A/N: yes, this was a Christmas fic, and yes, I finished this Christmas eve 2016. Did I post it on Christmas? No, because I'm an idiot.
As the thirty days to Christmas ticked by Marco's cheer got stronger and Jean's resolve weakened. The voice in the back of his mind that he had silenced for years was speaking up more and more and Jean was beginning to listen.
Marco dug a box of Christmas decorations from the back of the closet and hung them around the house. He put a wreath on his and Jean's bedroom door, garlands hung everywhere they wouldn't fall, red bows were stuck on every wall and Marco had hung the mistletoe in the corner of the living room, just for the added Christmas cheer.
It was December first by Marco's count when it snowed for the first time that year and he excitedly raced outside. Jean sighed and grabbed a blanket from the pile on the coffee table before following Marco outside. He was standing shivering in as the snow fell around him, a huge grin on his face. Jean walked up to him and draped the blanket around both their shoulders, Marco shuffled closer.
"I got my first boyfriend during the first snowfall of the year," Marco said with a nostalgic smile on his lips. Jean froze. They had never talked about past relationships, or possible current ones. Jean cleared his throat and composed himself.
"Really? How did that work out?"
"Well, I always liked snow. One day back in grade eight I was out during lunch hour and it began to snow. While I was out there one of the guys in my class, Cody Simmons, came up and asked me out. He was cute and nice so I said yes. We dated for three weeks if I remember correctly, which was the longest relationship anyone in my class had ever been in because, y'know, middle school. Anyway, we broke up because the most popular girl in school dumped her boyfriend after four days and mine was next on her list."
"Seriously? He dumped you? There's no way she was better than you," Jean said. Marco smiled and Jean couldn't tell if his face was red because of what he had said or because of the cold.
"She wasn't that bad. She had moved on to Wyatt Cooper in her record time. Cody didn't even make it to period five."
"Well, I hope he learned his lesson," Jean said. Marco leaned against Jean and his arm wrapped around his waist.
It was the ninth when Marco decided to have some fun. He grabbed one of the jackets from the closet and went outside. Jean had gotten used to Marco suddenly deciding to go outside. The snow outside was littered with snow angels and snowmen. What Jean wasn't used to however, was when Marco came back inside and hit him square in the face with a snowball. He sputtered for a moment before looking up to see Marco hanging in the doorway bearing a huge grin.
The moment Jean spotted him Marco bolted out the door, bending down to scoop up another handful of snow. Jean followed after him as Marco hid behind a wall of snow that had clearly been built hastily in the few minutes Marco had been out there. Jean grabbed a handful of snow off the ground and packed it into a snowball. He slowly circled around Marco's wall until he saw his head pop up and chucked the at him. He heard giggling as Marco ducked away from it.
Jean passed the wall and realised what a mistake he had made when he saw the pile of snowballs Marco had accumulated. The first snowball hit Jean and he ran for cover behind a snowman.
"Come out Jean!" Marco called followed by another giggle. Jean began gathering his own arsenal when he heard movement coming from behind him. He turned just in time to see Marco dump an armload of snow on his head. A grin spread across Jeans face as he chased Marco tossing snow between them.
It ended in a draw with Jean and Marco collapsing together in the snow. Their laughter rang through the air, Jean decided it was his favorite sound, and once, just once, Jean forgot what was happening around them. The dead rising, the ransacked towns, the deserted streets. All he could think about was him and Marco, laughing in the snow.
It was December twentieth when Jean woke up to the sounds of singing. He opened his eyes to find himself alone in the bed and heard the muffled sounds of Christmas carols coming from downstairs. Had Marco found a working radio or something? Jean got out of bed and went downstairs to investigate. What he found when he got there came as a shock.
Marco had run out of decorations, so he decided to make more. He was cutting out a string of angels as he sang Winter Wonderland. His voice was beautiful and all thoughts left Jean's mind except Marco, sitting in the morning light, his voice filling the room. His heart rate picked up, a flush fell across his cheeks and there was no denying it, Jean was totally head over heels.
Jean felt a wave of nausea and relief wash over him at finally admitting that to himself. He sighed and Marco looked up, his cheeks turning slightly pink as he realised he had been caught singing. He smiled brightly none the less, "Good morning Jean."
"G'morning. Don't you think there's enough Christmas decorations already?" Jean said as he sat next to Marco.
Marco looked him dead in the eyes, "Never."
A smile spread across his face and Jean laughed. He reached out and grabbed one of Marco's papers and a pencil. They sat together, Jean drawing and Marco crafting with his limited supplies, until Jean declared himself done and held his art in front of him. He had drawn a brick fireplace including stockings with his and Marco's names on them. Marco's jaw dropped, "Jean, that's incredible!"
"Not really, the bricks look weird and my stocking is misshapen, plus the fire just looks like a cartoon," Jean said with a grimace. He tossed his drawing on the table and leaned back. Marco smacked his shoulder.
"Shut up, it's beautiful. I wish I had a talent like that," Marco chided.
"You wish you had a talent? Have you never heard yourself sing before?" Jean asked. Marco blushed and turned away.
"No, I hate the sound of my voice," Marco mumbled. Jean was shocked. How could he hate his voice? It was so perfect. Jean shifted closer to Marco and he looked back at him.
"Jean, can I ask you something?"
"Yeah, go ahead," Jean said, wanting to get Marco smiling again, although Marco's tone said that wouldn't be too easy.
"Why don't you like to talk about your father?"
Jean sighed, he had been expecting his for a while. "He wasn't the most, how should I put this, supportive, dad. He and I didn't agree on a lot, so most of the time when he went on one of his rants I had to just grin and bear it. Especially when he was talking about gays. I had to hide and lie about my whole love life so that I could keep a roof over my head. I finally escaped to college and I felt so free. Too free. I started thinking about what my dad would think and of all his speeches. Before I knew it I was bottled up again."
"Jean, that's awful." Marco at some point had curled up into Jean's side and was staring into his eyes.
"It's not that bad really. He was still a pretty good dad, played catch with me and stuff. I just wish I hadn't had to hide from him. Now I don't even know if he's alive." Jean looked down. Marco rested his head on his shoulder and Jean's hand came up to play with his hair. There they sat until they both completely lost track of did however achieve his goal of putting the smile back on Marco's face.
It was the twenty fourth when Jean decided to do something about his feelings. It would have to be perfect, and what better day that Christmas eve? Jean had been trying all day but couldn't get the words out right. At first he tried being blunt, but the words caught in his throat. Then he had tried dropping hints, but that had only served to confuse Marco. He was now going to move on to Christmas themed pickup lines. He took a deep breath and went downstairs.
"Hey, Marco, black ice isn't the only thing I'm falling for this Christmas," Jean said as he sat next to him. Marco looked slightly confused before laughing.
"Good one Jean."
Well, shit. That didn't work either. Through the rest of the day Jean tried with others such as "If you were a tree you'd be an evergreen because you look good year round" and "If you wake up in a box tomorrow it's because I asked for the cutest person in the world". Marco thought he was joking every time and Jean was running out of time for his perfect Christmas eve confession. He finally resorted to Plan Z.
When Marco decided to go outside Jean grabbed the last piece he would need, the mistletoe. He dashed back upstairs to finish setting up. He carefully situated the mistletoe in the center of the doorway of his and Marco's bedroom. Three candles were strategically placed around the room and the curtains drawn so they were the only source of light. One of his drawings hung on the wall, depicting a large Christmas tree covered in beautiful decorations, Marco sat on the top with a halo and pristine angel wings.
He rushed back downstairs before Marco could come back inside. He flopped down on the couch and grabbed his book. He could hardly sit still with all the nervous energy coursing through him. He was about to go join Marco outside when he came back inside, cheeks red from the cold and a grin on his face.
"Hey Marco, you hungry?"
"Yeah, what time is it anyway?" Marco said as he pulled off his coat. Jean leaned back to look out the window at the night sky.
"I'm gonna say seven o'clock." Jean said. Marco grabbed the food bag and sat next to him. He handed Jean a granola bar and grabbed one for himself, it was what they had deemed their Christmasiest food, "So what do you wanna do on Christmas eve?"
"Well, my family always ate a big dinner, then relaxed by the fireplace before we went to bed early so Santa could come," Marco said with a smile.
"We have granola bars and pickles, a drawing of a fireplace and Santa may or may not be a zombie," Jean said with a chuckle. Marco smacked his shoulder but snickered anyway.
"Close enough for me." He said and glanced around at his decorations, "Where's the mistletoe?"
Jean froze, "Uh, maybe it fell down."
Marco shrugged and curled up into the arm of the couch, watching the moonlight reflect off the tinsel. His eyelids began to droop and he sat up.
"Getting tired?" Jean asked.
"Yeah, time for bed," Marco said as he stood. Jean got up to follow him, his heart pounded in his chest and he felt light headed. Marco was talking but Jean wasn't hearing anything he was saying.
Before he went inside Marco turned around to finish his story, "So in the end, we had three Santas, two sexy elves and a star of David," He said with a laugh.
Jean took a deep breath and his heartrate felt like it had doubled. He leaned against the door as amorously as possible, "Hey Marco, you might want to look up."
He looked confused for a moment before looking up and the realisation blossomed across his face. Jean's heart skipped a beat when Marco looked back at him. He tried a sexy smirk but the best he could manage was an awkward smile. There was silence between them and Jean was about to say that he didn't have to when Marco smiled brightly. He pulled Jean into him and pressed their lips together.
Jean's heart felt like it had exploded. He slipped his arms around his waist to pull him closer. Marco's arms were wrapped around his neck and Jean couldn't think of anything that could possibly be better.
When they pulled away Marco's cheeks were bright red, "Jean, I-"
"I love you Marco."
Marco's mouth hung slightly open. He was silent for a moment before he buried his face in Jean's neck, "I love you too."
Marco pulled away with a brilliant smile. Jean was grinning from ear to ear, "C'mon, let's go to bed so Zombie Santa can come."
"Well Jean, at least ask me to dinner first," Marco grinned. Jean laughed and pulled him into the room. The candles lit up the room and Marco marveled at Jean's effort. Jean blew out the candles before taking Marco's hand and leading him to the bed. They snuggled together and both fell asleep with a smile.
Christmas morning Jean woke up with Marco in his arms. He smiled and nuzzled his hair affectionately. He pulled Marco closer and cuddled him. A while later Marco woke up and smiled. He pecked Jean's cheek, "Merry Christmas Jean."
"Merry Christmas angel."
