16462/Decking Pezzini House

Decking Pezzini House
Date of Scene:	01 December 2023
Location:	Pezzini House
Synopsis:	Joshua surprises Sara with a tree! And they talk about the upcoming holidays and flirting.
Cast of Characters:	Joshua Foley, Sara Pezzini

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Joshua Foley has posed:
Having headed out earlier in the morning, Joshua had said something about wanting a coffee drink instead of the usual coffee he shares with Sara in the morning. It's been a couple of hours since he headed out, far longer than it would take to get a simple coffee drink and come home. Eventually, however, two hours have passed, and the keys jingle in the door of the house, and it opens.

Coming in first, though, is the pointy tip top of a tree. Joshua, dressed in a bright orange and white puffy jacket, blue jeans and a knit cap, is brighter gold in his face, flushed with exertion and having hauled a good sized Christmas tree up the stairs and trying to get it in the house. While that's going on, he's also trying to be sneaky as he wants to get the tree up before Sara realizes that he's back - which really is going to be a losing proposition. She is a detective after all.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
There was nothing wrong with wanting 'fancy' coffee. Sometimes even Sara went out to specific locations to get a cup with all the bells and whistles, but there were very specific locations. She may be a cop, but she was also a bit of a coffee snob, which was a rare combination. Sure, she would drink the last cup of sludge from the office pot, but she'd bitch about it the whole time.

By the passage of an hour she had finished her morning work out, her shower, an argument with Witchblade, and three phone calls to the office. She was supposed to leave for the station by seven in the morning, but today was a rare half day... that is she was being forced by her boss to take half a day because she never called in or took vacations.

By an hour and a half, she was sitting on the couch with her work laptop on the coffee table, listening to verbal reports for the calls that occurred last night, and wondering just where the hell Joshua was.

Sneaking in was next to impossible given her seated location, so when the top of a tree came through the front door she had too choices, and neither of them involved violence. One was to pretend she was so busy doing nothing that she didn't see, the other was the one she actually choose. Hopping up she moved to pull the door open all the way so Joshua could bring the officially murdered tree into the house.

Joshua Foley has posed:
Busted. Not that he had much of a chance anyway. "Morning, sweetheart." Joshua greets between little puffs of breath. "I was cleaning up yesterday, and in the attic, there were all these boxes marked 'Christmas', and they were very dusty. And seeing as it's our first Christmas together as a couple... I mean, I know it's soon and quick and all..." he clears his throat as he works with Sara to get the tree set up. It's a tree he probably spent more than he really should have (or possibly afford) on it, before he moves to set it up in the corner he had cleared out earlier.

"I just thought I could make it a little festive?" he asks her, "Set the mood, even if it's just the two of us spending the holiday together - which is more a feature than a complaint." Dusting himself off, he ohs. "I was checking in the boxes and found this..."

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a photo. It's a picture of a young Sara standing in front of a Christmas tree, same spot he had just put the empty one in, the one in the picture is covered in decorations. "I just..." he smiles. "I thought it'd be nice to give you a little bit of..." he gestures to the tree. "I mean."

Sara Pezzini has posed:
Sara could have easily helped him with the tree, she could have taken the top half as it came through the door and eased the load, but she didn't. What she did was stand there grinning, watching him fight with the tree and begin what had to be a prepared speech as to why he was bringing a Christmas tree into the house.

Closing the door once he's inside, she lets him continue his prepared words. He was likely expecting some sort of resistance to the tree in the house. She hadn't put decorated for Thanksgiving, and all the decorations had years of dust on them so it made sense that he was expecting push back. All the clues he'd found clearly pointed to the logical conclusion that she would hate it.

Once he has the tree in the very same corner her mother always put it in, the same place her father continued to put it, and then he pulled out the picture of her as a child by the tree... a lump formed in her throat. She kept the grin on her face and gave herself a moment to shove that lump back down.

"How long did you practice that speech?" She asks lightly, finally walking to the tree and lifting a branch to sniff the needles. "I'm thinking all the way to the tree lot, the entire time you were picking out a tree, and all the way home?"

Stepping back she turned to look him in the eyes. "Douglas, just like my father always got. The exact correct height for the living room. I was five in the picture, and we had just finished decorating the tree... I didn't think that picture was even still around."

Pausing, she cants her head. "Of course we can have a tree, and its a beautiful one Joshua, thank you."

Joshua Foley has posed:
THE STRUGGLE IS REAL, YO.

The tree is up though and now he's laying out his case and the alibi and the whole story. "Oh, no, since I found this picture." Joshua admits sheepishly as he hands the photo over. "I mean, I gotta have a place to, well... put a gift under." There's a laugh at that, before he waits for her wrath and judgement.

When neither come, he launches into her, his arms around her waist as a puff of air comes out of the jacket, warm, smelling of Joshua and the tree as he presses a kiss against her mouth, warm, affectionate, and if she's not careful, deepening.

He manages to pull himself back and hold in lustful intent for the moment. "We can get the decorations down later and put them up!" he decides, finally releasing her to at least take off his coat. "I can introduce you to my mom's recipe for holiday punch...."

And that's when it hits, as he hangs up his jacket. This is going to his first Christmas in a new home. Not on the streets. Not at a school. But with someone that thinks he's special. Even if their feelings don't completely match up. He won't be alone.

He lifts his arm to swipe his sleeve over his eyes. "No. I should make new holiday traditions with you. If... we... if you want." Because traditions are year to year.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
Accepting him into the hug, Sara wraps her arms around him, complete with the puff of warm air to the face. The kiss is kept to a certain level of affection and warmth as the front blinds are open and the neighbor on the right is always looking for a chance to spy. A man carrying a tree inside would be a good first nosy-nelly clue.

She was just about to say something when she notices him wipe his eyes, and it takes her only a moment to put these clues together... he spoke of his mother, so the memories of past holidays had to have come to his mind.

"My mother had a lot of traditions when I was young," she says softly, walking over to kiss his cheek. "She used to collect a new tree ornament to add to her collection. My father had only one tradition, and it involved the night before Santa came." There a slight chuckle here and she shakes her head a little.

"Of course we have to have our own traditions, but there's nothing wrong with taking someone elses tradition and making it our own, or changing it up and making it our own."

Gesturing toward the stairs, "Just wait, you'll see soooo many decorations up there."

Joshua Foley has posed:
When she kisses his cheek, Joshua sighs and nods. "We have time to figure that out." he admits quietly to her, before he glances towards the window and gives a wave, just in case!

That done, his attention moves to Sara and her explanation of things. "I'm good. We're good." A smile and then she's gesturing upstairs. He glances up the stairs and then to Sara, before getting a grin, playful and sweet. "I know what else is upstairs too." A pause to kiss her cheek in return. "And that may be more fun than unpacking boxes." he teases before he's heading for the stairs.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
Sara laughs, shaking her head before rolling her eyes. "I /just/ got clean from my work out and I still have to go in this afternoon," she replies, then grabs a cushion off the couch and throws it at him.

"So where as it would be way more fun, it would also make me late," she then adds, walking to pick up the cushion. "So, boxes... but let me put something over my clothing so I don't end up covered in dust."

Joshua Foley has posed:
"I can handle the decorating while you're gone." Joshua moves to dust a little off of Sara's shoulder and he smiles at her. "So, you don't get dirty. You look lovely by the way." he says in a mild teasing way. "And when you get done, the tree will be done and you..."

His fingers tease the front of her blouse. "Maybe you'll find a little something-something as an early present." It's lame, but at least he's attempting to flirt.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
Looking down at herself, then back up at him, Sara blinks a few times. "Joshua, did you hit your head on the tree?" She asks with a smirkish grin. "I mean, this is a turtle neck, slacks, and combat boots. How is that lovely?"

She nusges him lightly before adding, "You probably think I look lovely in everything, right? So what sort of something-something are we talking about here? I know what /I/ have for you later," she wiggles her brows. "But what are you thinking?"

Joshua Foley has posed:
"I mean, if you want me to be honest?" Josh manages with a thoughtful pause and he considers her. "You look best in nothing." he comments to her, his cheeks darkening as Sara makes promises about later. "Now you're going to have me thinking about that all day." he grouses, but there's no real anger there.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
At the top of the stairs Sara grabs an over sized button front shirt to slip on, then pulls down the ladder to the attic. "You are relentless, you know that?" She asks with a grin, then gestures up the ladder steps.

"The entire point was to have you thinking about it all day my dear," she then states. "It's called building up suspense, and hoping at the end of the day, it was worth it."

Joshua Foley has posed:
"I mean, I already know you're worth it." Joshua admits shyly as they get to the top of the stairs, and he starts to climb up in the attic. "I realized that the moment I got the bravery to ask you out." He shakes his head and blows out a breath as he moves aside for her to follow him up.

"You make it sound like I don't already think about you at least once a day." he points out to Sara as he arrives at the boxes to start moving them closer to the entrance to the attic.

Sara Pezzini has posed:
Sara honestly has no idea how easily moving boxes up and down the attic ladder steps would be for Joshua, so as he moves them to the edge, she goes up picks one up, and takes it down the stairs.

"I think about you throughout the day," she admits as she sets the first box down on the second floor, then heads back up the stairs. "But I more meant if the surprise in mind will be enough to match up to the suspense. Not every present will be a hit, some are going to suck."

Joshua Foley has posed:
It's not easy, it's practice. Joshua did it a lot at home. When he had one. And it's a process. Move all the boxes from their spot to the stairs. And then up and down the stairs, a couple of boxes at a time. "I mean, Sara, I think about you... a lot." he shrugs. "I'm pretty sure I could probably sketch you nude from memory, but I know. I just have to make sure that what I get you at least comes from the heart and not me realizing it's Decemember 24th at 9 PM and Walgreens is the only place open."

Sara Pezzini has posed:
When Sara reaches the top of the ladder again, she stacks two boxes on each other before picking them up. "Joshua, you don't have to get me shit for Christmas," she states bluntly. "It's not a requirement or a law, so if it's December twenty-forth at nine o'clock, it just is. If you /want/ to get something, that's another matter entirely, and entirely your choice."

She starts down the ladder again to add the boxes to the others she's already moved. "I don't usually celebrate Christmas, I haven't since my father died, and even my Aunt knows not to come knocking this time of year. So we're starting something entirely new here."