This is my contribution for this year's OQ Advent Calendar.
I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and that this tiny little ficlet makes you smile.
Regina Mills has always taken pride in her good taste.
Clothing, restaurants, jewelry, makeup, anything and everything she chooses is always classic, refined, glamorous even when it's simple. And her home decor is no exception.
The Christmas season is in full swing now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, lights and ornaments and peppermint-chocolate everything popping up all around her, and so Regina has braved the cold to add the best trimmings of holiday cheer to the outside of her house. She's happy to say that this might be her best year yet.
There are lights adorning the pine bushes that rim the facade, made even brighter by the warm glow of the lantern-like fixtures on the stone veneer, the matching lamps lining the driveway. She's covered the two short magnolia trees on each side of her main entrance with lights as well, neatly wrapping cords of twinkling beams around leafless branches that will be covered in pink blooms come spring.
She's added a large, fresh pine wreath to the very top of the tall window that faces the street, with more lights and a big red bow, the rich velvet of it trimmed in gold to add the perfect pop of elegance and color. Matching lit-up garlands hang along the wrought-iron banisters flanking the front steps, with their smaller red-and-gold bows tying the delicate pine to the metal, adorning the path to the two potted poinsettias she's placed just outside her front door.
It's perfect.
And the fact that she lives in the winter wonderland that is Camden, Maine really does tie everything together, Regina thinks. The dusting of snow accumulated on the outermost surfaces of her home and all over her front yard add that magical holiday touch that cannot be achieved in any other way.
"Cute," a voice says from behind her, just as she's stepping back to admire her work. Regina rolls her eyes.
"John," she greets tersely, turning to face him.
"You did a good job this year," he commends, his breath visible in the near-dark when he smugly adds, "I'm still gonna win, but it's cute."
"It's not a competition," Regina forces herself to say. Because it isn't. Not really. But John Little has been trying to out-decorate her every Christmas since he moved next door four years ago, and she's grown a little annoyed by his antics.
"Says the loser," he teases, and Regina grits her teeth to stop herself from insulting him.
John's decorations are... well, tacky, if she's being honest. Nothing about them is cohesive, and rather than conveying that feeling of warmth and holiday spirit, his house tends to look like Christmas threw up on it.
So really, she shouldn't be jealous. Her house definitely looks better. But before he got here, her neighbors always used to look forward to her decorations, admire the way she'd put everything together and even come and take pictures. Now, they do that with John's house instead, and loathe as she is to admit it, it makes her blood boil that she's no longer the favorite.
"Lay off, will you, John?" a familiar baritone interrupts, and Regina breathes a sigh of relief.
Robin Locksley is John's best friend. He's also been his roommate for the past year, and Regina couldn't be more glad. Robin is kind, and witty, and devastatingly handsome. He's tall, with muscled arms she wants to feel wrapped around her, an accented voice that makes her all warm and tingly when he speaks to her, and that disarming smile she looks forward to every morning when they run into each other as they leave for work...
He flirts with her often. A lot, actually. And Regina would be lying if she said she didn't love it. He's cheeky, and compliments her, makes light-hearted jokes about being distracted by her. His eyes always linger on her when they talk, and he always finds excuses to touch her, like when he asks if it's okay to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, or to take her hands to warm them up because she's (conveniently) forgotten her gloves. It makes her feel giddy, and beautiful and wanted, even if it hasn't developed into anything else just yet.
"It's harmless fun, Robin, calm down," John is defending himself, and her annoyance snaps back in when he adds, "and it's not like Regina doesn't know that my decorations are better."
She huffs in response, chances a look at John's house and makes no effort to hide the judgy smirk on her face. Everything is turned off at the moment (she suspects he's still working on adding more atrocities before he lights everything up), but she can make out most of the things he's chosen this year.
An inflatable Santa sits on his sleigh in the front yard, four wire LED reindeer placed in front as if pulling said sleigh, the reins made of red and green tinsel. There's an LED snowman placed by the mailbox, and candy cane stake lights mark the pathway from there to the front door. The garden gnomes that sit on the yard year-round are now half-covered in snow, flanking some of those candy canes and looking completely out of place despite the felt Santa hats John has messily glued to their heads.
The bulbs trimming the windows and ledges are rainbow colored and unevenly spaced, big and bulky even at a distance, and there's a badly-inflated Rudolph atop the gable roof of the front door, billowing just slightly in its snowy, unsteady base, its red nose looking a little flat. Two larger-than-necessary wreaths have been added to decorate the outside of the door and living room window, with big clunky ornaments stuck to the plastic pine; and cheap, red plastic ribbon has been wrapped around the white pillars of the portico to match the candy cane lamps (they don't match at all, but Regina supposes that was the idea). He's even put a Christmas tree outside, a big, white, fiber optic one, trimmed in at least four different colors of tinsel.
Yeap. Christmas vomit. That's what it is.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" says John when he catches her looking. "And just wait until we light that baby up, it's gonna knock your socks off."
Regina rolls her eyes, and John bumps his shoulder gently against hers as he asks, "You'll be here for it, won't you, Regina? I'd hate for you to miss the lighting ceremony for the best decorated house on the block."
Robin laughs at that, and she turns to glare at him, but all he does is grin and hold his hands up in defeat.
"I'm busy," she grouses, and John snorts out a laugh at that.
"Figured you'd say that, but don't you worry," he tells her, his smile devious. "If you can't make it, I'll make sure to take a good photo and then print it poster sized just for you. You can hang it on your door to make it look festive!"
She's saved from having to answer when some of the children from the neighborhood show up, calling for John and asking about the so-called lighting ceremony. He goes to greet them, and Regina takes the out, sighing and turning to leave when Robin stops her.
"He's not the prick he pretends to be, you know," he tells her, and she crosses her arms over her chest against the chill.
"I wouldn't be so sure," she says with a small grin and a roll of her eyes. "He seems to love antagonizing me."
"Only at Christmastime," Robin defends. "His excitement gets the better of him."
"Doesn't make it any less annoying," says Regina.
"He only teases you because he knows you hate it," he insists. "I've told him to back off, but once he gets going there's no stopping him. Bloody idiot."
Regina chuckles at that last bit, then takes a deep breath as she looks back at her own house, all lit up and looking exactly like she intended.
"He's right, though, you did great," Robin admits. "It's quite beautiful."
"Thank you," she replies, the pride ignited by his praise warming her all over.
"Mind you, I find the homeowner far more beautiful than the home itself, but it's still a pretty good job," he flirts, and she can't help the smile that breaks out of her, can't help but flirt back.
"Why, Mr. Locksley, it sounds like you have a crush."
"How could I not?" he tells her, winking in her direction. "You're stunning, in every way."
"Just wait 'til I actually put on my Christmas tree onesie," she jokes, wiggling her eyebrows, and it makes him laugh and move close to her, his mirth settling into an easy grin as he gives her that look that turns her to goo.
"Well, that I have to see," he tells her.
"Oh, no," Regina laughs. "I was joking. It was a gift from a friend and I refuse to wear it."
"I bet you look beautiful," Robin presses, moving even closer. "All soft and cozy."
"I highly doubt that," she tells him, chuckling through her embarrassment. "Though it is quite cozy."
"I'd really like to see it on you, Regina. Will you show me?" he begs. "Please?"
Those seductive eyes are focused on her again, that cheeky smirk coming out to play, and it's only then that she realizes he's slowly walked her backwards, until he's landed them just under the sprig of plastic mistletoe that's been tied to the streetlamp outside his house. God, he's good at this.
"Maybe later," she relents with a wink. And then, because she wants to get the upper hand back, "If you play your cards right."
"And just what would that entail, milady?" Robin leans in to whisper, and the raspy tone of his voice sends shivers down her spine, has her so overcharged with anticipation that she doesn't even acknowledge the cheesy moniker he gives her.
"I'm sure you can think of a few things," Regina replies, and it comes out a little breathy with how affected she is by him. Their noses are brushing feather-light against each other, his teeth sinking into his smile as he breathes slowly in...
They've had this moment many times over the past few weeks, where they stand so close she can smell the hint of pine in his aftershave, see the depth of the dimples on his cheeks, the flecks of gold in the blue of his eyes. She wants to taste him so badly, to feel the coarseness of his stubble on her skin, the warmth of his body as it seeps into hers...
That sizzling attraction between them has her inching forward, her eyes closing as she licks her lips in anticipation.
"Robin! We forgot Hawaiian Santa!" John's voice breaks through their haze, the unwelcome interruption shattering the bubble they'd inadvertently absconded to. Regina opens her eyes just in time to see the exasperated way in which Robin rolls his, grins a little when he sighs his frustration and turns to address his friend.
"What are you talking about?"
"The big Santa with the Hawaiian shirt and the sunglasses. We were gonna put him in the doorway, remember?! Where is he?! It's almost time and we can't light up the house without Hawaiian Santa!"
Regina steps back, trying very hard not to laugh at John's crisis, and gives Robin a nod when he mouths an apology and asks if he'll see her later.
His hand catches hers as he starts to walk away, his thumb rubbing softly over her knuckles for a moment before he lets go and follows John back into their house.
Feeling giddier than she has a right to, Regina takes a few more moments to admire her own handiwork before she, too, heads back inside.
An hour or so later, the commotion outside alerts her to the fact that it's time for John's ridiculous "lighting ceremony." Regina doesn't want to go, doesn't want to give him the satisfaction of being there when everyone decides to admire his tawdry exhibit over her own, far more tasteful one.
But she'd told Robin she'd be there, and quite frankly, she's interested in seeing if they can walk themselves into another of those intimate moments, hopefully uninterrupted this time.
It seems all the neighbors have gathered outside John's house, but since his lights remain off, a few stragglers have made their way to Regina's doorstep, admiring her decorations and enjoying themselves as they observe every detail. It gives her a bit of a boost, a mild injection of confidence as she strolls out and greets those complimenting her work. She's brought a bowl full of candy canes with her, as she does every year when people show up to see her house, and the crowd grows as she starts handing a few out to the children around her, delighting in their appreciative smiles.
Her gray coat is thick and snug, and she's paired it with a soft royal blue scarf that helps keep the chill at bay, but her body shivers all the same when Robin approaches her, that smile back in place as he takes a candy cane from the bowl.
Regina raises an eyebrow at him. He knows they're for the kids, but there's not a hint of remorse on his face as he tears open the clear plastic wrapper and bites off a small chunk. She can hear the candy breaking under his teeth, shakes her head at him and moves the bowl away when he reaches for another one.
"Alright, everyone, gather 'round!" John announces. "It's happening!"
Regina surreptitiously moves a few steps away to a shadowy corner, hiding a bit so that the neighbors won't see her crestfallen expression when they all abandon her house and shift to John's. It's her least favorite part of this. How everyone just automatically runs away from her carefully crafted decorations and towards John's messy display as soon as his lights are on.
There's a countdown happening, and Robin has found his way to her little hiding spot, stepping just behind her and whispering, "I'm sorry we were interrupted earlier."
Regina smiles, forgetting her envy altogether as she turns to him and admits, "Me, too."
"I'd quite like to pick up where we left off, if you don't mind," he grins at her, and she bites her bottom lip as she nods, loving the way his cheeky smile grows at her acquiescence.
"Right. So... I believe," Robin says, moving slowly to close the gap between them, "we were right..." closer, "...about..." and closer still, "...here."
He's in her space now, the tip of his nose once again touching hers, that pleasant, familiar fire warming her from the inside out as she looks into his eyes. She watches his lips for a moment, licks her own, and then feels the slight pull of his left hand as it finds her waist, his right coming up to rest on the side of her face, thumb caressing her cheek...
That haze is building around them again, drowning out their surroundings, the cries of 15, 14, 13 growing more and more distant as Regina focuses solely on the smell of forest and the unbelievably enticing man that accompanies it...
When his lips finally meet hers, a tingling wave of sensation shoots through her. Warmth floods her whole body, her stomach erupting in butterflies as she presses against him more firmly, surrenders to the delicate caress of his mouth against hers. It's soft, and tender, unhurried and full of promise. He gives her another smooch, another, never moving away, and then he lingers on the next one, closes both lips around her bottom one to give her a little teasing suck, and Regina loses herself in him. The tip of her tongue comes out to taunt him, inviting him to deepen the kiss, and thank God for a man who can take direction because he does just that, and it's incredible.
He's bolder now, lets his tongue tangle with hers in leisurely exploration, moaning as he tastes her, prompting a little whimper from her when he gives her lower lip a tender little bite that shocks and thrills her. Regina kisses and kisses him back, licking at his upper lip to tease him, and now it's her turn to suck and nibble, to explore and taste him, the exchange still slow and deep and perfect.
"Regina," he whispers against her lips, and she moans, pushing herself up on her tiptoes so she can reach him better, chasing that whisper with her tongue. He tastes of peppermint, with a hint of sweetness and that addicting quality of his that she can't get enough of.
His grip on her waist tightens as he attempts to pull her even closer, but the bowl of candy canes is wedged between them now, digging into their stomachs and making it impossible to press their bodies flush together like they want to. It prompts a little break in the kiss, their breath visible in the cold night air as they sigh and watch each other.
Robin's hand is still holding her face, that thumb still passing back and forth over her cheek, the rest of his fingers buried in her hair, scratching gently there. His lips look plump, have turned slightly pink, too, thoroughly kissed and lovely, and Regina congratulates herself on a job well done as she bites down on her smile, her eyes focusing back on his.
"Why is this happening?!" they hear from beyond their little bubble, a shout of desperation breaking through their reprieve as John comes running their way.
They jump apart instantly, and Regina almost drops the bowl in her hands, manages to catch it just in time, with only a couple of candy canes spilling from it just as John finally reaches them and wails, "Robin, it's not working. WHY IS IT NOT WORKING?!"
Regina has to give Robin credit, because he sobers up immediately and manages to keep a straight face as he tells his friend, "There must be something wrong with the lights, you'll have to check each extension, try them out separately and see which one is the problem."
"But we checked them all this morning! Everything was working!" John yells as he clicks the remote control button again and again, as if it'll suddenly produce a different result.
"I don't know what to tell you, mate. Looks like we missed one," Robin says, and Regina doesn't know if it's the silliness of this entire situation, or the fact that she was just making out like a horny teenager, but something about it all has her snorting out a laugh into Robin's shoulder.
If John saw them kissing, he makes no mention of it (too focused on his unlit display to care about anything else, Regina supposes), and is already running back to his home, appeasing the crowd and promising he just has to do a couple of "quick fixes" and everything will be just fine.
The neighbors seem skeptical, but decide to stick around for a bit, and she notices that they gravitate back to the front of her own place, admiring her lights as they wait.
And then Robin clears his throat, and when she turns to him, he's smiling like the cat that ate the canary.
"What?" she asks, narrowing her eyes at him.
To her surprise, he pulls out a set of button cell batteries from his pocket, that smirk still on his lips, and it dawns on Regina that this is all his doing.
"You didn't," she gasps, and that twinkle in his eye says that yes, yes, he did. There's nothing wrong with the lights, Robin has simply taken the batteries out of the little remote.
"I like to think of it as a lesson in humility for the big oaf," he tells her with a shrug, that amused grin getting bigger. "And now your house can have the spotlight for a little while longer. Win-win, if you ask me."
This time, she does drop the bowl, hears the dull thud of it when it hits the snowy floor behind them as she wraps her arms around his neck and crashes her lips to his. It's not a passionate embrace for long, their kiss falling apart at the seams because she can't stop laughing, and then he starts to laugh with her, his arms holding her steady as they wrap around her waist to hold her against him.
When they settle, she shakes her head, still smiling at him as she chides, "I feel like I'm cheating on a test or something."
He chuckles at that, leans in to tell her conspiratorially, "Don't tell the headmaster," and her laughter kicks up again.
"We're gonna end up on Santa's naughty list now," she insists. "I know I said I was annoyed with John but this might be pushing it. He's clearly distraught. I feel bad."
"He got you a smaller version of that Hawaiian Santa as a Christmas present, you know," Robin reveals, and her eyes widen at that.
"Okay, never mind, let's hide those batteries for the rest of the season," Regina decides, much to Robin's amusement, and God, it feels nice to make him laugh, to be the reason those dimples appear on his cheeks. She wants to do that all the time.
He's leaning in then, giving her a chaste kiss as his thumb rubs at her back where he holds her, his voice low as he whispers, "So..."
"So..." Regina replies, smiling.
"You mentioned something about Christmas tree pajamas..." he prompts, and she rolls her eyes at him, but doesn't stop smiling. Can't stop, not when he's holding her like this and looking at her so cheerfully.
"I did," she admits.
"What do you say, milady? Have I played my cards right?" he asks suggestively, teeth biting into that cheeky grin again.
And because she's wanted this for so long now, because he's made her feel bold and audacious and beautiful, Regina decides to go all in.
"How about we go inside..." she begins, her voice suggestive and low, "...and I show you what's under this coat instead?"
She can see when it clicks for him, when his amusement turns to lust, his eyes darkening as he holds her just a little tighter, swallows thickly and rasps, "Perfect."
They have a problem, though, as more and more people have gathered outside her home, crowding the space as they look at her decorations, and as much as she enjoys having her neighbors praise her display, what Regina needs right now is privacy.
Robin seems to think the same, because he's pushing away from her now, giving her one last peck and promising, "I'll be there shortly," before he darts off to his place with the batteries, calling for John.
Mere minutes later, Christmas music starts playing outside, and Regina watches from her window as the neighbors ooh and aah and move quickly to John's house, finally lit up in all its tacky glory.
Hawaiian Santa is sipping a piña colada, mechanically shaking his hips to the loud rendition of Jingle Bells that comes from the speaker underneath him; each string of lights is twinkling at a different time; the LED reindeer all turn out to be different colors and light patterns as well; and that inflated Rudolph continues to wobble unsteadily even as his nose turns bright red atop the portico.
It's an incoherent and overdone mess, and she doesn't understand why everyone is so taken with it.
But as she lets Robin into her bedroom, as she lets him press her against the wall, lets him strip her of her clothes and kiss every inch of her, Regina decides she's fine with John hogging the spotlight.
As far as she's concerned, she wins Christmas this year.