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“What about this one?” Barry asked Len, holding a laptop suddenly in his boyfriend’s face.
Len grimaced. Not at Barry’s antics, he had long gotten used to the startling entrances of the speedster, rather the horrific bookcase on Craigslist that was shoved in his face. “No,” he sneered, looking back to the book he was reading.
“W-Well, why not?” Barry asked incredulously, reconsidering the photo himself. “It’s dark wood and simple like the other stuff you have.” The pair had recently moved in together and their new home was sparse to say the least. Len’s apartments were always nice and well furnished, but never the size of their new place. Barry had a lot of random pieces, most of which Len would’ve loved to toss if he knew Barry wouldn’t pout over it.
Len cocked an eyebrow and glanced back up at Barry, closing his book he moved to get up and walk across the room. “That,” he says lazily pointing a finger at the computer, “is particle board. Painted sawdust. Manufactured in a one of millions of factories around the globe. There’s thousands like it and that one’s not even the prettiest pony.”
Barry pops his leg out and folds his arms defiantly, instantly mirroring Len’s challenging look. “Alright, then what makes that one so special?” he asks accusingly, nodding at the bookcase Len was standing next to.
Len delicately placed his hand on top of the short bookcase to his left. “This is a modern work of art. Solid oak wood bookcase, hand sanded, stained dark. A rare find given its age and pristine condition.” He looked down, regarding it and wiping off a little dust.
Barry tried to keep from snickering at Len’s particular behavior, and could only manage to hide a smile behind his hand.
Rolling his eyes, Len walked towards the kitchen to start dinner. “Leave it to the kid to not appreciate good art when he sees it.”
Zipping up in front of Len, Barry gave him a considering look, “You stole that didn’t you?”
Len made a thoughtful look to the side then pushed past his insistent boyfriend, “Nah.”
“Len!” Barry demanded, suddenly in front of him again.
The master thief gave a dramatic sigh before waving his hand around absently and avoiding Barry’s gaze as he sauntered around the kitchen, beginning dinner, “Of course not. To steal such a heavy, notable piece of furniture without damaging it or calling attention would require the most difficult, meticulously planned, perfectly timed, and flawlessly executed heist. Do you really think I could do such a thing?” He asked tauntingly, peering at Barry over his lashes.
Barry couldn’t help a small smirk at his bravado; Len couldn’t help but congratulate himself from time to time. In fact, it was something Barry loved about him, his bold self-assuredness and pride in his abilities.
“I guess I won’t make you take it back.” Barry finally said, closing their distance and pecking Len on the lips on his way to open some wine.
~
Later over dinner and after a glass or two of wine, Barry couldn’t help but ask, “Why do you like furniture so much?”
Len gave it a moment to ponder before placing his empty wine glass down and folding his fingers together. “Humans suck. They can let you down, lock you up, kick you out, along with a multitude of other things. Art can’t do that to you. Art is truth, authenticity. Paintings, cut diamonds, antique furniture: they’re all expressions of what it means to be human, without the messy people part.”
Barry gave a small smile through Len’s monologue. Folding his hands in his lap, he asks, “Would you say art is good? Inherently good?”
A quizzical look flashed on Len’s features, “Yes, Scarlet.”
“And if art is an expression of what it means to be human, then art is human, right?”
Len furrowed his brow a bit, “Possibly.”
“Therefore, art is inherently good and so are humans.” Barry finished his suffocatingly positive philosophical tangent by smiling proudly at Len.
Rolling his eyes Len chuckled, “Is this the part where you tell me there’s good in me?”
Barry laughed and leaned forward over the table on crossed arms, “No, cause I’m sitting over here.”
Needless to say, they forgot to do the dishes until the next morning.
~
Just hear those sleigh bells jingling ring-ring-ringaling tooooo….
“Iris, how did you even get me to come shopping with you on Black Friday, anyway?” Barry asked, trailing behind her and dreading the sight of the long lines they would soon be waiting in.
“Bear, there’s a great deal on this camera I could use for work and you said you’d come with me!” She called back to him through the dense crowd. “Besides, isn’t there something you might need? Or a gift you may need to get for someone?” She asked pointedly.
Barry’s face lit up, “I should get Len something while we’re out here!”
Iris turned back to him and gave a slightly annoyed look, “not exactly who I was thinking of, but okay.”
“Oh, you know I already have your gift. I always buy it---”
“The day after Christmas the year before, I know. And yet, you always know what to get future me before she even knows. Are you and Cisco vibing messages into the past?”
Barry gave a horrible attempt at a casual laugh before turning to his left, “Oh, look! Furniture! I bet Len would love a new piece of furniture.”
Iris was still giving him side-eyed looks as he dashed off to the other side of the store.
~
“Wooh!” Iris exclaimed, plopping down on the model couch next to a forlorn looking Barry. Around her was a small mountain of white and red shopping bags. “It’s sort of a good thing that we split up, because I found gifts for the whole team and you are the worst at keeping secrets.”
Barry laughed along with her, still with a lost puppy look in his eyes, “That’s great! Did you find any good deals on Boyfriend Gifts? Cause I didn’t see any.”
Iris just pouted with him and shook her head. “Len isn’t really the Department Store shopping kind of guy. I don’t think you’ll be able to find something here that he’d really need or want.” She suggested, apparently having a better grasp on Len’s personality than Barry did. Her and Len spent a few nights drinking and considering one another at the start of Barry and Len’s relationship. After about a month of sipping whiskey and glaring at one another, they finally spoke and the following friendship was something none of the three ever expected.
Barry nodded understandingly. “But if he only likes one of a kind, precious pieces of art, I can’t get that for him. I can’t steal for him.” He ended on a whisper, as if any of the frantic shoppers around him cared about their conversation.
Iris shrugged, “You don’t have to steal for him. Just get him a one of a kind, precious piece of art.” She smiled and booped him on the nose.
Barry furrowed his brow, considering her words and already turning the gears on his next idea.
~
“Hey Len!” Barry called from the bathtub where he was soaking after a long night of street patrol.
Len came bounding in from downstairs, coldgun in hand, “Are you okay?” he asked frantically, the low charging whirr of his gun instantly chilling the room.
Barry curled into himself, vibrating to heat the water, “Turn that thing off! I’m fine!”
Len’s shoulders fell from his tense fighting stance and he placed his coldgun on the dresser next to the door. “Why in the world did you yell then?”
“I wanted to know, if you could vacation in any old timey house, which would it be? Scarlett O’Hara’s southern mansion? A windblown, 1970’s beachhouse? Mid-century modern?”
“Seriously?” Len asked, dropping his head in his hand, “You have me run up here for that? Also, since when is mid-century modern ‘old timey’?”
Barry flicked water at him and pouted, “Just answer the question grumpy.”
Len, again, rolled his eyes and turned to leave. Barry grinned to himself as he could barely make out a mumbled, “Mid-century,” before Len’s footsteps hopped down the stairs.
~
“Ouch,” Barry heard Cisco say from behind his shoulder, “who wants a Ten Thousand Dollar, shoe holder?”
Barry groaned and dropped his head against the table, letting Cisco scroll through the website. “I’m trying to figure out Len’s Christmas present.”
Harry chuckled as he walked in, sipping coffee, “Your Earth never ceases to amaze me. You give so many gifts to each other. How do you keep track of it all?”
Barry and Cisco both turned confused looks to Harry, who was logging into another computer.
Cisco was the first to speak up, “You do realize that Jesse picked up on the gift giving thing real quick? I think you could, too.”
Harry shrugged, “You have your customs I have mine.”
“Then why did you give me a can of shaving cream last year for Christmas?” Cisco asked, a bit annoyed but amused.
“It was December. Which was the end of No Shave November, which I thought you were participating in.” Harry stated, not looking up from his computer.
“You’ve been here for years, dude. My hair’s always been like this. Why--”
“I don’t know! I was thinking outside the box!” Harry erupted, looking up at Cisco with a little bit of guilt in his eyes.
“Outside the box!” Barry declared, sitting back up at an alarming rate.
“What?” the two scientists asked together.
“Len’s present! I just need to think outside the box.” He said excitedly, clicking rapidly on the computer and reading at the speed of light. Cisco could see a few videos pop up and play at blinding speeds as Barry researched... something.
~
Caitlin hummed to herself as she turned into the large warehouse of a garage where they kept a few supplies. She stopped dead in her tracks at the sight before her: at the other end of the warehouse was a hurricane of lightning and a large cloud of sawdust. Next to the storm was a neat row of short benches, each with a small cubby for a plush pillow at the top and empty spaces for glass windows on the cabinet doors facing the front.
Each bench was a sizable improvement on the next: the first was quite rough and rudimentary, the basic idea was there but the angles and lengths were all off, resulting in a jagged, crooked design. The next was better defined, with the angles clearly cut and squared off, yet there was a slight leveling issue. The next few were nearly perfect in design, but suffered from too enthusiastic buffing. It seemed Barry was trying to use his speed to sand down the wood, but ended up burning it in some spots and simply wearing it down in others.
Finally, the lightning and sawdust storm halted and Barry turned to smile at Caitlin. “Hey! How does it look?”
Caitlin couldn’t find the words at first, her scientific brain jumping from one thought to the next. “When did you learn to build furniture?” She finally landed on.
Barry looked at his watch and counted on his fingers, “About four hours ago.”
Caitlin’s jaw nearly dropped. “Wait, you started this project four hours ago or?”
“No, I learned four hours ago. Online. Then I had to go to the store, which took the longest cause I couldn’t speed through it. But I’ve been hands on for about an hour now. I’d probably be a lot faster, but I can’t keep from burning the wood.” Barry suddenly realized that Caitlin hadn’t said anything and had a deep thinking look on her face.
“You never told us you could learn things so quickly. When did you first do something like this?”
“Uh, I think I really put it to the test when I was helping Harry close the breaches around the city awhile back. I haven’t used it that much, though. Gives me a killer headache and it doesn’t retain for the long term.” He then turned back to his current project, “Which reminds me--”
“Wait! I want to run some tests! Can you wear this brain wave cap for me?” She called, running over to a storage bin and fishing out a wired cap and thrusting it at Barry.
Barry grabbed the cap and chuckled, slipping it on his head, “As long as you help me find the right color to stain it later.”
“Deal,” she said smiling and nodding enthusiastically.
~
“Leeeen,” Barry sing-songed softly into Len’s ear from where he laid, spooning the lightly snoring man next to him.
“Mm,” Len grumbled, instantly awake from the noise. He always woke up alert and ready, leaving no time to be caught off guard. Barry’s warmth behind him and soft lips on his cheek helped soothe him back into a comfortable, sleepy state of mind.
“It’s Christmaaaas,” he continued to sing softly against Len’s stubbly cheek, inching towards his mouth.
“So?” Len mumbled, not moving an inch from where he lay.
Barry’s lips pecked at the corner of Len’s mouth, his fingers raking through Len’s buzzed hair as he pressed closer into his sleepy boyfriend. “It’s our first Christmas.”
Len raised an eyebrow at that, “No, it’s not, Scarlet. We’ve been together for awhile now, remember?”
“Yeah, but not in our own home. We’ve never had a Christmas morning away from any other family or friends, where it’s just us.” Barry pouted a little, pressing a few more kisses to Len’s jawline.
“And why is that so special, huh?” Len asked, poking the bear (pun intended).
Barry grinned and flipped Len over all the way, straddling him pressing their chests together. “Then I wouldn’t be able to do this,” he started, before kissing and nipping at Len’s collarbone, his hips already rocking against Len’s with excitement.
Len met Barry’s advances with glee as he ran his hands over the speedster’s muscular back and in his fluffed bedhead.
Barry’s head suddenly popped up as he smiled down at his sleepy eyed, gorgeous boyfriend. “First, we do Christmas stuff,” he said with a grin.
Len groaned and turned back over, throwing his arm over his face to block out the light. “No. I thought doing Christmas ‘just us’ would come without the ‘Christmas stuff’.”
Barry shook his head playfully, springing up and yanking the covers off of Len, “Not when you’re dating me. You only get to come if you do the Christmas stuff,” Barry declared, proud of his wordplay.
Another groan erupted as Len pulled a pillow on top of his head, his body curling into a ball at the loss of his blanket. “How’s the cold, Cold?”
Len, never being one to back down, moved the top pillow and proceeded to take off his long sleeved shirt and pajama bottoms, leaving himself in only boxer briefs like Barry. “I prefer the cold, remember?”
Barry chuckled and scooped Len up bridal style, his thrumming energy already warming Len’s cool skin. “You’re not getting off that easy. We’re doing Christmas stuff, then we can both go back to bed, with the covers.”
Len fought Barry and stood up on his own two feet, before pulling his pajama pants back on and grabbing Barry’s hand, “fine. Show me how to do Christmas stuff.”
~
“Isn’t eggnog supposed to be the Christmas drink, or whatever?” Len asked, sniffing the hot tea drink Barry just handed him.
“Yes, but that is a West and Allen Family Tradition for post-Christmas dinner shenanigans. This ,” Barry stated, clinking his coffee mug with Lens, “is our new tradition.”
The pair sipped simultaneously. Len licked his lips at the warm honey flavor with a bite of something familiar in the back of his throat. “What is this?”
“A hot toddy. Tea, lemon, honey, whiskey. Perfect for early morning cuddles near the tree, yeah?” Barry asked, scooting closer to Len where they sat on the floor, in front of their fireplace, the tree towering close by in it’s golden glittery shine, decorated by Lisa, of course.
Len took another slow, long sip, before grinning at Barry, “I think I like Christmas stuff,” he said suggestively as his free hand curled around Barry’s bare hip and pulled him close, circling his thumb intimately into his skin.
Barry grinned and snuggled in closer, placing a leg over Len’s as they sat, side by side. Len took another long sip and set his cup down, turning to place a warm open mouth kiss where Barry’s shoulder met his neck.
The speedster gave a quick full body vibration as a small moan creeped out due to Len’s swift tongue. Barry grasped Len’s strong thigh as he felt Len’s hands travel slowly up his body, causing ripples of goosebumps to prick up all over his skin. When Len’s fingers found Barry’s nipple it was already hard and sensitive. Right before he could do anything to it, Barry sat up straight and pushed away from Len, “Wait! Not yet! We need to do presents!”
Len groaned and flopped down onto the ground, “Why is it so hard for a man to get some action on Christmas morning?”
Barry giggled and pulled him back up, handing him his drink. “We’ll get there. And I thought I was the impatient one.”
Len laughed along with him and continued his drink. When he took the last swig, he set the mug down and noticed Barry had been staring at him expectantly for awhile. “So…?” Len asked.
“So, you go first,” Barry said, nudging Len’s arm.
“Who says I got you a present?” he teased, pulling Barry closer and pressing their foreheads together.
Barry feigned a pout, but he knew Len was joking. There was no way he would break tradition on a holiday where people gave each other things for free.
Len leaned in and gave him a quiet, soft kiss before pulling away and reaching under the tree. He then presented Barry a perfectly wrapped red and gold striped box, topped with a bright red bow.
Barry gave a small giggle as he took the box with wide eyes. Slipping off the bow, but keeping it still intact, he tied it around Len’s neck like a choker. They both grinned and Barry pulled him in by the bow for another sweet kiss.
The sound of paper tearing followed as Barry ripped open the present to find a dark blue dog collar lying inside with a blank tag. He pulled it out, his smile spreading wide across his face. Len watched in awe as Barry’s face lit up before him, his mouth hanging open trying to form words. Finally, he squeaked out a faint, “puppy?”
Len simply smirked and nodded; his breath was nearly knocked out of him as Barry launched himself into Len, knocking him on his back and holding him close, kissing him excitedly. When Barry finally pulled away, he asked, “where is he?”
“He or she is waiting at the shelter. Tomorrow we can go meet the pups and you can find one that you really love.” Barry’s grin was infectious, Len’s cheeks were starting to hurt. He schooled his face down to a look of delighted amusement, “Only one, though, Bear.”
Barry bit his bottom lip as he nodded enthusiastically.
“Okay, Mr. Christmas, your turn.” Len said teasingly, nuzzling his face into Barry’s neck and giving him a warm kiss there.
Barry suddenly sprung up to his feet and held out a hand for Len. Leading him into their front entryway, he pointed at the empty space next to the front door in which their shoes were currently neatly lined up against the wall.
Len raised an eyebrow. “Our shoes?”
Barry smiled and pointed a finger at them, “Don’t blink.”
As Len began to smile, a rush of air enveloped him for a moment as Barry’s figure disappeared and reappeared almost instantly. In place of their shoes, stood a dark red mahogany bench, velvety smooth from careful sanding and beautifully crafted in the mid-century modern style Len was known to love. It stood sturdy with firm legs and robust, well defined corners. The cushion on top was a plush ebony, and the window a clear paned glass on both cabinets, with one cubby in the middle.
Len was equally shocked by the gesture as he was by the piece he was being presented. The thief had an eye for good handiwork and great art when he saw it, and this was phenomenal. He could feel the warmth and love that went into making it and could see in the evident technical skill that a lot of care and thought went into it’s construction. It wasn’t until Barry’s rambling began that Len realized he hadn’t said anything.
“I thought, I thought you might like something like that in here because we don’t really have anything to put our stuff on when we come in the door and I know you like to stay organized and this would be cute, I thought, and a nice place to transition from ‘out there’ to ‘in here’. And, and I remembered you said at dinner that you loved art because it couldn’t ever let you down, unlike people, and well, I don’t ever intend on letting you down, but just incase, I wanted to make sure you had something that shows without question that I care for you, that I, I love you and you mean a lot to me, and---”
He was cut off by Len’s lips, the older man’s hand grabbing him from behind the head and pulling him in confidently for a passionate kiss. They lingered there a moment, Barry standing with Len’s arms around him, their quiet moans mixing with the crackling of the fire in the next room.
When they finally pulled away, Len pressed their foreheads together, still holding Barry close. “Barry, I love it.” He paused, his voice hitching ever so slightly. “Thank you.” He finally got out, his voice still wavering a bit. “It’s so beautiful, I…” he just shook his head lightly, unable to find the words.
Barry grinned so big Len thought his boyfriend would simply burst right there. Instead of searching for the right words, Barry met Len’s lips again, softly this time. When they pulled away, Len got a mischievous grin and a twinkle in his eye. “Since this is supposed to be our entryway into the home, the passage into our personal haven, how about we christen it?”
Barry smirked at his words, “What do you have in mind?”
Len chuckled as he bit down on Barry’s collarbone and placed a firm hand on his waist, forcing him down on the bench. Barry plopped down on the plush cushion, looking up at Len’s excited gaze, knowing what was coming next he thanked himself for springing for the extra comfy cushion.
~
Later that evening, Barry sat on Joe’s couch, pink cheeked and sipping on some eggnog Caitlin doctored for him. Len was across the room, having a difficult, but improving attempt at conversing with Joe. Wally, Iris, Cisco and Jesse were all yelling over their drinks as they competed at four-player N64 Mario Kart. Harry smiled proudly as he watched them, finally nailing the gift-giving customs of Earth-1, which awarded him an extra-long, warm hug from Cisco and maybe a small tear, too.
Barry huffed out a breath as Lisa plopped herself into his lap, her own eggnog in hand. “You did good, kid.” She praised, clinking glasses with him.
Barry answered with a small scoff and a laugh, “You do know we’re almost the same age, right?”
Lisa shrugged and downed the rest of her drink. “Anyway, as I was saying, you did good.” She looked over to Len, who was actually smiling and laughing with Joe across the room. It was a Christmas miracle. “Len is a sucker for sentimental crap. He still has some shitty keychain I made him when I was seven.” She reached over for another cup full of eggnog on the coffee table, slurring her words only slightly, like everyone else around them. “All this time, I knew you guys worked, you know? You fought for it, made it happen. That’s admirable; you’re both warriors in your own ways. But now, now I know you get each other. Like really get each other.”
Barry laughed and nodded along, happy at her words and giggling along with her in his slightly inebriated state.
Suddenly, Len appeared standing at their side, “Lisa, dear, would you mind retracting your claws from my boyfriend for a moment?”
“Aw, Lenny, I was being nice this time!” Lisa said, getting up and joining the others at heckling the gamers.
Barry grinned up at Len, “She really was being nice. It was a cool change of pace.”
Len shook his head with a small smile, “Only I make the cold puns around here, Red,” he held out his hand to Barry, “Join me?”
Barry’s smile turned sheepish as Len took him by the hand and led him outside to the front porch. The night was dark, yet glittery from the warm yellow Christmas lights that lined the block and reflected in the wet road.
Len stopped them near the threshold of the door, wrapping both arms around Barry and pulling him in tightly. Barry’s arms rested against Len’s chest as he smiled, a bit crooked, at his handsome boyfriend. “Barry, I just want to say, these past few years being with you, moving in together, and really today most of all, I’m becoming more and more certain that this is where I belong. With you. I don’t know how, but you found a way to steal my own heart from me--”
“You’re so damn cheesy, Len.” Barry interrupted him, giggling.
Len laughed along, a rare blush creeping into his cheeks, “I’ve been told.” He kissed the tip of Barry’s reddening nose. “Scarlet, I just want you to know, that I love you,” his eyes pierced Barry’s soul, their intensity and seriousness not lost on the tipsy speedster. “I love you so much it scares me sometimes… but when I’m with you, I’m happy, content… safe. I may not be the best at saying it, but the feelings are still there. They’re real.”
Barry held a hand over his mouth as his lip quivered a bit. Len rarely ever declared his love in such a verbose, forward way. Perfectly timed ‘I-love-yous’ and simply showing his love, in and out of the bedroom, was Len’s way of showing he cared. Barry, however, lived for the cheesy, hallmark card type declarations of love and Len’s words were enough to send Barry’s heart racing.
Hopefully, Len was done, because the next thing he knew, Barry had thrown his arms around his neck and crashed their lips together. Len held him up, kissing him back warmly and holding him close. He smiled inwardly at his flawlessly executed plan, sneaking a peek at the mistletoe he placed on the threshold above their heads not long after they arrived to the party.