Work Text:
Today was going to be one of the few Christmas’ where Eddie wouldn’t be alone and lonely. Not with his lover currently curled around his neck, purring loud enough that it made his throat tickle. He chuckled as Venom butted against his chin, happily pressing a kiss to the top of the inky head. Eddie’s blush erupted along his cheeks as Anne giggled behind her hand, Dan grinning at the odd couple.
After the beginning of this whole fiasco two years ago, the two had become pillars for the bonded pair. Between the medical anomalies and multiple lawsuits to be made against the Life Foundation, Venom and Eddie had been completely indebted to the couple.
Even so, they had become something of a family. With Anne struggling to bear children and Dan being overworked to the point of exhaustion, they appreciated the strange pair coming by and taking their minds off troubles. Venom was especially good at this by embarrassing their host. “More, we want more!” Such as now, with Venom demanding affection from a flustered Eddie. “Easy, love. We should get to the presents,” he stated, quick to distract Venom. Anne smiled, adjusting the plastic crown plastered to her forehead. “We do have a few presents to get through,” Dan mused, glancing at the mixture of red, yellow and purple wrapping. With Eddie having started his career again, the money that had gathered was a sizeable enough to afford him the apartment they all sat in and something substantial to show his appreciation for them.
“Why don’t you hand them out, dear?” Eddie suggested, the white sickles of his other half narrowing as a thin grin lined with teeth spread across the blob. The thrum that fell over their bond spread to his back, warming him as the symbiote spread itself from Eddie’s neck to his calf. Their eyes were careful in deciphering the lettering, a disproportionate hand manifesting to curl about the boxes and pass them around. They placed aside their own gifts, head bobbing furiously when they found one with their name on it. It never failed to bring beams to the three humans. Once they were done, they curled about their pile, occasionally snatching a chocolate ball from a bowl next to Eddie’s leg, which they also occasionally nuzzled. Dan placed his red wine on the coffee table, grabbing for the largest present on his pile.
“Let’s start!”
They all took turns. Anne went first, neatly plucking apart the wrapping. She was thrilled when it revealed a pampering kit, Venom’s grin wide while they shared a knowing glance with Eddie. “We know you two have been stressed, and while it’s- ya know, cliche and a bit girly , we thought you may like that with the past few months,” he explained, the symbiote curling a tendril around Anne’s calf and giving a squeeze. She patted the black ooze, stroking along the tendons to assure the alien. “We’ll just have to set aside a pampering day, huh Dan?” She grinned, nudging her husband who placed a kiss on her cheek. “As long as you don’t take embarrassing photos, I’d love to,” he replied, looking down at the gift in his hand.
He opened the present with the delicacy of an operation. His brows furrowed as he found himself with bare cardboard. Hesitantly, he pulled the flaps back. His eyes widened in surprise as he stared into the box sitting on his lap, glancing to Anne with shock. The next moment there were tears in his eyes and he was sobbing, alarming Venom to the point where they had spread themselves thin trying to grapple the other into a hug. “Holy shit, oh my god, oh my god ,” Dan just kept repeating, Anne’s painfully wide smile being the only thing keeping Eddie from panicking himself. “Wait, what are we missing?” Eddie asked, leaning forward to grab the box, staring into the container. Venom pulled back as Annie wrapped her arms around Dan, Venom coming over to peek at the present.
“What’s that Eddie? That’s just a weird blue stick…” the symbiote paused as it felt a cascade of emotions from its bond. The host looked up, a hand clapped over his mouth. The flare of pure excitement and shock was enough to rock Venom.
“Is this a human thing? Can someone explain-!”
“Holy fuck, you’re pregnant… their gonna have a kid,” Eddie breathed, all that elation now sinking into Venom. They trilled, an odd sound they had adopted to express these sorts of unending happiness. “You are having spawn? Congratulations!” Venom crowded, yanking Eddie closer to pile in on the cuddle. The black embraced the three of them, continuous purring enveloping them while tears in gathered and fell from their eyes. The moment was ruined when the symbiote’s tongue slipped out to flick against the humans’ skin. They chuckled, Eddie the one to push back to onslaught of laps and kisses, giving up his hand to be lathered in saliva. Venom condensed back into their “noodle form,” the nickname given by Eddie. “I got confirmation by my GP 2 weeks ago and I decided to plan the surprise for today,” Anne stated, resting her head on Dan’s shoulder. Their cheeks were ruddy with tears and Dan was struggling to keep his composure, but the couple never shone brighter.
“ That’s why you didn’t want the wine!” Eddie exclaimed, the realisation coming a bit late. “This… it’s fantastic news! You have to keep us updated, Annie” Eddie said, toying with an envelope in his hands. She nodded enthusiastically, taking sips of her glass of water. “Now that that’s done, open one of yours!” She insisted, righting herself and squeezing closer to Dan.
Eddie smiled and tore open the envelope with the delicacy of a hawk eating a mouse. The man’s smile was accompanied by raised eyebrows as he read a paper in his hands, Venom dissolving to quickly see through his host’s eyes. The pair were close to vibrating when the words became clear to Venom. Eddie was laughing as the alien appeared to crawl over to Dan and drag their tongue up the side of his face. The burst of eagerness from the symbiote was popped between Eddie’s mind’s teeth, savouring the sweet reaction. “You have made one happy symbiote,” he chuckled, admiring the invitation to the three week chocolatier course. “Glad to help,” the doctor weakly responded, still recovering from the news and from Venom’s crowding, tendrils rooting the other in place. “Dan is forever in our debt. Now we can make treats whenever we want,” they crooned, returning to Eddie’s side to press and smear their tongue against their host’s face, making a point to run over his lips. The ferocious red that bloomed across his face was well worth the flush of embarrassment across their bond. Anne snickered, sending a wink Venom’s way which was easily returned.
“Time for one of yours, dear,” Eddie mused, nudging the bobbing head in the direction of their presents. They thrummed, childish excitement bubbling to the surface. While the others were quick to choose, the symbiote took a great deal of time. The reason for this was their host’s interesting cocktail of emotions. It kept straying from relief to terror as Venom hovered over their presents and brought each one to it’s gaze. Finally, it picked what it determined to be what was causing its host’s distress. Eddie couldn’t seem to decide whether to freeze up or to fidget violently. The symbiote viciously tore off the paper, wishing to get to the bottom of the odd undercurrents that had been vibrating under Eddie’s skin since Dan and Anne had arrived.
Venom frowned at the square box, tipping it this way and that. Anne and Dan had already whipped out the camera, prepared for this moment. The symbiote jabbed against the clasp, tilting its head curiously at what was revealed. The gleam of an emerald reflected against the onyx ring made Venom go still. For the first time in a long time, the symbiote was speechless as their gaze whipped to their nervous host.
The many rom-coms and television series gave Venom enough context to assume, that maybe , possibly , their host- their love was actually-
“Well, uh, guess this is where I get on one knee, huh?” Eddie stuttered, doing his best to keep that smooth persona as he slid off the couch and onto the floor. Venom stared on, their eyes growing an inch wider with every passing second. Their host’s fingers brushed over their tendrils holding the velvet box, his smile anxious but still gorgeous all the same. “Venom, darling, would you- would you do the honour of marrying m-“ Being tackled by that ink that he craved easily cut off Eddie’s breath. But what cut off his train of thought was the velvet muscle shoving its way down his throat and the massive hands that scrambled at his jaw, cradling it in a grip that could crush the bone if it wanted to. For a moment, Eddie completely lost himself. They were shoved deeply into their connection, their individual wandering to a collective, both eating off of the other’s sudden pleasure. Luckily, Eddie realised himself when Dan nearly spat out his wine onto the carpet. The host gave a shove against Venom’s chest, not taking the time to try right his button down as the symbiote retracted, a bit reluctantly.
“So… is that a-“
Yes, yes,
“Yes!” Venom screeched, their voice an octave higher in the thrill and elation.
Eddie couldn’t help the bubble of laughter, grinning as Venom pressed their forehead to his own. In the midst of their raunchy kiss, the symbiote had almost fully manifested themselves, easily dwarfing their host. The humming was so loud that their form rippled. Anne and Dan cracked up as Venom smothered Eddie, burying their face into their host’s neck and seemingly hiding the journalist from the couple, snatching up the ring from its box to delicately slide it onto one of Eddie’s fingers.
You will never, ever , be lonely or alone again- not during Christmas, not during Easter- never.
And Eddie couldn’t be happier with that prospect and this year’s Christmas.