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The sun shone through the sheer curtains in the guest room and danced across Odysseus' waking face. He squinted at the light before throwing an arm over his eyes. His head pounded with the previous night's party and regret for how much he drank filled his veins.
"That was an insane dream."
He groaned as he turned away from the sun, startling himself into a sitting position when he saw Penelope sleeping against the pillow right next to him.
"What the fuck.." He mumbled under his breath, staring at his hands in his lap as memories flooded his head.
Taking a moment to absorb his surroundings he realized they were both above the blanket, still wearing the Christmas sweaters Penelope had made for everyone. Odysseus wasn't wearing his glasses, but the stupid reindeer antlers he wore the night before still adorned his head. Penelope was still sleeping, Odysseus found the spare blanket in the corner of the room, unfolding it and covering the girl, his girl, his girlfriend. Woah. Penelope was his girlfriend.
She looked beautiful, face half pressed into the pillow. Her hand was half reaching out towards wear Odysseus had previously been sleeping, the other tucked under herself comfortably. He couldn't believe it was real. Her lipstick was mostly faded, smudged down her chin a bit and there was a red mark on her nose that he knew she'd gotten when they first kissed under the mistletoe.
He needed to thank Menelaus, Paris, and Helen, maybe even Achilles and Patroclus, for the whole scheme. He had a girlfriend. He had Penelope.
After looking at her for a minute longer he left the room, sneaking into the bathroom quietly. When he looked into the mirror he was surprised to see his nose was still mostly red, but even moreso he was shocked by the kiss marks covering his entire face. He was tired then, but he remembered that they climbed into the guest bed away from all the noise, facing each other and giggling. Penelope had grabbed his face planting pecks all over, as if she wanted to make sure he felt it on every inch of skin she could possibly get to. He remembered her planting a final peck on his lips before mumbling, "I love you," against them. He was pretty sure he said it back, but he doubted himself.
As he was about to leave the bathroom to correct this grievous error the door knob twisted and he realized he forgot to lock the door behind himself. Paris walked in and almost ran straight into Odysseus.
"Oh, Ody-" He took in Odysseus' face, an evil grin taking form, "Helen!" He yelled for his girlfriend.
Odysseus shushed him but it was far too late, Helen was making her way towards the bathroom.
"What is it?" She asked, sleepy.
"Look at our baby," Paris said, grabbing Odysseus by the jaw and showing him off to Helen.
"I am older than both of you!" Odysseus voice jumped, but he didn't try to pull away from Paris' hold.
"Aww," Paris cooed, "He's all grown up, finally got a girlfriend!"
Odysseus scoffed, trying to pull out of Paris' hands to no avail and when Helen pulled out her phone he growled, "Let me go."
"Never," Paris whispered, coming behind Odysseus and smiling over his shoulder at the camera, grabbing his wrists with one hand to make sure he didn't cover his face, the other hand still holding his jaw straight, "Smile!"
"Cheese!" Helen smiled as the flash went off, Odysseus grimacing at the camera.
"What are you guys doing?" Penelope spoke, watching the scene in front of her from the bathroom door.
Odysseus made eye contact with her, pleading silently for her to save him.
Helen smiled coyly, "Just taking a picture."
Menelaus appeared behind Penelope, wiping sleep from his eyes and yawning, "Will you three shut up?"
"Mene!" Paris guffawed, "Look how cute our boy looks."
Menelaus blinked one eye at a time at the two tangled together, Odysseus still pulling at the hold Paris had on him, "Lipstick suits you," Was all he said.
Odysseus' eyes fell back to Penelope, she was smiling thoughtfully at him and he stopped struggling, giving her his biggest puppy eyes.
She sighed, "Alright, let him go, Paris."
"You don't like seeing him struggle?" Paris giggled, letting him go anyway.
Penelope hummed, cradling Odysseus in her arms as he hid his face in her neck, "I didn't say that, but you should keep your hands off things that don't belong to you."
Paris whistled, "Ohh, possessive."
She giggled, "I like to take care of what's mine."
"Freaks," Menelaus mumbled under his breath, pulling Helen away with him, back to bed.
"I know you want that pic," Paris winked as he followed his partners, Odysseus face still hidden, "Don't worry, I'll get Helen to send it to you."
"Perfect."
The door clicked shut behind Paris and Penelope waited for Odysseus to move. He didn't.
"Are you coming out from there?" She asked, squeezing him tighter for a moment.
"No," He mumbled against her skin and she realized what was wrong.
"Look at me."
Odysseus reluctantly pulled away from the prolonged hug, face bright red and eyes fixated on the ground.
"Why are you embarrassed?"
"I'm not," He forced eye contact in defiance.
"Oh," Penelope strategically brought her hand up to her nose, wiping it on the back of her hand, Odysseus' eyes tracking the entire movement, "I must've misunderstood."
"I love you too." Odysseus blurted.
Penelope was taken aback, she was supposed to be teasing him, but instead his eyes were serious and face straight, "I know you do, you said so last night."
"Did I?"
"You did," She nodded, taking his face in her hands, much gentler than Paris had before, and pulling him into a kiss.
Odysseus hummed against her lips, hands coming to her waist and pulling them closer together. Penelope tilted her head to deepen the kiss, running her tongue along his bottom lip. Odysseus was quick to respond, opening his mouth and meeting her tongue with his own. They clashed for a moment and Odysseus leaned impossibly closer, greedily exploring her mouth. Penelope pulled back and he whined, chasing her lips till she stopped him with two hands on his chest.
Penelope almost seemed put together, slightly breathless and smiling sweetly, "Calm down."
His fingers twitched on her hips but didn't move again, waiting for her to lean in. She took control of this kiss, deepening it and guiding Odysseus smoothly. She let her hands fall down his face, drag down his chest as she bunched the fabric into her hands, pulling him with her as she backed herself into the counter. He grabbed at it on either side of her to steady himself, leaning more into the girl.
A knock at the door broke them apart, "Get out of the bathroom I need to pee, you can fuck in your bedroom!"
They both flushed slightly, "Fuck off, Paris," Odysseus grumbled through the door.
"Touchy," Paris snickered, and Odysseus heard him pad down the hall towards the kitchen.
He straightened his clothes and Penelope gave him a final peck before she left the room. He did what he originally came into the bathroom to do, brushing his teeth and, sadly, cleaning the lipstick smudged over his face.
He wandered out to the kitchen, Menelaus was making breakfast over the stove while Helen helped. Paris and Penelope sat at the island and the other two were still laying down on the air mattress in the living room. Odysseus smiled to himself as he took the seat next to Penelope, her phone background already changed to the new picture of him.
Patroclus and Achilles left not long after breakfast, and Odysseus and Penelope were back in the guest room. Odysseus wanted to talk more about their relationship. Really, he wanted to know when she started liking him, not able to pinpoint any change in his memory.
"First semester, I was walking with Palamedes," She cringed at his name and Odysseus almost laughed at the disgust written on her face, "And he pointed you out to me," she was smiling fondly and Odysseus blushed.
"Mhmm," He urged.
"You were playing with a frisbee, with Argos and Menelaus and you tripped over Argos and faceplanted into the grass," She was wearing a wide smile now, "I think that's when I knew."
Odysseus hid his face in his hands, groaning, "I don't even remember that, and I think that makes it worse."
"You do have a habit of making a fool of yourself."
"Only when a pretty girl walks by.." he cringed at his own pickup line.
Penelope grinned at him though, blinking innocently, "You think I'm pretty?"
Odysseus scoffed, taken aback, "Do I? Of course I do? You're stunning. I can't believe you even said yes to me last night. You're the prettiest girl I've ever laid eyes on, you're unbelievably smart, funny, and you care. I really do love you," He trailed, face on fire.
Penelope's face almost a matching shade of red, "I love you too."
She paused to take in the man in front of her, cross legged and still wearing the sweater she knitted for him. He picked at the edges of his sleeves with her continued stare, rubbing his fingers over the cows and waiting patiently for her to speak.
"When'd you start liking me then?"
"Oh," Odysseus was more embarrassed now. He'd taken much longer than her to start crushing and even longer to accept that he liked her at all. He silently cursed himself as he opened his mouth, "I actually didn't like you at first.."
Penelope watched him expectantly, not accepting the meek expression as an excuse not to go on.
"I thought you were making fun of me, always trying to one up me and acting like you were smarter. But then when we were paired for that first project I realized that was stupid, even moreso when you helped me out with Palamedes. I think that's when I started liking you, you were so kind to me even though we didn't know each other well. I really appreciated it at the time, I still do, but it meant more than you could imagine."
Penelope caressed his cheek, guiding him into another kiss and holding. Odysseus moved first, tilting his head to deepen the kiss and press forward into her, whole body leaning into it. Penelope smiled slightly at his eagerness, and Odysseus pulled back.
Before he could even speak, "You lose."
"What."
"You pulled away, I win." Penelope sported a wicked smile, challenge dancing in her eyes.
"Rematch," He almost begged, "I'll win this time."
"You'll try," She pulled him in again.
"Look who's alive," Helen cheered when Odysseus and Penelope emerged from the guest room.
She sat to the left of Paris, who was leaned half way over Menelaus while they watched tv.
"Whatever," Odysseus rolled his eyes, sitting next to Helen after she scooted over.
Penelope didn't say anything as she placed herself in his lap, pressing her back to his chest as she focused on the tv show that was playing. Something Odysseus could no longer do. He flailed internally, unsure where to place his hands, hesitating as he wrapped his arms around her. She relaxed into his hold and he took it as a cue to relax as well, leaning back into the couch.
Menelaus fake gagged and Penelope glared before Odysseus could even react, he put his arms up in surrender and pulled Paris closer. Odysseus was pretty sure he intended to use his boyfriend as a shield.
"Do you guys want to go look at the lights with us tonight?" Helen asked, question directed at Penelope.
"Yes, absolutely."
"Yay!"
They excitedly chatted about the exhibit Helen found while she was scrolling social media, Odysseus barely registered it at all, but he liked how happy they sounded.
It was dark and Penelope offered to drive them all, the other three squeezed into the backseat while Odysseus took the passenger. Penelope was well aware of what helped most when they got in the car, rolling down the windows and blasting AC. The park they were going to was about 50 minutes away but it boasted huge Christmas displays and the girls were excited to see it. He would manage.
Menelaus and Paris bickered over the music before Helen took the phone and put on their mix, like she usually did when they couldn't decide. Muttering something about them being stupid as she handed Penelope's phone back to her, letting it sit in the cupholder.
Penelope made the ride quick and smooth and Odysseus only felt a bit nauseous the whole time, thought he felt significantly better when she parked the car and the lights were in view. It was worth it.
"We should take longer car rides more often, he's never that quiet," Paris laughed, clapping Odysseus on the back when they all stepped out of the car. Penelope flicked him in the forehead and he groaned, clutching his face dramatically, "Helennnnn," he whined.
"Dweeb," Penelope mumbled under her breath, linking her arm with Odysseus as the group walked towards the entrance to the park.
Helen was gleeful, interlacing her fingers with Menelaus as Paris walked with his arms crossed behind them, sulking. She pulled the redhead close as she pointed at the huge Christmas tree at the end of the path, smack dab in the middle of the park. Paris got over his sulking swiftly at the sight, pulling Menelaus' other hand into his own as they walked quicker.
"It's beautiful," Odysseus leaned into Penelope to whisper, eyes focused on the lights in front of them.
Penelope looked at him, the same lights reflected in his glasses and she smiled softly, her eyes not straying, "It is."
He didn't seem to notice she was talking about him.
The two couples walked through the park together, sharing warmth and pointing out their favorite light structures. Paris said the big t-rex was his favorite but Helen and Menelaus agreed that the long line of reindeers pulling a slay was theirs. Odysseus struggled to pick one, deciding that he liked the Christmas tree the most, muttering something about wishing Ctimene was there to see it with them. Penelope mentioned the sledding snowman, she liked how the lights turned off to make it look like it moved down a slope.
They stopped for hot cocoa before sitting under the gazebo near the tree. Penelope interlocked her gloved fingers with Odysseus', leaning her head on top of his on her shoulder. They watched other people walk by silently, listening to Helen direct Paris into a crouched position to take a picture. There were lots of couples in the crowds walking by and Odysseus watched them, warm feeling in his chest now that he was also finally in a relationship too.
Penelope's phone dinged and she pulled it out of her pocked to check. Odysseus cringed only slightly at her silly background, him that morning with lipstick all over his face and held still for the camera by one of his best friends, the notification was a text from Helen.
Penelope and Odysseus both looked up at her, finally noticing the silence that had fallen over the three. Helen and Paris were each leaning on one of Menelaus' shoulders, Helen with her grip wrapped around his arm and Paris who held his other hand. They were mumbling quietly to each other, enjoying the view and company. Penelope took a picture without thinking, before finally opening Helen's message.
Unsurprisingly, Helen had the same idea. There on her screen was a picture of her and Odysseus cuddled close. She zoomed in on their faces and smiled, she couldn't decipher what they were saying but they both looked happy and Penelope saved the picture quickly, changing her phone background for the second time that day.
"Send that to me," Odysseus mumbled against her shoulder.
Penelope forwarded the message, and watched Odysseus set it as his background as well, replacing a picture of Argos.
"I love you," he smiled at the picture before looking her in her eyes.
"I love you too," Penelope leaned in to kiss him again.