Request Ficlet 21(10): Falling This Hard (Christmas fic for Jessica)

[labyrinth2015]

All right, finally getting around to the request ficlets which I'd taken on while over at cookleta_etc.

I fully intend to make a big compilation (Declaration and Other Songs of Love and Romance), but I wanted to post the longest ficlet early, for kissesblow's birthday. Happy birthday, daughter-of-my-heart-and-the-internetz! I tried to make your requested Christmas fic as adorable as you are (not sure how successful I was, LOL, because you are pretty darn adorable! But I hope you enjoy anyway).

Jessica kissesblowasked for COOK/ARCHIE DUET ON ARCHIE'S CHRISTMAS ALBUM, writing, recording, everything ;) I tried to include all her favorite Christmas songs (and a crappy one of my own, haha).

Falling This Hard (crashing down), G, 2,600 words
Beta: The very patient frackin_sweet, who seemed rather fond of Manilow (*snicker*)
A/N: Fair use of Christmas song lyrics. Severe cavity-inducing fluff warning.


Falling This Hard (crashing down)

The idea comes to him in summer, when the world around him is blue skies, streets made hazy by the heat and sprinklers. Weekends of hot dogs and ball games, everywhere girls in strapless dresses, boys in shirtsleeves.

Dave's pulling back to back summer tour dates, making cracks with concert audiences about it being so hot he's going to turn up in a tank top and booty shorts. It's so hot, he's sweating like a bull in heat, if that is even a metaphor. It's too hot even for metaphors, it's that hot.

It's after one of these concerts that he gets the call from Archie. Dave's excited to hear from him, hasn't seen him since Idol 2009. He's a little buzzed, though, and it's noisy, so at first he thinks Arch is talking about the weather.

"What? No way it's snowing in Kansas City!"

"No," says Archie, sounding a little cross, "I said, would you like to make a song with me, about snow! A song for my Christmas album!"

Dave wipes the sweat from his forehead: man, is it ever hot in this bus, he needs to get someone to fix the goddamn A/C.

"Christmas album? Sounds awesome. I'd love to collab with you, Arch." He pauses to switch his cell to his other ear. "You sure Jive will go for it, though? Thought they're not my biggest fans, which is why I got bumped to the poorer cousin label."

He hears Archie snort, and can almost see his friend make that characteristic flapping movement with his hands. "Stop teasing, so not funny! Anyway, I already cleared it with management."

"Can't believe they were thrilled," says Dave, and there's a pause, in which he can totally hear Archie squirming on the other end.

"C'mon, Arch, what did they say?"

"Well," says Archie, a little hesitantly, "They said, okay, but get Cook to agree no swear words, no 'Merry Christmas Baby Please Come Home', and preferably a nice song about snow. Gosh, please stop laughing!"

When Dave can breathe again, he says, "Y'know, this isn't making me feel very inspired, Archuleta. I'm not sure how many songs about snow I can make."

"Please, David?" Arch makes with the puppy-dog begging noises. "Snow is great. Some of the best Christmas songs're about snow. I'm dreamin' of a white Christmas/ Just like the ones I used to know/ Where the treetops glisten and children listen/ To hear sleigh-bells in the snow..."

Dave laughs: it's charming when Archie goes on these free-association singing rambles. "It's too hot right now to think of songs about snow."

"Snow's easy! A beautiful sight, we're happy tonight/ Walking in a winter wonderland."

"You're really getting into the Christmas thing, aren't you?" Dave knows Archie can hear him grinning. "Promise I’ll think about it, okay?"

"C'mon, please? Say yes, or I'll sing some more. Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful/ And since we've no place to go, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.... Now, you!"

Arch's voice is as lush and gorgeous as it's always been, his enthusiasm as infectious as it's always been, and despite himself, David is sucked in, as no doubt Archie has planned all along.

"When we finally kiss goodnight, how I hate to be out in the storm...Arch, somehow I don't think this is our song."

"Come ooooon, Cook!" pleads Archie, and David sighs and continues: "But if you really hold me tight...all the way home I'll be…warm...."

And, suddenly, for some reason, it's entirely too hot in here to sing that particular line of the song.

Arch supplies the next line, singing beautifully, obliviously to the sudden quiet on David's end, "Now the fire is slowly dying, and my dears are still goodbye-ing/ And the lights are turned way down low, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow."

Dave wonders why he feels he’s burning up, and like he needs to lie in the snow, after hearing that song lyric from Archie.

Belatedly, he also wonders how come it's so quiet all of a sudden, and looks around him to find his band-mates all standing behind him silently, wearing various expressions of amazement and hilarity, listening to their sweaty front-man sing an incredibly sappy Christmas song into his cellphone.

"Oh, for - !" It's Dave's turn to make a flapping movement, and he's willing to bet it looks nothing like Archie's. "It's for Archie's Christmas album! Don't you guys have work to do? Sorry," he adds, to his cell. "It's the boys making fun."

"Say hi to them for me," says Archie; then, "So you'll do it?"

"God help me. All right," says David, and puts his hand over his face. He’s really not sure at all what he’s gotten himself into.

**

Dave thinks this to himself the very next day, when a long email from Archie arrives on his Blackberry that discusses the merits of various words that rhymed with snow. (His favourite word from the list is ”Manilow". Did Arch really want them to make a Copacabana Christmas song?)

Over the next couple of weeks, the emails continue to accumulate in his inbox, and he ends up asking himself what he'd gotten himself into at least once a day.

He does want to work with Archie, though. So, initially, while it's difficult to get excited about Christmas when it's swimsuit weather outside, Arch's unflagging enthusiasm and relentless emailing (although he's supposed to be touring with Demi Lovato), finally breaks down David's defences, and he emails back (I think any song about snow needs to feature a warm fireplace. “Mandy” optional).

Arch's response is to send him the lyrics to Barry Manilow's “Because It’s Christmas”, and Dave shakes his head over Archie's Braniac-like powers of song recollection.

And before he knows it, they're actually writing this thing.

The long summer draws to an end as their song takes shape, like a response to the frosty song lyrics that they're making. The air seems to cool with promise.

Dave calls Archie from the bus to bounce chord structures, Arch rings Dave from his hotel room to sing snatches of lyrics at him. There aren't enough hours in the day, and finally, after too many weeks, David caves and gets a Twitter so they can direct message each other lyrics and melodies, and impromptu vids of themselves singing and goofing off. (Along the way, he tweets Arch a vid of them singing in Manila, and Arch DMs him back: remember like it was yest, haha!)

Before Dave goes onstage in Orlando, he gets a DM of Arch singing the lyric that they're working on, with the least controversial "snow" rhyme.

Arch's image looks into the screen of his camera phone and he sings sweetly,

"Why stay inside when we can go for a ride?
We can head out east to a place I know -
Alone at last, nowhere else to go
We're falling like this, falling like snow."

Only after it ends does Dave realise he's been listening to it with a hand pressed to his heart like a sap, and he's singing along.

He shakes himself, messages back: DM from thedavidcook: Awesome, it really works, and joins the guys in the wings.

"How's Archie's song coming along?" asks Neal, curiously, and Dave shrugs, deliberately casual.

"It's coming. Dunno whether Jive will like it, though."

Fall's in full swing when they get the final go-ahead from the overlords of Archie’s label: the song is sufficiently filled with snowy references, it will not feature David Cook's guitar but Archie's piano, David Cook will be permitted to add his backing vocals to the chorus.

Dave's management is livid, but Dave himself is just kind of amused, and he does admit Archie's elegant piano is more suited to the yearning, schmaltzy ditty they've come up with than Cook's acoustic guitar.

I stil want to make Merry Xmas Archie Please Come Home he direct messages Arch (this song collab has turned him into a Twittering fiend).

@thedavidcook:You can make it when you do a Christmas album, Arch tweets back publicly, a mistake, and they have to turn off their Twitters in the face of the ensuing explosion of enthusiastic tweets from the fans.

**

He meets Archie in Jive's recording studios in West Hollywood. He's afraid the spin gurus have added synthesizer and samplings and freaky bell-ringing noises to their song, but Arch's production team actually seem to know what they're doing, and he's delighted when he runs into Kara DioGuardi in the corridor.

"Hey, DC! Christmas song's awesome!"

"Thanks," Dave says modestly. "We used every single rhyme for snow, except ones that are copyright to Barry M, and the Springsteen song they won’t let me sing."

Kara snickers, and Dave ducks into the recording studio, where Archie is in the hot seat, mufflers framing his face, singing their song into the amp mic.

Archie's really caught up in the song, eyes squeezed shut. His shimmering voice fills the room:

"Baby why don't you come inside
Sit yourself down by my side
Take your shoes off, I'll turn the lights down low -
You make me fall like this, I'm falling like snow. "

A shiver runs up Dave's spine: the thought of sitting beside Archie, in front of a roaring fireplace, taking one foot in his hand, pulling Arch's shoe off--

-- then Archie opens his eyes and sees him in the sound booth, and grins his huge scrunchy grin, and the sound tech makes a cutting movement with his hand.

"Cook!"

"Okay, take five," the Jive guy says, trying not to sound too disgusted, but Dave doesn't care, because he's on his feet when the sound booth door slams open, and Archie's there in his arms.

*

It doesn't take long to wrap up their song, and that's despite Dave being totally unable to get the last chorus down (he has no idea why; good thing the overlords put the lid on his guitar, too, otherwise he'd be messing up take after take).

He hasn't seen Arch for months, since the Idol finale when summer was just starting. Now fall has shortened the daylight hours and Arch seems to have gotten taller; no doubt as a result of all the cheeseburgers he's inhaled in the intervening months, like he's inhaling this one, in the diner opposite the recording studio.

"So, what Christmas plans have we, Arch?"

Arch licks ketchup from his fingers and launches into a cheery account of launch parties and Christmassing in Time Square and then birthday in Utah.

Dave's kind of distracted by the licking, and doesn't follow the entire thread of the conversation. He can't remember when Arch got so distracting; he doesn't know what's gotten into him.

"Cook, you're kinda zoning out?"

"Sorry." Dave shakes himself mentally. "I'm with you."

"Good, because, I said, Jive thinks you should come with me to Time Square, do carols from the album."

Dave raises an eyebrow. "Seriously, they'll trust me to be on the same stage as you?"

"Sure! Not as if you're gonna jump me, haha," says Archie, and Dave, for some reason, feels himself turn bright red.

"Might sing “Merry Christmas Baby”, just for that," he threatens, covering with usual banter, but when Archie makes the puppy-dog eyes he knows it's a losing battle.

* *

Christmas From the Heart is released in the first week of December, and rockets to Number One in as many days.

And their song is on every radio channel from coast to coast, sun to snowy mountaintop; Dave can't even shut the schmaltz off in his own head anymore.

Dave flies into New York the day he and Archie are scheduled to sing carols in Time Square. Trees are bare, the air's arctic, there's snow falling from the sky, snow everywhere, roofs, cars, sidewalks.

Dave wraps up warm (parka, woolly hat, workman's jeans; he's just the backing singer) and goes in search of his friend in the cold.

Archie is sitting on a fur-lined bench in the holding area, very much the glamorous pop star in a sharp pea coat, grey pullover, crushed-strawberry-colored cords. Snowflakes sparkle in his dark hair, turning his eyebrows to silver.

"Hi, Cook!" he says, and holds gloved hands out to him.

"I think your handlers hate my hat," mutters Dave out of the side of his mouth.

Arch grins. "I think it's cute."

"Cute? Then it's definitely coming off." Dave yanks, and there's a collective gasp from the Jive hair and makeup people.

"Oh my gosh, think you'd better put it back on, you're scaring the staff," says Arch, and Dave is still laughing when it's time for them to take the stage.

They hadn't sung together or shared a stage since Manila's equatorial heat, more than six months ago. Now it's winter, ice and frost everywhere, and it's the same (a feeling like they're one soul in two bodies) and somehow different (a feeling like they're two souls that belong in one body, and Dave really doesn't want to go there, but it's difficult, suddenly, Arch beside him with cold pinking his nose and frost lining his eyelashes).

And this is probably why Dave messes up the last chorus again. Way to go, this is his definitely his last engagement as a Jive Records backing singer.

Archie is kind about it, and doesn't mention it at the after party, although Arch, the star of the show, is mobbed by music execs and Disney princesses, and it's hard to get a word in edgeways.

Dave gets rather tanked up on mulled wine by himself, makes an inappropriately racy remark to a scandalised producer about Kris Allen's newly released debut album, and somehow finds himself bundled off in a limo headed back to his hotel (score one for the overlords, he should make a study of their Machiavellian ways).

Didn't get the chance to say goodbye to Arch, though, and there's winter in his chest, at the thought of getting on the plane tomorrow without seeing his friend one last time this year.

He reaches for his Blackberry, DMs with fingers that shake only a little (totally fine, not at all hammered!):Hey, yr handlers put me in a box marked return to sender. Have the best Xmas. Wil try to call tmrw to say gdbye. Love to yr family.

Eventually, Dave makes it to his hotel room without freezing to death. He turns on the TV, pulls off his parka and horrible hat, and plants face first in bed.

*

When he hears the buzzing, he thinks it's the wake-up call from the front desk. He lashes out with his arm.

Then he realises it's coming from the door outside.

Crap, what time is it, he didn't order any room service. Dave rolls out of bed, muzzily, flings open the door.

To the sight of David Archuleta: pea coat, grey pullover, cords, frost in his hair, on his eyelashes, looking as if Christmas fairies delivered him to Dave’s room.

Dave's schmaltzy hindbrain instantly supplies a Bing Crosby soundtrack, a roaring fireplace, mistletoe.

Oh wait: there is, in fact, a soundtrack.

Archie begins to sing, the last chorus of their song, the one Dave always falls down over.

"No more need to run or hide
All your fears we can cast aside
Don't be afraid, we'll take things slow
Come fall into this, falling like snow."

"Merry Christmas, David," says Arch, when the song's over.

And in his heart, crashing down, there's a dizzying avalanche of snow.

"We could've used mistletoe," Dave murmurs, leaning in the doorway.

Arch frowns at him. "In the song? Um, I guess it does rhyme..."

He can't remember ever falling this hard, his whole life.

"No, because I intend to kiss you now, Archuleta," Dave says, and takes his best friend firmly by the hand, a backdrop of snowflakes falling in the Christmas night behind them.

end

-> What happens next Christmas: A Different Falling.

Comments

[mellowdee.livejournal.com]

OHMAN. I LOVED THIS. BUT YOU KNOW BC OF THE SNEAK ATTACKS.

THE END THOUGH!!

To the sight of David Archuleta: pea coat, grey pullover, cords, frost in his hair, on his eyelashes, looking as if Christmas fairies delivered him to Dave’s room.

LOVED. THIS. Such perfect imagery!!!

"No, because I intend to kiss you now, Archuleta," Dave says, and takes his best friend firmly by the hand, a backdrop of snowflakes falling in the Christmas night behind them.

OH MAN. PERFECTION. I loved the best friend part, the hand holding, EVERYTHING.

This is like. Perfect Christmas fic in August. I will be rereading this like everyday in December.

♥.

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Thank you, dear! It was so sweet of you to stalk the sneak fic, too! I loved making this Christmas fic, it made me feel Christmassy too (and like I'd been attacked by Christmas fairies, lol).

[rajkumari905.livejournal.com]

<3333333333333 This is love.

[frackin-sweet.livejournal.com]

Do you know what David Cook wants for Christmas?

A PONY!!!

(OK, ITS THE SECOND THING HE WANTS)


AND YEAH, I'M GOING, I'M GOING, WILL COMMENT LATER BB - BUT YOU ALREADY KNOW I LOVE IT!!!!
♥ ♥ ♥

[frackin-sweet.livejournal.com]

PLEASE DISREGARD INCORRECTLY PLACED COMMENT!!!!

And i agree with yours, as well XD

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Thaaaaaanks! xox

[frackin-sweet.livejournal.com]

LOL, CRAP, FLAIL MADE MY COMMENT GO IN THE WRONG PLACE!!!

FAIL.

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

LOL YOU. You're jus flailing cos of GNEIL.

[cinderlily.livejournal.com]

@thedavidcook:You can make it when you do a Christmas album, Arch tweets back publicly, a mistake, and they have to turn off their Twitters in the face of the ensuing explosion of enthusiastic tweets from the fans.

Haha, cue the entirety of the fandom's simultaneous death by awesome. ;)

So sweet and totally adorable! Mmm. Saturday morning fic. ♥

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Aw, thanks! Think the boys will be killing all of us with the twittering, at some point! XD

[kissesblow.livejournal.com]

~flails~

oh my gosh, oh my goodness, JAY. JAY. you have created a monster -- i will now be expecting christmas cookleta ficlets every august from now on!

(actually, that's sort of a lie, but - after this one? SERIOUSLY. i'm considering locking you up and making you my own personal fic writer, js.)

let's start from the top, shall we? good? GOOD.

Belatedly, he wonders how come it's so quiet all of a sudden, and looks around him to find his band-mates all standing behind him silently, wearing various expressions of amazement and hilarity, listening to their sweaty front-man sing an incredibly sappy Christmas song into his cellphone.

still gets me, EVERY SINGLE TIME. because i can totally imagine andy and neal just sort of staring at him, possibly breaking into reckless laughter, one of the two. gosh! i love this scene way too much for its own good.

“Mandy” optional.

you're making me laugh first thing when i wake up, which is possibly the biggest achievement in the world. holy cow, lady!

and then archie, singing to cook over his phone? and archie, accidentally tweeting the entirety of twitter instead of dm'ing? you know archie so well, it's sort of ~insane. like, i feel like if when i meet archie irl, he's going to be the spitting image of your archie. at least i hope he is! especially when it comes to:

Arch licks ketchup from his fingers and launches into a cheery account of launch parties and Christmassing in Time Square and then birthday in Utah.

THE LICKING. cannot accurately describe how much this scene made me ~swoon, what with cook being all flustered and archie being kind of oblivious, and -- oh my gosh, pining!cook is my favorite.

BUT WAIT --- i skipped this part:

A shiver runs up Dave's spine: the thought of sitting beside Archie, in front of a roaring fireplace, taking one foot in his hand, pulling Arch's shoe off--

-- then Archie opens his eyes and sees him in the sound booth, and grins his huge scrunchy grin, and the sound tech makes a cutting movement with his hand.

my face is a permanent :D right now! and -- the hug at the end of that scene?! :D :D :D.

Archie is sitting on a fur-lined bench in the holding area, very much the glamorous pop star in a sharp pea coat, grey pullover, crushed-strawberry-colored cords. Snowflakes sparkle in his dark hair, turning his eyebrows to silver.

thinking of archie like this is possibly the prettiest image i've ever had in my head, and i'm not exaggerating. archie? in a pea coat? snow in his hair and eyebrows? <3333

"Cute? Then it's definitely coming off." Dave yanks, and there's a collective gasp from the Jive hair and makeup people.

"Oh my gosh, think you'd better put it back on, you're scaring the staff," says Arch, and Dave is still laughing when it's time for them to take the stage.

thisssss has happened in real life, i'm pretty sure. oh cook! making the makeup people all ~a-fluster. i can just see him doing this.

"Merry Christmas, David," says Arch, when the song's over.

And in his heart, crashing down, there's a dizzying avalanche of snow.

"We could've used mistletoe," Dave murmurs, leaning in the doorway.

Arch frowns at him. "In the song? Um, I guess it does rhyme..."

He can't remember ever falling this hard, his whole life.

"No, because I intend to kiss you now, Archuleta," Dave says, and takes his best friend firmly by the hand, a backdrop of snowflakes falling in the Christmas night behind them.

♥

[kissesblow.livejournal.com]

did i really not even say thank you? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS, JAY. it's made my week, let me tell you. gosh. <33

[missquiet.livejournal.com]

I LOVE THIS!

Who could resist Archie singing Christmas songs at them? Then the band just staring at Dave kills me. Archie's enthusiasm for the song is so presh, and so Archie.

I like the "falling like snow" part of the song, and how it mirrors Cook falling for Archie.

"We could've used mistletoe," Dave murmurs, leaning in the doorway.
Arch frowns at him. "In the song? Um, I guess it does rhyme..."
LOL Forever. Oh, Archie.

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Thanks, hon! I enjoyed making the little song (with all its snow lyrics), and I'm glad you saw it mirrored Cook falling for Arch!

(I did consider putting "mistletoe" into the song, but gave that line to Arch instead XD)

[abovetheruins.livejournal.com]

Aw! That was just, just...gah, I DON'T EVEN KNOW. BEAUTIFUL! Totally put me in the X-mas mood, darn you! XD

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Thanks, hon ;) I felt Christmassy making this!

[tankshallkill.livejournal.com]

YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH YOU JUST MADE ME WANT CHRISTMAS. HOLYSMOKES. OMG. <33

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

I got into the Christmas mood while making this ;)

I have your prompt done as well, bb - snap shirts+hickeys! Will post soon!

[amccoy1972.livejournal.com]

Aw Jay, this was just perfect. I can just picture the Jive people freaking out like this over-excited greek chorus...

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Yeah - I hv the sneaky suspicion that Jive hates Cook. There's a reason why he's signed to RCA!

[lilgrump.livejournal.com]

Oh my gosh, that is beautiful, bb. Cute, funny and beautiful, to be exact ♥ I actually quite liked the Christmas song you made them write, especially how it was about "falling like snow" while they were both busy falling for each other *happy sigh*

And *LOL* The ending XD

"We could've used mistletoe," Dave murmurs, leaning in the doorway.
Arch frowns at him. "In the song? Um, I guess it does rhyme..."

Hahaha! Oh, Archie ♥

And then my heart melted when Cook told Archie he was going to kiss him :DDD

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Haha, glad someone liked my little Christmas song! For which I also utilised many of the rhymes for snow contained in the Archie email ;) I did want to mirror the falling in love theme, so pleased you picked it up!

I kinda liked the ending too, hon! Thank you so much!

[penrith1.livejournal.com]

Sweet and tender. Yes to your adorable Archie voice. Poor Cook how dare Jive treat him like that, after all he's a rockstar. Haa
I love how laid back Cook is in this, taking all the flak just to be with Arch. Love your stuff as always.

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Thanks, darling! I do think Jive may not be the biggest fans of Cook, which is why he is signed to RCA instead. (Kris Allen is signed with Jive, go figure.)

[james-padfoot.livejournal.com]

LET ME COUNT THE WAYS IN WHICH I LOVE YOU. OH WAIT, I CAN'T ITS LIEK A KABAZILLION TRILLION.

I loved Cook's self-depreciation, the embedded twitter refs (cook getting twitter has been like the most amazing thing to happen to fandom this month)and OMFY YES PLZ DUET FOR HIS ALBUM I WOULD DIE YDEK.

FICLET FOR YOU, DARLING

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

oo, you're here! I made your birds&bees prompt, darling, hope you like it! (Again, I borrow fieryrogue's Somewhere That's Green-verse.

2. Heroes

james_padfoot wanted “COOK AND ARCHIE HAVING TO TALK TO THEIR TEENAGE DAUGHTER ABOUT THE BIRDS AND THE BEES.”

Title: Still Standing
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 900+

Still Standing

She’d always said you were her hero.

At age three, her hero was Diego, from Dora the Explorer. When she told you this, you tried to swing on the ropes hanging from the swing-set in your yard, pretending to be the cartoon boy who saved animals from danger, and she'd sat under the tree and clapped her little hands together.

"Daddy Diego!" she’d shrieked, and Arch rolled his eyes at both of you: "This is so the last time we’re watching that show."

("Usted sabe que hace mejor Español, bebé," you'd told Arch, swooping in for a kiss, and he’d rolled his eyes again: “Clearly, it’s not working”.)

At age six, her hero was the Beast, the shaggy, prince-in-monster form from the Disney movie. You loved that she preferred the misunderstood, articulate monster and his huge library of books to the blandly handsome Prince Charming type. And, of course, she identified with Belle, serious and brave, a beauty in no need of rescue like Disney’s other sparkling princesses.

She giggled when you put on your blue frock-coat that you had wardrobe rustle up, and picked her up and ran around the house roaring your head off.

("It’s your turn later, Archuleta!" you growled, grabbing your spouse around the waist on your way to the living room, putting your bearded cheek against his promisingly, and he'd pushed you away, giggling like your child.)

At age ten, her hero was William Shakespeare. She clomped around the house in too-big sparkly heels belonging to her mom, declaiming soliloquies from Juliet, Ophelia, Miranda.

You made an Elizabethan ruff from various scarves, stood on the top of the steps and delivered Prospero's speech at the top of your lungs, and both she and Archie applauded wildly when you were done.

("Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?" you asked Arch, later, in bed, and he draped the scarf, which he'd pulled from your throat a few minutes ago, over your eyes, murmuring, "Go right ahead.")

However, now she's thirteen, her hero seems to be an older boy called Blair, and you and Arch are a little concerned.

("I know you, Cook. No dressing up in bad acid-washed jeans and black hats, promise me," your sweet love tells you, and you mutter: "No kid should dress like it's the 1980s, there must be something wrong with him, baby.")

Things come to a head when Blair asks her to go to some all night party in the Valley with him and his slacker friends whom you and Arch haven't met.

Brooke and Carly are out of town for five months on their grand European tour, and you figure it'll freak the kiddo out even more to have this conversation with her moms on videoconference, which is why you and Arch decide to head this off at the pass and have this conversation with her the weekend.

Arch sits her down at the kitchen table. She leans forward, and the posture emphasizes her newfound height, and its companion feline slenderness. You try not to notice.

"Baby, we kinda need to talk about Blair," you tell her, figuring direct is best. "You know we both like him, but he's older than you, and we just need to make sure that you know what's what."

[clionona.livejournal.com]

OMGOMGOMG!!!
I am dead of the sweet fluffiness, bb!
*happily rolls around in the fluff*
♥!

I LOVE THIS SO HARD!!!

I'm going to be grinning like a sap all day because of you, dang it! :D

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Aw, sweetie, I missed you so much!

Glad you enjoyed the fluff; I have been kind of all sexing and untrammelled darkness with AIRN, for such a while, I had fun making fluffy Christmassy romance ;)

[asmallsmackerel.livejournal.com]

HOW DID I MISS THIS?! D: I DIDN'T MEAN TO, PROMISE. ILU. ♥

But anyway, this was all sorts of cute and squee. <333 Really, it was, I want a Archie/Cook duet very hardcorely now. :D If only, if only.

But, this was mindboggling and mindblowing as always. All sorts of :DDDD from my part. Haha.

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Aww, thanks, hon! I had lots of fun making happy fluffy Christmassy fic and dueting! XD

[somewheresunny.livejournal.com]

♥ Now I'm in the Christmas spirit!

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Thanks - I got Christmassy too, when I was making this! ♥!

[lire-casander.livejournal.com]

I have no words. Really, I don't. I'm catching up with your writing and this? Melted me. I can't wait till Christmas, how I wish they'd actually do this!

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Aw, hon - so sweet of you to come catch up with me! I felt really Christmassy making this ;)

[evilgeniuslady.livejournal.com]

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!! This (and rainy boys kissing) warmed my heart like you wouldn't believe. *happy sigh* Thank you. :)

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

I'm happy to make you happy, darling. *hugs you* hope school is good today!

[descartes]

HEARTS! HEARTS IN MY EYES!

This is awesome, amazing, lovely holiday fic!

[jehane-writes.livejournal.com]

Aww. I'm glad you liked it, and didn't mind my silly little Christmas song <3