AN: Another week in this strange new reality… hope everyone's doing OK out there, stay strong!
Time for Christmas chapter number 2 – Christmas Eve! Hope you guys like it, I had lots of fun writing it :)
Chapter title from "I'll Be Home for Christmas" by Bing Crosby
See the end of the chapter for warnings!
16
Christmas Eve Will Find Me Where the Lovelight Gleams
With the greetings over, Raven draws everyone's attention back to the matter at hand – food.
"OK, seriously, I really am hungry, guys. Can we order, please?"
So Clarke grabs the menu for Fortune House from the take-out drawer in the kitchen and they pass it around, eventually deciding on what they want. Raven calls in their order, doubling everything as usual, while Wells arranges his and Sasha's presents under the tree in the corner.
"Right," Zeke says when Raven plops down beside him again. "First movie, Clarke's pick since we're here."
Clarke grabs the remote and starts up Netflix. "You know we have to start with a classic."
She scrolls through the Christmas category until she finds what she's looking for, getting cheers from Wells and Sasha, and booing from Raven, when she starts It's a Wonderful Life.
She puts the remote down on the table and pulls her legs under her before curling into Bellamy's side. He wraps an arm around her shoulders.
"Favorite Christmas movie?" he asks her quietly.
"One of them," she replies. "I'm pretty sure Sasha will pick one of the others, and hopefully we'll finish at least one round so I'll get to pick again."
He huffs a laugh.
They're almost halfway through the movie when the doorbell rings, signaling the arrival of the much awaited food, and Clarke jumps to her feet.
"No need to pause, be right back," she says, heading into the hallway.
They really did order a lot of food, and the poor delivery guy seems to almost buckle under the weight of the two huge bags. He's probably not used to delivering this much food at once. Clarke tips him more than generously, though, and he leaves with a smile.
Bellamy appears behind her when she closes the door, holding his hands out for the bags. "Let me take those."
She hands them over and goes into the kitchen to grab plates for everyone, along with some forks, for those who don't want to use chopsticks, and serving spoons. When she puts everything down on the table, the movie has been paused and the others are unpacking all the paper containers from the bags.
"What does everyone want to drink?" she asks as she heads back to the kitchen.
"Wine!" Raven and Sasha call in unison, so Clarke opens the wine fridge and grabs a bottle of white, knowing that Sasha prefers it while Raven doesn't care.
"Guys?" She puts the bottle on the counter and opens the cupboard with wine glasses.
"I'll take a beer," Zeke replies.
"Make that two," Wells adds.
"I'll have wine too," Bellamy says from next to her, and she gives him a quick smile.
"Here." She hands him four wine glasses. "Bring those in, I've got the bottle and the beers."
He nods, leaning down and stealing a quick kiss before heading back to the living room. Clarke grabs the wine and gets two bottles of beer from the fridge before following him.
She hands out the beers and pours wine into the four glasses, then takes the paper container that Wells offers her. They pass the food around, everyone scooping what they want onto their plates, before starting the movie again.
"There's so much food left," Bellamy notes when everyone's settled in with plates in their laps.
"Never fear," Raven tells him, waving her fork in a dismissive motion. "It's only two thirty, we have hours and hours to finish the rest of it. Trust the experts."
He still gives Clarke a doubtful look and she pats his knee comfortingly. "Don't worry, we've done this before."
By the time the credits roll across the screen and everyone's leaning back on the couch, practically bursting at the seams, almost half the cartons are still unopened on the table.
"OK, ten minute bathroom slash putting away food break," Raven announces, pushing off the couch and grabbing some of the still full food containers.
"We get bathroom breaks?" Bellamy says quietly and Clarke has to hold back a laugh.
"Don't worry," she assures him. "You're allowed to go to the bathroom in the middle of a movie… just don't block Raven's view."
He gives her a long look. "I honestly can't tell if you're joking or not."
She just shrugs, stacking the empty plates.
"When in doubt when it comes to Raven," Wells pipes in. "Always err on the side of caution."
"Oh yeah, I've already figured that out myself."
They all laugh at that before Wells takes the plates from Clarke. "Sit," he orders her. "We've got it. Help this guy pick out the next movie."
"It's my turn?" Bellamy asks, reclaiming his seat on one of the chaises before moving into the corner and stretching his legs out in front of him.
Clarke sits down next to him, mirroring his position and sliding down a little so she can lean back against him. "Apparently."
He hums and starts scrolling through the titles on the screen, but waits until everyone else has returned to the living room – Raven and Zeke claiming the opposite chaise while Wells and Sasha sit down in the middle of the couch and put their feet up on the table – before he clicks on A Charlie Brown Christmas.
"Really?" Clarke asks, glancing up at him.
She feels him shrug. "Mom recorded it when I was, like, five or something," he says. "We used to watch it on Christmas every year until our VCR broke the year before she died. It was a nice tradition."
She reaches for his hand, interlacing their fingers and squeezing.
After A Charlie Brown Christmas, it's Zeke's turn to pick and he, unsurprisingly – to everyone except maybe Bellamy – chooses Miracle on 34th Street, which gets them through another two hours. Clarke's starting to realize that they probably won't get around to everyone today, but there's always tomorrow.
"Sash, you're up," Wells announces when the last scene fades to the credits, and she pushes herself into a sitting position from where she had been laying down with her head in his lap.
Raven groans. "Like we don't all know which one she'll pick."
"You mean like we know which one you'll pick?" Clarke counters in a teasing voice. Raven doesn't respond, just sticks her tongue out.
Hugh Grant's voice soon fills the air. "Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere."
A moment later, she feels Bellamy tense behind her and half-turns to look up at him.
"You OK?"
He's staring straight ahead at the TV but at her question he shakes his head. "Fine."
She frowns at the tense look on his face. "Obviously not. What's wrong?"
The others have picked up on their conversation and are watching them instead of the movie, Sasha with the remote still in her hand.
Bellamy sighs. "Octavia borrowed this movie from a friend the Christmas before our mom died," he explains. "They both loved it, I don't know how many times they watched it…"
"I'm sorry," Sasha apologizes, a frown on her face. "We'll switch."
"No, no," he quickly replies. "It's fine, I just wasn't prepared and it brought back some memories. I've actually never seen the whole movie, I was seventeen back then, way too cool to watch some romantic Christmas drama with my mom and kid sister."
Sasha still looks hesitant. "Are you sure?"
"Yes," Bellamy tells her determinedly. "I want to watch it."
And he does relax, leaning his head against the top of Clarke's and wrapping his arm tighter around her, his hand coming to rest against her stomach. He laughs at Bill Nighy's cringe-worthy cover of Love is All Around, snorts when Kris Marshall tries to flirt but ends up insulting the wedding caterer, and Clarke thinks she hears him sniffle a little when Liam Neeson starts crying while talking about his stepson and dead wife with Emma Thompson.
"OK, this might be the most star-packed movie I've ever watched," he mumbles as Keira Knightley opens the door to reveal Andrew Lincoln with his boom box and huge flash cards. "That's the guy from The Walking Dead, right? I thought he looked familiar…"
"Yes, shhh, this is the best part!"
When God Only Knows starts playing on repeat and the loving reunions become hundreds of little squares that eventually turn into a heart before the screen fades to black, it's almost nine thirty.
"What do you say, babe?" Wells asks Sasha when Raven announces a break and heads in the direction of the bathroom. "Time to head back to the hotel soon?"
They aren't joining the others for breakfast in the morning, since Sasha doesn't want to miss the special Christmas buffet that the hotel offers, but they do still have to get up pretty early to get back for the gift exchange.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," she agrees. "Christmas Eve present time?"
"Definitely," Clarke agrees, getting up from the couch to sit down next to the tree. At Bellamy's questioning look, she explains. "Since I'm the host, I'm in charge of handing out gifts. So I'll pick at random until everyone has one each tonight."
"Are we doing presents already?" Raven asks, returning from the bathroom. "It's not even ten!"
"Some of us are still a little jetlagged and have more than fifty feet to their beds," Wells replies, and she sighs.
"Fine."
"Anybody want some leftovers?" Zeke wonders, getting to his feet.
"Are you seriously hungry again?" Raven gives him an incredulous look, but he just shrugs.
"Not starving or anything, but I could eat."
"Heat me up some egg rolls and spinach dumplings, please," Clarke says.
"I could go for some of the chicken with cashews," Bellamy adds.
"Wells? Sasha?"
They look at each other for a moment and then Sasha shrugs.
"We can share a plate of Moo Shu chicken," Wells says, and Zeke nods before heading into the kitchen.
"Nothing for you, babe?" he calls over the counter, but Raven shakes her head.
"OK, I'm getting started on this while you do that," Clarke announces, reaching for a bright pink box under the Christmas tree. "For… Sasha from Zeke."
Sasha holds out her hands and Clarke throws the gift across the room.
"Oh, if there's something fragile that shouldn't be tossed around," Wells tells Bellamy, who's eyes have widened, "be sure to say that."
He thinks for a moment. "No, I think everything should survive that."
By the time Zeke returns with the food – carrying two plates in each hand, waiter-style – Clarke has returned to her spot on the couch and everyone has a present in front of them.
"Here we go," Zeke says, putting the plates down on the table. "Where's my present?"
Raven gives him a smirk. "You snooze, you lose. It's mine now."
He sits down next to her before wrapping one arm tightly around her and using his other hand to tickle her mercilessly.
"Say you give."
Raven squirms for a moment, determinedly clamping her mouth shut to not let out the laughter that's obviously bubbling up, but does surrender after less than a minute.
"Fine, I give!"
Zeke lets her go and holds out his hand for the present, which she hands over with a huff.
"Babe, this is your present to me," he notes, and she shrugs.
"Maybe I want it back?"
Zeke just shakes his head and starts unwrapping the gift, which works as a sort of starting signal for everyone else.
Clarke is just pulling the paper away from her gift – from Wells and Sasha – when Bellamy lets out a laugh next to her. She looks over at the mug he's just unwrapped. "History buff," she reads out loud.
"I'd find you more interesting if you were dead," Bellamy finishes. "Thanks, Raven, I love it."
Raven beams at both of them across the table. "I thought it would go well with Clarke's little mug collection," she says.
"What do you think of yours, Clarke?" Sasha asks, a smug look on her face.
Clarke looks down at her own present. "I… what is it?"
She turns the clear plastic packaging over in her hands. Inside are what look like narrow, purple sticks that appear to be plastic. There looks to have been a label on one side, but it's been peeled off.
Wells and Sasha are both smiling impossibly wide.
"I was hoping you'd pick that one tonight," Wells says.
"Seriously, what is it?"
"You'll just have to wait to find out until you open the other part of the present," he tells her.
Clarke shoots him an annoyed look. "No fair."
Sasha laughs. "You should have picked the big green box instead."
"Now I'm going to be thinking about this all night," Clarke complains, putting her present down on the table in front of her.
"Promise I'll distract you," Bellamy says in her ear, and she feels a shiver run down her spine in anticipation.
"Good."
"OK, we should really head out," Sasha says, getting to her feet. "We'll be back bright and early tomorrow, don't start opening presents without us!"
"We make no promises," Raven says with a smirk and Zeke rolls his eyes.
Clarke gets up too and walks Wells and Sasha to the door. "Come on, Wells, tell me, please?" she wheedles. "It's seriously going to drive me crazy."
But he just laughs and wags his eyebrows at her. "I'm sure you can find something to keep your mind off it."
She sighs, considering pushing the issue a bit more, but she knows that when Wells has made up his mind, there's no changing it.
"Your boyfriend sucks," she tells Sasha instead, pulling the other woman into a hug.
Sasha laughs and hugs her back. "I promise you're going to love it."
"Yeah, yeah."
Clarke hugs Wells too and they leave.
When she returns to the living room, the wrapping paper has been cleared away and Bellamy, Raven and Zeke are lounging on the couch, talking about board games. Bellamy's present for Zeke, the beer game, is sitting on the table.
Clarke slumps down in her old spot.
"You're not calling it a night yet, are you?" Raven asks. "It's not even ten."
"Maybe not quite yet," Clarke replies. She's tired, but she also knows that she probably won't get a lot of sleep anyway. "But I don't think I'm up for another movie."
Raven thinks for a moment. "Christmas episodes of Friends?" she then suggests.
Clarke lights up. "Yes please. The one with the holiday armadillo?"
"Obviously," Raven snorts. "And night of the living dead Christmas trees?"
"Do you have any idea what they're talking about?" Bellamy asks Zeke, who laughs.
"Unfortunately, yes, but I do have a bit more experience with these two than you," he says.
"Come on, you must have watched Friends?" Clarke insists.
"Of course," Bellamy confirms. "That doesn't actually help."
"It's different Christmas themed episodes," she explains. "The episode where Ross can't get a Santa costume for his Christmas with Ben, and shows up dressed as an armadillo…"
"Oh, yeah, I remember that one. And Joey's Superman."
"Exactly. And then the episode where Joey works as a Christmas tree salesman and Phoebe feels sorry for all the trees that get sent to the chipper and they all end up at Monica's apartment."
His brow furrows. "I don't remember that one."
"Then it's a good thing you're about to get a reminder," Raven says, grabbing the remote and flipping through the episodes of season three. "Let's start with that one."
She laughs along with the others, but soon, Clarke finds her eyelids drooping and she has to fight to keep them open. She's vaguely aware of the TV turning off, silence spreading for a moment before Raven speaks.
"Why don't you get her to bed? We'll clear up the plates and stuff."
She forces her eyes open. "It's fine, I'm awake."
Raven gives her a doubtful look. "You want to try that standing up?"
Clarke huffs and pushes herself to her feet. Sure, she wobbles slightly, Bellamy's hand closing around her wrist to keep her steady, but she's upright.
"Yeah, no," Raven says, shaking her head. "Go to bed. Sleep."
For a moment, Clarke considers arguing, but she really is tired… maybe she can actually sleep.
"Fine. See you in the morning."
Bellamy wraps an arm around her shoulders as they head off in the direction of the bedroom, and she happily leans against him, letting him more or less lead her.
"Those sleepless nights finally catching up with you, huh?" he asks after closing the door behind them. "Think you can stay upright long enough to brush your teeth?"
She tries to elbow him in the side, but it probably comes off more like a nudge. "Of course."
He chuckles. "OK then, bathroom is all yours."
Clarke steps out of his half-embrace, instantly missing his warm body against her side, and goes into the bathroom.
She immediately dims the lights, but still feels them waking her up a little. The fresh toothpaste and warm water against her face adds to that, and by the time she leaves the bathroom, she's more or less awake.
Bellamy has removed the bedspread and closed the blinds towards the street in her absence, and she tugs off her dress and leggings as she rounds the bed, not even bothering with her bra before sliding between the sheets.
"Ah, heaven," she sighs as she sinks into the mattress.
He laughs quietly. "Go to sleep."
She just hums in reply and rolls onto her side, making sure her phone's plugged into the charger on the nightstand. She's already feeling the underlying hum of anxiety that's been keeping her awake the last few nights, even though she's still so tired her limbs just want to sink into the bed and never move again.
She gets rid of her bra and panties just as the water turns off in the bathroom, and a moment later, Bellamy's back in the room, unbuttoning his shirt. He hangs it up on one of the hooks on the back of the bathroom door before discarding his slacks as well and climbing into bed next to her.
"I thought you'd be out like a light," he notes when she scoots closer to him.
"Nope," she replies, sliding a hand across his stomach and throwing one leg over his.
He turns his head to meet her lips, but keeps the kiss infuriatingly chaste. "You need to sleep," he tells her when he pulls back.
Clarke hums. "I'd sleep better after a couple of orgasms…"
He laughs at that. "Just a couple, huh? No pressure?"
She lets her hand slide lower, palming him through his boxers. "I'd settle for one."
He's still soft under her hand, but he jerks his hips against her once before rolling onto his side and pulling her flush against him.
"I think I can do better than that."
He kisses her again, their tongues sliding together lazily at first, but then Clarke buries her fingers in his hair, holding him to her, and he trails a hand up her side to cover her breast, palm coarse against her nipple. She moans into the kiss, her back arching against his touch, and then it turns into a battle for dominance that neither of them can, or really want to, win.
She pulls him with her as she rolls onto her back, loving the feeling of his body pressed against hers, and when he grinds down against her, she can tell that every part of his anatomy is definitely getting with the program.
Bellamy breaks the kiss after a little while longer, giving her a smirk as he hovers above her.
"Now, about those orgasms…"
She can't help but laugh as he starts moving down her body, but it quickly turns into a gasp when his tongue circles her nipple before he pulls it into his mouth. He doesn't linger long, soon moving to her other breast where he repeats the motion at the same time as he slides one finger up her slit. She arches her hips against him and he takes the hint, pushing the finger inside her.
Clarke whimpers when he releases her nipple a few minutes later, and he presses a kiss to the underside of her breast.
"You want me to get you off like this?" he mumbles against her skin, curling his finger inside her and grazing her clit with his thumb, making her jerk against him. "Or you want my mouth on you?"
Honestly, she'll take anything at this point, and she knows it'll be beyond good whatever he does… but she does love coming with his tongue inside her or his lips wrapped around her clit.
"Mouth," she gets out as he sucks a mark into her ribcage, and Bellamy chuckles.
"Whatever my Princess wants."
He continues down her stomach, excruciatingly slowly, exploring every inch of her. When she finally feels his hot breath against her clit, she's so keyed up with anticipation that she thinks she might come just from that. Then he circles the nub with his tongue before pressing down just lightly, and her hands close around the sheet.
"Oh God…"
He huffs a laugh. "Just Bellamy's fine, no need for titles."
Clarke chooses to ignore that, instead sliding her fingers into his hair and arching her hips against him.
Normally, he likes to take his time eating her out, tease her. He can bring her right to the edge just to let her cool off and then repeat it again, over and over. It's extremely frustrating, but secretly she kind of likes it, likes that he can play her body like a finely tuned instrument.
Now, though, he's pulling out all the stops, using every little trick he's picked up over the last few weeks to have her shaking within minutes, and with a final press of his thumb against her clit, his tongue pushed as deeply inside her as it can go, she falls apart with a loud moan.
She's still trembling when he moves up her body and kisses her deeply.
"Good?" Bellamy murmurs against her lips, and she nods, wrapping an arm around his neck.
"You're seriously way too good at that."
He must have removed his boxers at some point, because she feels his now fully hard dick slide against her curls when he sinks down further on top of her.
"Hope we didn't alert your guests to our… activities," he notes, pressing a kiss to her collar bone.
"They've stayed here before, I've never heard anything from their room," Clarke replies. "The closets and guest bathroom are between the bedrooms, I think we're good."
He hums against her throat before pushing himself up on one elbow and reaching for the drawer in the nightstand.
"Wait," she blurts out before she can really think, her hand closing around his wrists. He raises an eyebrow at her. "I… I have an IUD. And I'm clean…"
Bellamy just stares at her for a long moment. "Me too. I mean, not the IUD part, but… are you sure?"
She nods in response, hooking a heel around his thigh and pulling him closer. "Please, I just want to feel you…"
He nods once before leaning down and kissing her, and then he's pushing forward, slowly sliding into her without any barriers between them for the first time.
He breaks the kiss once he bottoms out, leaning his forehead against hers. "Oh, fuck."
"OK?" Clarke asks.
"Fucking amazing," he assures her. "It's just been a while since… don't want this to be over too soon."
"Definitely not," she agrees, pulling him down for another kiss.
For a long moment, they stay like that, bodies still, mouths moving together in an ancient dance. Then Bellamy shifts, pulling out halfway before pushing back inside, and they both moan at the feeling.
He sets a slow pace, his lips only leaving hers to press against her throat, shoulders, wrap around her nipple, and then returning to her mouth. It feels more intimate than anything they've shared before, and not just because of the lack of a condom – there's something in the air, a bubble wrapped around them, feelings washing over them with each thrust and kiss.
They've had sex since they said those three little words, of course, but somehow, this almost feels like the first time.
When he breaks the kiss after what feels like an eternity, pulling out of her and sitting back on his knees, Clarke can't help but whimper.
"Turn over," he tells her, eyes dark.
They've done doggy before, and while she usually gets off pretty easily in that position, it's not one of her absolute favorites, simply due to the lack of other interaction it means. She loves watching him, seeing his emotions and reactions on his face, loves that he can see what he does to her.
She does as he asks, though, getting on all fours and giving him a look over her shoulder. Instead of moving into position behind her, though, Bellamy places a hand on her lower back and reaches for a pillow with the other.
"Lay down."
She frowns but lowers herself to the bed, the pillow bent double under her stomach. He moves between her legs and leans down above her, one elbow against the bed next to her. She twists her head around, but she can't really reach to kiss him like this, so she pushes herself up a little, wraps a hand around his neck to pull him to her and he meets her lips eagerly.
As they kiss, she feels his hand slide down her back, over her butt, and then he's positioning himself at her entrance and pushing into her. The slight downward angle is apparently great for hitting her G spot, and when he does, she has to break the kiss to gasp for air.
"I thought you might like that one," he mumbles against her throat before kissing a spot beneath her ear.
He sets a faster pace now, hips snapping against hers in time with the kisses he peppers her neck, shoulders and back with. He leans down further, so she's almost flat against the bed, only her stomach and hips raised due to the pillow. He's not quite pressed against her, but she can feel his body barely an inch above her, the warmth cocooning her between him and the bed.
It's not long before the continuous stimulation of her G spot has Clarke teetering on the edge again.
"Please, I need, I…"
She can't form an actual sentence, but Bellamy seems to realize what she wants anyway, since he slides a hand up her thigh and between her legs, pressing down on her clit at the same time as he thrusts into her with a bit more force.
She flies over the edge with a cry that she's sure must carry to the guest bedroom, no matter the rooms between them. She buries her face in the pillow beneath her, letting it muffle the rest of her scream as her whole body feels like it quakes with the force of her climax. He curses above her, thrusts into her once more and then he stills, spilling deep inside her as her walls continue to convulse around him.
He knows by now that she likes to remain close for a little while after, so he stays where he is, moving slightly so he's pressed against her back, burying his face against her throat as they both come back down.
"Can you even breathe?" he asks, voice shaking slightly, after a moment, and she turns her head to the side, sucking in a deep breath.
"No problem."
He chuckles and shifts so he can kiss her. The angle is awkward and her arm, which is bent under her, is starting to fall asleep, but she returns the kiss anyway.
When she breaks it after a few minutes, he presses his lips to her shoulder briefly before finally pulling out of her and getting up, disappearing into the bathroom.
Clarke has no energy to get out of bed, so she just rolls over, throws the pillow onto the floor and cuddles into the mattress. She hears him return a moment later and then feels him behind her, one arm sliding around to wrap around her waist.
"Think you can sleep now?" he asks quietly, just a hint of teasing in his voice, and she nods.
Though really, she's far from sure.
AN: I'm not sure how Friends ended up in yet another fic… I mean, I love the show, but I'm not some crazy fan, honestly! I was just googling best Christmas episodes of TV shows and the one with the holiday armadillo kept popping up, and here we are!
Chapter warnings: explicit sexual content
