A Christmas Bucket List (Bjorn)

[Deleted]

Deva had stayed up late the night before to finish her rather long and elaborate list of christmas activities that she wanted to do this year. It wasn't a need, definitively a want, but since she and Bjorn didn't get as much time together as most couples did with his work keeping him from her often she figured a bucket list to cross off christmas activities could possibly be fun. Now all she had to do was convince Bjorn to try. She'd crawled into bed late, but every bit of worry or concern she might have had disappeared the moment that she'd noticed that he was there. It was a dream that seemed to come true every single day since he'd arrived to stay at her place.

The only thing better was waking up with him beside her in the morning. She opened her eyes to find it was still relatively dark outside. It always was in winter, but she smiled nonetheless. She had her list and her man, what more could she wish for? Well, apart from him being willing to go on a Christmas activities binge with her. She smiled slightly as she propped herself up on one arm to look at him, her face beaming in delight. "Good morning." She whispered softly, giving him a quick kiss. "Have you been up long?" He often woke before she did but for some reason he didn't get out of bed. Not that she minded, it was so much better to wake up while he was still in there with her. She smiled a little impishly at him. "I have a suggestion for something to do during Christmas, if you're up for it?" She asked, quite unable to fully contain herself.

"Normally I do a lot of activities spread over the season. You know? Bake some cookies, decorate a little... I figured it could be fun to try and see how many we could manage in a day so we can relax and enjoy the festive atmosphere the other days? I kind of went ahead and made a festivities bucket list?" She said with a smile that sparkled in her eyes, even if she tried to contain her enthusiasm and hopes in case he didn't like the suggestions. It was better to anticipate rejection on that front but it was near impossible to fully manage to keep herself calm. She just loved Christmas and everything that came with it. It was hard not to for her. "Do you think you'd be willing to consider?" She asked him, a little nervously but still, she had high hopes he'd be willing to try and get as much as possible crossed off her little list.

@bjorn

[Deleted]

December, 2025
@deva

Bjorn usually went home for the holidays. To Norway. To visit his parents. Usually not for long though. Maybe a few days right around Christmas. He'd never really had a reason to celebrate the holidays longer then that. His crew, of course, was usually more skeleton crew during December, as many of them wanted to spent two or more weeks with loved ones. This year, Bjorn had made an unusual decision. He'd docked the ship for three weeks. No jobs, no sailing, nothing. They were all on "vacation". No doubt some of the crew was off doing their own side work. If they wanted to work through the holiday season that was their choice. But Bjorn? Well, he'd decided there was something else he wanted to do. His parents, of course, had been a little sad that he wouldn't be spending the holidays with them this year, but they'd understood. Well. not really. He hadn't told them yet why he wasn't coming home. He'd tell them about Deva. One day. For now, he wanted to keep her all to himself.

It was a strange experience, waking up in Deva's apartment. He rarely slept "on land", since why should he when he had a perfectly good place on the ship? But no, they'd decided to spend the holidays at her place. More space, less intrusions. it was nice though. Because just has she learned plenty about him by spending time in "his" space, he learned plenty about her in "hers".

Bjorn had gone to bed shortly before her last night. She'd been wrapped up in...something, and seemed unwilling to be persuaded to come to bed before it was done. When she did finally come to bed, he rolled over onto his side, pulling her close and laying an arm across her stomach. He'd come to love sleeping near her. Not just for sexual reasons, however. It was something that had been on his mind quite often lately. The more time he spent with her, the more he seemed to sink into those eyes. Unable, or unwilling, to escape. He let out a breath, smiling just a little as he closed his eyes.

Just like he'd gone to bed early, he woke first. Bjorn usually did. He wasn't the sort to sleep in. When they were on the ship, she'd often woken up alone, or woken when he had to get up. Because life on a ship never ended. He'd always had to rise early to start getting order for the day. But here? Well, he could stay in bed. Enjoy the dark morning. Listening to Deva's slow, slumbering breaths. Mesmerize how peaceful she looked. Bjorn wasn't a peaceful person, not in his lifestyle. But yet, at times like these? Well, he suddenly realized what his father had always talked about. Meeting someone that just changed your world. Someone who became your world. It was still so early in this relationship to seriously ponder such things, but this was the first time he'd felt anything even remotely close to what they'd described. The first time he'd met someone that he wanted to be with like this. Not just sex and fun. But for everything in between. For waking up next to them, and them being the first and last thing you saw every day.

Bjorn had propped his head up on his hand, laying on his side and watching her sleep, when she finally stirred. She was the sort that woke up quickly. Went from fast asleep to wide way in a moment. He moved his free hand to brush her hair away from her face. "Good morning," he answered softly, kissing her back, before laying his hand back across her waist. Bjorn smiled and shook his head as he asked if he was awake long. Though, it seemed she was already up to something as she was giving him quite the mischievous look and saying something about "suggestions". He raised an eyebrow, though didn't respond. Just silently urged her to continue.

As she spoke, explaining her idea and the fact that she'd already created a bucket list, he chuckled. She was a planner. Something he'd learned pretty quickly. She just seemed so... genuinely excited about it too. Just like a... well, child on Christmas morning! "Is that what you were scheming last night?" He didn't answer yes or no yet, mostly because she was so excited that he felt it better to tease her just a bit. "I'm a horrible baker, but perhaps with your help they'll be at least edible." It wasn't a Blatant, straight forward yes, but he was, in his own way, agreeing. She was, after all, so excited about it. How could he tell her no?

[Deleted]

Suggesting the bucket list to Bjorn went about how she expected. He enjoyed playing with her by not instantly giving in to her wishes and at times making her doubt if he would. It was all harmless and it made it so much better if he did give in at a later point. It kept a little bit of suspense and reminded her that with him, not everything was to be planned. He was far more free form on that point and while she knew he was just teasing her it still made her heart flutter in delight when he decided to humour her each and every time. There was no better place to be than with him and there was no better place to fall asleep than in his arms. Back on the ship she'd often woken alone or been so asleep she felt like his waking up was nothing but a dream. When she was ready to wake up she didn't doze. She was just instantly awake like the flick of a light switch. To wake up with his arms still around her was a blessing that she knew she'd never get used to. It wouldn't happen a lot either all things considered.

She pulled a face in mock shock as he called her planning scheming. That was such a negative term for plans and it usually meant something either illegal or nefarious in nature. Holiday cheer most certainly was neither of those two things so it hardly was scheming. She narrowed her eyes slightly, although she was far too happy to be able to really pull off anything without the hint of a smile playing on her lips. "Scheming?" She asked a little incredulously, although her smile betrayed she didn't object half as much as her words might suggest. "I was just making the bucket list and doing some preparation in case you'd accept. If that is already scheming then I guess I'd be guilty." She said, half pouting as she smiled and leaned forward to kiss him again. Why did he have this effect on her? She could hardly spend a moment without wanting to kiss him, even if she contained herself regularly.

When he agreed to at least bake cookies with her Deva smiled a huge smiled and instantly kissed him again, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him just a little closer. When she let go she giggled delightedly for a moment before grinning and throwing her blankets off. "Guess we better get started. We could possibly tick some other things off the list while the cookies are in the oven?" She suggested hopefully, beaming brightly for a moment before stepping out of bed and quickly started to get dressed. She pulled open her wardrobe and pulled out her best Christmas sweater. It was totally cute and adorable, being red with an image of a penguin wearing a Christmas hat. She also had an older one several sizes too big that she'd planned to modify into a dress but she figured it could fit Bjorn. Maybe she could convince him to wear it? She pulled a thoughtful face as she looked at it. She wasn't sure if her rough pirate was willing to wear something so silly though. She turned around with a slight smile as she held it up. "Want to get into the holiday spirit with a sweater?" She asked hopefully.

@bjorn

[Deleted]

December, 2025
@deva

Bjorn wasn't intentionally trying to be "difficult". Not agreeing to anything without further questioning was just a fact of life for him. In his line of work had to ask questions and fully understand a situation. To weight the risk and reward. THough, this trait was much more playful with Deva. And most the time he did give in to her whims. It was something he was learning very quickly. She was very difficult to say "no" to. HE didn't want to. Ever. Especially when she got excited like this.

Bjorn smirked at the face she pulled and leaned in, affectionately kissing the tip of her nose. "Yes, scheming," he confirmed. It was still adorable. BEcause she'd been pouring over her plans like he would when mapping out the course and jobs for the ship. With a serious intensity. He wasn't complaining. Especially adorably harmless scheming like a "festivities bucket list".

Her reaction to his agreement to bake cookies was like a child that had entered a toy store. Excitement and instantly on the move. At least she kissed him before leaping out of bed and starting to giggle like a mad woman. HE sat up, running a hand through hair as he watched her move about the room. It was a shame, how quickly she got dressed. Though, he enjoyed teh view while it lasted, his eyes trailing across her body. He leaned toward, his arms on his knees as she pulled a Christmas sweater on. It was adorable, though something he hadn't thought she'd own. After a moment though, she pulled out a second and turned to him. His eyebrows raised high at her words. "Should I be concerned as to why you have so many Christmas sweaters?' He asked slowly, a smirk touching just the corners of his lips. He eyed the sweater. IT wasn't something he'd wear normally. Ever. But yet... Deva was the one asking.

So, he pushed himself to the edge of the bed, finally getting out and walking over to take the sweat from her. He eyed it again, before reaching down to tilt her head up to him, and kiss her. "Don't go telling the crew." He playfully scolded. That would definitely ruin his reputation. He took a step back, and pulled the sweater over his head. It.. definitely wasn't his style. But if it made her happy, who was he to complain?

[Deleted]

While she didn't approve of his choice of words she couldn't deny that they didn't sound half as bad from his lips as they might have when somebody else said them. Still she had some issues, mostly with how he earned his money but she was trying as much as she could not to even think about that most days. She disapproved but she knew better than to ask him to give up his career for her. They hadn't been together that long and the freedom that came with him being his own boss was most certainly very appealing. If only he could have opted for something that didn't involve crime. She just kept telling herself he wouldn't go for really big crimes. It was probably just some innocent theft at most, maybe a raid or two once upon a time but nothing too serious. It wasn't like he was wanted after all.

She giggled for a moment as he claimed she owned many Christmas sweaters and shrugged slightly. "I have three. One is oversized." She motioned toward the one she'd been holding up for him. "I used to wear this after taking a shower around Christmas. Then just a pair of thick socks and it was reading a book by the lights in the Christmas tree under a warm blanket, with a cup of hot chocolate or eggnog on the coffee table." She shrugged. It had been nice to have festive but calm evenings and she figured that there were plenty of those still in her future. She was lucky he was here this holiday season but she knew it wasn't a guarantee he'd always be there just because he was this time. She'd probably spend plenty more evenings with little more than festive lights and books as company to keep herself entertained. The other two sweaters were more.... fitted. The one she had on now was the more ugly one but without a doubt the last one she had counted as very stylish. If it wasn't for the very subtle decorations and trimmings it would have been near impossible to tell it was a Christmas sweater to begin with. That was why she'd excluded that one first.

As he got up out of bed she couldn't help but look at him. In the morning light it was sometimes difficult to believe a man like him could have fallen for her. A part of her feared that he'd leave, the way Rhys always had. It didn't seem like a realistic fear, which made her heart flutter more and more every single time he came back to see her. With every letter she received and every hint he sent that showed he thought about her, even when far away from her. She smiled happily as he accepted the sweater from her and pulled her in for a short kiss. It was perfect and she smiled almost stupidly and watched him as he pulled the sweater over his head. She was a little surprised that it fit him so well, but she'd guessed as much after having been in some of his shirt on occasion. They were about as big on her as this sweater always had been. She chuckled and shook her head, almost in awe. "I'll take it to the locker with me." She joked, before taking his hand and gently pulling him towards the kitchen. Baking cookies was step one, although partially because it'd give them something to snack on during some of the other activities she had in mind.

She pulled out a bowl, mixer, and all the ingredients before opening one of her favourite books on baking. It had once belonged to her grandmother. "Did you want to mix them?" She asked Bjorn, smiling sweetly at him, overjoyed to have him this close. She half wanted to get distracted by him, although they'd never get anywhere on the list if she kept allowing that to happen. Still, she looked at him for a moment before standing on tiptoes and kissing him again. "I could make some hot chocolate. Would like like it with a little rum in it? Or would you prefer something like eggnog?" He wasn't going to fly today either way and she wasn't planning on driving either. They could have a drink or two before heading out. Considering his alcohol tolerance it wasn't like one drink with a bit of rum for flavour was going to get him anywhere near drunk anyway.

@bjorn

[Deleted]

December, 2025
@deva

Bjorn didn't understand her need to wear oversized shirts, or sweaters, but he wouldn't complain too much. He liked the view he got when she wore them. THough, at least in this moment her obsession seemed to work out, as the oversized sweater fit him. A little snuggly, but it fit none the less. He rolled the sleeves up to his elbows, clearly unused to the fabric. His style was pretty simple and standard. Jeans, t-shirts, and leather jackets most the time. If he even bothered with a jacket. His arms were rarely fully covered. Though, he probably looked a little silly in just a sweater, he turned to get a pair of jeans out of his overnight bag (that held all his clothes while he was staying with Deva, and slipped them on. "You'd better, otherwise that where you'll be finding me." he joked. No doubt he'd be mocked to death by a few members of his crew. He almost cringed at the thought of two particular women on the ship finding out...

He followed her to the kitchen, letting her lead him by the hand. He knew the basics of cooking. He wasn't completely hopeless in the kitchen, after all. But baking? That wasn't something he'd ever done. When he cooked it was because he had to, and making it taste amazing really hadn't ever been a priority. Not that it tasted bad. He was just clearly not a chef. He watched as she scurried about, getting out everything she needed, and then leaned over her shoulder to peer down at the book she was flipping through. Ah, a recipe. Perfect. He could follow instructions. He squinted down at the instructions as she spoke. "I can." He answered as he read, before reading them over once more. He got the jist of it. Though the offer of drinks was appealing. He reached for the first ingredient the recipe called for, glancing at the book again, before starting to follow it's instructions in measuring the ingredient into the mixing bowl. "Isn't eggnog more in the festive spirit?" Plus.. it did contain alcohol. So why not be a little festive? That was what she wanted today, after all.

[Deleted]

He joked about finding him in the locker if she didn't keep it secret he was in an ugly christmas sweater and she chuckled for a moment, smiling at the idea of his crew teasing him to death over his outfit. She couldn't really imagine the tough looking pirates singing christmas carols on the deck while all dressed in sweaters like the ones she and Bjorn were currently in, but the visual was certainly entertaining. She doubted anybody could ever convince the pirates to dress like that for any reason though, not even in threat of their lives. They seemed a little bit too proud for it. On that point she was glad that she had Bjorn and that he was willing to humour her this way. It made her feel loved and appreciated.

Bjorn worked on the recipe as she grabbed some more of the ingredients, starting to measure them out before he needed them. She found it pleasant to work that way since it keep everything perfectly neat and orderly. Not to mention it made following a recipe a lot easier since there was no time lost searching for the ingredients when they were needed. It had certainly saved her cookies, cupcakes and other bakeries multiple times that she hadn't been stranded searching or weighing ingredients when she needed them. While not a lot of recipes came that close come certainly did so working off the book without preparation wasn't always wise. He mentioned eggnog and she smiled and nodded, grabbing a pan and some bourbon, pouring him a small glass for while she was working on the eggnog. If they were having some, she was making it herself, magic included. So the eggs flew from the fridge and started separating themselves as a second bowl came from the cupboard so that she could work on mixing the nog in there. "Do you usually drink eggnog during the holidays?" She asked curiously. Her family did, but they also had a lot of wine and it was commonly a very festive family moment. She figured that she'd probably spend the parts of the holiday season that Bjorn wasn't around with her family but she'd made it quite clear to her parents that she'd be spending time with her boyfriend for Christmas and while they had made it quite clear they didn't appreciate it they had let it be after the required amount of expressing their disappointment.

@bjorn

[Deleted]

December, 2025
@deva

Bjorn couldn't remember the last time he "baked". Most likely when he was young, with his mother. She was quite the homemaker. Though she was a fierce woman too. Bjorn's mother commanded her children like his father had the pirate crew. As strange as it was, baking with Deva reminded him of what that encounter would be like, her meeting his parents. No doubt his father would terrify her, but to be honest Bjorn's father could still put him in his place if he wanted. But he had a sneaking suspicion his parents would love Deva, and most definitely find her law enforcement family history highly amusing. THough he'd never thought of when Deva might meet the rest of his family... with the way things were going he felt it was a very possible situation in the future.

Deva started to measure out ingredients before he got to them, making it easy for him to add as the recipe called for it. He'd been so focused on following the recipe that he almost didn't realize that Deva was making the eggnog from scratch. He paused for a moment to watch her magically start to prepare the drinks. Well, color him impressed. He paused his mixing for a moment to reach towards her, pulling her to him so he could plant a kiss on her forehead, before letting her go back to her mixing. "Hmmm, no, not usually," he answered honestly. Being from Norway they had some different Christmas holiday traditions. "We would have... ah what's the English word for it..." He thought. English was second nature to him, but he didn't often think about his Christmas holiday traditions in English. "We call it Gløgg. I believe it's mulled wine?" He went back to his mixing, following the recipe exactly. "Of course, non alcoholic until we were of age, as my mother never approved of underage drinking." Though he had snuck some of the alcoholic sort when he was young, much to his mother's displeasure.