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The night seemed like a dream to Peter. He was surrounded by his childhood heroes (Whom he had been with consecutively for the past two weeks almost, yet he still couldn’t get over it), cuddled up next to his biggest crush, wearing Christmas pajamas, and watching Christmas movies over a giant fireplace. There was just no way this was real! Of course, this wasn’t quite how the night was supposed to go. Originally, Natasha and Clint were due to go out of town tonight, Steve, Bucky, and Sam were going to go grocery shopping and grab dinner for everyone, Stephen was supposed to go back home, and Harley and Tony “Probably had some work to do or something.”
But the snow came down hard, flights got canceled, roads were closed, Stephen just didn’t want to go home, and Peter had an awfully convincing look in his eyes that one particular blond couldn’t deny. All of which led to quite an amazing night of being snowed in.
The group decided to come together and cook dinner that night since it hadn’t happened in quite a long time. Natasha taught Peter and Harley how to make Kutya, which was a type of thick pudding made of lots of sweet stuff that made Pete really excited. She taught them, after a fond glance around, that it symbolizes unity in families. After it was finished, the boys got to throw a spoonful of the pudding onto the ceiling to see their futures. Harley’s spoonful stuck, which was supposed to mean that a plentiful honey harvest was to be expected, though, he didn’t keep bees, so he had no idea what it really meant. Peter’s, on the other hand, dripped onto his nose after being tossed up. The older boy let out a snort and stepped closer to carefully wipe the dish off his face. “Guess you’ll just have to share my harvest, then,” he added quietly, as though it was just some secret between the two, which made Peter’s stomach do flip as he nodded back in agreement.
Next to them at the stove, Steve and Bucky were trying to figure out how to make a meatloaf that Steve’s mother used to make them back in the day but seemed to be having little success, seeing as there was now ketchup and oats all over their side of the counter. But both of them were smiling so much that no one really wanted to step in and help. Sam was across from them, meticulously cutting out a mix of sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies into little Christmas shapes. Before they started cooking, he had boldly claimed that he could make the best Christmas cookies in the world, to which almost everyone challenged him on, because Stephen had brought home Wong’s cookies before, and everyone was convinced that those were other-worldly because of how good they were.
Tony and Stephen were in their own little world by now as they put together a selection of drinks, including eggnog and holiday punch, both spiked and unspiked. They were in a deep conversation about which country had the best Christmas traditions, and which ones Tony was sober enough to remember, back in the day. Amazing how the man had changed. Clint, as though supervising everyone, wandered around to take pictures of everyone as they worked. It was rare that everyone got together to do something like this, and despite missing a few people, he absolutely had to document everything for later viewing.
It was about an hour later that everyone had finished the dishes they were working on and finally sat down at the scarcely used dining room table. Harley had put on a playlist of Christmas songs, which ended up hardly being heard over the constant shouts and laughter of the conversation. They ended up realizing that no one here actually celebrated Christmas, even though the compound was decked out in decor, Christmas tree and everything. Steve had tried to argue that he was still a very fine Christian boy, but almost everyone agreed that they had heard, walked in, or seen the aftermath of activities with Bucky that absolutely no God was involved in, and he quickly surrendered with a guilty laugh.
Sometime later, it had grown dark outside, everyone felt full and warm and fuzzy, and the snow continued to fall. Steve stood up and began to collect people’s plates when Peter piped up and suggested they all watch a movie. Everyone was in complete agreement, and voting went down without a hassle, unanimous agreement upon Elf for their first movie. So the Heros and such went back to their rooms quickly to change into more comfortable clothes while Tony set up the projector in the living room.
Peter was off in a flash, just excited to get back and start the movie. Harley trailed behind him, laughing softly at how fast the younger boy moved. He had already changed and was waiting outside Peter’s door when the other came out, dressed in a pair of reindeer pajama pants and a Midtown High sweatshirt, which just so happened to counter Harley’s own Christmas tree pants and Rose Hill High t-shirt.
“Well look at you, handsome!” He said, looking over him with a smile as soon as he stepped into the hall. The blush on Peter’s cheeks was obvious even in the dim light of the hallway, which only made the older smile wider.
“I like your pants,” Peter responded, giggling softly as he looked down at them. They were pretty ridiculous; they each had a different set of eyes on them and had little speech bubbles next to them, aggressively shouting different Christmas phrases.
“Thanks,” Harley responded with a chuckle. “Clint got them for me a year or two ago. We were supposed to get each other pajamas, so I got him a Pikachu onesie, and he got me these-”
“That's where that came from?! He never would tell me!” He exclaimed, his smile lighting up even more. “I always thought he got it himself and didn’t want to admit it!”
Harley shook his head, chuckling softly as he started walking towards the elevator. “Nope, all me. I’m really the mastermind behind his sense of fashion.” A piece of his blond hair fell across his forehead as he stopped to press the button and Peter had to consciously restrain himself from reaching up and pushing it back into place.
Above the two boys, the rest of the Avengers were already set up with buckets of popcorn and kettle corn, mugs full of hot cocoa, cider, and eggnog, and blankets to spare. The previews before the movie were already starting, despite everyone still milling around and getting comfortable. By the time Harley and Peter got back to the living room, Bucky was laying across Steve with a bucket of popcorn nestled under his arm, his eyes focused intently on the screen, Sam was on the other end of the couch, slowly inching Bucky’s legs off of him with a glass of cider in his hands. Strange was in the corner, floating with a blanket around his shoulders and kettle corn in his lap, Natasha and Clint were sitting on the other loveseat, still arguing happily over how they were intending to sit, and Tony had disappeared into the kitchen. This seating arrangement left the boys to sit in front of the couches with the cushions on the ground. Neither of them saw this as a problem, as Harley plopped down on one and opened his arms for Peter to come and join him. Without thinking, the brunet sat down and leaned into his embrace, earning a soft, satisfied hum from Harley. He carefully shrugged a blanket around them and leaned back against the couch that Natasha and Clint had finally gotten comfortable with. Peter ended up laying his head on Harley’s shoulder, which he didn’t think about until the other boy started carefully playing with his hair. His cheeks flushed red, but he didn’t move an inch, deciding that this was just what he needed at the moment.
Steve and Bucky were the first to retire that night, about halfway through the movie (right when Jody and Buddy go on their date), claiming that it had been a long day, and sleep was necessary. Next was Strange, coincidentally at the same time that they noticed Tony shuffling down towards the elevator. He left with no explanation right after the beginning of Love Actually, which was Clint's choice, for the record. A quarter of the way through the movie, Sam got up to hit the hay, which was right around the same time that Peter could hear Natasha’s breath even out, signifying that she had fallen asleep. Harley continued to make fun of the movie characters in a hushed tone, earning a good amount of quiet laughs from Peter, especially when he added whichever Avenger left next to his list of people to tease.
By the time Clint picked Natasha up to carry her to her room, the boys had made a makeshift blanket tent over themselves and were giggling about god knows what. The older man just let out a chuckle and turned on some Christmas music as to not distract the boys. It wasn’t until later when Peter realized he only heard two heartbeats in the room instead of four or more, that they realized that they were alone. It was then that he realized just how close the two had gotten. Their noses were nearly touching under the blanket, which made his cheeks turn light pink. Harley glanced down at his cheeks, at least Peter thought it was at his cheeks, and chuckled softly.
“Need some air?” he asked, motioning to the blanket that was now surrounding them. Apparently, Peter’s laugh wasn’t a good enough response for him, as Harley tossed the blanket off of them and scooted off of the couch. He offered his hand to him with a smug smile on his lips. Peter took it with a confused expression on his face, and let out a little yelp when Harley suddenly pulled him closer. He wrapped his arm softly around his waist and brought him so they were almost chest to chest. Peter’s cheeks were aflame now, much to Harley’s amusement.
“Do ya know how to dance?” he asked in a low tone.
The younger shook his head, his eyes glued to Harley’s blue ones, which only seemed bright with the reflection of the fireplace in them. “No.. Never really something I thought to learn about..”
He let out a chuckle that seemed to warm Peter’s insides. “Smartest person I know, and you never learned how to slow dance? Seems fake. But then again, neither did I..”
He started swaying them softly back and forth to the music, smiling down at the younger boy. He looked so beautiful in the lighting of the fire; it was almost un-earthy how the light of the fire played off of his dark curls, and how the shadows seemed to catch his cheeks at just the right angles. What really seemed perfect was when he carefully laid his head on the older boy’s chest, sighing softly.
“Whatcha thinking about, Petey?” He asked, his voice just over a whisper.
Peter shook his head and closed his eyes. “Nothing, really. What about you, Harles?”
His grip around his waist seemed to tense up a little, but he let out a breath and it went back to how it was the second before. “Well… There's this boy,” he started, the usual confidence that resided in his voice seems to disappear for the time being. “And I can’t stop thinking about him. Haven’t been able to for a while. He’s super smart and super cute, and I really like cuddling and dancing with him. All that cheesy shit. And he’s a really good cook and he chooses really good movies to watch, and… I dunno, Petey. I can’t get this boy out of my head…”
Peter didn’t move, other than to continue to sway to the music. He knew his own heart was beating at an unusually fast rate, but he could also hear how nervous Harley was. Was this real? Did Harley actually mean him? A million thoughts ran through his head as he listened to Harley’s heartbeat. He had liked him for what felt like forever. Since the first time Tony had introduced them in the lab almost two years ago now. The way that Harley was confident with everything that he did but caring enough to take a step back and make sure that it was okay. How chaotic he was but in such an effective, good way. How comfortable he seemed to make Peter feel, no matter the situation; he always made him feel safe and taken care of around Harley. He realized how badly he wanted to kiss him over a year ago, and from there it was just a downhill spiral for Peter. But it was around that time that Harley had gotten more affectionate too. There was more cuddling during movies, more hugs when they saw each other again after a long time, more accidental touching when they were cooking. But Peter had always passed it up as Harley getting more comfortable around him. Purely platonic.
But was it?
He felt Harley shift above him, looking down at him, nervously, almost.
“I… I was thinking about telling this guy, ya know? But I don’t know if he would feel the same… Whatcha think?” he whispered, trying to keep his voice steady.
“I-I think.. I think that this boy would be an-an idiot not to take you.. I think h-he would be really excited. I think he’s probably been waiting a long time to hear this..” Peter whispered back, not taking his head off his chest, mainly out of anxiety.
Harley paused for a second, his heart racing. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then looked back down at him. “Peter?” he asked, trying to get the brunet to look up at him.
After their eyes met, he knew he couldn’t do anything else. Harley leaned down and brushed his lips tentatively against Peter’s, just testing the water. What he didn’t expect was for Peter to kiss right back. When their lips connected, it felt like everything was right in the world. Like nothing could go wrong, ever again. Neither of them ever wanted the moment to end. But after a second, the blond broke off, looking down at him with a nervous smile.
“I… so uh… Wi-will.. Peter..?” He asked, still holding him tight as he stuttered. Peter only nodded, but he wasn’t sure if it was an answer or just encouragement. “Will you.. Do you uh.. Do you want to be my boyfriend?”
Peter let out a small laugh and nodded more, this time it obviously being an answer. “Yes, you dork. I’d be stupid not to say yes!”
Harley let out a breathy laugh as all the tension seemed to leave his body at his answer. “Holy shit..” he whispered, earning an equal laugh from the other.
“Yeah… good holy shit, right?”
“Fantastic holy shit,” He murmured, smiling softly at him, before ducking down and pressing another soft kiss to his lips.