Day Two: Ceiling
A favorite New York holiday tradition Kurt and Blaine had adopted was taking a walk around the city to admire all the holiday decorations. From the tree at Rockefeller Center to the ice rink at Bryant Park, they hit all the "touristy" spots that really were, once Kurt got past the "touristy" part, quite lovely this time of year.
Kurt particularly loved perusing all of the glamorously-designed windows at the department and designer stores along Fifth Avenue. He would somehow manage to pick some detail each year from one or two of the windows and find a way to incorporate the concept (on a much smaller, more affordable scale) into their home Christmas décor.
On this particular winter day, Kurt and Blaine were standing before an elaborate display. While Blaine enjoyed the activity, he knew Kurt was truly in his element, so he stood patiently and sipped at his hot cocoa, allowing his husband time to take in all the details his little heart desired. He also kept a keen eye on the crowd (it was a New York City street, after all), gently shifting Kurt here and there as needed to avoid being trampled by a local in a hurry. The store happened to be on a corner that was exceptionally busy, so Blaine hadn't had time to pay attention to the window while shielding Kurt from what appeared to be several school groups on some kind of field trip. Kurt's sudden exclamation caught him by surprise.
"Oh, that's fantastic!" Kurt nearly shouted, tugging on Blaine's coat sleeve to get his attention.
Blaine finally turned to the window and took in the large window before him. This was no traditional Christmas display window. It was gorgeous, sure, but with an offbeat, almost moody quality. Shining crystal and lights contrasted with dark swaths of deep red and emerald green silks. Sharp lines and edges abounded, lending a chic, careless air to the atmosphere. Dominating the scene was a huge tree, laden with ornaments in silver, diamond, and feather accents. But above all, one aspect of the scene stood out above everything else.
"Oh, that tree!" Kurt sighed. "It's so amazing. It's just…" he trailed off, enraptured, but Blaine found the words to finish his sentence.
"It's…upside down," he said, tilting his head to the side and squinting his eyes.
"I know! It's brilliant. I love the symbolism – taking everything expected and turning it on its head. Genius!" Kurt gushed.
Blaine tilted his head the other way, as if the whole thing might make more sense if he literally looked at it from a different angle.
"We should totally do that," Kurt muttered, thinking aloud.
He now had Blaine's full attention.
"What? You can't be serious," Blaine quipped, side-eying his obviously disturbed husband.
"Why not? Maybe we've become too boring. Too stuck in the provincial ways. We could do with shaking things up a bit," Kurt countered. Blaine wasn't buying it.
"I mean, how would we even do that? Not that I'm considering it, because I'm not," he firmly clarified.
"It's easy! They sell special trees specifically made for that purpose. You screw a couple of eye bolts into the ceiling and…"
"We are not screwing eye bolts into the ceiling, Kurt!" Blaine argued.
Kurt stopped mid-sentence, finally averting his eyes from the window to stare hard at Blaine. Just as Blaine was starting to get nervous that they were going to end up having an argument right there on Fifth Avenue, he saw Kurt bite his lower lip and heard a small but distinct snort.
"Oh. My. God," Blaine exclaimed as Kurt burst out laughing.
"Your face!" Kurt croaked out between laughs. "It's priceless! I can't…" he trailed off, fighting for breath as he leaned in to hug Blaine from the side.
Blaine pursed his lips and shook his head, pulling off his glove and smacking Kurt on the arm with it. "You're mean," he pouted, valiantly trying to hold back his own laughter. He didn't last long.
"I'm sorry, B. I couldn't help it!" Kurt admitted, slipping his arm through Blaine's and leading him down the block to the next store.
"Santa's bringing you a lump of coal if you keep up with stuff like that. A tree on the ceiling…" Blaine shook his head disapprovingly.
"Okay, we won't hang a tree from the ceiling. Am I still allowed to hang mistletoe over the doorway, though?" Kurt asked sweetly.
Blaine smiled, pulling Kurt a little closer and kissing him on the cheek. "I'd be heartbroken if you didn't."
A/N: When I started writing, I intended Kurt to actually want a tree hanging from the ceiling. He decided to make it a joke midway through. I never argue with Kurt.
