Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Usually, Eiji’s routine trip down to the supermarket was uneventful. Today, however, when the elevator doors opened to reveal the large lobby, he gasped at the giant tree set up in the center of the room. The twinkling lights and the colorful decorations instinctively drew him in to take a closer look. He stared up at his reflection in one of the baubles; the orbs must have been the size of his head.

“Do you like the tree, Mr. Okumura?” The security guard at the desk called out to him. 

“You put all these decorations on here?” he asked incredulously. 

“Oh no,” the man chuckled, “we hire someone every Christmas to set it up.”

“This is for Christmas?” Eiji stared at the tree in awe. Christmas was another Western holiday that he did not know much about. It seemed to be more popular in Tokyo than in Izumo, his town never had any decorations, unlike the bigger cities. 

"What are other things people in America do for Christmas?" 

The guard stifled a laugh, "well, my family enjoys decorating the tree and making hot cocoa, but it is different for everyone." 

"Really?" The brunet replied, an enthusiastic tone in his voice. He made a mental note to check these different activities on the internet when he was done with his shopping. 

"Have you celebrated Christmas before, Mr. Okumura?" 

"Well, no," Eiji rubbed the back of his neck, "Christmas is not a big holiday in Japan." 

He wanted to ask more questions, but another resident approached the desk and started to speak to the guard. Eiji sighed, he would just have to figure out this Christmas thing on his own. Maybe Ash would know? 

*** 

Once Eiji had finished putting away all the groceries, he sat down with a cup of tea and the tablet. He had just pulled up the internet browser when he heard a knock on the door. 

That was odd, he wasn’t expecting Bones or Kong, and Ash never knocked. Holding the cup of tea in one hand, he looked out the hole in the door to find Mrs. Coleman pacing in the hallway. 

“Hello Mrs. Coleman,” Eiji politely greeted his neighbor as he opened the door. 

“Eiji, sweetheart, I just took a break from writing Christmas cards and wanted to start handing out cookies.” She gestured to the red and white platter in her hands; the one Ash had bought her as a replacement for the one he broke.

“Cards.. and cookies?” He scratched his head, trying to figure out how those two things went together. 

“I made my family’s special snickerdoodles recipe, and I do hope you and Ash like them.” Mrs. Coleman handed him the plate with a big smile.

“I-uh thank you very much.” 

“It’s no trouble dear, oh and sugar cookies are always appreciated in my house,” she gave him a keen look and winked. What does that mean?

Mrs. Coleman peered into the apartment. “You haven’t decorated yet, Eiji? Christmas is right around the corner.”

“Decorated.. like the tree downstairs?” 

“Yes!” She clapped her hands together, “our family goes out and gets a fresh tree each year to set in the foyer, it is a little tradition of ours.” 

“How—“

“Oh my, it is getting late,” Mrs. Coleman interrupted as she checked her silver watch, “those Christmas cards won’t write themselves, I will see you soon, dear.” 

She then excused herself, leaving Eiji standing in the doorway with the plate of cookies and an even lesser understanding of Christmas. 

Setting the plate on the counter, he returned to his green tea and the tablet. To his disdain, the internet search yielded hundreds of thousands of results about Christmas. He let out a groan as he rested his head on the table. Why couldn’t this be easy?

Hearing keys in the lock, Eiji quickly sat up and looked towards the door. It was rare that Ash was back this early. The blond trudged in and dusted the snow off of his coat before tossing the garment onto a chair.

“Ash, welcome back!”

“I got us some takeout.” He set the large paper bag on the counter, a confused expression taking over his features when he spotted the plate of cookies. 

“Mrs. Coleman made them for us,” Eiji explained as he rummaged through the bag, taking out the food and utensils. “I think she said they were called sick noodles?”

“Eiji,” Ash stared at him with a blank expression, “those are cookies.. not noodles.” 

“I know that,” the brunet sighed as he sat on a stool and began to eat out of one of the plastic takeaway containers. 

Shaking his head, Ash sat down on the stool next to his and started picking at his own food. They ate in a comfortable silence, the only sound coming from the quiet hum of the television in the background. 

“She said that they like sugar cookies, what does that mean.” Eiji set down his container and turned to the other boy. 

“It means you have to probably have to bake her some of those in return, and that should be interesting,” Ash snorted, a small grin flashing across his face. 

“I do not know what you mean by that.” Eiji huffed as he turned back to his food. Deciding to turn the topic away from his cooking abilities he asked, “Did you see the tree downstairs?” 

“Yeah, I almost ran into that thing on my way up here." 

“Um,” he started, internally questioning whether or not he should risk asking Ash about Christmas.  

Ash hummed as he looked over, his mouth full of food. The blond's packed cheeks making him look like a squirrel. Cute.

“I-uh,” he stammered, feeling the other boy’s gaze on him, "was wondering if you ever celebrated Christmas before.”

“Not really,” he replied, trying to be nonchalant.

Even though they had only known each other for a few months, Eiji could tell there was something else behind that answer. While it may have fooled most people into thinking he was fine, the strain in his voice and the pain in those green eyes were evident that his thoughts were in a darker place. 

Eiji was determined now. He would do all he could to make this the best Christmas for Ash. To try and replace those painful memories with happy ones. 

*** 

The next day, Eiji got up early, as usual, and immediately went to work on educating himself on Western Christmas traditions. By the time he had finished his coffee, the brunet had learned about fruitcakes and cookies, vividly patterned sweaters, as well as the jolly fat man who gave gifts to kids, but only the good ones. He also saw something referred to as a candy cane, which was a food, not a device for walking.

“You look focused,” Ash commented as he wandered out of the bedroom, his blond hair unruly and his glasses askew. He must have just rolled out of bed.

“Yes I am learning about Christmas,” the brunet couldn’t help but smile as he got up to prepare more coffee for the both of them. 

“You don’t have Christmas in Japan?”

“It is very different from here.” Eiji stirred some milk into the mug, “people like to go on dates and eat KFC.”

“That fried chicken place,” Ash asked incredulously. 

“Yes,” he nodded, setting the two mugs on the table. 

The blond hummed as he took a sip of the coffee, pulling out a buzzing phone from his pocket. He swore under his breath as his green eyes scanned the screen, quickly getting up and going into the bedroom to get changed. 

“I’ve gotta go,” he muttered, rushing to button up his coat. 

“Ash,” Eiji said firmly.

The other boy turned to look at him, his expression softening ever so slightly when their eyes met. 

“Please be careful.” 

“Yeah,” he whispered as he shut the door behind him. 

Eiji stared at the door, a part of him wishing Ash would turn around and come back. He shook his head in an attempt to banish those ridiculous thoughts. Glancing at the plate sitting on the counter, he figured he should go search for a sugar cookie recipe.

Chapter Text

Once again, Eiji found himself in the downstairs supermarket with a long list in hand. The sugar cookies required more butter than actual sugar, and all the butter had been used up in the pie crust dilemma.  

As he walked towards the refrigerated section, the brunet noticed a new display being set up. A cardboard Christmas tree had shelves as branches, adorned with different seasonal products. Eiji was shocked at the vast assortment of foods and drinks. However, one, in particular, caught his attention. He picked up the package, turning it in his hands, the label said hot chocolate, but this product looked like a powder, and it did not seem to be hot.

“That one is my favorite.” 

Eiji almost jumped at Mrs. Owens voice. Since when did she get here?

“The trick is to mix milk instead of water as it gives it a creamier consistency. You can even stir it with a candy cane to add peppermint flavor,” their neighbor explained as she dropped a few boxes into her basket. 

“O-oh,” he replied lamely. “I have never done this before.” 

“Really?” She shifted her yoga mat to the crook of her arm, “You just cook the powder with a liquid on the stove for a couple of minutes.”

“What does that have to do with a candy cane?” 

Mrs. Owens gave him a confused look as if the answer should be obvious.

“Sorry, I do not know much about Christmas,” Eiji admitted sheepishly. 

“Oh, why didn’t you say so, dear?” She chuckled as she grabbed a box of red and white sticks off the display, “these are them, you can use these little guys in all sorts of things like cooking, stirring hot chocolate, and even hanging them on a Christmas tree.”

Eiji nodded, trying to take all of the information in as best as he could. 

“That reminds me. I need to bring you boys up some cookies, soon!”

Not more cookies..

“S-sure that would be great,” he forced a smile. 

“Wonderful, I will have the date and time for the Christmas party soon.”

Party?

“Anyways have to run to yoga, I will be seeing you.”

He waved to his neighbor as she hurried towards the gym area, then turned back towards the display. There were three dedicated shelves under a sign that said baking. 

They must all be somehow relevant, right? He thought as he picked up one of each thing and put them in his basket.

*** 

Rolling up his sleeves, Eiji flushed as he noticed that he was wearing Ash’s sweater, again. He must have mistaken it for his own in the early morning light. Definitely an honest mistake.

Attempting to distract himself, he turned his attention to the recipe. It was only a few steps and had the word ‘easy’ in the title, how could he mess this up? He also had a wide assortment of decorating tools so he could cover any mistakes. 

With a deep breath, he went to work mixing the sticks of butter with a few other ingredients with the electric hand mixer, which he finally knew how to use. Eiji scooped the mixture onto the floured counter and shaped it into a giant ball. 

“I can do this, Ash will be so impressed,” he grinned and nodded to himself, imagining the blond showering him with compliments over his perfect cookies.

The loud beep of the oven pulled him out of his fantasy. 

One of the next steps was to roll and cut the dough using something called a 'cookie cutter.' After rummaging through the bags from the store, Eiji pulled out a plastic container with an assortment of metal shapes that he did not recognize. He scratched his head as he attempted to decipher a group of circles and something vaguely resembling a triangle.

Setting the strange shapes to the side, he grabbed the rolling pin and tried to roll out the dough. It was proving to be more difficult than expected. The dough was getting all over the counter and aggressively sticking to the rolling pin. 

Eiji groaned as he scooped more flour onto the mixture. It was starting to become a whiter color, but the brunet was finally able to roll it out into a reasonable thickness. The recipe listed an exact number in inches, rather than his known centimeters, so he took his best guess on how thin the dough should be. 

The 'cookie cutters' stared at him from the counter, they seemed to mock him for not knowing their shapes. He was new to this how was he supposed to know! 

He took a cutter and pressed it into the dough. However, the shape did not form as cleanly as it had on the recipe video. It was also proving tiresome to remove them from the counter, many of the cookies were tearing before they were placed on the baking sheet. At least he had plenty of decorations to cover the imperfections, especially in the areas where he pushed the dough back together. 

With a sigh, he slid the pan into the hot oven. This recipe was not easy. The internet had lied to him. At least he knew this time not to leave the kitchen while something was baking. He set a timer and grimaced at the current state of the room. Flour and residual dough coating the counters and even the floor. 

After fifteen minutes of intense counter scrubbing, Eiji took the cookies out of the oven. They looked golden brown around the thin edges but still seemed white in the middle. 

"It should be fine," he reassured himself.

Since the recipe called for the cookies to cool for at least twenty minutes, Eiji made himself a cup of tea and went to work on his photography/surveillance duty. The street was packed with people and cars, making it difficult for the brunet to focus on the front of the Corsican building with his camera, even with his macro lens attached. 

*** 

Even after the sun had set, there were still droves of people out. He could set his ISO ridiculously high and open his aperture to let more of the dim light in, but with the amount of motion, everything would be blurry and grainy. His growling stomach was also tempting him to retire for the day. Residing to his fate, Eiji wandered out of the office and into the kitchen. 

He gasped as he took a glance at the clock. It was late. Far later than he usually ate dinner. Where was Ash?

Eiji started to feel a little nervous. He could feel a cold sweat forming on the back of his neck, and his stomach seemed like it was tied in knots. His hands were shaking as he made himself a sandwich and he nearly fell on the floor from sitting awkwardly on the chair. If Bones or Kong were here, they would definitely be laughing at him for being so paranoid. Ash had been this late before, why was he so worried?

After he finished his meal there was still no activity at the door or messages from Ash, so Eiji reluctantly went to the kitchen to wash his plate. That is where he spotted the pan of sugar cookies. Decorating may ease his worries. 
   
He pulled out the assortment of colored frostings and sprinkles from the shopping bags. Although the cookies had been cooked, Eiji still had no clue what the different shapes were supposed to be. Green seemed to be relevant to Christmas, so he started generously applying that color of frosting to some of the cookies. Once he ran out of green, he switched to blue, and then red, and finally to pink. After all the cracks were covered, the brunet opened one of the containers of sprinkles. 

The sprinkles rapidly poured out and quickly coated the frosted cookie. Eiji wondered for a moment if it was too much, but the plastic holder was quite big. That must mean Americans like a large number of sprinkles. 

Once he had finished decorating, Eiji stepped back to inspect his work. They did somewhat resemble the images online, and they were very colorful, which reminded him of the Christmas tree downstairs. 

As he was washing his hands, he heard the front door start to open. 

"Ash!" Eiji called as he watched the blond walk through the door, "welcome back." 

"I'm surprised you are still awake." Ash shrugged off his coat tossed it over the couch and set a thin paper bag on top.   

"Yes, I just finished decorating the sugar cookies."

"You made cookies?" Ash raised a brow, "I'm shocked this place hasn't burned down." 

Eiji chose to ignore the remark as the blond walked over to see the cookies up close. He eagerly awaited Ash's words of praise. Any moment now.. 

"Why is the snowflake green." 

"W-what?" How was that a snowflake shape? He thought it was a bush. 

"And your Christmas tree has a mountain of sprinkles." 

"You are too harsh," Eiji huffed, "they must taste better than their looks." 

"I'm not quite sure if I want to eat these." Ash stared down at the cookies. 

"They are good! I followed every step.. I think." He picked one up and placed it in the blond's hands. 

Ash groaned before reluctantly taking a small bite, a dissatisfied look quickly forming on his face. "They taste like flour with a crapload of icing on top." 

"Is that not how they are supposed to taste?" Eiji took a bite of another cookie and immediately frowned. They did taste like flour combined with a strong artificial sweetness. 

"Pretty sure they should taste like sugar, not flour," the blond snorted, "it's in the name after all." 

"I did not put flour in the mixture, though." 

"Well then why is there still flour all over the floor," Ash smirked. 

Eiji felt tears prickling in the corners of his eyes as he stared at the ground. He did use a lot of flour when rolling and cutting the dough, and he should have known better. Was he cursed when it came to this? 

"I don't think anyone gets it completely right on their first try," Ash said softly. 

"The recipe was easy, though," he sighed and wiped his eyes.

The blond was silent for a moment as if he was choosing his next words carefully. "Maybe we could make the next batch together?"

"You would want to?" 

"Yeah if you want my help, that is." 

"Of course I do," Eiji couldn't help the dopey smile spreading across his face.

"Good, because you shouldn't get upset over some dumb cookies," Ash mumbled, his cheeks tinted pink as he dumped the contents of the tray into the trash. 

While Ash was washing the pan, Eiji started to wipe the flour off the tile. "You got back late today, is everything okay?" 

The blond froze for a moment, but quickly went back to rinsing. He set the pan on the drying rack then went over to his coat and the bag on the couch. “C'mere I got you something." 

Ash got him a gift?

Eiji wandered over to the couch and sat down next to the other boy.

"Um," Ash started as he reached into the bag and pulled out a large, thin red book. "Since we were talking about Christmas this morning, I saw this in a second-hand shop." He was unusually quiet for a few seconds and refused to meet the other boy's gaze, keeping his eyes fixed on the book. 

"It's a Christmas story that Griff would read to me when I was a kid, and I thought you might like it." 

The blond handed over the book and Eiji graciously took it in his hands. He ran his hand over the worn cover; it was a vivid red adorned with golden accents. In the center was an illustration of a deer above the scripted title. He stared at the words in an attempt to read what it said. 

“Ryu-“ he started, tracing his finger under the arrangement of letters.

Ash scooted closer, “It's Rudolf.”

“Oh,” he replied lamely, his face starting to feel warm from how close they were. 

Eiji was barely able to say the title, and he was already getting tired halfway into reading the first page.

“I thought you would be able to read this at least since you are so much older and wiser,” Ash teased.

“I am trying,” he whined, “I just need a break.”

“A break? We will be sitting here all night.”

“You can read. I will listen and learn.”

“Fine,” Ash sighed in mock exasperation as he pulled the book into his lap so they could both see the pages. He then started to read. Soon enough, Eiji’s eyelids began to feel heavy, and he instinctively rested his head on the blond’s shoulder. Before he had a chance to pull away or apologize, Ash leaned against him and continued reading aloud as if nothing had happened.

The steady rise and fall of Ash’s shoulder and his smooth voice narrating the tale of a strange flying deer with a red nose was enough to lull Eiji to sleep.

Chapter Text

When Eiji finally got his package, after two very long days of waiting and constantly checking the tracking, he couldn't stop smiling the entire way back up to the apartment. The contents were something that was quintessential to every Christmas celebration. Eiji rushed to start opening the box before Ash got back, as he wanted it to be a surprise. 

Holding up the sweater, the brunet nodded as it definitely lived up to its 'ugly' name. The fabric was soft but was dyed a vibrant green with red stripes, and it also had a gaudy-looking reindeer printed in the center. Not only did the rose nose light up, but it was also surrounded with sequins. 

When he heard keys in the door, he quickly slid the box into the closet and went to greet Ash as he came in. 

"You haven't eaten the cookies," the blond pointed to the cookies Mrs. Coleman had made them, which had barely been touched. 

Eiji's face screwed up at the thought of the single bite he had earlier. He would rather eat his failed flour cookies than those sickeningly sweet snickerdoodles. 

"They are too sweet." 

"Do they not have enough flour for you," Ash smirked. 

The brunet scoffed as he grabbed a curry packet from the cabinet. "For that, you get to peel the carrots."

Ash let out a very exaggerated whine in response. 

They both decided to sit at the table to eat, Eiji facing the window with Ash sitting across from him. From the tenth floor, it was easy to look out at the other apartment buildings across the street. The sun was already low in the sky, making it easier to peer in the windows.

The brunet had to stifle a gasp as he noticed an illuminated tree sat in front of almost every window. Americans had Christmas trees in their own homes? Weren’t they just for looking at in the lobby? 

He remembered Mrs. Coleman mentioning going to 'get' a tree when she had dropped off the cookies earlier in the week. At the time he thought she had meant a regular houseplant, not a Christmas tree.

"Ash?"

The blond glanced up from his food to look at him.

"Um," he began, suddenly feeling his hands start to sweat, "does every American have their own Christmas tree?"

"Not everyone does." Ash glanced to the side, a small tinge of sadness audible in his voice. 

A wave of guilt immediately ran over Eiji. He should have known better than to ask a dumb question like that, especially when he could have just looked up the answer online.

"O-oh the one downstairs is so nice, and I saw more in the other building," the brunet stuttered, the rest of his sentence dying in his throat. He cursed the heat that was rising to his cheeks.

Biting his lip, Eiji turned his attention to watching the tenants in the apartment across the street. He could see some families adorning their tree with colored ribbons and baubles. It looked like fun.

"Why the sudden interest anyway?"

"I-I just want to learn more about American culture."

"Alright," the blond shrugged before taking another bite of curry.

Eiji sighed in relief; he was grateful that Ash had accepted that shaky response as an answer.

They finished up their meal in a comfortable silence. After dinner was cleaned up, Ash went to work on the laptop while Eiji curled up on the nearby couch with a cup of tea. He was determined to finish the rest of the red Christmas book.   

***

"Eiji, wake up." It felt like Ash's breath was tickling his ear.

As the Japanese boy opened his eyes, he nearly jolted out of his bed. Ash was leaning over him. 

"Is everything okay," the brunet quickly looked around the room for any sign of danger. The sun had yet to rise, and everything was still dark. A nearby clock showed it was around five in the morning.

"Yeah," Ash breathed, "I thought we could go get a Christmas tree today if you wanted."

Eiji couldn't help but stare in shock. Was he still dreaming?

"Go get dressed," the blond chuckled as he handed over a warm cup of coffee and went into the other room.

The brunet blinked slowly then rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. After a few stretches and sips of coffee, he pulled on a knit sweater and his puffy green coat with the faux fur-lined hood.

He wandered into the kitchen to find Ash drinking his own coffee at the counter.

"You ready?"

"Yes, but why are we up so early to go to a shop?"

"Because we aren't going to a store," Ash replied as if it was obvious.

That response made Eiji feel even more confused.

"You'll see soon enough, let's get a move on." the other boy twirled a pair of keys around his finger.

Outside their apartment, the hallway was barely lit from the morning light, which was beginning to stream in from the window. Usually, it was a several minute wait for the elevator, but this time it arrived in a matter of seconds. Ash pressed the lowest button on the panel, which went to a floor that Eiji had never been to before.

"We are not going to the lobby?"

"This will take us to the underground parking garage," Ash explained as he shoved his hands into his jacket pockets.  

The elevator doors opened to an area so brightly lit that it seemed hard to believe it was under the ground. Rows of parked cars went as far back as the eye could see.

As they walked down the aisle, Eiji was surprised to see Mr. Owens rubbing some kind of liquid on the hood of one of the cars.  

“Hello, boys, out to take the baby for a spin?" 

Spinning a baby?

"Yeah have to drive it now and then to make sure the battery doesn't die." Ash pulled out a pair of keys and pushed a button that seemed to unlock the vibrant red car they were standing next to. 

"That's a good one, Ash," Mr. Owens chuckled as he continued to buff the hood. His car looked very different from Ash's. The front was much longer, and it only had two seats compared to four. The silver color paled in comparison to the bright red vehicle next to it. 

"You keep your SLS in good condition." 

"I'm thinking about trading it in for a Rolls."

"I had a Phantom for a while, wasn't really a fan." 

Once again, they delved into a conversation that Eiji did not understand the majority of the words being said. He glanced nervously at the door handle, afraid even the slightest touch would break something. 

“Well, we better be on our way." Ash walked over to the passenger side to hold open the door. He had to stifle a laugh as Eiji almost fell down into the leather seat. 

Eiji could help but gape at how different this car was to his family's vehicle in Japan. The wooden accents had no scratches, and the leather seat was so soft that his body was starting to sink into it. There was a screen in the center of the console that looked like a smartphone, framed by large speakers. Backlights illuminated the various buttons and knobs. However, no keyhole was in sight. How does the car start? 

“That guy never shuts up,” the blond groaned as he climbed into the driver's side, slamming the door behind him. He pressed a button, which made the car seem to come to life. The engine started to hum as the screen in the console lit up, causing music to blare out of the speakers. 

"Do you even have your driving license?"

"Yup got it right here, officer," Ash grinned impishly as he handed over a piece of plastic. 

"This says you are twenty-one years old," Eiji deadpanned. 

"Your point?" The blond chuckled as he took back the license. 

"Do you want to go back to prison?"

"We won't get caught. I've been using that thing for years." 

Years!?

Mr. Owens waved as Ash changed the gear and sped towards to the large gate at the front of the garage. He put a card into a machine and pressed a sequence of numbers, which let them pass through onto the street. Because of the time, cars were starting to pile onto the road to head to work, resulting in some stop and go. 

The sun had just started to peak over the horizon, shedding a small amount of sunlight on the streets. However, it was still dark enough for artificial lights to be left on in shops and homes. Eiji stared in awe as they drove past large windows adorned with garland, strings of lights, and even giant candy canes. Some stores even had little winter scenes on display.

“How about a better view,” Ash looked over at him when they stopped at a traffic signal, the shining lights reflecting in his green eyes making Eiji feel breathless. 

“Is this not already a good view?”

Ash chuckled as he held down a button near the gear stick, “just watch this.” 

Eiji heard a few clicking noises from the back of the car before the roof began to lift up and detach from the windshield. He couldn’t stop his mouth from falling open in shock as the top of the car folded in on itself and tucked away neatly in the trunk. The windows then automatically rolled down, so nothing was obstructing his view of the shops on the side of the street. His car in Japan could definitely not do that. 

"Look above you." 

The brunet peered up to see a multitude of string lights interlaced between the buildings, shining against the early morning sky. It was breathtaking. He couldn't tear his eyes away until they drove into a tunnel. 

"Finally out of that traffic," Ash let out a sigh as they entered the freeway. "Are you ready for this, Eiji?" 

"Ready for wha—" 

Eiji felt his stomach drop as Ash slammed on the gas, causing the car to lurch forward, and quickly gain speed. Not only was the December wind furiously whipping through his hair, but his brown eyes were also starting to water. Despite it all, Eiji was crying out cheerfully. It felt like an amusement park ride. 

He glanced over to Ash, who should have been paying attention to the road, but instead was looking at him. The blond quickly turned back towards the highway, a faint pink hue coloring his cheeks. 

*** 

"Can you close your eyes," Ash asked quietly, his gentle tone almost lost in the sounds of the traffic. 

"Um, okay," Eiji said hesitantly as he shut his eyes. He heard a few noises of what sounded like the roof going back into place and the windows rolling up. The car then turned down a street, and Ash turned off the engine. 

"Few more seconds," the blond called as he got out of the car and went around to the passenger side. He opened the door and unfastened Eiji's seatbelt then helped him to his feet. 

"You aren't peeking are you," Ash teased as he pulled them along.

"I am not," the brunet huffed. He honestly had no idea where they were, it was at least an hour outside of the city. 

“Okay, you can look now." 

After Eiji opened his eyes, he felt a huge smile spreading across his face. There were Christmas trees of different shapes and sizes everywhere he looked, some were still planted in the ground while others were being wrapped. A multitude of small stands selling various foods, drinks, and other wares surrounded a group of people singing songs. 

"Welcome boys, have some cider. We grow all the apples here," a petite woman approached them with a tray of small plastic cups. 

"Thank you," Eiji grinned. The tiny cup was warm in his hands as he took a sip. 

"Enjoy," she chirped as she headed towards the other people mingling about. 

A small crowd was starting to form around the singing group. Music was something that he really enjoyed. He would occasionally listen to English songs as a way to help him learn the language. However, those songs seemed to be very different than what the choir was singing. From the bits and pieces he could understand, these songs seemed to be associated with Christmas. 

When the song finished, the people gathered around started to clap. What Eiji wasn't expecting was for Ash to walk over to one of the singers. He whispered something and handed them some money. 

"Listen here, kid. This isn't the city you can't just bribe us—" 

The blond sighed as he pulled out several more bills from his pocket and handed them over. At the sight of the money, the choir members mumbled amongst themselves and nodded. Ash walked back with a satisfied smirk on his face. 

Before Eiji had a chance to start asking questions, the group began to sing. As opposed to the other songs, he was thrilled that he could understand a majority of the lyrics. They seemed to be right out of the red storybook that Ash had gotten for him. 

"I did not know there was a song about the red nose flying deer," he whispered to Ash excitedly. 

"It's a pretty popular story."  

When the song ended, the brunet cheered the loudest out of anyone in the small audience. 

"Thank you, Ash!" Eiji threw his arms around the other boy to pull him in for a hug. 

"I didn't really do anything," he mumbled as he slowly returned the embrace. 

*** 

"Why do I have to choose by myself," Eiji pouted as he stared at the seemingly endless rows of trees.

"You know the apartment better than I do." 

"But there are hundreds of Christmas trees here." 

"Okay then what about that one," Ash pointed to the tree planted next to them. 

"You just picked the first one you saw!"

"Maybe I can be of some assistance." The same woman from earlier turned from pruning a tree to approach them. 

"I guess you will have to help," a teasing grin spread across Ash's face, "I didn't know Eiji would be so indecisive." 

"Not all of us can make quick life or death choices," the brunet huffed in response. 

"So what size were we thinking?" 

"Very big like the one downstairs." 

"I guess you like big things now, too," the blond snickered. 

"Be quiet, Ash," Eiji glared at the other boy. 

"Um," the lady looked between the two of them, "how about the square footage of the space?" 

"I want to put it by the window which is about the space from here to that tree if that helps." 

"How tall is the ceiling?" 

"About three meters it looks like." 

Eiji did not understand why the woman looked very confused by his answer. Did they not have any trees that were short enough? 

"It's around ten feet," Ash broke the awkward silence.

"Oh of course," she nodded. "I have a few in mind over this way." 

She led them over to an area with trees of similar heights that were already cut and placed in pots. Some were thin while others were extremely bushy. Eiji's eyes lit up as he noticed a tree that looked almost identical to the ones in all the windows and pictures.  

"I figured you would like that one," the short woman grinned and put a hand on her hip."My boys will get it wrapped up for you."

Eiji wasn't quite sure how a tree could be 'wrapped up' or how they would even get it back to the apartment. 

He was pulled out of his thoughts when three large men trudged over and picked up the tree like it weighed nothing. They then carried it out of sight. Soon after, they returned with it wrapped in plastic. "Which vehicle is yours, sir?" 

"Red Maserati GT." Ash gestured to his car in the lot, "pretty hard to miss." 

The men looked at each other in shock. "Sir, I don't think—" 

"I think you can figure it out," he interrupted, his voice sharp. 

There was a moment of hesitation before they went off in the direction of the car, mumbling amongst themselves. 

As he watched the tree being carried away, Eiji had a realization. "Ash, we don't have anything to decorate the tree with!" 

"I'm shocked you didn't buy anything off the internet already," the blond raised his brows. 

"I did not know we would be coming here today," Eiji frowned. 

“Let's go check those stalls over there. I think they had some stuff." 

A familiar warm feeling settled in Eiji's chest as he trailed behind Ash. He smiled at the thought of them picking out decorations together and putting them on their new tree. It was guaranteed to make some happy memories for both of them. 

Chapter Text

The hand-painted glass ornaments gleamed as they hung from shelves fastened to the wooden stall. Eiji stared in awe at the assortment of different colors and shapes. He took one and turned it in his hands, admiring the swirls of paint adorning the surface. 

"These are lovely," he told the elderly woman behind the counter. 

"Thank you, dear. You can pick eight for the discounted price." She gestured towards the small sign on the counter. 

Eiji studied the plethora of ornaments and placed a few in the wooden box. He looked down at his choices, they seemed Christmas-y enough. There was one in particular that he was especially fond of; the light pear green was almost identical to a certain blond's eye color.

“Why did you get green when the tree is green,” Ash commented dryly.  

“I-uh,” Eiji stammered, embarrassed to be caught so easily, “green is a Christmas color right?"

"I guess, but isn't the tree green enough on its own?” 

The brunet felt himself flushing under Ash's intense gaze. He cursed himself for cracking under pressure as the truth spilled from his lips. 

“It reminds me of you,” he said perhaps a little too quickly.

“It does?”

“Um, well the green it looks like your eyes,” Eiji mumbled, keeping his gaze glued to the ground.  

“How sweet,” the lady cooed as she wrapped the ornaments up in paper.

“Oh,” the blond replied softly, a small smile lighting up his face. 

“Here you go, I added in something extra because you are such a cute couple.” The worker handed over the wooden box tied with a white ribbon. 

“W-we aren’t—”

“No use in trying to fool an old lady, dear. I know things are changing out there.”

“Whatever,” Ash sighed as he handed over some money.  

The next booth was also selling ornaments, they were not made of glass, but this seller had a larger variety of shapes. 

"Look, Ash, they have the deer with the nose," Eiji pointed out cheerfully as his eyes landed on the reindeer. He let out a gasp when he noticed there were even multiple variations. 

"I think all deer have noses, Eiji." 

"You know I mean the red one," he puffed his cheeks out at the amused blond. 

Turning back to the display, Eiji admired the various styles of the reindeer ornaments. Some were made of cloth, while others were painted metal. They ranged from using only two colors to having almost twenty different shades. "There are so many," he sighed wistfully, waiting for Ash to call him out on being so indecisive. 

"We will take all the Rudolf ones." 

Eiji watched in awe as Ash threw a stack of bills on the counter. The woman working the stand raised her brows in shock then started to wrap up the ornaments without a word. 

***

In the parking lot, the three men were still struggling in their attempt to secure the tree to the sloping top of Ash's car. There must have been at least ten different ropes tied around the vehicle. 

"Is this done yet," the blond asked, his voice flat. 

"Y-yes sir this last rope will do the trick." The trio scrambled to drape the chord and tie the knot under Ash's scrutinizing gaze. 

"It better." 

The men paled and backed away at his threatening tone. They almost ran away after he shoved a wad of cash at them. 

Eiji stared at the door. It seemed almost impossible to open with all the rope tied around the car. Not to mention he was holding a container full of easily breakable glass ornaments. 

"Here," Ash sighed softly as he walked over to carefully open the passenger door. 

"Thank you," the brunet smiled in appreciation as he sunk into the leather seat. 

"You made me spend almost all my cash, Eiji," the other boy groaned in mock exasperation as he switched on the ignition. 

"W-what! I never asked once for you to spend money." 

"You definitely did." 

"I did not!"

"You did." 

"Ugh, you are acting like a child." 

"Actually I'm twenty-one, want to see my ID?" 

Eiji scowled as Ash began to snicker. The brunet turned to look out the window, ignoring the other boy's teasing remarks. 

It was relatively quiet until they reached the tunnel to re-enter the city. Ash pressed a button on the steering wheel that silenced the music and made a chiming noise. 

"Call Bones.” 

"Changing radio station,” a robotic voice boomed out of the speakers before the music automatically switched to a different song. 

Did the car just talk?

“No, call Bones."

"Adjusting audio volume." 

Eiji watched in awe as the music became louder seemingly on its own. Apparently, Ash's car could speak, but it didn't seem to be listening to anything the blond was saying. 

"This thing is so stupid," Ash groaned.

"Maybe if you asked it nicely?" 

"I am not being polite to a car," he grumbled as he pressed the button for the third time. "Call Bones." 

"Searching for points of interest nearby." 

The Japanese boy couldn't hold back his laughter over how frustrated Ash was becoming from talking to a car of all things. 

“Okay, you win." Ash shook his head. "Call Bones, please." 

"Calling Bones." 

"I told you it would work," Eiji gave a satisfied grin. 

The blond didn't have time to retort before Bones' voice was ringing through the speakers. “Hi, boss." 

"I need you and Kong at the apartment." 

"Gotcha, anything else?" 

"Meet me in the parking garage." 

"Sure thing, boss," he replied enthusiastically before hanging up.

"All of that for a two-second telephone call?" 

Ash seemed to ignore his remark as he turned onto Fifth Avenue. When they reached the garage for the apartment building, the blond pulled out a card and inserted it into the machine; he then typed in a series of numbers on the keypad that lifted the gate open. 

As they drove in, Eiji noticed that Mr. Owens was still at his car, polishing the tire rims. No wonder he had never seen their downstairs neighbor before the big dinner Mrs. Coleman hosted, this man apparently never left the parking garage. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Ash rolled his eyes, “its been hours.. how is that guy is still in here?”

“Welcome back, boys,” Mr. Owens waved once they managed to maneuver past the ropes and out of the car. “Looks like a lovely tree you bought.”

“Thank you, Mr. Owens." 

“Eiji, why don’t you meet Bones and Kong in the lobby then bring the ornaments up to the apartment?” Ash put a hand on the small of his back and gently pushed him towards the elevator. 

“O-oh okay,” he responded lamely. A couple exiting the elevator held the doors open for him as he rushed in and pressed the button for the lobby. He turned to look back at Ash while the doors were closing. It seemed Mr. Owens already had him tied up in a conversation. The blond had a strained smile on his face. 

Bones and Kong were waiting in the lobby, just as Ash had said. They hurried over when they noticed him walking out of the elevator. 

“Eiji! Lemme help with those.” Bones moved to try and take the boxes out of his hands. 

“No, I am okay, but Ash needs your help downstairs.”  

They both a little hesitant but nonetheless ran towards the stairwell. 

***

After he was back in the apartment, Eiji carefully placed the packages down on the table and shrugged off his coat. A big smile took over his features as he noticed the box of hot chocolate mix on the kitchen counter. That will be perfect! 

The instructions called for water, but he chose to boil milk instead, just as Mrs. Owens had suggested. Unlike most things related to cooking, he actually had some knowledge when it came to heating up milk on the stove. 

Eiji yelped when Ash, Bones, and Kong threw open the apartment door, nearly dropping the spoon he was using to stir the powder into the milk. With an excessive amount of grunting, they began maneuvering the tree from the hallway into the apartment. A trail of pine needles following them as they moved.

By the time the trio heaved the tree onto the stand, the hot chocolate was just about finished. Eiji poured the mixture into three mugs and brought it to the three boys who had collapsed on the couch.

“Bones and Kong thank you for your help,” he beamed as he handed over the cups.

“This isn’t coffee,” Kong looked down at the beverage in confusion. 

“It is hot chocolate. I just made it!” 

“Hot cocoa!” Bones cried out gleefully, "I haven’t had this since I was a kid.”

“Hey, where’s my thanks,” Ash frowned. 

“Do not worry I made one for you too, Ash.” 

“Am I going to get sick from drinking this,” the blond grinned mischievously. 

“No,” Eiji started to protest then paused and added. “I think."

“Tastes like my Ma used to make, thanks Eiji,” Bones got out between his big gulps.

Eiji turned to give Ash a satisfied look. The other boy rolled his eyes and began talking to Bones and Kong about, presumably, gang related things. 'Billy the Club' and ‘The Yellow Viper’ did not sound like names an average person would have, after all. 

While they were finishing their drinks, Eiji chose to busy himself by fixing the bent branches on the Christmas tree and sweeping up the fallen pine needles. He then took all the ornaments out of the boxes and placed them on the table. 

“We should head out,” Kong commented as he started to stand up. 

“Wait,” Eiji cried, “you two are not going to help to decorate the tree?"

He exchanged a worried look with Kong then glanced over at Ash, who wore an indifferent expression. 

“I cannot make you carry it up here and not let you help put the ornaments on!” 

“Uh, dunno ‘bout that Eiji,” Bones stammered. 

“But this tree is so tall,” Eiji pouted, "Ash and I can not reach the top part."

“It’s fine with me.” Ash shrugged. 

“If you’re sure,” Kong’s nervous expression turned into one of relief. 

“Just don’t get mad if I break somethin’.” 

“You will not break anything.” 

“Y-yes boss!”

*** 

Eiji started by putting his favorite ornament in the center of the tree. The green glass was beautifully reflecting the afternoon sun, creating little specks of colored light on the floor. He placed a few more glass baubles around the area closer to the window. 

“You’ve gotta ton of deer ones,” Bones commented as he looked over the ornaments on the table. 

“What of it.” Ash raised a brow.

“N-nothing deers are great, right Kong?” 

“Don’t bring me into this, you did that to yourself,” the taller boy chuckled as he hung some decorations on the higher branches. 

Picking up a reindeer ornament, the brunet twirled the ribbon in his fingers. He was captured by its perfect curves and dainty paintwork. This one needed a good spot. 

Unfortunately, he had that thought about every ornament, so the front was becoming quite crowded while the sides were almost bare. 

“I am not expert on this, but I think that some need to be moved,” Ash remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice. 

Choosing which decorations would face the window, and which would face the entryway, was a tough decision when Eiji wanted all of them to face the front. He hummed as he picked a few to place on the side closest to the door. Ash moved some glass bulbs near the window so they would get more light. However, the green one remained in the center of the tree. The other two boys didn’t seem to have as much of a dilemma; they put decorations wherever they saw an empty space.

Between Bones and Kong’s quiet bickering and Ash’s soft glances that he noticed out of the corner of his eye, Eiji felt a wide smile spread across his face and a warmth bloom in his chest. Was this what Christmas felt like? 

When all the ornaments were hanging on the tree, the boys stepped back to have a look at their work. The large tree almost swallowed the sparse spread of ornaments, but Eiji was proud of his first Christmas decorating attempt. 

"It looks like somethin' is missing." 

"Shouldn't there be something at the top?"

"You are right," the brunet let out a gasp, "how could I forget?" 

"Just order one online," Ash shrugged as he slumped back on the couch. 

"Thanks for letting us do this, shrimpy." Kong wore a soft expression as he ruffled his hair. "The holidays were always lonely growing up in the orphanage."

"Yea thanks a bunch, Eiji," Bones gave a toothy grin before his expression turned more serious, "Ma always said she wanted a tree, but she couldn't afford to get us one before she passed away." 

"T-thank you for sharing your stories with me," Eiji tried to ignore the tears prickling the corner of his eyes. He had no idea this simple gesture would have such an impact. 

"D-don't cry; the boss will get upset!" 

The Japanese boy laughed as Kong pulled him and Bones into a tight hug.  

The genuine appreciation on both of their faces made Eiji's heart soar. He came to think of the two gang members as friends and was thrilled to give them a good experience.  

"Aw, Eiji you are so warm I get why the boss-" 

"Bones, do you want your ass kicked?" 

"Hey wait a second where's my thank you," Ash muttered from the couch, "who do you think bought all this stuff?" 

*** 

"Did you know those things about them," Eiji asked quietly as he toyed with the hem on his sweater. 

The apartment was quiet. Bones and Kong left around an hour ago and the brunet was sitting next to Ash on the sofa, a warm mug of tea in his hands as he admired the tree. 

"No," Ash sighed, "I didn't." 

"Oh." He felt a little foolish for asking. Of course, Ash wouldn't know. 

"We don't really talk about that stuff." 

"Then why do they tell me those things?" 

"Because," the blond had a faraway look in his eyes, "you bring out the good in people." 

"Really?" 

"Yeah," Ash avoided looking at him. 

"Do I bring out the goodness in you, Ash?" Eiji stared into those green eyes. 

"Well." the blond stopped, he looked like he wanted to say something else before he clamped his mouth shut. "I only want to kill you sometimes, so that is good, right," he was clearly using a sarcastic tone to cover up what he was really feeling. 

Eiji huffed, why does Ash have to be so difficult? 

“Fine, you can lie to me. You always lie to me." 

"I have to, Eiji. To keep you safe," his voice almost cracked, "I don't want anyone to hurt you, and that is the truth." 

"I know," Eiji stared down at his tea, a bitter taste lingering in his mouth. 

A heavy silence hung in the air. The brunet was about to leave the room before Ash spoke up. 

"You do." 

"I do.. what?" 

"You, uh make me a better person," he said slowly. "I just.. feel like I can forget all the crap in my life and be sort of normal when you are around." 

The brunet couldn't stop the wide smile spreading across his face. Ash had never been this open with what he was thinking. 

"Just don't make me say that again." 

"I should have been recording," Eiji laughed as the other boy shoved a nearby pillow at him. 

Chapter Text

"You can't make every cookie a reindeer, Eiji," Ash frowned as he watched the Japanese boy repeatedly cut the same shape out of dough. 

"This is the only shape I can figure out," Eiji admitted sheepishly. 

The blond sighed softly as he plucked a random shape from the plastic container. "This one is supposed to be Santa Claus... I think." 

"Santa," the Japanese boy repeated the foreign word slowly. "Oh, is that not the fat, red man who gives the gifts?"

"You make it sound really creepy when you say it like that," Ash stifled a laugh, amusement sparkling in his green eyes. 

"It is creepy! Why do you get rocks if you are not nice I do not understand." 

"I guess it is a little weird. You get coal, though, not rocks." 

"Coal..?"

"It's worth a decent amount of cash, and it's not that bad of a gift since fossil fuels are dying out." 

Eiji had absolutely no idea what Ash was going on about, but he seemed very passionate about this idea of the bad gift. 

"Wait a second," he paused mid-rant, "you know this isn't real, right?" 

"What do you mean it is not real," the brunet asked incredulously. He had seen pictures online that made the red man look very real. 

"Holy shit, Eiji." Ash put his head in his hands, "you actually believed some guy was flying through the sky giving kids gifts?"

"He can fly?"  

Ash made a frustrated noise as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why don't we just go back to the cookies?" 

"Can they all be the Ryudolf shape, then?" 

"Just... do whatever you want." 

*** 

Popping open the lid of frosting, Eiji scooped out a dollop and started to spread it on the cookie with a knife. He quietly hummed along to the melody of the Christmas song on the radio.

Peeking over at Ash, his jaw nearly fell open at the blond, who was using a plastic bag to pipe intricate icing designs on the reindeer.

"Y-you said you have never done this before!"  

"I haven't," he said nonchalantly.

Why was Ash so good at everything!?

Eiji frowned at his own attempt. It looked like a child decorated it next to the the blond's cookie, which looked like it belonged in a bakery. 

"Give me your frosting." 

He handed over his jar to the other boy, who scooped it into a separate bag and cut off the corner. 

"Try using this." Ash handed over his creation. 

"Um," he replied lamely as he stared at the bag in his hands. How are you supposed to use this? 

"Like this." the blond took a cookie from the tray and began applying pressure to his own icing bag, making the frosting come out in a clean line as he moved his hand. 

It can't be too hard right?

Biting his lip, Eiji held the bag in his hand like a pencil and squeezed. A large amount of frosting spilled out onto the cookie; it looked almost the opposite of the clean line beside it. He could feel the heat rise to his cheeks as the other boy began to laugh at him. 

"Here, you do it like this." Ash stood close to his side and put his hand atop of Eiji's, who was still holding onto the bag. He guided their hands over to the cookie and lightly squeezed, causing the icing to create a clean swirl. 

"Got it?" 

"Y-yes," Eiji squeaked. He was too wrapped up in the fact that Ash's hand was on top of his own to pay attention to any of the instructions. 

Ash was only helping, and that's it, he kept repeating in his mind in an attempt to push away unwanted thoughts. 

In the end, he was able to figure out the bag technique, although his cookies still seemed childish next to the blond's masterpieces. 

"How did you know to use the plastic bag, Ash?" 

"Well, Mr. Older and Wiser, it happens to be written on the back of the frosting can." 

Almost in disbelief, Eiji picked up the container and turned it to see little illustrations demonstrating how to create the bag then frost with it. "Oh, I-uh see it now."

Picking up the plate of Mrs. Coleman's uneaten snickerdoodles, Ash unceremoniously dumped them into the trash and began to wash the dish. After it was clean, he filled the plate with their own reindeer-shaped sugar cookies, leaving two to the side. 

"Here." The blond handed over a cookie that he had decorated before taking a bite of one that Eiji had frosted. 

For a moment, Eiji felt self-conscious about his subpar frosting attempt. However, despite how childish it looked, Ash was still eating it. 

"Is something wrong?"

"N-no nothing is wrong.. I just feel bad eating this because it looks so nice," the brunet felt himself tripping over his words. 

The other boy raised a brow as Eiji shakily continued his thought, "Maybe we should give yours to Mrs. Coleman. They look so much nicer, after all."

Ash was quiet for a moment before letting out a breath and shaking his head. "Are Japanese people always this hard on themselves?"

"Um, maybe?" 

"Hm," he hummed before leaning down to take a bite out of the cookie in Eiji's hands. 

"Ash!" Eiji yelped, his face immediately heating up. 

“As I thought, it tastes good no matter what the outside looks like," the blond said matter-of-factly. "You want to give out cookies that taste good, right?" 

"Y-yes.." 

"Then we will give her all of them." 

The Japanese boy let out a sigh of defeat. Arguing at this point was useless, so he reluctantly bit back his response and helped to cover the plate in plastic wrap.

*** 

Early the next day, Eiji found himself hesitantly standing outside of Mrs. Coleman’s apartment, secretly praying that their neighbor wouldn’t be home and he could drop off the cookies another time, preferably with Ash. His stomach churned as he heard the door unlock. Somehow he knew this would not be a quick visit.

“Eiji, you are just in time,” Mrs. Coleman beamed at him, “the pot of tea just finished boiling.”

“O-oh that is very kind, Mrs. Coleman but I would not want to intrude—“ 

“Nonsense, dear.” She ushered him inside, “I know Ash won’t be back for a few hours at least, so I’m sure you have some time for a cup of tea.”

How did she know that?

“Hi, Eiji.” Mrs. Owens waved from the kitchen table. A small baby was fast asleep in her arms. 

“Good morning, Mrs. Owens,” he greeted their downstairs neighbor politely. “I did not know you had a baby.”

“She is my niece,” she looked fondly down at the child, "Chad and I are babysitting while my sister is in the Bahamas.”

Eiji nodded before turning to glance around the room, which was filled to the brim with Christmas decorations. Everywhere he looked, there seemed to be a small tree or snowman. There was even a collection of tiny houses on top of her wine cabinet. 

“I think Eiji likes your decorations, Denise. He hasn’t even put down that plate of cookies.” 

“Oh, I am so happy to hear that,” Mrs. Coleman gave him a proud smile as she set the cups of tea of the table. “I could give you a tour if you’d like?” 

“That would be great,” he responded eagerly, genuinely curious to see the other decorations.

Mrs. Coleman led him around her lavishly decorated apartment. Each room had its own assortment of items. She even showed him something called a ’Nutcracker,’ which Eiji had never heard of before. Their neighbor described it as a painted wooden device, which had a mechanism in its mouth that was activated by pressing a lever on its back. It was generally used for cracking chestnuts or simply for decoration.   

“I heard you and Ash drove upstate to get a tree, and I do hope you liked the farm. We go there every year.”

“It was amazing,” Eiji smiled fondly at the memory. 

“I was shocked when Mark mentioned that Ash had asked him for the address in the elevator a few days ago, but after I heard it was a surprise trip for you I understood immediately,” she winked.

“O-oh I see,” he mumbled, a flush slowly creeping onto his cheeks. 

“How was the tour,” Mrs. Owens greeted them when they walked back into the large eat-in kitchen.

“It was nice; I liked the decorations. Thank you for showing me, Mrs. Coleman." Eiji instinctively bowed to his neighbor in appreciation. 

"You should see my set up, then. I think I finally edged out Denise on our little decorating contest this year." 

"Don't be too confident, Leslie. Remember that I have three more Santa's workshops in my village." 

The women started to delve into their own conversation, giving Eiji a chance to breathe as he sat down to his cup of tea at the table. He glanced over at the baby as he took a few sips of his drink. How could she sleep through their loud chatting?

“You don’t have to worry about waking this one, she sleeps like a log,” Mrs. Owens smiled at her little niece. 

"She is very cute.” 

“Isn’t she? Do you want to hold her?”

Clearly, Eiji did not have a real choice in this. Mrs. Owens was already handing over the baby before he could try to formulate any kind of response. 

“Just make sure to support her head.”

The last time he had held a baby was when his sister was born, and he didn’t remember her being this heavy. Most likely as a result of his awkward shifting, the little girl woke up and stared owlishly at him. Her eyes were a deep emerald green, not so different from Ash's. 

"Hi, my name is Eiji," he introduced himself sheepishly. The baby cooed back almost as if she was responding. 

"Look, Leslie, he is a natural!" 

"I think she has taken a liking to you, Eiji." 

Almost on cue, the baby made a face and started to cry. 

"She's probably just a little cranky, aren't we all after we wake up," Mrs. Owens grinned as she lifted the child back into her arms.

Eiji was only a tiny bit offended as the little girl's wailing immediately stopped once she was back with her aunt. 

"How many kids were you and Ash thinking of having," Mrs. Coleman asked out of the blue as if it was a completely normal question. 

"E-excuse me," he spluttered, almost spitting out his tea. 

"That's exactly how I responded when my mother-in-law asked me all those years ago," she chuckled. "And three happy accidents later here I am today." 

A-accidents..?

"Denise," Mrs. Owens frowned. 

"I'm just joking!" She waved her hand dismissively. "You both look so tense let me go open a bottle of wine."

Wine? It wasn't even 11 am! 

"The menopause is hitting her pretty hard," their downstairs neighbor shook her head. 

*** 

A half glass of wine later, Eiji was finally able to head back to the apartment. Mrs. Coleman had handed him a decent sized box containing her leftover decor last year, along with a few 'classic' seasonal movies in exchange for a half-hearted promise that he would consider attending the Christmas party on Friday. 

He sat cross-legged on the floor and began rummaging through the container. There was everything from a long cord that looked like a Christmas tree to large candles in cages. One of the movies looked like it took place in New York, so he made a mental note to watch that one first. 

There were also a few ornaments, to Eiji's delight. As he went to hang them on the tree, he frowned as he noticed the majority of the decorations were attached to branches at his eye level. Stretching on his tiptoes, he struggled to hang the colorful ornaments on the upper portion of the tree. Why couldn't Kong be here at a time like this? 

After taking care of the ornaments, the brunet busied himself with placing the various decorations around the apartment. He arranged a few of the tiny wooden nutcrackers and a fake holly plant on a thin table near the entryway. The large candles brought some much-needed color to the wooden coffee table. Finally, he hung the cord that resembled the Christmas tree on-top of the bookshelf in the office.

It wasn’t much, but the addition of the mismatched decorations made the luxury condo feel more like a home. The gray-brown interior was now complemented by rich reds, dark greens, and golds.

The final item in the box was a giant sock. For a moment, Eiji wondered if it was mistakenly thrown in with the decorations, but who had a foot this large?

After a quick internet search, he learned the sock was apparently referred to as a ‘stocking.’ It was usually filled with candy or small toys and hung on some type of fireplace, which they did not have.

“Ash does not like candy," the brunet frowned. He wracked his brain for something else he could fill the stocking with that the other boy would like. Since he could not think of anything off the top of his head, Eiji decided to head down to the supermarket to search for an alternative.

***

Just as Eiji was finishing up the large salad he was making for dinner, he heard the door open. “Welcome back, Ash,” he smiled as he set the bowl down on the table.

“Did you raid Macy’s while I was gone or something,” the blond stifled a laugh as he glanced around at the new decorations. 

“Did I.. what?”

“All this stuff, Eiji.”

“Oh, it is from Mrs. Coleman in return for the cookies, she said it was her decorations from last year we could keep,” Eiji explained as he spooned some salad into two bowls. 

Ash grunted in response as he shrugged off his coat and sat down at the table. His green eyes immediately lit up at the sight of his favorite dish.

“Did you know that those little wooden things by the door could open the shell of a nut? Well, not those ones but the bigger version, Mrs. Coleman told me,” he proudly relayed the information he had learned earlier. 

“That’s great, dear,” the blond replied sarcastically, making sure to enunciate the last word. “Now you get to ask me how my day was."

“But I do not want to know about your day.. someone might have died,” Eiji huffed.

“No one—“ he started then stopped mid-sentence. “Okay, maybe a few people did unfortunately perish.”

“See?” the Japanese boy crossed his arms.

“Fine, whatever,” Ash mumbled under his breath as he pushed the food around in his bowl. Eiji started to become worried, usually the blond scarfed down his salad rather quickly, but he seemed hesitant today. He couldn’t have messed up a salad, right?

“So,” the blond’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts, “there is a lot of avocado in here today.”

“Oh! Yes, I had some left over,” Eiji grinned as he felt his worries quickly dissipate. He ran over to get the stocking he had filled earlier and placed it in Ash’s hands. 

The blond looked down at the giant sock, his brows furrowed in confusion. “What is this and why is it filled with a crap ton of avocados?”

“It’s a Christmas stocking! Usually, people put candy in it, but you do not like candy, so I chose avocado instead.” 

“What am I going to do with like fifteen avocados?”

“Make.. a lot of salad?” 

Eiji stiffened as he waited for a harsh response, but none came. An amused smile crossed Ash’s face, and he started to laugh. It was a genuine, warm laugh where the skin at the corner of his eyes crinkled. It made him look even more handsome if that was even possible.

The brunet felt his face warm up. He wasn’t quite sure if Ash was making fun of him or not.

“Thank you, Eiji.” 

“O-oh you are welcome,” he managed to choke out, the fond look the other boy was giving him made it feel like his brain was short-circuiting. 

***

“What other stuff did Mrs. Coleman donate to us,” Ash asked as he scrubbed the salad bowl with a sponge. He had willingly volunteered to do dishes by himself for once. 

“She gave us a movie that I want to watch!”

“Which one is it?”

“Um, it is in New York.. at Christmas time,” Eiji scratched his chin as he tried to remember other details.

“That tells me literally nothing.” The blond rolled his eyes in mock exasperation. He sighed as he dried the bowl with a towel and put it back in the cabinet. “I guess we will have to watch it and find out.”

“Really? You will watch it with me,” the Japanese boy asked hopefully. 

“If you want me to.”

“Of course,” he cried in delight. “Wait, we need something first!” Eiji rushed into the bedroom and pulled out the box from under the bed. 

“Hell no,” Ash said flatly as he laid his eyes on the gaudy sweaters.

“But—“ 

“There is no way I am wearing that.” 

“Oh,” he felt a weight press on his chest, of course, Ash would think it was dumb. “I just thought it would be nice..”

A moment passed before the blond swore and forcefully grabbed the sweater. He yanked off his shirt, tossing it onto the floor before pulling the garment over his head. “It’s itchy as hell."

Eiji couldn’t help the silly grin from spreading across his face. The green from the sweater brought out the color in Ash’s eyes, and even though the pattern was ridiculous, somehow the other boy managed to pull it off. 

“The nose also turns red,” the brunet leaned over to press a button on the hem which lit the red bulb of the reindeer’s nose.

“I’m not wearing this thing if you aren’t going to wear yours.” 

“Americans have no patience,” Eiji shook his head before putting on the sweater. Thankfully, the apartment was getting cold enough so he could wear it over his shirt.

“I am losing my patience with you right about now,” he grumbled as he flopped down on the couch. “So where is this movie?"

“I have it here.”

The red colored glare from the bulbs on their sweater shone against the television as they watched the film. 

*** 

“Hah, the elf reminds me of you back when you first came to the city, are you sure you aren’t from the North Pole,” Ash teased. 

“I would not eat gum off of the road,” Eiji puffed out his cheeks. “The rude blonde girl seems like you. Maybe you should sing a Christmas song. It might make you less grumpy.” 

“Pfft, no way."

Chapter Text

Eiji scowled as he glared at the coffee machine. He really didn't want to use it, but the store only offered Christmas cookie flavored coffee in the little plastic pods, and it's not like he could resist trying out this new flavor. It was important to see if it actually tasted like cookies. 

While the water heated up, the brunet busied himself with preparing some breakfast. He grabbed an avocado from the overflowing bowl and began cutting around the pit. Three chopped up avocados later, the coffee machine was finally ready.

After placing the pod in the device and pressing the button, he found the most holiday-esque mug they owned. A few dots of red made it seem Christmas-y, right? 

Once the mug was filled, Eiji swirled in a little bit of milk and sat down at the counter. With slight hesitation, he brought the mug to his lips and took a sip.

It does taste like cookies, he thought as he nearly dropped the mug in shock. How is that possible? 

The brunet narrowed his eyes at the liquid. He wracked his brain trying to figure out how they could get this coffee to taste just like a cookie. 

Ash stumbling out of the bedroom was enough to pull Eiji out of his thoughts. 

"Good morning, Ash," he smiled at the blond, who responded with a yawn. His golden hair was tousled, and his glasses were crooked on his nose. Even after just waking up, Ash always managed to still look like a model. The sight was enough to give the Japanese boy a nervous fluttering feeling in his stomach.  

"I see someone finally caved and used the instant coffee machine," Ash gave him a teasing grin. 

"It is not like I wanted to," Eiji said defensively, "I had to see if the coffee really tasted like Christmas cookies." 

"Destroying the planet just for a little taste test, huh?" 

Eiji frowned before he was about to mumble a bitter retort, Ash swiped his mug and took a sip. The blond scrunched his face in disgust at the taste. 

"Seems like something only an elf from the North Pole would drink, are you sure you aren't from there?"

"I am not."

"Says the one wearing the Christmas sweater," Ash snickered as he slid the cup across the counter.

Eiji looked down in mortification to see he was wearing the reindeer sweater. He couldn't help that the apartment had been chillier lately and that the sweater was the first piece of clothing he grabbed in the morning.

***

It wasn't until Ash was about to leave that the Japanese boy suddenly remembered the promise he made to his neighbor.

"Um," he started nervously, causing the blond to pause in the doorway. "Mrs. Owens invited us to her holiday party tomorrow."

"Oh," Ash replied flatly.

"A-and I promised I would ask you if you wanted to go?"

He waited for Ash to laugh at him for even suggesting something like that. However, no condescending remark came.

"Do you want to?"

"Huh?"

"Do you want to go to the party," he said slowly, enunciating each word, most likely in an attempt to mock him.

"Well, I-uh—"

"If you want to go then we can go," Ash said softly, "just don't make me wear that ugly-ass sweater."

"Okay," Eiji laughed. He never thought Ash would actually agree to attend a Christmas party of all things.

The unspoken promise that he would try to come back safely, even if it was just to make it to an event, made Eiji feel a little lighter as he watched the front door close. 

***

Like most days, there was no major activity outside of Goldzine’s building, so the brunet spent the majority of the afternoon fiddling with his equipment. As Eiji was switching out one of his lens filters he heard a loud knock at the front door. He wasn’t expecting Bones or Kong, and Ash never knocked. A looming sense of fear was starting to overwhelm him the longer the knocking continued. 

He quietly crept into the kitchen and glanced through the tiny peephole. Letting out a sigh of relief, Eiji undid the lock and opened the door. 

“Hey, there, Eiji.” Max stood in the hallway. “I have something for Ash, and I had no idea where he would be, so I figured passing it along to you would be best.” 

“Oh, um, I will make sure he gets it.” Eiji pocketed the small USB and glanced nervously down the hallway. 

“No need to be so worried I wasn’t followed,“ the man chuckled. 

“I am not worried about that—“ 

“Oh my goodness, if it isn’t Mr. Winston himself!” 

Eiji winced as his fears seemingly came to life as Mrs. Coleman bolted over from the elevator, dropping the majority of her groceries along the way. 

“Woah, there.” Max crouched down to help their neighbor pick up the fallen vegetables. 

This was bad. Very bad. Max could ruin everything and put Ash in more danger. Eiji’s mind was racing, envisioning every bad scenario that could happen. 
 
“Such a gentleman, I see where Ash gets it from,” she chuckled and held out her hand to shake. “I do not think we have properly met, I’m Denise Coleman, and I live across the hall.” 

Max looked over at the brunet desperately before shaking the woman’s hand. “Pleasure to meet you Denise, I’m.. uh,” he glanced over at Eiji who was silently mouthing the name, “Edward.” 

“Mr. Winston is very tired from jet lag,” the Japanese boy gave Mrs. Coleman a nervous smile, who nodded in understanding. 

“Oh, of course, you were in Dubai, right?” 

“Y-yes Dubai.”

“I hear it is lovely; Mark travels there for work on occasion.” 

“You don’t say.” 

Mrs. Coleman remained silent for a moment, shuffling the groceries in her arms. “You are a handsome man, Edward. I am trying to imagine how you have a son as old as Ash.” 

Eiji felt his blood run cold. He could also feel Max stiffen next to him. 

“You must tell me what plastic surgeon you use,” Mrs. Coleman laughed. 

“Good genes I suppose.” Max scratched the back of his neck. 

“Splendid genes! Ash is a very handsome boy, your wife must be beautiful.” 

The brunet watched as the older man’s smile seem to crumble, his eyes clouded with pain and hurt. “My ex-wife, she lives in California.” 

“Oh goodness, I am so sorry for bringing it up,” Mrs. Coleman rushed to apologize.

“It’s alright,” Max gave her a wry smile.

“It must be so hard on Ash,” she said quietly then turned looked Max right in the eyes. “However, whenever I see your son with Eiji, there is nothing but happiness in his expression.”

“Yeah, I am just glad someone is there for him."

Eiji wanted to sink into the floor, he couldn’t bring himself to look at either one of them. His cheeks burned in embarrassment. 

“I am sure you are looking forward to their wedding, then.”

Max gave him an incredulous look before letting out a boisterous laugh. “Of course, I wouldn’t want to give my boy away to anyone else.” 

“I am glad to hear that,” Mrs. Coleman chuckled softly.  

“Well, I would love to stay and chat, Denise, but I was just dropping something off before heading back into the office,” Max tried to say as non-chalantly as possible. 

“Oh, yes, sorry to hold you up Edward, but must come over for tea one day, though. I would love for you to meet Mark.” 

“M-maybe the next time Mr. Winston is in town,” Eiji cut in before Max could reply. 

“Sounds like a plan, dear,” she winked before heading into her apartment across the hall. 

An awkward silence stretched between the two of them once they were left alone. 

“Want me to tell Shunichi you are getting hitched,” Max gave him a teasing grin.

“Absolutely not!” he squeaked, “she just assumed we were engaged.” 

“Uh, huh.” 

“Goodbye, Max.” Eiji groaned at the older man as he turned around and promptly shut the door. 

*** 

The sun was starting to slowly sink in the sky when the package delivery notice finally arrived. Eiji nearly jumped out of his chair as he scrambled to get the keys and rush down to the mail room. 

After the two boxes were in his possession, he happily opened them then pulled out the ball of lights and the tree topper. They were the last pieces the Christmas tree needed to be complete. 

A hot cup of tea in hand, the brunet began enthusiastically untying the lights. He worked diligently at unweaving the knots. It was a good distraction to keep his mind away from worrying about the small USB he had put by Ash’s laptop in their room. It was probably nothing.

Once the lights were separated, he brought them over to the tree. The golden light from streaming in from the window made the ornaments gleam, and the browns of the reindeer seem more like a dazzling gold. Eiji couldn't help the smile spreading across his face at the sight. 

His heart felt even lighter when he heard the front door being opened. 

"Welcome back, Ash," he beamed at the blond as he walked in. 

"Looks like the lights finally came in." 

"Yes, I just finished unwrapping them," Eiji said proudly. "Let me make you some tea." 

"I'm alright." Ash shook his head as he crouched down to pick up the string of lights. Without a word, he began delicately stringing it around the ornaments.  

By the time the Japanese boy wrestled the tree topper out of its several layers of bubble wrap, the lights had been fully strung around the tree. They didn't quite reach the top, but it was close enough. 

"How will we get this up there," Eiji looked up at the tallest branch of the tree, which loomed over both of them. 

"Why don't you use some Christmas magic and have it fly to the top," Ash snickered. 

The brunet stuck his tongue out at the jeer. "I could lift you instead." 

"Yeah, right." 

"You are having doubts? I am an athlete," the Japanese boy scoffed.

"Was an athlete." 

"Fine," Eiji scoffed as he pushed the topper into Ash's hands. After getting into a better stance, he grabbed onto the blond's sides then lifted him a few inches off the ground. 

"W-what," Ash stammered, "how did—" 

"I do not have all day." 

Ash stretched to place the star-shaped topper on the highest branch before Eiji set him down. 

"I told you I could do it." 

"Yeah," the blond responded quietly, his green eyes refusing to meet Eiji’s gaze as he shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. 

Crouching down next to the outlet, the brunet shivered in anticipation before plugging the lights into the wall. He stifled a gasp as the entire room suddenly lit up in vibrant hues of red, blue, and yellow. Eiji scrambled to his feet to admire the completed Christmas tree. 

The seemingly simple addition of the tree brought the entire room to life. He couldn’t help but smile when he thought of the memories associated with the drive out to the tree farm, fretting over the handmade ornaments, or Bones nearly breaking one of the reindeer’s antlers.

In the center of the tree, the green ornament shimmered from the surrounding lights. It almost matched the brightness in Ash’s eyes. 

“I—“ the blond started, but was interrupted by a large growl emanating from his own stomach, causing Eiji to erupt into a fit of giggles.

“You sound hungry, good thing we have a lot of avocado salad.”

“Not more avocados,” Ash groaned.

Chapter Text

When the day of the party finally came, an uneasy feeling had settled in the pit of Eiji's stomach. He may be somewhat of a klutz normally, but his nervous mood was almost amplifying it. So far he had already broken a mug, shattered one of his lens filters, and tripped over the cord for the Christmas tree lights several times. It wasn’t even mid-afternoon yet. 

Not wanting to risk another baking disaster, he had gone down to the store to find something already cooked. The only two options were some stale sugar cookies, and something called a ‘gingerbread house.’ From the packaging, he gathered that the ‘house' was put together with the different shaped cookies inside the box. He wasn’t quite sure what that had to do with ginger or bread, but he knew he would most likely be able to assemble a few cookies.

Once he was back at the apartment, the brunet studied the box while the water for his tea boiled. Despite the colorful graphics, there were no instructions on the outer packaging. Deciding to empty the contents, he gasped as a several page instruction booklet fell out of the box, along with multiple packets of powder. 

He felt faint as he flipped through the tiny booklet, there must have been at least twenty or so steps with a multitude of ingredients involved.
 
The clicking of the kettle was enough to calm his nerves slightly. Wanting to avoid another broken mug situation, Eiji tightly gripped the cup while he poured the boiling water over the tea bag. As the tea seeped, the brunet glanced over at the Christmas Tree. He smiled at the warm feeling it gave him and the happy memories it brought to mind.

With a long sigh, he figured he should start this gingerbread house if he wanted it to be finished for the party in a few hours. He trudged into the kitchen to grab a few tiny bowls, whisks, along with the carton of milk from the fridge.

Dumping the powders into bowls, he carefully measured out the milk. There was apparently a royal icing, which was supposedly different from regular frosting, but Eiji thought they looked exactly the same. One of the first steps was to connect one of the ‘wall pieces’ to the ‘bottom piece.’ 

Scratching his head as he studied the pieces, the Japanese boy realized they all seemed very similar. How was he supposed to tell which was a wall or a ceiling section? 

Taking a random piece, he slathered icing along the bottom and stuck it into the largest square, which he assumed was the base. It seemed to work for a moment until the cookie slowly sank and broke when it hit the table. 

Eiji frowned. Clearly, this was not going to be easy. 

Deciding to take a different approach, he used a large glob of the other icing to attach two pieces together to form a corner. He was so delighted that it actually worked, however, he did not notice the cookies were two completely different sizes until he attached them to the base. 

The longer he worked, the less his creation resembled a ‘house.’ 

He wasn’t quite sure if he was relieved or embarrassed when he heard Ash open the front door. 

“Welcome back,” he let out a strained laugh as he tried to wipe some of the icing off his hands. 

“What the hell is that?” 

“It is, um, a gingerbread house?”

“Did it get hit by a tornado?”

“No.."

“Looks like your roof is slipping off,” the blond stifled a laugh as the cookie slowly slid off the structure and broke once it hit the table. 

“I cannot help these instructions are long and make no sense,” Eiji groaned. 

“Lemme see,” Ash swiped the booklet and flipped through the pages. “First of all, you have the roof piece as the wall.” 

A half an hour later, they had something resembling a house. The walls were a bit tall, the off-center roof left a giant gap on the top, and it was covered in cracks, but at least it was intact. 

Almost all of the icing had been used up in the salvage attempt, so there wasn’t really any left for decorating. 

Ash used his plastic bag technique to swirl some of the remaining icing on the sides, while Eiji placed some gumdrops along the drooping roof-line. 

“It is not so bad,” Eiji commented as he wiped some of the icing off his face. 

“I wouldn’t want to live there; the flood damage would be astounding, not to mention the insulation issues.” 

“Good thing it is for eating and not for living in, then.” 

“Well, at least we know tastes good because you didn’t cook it,” the blond snickered. 

“You are right I should work on my cooking,” Eiji paused as a mischievous grin spread across his face, "by making natto for the rest of the week.” 

“No, Eiji, don’t say that,” Ash cried out in mock anguish.

*** 

The closer the time came for them to leave, the more nervous Eiji was becoming. He kept anxiously glancing at the clock, while restlessly running his hands through his hair. His dark waves had always been messy and unruly, and unfortunately, the gel didn’t do much to tame them.

It seemed like Ash was in the bathroom for an eternity. As the time stretched by, he was becoming increasingly worried that his button-down and sweater combination wasn’t the right choice. 

When the other boy finally emerged, Eiji’s jaw nearly dropped to the ground. 

“W-why are you wearing a suit,” the brunet stuttered, the heat quickly rising to his cheeks. The contrast of the cream jacket with the black shirt complemented Ash's pale features and emphasized his green eyes. 

“It’s not like I’m wearing a tie or anything,” the other boy shrugged in response. 

Eiji let out a shaky breath. “Let me just go change—“ 

“Hold on,” Ash interrupted before heading back into the bedroom and emerging with another garment of clothing. “It’s a few years old so it might fit you.” He gently draped the maroon blazer over the other boy's shoulders. 

It was a little big, but not enough to be noticeable. 

“You are always stealing my sweaters anyway, thought maybe you should switch it up.” 

“Thank you, Ash,” a small smile worked its way onto Eiji’s face. The added warmth of the jacket made his heart race.

*** 

It wasn't until they were in the elevator that Eiji realized they had forgotten the gingerbread house. Not that it was very portable in the first place. 

"I wouldn't worry about it." The blond shrugged. "I don't think she expected us to bring anything." 

"What? Why did you not tell me that earlier!" 

"I thought you knew?" 

The Japanese boy grumbled as the doors opened to Mrs. Owens' floor. Why did they even take the elevator down one level? 

His thoughts were cut short when he noticed all of the people spilling out from an apartment a few doors down. With the number of guests in the hallway alone, Mrs. Owens must have invited the entire building. Some of them even waved to Ash as they walked by. 

“Ash, Eiji, you made it,” Mrs. Owens greeted them enthusiastically, she was mingling with guests around her giant, white Christmas tree. Like the tree, the majority of the decorations were cream or white, making the space feel like a winter wonderland. 

“Thank you for inviting us, Mrs. Owens,” Ash responded politely.

The women’s vibrant, satin dresses and the men’s dark suits popped against the white facade of the apartment. Most of the guests were sipping cocktails and speaking amongst themselves, while others danced slowly to the music playing from the speakers in the ceiling. 

“My goodness, Ash you look so handsome,” Mrs. Coleman gushed as she drank from her glass of wine. She clearly was on her second or third drink as she was leaning against her husband for support. “I met your father the other day, he is so proud of you I can tell.” 

“Oh,” the blond said softly. There was a faraway look in his eyes that made Eiji feel like he wasn’t thinking of Max.

“Drinks are in the kitchen down the hall, you have to try the eggnog, Eiji will love it,” she winked.

“Do you want me to get you something?” Ash turned to him.

“Um,” Eiji's eyes darted around the room, almost everyone had a cup in their hand. Would it be weird if he refused? “Okay,” he said hesitantly. 

With that, Ash pushed through the crowd of people, leaving him alone. Once he was by himself, the amount of people in the room felt suffocating. He was never one for parties.

Eiji awkwardly sat down on an empty space on the couch and watched the couples bump into each other as they danced. 

“Where are you from, cutie,” a tall teenage boy looked down at him, his red hair was slicked back, and he had a strange look in his dark eyes.

“Um,” the brunet flinched under his gaze, “I am from Japan.” 

“How exotic,” the boy laughed dryly.

Was it?

“Your eyes are larger than most other Asians I’ve seen.”

“Uh,” he stuttered, was that supposed to be a compliment? 

The boy must have taken his lack of response as an invitation to sit down close to him on the couch, the sickly sweet smell of his cologne was making Eiji dizzy. Every ounce of the Japanese boy wanted to yell at this weird stranger, but it felt like there was a rock lodged in his throat.

“Eiji is everything okay.” Ash was suddenly standing in front of them with two drinks in his hands.

“Who is this,” the redhead raised a brow. 

“His fiancé, who the hell are you.”

“O-oh, I didn’t know,” the boy scrambled to his feet, “I was just leaving, actually.” He quickly shuffled away as Ash glared at his retreating back. 

“Are you okay,” the blond’s tone softened as he sat down in the now empty space on the couch.

“Yeah,” Eiji replied quietly, “I am okay, now.” 

“Sorry it took so long, got caught by Mr. Owens again and you know he can’t shut up about his stupid Mercedes Benz.”

“That man loves his car,” the brunet chuckled. 

“Yeah, I feel bad for his poor wife,” Ash rolled his eyes as he handed over the cup. “Here’s your eggnog.”

Eiji tried not to think about how Ash’s hand brushed against his when he took the cup, or how confidently he stated that they were engaged. It was just an act, after all. 

The drink smelled sweet, and it tasted even sweeter than it smelled. It was different than wine or sake, and it reminded him of a milkshake as he finished half the cup in a few sips.  

“Woah, Eiji, not so fast, there is liquor in there.”

“You just said it was eggs.”

“Yeah, eggs and like rum or something,” Ash laughed.

Soon enough, his head started to ache, and a flush crept onto his cheeks.

“How about we go find water? I think I saw some by the door.” 

“Mm okay.”

***

Weirdly enough, there were no guests around the cooler in the front room. As he leaned down to grab a bottle of water, he heard Mrs. Owens gasp behind him. He stood and turned around, did he do something wrong? Even Ash seemed a little confused as to why Mrs. Coleman and Mrs. Owens were both gaping at them. 

“My, my look who got caught under the mistletoe,” Mrs. Coleman’s smile was so wide it was starting to make him squirm. 

What does that mean? Eiji looked over to Ash, who looked very uncomfortable all of a sudden. 

“D-does that mean I have to show you my toes,” he asked nervously. 

“No, silly,” Mrs. Owens laughed. “It’s a Christmas tradition; you have to kiss whoever you are with under the mistletoe.” She pointed up to a plant hanging from a ribbon on the ceiling.

Eiji felt his heart drop. No wonder the blond looked so uncomfortable. He undoubtedly had unpleasant memories associated with kissing. This was all his fault for downing that drink.

“Oh my goodness, Leslie I told you they were fighting—” 

“N-no we are not,” the brunet said a little too forcefully. 

If these women found out they were lying, it could result in them looking Ash up online and finding out his true identity. Then he would most likely get reported and sent back to jail, the thought alone made him feel queasy.

“Eiji,” Ash said softly, his breath hitched when the other boy reached out to twirl a strand of his dark hair and tuck it behind his ear. Eiji’s heart was beating so quickly, and the blood roared in his ears as Ash gently trailed his thumb down his jaw to tilt his chin up. There was a fond look in his green eyes as he leaned down to tenderly press his lips against Eiji’s own. 

As quickly as it happened, it was over. No pills. No secret messages. Seemingly no ulterior motive.

“Eiji, please don’t cry,” A flash of hurt and fear passed through Ash’s expression as he softly wiped the tears from his cheeks. Why was he crying?

“Oh, sweetheart,” Mrs. Coleman sounded sympathetic.

His feelings were slowly starting to bubble to the surface, whether Eiji wanted them to or not. Before he could blurt out something he would regret, the Japanese boy took off, quickly pushing through the crowds of people. As soon as he spotted an empty room, he ran in and closed the door behind him. He could hear Ash calling his name as he sunk down to the ground and covered his face.

The sobs wouldn’t stop wracking his body no matter how hard he tried. He felt like scum, forcing Ash to do something he hated and Eiji actually enjoyed it.

“Are you okay, mister?”

Slowly lifting his head, he saw the same girl with the twin tails from Thanksgiving. She looked really worried as she kneeled down next to him. 

“I am okay,” his voiced cracked.

“What’s wrong,” she blinked owlishly. Something about her calming presence made Eiji want to tell her the truth. 

“The person I like,” he started slowly, “I know they will never like me back.”

The little girl looked confused. “Why’s that? You seem really nice, and you like Tom the Turkey."

Eiji actually laughed at that. “What is your name?” 

“I’m Emily,” she grinned, her smile missing a few front teeth. It reminded him of his sister.

“My name is Eiji.”

“Mr. Eiji, have you told this person that you like them?”

“Um, no—“ 

“Then how can you know they don’t like you back,” Emily frowned and crossed her arms. “My mom says you should tell people how you feel.”

“I do not know if I can,” he sighed. 

“Why not? You just move your mouth and sound comes out.”

A small smile crossed his face. This little girl sounded just like the Christmas movie.

Before he had a chance to reply, Mrs. Coleman and Mrs. Owens, hurried in through the other door with Ash trailing behind them.

“There he is, oh Eiji, we are so sorry.” Mrs. Coleman pulled him into a hug, “we never wanted to embarrass you."

As soon as Mrs. Coleman released him, he was roped in by Mrs. Owens. “Could you ever forgive us, dear?” 

“Of course, I apologize for overreacting,” he smiled at their sincerity.

“Emily, there you are,” Mrs. Owens looked to the young girl, “let’s go back outside so we can give these boys some privacy.”

“Okay,” she hummed. Before she walked out the door she turned to Ash, “Mr. Eiji is really nice.”

“I know he is,” Ash chuckled. 

“Good,” Emily chirped before closing the door behind her.

They were both quiet as the blond sat down on the floor next to him.

“Eiji-“ 

“Let me say something first,” the Japanese boy said quickly. “Ash, I am so sorry I never meant to do something against your wishes.”

“Eiji, you dummy.”

“Huh?”

“I wanted to apologize to you for the same thing,” the blond grinned, amusement sparkled in his green eyes. 

“You did?” he asked slowly. 

“Yeah,” Ash said quietly as wiped the remaining tears from the other boy’s face. "So will you come back out to the party?”

“Okay,” a goofy smile spread across Eiji’s face as Ash tugged him to his feet. For the first time all day, the nervous feeling had finally disappeared, and he felt as light as air. 

***

Not surprisingly, it seemed nothing had changed since he had left. People were still mingling with drinks in the hallway, while couples swayed along to the music.  

They resumed their spot on the couch, chatting with Mrs. Coleman or Owens whenever they walked by. Emily stopped by to say hello and was promptly shooed away by Mr. Owens who tried his best to start a conversation about cars before he was dragged away by his wife. 

Eiji watched the pairs dancing; their movements seemed so graceful. The music seemed to be instrumental versions of popular Christmas songs. 

"Do you want to dance with me," Ash offered. 

"O-oh I, uh, don't know how," Eiji felt his face warm as he bit his lip. 

"I could teach you if you want." 

"I would like that." 

The blond wore a satisfied grin as he led them to a less crowded space. 

"Okay, so first you put your hand on my shoulder and my waist." Ash guided his hands before snaking his own arms around Eiji's waist. "Then you step back when I move forward." 

"I will try," the brunet replied sheepishly, Ash was so close it was making it hard for him to think.

Eiji tried his best, but he kept staring at his own feet and bumping into the other boy. 

"You Japanese klutz." 

"You silly American give bad instructions!" 

Instead of actual dancing, they ended up slowly swaying to the music. It was peaceful like the two of them were in their own little world. Eiji’s head was starting to feel heavy, so he rested it on Ash's shoulder and wove his arms around the blond’s neck. 

"You know," Ash started, then paused, almost afraid to continue. “I’ve danced with a lot of people, but this is the first time I am actually enjoying it.” 

“You are the first person I have ever danced with,” Eiji admitted quietly. 

“Thank god, because you are awful at it."

This time Eiji stepped on his toes on purpose.

***

He wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol or the emotional exhaustion, or a combination of both, but Eiji fell asleep as soon as he got into bed. The next time he opened his eyes, the room was still pitch black. Rubbing his eyes, he glanced over to the clock which read 3:00. 

A loud sob from the bed next to his own broke Eiji out of his sleepy haze. He sat up and stared at the other boy, who was quiet for a moment. Maybe he had just misheard?

Whimpers followed by anguishing cry made the brunet hurry over to Ash’s side of the room. The other boy was definitely asleep, his eyes were screwed shut, and his golden hair was damp with sweat. His pale cheeks stained with dried tears. 

Eiji tentatively sat on the edge of the bed. “Ash, wake up.” 

The other boy didn’t stir beside letting out a few feeble noises.

“Ash,” the brunet said a little more forcefully, which seemed to work as bloodshot green eyes opened and darted over to stare at him. 

“E..iji,” he said blearily.

“I am here, Ash. It was just a bad dream.”

A moment later, the blond was in his arms, tightly clutching onto him as he quietly sobbed into the crook of his neck. Eiji tried to rub reassuring circles onto Ash’s back, but he felt like he wasn’t helping at all. The damper his cotton shirt become, the more he wished that he could do something, anything to make the other boy feel better. 

For some reason, his mind went back to the movie — the best way to spread Christmas cheer..

He cleared his throat and started to sing, “Ryudolf, the red-nosed reindeer, he had a very shiny nose.”

The sobs were starting to slow as Ash looked up at him.

“And if you ever saw it, you would say it glows.”

There were still tears, but a small smile was starting to work its way onto the other boy’s face.

“It worked,” Eiji cried out happily.

“What do you mean?” Ash had all but stopped crying, and Eiji cautiously leaned over to wipe the leftover tears. 

“The Christmas singing made you smile!” 

“Hm,” Ash held back a laugh as he moved into a sitting position. “I think it’s because you were so off-key and got the words all jumbled up.”

“Okay, Mr. Ryudolf expert tell me the words.”

“Ru—“ 

“No, you have to sing it.”

The blond grumbled before he reluctantly started to sing the song. Soon after, Eiji joined in. They both laughed each time the Japanese boy stumbled over a part; then Ash would try to teach him the correct verse. The atmosphere in the room was light and warm. The blond’s earlier nightmare seemingly forgotten.
 
Maybe these Americans were onto something for once, Eiji thought, Christmas was special.