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"Is there anything you left in there?"
Legolas shrieked for a second, his gaze flying back to the house in the distance. He'd never get how anyone would live so remote from any civilization and felt even more pity for all the sixteen year old delivery guys who only needed to get their pocket money a raise and not the horror experience of their live. Tho, he knew his father well and after all the stuff going on in the past years, maybe this was just what he needed. The blond couldn't quite relate. He enjoyed not driving an hour to get to the next corner store with how much he hated driving anyway and also hated the irony cold of the forests surrounding. Nature had something beautiful, but he really did not have it in himself to let the woods consume him this way
"Well",He began, trying everything to balance the cake platform on his left hand and not drop it to slide his right hand into the pocket of his coat,"I only really need my keys and my phone"
"You don't gift each other stuff for Christmas?",Thranduil replied with an arrogant chuckle,"You all seem like the type to"
"What kind of gift would you get Éowyn for Christmas? I asked myself exactly that question and had to find out I did not know shit about what she'd like",He awaited his father's reaction and joined in his laughter upon him beginning. For as long as Legolas still stood in the icy snow in front of his house in woods on the edge of town, he let out a grin,"Will he be there too?"
"Ada",Legolas replied, a sigh escaping his lips,"He is non of your business. Ans neither is he my business. We're done. And it's the best for both of us"
"And if you don't do anything about it, he will soon be some other guys business, you're right",He nodded. Legolas shook his head at the reaction,"No. And even if this should be the case",A shriek of his shoulders followed,"We're just friends. Just friends. I- I mean, I'd be happy if he brought someone around sometimes, you know since even Tauriel seems to stay by Kiki's side, I'll be glad to know he has a girlfriend or a boyfriend or anyone really. Some people can actually be happy for someone else, even if they are your ex, you know? Strange concept"
"Give yourself a push, hun",Thranduil groaned,"The worst happening is him saying no. Then you'll break up again and finally know if you two belong to each other. You've been pining for each other since high school, I'll start to charge rent if this doesn't end soon. Okay, I know this took a shitty end, but if you two gave it another try...",He proceeded to count,"He's a lawyer, looks good as hell, is so into you, I bet he's single and he's pushing-"
"You know what, I have a Christmas Party to attend",Legolas answered, shaking his head with a smile,"I won't engage further in you trying to set me up. With me ex!"
"I'll rather set you up than to have you sabotage yourself again and again"
Legolas took a mental note of being more careful how he laid his phone down onto the dining table when his father was around. For the future. Thranduil watched him for another second before sighing,"You're sure you don't want me to come with you? The streets are frozen and I really can't have you in the hospital"
"Ada",Legolas spoke again,"It's really not that bad, I mean I've somehow came here so I'll be fine leaving again. You don't have to worry. I'm a shitty driver, yes, but I've never had any complications before. My car lives on"
"An honest surprise",His father mumbled under his icy breath, the air turning white upon him speaking,"Is there some kind of trick this thing is still going?",He pointed over to the red car in the driveway. Legolas was unsure himself how it was still running, tho he appreciated not taking the metro every morning - It was enough off a stress to get up in the morning but to have a car that actually worked and was reliable felt like heaven
It was his first ever car, the one his mother had left him before she passed away but by the time he turned sixteen and earned himself his driver's license, it had collected dust for a few years already. Tho, he wouldn't ever trade it for any other car in the world,"Careful driving. That's the spirit"
"Alright...",He sighed once more, a soft smile towards his son,"You're careful. And if anything happens, you call, I won't leave to anywhere today. The connection on the road is a little clumsy, take a break on the gas station if you need to"
"Thanks, Ada. I'll take care of it",He ultimately put the cake down, carefully settling it onto the car's bonnet. Thranduil took a few steps down his veranda, barely wearing any clothes made for this weather. They were both to comfortable at home. He took his son in for another hug, which Legolas answered by himself. Sometimes Thranduil missed those days, back when his son wasn't as tall as he himself and still needed his help to reach the upper cupboard. It hurt more and more everytime he saw him
As he let off, his cold fingers wrapped around Legolas' cheeks, raised his chin and sat down a gentle kiss onto his forehead,"Thanks for coming",A few strands fell back into place like dominoes after his gentle fingers sorted them,"You're already getting cold, hun"
"Always",He replied,"Take care!",And with that, he waved off, fumbling the keys to his car. Legolas closed the door behind him, barely noticing the cake which still laid on his bonnet and nearly made the mistake of pulling out of the driveway, tho did he get it before ultimately leaving the driveway. The cake sat on his side, one he had spend hours on and he'd do anything to deliver it in one piece to Arwen's place downtown
It was a three hour drive from where his father had moved to and tho Thranduil enjoyed his position, it didn't allow Legolas to visit him all that often. He called weekly, but hearing his voice through his telephone was something else than seeing his face and actually having him in front of him and it wasn't as if Legolas wouldn't come visit him everyday, but his job barely allowed him to spend somewhat ten hours on the road
He just felt sorry, as his father did not have anyone else besides him. Legolas' grandfather never bothered to keep in touch. Everything ever confirming his existence were the cards in the mail for birthday and Christmas and one every year on his mother's death anniversary - They all looked the same. But when they stopped coming after a few years, it was ultimately done for everyone included
Legolas had his few close friends from Uni or the few ones that stayed from high school. He was sure, the day of his graduation would mean to lose contact anyway, but most of them returned to Rivendell sooner or later anyway and today, after all the exams and apartment viewings, he still celebrated with the same people he used to get drunk with in high school. The alcohol had taken off and surely but slowly, they all grew older - Not old enough to marry yet or have children of their own, but Legolas was sure it would take three years at most before one of his friends would send out invitations to a marriage. And even if these people had known him since ever, some of his feelings had never changed
It was fun like this after all. Work killed them off every once in a while, so it was hard to actually see each other that often, but they always made it for Christmas and Birthdays - And that made it worth driving the three hours through forest road where no one ever drove. Why would anyone? It lead to nowhere and for the next two and a half hour, Legolas would see nothing at all
That will be so much fun he thought
_______________________________________
The ladder shook beneath her feet as Arwen carefully took her steps down once more. She had never been very clumsy, that girl knew how to climb her ladder right, tho was she scared of falling and cracking her head onto the floor tiles. When she met the floor beneath her feet again, Arwen took a few steps backwards, admiring the beautiful Lametta which now coated her ceiling beams
She remembered her brothers being sceptical about this house. It was old, had cracks and everything seemed to break down any minute - But Arwen fell head over heels in love with the former mansion from her first visit on and even if this was not what her parents meant when they said they'd buy her any apartment in the world as long as she loved it, it was just what the little girl in her needed
And these ugly ceiling beams now looked incredible. What a little decoration couldn't do
She only moved in a year ago, that was a fair point but unlike most of her friends, she had already unpacked all her stuff and grown used to it. But recently moving in did not take her out of the tradition - It was Christmas and this year, her turn to hold the celebration, so she had bought a shopping cart full of decoration and planned everything from top to bottom
Arwen knew her hours like a school timetable. After another hour spend on decorations, she'd begin the cooking and somewhere around five her friends should arrive. There was nothing that could wrong
The cardboard box filled with decoration was still a little strange to her. Besides the one she had bought recently, Aragorn had left all his decoration at her place. He seemed to have been sure she did not own stuff like this as every decoration she ever showed were carpets and table decor like orchids or lilys - She indeedwas a wine Mom with her gentle twenty-six years
As she turned around from where the Lametta covered one of the seemingly million beams around her house, the rest of her dining room seemed to be done so far. Christmas was the one time every year where she felt like something was different. Everything suddenly seemed to be much happier than usual, colorful and bright and all the people had so much more of a heart than usually. Arwen could not quite name it but giving back something to all those people he loved so much was a wonderful thing and she wished for it be more usual. Why did society think it's strange for her to gift her loved ones stuff on every other day but Christmas and their birthdays?
After she went on to the kitchen and decided for setting up the stove already, Arwen realized she was missing a whole lot of stuff for her dessert. The fridge was wide upon in front of her, nothing missing except for the milk. Well, mince pies without milk was hard to do. Her decision fell upon doing everything else first and not to leave the house. Aragorn was supposed to help her cook in somewhat half an hour anyway, she would just send him out to buy some. The shop around the corner must still be open, there was no other change actually
It was just half past three when she heard the door ring. Arwen was confused, Aragorn was allegedly an hour early. Still did she get the door, careful steps across her carpet and swinging the door open with a smile,"Estel",She already began, confusion spreading across her face when it was indeed not Aragorn on her doorstep
"Wow, Arwen. It's been a while but I certainly do not look as good as he does"
Before her stood Eowyn, one of the few girl friends she still had. The blonde stood in her doorway like a sunshin, blond locks above her shoulders flowing like a rivulet, faling into place with the wind. The white coat seemed prominent but made her face look a little paler than usual - Eventually done by the smile on her face,"Eowyn!",She exclamied. Arwen was about to throw herself into the blonde's arms when she noticed the large pot between her fingers,"You're early"
Her face filled with sorrow,"I am? Didn't we say we'd meet up by four? And I even made sure I'll be early this time"
Oh Arwen knew. Eowyn had never been on time. Back in school, she used to come late at least once a week and nothing seemed to help. She could get up an hour earlier and still be ten minutes late. Her friends grew used to Eowyn never being on time anyways so it wasn't a big deal. Usually at least because this was not Faramir's apartment in Minas Tirith or Aragorn's house in Rivendell but Arwen's and there were just a few things she loved more than her time tables. To-Do lists, plans, time tables and routines. She was sure of going lunatic if she could not hold those in but whenever something should happen she could not quite change, Arwen just listened to her therapist's say
Well, she rather had Eowyn come early than late so she inhaled deeply before speaking once more,"Oh well. It happens you know",Arwen shrugged her shoulders,"I'm just not fully done yet, so you'll need to wait a bit but that's-"
"Not a problem",She answered with a smile,"I'll help you set everything up"
Even with how much Arwen persisted on her timing, was she strangely amused to have Eowyn with her before anyone else would arrive.
_____________________________________
The road seemed almost endless, countless trees on the side. Everything still keeping Legolas sane was the radio playing christmas songs over and over again. It did not seem to have any curfews, only straightforward, cold and empty road. For the last one and a half hour he drove, two cars had passed by and nothing seemed to change, tho it was a little relaxing. He was used to the city where the roads were full and busy and not this incredibly relaxing and calming-
Before Legolas knew the road wasn't that calm at all. From the right side a shadow jumped over the street railing, hopping across the street onto his lane. He was quick to react, full brakes and in a second his car stood still on the road. Legolas watched the deer pass by, eyes blown wide in shock and after it had crossed the road, the blond sat there, driving home for christmas on the radio and nothing more than his own breath. He had barely ran over a deer and he was yet to realize how that even happened
For a few minutes, he just stood there in the middle of the road and stared at right where the deer had passed. And as he was about to turn his key again, his eyes flew over to where the cake had smashed directly into the console,"Fuck",He sighed. Cake. Deer. Two hour drive
"Alright... Get yourself together",Another sigh as he turned the keys. It was usual that his car did not start on the first try but it usually did by the second time. After a third and fourth attempt, nothing happened. The motor did not roar, the brakes didn't seem to block and the light did not seem to turn on either. Did his car just die in the middle of nowhere?
Legolas let out a sigh, tightening his scarf before leaving his car on the right side. He took careful steps on the icy road, opening his bonnet with a lift and sighing. To be fair, he barely remembered anything from the lessons that he went to when doing his driver's license as when being sixteen, most things were much more important than what your car needed to survive on an empty woodland road
Christmas really couldn't get any worse with this
After a few minutes of desperately searching for anything that would give him an answer, Legolas just decided to call his father. He was the closest to his location right now anyway and eventually he knew the number for the towing service or just anyone who knew how he would get to Arwen's house in the next few hours
To his dismay, only the mailbox answered his call and the second option came into view. As the beeping sound stopped, a soft voice came from the other side,"Hello there",A chuckle followed,"How are you?"
"God, Tauriel",He sighed in relief,"I'm so glad you picked up",Legolas pulled his coat tighter as it grew colder each minute. It was as if he could see her sit back up straight through the phone
"Are you okay?",Worry spread through her,"Do you need me to call someone?"
"I-",He began, turning around to his car,"I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere. There was this deer and I fully hit the brakes because I did not want to run over a deer on Christmas evening. I'm a vegetarian already, what does it take? And then I just stood there and when I wanted to keep driving my car didn't work and now I'm here, an hour away from Arwen's place and my cake is ruined and it's cold as hell"
"Oh god",She spoke,"That sounds horrible!"
"You don't know how to fix a car by any chance, do you?",He sighed, pinching his nose bridge,"I don't think the towing service will drive all the way to nowhere just to pick this old thing up!"
"Okay, you know what?",She answered, fully closing her nail polish glas and falling back into her chair,"I don't but I know someone who might. I'll have a call and by an hour latest, you'll have someone to fix your car, yes?"
"You're an angel, Tauriel",Legolas spoke with a relief,"I just need to get away from this place somehow"
"Don't worry about it. Arwen will be fine if you come just a few minutes later, but you do still have two hours left to arrive at her place, so don't worry"
"I love you, you're the best"
"Thank you",She remarked,"I love you too. See you later",Tauriel hung of the phone, laying it down onto her table before taking a moment. They always stayed in touch, from all the many friends she had, was Legolas the one she saw the most, going as far as sharing lunch every Sunday as they lived so close to each other
And she also knew a lot of people besides him. So Tauriel, in the sake of her best friend, gave it a long thought before calling the one she knew would help him - In some way at least
Legolas sat in his car for another hour, researching for every cause of a cars breakdown ever and watching every tutorial ever uploaded to YouTube. He found out a few very interesting things about it. Upon opening his compartment out of pure curiosity, he found a ton of old CDs his mother has left in there. He never had a look before, so he decided to listen to a few of them before the first car drove up behind him
He was sure it would pass by but when reading the license plate, Legolas cursed Tauriel under his own breath. Why him? She could have called everyone but why him? After a very deep and calming breath, he got out of his car, watching the other park right in front of his and from the driver's seat, Aragorn appeared in front of him
"Hey",Legolas waved, deciding he'd be better off going the first step anyways. Well, not as if he ever wanted to because if he could, he'd sink into the ground and never arrive at Arwen's party or anywhere ever again rather than being in this situation
"Hi",Came the answer with a bright smile. Aragorn came closer, a few awkward steps before he stood in front of Legolas and next to his car,"It's been a while, what?"
"Yes",The elf replied,"Works been... Hard"
"What you don't say",Aragorn chuckled,"Everyone seems to be stealing stuff since it's Christmas time you know? But I get paid, so I don't mind"
"You do?",Legolas answered, this dumb idiotic smile on his lips he never seemed to noticed. Not until the other tilted his head at least,"It's my job... Yes, I do"
Dear god,"Uhm so-",He decided to get over with this as soon as possible,"I hit the brakes because there was this deer and my cake and- Okay, long story short, the motor won't work anymore"
"Did you check your front?",Aragorn took a few steps forward where he opened the front deck once more, Legolas watching him with a smile,"Well, yes but I don't know anything about cars, so I just checked if anything was on fire or broken"
He did not get a reply, instead, Aragorn bowed forwards and had a closer look,"Wasn't your boyfriend the one who knew so much about cars? Why did you not call him?",He stood back up straight, his eyes meeting Legolas' again, where he stood there on the side of the road,"What was his name again?"
"Oh, we're not- We broke up half a year ago",Legolas nodded,"Yeah no, just didn't work, that's all. Elves are divas you know?"
"He didn't deserve you anyway",He answered, shrugging his shoulders and leaning against Legolas' car,"You know he was an asshole, right?"
"He was...",Legolas stared down his own shoes,"You know, we just didn't work out. It wasn't his fault, I carry my part too. I just didn't assume it would go that way. Still, elves are divas"
Aragorn chuckled,"Yeah they are. Your father's one"
"He was the one that didn't pick up his phone. All that for call me if anything happens I'm not leaving my home today",The imitation of his father's voice was received well
"You really are a great impersonater when it's about your own father"
"It's my best work so far",He nodded proudly. A moment of silence broke between them. Legolas formed a thought, one he knew he shouldn't speak but yet did his heart decide against his head,"You're with somebody at the moment?",Aragorn stared. Legolas tried to make it better by adding to his speech,"This- This girl you brought on Faramir's birthday. You're still together?"
"Nah",He replied, waving off,"She's just... I don't know, we had different expectations off this relationship. She wanted to get marry and have children after half a year and I just wanted to have a good time with my girlfriend. Not my wife, with my girlfriend. I'm not ready to get married I guess"
"What you don't say",Legolas replied with a laughter,"It's exactly what I went through with my ex and it was so- Oh my god can't everyone just chill a bit"
"I mean",Aragorn shrugged,"We're pushing thrity. But that doesn't mean I need to be a father when I do turn thirty"
"Would you want to have children?"
The question lingered between them for another while,"Oh well. I- With the right person, yes. Definitely, yes. With someone who got my back then, I can't raise a child all by myself",Then he nodded towards Legolas,"How about you?"
"Babies are cute... And I feel like if I marry someone I really love, I can also raise a child with them"
Legolas held his breath. Aragorn did not seem to look away from where he met his eyes through the entire road, a smile spreading upon the elf's features. The man was first to pull away and stare down the car's componentes,"I uhm...",He began then. Legolas heard him audibly inhale before turning back to face the elf,"Your battery. Your battery died"
"My battery died?",Legolas replied in confusion. Aragorn shrugged,"Yeah, I guess. But let me try it once more",He opened the driver's door, settling down onto the seat where Legolas let himself down onto his side. He worriedly watched Aragorn try and turn the key once more. And again. And again. And again
"But that wasn't your brakes fault. Batteries die regularly, that's not an issue"
The elf replied, mumbling to himself before speaking again,"My battery died. Alright. What can I do...?"
"Nothing at all",Aragorn shook his head,"I'll...",He began, taking out his phone already,"Call someone to tow this thing to the next gas station. And you and me will drive to Arwen's place. She'll kill if I'm not on time"
"So it's not broken forever?",He asked,"That's great. I can't have this car broken, not yet"
"It's a nice thing tho. Oldtimer?",Aragorn asked in confusion, still searching for the tow services' number. He met Legolas view again,"You never bought a new one after highschool, huh?"
Something about how they sat so close to each other cut Legolas' breath short. It had been a whole while. They both parted their ways after high school, tho Legolas never fully stopped thinking of him and even with all the guys and girls he had dated in the meantime, these moments reminded him of how much he just wanted to distract himself from his actual desire
Aragorn never knew just how bad Legolas fought the urge to tell him multiple times already. They were good friends. And that was all and the elf came to accept that very soon. But the what-if never left his future view, no matter how much he hated himself for it
"It was my mom's. So no, I never got a new one and I don't plan on getting one either",He let out a breath,"I'll get my car back, right?"
"No, they'll burn it to make one of those who only drive fifty kilometers an hour",Aragorn replied, feasting on the incredibly shocked look on Legolas' face,"God, no. Of course you'll get it back. But until then",His gaze flew over to his very own car,"I'll take you with me"
"In your car?",Legolas asked
"Yeah",Aragorn nodded,"Don't worry, my batterie's still fine"
Legolas started laughing,"You're so stupid",Aragorn joined in with him,"What? Some people check that before their car breaks down in the middle of the road!"
He watched for another second after his laughter faded to a soft smile. Legolas kept his noise up for another second, up until he noticed how Aragorn stared at him. For a wrinkle in time, where they sat in Legolas' car, only two soft smiles and breathing caught onto them. Legolas broke it up first,"I- We should probably head to Arwen's now"
"Yeah...",Aragorn answered, not leaving the view in front of him tho for a few seconds before shaking his head,"Okay. I'll call someone"
"Why that?",Legolas remarked
"Arwen wanted me to help her cook",Aragorn mumbled as he scrolled through his phone, searching for his phone number,"And I was supposed to be there in fifteen minutes but I won't make it. I'll send someone else there instead. Let me see..."
_______________________________________
"So",Arwen began, leaving the egg package on the side and leaning onto her kitchen counter besides Eowyn,"I have everything here except for milk. But Estel should arrive in a few minutes, so I'll just send him off to get some from the corner store"
"You are still doing that Estel thing?",Éowyn laughed at her side, her face resting upon her own first where she leaned besides Arwen
"I've grown used to it",She nodded,"Aragorn has always been just Estel, since we were children and shared a bathtub. We never grew out of it and now he's working and I'm working and we both have our own small worlds. And he'll still be Estel until the day one of us dies",She turned a page in the book in front of her. Cooking recipes, older than herself with yellow pages and stains all over - but very promising,"You still call Merry Merry and not Merriadoc",She stopped in her tracks to ask another question,"Where are they celebrating? Merry and Pippin? And their friends?"
"Oh",Eowyn answered, taking a second to think before she answered,"Well, I guess they're holding celebrations at Bagend with Bilbo. But that's just me assuming stuff you know?",She shrugged her shoulders tho, unsure of her answer towards Arwen,"What was it you wanted to cook?"
"The.. Flesh. Some kind of casserole. But I'm not sure what kind of",Arwen mumbled slowly, turning one page after another until she found one more recipe and then suddenly stopped,"This one looks great"
"Doesn't look to complicated",Éowyn shrugged,"How do we start?"
"We?",Arwen answered, raising her eyebrows and fully turning her posture against the kitchen counter to face Éowyn. It would've been her choice to Eowyn how her cooking was absolutely horrendous and that it might have been the reason Faramir broke up with her in the first place,"Maybe you can...",Arwen put her mind to work. Anything to keep Eowyn away from the stove,"You know the table isn't set yet. That's what you could do, yes. Go and set the table"
As Eowyn was already on to sick to Arwen's plan, the girl with the black hair opened the drawer across the kitchen and pulled out a sheet. Drawn was a seating plan, which she then handed Eowyn. The blond chuckled at observing her drawing,"You really do have everything planned out"
"I can't stand it when things don't go by plan",Arwen sighed,"That's all"
"We can make that work",Eowyn lurked over the sheet, meeting Arwen's eyes and let out another smile. At least Arwen knew that no matter how much Eowyn was clumsy and might drop every single piece of cutlery on her way to the table, she did all that with love and devotion to detail. And she was great at it. Last year, when they all celebrated back at Faramir's place, she had everything decorated and the table looked amazing - Now, after that messy break up, almost a year ago, Arwen was unsure if she still could've done so. Everyone was always so sure they'd end up married with a thousand children running around their house and all of a sudden, it did not seem all too harmonic. Tauriel called Arwen a day later after Eowyn spent the night at her place as the elf allegedly couldn't keep her mouth shut. Arwen always wondered if she had ever thought about coming to her house in the middle of the night with tears in her eyes and barely more than a coat and boots on, tho Arwen assumed Tauriel was the right choice. She was alone at home that week, her fiance somewhere off traveling
For a few months, they were everything anyone ever talked about really. That was until Tauriel got a new piercing and Faramir and Eowyn were long forgotten. She moved out, into this super sweet apartment downtown, right above the local coffeeshop and tho she needed a little help to set foot again, everything seemed to have settled by now. There was no way in hell it was as easy to get over a ten year relationship as Eowyn made it look, but one got over it someday - And today, they had both agreed to meet up at Arwen's place anyway as not to ruin any friendships or festivities. Arwen was lucky that it was her turn this year to host the celebration with all the different kinds of tensions she knew would be shooting daggers across the dining table. But she'd like for this christmas to be okay at least
They've been switching the location ever since the first time. Christmas as in the twenty-fourth of December was to celebrate with family. Legolas stayed at his father's place, Arwen with Lord Elrond and her brothers and even Eomer came to rush in for some time from heavy work and the second holiday had been celebrated with friends since high school
The tradition began when Tauriel's parents had been somewhere abroad. Their flight was stuck because of the weather and she was alone that day. Because her friends wouldn't take it that way, they came to surprise her on the second day of Christmas after finding out she celebrated the first alone. After that, the opportunity was used to check up on each other at least once a year and was even more worthy as life got so busy with work and college and stuff. They barely ever came to share dinner like this, all that ever came to take stand was a quick brunch on birthdays and that was it. But because Arwen was the one who held the celebration this year, she'd also be the one to help coincidence chose who'd hold the celebration next year
Arwen began with cutting the meat. She knew she'd have to cook one half with flesh and the other without anyway, the vegetarians in her friend group definitely predominanted the dinner every once in a while. Besides the meat, there were lots of potatoes and vegetables and a salad she was yet to put on. As Arwen was cutting potatoes in half and watched Éowyn entered the kitchen once or twice to carry out plates or cutlery, the doorbell cut her off halfway
"Can you go?",She called after the blond. Éowyn laid down the last set of forks before answering,"Got it!",The blond took her steps across the house and down to the front door. Assuming it was Aragorn, Éowyn opened the door with her usual enthusiasm,"Hey!",She called out even as half the door stood open but as soon as she had a view, her fave glided downwards
"Éowyn",He spoke from across the door. She gulped audibly before answering,"Faramir. What a surprise"
"I didn't know you would be-",An awkward laughter escaped his lips,"You're here already"
"Mhm",She nodded, scratching the back of her head,"I got the time wrong",Éowyn had a look at everything but not his face, staring down Arwen's tapestry like a find-waldo picture,"Why are you still here? You still have somewhat an hour left"
"Aragorn called me",Faramir answered,"He couldn't make it on time, there something about a car and Legolas and-"
"Legolas?",She raised her eyebrows and began to grin,"They're alone right now?"
"Yes they are",He answered with a chuckle,"I swear to god if neither of them do something about it, I'm going to shove them onto each other myself"
"They're so horrible, right?",She sighed, another laughter escaping her lips,"I met Aragorn at the mall a few days ago with his father and all he asked was if Legolas would come too because it's been such a while and works been so hard and he misses their talks about... I don't know, Arcade or what its called"
"I really see that right in front of my face",Faramir laughed, leaning into the doorway. He leaned his face down where his elbow bowed and hid his laughter. For a second, Éowyn hated him for this, she wanted to see what sweet expression his lips seemed to hide from her
For the blink of an eye it all was so perfect. Perfect enough for her to almost forget why they broke up in the first place
When Éowyn remembered and a painful sting emitted from her chest, she decided to bury this,"Come in",She spoke, leaving the door open and leaving off to the kitchen again. Her feet carried her, stones bound to her heels. Something in her wanted to stay by his side, breath his air and know what was happening in his life. Éowyn never thought about them ending up this way
Faramir used to bring lunch to her workplace whenever she had a break and now she avoids him at all cost at their shared celebration. On Christmas
Head against her heart and she decided for it to be better to run away from this
Arwen send her a smile as Éowyn entered the kitchen again, packing another set of cutlery,"Won't Estel say hello? Or did you send him to bring milk already?"
Éowyn stopped. Her back turned to Arwen, searching through her cupboard,"It is not your Estel",She closed the cupboard with a sigh,"It's Faramir"
"Faramir?",Arwen hissed across the kitchen,"Are you two okay out there?"
"Oh I got this",Éowyn waved off,"Don't worry about me"
Arwen should rather be worried about Faramir and if he would still be breathing in a few hours
_______________________________________
After a few hours upon the empty road, Legolas was to see the city again. Rivendell was beautiful, such a lovely and peaceful town. Nothing compared to Mirkwood, where everything was so stuffed and no one ever dared to crack a smile at anyone. The road was almost empty, if not for a few cars which must also visit their loved ones like Aragorn and Legolas did
He had never guessed to ever sit in this car ever again. It smelled the same, like the cologne Aragorn used to wear and some kind of hardwood, which eventually only came from the scent tree, dangling from his rearview mirror. The radio played some cheap eighties rock, something Legolas was glad to have with how there was nothing he wanted or needed to say and the music made it more bereable. That was up until the point where Legolas felt forced to say something, anything really to break that awkward silence between them
"How's your work going?"
Aragorn kept his eyes on the road, right hand on the steering wheel and leaned back into his seat. Whenever Legolas looked at him for too long, he looked the same exact to his high school being. Aragorn who once or twice played his guitar in an empty classroom in between classes and came to school every morning with that leather jacket and his motorcycle. Legolas wouldn't admit it, but he had stared. A lot
A chuckle echoed through the car,"That's it? I haven't seen you in a year and all you say is how's your work going?"
"Its so...",Legolas answered with an awkward laughter,"I can't really grasp it but after a whole year I'm nervous to see everyone again"
"You're scared they won't like you?",Aragorn answered,"You do know that they survived Tauriel's being in high school, they will get over you. Even with how annoying you are",Legolas knew that it sarcasm with how Aragorn's voice tone faded
"You're stupid"
"No, but-",Aragorn begins, the topic taking another stand,"Isn't there so much more to say?"
All the thing's Legolas never dared to speak out? Everything in his head and everything in his heart he felt whenever Aragorn's name only fell in every kind of conversation? How he was never fully satisfied with any relationship and hated himself for being so happy around Aragorn, his supposedly friend which he could never treat the way he would treat a normal friend?
Legolas scanned his face once more, to find anything at all that was different from the Aragorn he used to share a bed with. Anything. Even if it was just a single strand of hair parting him from the one he swore his loyalty to and who had hurt him so much that night
"Your seat"
And that was everything he noticed. The one single thing
"It's still laid back",The remaining sentence came as no more than a whisper,"You never put it back front..."
"You always noticed these small things",Aragorn shook his head,"I never got it"
"I usually don't",Legolas answered, another awkward chuckle,"It's just..."
"You mean you noticed them with me?"
The car slowly rolled onto a red light, stopping right in front of the crossing. Aragorn turned his head, all so suddenly and met Legolas' eyes. He exhaled deeply but let Aragorn speak before he did himself,"We can't leave this like that. You know it",It was a whisper, like the ones Legolas would hear in the back of his head still years after and no matter how much he wanted to, his words did not seem to come out
"This girl you dated",He finally blurted out,"Was she prettier than on the Internet?"
"Not prettier than you",Aragorn replied,"You really worried about her"
"I just didn't particularly like her",Legolas mumbled
"I couldn't stand that guy either you brought around",Aragorn shrugged his shoulders,"But I paid no mind"
"Well, the difference is that you didn't like him because he was an asshole and I hated her because-",He cut himself off halfway, noticing how he spilled like an overflowing sink and wishing he could drown in his pity
"Because you still love me"
And the sentence hurt like an arrow through the back just because of how true it was. Truth hurts and god was it true. Legolas inhaled deeply once more,"We should head to Arwen, this is-"
"Okay, listen",Aragorn began once more and all off a sudden Legolas was ready to leave everything else by his side to have Aragorn speak,"I fucked it up. I fucked it up so bad and you did not deserve any of this. But Legolas, if you believe me how many women I've dated and how non of them were like you, would you give me another chance? I'm so not over you and I probably never will and if this is really what you want, then well, alright but I can't have you as just a friend. I'm not even sure for what I came here in the first place, I was so about to call Tauriel off because I knew it would be hell on earth to see you anyway and to know you are... Well, not mine anymore. And I can't grasp this feeling. I can't hold it longer. You can go out with however you want to, this doesn't need to mean anything but I need you to know this",And after vomiting those words right onto Legolas' feet, he exhaled deeply. A groan escaped his lips, his head falling face first onto the steering wheel
Legolas didn't get how this all came in so clean and fast out of his mouth while he himself couldn't even think of anything to describe how bad he wanted to. And because Aragorn did, Legolas suddenly felt as if he was to speak of what his heart desired so much,"Theoretically speaking"
And Aragorn raised his head again, listening to Legolas speak,"If I would kiss you now. What would you do?"
"Why don't you go and find that out?"
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After Éowyn and Faramir had set the table in complete silence, Arwen's guests had arrived quicker than she would have expected. The first ring of the door, caught her right as she prepared the salad,"I'll get it!",She called out to where Faramir and Eowyn sat in the dining room, walked on by both of them. On her way down the hallway, she sent a suspicious look their way which both did not seem to notice before opening the door, caught her right as she prepared the salad,"I'll get it!",She called out to where Faramir and Eowyn sat in the dining room, walked on by both of them. On her way down the hallway, she sent a suspicious look their way which both did not seem to notice before opening the door herself
"Hello there",She smiled brightly, still assuming it was Aragorn but instead met a pair of emerald green eyes and a smile with a wine bottle in hand,"Tauriel",Arwen spoke out
"Arwen!",She answered, spreading her arms and taking the black haired one into a tight hug,"How have you been? It's been so long and I've missed you all so much"
"Oh it's been... One hell of a year",Arwen sighed,"But I made it through. And it's New Year in only a few days so I feel im good to go"
"Sounds great",Tauriel nodded in agreement
"Oh come in!",Arwen shoved the door open furthermore, as where Tauriel stopped right after taking her shoes off. She hung her large coat down the hanger and afterwards handed her bottle of wine over,"That one is for you. Because I know you all are doing so much and you especially so maybe this will have your nerves down a little"
"You're an angel",Arwen replied with a sigh, gratefully taking the bottle in,"I've been so... It's been stressful, yes. But I think I got this",After another second, her eyebrows did furrow,"Where did you leave Kili at? You two okay?",She asked carefully, knowing how fast the relationships here took turns
"Oh totally",Tauriel smiled,"He's celebrating with friends at Bagend and I'm here. But you know, we both are happy with this, we spent the entire last day with each other and its been heavenly"
"Sounds just like it",Arwen laughed. Before she send Tauriel off to the dining room, she decided to warn her off. Her voice quited down,"Faramir and Eowyn are alone in there... If anything should go wrong with them, I'm in the kitchen"
"I'll handle this, don't worry",She waved off, taking off towards the dining room. Arwen really hoped they'd be fine, praying to have anything alright tonight
Tauriel broke the silence in the room and after greeting both with a hug, went on to sit down,"Well, how has live been?",She suddenly asked into their shared middle. Éowyn's view slid over to where Faramir sat before she spoke first,"I've been doing great so far. Works amazing, so much fun and there really isn't anything I'd rather do"
"Sweet",Tauriel replied,"Can't leave those children alone, huh?"
"The children are not the problem, but their parents sure are",Éowyn rolled her eyes,"Hell is not a teenage girl but the parent of an eight year old"
But god, did she love this job. Before the Christmas holiday, her small third graders had baked cookies for her and even brought presents they had drawn themselves and Éowyn came home crying that day. On some days, it was exhausting yes, but the children were just too cute for her to not be happy about it. She got hugs and gifts and they told her about everything going on in their life, some even gossiping with her
Tauriel could guess that she wasn't honest, but was rather trying to prove a point towards Faramir. He proceeded to speak towards her,"Well that sounds great",To which he only received Éowyn's stare. If looks could kill...
Lucky for all three of them, it was only another half an hour until Arwens living room was packed full and her kitchen just as. Arwen brought glasses out as her casserole enjoyed another hour in the oven, ready to now behead the bottle of wine Tauriel had brought and get all her guests one - In hope of lifting the vibe a little. Everyone seemed to be happy at least, why not after seeing each after such a long time? Tho, did she knew as soon as the dinner began, it wouldn't be as harmonic as it was before
"You okay?",Boromir got up from his seat, leaving Faramir where he sat beside him on the table. The recent conversations across the room continued. Arwen put her glasses down, her eyes scanning the room before speaking,"Yes. Yes, I'm good. I just... Estel is still not here. And Legolas, where the hell are they?"
"That's weird",Faramir meddled in,"They've been on the road for so long now",And another smile spread upon his lips,"And it's only been the two of them"
"Arwen",His brother then spoke, his hand finding her shoulder,"Don't bother. They might as well won't shown up at all"
"God, can't they not finally get their asses back together and leave me alone with this?",She groaned,"We all know they want each other, so why can they not just... Get married and have ten kids and not break up again"
"I bet twenty dollars on them getting together again",Éowyn spoke, having overheard the conversation and taking a glass from the table
"Really?",Faramir answered, raising his eyebrows at her. In contrary to her, he did not seem to take any tries in ignoring her,"That's how far you'll go"
"Nah",Boromir answered,"Tauriel's gonna rip Legolas' head off if he does"
"Anyways",Arwen switched the topic,"Any of you want wine?",And after every single one of her guests had gotten a glass, she leaned back against her own table and just watched the conversations go by. Eomer and Gimli stood somewhere near the Christmas tree, as much as she picked up they were still talking about that music they both liked so much - Up until Éowyn came to meddle in and both switched the subject to something else. Arwen noticed Eomer turning his head first, to where Faramir stood besides his brother and Tauriel before Éowyn did the same and let out a smile which did not seem as honest as Arwen would want it to be
She knew they wouldn't get back together but she also knew that no one else could replace this. Arwen prayed they'd have the nerve to talk it out one day but not this Christmas. Well maybe, they should... and her one chance to do so, hung right above their heads in the doorway. As the three returned to some other conversations, which pulled a genuine laughter from all, her eyes followed over to the brothers and the brunette elf. Tauriel was the only one without a glass of wine and when Arwen noticed, she took a second to think about it
Did she even ask her?
The elf decided to pour another glass and join the three of them over at the dining table. If Tauriel did not want to, Arwen knew she was honest enough to say no,"Tauriel",She smiled, waiting another second for Faramir to quiet down,"You sure you don't want a drink? You brought the wine, you sure deserve a glass of it"
The smile she returned let Arwen lose her whole face. And she immediately knew what was going on
"Well",Tauriel answered. Arwen did not need to hear it, oh she knew what was coming,"I'd love to. But I sadly can't"
"Why that?",Faramir had the nerve to ask. His brother had seemed to get it - in some way at least - and stopped him with an elbow to his rips
"I have a bun in the oven"
"You're pregnant?"
And the entire room fell silent upon her speech,"Yeah?",She added in awkward silence. Éowyn was the first to speak,"Oh but that's amazing!",Her brother hastely catched her glass as the blonde wandered over to where Tauriel stood and took her into another hug,"I- It was definitely not what I expected but congratulations to you and Kili!"
"Dwarven genes will not die so easily. I told you so",Gimli spoke besides Eomer who only shdugged his shoulders,"I'd be quiet if I were you. At least you can still drink your beer"
"Does Legolas know?",He then called out to Tauriel who smiled as bright as the sunlight
"He's not here. So no, he does not",Shaking her head, Tauriel answered. Gimli gave it a second thought before taking his phone out,"Give me a minute",He grumbled, disappearing around the corner. Arwen watched him dial a number and guess he was doing alright afterwards
_______________________________________
"Aragorn...", Legolas laughed out. Not at him, more at his own being, annoyed at how incredibly good it felt to finally have this feeling once more. He would have killed for this, to be Aragorn's once more and if just for a second. The man knew how to make an elf happy, worshiped him in a way that made the gods above jealous and he'd still do so today
"What is it?",He asked, breathing into Legolas' neck where he was above him in his backseat, planting another kiss down his shoulder
"You do know-",He cut himself off when hearing his phone ring somehwere around the car,"Fuck",He sighed, his hands scanning the leather seats with every small pat before finding his phone. The other hand gently found himself tangled in between Aragorn's locks where he only seemed to leave his space between Legolas' neck and shoulder but still lean above him
"Yes?",He answered, signaling something to Aragorn about being quiet but only smiling at him in the process. God. He really was an idiot
"Hey laddie?",It came through the phone,"Where are you at? You're still coming, right?", Gimli's voice echoed through the phone
"Why that?",Heanswered, meeting Aragorn's eyes and grinning,"You're already missing me?
"I'd eat your plate off if you don't come and you know it!"
"Yeah. We- I",He corrected,"I am still coming. You know my car broke down and the way is so endless, you wouldn't know"
"Oh ho!",He answered loudly, Legolas letting out a laughter,"I sure hope you will arrive soon!"
"I will. Don't worry",Legolas replied,"I'll see you there",He hung up in a hurry, sitting back up in the seat and meeting Aragorn's eyes
"You're ready?",The man spoke, watching his elf form a thought,"I guess so"
"They won't hate you. Even if you are annoying",Aragorn planted another kiss down his lips before leaving to have a seat behind the steering wheel again. Legolas followed after him and sat down the seat. Aragorn let the motor roar, another kiss to Legolas' cheek and he went on
The elf couldn't even think off why they broke up in the first place. Or how he should tell his father or Tauriel or Gimli. Or anyone really
"Arwen's so going to kill me",Aragorn laughed at having a glance down his clock,"We're almost two hours late"
"Was worth it tho",Legolas replied, shrugging his shoulders,"She'll have to get to me first anyway"
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"Alright",Arwen spoke, setting down the casserole down onto the table,"It turned out fine, I'm pretty proud of myself"
"You mean because you've been ordering delivery for the last year?",Eomer grinned at her as to which she laughed,"That is one reason for it, yes. I have salad, dessert and everything you need - Except for milk"
"You know you didn't have to make that much, right?",Tauriel spoke in her direction,"Tho I am excited to try this",After Arwen sat down, Tauriel was also the first to have her fair share of the casserole. There was nothing that could have gone wrong, Éowyn was kept out of the kitchen, Arwen held everything in plan and nothing was left for her to do wrongly
"It's delicious",Faramir was first to speak,"What did you put in there?"
Arwen giggled in content,"Oh just... The usual. You know, the meat was burned beforehand, that wasn't what they put into their recipe but what I thought would be great and it-",The door cut her off, an obnoxious ring she had been waiting for all this time. She hurried from the table,"You go eat, yes?",Arwen called after the table and walked out of the room to open the front door
Éowyn chuckled already,"I smell my twenty bucks are on the way"
"What twenty bucks may I ask?",Her brother asked. Boromir answered his question with a grin, cutting his flesh,"She bet twenty dollars on Aragorn and Legolas coming together again"
"If Legolas should dare to, I'll hit him with a pan",Tauriel meddled in, the entire table laughing at it
"Oh but they weren't so bad together",Faramir spoke,"I mean, the end was shit but the time they spent together must have been great",He obnoxiously obvious watched Éowyn while speaking
"Yeah but Aragorn is better than any guy Legolas ever brought",Came the answer from Tauriel
"God",Eomer sighed,"I hated this guy he brought on your birthday, Faramir"
"Yes!",Éowyn answered in a hurry,"That was such an asshole, god. So glad they broke up"
"The elfling seemed to have been alone",Gimli meddled proudly,"I had him on the phone"
"Alone?",Tauriel asked,"That's strange, I sent Aragorn after him"
"You did that?",Faramir answered with a laughter,"And you still don't want them to come together?"
"I wanted Aragorn to fix his car and not clean his pipes or whatever he planned on doing with him",She sighed,"God, I'll kill him if they actually did it"
"Did what?",Gimli asked
"Well, what do you think they have been doing when coming so late? Legolas' car crashed down on Mirkwood road, not even an hour away but they took three to get here. I don't know, sounds strange if you ask me"
"Twenty bucks are twenty bucks...",Éowyn mumbled,"But no one says anything if they do, yes?",They all agreed on keeping quiet about it
"I mean",Boromir then began,"It's non of my business. If Aragorn can handle him, then go for it I guess"
"Right",Faramir added,"Non of my business"
Arwen had opened the door a few minutes ago, meeting two pairs of eyes and letting out a loud sigh,"God. I was so worried"
"Hello there",Aragorn answered as Arwen pulled him into a hug. She went on to hug Legolas,"You seem stressed. Everything alright?"
Arwen blinked at both of them as the elf stood besides Aragorn in the doorway,"Oh that is a question. Is your car alright? Do I need to worry about either of you two?"
Aragorn waved off,"We're fine, right?",He met Legolas' eyes. It was the moment Arwen had waited for, to finally know what was going on and when Legolas smiled, it gave up everything she needed to know,"Yeah. We're totally fine"
She raised her eyebrows,"I know that look... Will you tell them?"
"Well",Aragorn answered,"I don't know. They probably already know"
"Let them play",Legolas chuckled,"They'll know sooner or later. It'll be fine"
"Aww",Arwen cooed,"I'm so excited. God, it's bedn hell with you two not being a couple and I am so happy you finally got together again. I've been praying for it"
She went first, a smile on her face as she sat down. The entire table greeted the two of them very nicely, they didn't hate neither of them, but god where they curios,"I'm so sorry",Legolas sighed as he sat down onto the table,"My car broke down in the middle of nowhere, it was hell on earth"
"We heard of it, yes",Éowyn grinned across the table,"And Aragorn was as nice to pick you up"
"Well, yes",Legolas answered. Right on his side was a very confused Tauriel, who met his eyes with a smile and raised her eyebrows. He returned another smile, turning back to his casserole and feeling the smile from across the table burn on his own head
Maybe this Christmas wasn't as bad as Legolas thought
After the dinner, Éowyn watched them a little more closely than usually. Tho, they did not speak of it, everyone was very sure that it had happened. Maybe the hand around Legolas waist gave it away, or the hickeys on his neck which seemed to bloom recently
And upon noticing whatever was going on between them, her eyes flew from where Legolas stood beside Aragorn, to where Faramir had been speaking with Arwen. One last chance. And she knew to use it wisely
Éowyn wandered over to where he stood,"And you know, it was so much fun, I immediately-",Faramir was cut off by Éowyn, grabbing his arm and pulling off towards the doorway. Arwen noticed, watching her with a smile. It was the only chance she had this Christmas and she really wanted Éowyn to do it
She stood still beneath the doorway and right above both their heads hung the one single misteltoe Arwen had hung for no real reason,"Alright. So it goes",Éowyn sighs. Faramir met her eyes in confusion, tho was cut off when she crashed her lips into his. A sudden hum escaped his lips and after just a second he knew to accept and replicate it like death stood on his doorstep
They got married a year afterwards, while Aragorn and Legolas did not seem to leave each other side again. But as Eowyn did not receive her twenty bucks from anyone at all, Thranduil handed them over to her when they celebrated Christmas at Legolas' place next year