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The candy recipe had been handed down to Clarke from her dad’s grandmother. In the kitchen, Clarke stood at the counter and was crunching candy canes up into tiny pieces. When she was done she scraped them all into a bowl and picked it up, “mix with…” she squinted at the scribble that was her great grandma’s handwriting, “four cups…”
“-Hi baby!”
Clarke jumped a mile, dropping the bowl and spilling crushed candy-cane everywhere. Lexa stood frozen in the center of the kitchen and quickly ran and knelt to start cleaning it up, apologizing as she did, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. I..” her little camera was right behind her. Their fans were sometimes enjoying small clips of her life. Lexa joked that Clarke should start an island cooking channel. But she wasn’t sure if it would include Christmas candy.
Snapping out of it, Clarke dropped to help, “it’s okay, really…I can make more, I mean, it's not like we didn’t order a half dozen cases of candy canes.” She stopped Lexa’s scrambling hand with hers, “pretty sure even with the cookies we aren’t running out for a while.” they both looked at each other and started laughing. Because out here, they ordered cases of everything. With a happy sigh, Clarke leaned in and kissed Lexa’s wet forehead. She also noticed her girl’s clothes were all wet, “you fall in a lake or something?” Clarke asked, standing up she went to the broom closet and took out the broom.
“Well, something like that..” Lexa stood up as Clarke came over, took the broom from her and started to sweep up the mess.
Clarke protested softly, “I got it. I’m the one that dropped it.” she reached to take it back.
Lexa wasn’t having anything to do with it and pulled it away, “I’m the one that scared you.”
“You’re quiet on your feet,” Clarke laughed. She at least held the dustpan for Lexa as she swept the candy in and then stood up and dumped it all in the trash.
“So I’ve been told,” Lexa laughed. She took the dustpan and put it away with the broom, then came back over, “now, was I? Oh yeah…” taking Clarke by the hips she kissed her on the lips, “I’m home.” Lexa laughed softly.
“How was your day?” Clarke laughed softly. Outside, the sun was almost gone.
“Good,” Lexa answered, “Anya and I spent some of it setting up a date to travel and preparations to go back to the arctic.” She was still holding Clarke.
Clarke shivered, “sounds cold.”
“Well...it's definitely not like here,” Lexa laughed and tossed a glance to the jungle right outside the kitchen window, “when we get there though we’re hoping to find Vulpes lagopus.”
Clarke smiled and raised an eyebrow at her, “who...now?” Even after all this time she was still learning these scientific names.
“The Arctic Fox,” Lexa replied, “they are so endangered, Clarke, they’re expected to be extinct in three generations.” A sad look crossed Lexa’s face.
“But that’s why you’re going, to try and help them so that doesn’t happen.” Clarke reminded her.
“It is,” Lexa nodded and smiled bravely.
“When are you going?” Clarke glanced at the calendar. It was almost eighty degrees outside, but it was December and Christmas was just a day away. It was circled in red on the calendar and Clarke had been trying to surprise Lexa and Anya and the others with the candies.
“Second week of January,” Lexa answered, her eyes got hopeful, “are you going to come? I know you don’t like the cold.” The hopeful look faded.
“Of course I am,” Clarke spoke up quickly, “what's a little bit of ice and snow??” she rubbed the back of her neck though. But she’d brave it for Lexa.
“That’s the spirit, babe,” Lexa laughed, then kissed her again, “I’ll keep you warm. I got lots of ways.”
“I know.” Clarke laughed and lifted a hand and moved wet sea-weed out of her eyes, “what else did you do all day?”
“The bananas and everything are here.” Lexa’s eyes lit up, “they are out on the dock. We had to unload them. I thought in the morning we can take them out to Turk and all the others.”
“Just in time for Christmas,” Clarke laughed. It had been awhile since she’d seen Turk and the band. Last she knew, his mom was expecting another baby. Lexa was so excited. She was too.
Lexa nodded and looked around the kitchen, as if for the first time noticed it was covered in ingredients, “what were you up to all day?”
“Well...I…” Clarke sighed and rolled her eyes at herself, “I was trying to make you a surprise for Christmas.”
“A surprise?” Lexa asked hopefully.
“Yeah...is an old family recipe, you’ll see.” Clarke looked around to make sure the ingredients everywhere couldn’t give anything away. Except for maybe the fact that it involved candy canes she was probably safe.
“You aren’t going to tell me, are you?” Lexa asked.
Clarke shook her head and kissed Lexa on the forehead, “nope. Then it wouldn’t be a surprise.”
Lexa sighed softly.
Clarke laughed, “you’ll like it, trust me.”
“Okay, okay,” Lexa relented but then her eyes lit up as she looked at Clarke, “I have a surprise for you, too.”
“You do?” Clarke asked.
Lexa nodded, “it doesn’t take all day to unload bananas, Clarke, not even crates of them...well maybe a lot of the day, but still..” letting go of Clarke’s waist finally, she took her hand instead and led her out of the kitchen and into the front of the house.
There, in the middle of the room, stood a giant, bare, fresh pine tree. Cardboard boxes of decorations and lights lay around it.
Clarke stood flabbergasted, “babe…” she stared at the tree in in awe. It couldn’t have been easy to get a fresh blue spruce to the island.
“Do you like it??” Lexa asked hopefully and Clarke looked over to see her girlfriend standing there nervously with her hands in front of her mouth.
Clarke was breathless, “I love it. But you didn’t have to.”
“Of course I did. A palm tree wouldn’t be able to hold all these decorations,” Lexa tapped one of the boxes with the toe of her boot, “I know. I tried.” Clarke laughed and went to Lexa and hugged her. Lexa squeezed her back for a few seconds before stepping out of her arms, “I got another surprise.”
“Another one?” Clarke asked, feigning suspicion.
“Mhmm.” Lexa nodded, “and maybe you will understand why I fell in the water.”
“Oh really??” Clarke asked. Lexa nodded again, and she let her take her by the hand and lead her out the front door.
It was dark out in the few minutes they had been inside, and as they walked hand in hand down the beach toward the dock Lexa pointed out into the ocean, “there.”
Heda was anchored away from the dock, each rail and deck and porthole outlined in glittering glowing christmas lights. Clarke’s hands went to her mouth in excitement, “baby!”
“Do you like it?” Lexa asked for the second time that night, “I mean...I know I said we can’t have lights on the house because it could stare the animals but…”
“Is this how you got soaked??” Clarke laughed, looking at her. In her head, she could see Lexa attempting to decorating the boat rails with lights, and falling over the side in the process and coming up spluttering. Good thing it was the tropics and always warm here.
Lexa nodded sheepishly, “mighta been how.”
“I love it, baby.” Clarke said, “it’s beautiful. Thank you.” It really was, especially with the reflection of the lights dancing across the water. On the air, along with the pound of the waves, she thought she could faintly hear Christmas music.
“Merry Christmas, Clarke.” Lexa squeezed lifted her hand to her lips and kissed it.
Clarke leaned over and kissed her on the cheek, “Merry Christmas, Lex.”