prompt: you have one christmas wish, but you have no hope it will happen. but maybe this year, things will be different. || reader x colby brock
POV: Second person, Y/N, gender-neutral pronouns
trigger warning: PURE FLUFF, tiniest bit of angst?, pov: you're in love with colby... but like who isn't lol, christmas traditions, loss of the christmas spirit, seriously tho this is just marshmallow fluff highkey, gender-neutral so everyone can enjoy it !!
word count: 1530
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It had been a long time since you had been in the Christmas spirit. Christmas had lost its charm to you over the years; maybe because you were no longer a kid, or maybe it was because life became too busy for you to really enjoy Christmas like you once did.
You and your friends - Sam, Colby, and Kat - had all felt the same way. And you all decided that this year, you would make the holidays count.
Starting from Thanksgiving, you all made plans for at least once a week to do something that would put you in the Christmas spirit. One weekend you all spent time decorating the house. Another week you made gingerbread houses. You and Kat even went out Christmas shopping to buy presents for the boys (and yourselves). And slowly, as the weeks grew closer and closer to Christmas, you could feel yourself actually start to feel.... happy.
There was one thing you wanted for Christmas, though. And you knew you were never going to get it.
You hated admitted it, but you had always wanted to be kissed under the mistletoe. You knew it was cheesy and was just a silly tradition, but something about it always seemed so romantic to you. You daydreamed about it, smiling at the thought of it happening, but knew it wasn't going to come true. For one thing, there was no mistletoe in your house. And for another, you didn't really have a significant other to do said kissing with.
But at least you weren't alone in that department. You had Colby.
Colby and you had grown close over the years, for one reason or another. Whether it was because you were always paired up during investigations when it would just be the four of you, or maybe it was because you two were very similar in personality. You guys got along well and enjoyed being around one another. He knew you were someone he could always lean on, and you knew the same back. And maybe that spark, that connection, is what led you to having just the tiniest crush on him.
What can you say? A man who treated you respectfully and was attractive surprisingly caught your eye.
But you tried not to think of that during the holidays, especially as Christmas grew closer. You wanted this time to feel normal, and a crush was just not going to help that. So, you pushed whatever feelings you had to the back of your mind. Every week you all would do something Christmas-y together, and you didn't want to screw it up by getting your feelings involved.
Secretly, you couldn't help but notice things about Colby more and more as time grew closer to the 25th. Every time you saw him, you swore his eyes were somehow bluer than before, even more so in the light. And his smile? Oh lord, his smile was to die for, especially when his dimples would appear. His laugh was really cute; kind of quiet, but somehow you always caught it under everyone else's laugh. He always smelled really nice, a mix of his cologne and body wash would intoxicate you every time he was around. You could feel the heat of his skin radiate off of him when he was close to you, your hands aching to touch him.
Oh God, you were in love with Colby. The unattainable man.
Of course, this realization came to you on the 24th, and the next day - no matter what you were doing - all you could think about was Colby. Your eyes studied him throughout the morning as you guys exchanged gifts and had breakfast. Later, you guys relaxed on the couch and watched a couple holiday movies. All the classics. Colby sat near you, so it wasn't hard for your gaze to fall from the movie to him everyone so often. Your heart sped up as he leaned in close to you during one of the movies, whispering to you something funny. And finally, as night grew closer, some friends came over to celebrate and have dinner. You sat across from Colby, talking to him every so often.
You couldn't help but notice how weirdly sad you were. Everyone around you seemed happy, and you did everything that you had thought would make you happy on this day. But somehow... your heart still felt a little empty. Maybe Christmas just wasn't supposed to be the same as you got older.
You stepped away from the little party being thrown after dinner, deciding to stay in the kitchen and clean up while everyone went to the front/music room area. You gulped down the last bit of your wine, washing out your glass right after. You scrapped food off some of the plates, rinsing them and putting them in the dishwasher.
"Do you need some help?"
Your body froze at the sound of Colby's voice. You had to take a deep breath before responding to him, trying to calm your nerves.
You picked your head up, glancing at him quickly. "No, I'm good. Thanks though."
"Let me guess, you wanted to get away from everyone?" He questioned, stepping into the kitchen.
You hummed. "You know me too well."
"Well, I'm also doing the same thing as you so... great minds think alike." Colby smirked.
You nodded your head, continuing to put the dishes away.
He continued, leaning against the counter by you. "The dinner was really good. Your handmade biscuits were amazing."
"Thank you. The mashed potatoes you made were delicious." You added.
"Not gonna lie, I was a bit concerned I was somehow gonna screw them up." He admitted.
You giggled. "How? It's only mashed potatoes."
"You'd be surprised how terrible of a cook I can be when I'm not trying. Why do you think I postmates every day?" He asked.
"Oh I thought that was because you're lazy." You quipped, shutting the dishwasher.
Colby gasped, feigning hurt. "Hey, don't get smart with me."
You pursed your lips, "Or what? What are you gonna do?"
He stepped up to you jokingly, his chest brushing yours, "I might have to-"
"Hey, do you know if we have anymore-?"
Kat stopped, raising an eyebrow at the two of you. You glanced back at Colby and realized just how close he had gotten to you. You held your breath, a rush of heat spreading across your cheeks.
"D-Do we have anymore what?" You sputtered, putting some distance between you and Colby.
"Um... wine. We already finished the bottle I took out there." Kat mentioned.
"Yeah, there's one more in the fridge. Let me get it." You stepped back, opening the fridge and grabbing it. The coolness of the bottle felt good against your skin, which felt extra warm for some reason.
"Here you go." You muttered.
"Thanks. Oh, by the way, you might want to look up." Kat pointed.
You scrunched your eyebrows together, "What?"
You and Colby looked up, and your heart skipped a beat at the sight. Mistletoe hung above you two, just on the light. Somehow, you hadn't noticed it all this time.
Your voice was just above a whisper, your eyes still glued to the mistletoe. "When did you-?"
"Last night. You two better kiss, it's bad luck to not!" Kat winked, walking away.
If you didn't know any better, you would swear Kat knew you liked Colby.
Colby spoke finally, his eyes drifting back down to you. "Well..."
You immediately chimed in, the words falling out of your mouth hastily. "We don't have to kiss if you don't wanna. I mean, don't feel comfortable doing it."
"No I don't mind-" Colby started.
"I get it would be really weird to do it, since we're friends and all." You responded, not even hearing him.
He replied. "Yeah I guess, but I don't-"
You cut him off. "Seriously, we shouldn't do it, even if it might bring us bad-
"Y/N." Colby stated.
"Yes?" You asked.
"Kiss me." He uttered.
You blinked multiple times. "W-What?"
"Kiss me. Unless you want me to kiss you first." He sassed.
You blushed instantly. "Colby..."
"It's tradition, and Kat's right. We wouldn't want to catch any bad luck." He stared at you for a moment, then whispered teasingly, "It's just one kiss."
You took a breath, your mouth suddenly dry. "Okay."
He smiled lightly, leaning in slowly. You closed your eyes just as his lips touched yours. Time felt frozen, like for one moment you could actually control it. You imagined staying like this forever. You could feel Colby's body against yours, your fingers brushing his. You felt like you were on fire, like all the energy in the room was in your body.
His lips were so soft, and the kiss itself was as sweet as candy. It was all you had hoped for and more.
So... you were definitely in love with Colby.
He pulled away, his eyes fluttering for a second. He swallowed, pulling himself together.
"Merry Christmas, Y/N." He murmured.
You bit your lip, "Merry Christmas, Colby."
Maybe Christmas could feel the same once again after all.
Maybe even better.