A favourite - Sledge/Jäger
If there was one thing Sledge hadn't expected of Jäger, was for the German to be so enamoured of the Christmas season. He didn't seem the type, always more focused on his engineering projects than in which day he lived. And yet, the day after the Americans celebrated Thanksgiving, both Jäger and IQ appeared with a box of Christmas decorations. They decked the base in tinsel while singing carols off key, surprising everyone except for the rest of the GSG9. With that knowledge, Sledge shouldn't have been as surprised as he was when he discovered Jäger's other passion in this season.
It was a rather accidental discovery. Sledge had been working until late, and since it wasn't past midnight yet he went to find Jäger, to spend some time with his boyfriend. However, Jäger wasn't in the workshop as he expected. Supposing he'd be in his room, Sledge went upstairs and knocked on his door, only to receive no answer. Carefully, he opened the door just enough to poke his head in. It was deserted. At loss of what to do, and slightly worried since he could not find Jäger, Sledge went downstairs. He crossed path with Bandit, who stopped Sledge with a grim expression.
"Do yourself a favour and don't go in there," he gestured with his thumb the door behind him, leading to the TV room. "Run while you can."
Bandit scampered away after that cryptic message, leaving behind a very confused Sledge. Curious as to what could have sent Bandit running for the hills, Sledge went into the dreaded TV room. To his surprise, Jäger was half lying in one of the couches, watching a movie with an expression of rapt interest. Oh, that was actually nice, and it eased the nagging worry in Sledge's mind. Jäger was safe and accounted for, and now Sledge could relax.
He sat down by Jäger's side, and the engineer didn't acknowledge his presence until Sledge wrapped his arm around Jäger's shoulders. The movie was, as he soon realised, a romance one. Not only that, a Christmas themed romance movie, sappy and full of clichés. When Sledge pulled him closer, he readily leant against his side, letting Sledge hug him.
"Marius."
"Shhh! Not now," Jäger hissed at him, not with anger but with urgency. "That's the part when she comes back and he apologises!"
So he had seen this movie before. That was an interesting and puzzling bit of information. Since Jäger seemed to enraptured with it, Sledge dropped the questions and watched it with him. Sledge would admit it was mildly entertaining, but in truth he was more captivated by the man leaning against him. It was always fascinating to watch Jäger, more so when he was happy and relaxed. Jäger seemed to remain oblivious to Sledge's staring, or if he noticed he didn't care. By the time the credits rolled in, Sledge could not say how the movie had ended; not that he actually cared.
"This was my grandmother's favourite," Jäger said quietly, playing with a loose thread on his jeans and avoided looking directly at him. "When I was a kid I spent all the holidays with her while my parents worked. She loved Christmas movies, we used to spend whole afternoons watching those. Since then, it doesn't truly feel like Christmas anymore if I don't watch some grandma's favourites."
Sledge contemplated that information for a brief moment. "How about I make some popcorn and we watch another? I've never seen your grandmother's favourites."
His proposal was met with a beaming smile, and Sledge leant forward to capture Jäger's lips. Sledge wasn't Christmas crazy, but he always enjoyed spending time with the people he loved and making them happy. Perhaps he was more in tune with the season's spirit than he thought.