Two lonely souls

You and Natasha grew even closer after the night you spent at her place. She invited you over again and again and she even admitted that she liked having you around, that her house felt warmer with you there, so naturally you spent as much time as you could there. You felt alive again, you felt like a teenager with her. All the stupid, fun stuff you did with her was all you had ever dreamt of. You had grown a bit braver with your advances, no longer scared of leaning against her shoulder or laying your legs on her lap when watching movies. Sometimes she would sneakily make you do those things, not wanting to admit how much she liked it. You had face-mask- and gossip-filled girls’ nights, except it was just the two of you and you wouldn’t have had it any other way. She taught you how to play chess, do card tricks, to land a pirouette and you taught her to play the piano, to cook and to crochet. She even made you a little red hat that she gave up on after a couple of hours, and because of that it was a slightly convex circle that just sat on top of your head.

You had snuck a couple of Christmas ornaments into her apartment without her knowing, although you were sure she had noticed but had decided to let it be. She had even put up “decorative lights to make her apartment more cozy”, but you had a hunch that it wasn’t only about the coziness, the lights shaped like little snowflakes.

“Oh, look!” They have Christmas trees on sale”, you pointed out, letting go of Natasha’s hand as you skidded closer to the impressive assortment of spruces lined up on the edge of the square. You were walking to Natasha’s from a coffee date that you had gone on after your incredibly boring workday. “I wish I could fit one of these into my apartment”, you bemoaned, brushing your hand over the green branches of the large tree as Natasha walked up behind you, grabbing your hand again. She was awfully touchy but thankfully so were you.

“We could put it up at my place”, she suggested innocently and you actually had to hold in the snarky retort that nearly slipped past your lips. A Christmas tree at the Grinch’s house? Yeah you’d love to see that. However, you would rather keep the comments to yourself because you couldn’t think of anything better than having a proper Christmas tree for once.

“I couldn’t ask that of you”, you reasoned, turning around to look up at her.

“You’re not asking. I’m offering”, she replied with a sly smirk.

“I thought you really hated Christmas”, you said, frowning up at her.

“Yeah, but I don’t hate you.” She was smiling softly as she nudged you a little, your scarf suddenly feeling a little too warm.

“I’ll let you choose our baby”, you offered with a wide grin as you studied the options laid out before you. You would come to regret your words not even ten minutes later when the two of you were walking down the street carrying the largest tree the man had to offer. Even in its packaging it was difficult to carry and Natasha got to listen to you bitch and moan at the other end of the tree whenever a needle pierced through your thin gloves.

“Stop whining”, she groaned. “There’s like five more blocks left, you’re gonna burst my eardrums”, she scoffed, nudging the tree forward so that you nearly fell face first on the ground. You yelped, hearing Natasha chuckle behind you.

“Okay, and then what do we do? You have no tree stand nor decorations”, you noted and it was Natasha’s turn to complain. She groaned, dropping the stump end of the tree to the ground. She looked around her, spotting a department store on the other side of the street.

“We’ll go to Target”, she said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. And that’s exactly what you two did.

“You stay here, I’ll go get the decorations”, you stated, Natasha frowning in disapproval.

“Why can’t we both go?”

“Someone’s gotta watch the tree”, you explained.

“Who’s gonna steal a tree?” She scoffed as she leaned it against the wall of the building.

“You’d be surprised”, you quipped.

“There’s no way I’m letting you pick the decorations”, Natasha stated, grabbing your arm when you tried to walk inside. “You’re going to pick something nauseatingly Christmasy.”

“It’s a Christmas tree”, you groaned, giving her a deadpan look.

“I don’t want anything bright”, she stated.

“Okay what else?”

“I’m coming with you”, she pestered as you rolled your eyes.

“If someone steals it, you’re buying me a new one”, you threatened, all but shoving her inside the store as she grinned cockily at getting her way with you. You found the Christmas decorations with ease, admiring the beautiful ornaments that were displayed all over that section of the store. You picked up a large box of golden decorative balls that would surely fit the aesthetic of Natasha’s apartment. You showed it to her from across the aisle and she nodded in approval. You picked up another one that had a little red and green in them but they weren’t too flashy. Natasha nodded at that as well. She picked lights and a tree stand, followed by a couple loose ornaments that she thought were appropriate. You only got to see her choice in decorations at the cash register, your jaw dropping at the ones she had chosen. She had found a figure skater with a pretty white dress, a glittery snowflake -she really seemed to have a thing for those-, a gingerbread man, a snowman, a realistic looking candy cane and a huge glittery star for the top. Rushing out of the store, you were more than glad to find the tree right where you had left it.

“Hold on a second, I’ll get a cab for the stuff we bought.”

An hour later you were draped over Natasha’s couch, huffing and puffing in exhaustion after dragging the tree out of the elevator. You wiggled out of your coat and scarf, snuggling into the soft cushions. “Can we just not do anything for two seconds?” You whined, feeling the couch dip, Natasha getting on it as well. She was laying on the shorter part of the L-shaped couch, her head resting on the cushioned curve of your butt as she stared up at the ceiling.

“Why did you have to take the biggest one?” Natasha whined and it took you a second to process her words because you were more than focused on the placement of her head.

“Me? You’re the one who chose it!” You shrieked, turning around and scooting closer to the edge, Natasha’s head now resting on your lap. She was laughing, looking up at you with bright eyes. You brushed your hand over her cheek, the atmosphere changing drastically around you. You grew nervous, removing your hand away from her face as you started to get up from the couch.

“We should get started with this or it won’t be finished until next Christmas”, you joked, grabbing the tree stand. Natasha helped you of course and soon the gorgeous tree was standing behind the couch in the only spot that could properly fit it. You poured some water for the tree as Natasha put up the lights, occasionally asking for your help with their placement.

“Can I put on Christmas music?” You asked hopefully, giving Natasha puppy eyes. “Or will you throw me out again?” She had actually once done that when you wouldn’t stop singing Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer that had gotten stuck in your head from the mall.

“As long as I don’t have to hear anything about a reindeer named Rudolph”, she grunted, opening up the ornament boxes. She had a nice set of stereos, so you plugged your phone in and pressed shuffle on a playlist consisting of your favorite Christmas songs. You stopped for a minute, the calming music filling the apartment as you admired Natasha who was adjusting the lights wrapped around the tree. Once satisfied with her work, she pulled off her turtleneck sweater, revealing a tight top with lace hemming, the low neckline leaving less and less for your imagination. You knew you liked her, but it was becoming more and more obvious to you just how much you liked her. You felt butterflies erupt in your stomach as you watched her tuck her hair behind her ears to keep it out of her face. She was so beautiful, so perfect and you wanted her so bad.

“Stop daydreaming and come help me”, Natasha ordered, snapping you out of your thoughts. You shook your head slightly, jumping over the couch to go help her. You hung up ornaments here and there, trying to make the tree look balanced with all the different sorts of decorations, Natasha doing the same. For some reason, a comfortable silence fell between the two of you as you did your thing. You would sometimes absentmindedly hum or sing along to whatever the stereos were playing, but something that really caught your attention was a low humming that came from the opposite side of the tree. Natasha was humming along to Winter Wonderland. She hated Christmas songs, having told you how stupid and perky they were, yet there she was with a faint smile on her face as she hung the candy cane ornament on the higher branches, humming along to the song, sometimes even singing a few words. She had a beautiful voice, just the kind you liked: low and raspy. The urge to tease her and call her the Grinch again returned tenfold but you let her be. Your plan was working beautifully and there was no point in throwing away the progress she had made.

Once the tree was fully decorated, only missing the star at the top, you were exhausted. You just wanted to crawl under the covers and go to sleep. “How are we getting this up there?” You asked fiddling with the star in your hands.

“You’re gonna put it up”, Natasha stated like it was obvious.

“How?” You whined, the tree twice your height and not even the chair that you had used for placing ornaments added enough height for you.

“Come here”, Natasha beckoned as she sat on the couch. You walked over to her and grabbed the hand she was offering to you. “Sit on my shoulders.”

“Nat, I’m gonna break your back”, you chuckled nervously, the redhead just scoffing at your comment. She was kneeling on the cushions and was already tugging you up onto the couch. You did what you had been told, carefully sitting on her shoulders. She locked your legs tightly around her waist before telling you to hold on, but you didn’t know where to hold on to other than her head. You clutched the star in your hand as Natasha stood up with surprising ease and you quickly shoved the star on the tip of the tree. You let out a big sigh as you slid down Natasha’s back and onto the couch.

“There it is”, you said in awe, both of you staring up at the star and the finished Christmas tree.

“We make a pretty good team”, Natasha mumbled. Your arms were still gripping her shoulders as you sat there for a second, your legs wrapped around her waist, but then she was up again and so were you.

“Did you want food?” She asked, hands caressing your thighs gently as she neared the fridge. You rested your chin on the crook of her neck, your cheek pressing against hers as you peered inside the fridge.

“Oh, give me the eggnog”, you said, after reaching for it but coming up short.

“I said food”, she berated softly, backing away so that you couldn’t reach the bottle.

“Okay, well do we still have that chicken parm?” You asked, Natasha digging out a container filled with pasta. “Take the nog for dessert”, you whispered in her ear, making Natasha smirk. You ate your dinner on the couch, marveling at your beautiful tree every once in a while. However, when you grabbed the eggnog Natasha yanked the bottle out of your hands.

“It’s not bedtime yet”, she complained. “I don’t want to hang out alone”, she mumbled, knowing how quickly you clocked out under the influence. The way she had reached for the bottle had left her leaning closer to you and you could not resist glancing down at her lips. They were so perfectly rosy and plump with a slight sheen to them and you only broke off your staring when she dragged her lower lip between her teeth.

“I’m not gonna fall asleep”, you countered in defense, Natasha scoffing in disbelief.

“Yeah right.” She pressed her lips around the rim of the bottle, tilting her head back to take a gulp. You surged forward, Natasha’s impressive reflexes making her jolt away from you as you tried to reach the bottle.

“Natasha”, you whined crawling on top of her as she lay on the couch, still holding the bottle out of your reach. You straddled her abdomen, finally able to grab the bottle, but once you glanced down at Natasha you froze. You felt a horrible wave of arousal wash over you at the sight of the redhead under you, her breasts nearly spilling out from the low neckline of her top, an expression similar to yours on her face. You backed away immediately, scared of breaking your inexplicit boundaries that had never been discussed. Natasha’s reaction was along the same lines, her sights just as enticing as yours. You ended up flashing her a victorious smirk before settling back down on your spot on the couch, your mouth around the opening of the bottle. And just as Natasha had expected you fell asleep not even thirty minutes later.