The 12 Years of Christmas
1
Leo and Jemma were both fifteen on their first Christmas as next door neighbours. Her family had moved to the area that summer after Jemma's father got a new job, leading Jemma to attend Leo's school. They'd spoken on the odd occasion, mostly when working in groups in class, but nothing substantial or memorable.
It was 10am on Christmas morning when Leo went to collect any Christmas cards the family had received from their letterbox, wearing thick gloves and a beanie hat to keep out the cold (though his cheeks were still reddened by the low temperatures of a snowy Scotland). As he approached the fence, he saw Jemma returning home, her dog walking alongside her, clearly having just taken her pet (Leo was pretty sure it was called Champion) for a Christmas morning walk around the block.
He wasn't going to say anything as he pulled out a few cards but then saw she was looking at him. She smiled at him and he smiled back.
"…Uh, Merry Christmas." Leo said politely.
"Merry Christmas to you too." Jemma smiled back before heading inside.
Leo smiled as he watched her go; he was pretty sure he hadn't done anything too embarrassing.
2
By the time Christmas rolled around again, Leo and Jemma were acquaintances of sorts and were speaking quite often in class, having discovered a mutual love of Doctor Who and complaining about their fellow students. Seriously, that Raina girl had issues.
Leo was shocked to see Jemma's door open just as he was about to knock on it, and his surprise was shared by Jemma, who jumped at the sight of him standing there.
"Sorry! I was just about to-"
"-Yeah, I was just…no problem. I, um…Merry Christmas, Leo." Jemma said.
"Merry Christmas. I, um…it's nothing grand but I got you…something…" Leo said sheepishly, holding the neatly wrapped present in his hand up to Jemma, whose face lit up at the sight (it was a book he'd thoroughly enjoyed so bought a fresh copy for her to enjoy; he'd noticed they had similar taste in lots of things).
"Oh, that's so kind. I was just coming over to yours, actually…to give you this. It's not much either, but…Merry Christmas." Jemma smiled, handing a present in her hand to Leo.
"Oh, wow. Uh, thanks."
"Thank you."
The two shared a smile and parted ways, waving as Leo approached his door and hoped she hadn't noticed him nearly slip as he walked up the path in his garden.
3
Over the next year, Leo and Jemma started college and were in most of each other's classes. They sat next to each other in every one and got to know each other much better. During this, they often visited each other's homes, ultimately leading to Jemma and Leo's parents becoming close friends (they even started a book club).
That Christmas, Jemma's parents had invited the Fitz family over for Christmas dinner, so each family still had the morning and evening to themselves but could share the joy of food for a few hours in between.
The adults were somewhat tipsy, giving Leo and Jemma much amusement as they all sat together on a large table filled with all sorts of delicious food. Well, delicious food and the untouched Brussels sprouts that only Jemma's dad liked, but he was too full from everything else to digest any just yet.
"Do you like sprouts?" Jemma asked Leo, who vigorously shook his head.
"Absolutely disgusting." Leo said, making Jemma laugh.
"I dare you to eat one."
"No way in hell is that happening, Jemma."
"Come on, Leo! Consider it an extra Christmas present." Jemma suggested.
"Only if you wear that awful sweater your aunt got you for the rest of the day." Leo grinned cheekily. Jemma sighed.
"Fine. Eat it!" Jemma squealed as Leo tentatively picked up a sprout, his face reeling in disgust as he smelled it.
"Just imagine it's something else. You want to be an engineer; you're good with your imagination, solving problems you face and everything! Think of it as a game. Imagine it's something nice. Impress me." Jemma smiled. Leo took a moment then shoved the sprout into his mouth.
His imagination didn't help him, but he concluded it was still worth the hours of aftertaste for the smile it put on her face.
4
The following Christmas, the two families spent the whole day celebrating together in the Fitz household, with the two mums working together on the dinner and planning the day's events.
After an amazing dinner, Jemma's dad was busy trying to work out how to use his brand new phone was Leo's father was fast asleep in his armchair, despite Jemma's dog dashing around the place making all sorts of noise.
Leo wondered where Jemma was, so left Mrs Simmons and Mrs Fitz to gossip and drink wine as they made pudding and found her sitting on the bottom step of the stairs, looking down.
"What's wrong?" Leo asked, concerned.
"Nothing really. Just thinking." Jemma admitted as Fitz sat down next to her.
"What about?"
"It's just…this time next year we won't be living in our houses anymore. We'll still be here but visiting from university. We'll be at university, Leo. I know, I know…we're eighteen now and growing up fast, but I just can't believe we'll be moving out soon." Jemma explained.
"I know. It's madness. Both of us miles away." Leo said.
"I wish we were going to the same one though; I won't know anybody." Jemma said.
"Hey, it's gonna be okay. It's Christmas, and I'm not letting you be sad. You're gonna be brilliant and you know it." Leo said and Jemma smiled, adjusting her wonky paper hat on her head.
"I know what'll cheer you up; a good Christmas cracker joke. I haven't opened mine yet." Leo said, holding out his cracker to Jemma. She helped him pull it and he instantly pulled out a tiny piece of paper and smiled as he read it aloud.
"What does Santa suffer from if he gets stuck in a chimney?"
"What?" Jemma smiled.
"Claus-trophobia." Leo grinned and Jemma laughed happily.
"That's terrible." She giggled.
"Made you laugh though." Leo smiled. Jemma playfully leaned against him before reaching for the green party hat that had fallen out of Leo's cracker, unfolding it and placing it neatly on his head before resting her head on his shoulder.
"I'm gonna miss you." Jemma whispered. Leo's smile faded as he wrapped an arm warmly around her.
"I'm gonna miss you too."
5
"Hurry up Jemma, it's starting any minute!" Leo shouted the following year as he excitedly anticipated the latest Doctor Who Christmas special. He'd returned home from university the previous day, whereas Jemma had been home for almost a week and was welcomed by the longest hug in the world when he saw her again. They'd been pretty busy so hadn't had a lot of time to text or video chat like they'd planned.
"Coming!" Jemma exclaimed as she ran to the couch and sat next to Leo with an excited grin.
"It should be a crime, you know, locking your families in the kitchen on Christmas Day!" Leo's mother jokingly complained.
"If you don't like Doctor Who, you deserve to be punished." Leo smiled in reply and Jemma laughed. She gently took his hand.
"I've missed you." She smiled.
"I've missed you too. But didn't I tell you you'd love it at uni?" Leo asked.
"You did."
"And was I right?"
"You were."
"So who's the best?"
"You are."
"You're too kind." Leo grinned and Jemma playfully rolled her eyes, scruffing up Leo's hair as the familiar theme tune of their favourite show began to play.
As they spent the next hour focused on the TV screen, their parents watched them from the kitchen with a smile, wondering if they knew they were still holding hands.
6
The next year saw Leo and Jemma get even busier and only in contact on rare occasions (but when they did, they spent hours talking over the phone catching up). Leo couldn't bring himself to admit just how much he'd been missing her over the past year, finding himself thinking about her more often than he expected.
That Christmas, the two spent a lot of the time in the kitchen watching their parents play a surprisingly intense game of Monopoly, and they themselves had decided to drink a tad more alcohol than they were used to.
"Leo?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm slightly giddy."
"Me too."
The two laughed for a moment before turning their attention to Leo's dad, who had just been dealt a devastating blow by landing on Leo's mother's Park Lane (with a hotel).
"So how are you? We haven't had a chance to catch up!" Jemma giggled in her slight drunkenness.
"Good. Just busy." Leo stated.
"Snap! I mean, there's roommates and bills and work and deadlines and Will; so much to juggle." Jemma listed with a slight mumble.
Any sign of alcohol seemed to drain out of Leo instantly at Jemma's words.
"Uh…Will?"
"…Oh, yeah. I, um…I have a boyfriend. Will. He lives in the dorm next to ours. He's a great guy. And very symmetrical. I like that in a man. I think; I'm drunk." Jemma explained.
"…Boyfriend. Right. That's…that's great, Jemma."
"He asked me out and I thought, you know what? I'm twenty, it's time to put myself out there a bit more. So I said yes and here we are. Just under three months now." Jemma said.
"And…and you're happy?" Leo asked.
"I am. And I'm happy right now because I've missed you. I always miss you. And one day you'll find the girl for you, I promise. What's your perfect girl like? Describe her. I know! We'll play that game like with the sprout a few years back, remember? Imagine! Imagine what your perfect girl is like."
"Jemma, I'm not in the mood to talk about this."
"Come on, Leo! It's Christmas! This is our game! Just imagine your perfect girl is stood right in front of you, can you do that?" Jemma asked. Leo looked at her for a moment.
"Yeah. I can."
7
The next Christmas was a big one for Leo and Jemma; they were in charge of cooking Christmas dinner. They hadn't really spoken for the past year so were grateful for an opportunity to spend a lot of time together.
"How do you know when the potatoes are done?" Leo asked, staring blankly at the oven. Jemma kneeled down next to him to inspect them.
"When they stop looking like that, hopefully. I think they'll go a bit more of a golden brown colour." Jemma smiled.
"You know what? I think I'm better off chopping things up." Leo smiled.
"I would agree with that. You're proving to be useless." Jemma said cheekily. Leo threw a towel at her, making her giggle.
"Shut up, you." Leo grinned.
"So how's university treating you?" Jemma asked.
"It's going great, actually. Only two years of the course left after this." Leo smiled.
"Me too. God knows where I'll end up after that. Biochem is a very particular subject area; hopefully there's a demand for it." Jemma said.
"There will be. Oh, did you get the birthday present I sent? I think I got the right address." Leo wondered.
"Oh, yes! It was wonderful, I loved it! Thank you so much! Can you believe we're 21? Where did the time go?" Jemma asked.
"Doesn't bear thinking about." Leo chuckled.
"I guess not." Jemma said, checking on some vegetables boiling away in one of what seemed to be a hundred pans on the stove.
"So, uh…h-how's things with that Will guy? I'm out of the loop." Leo wondered.
"Oh, yeah. Uh…didn't work out. We broke up in March." Jemma revealed.
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I mean, I wasn't devastated. We're still friends, I just…something was missing, you know? I wanted us to have a deeper connection but there was no sign of one forming." Jemma explained.
"Well…just look at is as one man closer to your happy ending." Leo said. Jemma stopped what she was doing and faced him with a smile.
"How do you always find a way to make things positive? Can you change universities and move in with me so I'm always happy? I miss the good old days when I saw you all the time." Jemma said.
"You don't need me to be happy, Jem." Leo said.
"Well, it certainly helps." Jemma smiled. Leo smiled back before the two returned to work.
8
The following evening of Christmas Day saw things as tense between Leo and Jemma as they ever had been, their eyes locked on one another.
"…B8." Jemma said, and Leo immediately sighed.
"Hit. Bloody hell."
"If I'm right, my next turn will see me sink your battleship, General Fitz, and my army will reign as supreme rulers of the seven seas." Jemma smiled.
"I'm not sure winning at Battleships gives you the qualifications for that kind of power, but I like your spirit." Leo smile and Jemma laughed.
"Gosh, I love playing board games! That's why I always wanted a sibling growing up." Jemma explained.
"I can't believe my Christmas has come down to waking up, opening presents, eating, watching some TV and playing Battleships with you while our parents nap in all corners of the house. I'm 22 for crying out loud. Remember when Christmas was really exciting?" Leo asked.
"It still is for me. Let's be honest, you've always been a grumpy old man on the inside." Jemma teased.
"No I haven't!"
"You so have! No point in denying it, Leo. I might as well start calling your Granddad now." Jemma laughed.
"Just sink my bloody battleship, Jemma." Leo groaned, unable to keep a smile off his face nonetheless.
"With pleasure. And hey, you look very good for your age, gramps." Jemma teased again.
"Oh…thanks. I look after myself." Leo said.
"I can see that." Jemma said, smiling at Leo in a way she was certain she never had before. They stared at one another for a moment before returning to their game when Jemma's dad started snoring whilst asleep on the couch.
9
The next Christmas saw a huge row break out between Leo's parents over dinner arrangements, leaving the others to settle the dispute and reiterate that it's only food and, after all, it's Christmas.
When the dust settled, Jemma saw Leo wasn't anywhere nearby, so went up to his old room and smiled when she found him there, sitting on his old bed.
"Been a while since I've been in here." Jemma noted as she walked in. Leo smiled.
"Yeah, that was quite some time ago. All cooled down now?"
"Yeah, they've kissed and made up." Jemma smiled.
"Sorry, I just don't like seeing them fight, despite how rarely it happens." Leo said.
"That's alright, no harm done." Jemma said, sitting next to Leo on his bed and wrapping her arms around him.
"What's this for?" Leo asked, maintaining the hug.
"Nothing; I just wanted to hug you. It's been a while since I did." Jemma smiled gently.
"You give very good hugs, Jem."
"Thank you, Leo. God, I have some great memories of being in this room. A whole childhood spent laughing inside these walls."
"Me too. I didn't really have any friends over before you. And now look at us, about to graduate university in the next few months. This is where life begins." Leo said.
"That's such a scary thought. Us against the world. Remember when life was simple? I miss that. I miss going a whole Christmas Day without something worrying me for some reason. The good times. Those are the years I always look back on with so much fondness. That year the stray cat got in. Remember?" Jemma chuckled.
"God, yeah. That was hysterical. Mum freaked out." Leo laughed.
"…I'll never forget those times. Shall we play our game?" Jemma suggested.
"Sure. What are we imagining?" Leo asked.
"What life would be like if we'd never moved here. Imagine how different our Christmases would be." Jemma noted.
"It'd be much quieter." Leo teased and Jemma playfully hit him.
"…I can't imagine Christmas without you." Jemma said.
"Snap. It's not Christmas without my yearly dose of Jemma Simmons." Leo smiled as Jemma kissed him on the cheek, leaving him to pray his face wouldn't go too red from blushing.
"Merry Christmas." Jemma smiled.
"Merry Christmas, Jem."
"…Right then, I think it's time we got Battleships out. I've been waiting a whole year to kick your arse again." Jemma teased with a giggle.
"Oh, it's on now, Jemma bloody Simmons." Leo said, taking Jemma's hand and running out of his room as the two laughed together.
10
Jemma poured two glasses of wine in the Fitz kitchen, handing one to Leo with a smile.
"To our tenth Christmas since we've known each other." Jemma smiled, raising her glass and taking a sip.
"Ten years. That's insane." Leo noted.
"It really is. We're adults now, Leo. Like, actual adults out looking for a place in the world. Proper job hunting and everything." Jemma smiled.
"I know. I've got an interview at SciOps in the New Year." Leo revealed.
"What? That's amazing! Oh, you'll smash it, for sure! That's like the dream! What branch?" Jemma asked.
"The big boys in London."
"You'll get it, Leo. I'd put everything I own on it. There isn't a position in biochem going by any chance is there?" Jemma chuckled.
"If there ever is, I'll let you know." Leo smiled.
"Then we could move in together! Imagine that. That's the dream right there." Jemma chuckled.
"That would be great. Just like old times. Still, either way since we've both got a bit more free time we could always…you know…meet up…every once in a while?" Leo suggested,
"I'd love that. I miss you." Jemma grinned.
"I miss you too." Leo smiled, taking Jemma's hand. The two stared at one another for a moment too long when they heard Leo's dad mumble in his sleep. The two walked into the living room and saw their parents out for the count all over the room.
"They're getting old." Jemma noted.
"…Aren't we all?" Leo added, looking at Jemma and remembering the bright, bubbly, beautiful fifteen year old girl he first met. Now she was twenty four. Still bright. Still bubbly. Still beautiful.
Leo couldn't pinpoint exactly when he'd started seeing Jemma in this way, and Jemma couldn't pinpoint exactly what she'd started seeing him in that way either. It had been slowly and all at once.
11
At the annual Christmas dinner the following year, Leo's mum led a toast.
"To Leo, Head of Engineering at SciOps Industries and the fastest promoted employee in the company's history. Merry Christmas!"
Leo shied away, embarrassed by the attention as everyone around the table applauded him.
"I'm so proud of you, Leo. I truly am." Jemma smiled, taking Leo's hand.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. You've proved to me that dreams can come true. I'll find somewhere soon." Jemma smiled. Leo grinned, taking Jemma's hand and leading her into the kitchen.
"What is it?" Jemma asked.
"I'm fed up of not having you in my life. Look, it's not definite or anything but…I got word that someone in the biochem division is retiring in four months and I put in a word for you." Leo explained.
"…What?! Are you serious?!" Jemma exclaimed.
"Yeah! No one believes in you more than me, Jem." Leo smiled. Jemma stared into his gorgeous blue eyes and grinned.
"Leo, I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything."
"I know, but I…I just…I…thank you, I…well, I…"
Without thinking, Jemma grabbed Leo by the collar and pressed her lips against his for all too brief a moment. It was happy and it was sad and it was beautiful.
They parted and were practically breathless, unable to look at anything but the other's eyes. They stepped away when Jemma's mother popped her head through the door.
"Everything okay in here? We heard some kind of screaming."
"…Yeah." Leo and Jemma whispered together.
12
By the time Leo and Jemma's twelfth Christmas together came around, Jemma had gotten the job at SciTech and moved into Leo's apartment. Things were awkward after their kiss for a few weeks but they soon moved past it, deciding it was a heat of the moment thing and didn't mean anything. After all, they were best friends and nothing more. Nothing more at all.
Except that they were, and they both knew it. Unfortunately, they were both too afraid to talk about it.
Following yet another wonderful Christmas dinner, Jemma retreated to the kitchen to get drinks for everyone, and Leo's mother picked up on her son staring at her as she left.
"Something you need to get off your chest?" She asked him from across the table?
"W-what?" Leo asked.
"It's Christmas, son. The time for miracles." Leo's dad replied.
"And this particular miracle…well, we've been waiting a long time to see it happen." Jemma's mother said.
"Twelve years, in fact." Her father piped up.
"I…um…I don't know what you mean." Leo said, looking down at the floor.
"I think you do. You really think we haven't noticed how things have changed over the years? We knew before you two did." Leo's mother said.
Leo looked at all the adults one by one across the table, reading the looks on their faces.
You can do it. You've got this, son. It's time to get your happy ending.
Go get her.
Leo stood up and walked right into the kitchen. Jemma smiled at him.
"Do you, uh…need a hand?" Leo asked.
"I should be okay, thank you." Jemma smiled politely.
Silence.
"I was, uh…I was thinking. Well, I've been thinking about this for a while. I, um…" Leo trailed off.
"Leo?"
"Dinner." Leo said suddenly, his face filled with horror the moment the word left his lips.
"…Christmas dinner?" Jemma wondered.
"…Yeah, yeah, Christmas dinner. It was great, huh?" Leo smiled. Jemma nodded as Leo headed for the door but couldn't bring himself to walk through it.
Screw it, it's Christmas.
"No, not Christmas dinner. Dinner as in…dinner. Me and you. When we get back to London, maybe? Or before then? Somewhere…nice. We could get dinner somewhere." Leo said.
Jemma stopped dead before slowly turning to fully face Leo in realisation.
"…Y-you, you mean, like…like a…date?"
"…Yeah. Me and you. On a date. If you want." Leo stated, full of terror.
His terror faded with the sight of a smile spreading across Jemma's face.
"…I'd love to."
Leo's face soon sported a similar grin.
"…Right. Okay. Good."
"…Agreed." Jemma smiled, blushing.
"Well, I…uh…I don't know what to do now." Leo admitted and Jemma laughed, taking a few steps closer.
"…Let's play a game. Our game." Jemma suggested.
"Okay." Leo said with a smile, taking another step closer to Jemma leaving them inches apart.
"Imagine."
"Imagine what?" Leo asked.
"Imagine there's some mistletoe right there." Jemma said with a wide grin, pointing to the ceiling above them.
Leo's smile grew wider.
"…Okay."
"Well…what do you do?" Jemma asked with a smile.
"Something I should have done a long time ago." Fitz grinned, leaning close and pressing his and Jemma's lips together with all the passion he could muster, gently placing his hands on her waist as she wrapped her arms around his neck, smiling into the kiss. After a few glorious seconds, they parted and stared into each other's eyes with smiles that shined brighter than any star.
"Merry Christmas." Jemma whispered, resting her forehead against his.
"…Yeah, I think it probably is." Leo grinned.