Who: Leo D'Amato & Veronica Mars What: Christmas When: I SAID CHRISTMAS Where: Veronica's apartment Warning: Nah Status: Completed gdoc
Christmas morning. They were doing gifts at her apartment, of course. Leo tried his best to get up and out to the kitchen without waking Veronica. He knew that probably didn’t happen, but he hoped she’d take the hint and stay in bed. He wanted to make breakfast for them, and had brought everything with him the night before. And he wanted it to be a surprise.
An hour later, a full pot of really good coffee was made, pancakes with green and red sprinkles were waiting along with bacon and eggs just the way Veronica liked them all in the oven to stay warm. Wearing his special Christmas pajamas, Leo went to the bedroom with two glasses of mimosa to wake Sleeping Beauty.
“Merry Christmas,” he said as he got into the bedroom.
Veronica had woken up briefly when Leo got out of bed, but she assumed he was going to the bathroom and would be right back, so she rolled over, snuggled further under the blankets, and fell back to sleep without realizing that he hadn’t actually returned. So when she heard the bedroom door open, she blinked up with confusion, the haze of sleep making it difficult for her to figure out exactly what was going on.
When she finally realized what he wearing, she laughed and sat up in bed, trying to tame her hair with one hand. “Good morning,” she said.
He thought she’d get a kick out of his Christmas pajamas so he grinned as she laughed. “I like it when you’re all rumpled,” he said as he sat down on the edge of the bed closest to her. “Here. A nice pick me up before coffee.”
He’d gone easy on the champagne in the mimosas. Just enough to give the orange juice some bubbles and a little kick.
Since her mouth still felt all fuzzy from sleep, Veronica gratefully accepted the glass and sipped it carefully to avoid the bubbles going up her nose. “I feel so special,” she said. “Do I get cute festive jammies too?”
She probably had some in a drawer somewhere, but finding them would require effort.
“I didn’t assume you wanted to look as goofy as me so no. Sadly.” Leo chuckled before he took a sip. He might have had one as he made breakfast. “I even saw some elf ones that would have looked adorable on you.” And yes, he would have taken pictures.
“Whenever you’re ready for breakfast it’s all made and waiting.” Then he smirked. “There’s even some Bailey’s if you want to add some flavor.
“Are you trying to get me drunk so you can take advantage of me, sir?” Veronica teased, slipping out from under the covers and going to her dresser so she could put on some comfy clothes. Nothing was particularly festive, but she ended up going with a pair of black leggings and a green t-shirt. Close enough.
She also took a moment to run a brush through her hair so it didn’t look like a rat’s nest anymore. “No breakfast in bed, huh?”
Leo took the time to sip his mimosa while she got dressed. He would always appreciate that view. “I want to hear you sing drunken Christmas songs.” He’d even join in.
“It’s Christmas morning!” He made himself sound like a little boy. “Santa came! There’s presents under the tree!”
The enthusiasm was infectious and Veronica grinned, taking another drink of her mimosa as she followed him out of the bedroom. “Presents, huh? I guess I was better than I thought I was this year.” It had been rough, but she was through the worst of it, she thought. Largely thanks to Leo.
Luckily, she’d already put her gifts for him under the tree.
Leo caught her around the waist, pulled her in close as he gave a naughty sounding chuckle. “Oh, you’ve been very good.” He grinned at her before he leaned down to claim a quick kiss. “Very, very good. So good I might have to add something about you on the mens room wall at work.” He’d let her figure out if he was joking or not as he escaped for the kitchen.
“Do you want presents or breakfast first?”
“Can we eat while we do presents?” she asked. That way she didn’t have to decide. Normally she didn’t eat as soon as she woke up, but she could smell the food he’d made and it smelled really good.
She was also looking forward to seeing his reaction to the gifts she’d gotten him and didn’t want to wait.
“Do you really want to deal with syrup and greasy bacon around the presents?” Besides, he thought it would be fun for her to have to wait to find out what was in the many boxes he had under the tree with her name on them.
He poured a big mug of coffee for her then himself.
Veronica rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine. Food first. It smells really good and I don’t feel like letting it sit.” There were certainly far worse ways to wake up on Christmas morning than to a delicious breakfast, coffee, and mimosas. As much as she wanted to do presents, Veronica was an adult and she could wait.
“Thank you for doing this,” she said.
“You’re welcome,” he said with a fond smile as he handed her a cup of coffee. Then he turned to put together a plate for her. “Did I tell you I walked in on Jessica boning Sherlock?” This was another reason why he didn’t want to eat while opening their presents. This news was guaranteed to cause a mess. He’s expecting Veronica to kill him after she’s done choking on her coffee.
The thought of killing him absolutely crossed her mind as she choked on her coffee, grateful that it was hot enough she’d only taken a small sip. “WHAT?” she demanded. “When? Where? What the fuck?”
Veronica hadn’t noticed anything weird at the party the previous night. Was she losing her touch as a detective? Then again, she and Gunn had managed to keep their thing from Angel longer than they should have considering his skills as a detective and the whole vampire senses thing.
Leo laughed as he handed her a plate with sprinkle pancakes, bacon and eggs. “Last night. At the office. And they were fucking. I forgot my keys so I went back for them. And they’re still there so you’re stuck with me until Monday.”
He grinned as he turned around to get himself a plate so they could eat together. “Sherlock’s pasty ass is something I never wanted to see.”
“Holy shit,” Veronica said. That was a pair she’d never have imagined in a million years. It wasn’t something she’d ever want to see either though and she couldn’t blame him one bit for not actually getting his keys.
In almost seven years, she had seen a hell of a lot of weird shit. Sherlock Holmes and Jessica Jones hooking up might be weirdest.
Leo laughed for Veronica’s reaction. It hadn’t been that funny at the time, but he had to admit that he’d laugh if it hadn’t been him. “Yeah well I’m going to order a thorough cleaning of the entire office before we go back.”
He sat down with her to eat. Quickly. He wanted his presents! “Now the question is: Will they become a thing or just a thing with benefits?”
Considering some of the things Veronica had done in that office over the years, she really couldn’t complain much about that part of it, though she nodded her agreement when he said he was going to have it thoroughly cleaned.
“I think the real question is, which of them will snap first and kill the other?” she said.
Leo shrugged. “It would only lead to either angry or makeup sex.” He got a mental picture of Sherlock pegging Jessica, choked on his eggs then had to chug the mimosa to clear his airway.
“Yeah, ok no more talk about Jesslock.” He coughed some more. “Hurry up so we can open presents!” He knew he was probably going to get yelled at for that since sitting in here for breakfast was his idea.
Veronica raised her eyebrows at him. “You’re the one that insisted we eat out here,” she reminded him. “And if you wanted me to eat fast, you shouldn’t have made it taste so good. I want to savor it.”
Slowly and methodically, she cut an exceptionally tiny bite of pancake, lifting the fork to her mouth with great deliberation.
Leo chuckled then mimicked her with a bite of his own. He made it over the top sexy to make her laugh, took a drink of coffee then decided to poke her greedy button.
“You’re gonna LOVE your presents.” He grinned at her. “I mean LOVE them.”
There was that L word again.
The word made her wince, though she hoped it wasn’t noticeable. “You are worse than a child,” she teased though she resumed eating at a normal pace. It didn’t take too long for her to finish and then she got up to refill her coffee mug.
“Okay, okay, let’s go,” she said.
Oh, he noticed. He’d noticed how quiet she’d go whenever he told her he loved her. Leo may act like a dopey golden retriever, but you didn’t get into the FBI by being stupid and unobservant. He was sorry she was uncomfortable, and he didn’t say the L word as often as he’d like, but he wasn’t going to lie about his feelings, either.
“Oh boy!” he cheered to continue the childishness. This also included abandoning all of the food and dishes (with the exception of the coffee) for later.
Veronica had a stack of presents which actually all made up one. Leo put the whole stack in front of her. “Merry Christmas.”
Veronica’s gifts for Leo weren’tquite</a> as thematic, though she’d tried to pick things she thought he would both get use of and appreciate. She set his stack in front of him and then began opening her own presents.
“Oh, wow, Leo,” she said, eyes getting wide as she realized what he’d gotten her. “This is incredible.” And it was way too much.
He had saved up money, and he knew she’d use it to death. It was a worthwhile investment, in his opinion...and it wasn’t a ring. Ahem.
“Oh my god you’re feeding my football addiction!” Leo laughed but the watch was amazing. “This is gorgeous. Thank you!”
“There’s also a six pack of that expensive beer you like stashed in my crisper drawer under the spinach,” Veronica said. She figured that was a safe place to hide it from him and keep it cold.
She started opening boxes so she could assemble her new toy. “And you’re feeding my work addiction.” Not that their cases often called for photography at this level. It had been a long time since she indulged that particular hobby though.
“Look,” he said with amusement as he got up to go find the beer. “I learned a long time ago that trying to derail you from what you love to do is a waste of time.” If her dad couldn’t stop her, no one could. Not that Leo really wanted to. She lit up whenever she had a job.
He came back with his beer then sat down next to her before he leaned over to kiss her cheek. “Love you. And stop being so touchy about that. I’m fine. You’re fine. It’s all fine.”
The last thing she’d been expecting was to be called out and Veronica had the decency to look sheepish. “I’m sorry,” she said. “It’s not that I don’t… you know… have those particular feelings. It’s just... “ After having two husbands taken from her in such cruel ways, it was difficult for her to actually express those feelings.
Hopefully, Leo could understand that.
“Veronica,” he caught her face gently between his two hands. “Don’t be sorry. I know how you feel. You show me every time you look at me. Every time we make love.” He couldn’t help the smirk. “Every blow job.” He grinned as he flinched from getting hit, laughed but went serious again.
“I mean it. You do you.” This time he leaned in for a softer, longer kiss. “I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.”
Veronica did hit him, weakly, in the shoulder, but after the kiss, she leaned against him. “I don’t deserve you,” she said. “But I’m glad you’re here.” There was always a chance the dome would take him away, though she tried not to think about that too much. Even if it did, she would see him when she eventually went home. And who knew, maybe they would eventually develop a relationship like this back in Neptune. Anything was possible.
“So what do you want to do the rest of the day?” she asked. “I need to drop gifts off for a few people. Did you want to stop by the brunch? Or just hang out?”
He booped her nose with his then pulled her in with an arm around her. “I’m glad I’m here too.” He wouldn’t ask for anything more than this. This was kinda cool, and he could live like this forever.
“Brunch would be good,” he said. “The game doesn’t start until 4:30.” Again, he waited to get thumped.
It was a holiday and Veronica didn’t care if he wanted to spend part of it watching football. “Okay,” she said. “I mean, it’s unlikely I’ll eat anything there, but I figured it would be good to stop by and socialize.” She also had gifts to drop off at Kristof’s for the kids, the only ones still left under the tree.
Aside from them, her coworkers, and Sonya & Cassie, she didn’t really have anyone else left in town that she needed to buy for. “I guess I should get a shower.”
Here would be another punching moment.
“Oh my god, please?” He tensed for it. “And for god’s sake brush your teeth.”
“I’m starting to think you’re the masochist in this relationship,” Veronica said, slugging his shoulder in response to his jokes.