A/N: Happy Holidays, everyone!

A fic in keeping with 2020.

Disclaimer: I don't own Downton Abbey.

Christmas in Quarantine

John had never thought he'd see a year like this one. Last year, when all of the younger men had been clustered together sniggering over memes he could barely comprehend, he had simply rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath about the youth of today. Part of the youth of today, his girlfriend, Anna, had whacked him on the arm with a rolled up celebrity magazine.

Jokes about twenty/twenty vision, about the plagues that had hit 1820 and 1920, about wanting to stay inside and hide away from the rest of the world, all of them had flown around in some semblance of questionable humour.

But fate had played the cruellest joke of all.

Face masks, social distancing, lockdowns.

That was nothing compared to the tens of thousands of deaths, the mass job losses, the families torn apart and kept apart in the bleakest of times. All the while the government ran around like headless chickens bleating about protecting the NHS, staying at home, saving lives, when none of those things had been particularly high on their agenda before now.

Social bubbles had become a lifeline for a lot of people living alone. John himself was no stranger to being alone, nor was he someone who needed a lot of socialisation, but even he was getting fed up of his own company. He was thankful that he had been able to bubble up with someone, though his best friend, Robert, was rather put-out that he hadn't chosen to join his family's bubble.

"It was a difficult choice," John had told his friend mildly. "But Anna won out."

"Yes, we all know why." Robert had rolled his eyes.

John had made a rude hand gesture in reply.

It was a horrible year. So many awful things. But there were some moments of hope and joy too.

Not least the moment in the summer when he had been able to hold Anna in his arms for the first time since March. She had cried, her forehead pressed against his chest, happy tears that had stained the front of his shirt. He had only held her tighter, dropping kisses onto the top of her hair. He had felt a little teary himself, and had thanked his good fortunes for finally being able to hold her once more. Video calling was fine, but it couldn't replace the reality of having her light frame in his arms. He'd always known that he never wanted to be without her, but the enforced absence had proven to him that he wanted her with him always.

They had done their best for the following months, meeting every weekend. In the fleeting weeks of the hospitality sector being open they had dined out, trying to claw back some semblance of normality, but mostly they had simply stayed in, cracking open boxsets they had never seen to pass the time, eating far more chocolate than they should. Lockdown had ensured he'd piled on the weight he'd lost over the last couple of years. Anna didn't seem to mind. She said that it was just more of him to cuddle up with.

Christmas would be different this year too. Ever since his mother's passing, John had spent Christmas Day with the Crawleys. But this year, with only three households being allowed to mix, the Crawleys understandably wanted to spend the day with their daughters.

It gave John the opportunity to spend that time exclusively with Anna. That was certainly not a bad prospect.

But yet again fate was dealing them a cruel twist.

As John settled himself down in front of the TV, his mobile rang, lighting up with a picture of Anna's beaming face. He couldn't help smiling in turn. Seeing that never failed to lift his spirits. She was his very own angel of the earth. He was not a religious man, but he had been blessed by something the day they had met.

His smile dropped at her tone of voice, however. He had not heard her so despondent in a long time.

"Hi, John," she said.

"Anna, what's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

She sounded close to tears. "Christmas is ruined."

"What? Why?"

"I've been sent home from school," she said, her voice cracking. "One of the children in my class has tested positive for covid. I have to self-isolate while I wait for a test. But this means I won't be able to be with you for Christmas."

For a moment John was too stunned to reply. It was a bad dream. It had to be.

But he heard Anna sniff, and rushed to consolidate her. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel guilty about something that was out of her control. "It's okay, Anna. We can do our Christmas when we know where you stand."

"It's not the same, though," she said miserably.

"It's better than a lot of people have," he pointed out gently.

"I know, I know. I feel awful about complaining, but…I was really looking forward to it, you know? It was something different. A chance for us to experience our first Christmas alone. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy our days with the Crawleys, but it would have been something so special."

"It would have," he agreed softly. "But we can still do that."

"What are you going to do?" she fretted. "Can you make arrangements with anyone?"

"It doesn't matter," he told her. "I'll just have something at home."

"So I've ruined everything."

"Don't be silly. You've ruined nothing. We can still video chat. We can do it all day if you want." He paused. "And maybe…"

"Maybe…?"

"Well…it might be mad and not quite permitted…but what if I came to stay with you and self-isolated alongside you?"

The confusion was evident in her voice. "Why would you want to put yourself at risk?"

"I've seen you this week so I'm sure I should self-isolate too," he reasoned. "So I don't see why I can't come and stay with you."

"But you might not have it and if I pass it on to you…"

"You might already have given it to me," he said. "I saw you yesterday. And you might not have it yourself. I'm working from home anyway, so I won't need to take any time off."

"But what if you got seriously ill?" she fussed. "I would never forgive myself."

"I think I'll be fine. Okay, I'm not in peak condition, but I'm not in the vulnerable category. But if you don't feel comfortable, that's okay too. We'll see each other soon enough. And it will make the waiting all the sweeter."

Anna was silent for a moment. "I would like it if you came. The company is nice." She sounded guilty for admitting it to him, but her words were the only thing that mattered.

"Then that's all you need to say," he said. "I hope you know that I would do anything for you, Anna."

"I do," she said. "And I love you for it."

"I love you too. I'll see you later."

He finished the call then, and hurried off to pack things for a Christmas away.

It didn't take him long. Stowing the last of his things into the boot of the car, he made the journey across the small town to Anna's little flat. Trying to be discreet—or as discreet as any man with a cane could be—he hoisted his bag over his shoulder and hurried towards the building's entrance. He buzzed Anna's flat.

"Hello?" he heard her static voice say over the intercom.

"It's me," he said lowly. "Can you let me up?"

"Of course."

He heard the click of the door being released and pulled it open, hoping that he didn't meet anyone along the way who might report him.

Thankfully, luck was on his side and he made it up to the third floor without incidence. He knocked once and the door opened a second later.

"Quick, inside," Anna said urgently, reaching a hand out to grab a fistful of his shit and yank him through the door.

John stumbled and managed to shut the door with an undignified bang. He leaned back against it and laughed, relieved that they seemed to have escaped unscathed.

"I don't think you've been that desperate to get me through the door since we first started going out," he joked.

Anna tried to glower at him, but her lips twitched, giving her away. "You're an idiot."

"I am. Your idiot."

"Mine," she promised him, and closed the gap between them to wind her arms around his middle, pressing her cheek to the centre of his chest. John dropped his bags and enfolded her in his arms, relishing the warmth of her against him. He was glad to see that she had cheered up a little He hated the idea of her being sad, but he was proud that he was the one who could make her feel better.

He bent down to kiss her, but to his surprise she held him away with her palm.

"Anna, what's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

She bit her lip, looking chastened. "Sorry…I just don't think it's a good idea right now. I might be infected. The last thing I want to do is pass my germs on to you."

"I think we lost that the moment we hugged," he joked. "Social distancing and all that."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, be quiet. Go and put your bags in the bedroom."

"You're still going to allow me to sleep with you?"

"I can't very well let you have the sofa. But sleep is the keyword there. There's not going to be anything else until I get my test result back."

"We could do that without kissing if we needed to," he teased.

She swatted him in the chest. "Be quiet, Mr. Bates. Besides, you like the kissing."

He moved up behind her, sliding his arms around her waist and nuzzling into her neck. "Of course I do. But it's your roof, your rules."

He pressed a kiss to her neck before she could stop him, then picked up his bags and took them to the bedroom.

He returned to the sitting room to find that Anna had brewed them tea.

"It's cold out there," she commented. "I don't want you to catch anything."

"Then we wouldn't know if it was a common cold or covid," he laughed.

"That's not funny," she grumbled.

"Hey, if we don't make light of it we'll cry."

"I'm beginning to think I shouldn't have asked you here," she said. "It feels reckless and stupid. I feel as bad as those idiots you see partying in the streets."

"Now you're being ridiculous," he scolded. "We're not endangering thousands of people. We're not going to leave this flat now until we know what the results are. I want to be with you at Christmas. We're still going to have the best time we can, even if we can't go out shopping for the turkey."

Anna sniffed, but it was a happier sound too. He took that as a victory.

"Now go and sit down," he said. "I'll get us some biscuits and we can watch a film. How does that sound?"

"That sounds nice," she agreed, her voice quivering.

John waited until she'd settled herself down before going in search of biscuits, coming up victorious with gingerbread. He took that back through to the living room and settled himself beside her.

"What are we watching?" he asked her.

"Love Actually," she said. "It's my favourite Christmas film and it always cheers me up."

"Then that's the perfect reason," said John. He slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to his side, slipping his spare hand into hers. Government be damned, he would be there to comfort Anna if that was what she needed.

Gradually, they fell into a routine with each other. John had never stayed over for an extended period of time before, but it didn't feel strange or awkward. It just worked. Anna had cleared some space out for his clothes to go so they weren't being wrinkled in his carryall, and he had broken out the toiletries that he usually left in the cupboard for when he did stop the weekend. Seeing them mixed together there with hers for more than just a day or two warmed his heart.

Anna's test results came back three days later, revealing a negative result. This cheered her immensely, though she had to continue self-isolating because she had been in contact with the young boy at school who had tested positive. Still, her mood was much better than it had been, and she even consented to him giving her a kiss in celebration.

They sat together and pored over the latest guidelines published by the health service and realised that because she was showing no symptoms John could still venture out into the wider community. With that information in hand, they sat together to plan a list of things he should get on a shopping trip so they could enjoy a Christmas more like what they were used to.

Under normal circumstances John hated shopping, but he knew how anxious Anna had been and he was determined to give her the best Christmas he could.

Armed with that list, he set off to the local supermarket to get their supplies.

It was pandemonium. Idiots were piling their trollies high with everything they could get their hands on, as if they were magically going to run out of everything on Christmas Day. Never mind the fact that shops would reopen again on Boxing Day, with some poor souls forced away from their families. He managed to muscle his way through, swiping up a turkey and some vegetables. He found a packet of stuffing, and grabbed some gravy granules. He added in a pudding for good measure. They had plenty of other things in, so they didn't need anything else.

It still took almost twenty minutes to get through the checkouts, for it was rammed with people waiting. No social distancing there, John mused. At last, however, he made it back outside, and breathed in the crisp air, enjoying being free of the mask.

Anna helped him put it all away.

"You haven't done a bad job," she said as she stretched up to store the gravy away. "I might have to send you again."

"Please don't," he groaned, but her words triggered something. A kind of fluttering in his stomach, a jolt in his heart.

It sounded so…domestic. So right. As if they had been together forever, learning how to live with each other.

They had been together for almost eighteen months now. Those eighteen months had been the happiest of his life. He hadn't known such happiness could even exist, but every day Anna proved to him that, if he was open and accepting of it, the sunshine could keep him warm for the rest of his days. He knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. He was pretty sure that she knew the same. But they hadn't discussed the future in any great detail. Not yet.

Perhaps it was time to change that.

Christmas morning dawned, in Anna's words, as disappointingly as the rest of the year had, with no snow. John couldn't share in that sentiment. He hated the snow.

Still, despite Anna's disappointment, they made the best of it. The heating was on, flooding the small flat with warmth, and Anna sat wrapped in her dressing gown, looking adorably dishevelled. Despite being almost twenty-nine, she still had the same childish delight in Christmas that she had as a child, and it was an endearing sight to behold.

They had promised each other not to go mad on spending this year. They were lucky to still have jobs, but so many others were not, and it felt vulgar to spend when there were so many families in positions of poverty. They had agreed on one gift each; John had bought Anna a bottle of her favourite perfume, and Anna gave John a set of books he had been eyeing up.

But there was one more present lying under the tree.

Anna frowned as she knelt down to pick it up. "What on earth is this?"

"I don't know," said John, settling back on the sofa. He took a swig of tea before asking, "Does it have a tag?"

Frowning, Anna turned the tag over. She read aloud, "To Anna, Merry Christmas, my darling. Let's make next year a good one to remember. All my love, John." She frowned, glancing up. "We said we wouldn't buy each other anything else! John!"

"It's not something I spent much on," he was quick to appease her. "It's just something small. But I hope it's something you will like anyway. Open it."

She still didn't look very pleased that he had broken their rules, but nevertheless she dug her fingernails into the badly wrapped gift and tore it open.

There was a tinkling as the present inside fell out and bounced on the floor. John took a deep breath as Anna dropped to her knees to find it. This was it. Make or break.

He heard her sound of confusion, and she surfaced from beneath the coffee table, clutching the key in her hand, dangling there on a keyring of a gingerbread house.

"I don't understand," she said.

It was time to explain. John shuffled towards the end of the sofa, reaching out to cup her cheek in his palm. She turned further into his touch, reaching up her own hand to hold his palm to her face, though the slight crease between her eyebrows didn't fade.

"I know you already have a key," he said softly. "But I wanted to give you something symbolic when I asked."

"Asked? Asked what?"

"Anna, will you move in with me?"

Silence. She blinked. "W-What?"

All of those old insecurities she had worked so hard to banish began to resurface like a dead body at her words. He had hoped she would answer in a delighted affirmative straight away. What if he had grossly misinterpreted where they were in their relationship? They had always been on the same page, she said she loved him…but what if she wasn't ready for things to change?

To silence those poisonous thoughts slithering through his brain, he stumbled over a poor explanation. "I just…it doesn't have to mean anything and you don't have to feel guilty if you don't want to just yet…"

"Don't want to what?" she pressed.

He closed his eyes. Christ, this was a form of torture. "This year has been one of the strangest of my life. But it's been made bearable because I have you. Those months where we weren't able to see each other almost broke me. You can't know how happy I was to have you back in my arms again. And although we haven't been able to do the things we normally would, being able to spend the time with you watching TV or just talking about the smallest, silliest thing was more than enough. I was gutted when you told me that we might not be able to spend Christmas together. And then ever since we started this arrangement I've been beyond excited to have this day to just the two of us, creating new memories and traditions. And living here with you this last week, well…It's been wonderful."

"It has," she agreed.

He took heart from that. She wasn't disagreeing. She wasn't contradicting what he said, or trying to let him down gently.

"It's made me realise that I don't want to be without you again," he said. "I want to wake up by your side every morning and fall asleep by it every night. I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. It's not a proposal, not yet, but it's getting there. I know you've got a key already, but I thought it would be symbolic to get you another one. Move in with me."

She laughed at that. There was a glimmer of tears in her eyes, and she impatiently brushed them away. He reached out to her.

"Please tell me you're not crying because you're horrified," he said. "If you are, we can pretend this conversation never happened."

"Silly beggar," she giggled, placing the key on the coffee table. And then she launched herself into his arms, knocking him back against the sofa. He huffed as her weight propelled him, but he couldn't stop smiling as she leaned in and crushed her mouth against his, the first very satisfying kiss they had had since he'd moved in.

"Is that a yes?" he asked when she pulled away from him.

"What do you think?"

"I don't know, that's why I'm asking. Or perhaps you should kiss me again so I really get the answer…"

She rolled her eyes at that, but it was all a ruse; she wound her arms around his neck and slanted her mouth against his once more. He moved his hand from the small of her back to her waist and then lower, and she made a muffled sound in the back of her throat as he teased her there.

"Bedroom," she growled against him.

John's heart began to beat faster at her tone, but he couldn't help teasing her, either. "I thought you said there wouldn't be any of that?"

"I said until I got my test results back. Which I did. Unless you don't want to. So if that's the case I'll leave you here and go on my own…"

She squealed as he swept her up into his arms, ignoring the hot bolt of pain through his leg at his sudden movement. He didn't need to be told again.

It was much later in the morning when they stirred again. Anna draped herself over his chest, running a finger down his jaw.

"We're going to have to get up," she said softly. "We've dinner to cook."

"I know," he groaned. "But I'm very comfortable here." He ran his hand over her buttock to emphasise his point.

"So am I," she sighed, "but if we don't move now dinner will never be ready."

"I'm sure we can find something else to dine on…"

She swatted him lightly in the chest, then rolled off him. He huffed at the loss of her, but knew she was right. He sat up too, pushing his hair back.

"Get dressed," she tossed over her shoulder. "You can cut the vegetables while I prepare the turkey."

"Yes, milady," he said, reaching for his shirt. He pulled it on, and followed her out the room, unable to resist pulling her back against him for one more kiss.

The dinner wasn't perfect. It was their first try, there were things that were bound to go wrong, especially with the newness and the giddiness of what they had agreed.

But they had a very happy Christmas anyway, and John was sure that it was only the start of many.