at least one cookie while it's hot."

One of Elliott's bright orange brows lofted in amusement. "I believe you might have made that up."

"No, it really is tradition," you said with a playful shrug. "I mean, it's my tradition, but it still counts."

Elliott rolled his eyes playfully and moved the cookies over to the adjacent counter, which was dotted with bowls of varying sizes. Each different bowl was filled with different colors of festive frosting, with a couple smaller dishes filled with sprinkles. A couple of tubes of icing, left over from your old apartment, were also scattered amongst the bowl to help add smaller details to the cookies.

"Alright, let's start decorating," he suggested as he passed you one of the racks, his watchful eyes never leaving you as you stared down at the delicious cookies. He smirked at you and said, "I won't stop you from eating a cookie now, but I will say that I have an impeccable frosting recipe and icing technique that will magnify how delicious these cookies taste by…at least 1000 times."

Your eyes widened dramatically. "Really? You made this frosting too?"

"Of course!" Elliott replied proudly. "If there's anything I've learned from living in Pelican Town and on your farm, it's to make as much as possible from scratch. I did have to ask Pierre for…an embarrassing amount of confectioner's sugar. You should have seen Mayor Lewis's face when I lugged it all home."

The image of Elliott lugging multiple bags of white power past the town's mayor to their farm on the outskirts of town was a rather amusing thought, and you couldn't resist laughing at the mental image.

"So, my patience will be rewarded?" you asked.

"I promise," he replied with a flirtatious wink. A mauve blush spread across your cheeks.

Even after months of marriage, your face still went red in response to his romantic gestures.

The process of decorating the cookies went on for about half an hour. While you had fun making each cookie bright and colorful, you somehow resisted the urge to sneak a taste of the frosting. While Elliot could be overly flowery when it came to sentiments, he hardly exaggerated if he didn't absolutely believe something to be true. In short, if Elliott said anything, he meant it…for better or worse. You could do without him declaring our attractiveness proudly to everyone who would listen at all the local festivals, but otherwise his honesty was an incredibly blissful experience, it was impossible to be angry at him.

Finally, he tapped your shoulder. You turned to face him and were greeted with a tray of expertly frosted cookies. Each little biscuit was frosted to perfected, with no noticeable seams between the stokes and each line of icing looking as if it had been measured with a ruler. He's even added sprinkles in distinct spots to add just the right amount of sparkle without being superfluous.

"Wow," was all you could manage to say.

"Here, try one."

Before you can object, Elliott gently took one of the smaller cookies and held it to your lips. You bite down and, almost instantaneously, the buttery smoothness practically melted on your tongue. The addition of the homemade frosting almost made your knees weak.

"Elliott…." you moaned, hands flying to your warm cheeks as your eyes fluttered shut in delight. You were in absolute heaven. "It's sooo good! It's incredible!"

The author let out a hearty laugh at the sight of your joy. "I told you it would be worth it, my dear. Still, you should give yourself some more credit. We used your recipe for the dough."

"Mmm…you have to try one," you said with a tiny smile. You swayed closer to Elliott and decided that, if he was going to be flirtatious, that you could also rise to the occasion. With the rest of the cookie still pressed between your lips, you pulled your husband flush against your body and pressed your lips to his, sharing the cookie in the process.

Elliott let out a little yelp in surprise, but didn't pull away. Instead, the author wrapped his arms around your torso and pulled you closer. You felt him nudge your cheek with his nose, prompting you to tilt your head for a better angle to deepen the kiss. It worked immediately, and you tasted the sweetness of the cookie mingling with the familiar comfort of your husband's kiss. It was an intoxicating combination that left you sinking against his physique, much to your additional satisfaction. When Elliott said that he worked nonstop to maintain his rugged physique, you knew firsthand from multiple levels of intimacy that he wasn't lying.

When you both separated out of need for oxygen, you couldn't resist the urge to press another kiss to the corner of her mouth to kiss away some remaining crumbs. The coral-colored blush across his cheeks was almost as vibrant as his blazer.

"Right?" you asked, peering at him mischievously while still grasping the lapels of his jackets. "They were good, right?"

"I'd definitely say so," Elliott replied breathlessly, laughing sweetly and looking down at you with eyes filled with a look of reverential worship. "You are…something else, my dear. And I love you completely for it."

"I love you too," you replied, reaching up to push some of his long hair back behind his ear and smooth some of the other strands. "I really do."

The author smiled sincerely at your compliment, his expression radiating complete thankfulness. He reached out and took your hand to gently fold in his own.

"Well, as much as I hate to leave, how about we hurry and take these cookies around town to all of our friends?" Elliot suggested lightly, a wide smile on his face. "Then, let's come home and enjoy the rest of our evening. You've had a long day."

"Then maybe we can finish off a few more cookies?' you asked, trying not to sound too hopeful. You heard Elliott laugh as he crossed the room to retrieve two coats from the coatrack. Elliott slipped the coat over your shoulders in a gentlemanly fashion, but also didn't hesitate to lean down and press another warm kiss to your lips.

"I promise."

-END-

I tried to not make Elliott's too dialogue overly flowery to the point of possible second-hand embarrassment…then I remembered that's literally his canon character dialogue for almost everything in the game, haha!

Gotta love the merman author.

I hope you have a fantastic happy season and a wonderful New Year too!