4It's no problem, I said. I'll have it done in a week, I said.
LIES, LIES, LIES! ;A;
Anyway, this is a prize for the awesome Hendie, who correctly answered a question from my other story, Sorriso, mi Liebling. :3 She requested a Christmas SuFem!Fin story, and so a Christmas SuFem!Fin story is what she receives. XD I'm sorry it's short and kind of rushed.. I derped. . This has also not been beta'd, so please let me know if anything should be fixed. XD
Anyway, I hope you enjoy it, and have a Merry Christmas~! :3
Tija pulled the last box of Christmas decorations out of the closet with a satisfied grunt. She absentmindedly brushed the dust from her clothes, and then stooped down and hefted the big box into her arms to carry into the living room. She started to topple backwards, and she quickly threw one leg out to balance herself, stopping her fall.
"Caref'l," said a deep voice from behind her.
Shifting the box in her arms, Tija turned slightly to face her boyfriend, the tall, blond man. "Ah, Berwald!" She said happily, letting out a short puff of hair to unstick her bangs from her forehead. "Do you think you could help me with this box? It's a little…heavy."
Berwald, the strong, silent type, nodded and took the cardboard box from her, hefting it effortlessly into his arms. "Hn," he said. " 's a little early 'n the mornin' t' be dec'ratin', don'tcha think?" He carried the box down the narrow hallway and into the living room, where a small artificial Christmas tree stood.
"No, not at all! It's never too early to get to work, silly! Really, I should have had everything up weeks ago, but I guess the time just got away from me!" As Berwald set the heavy box on the floor beside the tree, she leaned against him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He glanced down at her, his lips twitching upward into a small smile. He put one hand on the small of her back, pulling her closer, and the other he tucked under her chin, tilting her head upward for a kiss.
After a moment, the two broke apart, and the small Finnish girl pulled gently away from him. "Well, I guess we'd better start decorating, huh?" she laughed, a high, tinkling sound that never failed to make Berwald's heart flutter. Tija opened up one of the boxes and pulled out a string of Christmas lights. They were old and tangled, the colored coating flaking off of a few of the bulbs. "Ber, do you think you could untangle these for me? I swear, every year I put them away just perfectly, and then at some point during the year mischievous little elves sneak in and tangle them all up again…"
He nodded and took the lights from her, getting to work on them while she continued unpacking the box. Garlands of tinsel, candy canes made of red and white beads, glass bulbs packed carefully in old newspaper. The lights went on first, the two of them laughing as they tangled them again, then the shining silver garlands. Tija hung the glass ornaments next, swatting her boyfriend's hand away when he tried to help. Berwald, she'd always said, may be great at designing beautiful furniture, but he was terrible at decorating a Christmas tree.
Instead, Berwald sat on the couch, carefully folding the newspapers and stacking them back inside the cardboard box as he watched his girlfriend flit around the tree. They'd been dating for two years now, and Tija was still so amazing to him. He never tired of her enthusiasm and energy, her kindheartedness and her passion for the things she loved. She was perfect to him, in every way, and he knew that, somehow, he was the same to her. He watched as she fumbled the last of the precious glass ornaments, catching it just in time and delicately hanging it on one of the wire branches. She turned to him with a wide grin. "Well?" she asked, pleased. "How does it look?"
It looked beautiful, of course—everything Tija did was beautiful and wonderful. She was beautiful and wonderful, and he desperately wanted to say all that and more, but… "It looks perfect," he said with a satisfied nod. She grinned at him, and he felt his heart beat just a bit faster.
She pulled the last item from the last box, unwinding the newspaper and cloths from it with care. Inside was a small silver angel, its color a bit tarnished with age, one of its wings bent at an odd angle from use. This was Tija's treasure, he knew. Crafted by her great-grandfather's own hands, and passed down through the generations. She looked up at him. "Will you put the angel on top this year, Berwald?" She handed it to him, as careful as she could be, and he nodded.
The top of the tree was just at the level of his head, and he easily set the angel atop it, glancing down at Tija to make sure it looked alright. At her nod of thanks, Berwald smiled again, sitting on the couch and pulling her into his lap.
"Ber!" she gasped, startled. Then she let out another laugh. "What are you doing? I'm not done decorating yet!"
"I know." He leaned in to press another kiss to her forehead. "But 've barely b'n able t' see ya th's week." It was true. Tija had spent much of December working at the mall as an elf in Santa's Workshop, and her hours, coupled with the time he spent in his own workshop, had left little time for the two to get together. It was Christmas Eve now, and the tall Swede was determined to spend the next two days constantly by her side.
She allowed him to hold her, leaning her head against his chest to listen to his heart. She could feel its beat, in tune with her own, and his soft breathing was so soothing. His arms wrapped tighter around her, holding her tighter, and she had never felt safer, never felt so comfortable. Berwald was strong, in more ways than one, and she knew that most people were afraid of him. Heck, she had been terrified of him for the first few weeks after she'd first met him! But it hadn't taken long for her to look past his outward appearance and see the man he was beneath that: sweet, kind, protective, loving. Tija knew that she didn't have much in this world, but she also knew that she had everything she needed, right here.
After a few minutes, Tija reluctantly pulled herself from his grasp. "I have to finish decorating," she apologized, "and get dinner started. Our families will be here soon."
He sighed. She was right, of course, but he was reluctant to let her go. He stood up with her, wrapping one arm around her waist, and walked with her into the kitchen. Again, she swatted him away when he tried to help; this time, because she was afraid he would mess up her traditional Finnish dinner. Not that it was very different from Christmas dinner in Sweden—ham, fish, and vegetables. The only big difference was the rutabaga salad she made, which he really wasn't too fond of.
And so they spent the morning preparing, decorating, and laughing, enjoying the holiday atmosphere and the warmth of each other's company. Surprisingly, they were finished before anyone had begun to arrive. Berwald pulled Tija down on the couch beside him, drawing her into his embrace again. She smiled at him, her pale hair framing her fair skin, and Berwald felt something in his chest tighten. Leaning in, he bent closer to kiss her lips, his fingers brushing her hair, and then he—
"Hey, Sis!" An obnoxiously loud voice came from out on the porch, and Berwald let her go with a chuckle and a sigh. The family was here.
He watched as she answered the door, squealing and throwing her arms around her older brother's neck. Again, he smiled that rare smile, his fingers closing around the small, velvet box in his pocket.
He would have to wait just a bit longer.
Again, sorry for how rushed it seems...but I hope you enjoyed it! :3 Reviews make me HAPPY! 8D
Merry Christmas, Hendie. Sorry it's so late. ;A; And crappy. XD