AN: I've done that before. I can't remember which book it was, but I read a fanfic for it afterwards and I could've sworn that there was a really good line from the book but it turns out I'd read it in the fanfic xD Also, autocorrect madness of the day: my iPad corrected Stephen to Stonehenge xD
Yuletide
There really wasn't enough room for a tree. The living room could barely host the furniture it currently had without being ridiculously cramped. Rory found herself excited for getting a new place with Stephen, a new home for just them. True, she would be sad to be living away from Boo, Callum and Freddie but now that a new place was on the table for her and her fiancé, she had to admit that she wanted the space. And she hoped that wherever Thorpe found them wouldn't be too far away. Perhaps next year, everyone could have Christmas at her and Stephens place. There would, hopefully, be at least enough room for a tree.
Everyone wanted a tree. They would have a tree. They'd fit it somewhere. Not that there was much choice. Boo and Stephen were on their way from Thorpe's with it right now. He had to keep it at his cause there was simply no room at theirs. It was an artificial thing that came in pieces. Rory sized the room and wondered what the tree would look like with no top. The flat door opened in that moment and Boo and Stephen stepped through with the long box that contained the tree. They both set it down, taking a breather before removing their coats. Callum sat on the sofa, his leg still in a cast. "Well I wish I could help but..." He gestured to his leg instead of finishing the sentence.
Rory smiled at him while Boo and Stephen lugged the box further into the room. The next hour was spent trying to assemble the tree. Stephen gave up about half way through and went to work on the Christmas lights which had somehow magically tangled since last year despite having been put away neatly. Freddie got up from the tree and put the radio on, Christmas music filling the flat. Freddie whistled along while Callum groaned. "Really? Slade?"
Freddie smirked. "Yes, Mr Grinch. Slade."
Stephen laughed as he pulled some Christmas ornaments from the decoration box and started setting them up around the room. Rory, Freddie and Boo managed to get the tree upright and the top scraped along the ceiling. Boo rubbed her hands. "Right, what's next?"
Stephen handed her some ceiling decorations. "Since Scrooge there has a bad leg, you can help hang these up."
She accepted them with a laugh as a cushion went flying in Stephens direction. Stephen turned to Callum on the couch, who whistled nonchalantly. Stephen raised his eyebrows at him before picking up the cushion and throwing it back. "Watch it," Callum said, "I'm crippled."
Stephen laughed before picking something up and skipping across the room to Rory. He stood next to her and raised his arm above them. She looked at him questioningly and he threw his eyes upward, encouraging her to look up. When she did, she noticed that he was holding mistletoe above them. She laughed and looked back to his face and found him gazing at her adoringly. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him, slowly and softly. He kissed her forehead before hanging the mistletoe over the doorway into the kitchen before going in to put the kettle on.
Boo and Freddie stood on chairs, pinning glittery snowflakes to the ceiling while Rory followed Stephen through into the kitchen. He looked up to see who walked in and smiled when he saw her. "Hey."
She leant against the counter next to him. "Hey."
She stared at the floor, a small smile almost evident on her face. Stephen eyed her curiously. "Penny for your thoughts."
"I'm just thinking about how this time next year, we'll be spending Christmas in our new home. Hopefully there'll be more room and we could invite the rest around."
He smiled warmly at her. "Yeah. Our own home. Just you and me. Mr and Mrs Dene." He stepped in front of her and wrapped his arms around her middle. She wrapped her around his neck and he rested his forehead against hers. They stood there gently swaying to the sound of Merry Christmas Everyone coming from the radio in the living room. She whispered. "Mr and Mrs Dene. Maybe, one day, a little baby Dene?"
He chuckled happily. "Yeah. You, me and, one day, mini you or me." She pulled back to look into his eyes and they both slowly closed the gap for another gentle kiss.
When they broke it, they kept their lips close. Stephen spoke first. "Merry Christmas Rory.
"Merry Christmas Stephen."