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It was cold as balls outside. December in Kamurocho was always freezing but as Majima got older it seemed more so and lately he had started to seriously consider if making leather and snakeskin with no shirt his iconic look was really the brilliant idea he had thought it was. He hated wearing his stuffy ass suit but as he pulled his jacket closer to his body and hurried through the bitter cold he could concede it was at least warmer than what he normally wore. Majima ignored the hushed whispers and sideways glances as he walked past the crowd bustling around the entrance to the shopping mall and stepped gratefully inside its warmth, eye slowly adjusting to the bright light inside as he weaved through the crowd. People usually gave him a wide berth but yakuza patriarch or not there were too many people crammed inside to effectively stay out of his way so he pushed his way through the best he could, using his height to his advantage until he finally reached the customization shop. Normally he let Nishida take care of all this boring crap but he’d already gone home to the country to spend the holidays with his family so here Majima was, getting jostled around on Christmas Eve along with all these other jackoffs. At least running out to pick up a present gave him a good reason to duck out of that sorry excuse for a meeting. It didn’t make much of a difference if he was there or not since his family wasn’t involved in whatever nonsense they were arguing about for once so he made his apologies to Daigo-chan and bounced. He rushed out only to be standing in a line once he got here, silver-tipped foot tapping impatiently as he waited his turn. While Majima was in line waiting there must have been some kind of sale announced because people started flooding past him, more than one person stepping on his toes and the poor kid standing behind him got shoved directly into Majima’s back.
“Shit! Sorry about that!” He glanced back just as the light of recognition lit up in the kid’s eyes and his face went pale, his sunglasses skewed sideways on his face as he gaped up at Majima before bowing as deep as he could in the crowd. “I mean, I’m sorry sir!” With the way he was dressed this kid had to be yakuza, a light blue pinstripe suit over a purple button up shirt wasn’t exactly a typical civilian look. Majima waved his hand dismissively, if he was in the business he must not stand out much because Majima had never seen him before in his life.
“No need to piss your pants, kid. It’s not like it was your fault anyhow.” Majima was getting way too old to start fights with people over such petty bullshit. Besides he still hadn’t picked up what he came here for and he’d be damned if he was going to lose his place in line just for a tiny nudge like that. The kid looked far worse for wear than he did anyway. His slicked back hair was starting to come loose from the gel holding it in place and it made him look frazzled. Majima leaned casually against the nearby display wall. “What family ya with, kid?”
“Matsugane, sir. Name’s Higashi.” That family name sounded familiar at least. If Majima was remembering correctly they had just lost their patriarch.
“Ya buyin’ somethin’ nice for your girl?” The tips of Higashi’s ears turned red and he pushed his glasses up on his nose.
“No, nothing like that. I’m just buying a little something for my aniki.” This was an awful expensive place for ‘a little something’ but Majima wasn’t about to call him out on that. “I just hope he likes it.”
“Haw? Why,” Majima asked, his head tilting to the side. “Ya really bad at givin’ gifts?” Higashi shook his head.
“I just... lost touch with him for a long time until recently so I don’t know if he even still likes the same things.” He stiffened and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Sorry sir, I’m sure you’ve got better things to do than listen to my problems.” Before Majima could answer, the line finally moved forward and he had to scramble to find the little paper they had given him to pick up his package as the sales clerk was shouting that his name was next. Eventually, the package was tucked away safely in the back of his jacket and the salesman had finally stopped bowing and smiling that artificial smile at him long enough for him to make his escape. Majima couldn’t wait to get out of this claustrophobic place but as he was weaving his way out the door he spotted a flash of purple and blue still waiting in line and on a whim turned back. There were too many people to walk all the way back to where the line was so he would have to improvise.
“Hey kid!” he shouted abruptly, stretching up to his full height to be seen over the crowd. Several people turned in confusion and Higashi’s face was an amusing picture of shock and confusion. “I don’t think ya got anythin’ to worry about. You’ll knock ‘em dead!” Majima chuckled as he sputtered and bowed, his face turning pink.
“Thank you, sir! I’ll keep that in mind!” Majima walked off, waving behind him as he melded into the crowd. When he finally emerged from the mass of people the bitter cold made him think better of trying to grab a smoke so he just headed home. The snow was starting to get heavy and he was freezing his tits off. What was that kid’s name again, Higashi? Maybe he’d see him again sometime and ask if his aniki liked the present.
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Majima unlocked the door to his condo gratefully and dusted the snow off his shoulders, tapping the sides of his shoes before kicking them off and stepping inside. Saejima looked up from where he was sitting and Majima glanced curiously at the knitting needles he could see poking over the back of the couch.
“You’re back awful late, bro. Where ya been?”
“None of your business,” he answered evasively, shuffling guiltily when Saejima glanced up at him and quirked a scarred eyebrow. “Fine,” Majima sighed. “I was pickin’ somethin’ up for tomorrow. Ya can’t have it ‘til then though so don’t go tryin’ to talk me into givin’ it to ya early.”
“Okay.” Saejima’s voice was a bass rumble as he turned back to his knitting and Majima huddled around the vent and tried to warm up. “There’s some cake in the kitchen if ya want some.”
“The only thing I want right now is to stop feelin’ like my fingers are gonna fall off. It’s cold as hell out there.”
“It’s pretty warm under this blanket, why don’t ya come sit over here with me.” Majima dropped his jacket and gloves on the carpet near the door and hopped over the back of the couch, diving under the fleece blanket without hesitation and making Saejima hiss the sudden cold contact. “You weren’t kiddin’, ya feel like you’re made of ice. Maybe you should give up on this jacket only thing and try wearin’ a shirt for once, bro.”
“Never.” Saejima tisked at his stubbornness but let Majima snuggle up next to him, the edges of his mouth quirking up as Majima relaxed against his side. “When’d ya learn how to knit, bro?”
“A couple hours ago. I found a how to video on that ‘my tube’ thing last week so I picked up some supplies before I came home to try it out.”
“Isn’t it borin’ to sit here and waggle those sticks around like that?”
“Nah, it’s fun.” Majima shrugged and dropped the subject, enjoying Saejima’s body heat as he thawed out beside him.
“I’ll take your word for it,” Majima mumbled comfortably. The rhythmic click of the knitting needles was soothing and pretty soon Majima was nodding off, his head lolling to the side against Saejima’s broad shoulder. He didn’t know how much time had passed but suddenly he was airborne, cradled in Saejima’s massive arms. “Put me down! I can walk my own damn self!” Saejima ignored his grousing and walked off towards their bedroom. Majima was too sleepy to put up any real resistance and before he could wriggle out of Saejima’s grasp he was being gently laid down on the soft bed and tucked in under thick blankets. He remembered lips pressing to his temple and then all the energy leaked out of him as he lay in the comfortable softness and drifted back to a dreamless sleep. He floated back to consciousness slowly, blearily looking up at the clock on the bedside table before noticing the absence of Saejima’s body beside him. He pulled the blankets off and stretched, adjusting his eyepatch from where it had skewed while he was sleeping before wandering back into the living room. Saejima was sitting on the couch again, still knitting away and Majima walked around this time to sit next to him. “It’s past midnight, what are you still doin’ up?”
“I wanted to finish this up before I went to bed.” Majima looked curiously at the confusing pile of yarn on Saejima’s lap.
“What is it?” The needles kept clicking away as Saejima didn’t slow down his pace.
“I’ll show ya in a minute, I’m almost done.” Majima nodded and stifled a yawn, warmth bubbling up in his chest at the soft look on Saejima’s face as he did some complicated motion with the knitting needles and declared it finished. “I was gonna wait until mornin’ but since ya asked…,” he trailed off, wrapping something plush and warm around Majima’s neck that he realized after a moment was a scarf. “Since ya can’t be assed to wear a shirt I figured a scarf might at least keep ya from freezin’ to death out there. Merry Christmas, bro.” Majima started at the sudden emotion welling up so he shoved it down, scrambling to reach over the back of the couch to grab his jacket from where he left it on the floor. He rifled through the pockets, triumphantly finding the small package shoved in the surprisingly deep crevices of the suit jacket.
“Here,” he said with feigned nonchalance. “I was gonna make ya wait ‘til mornin’ but I guess this counts. It’s technically Christmas right now anyhow.” The package was dwarfed in Saejima’s large hands and he held it gingerly, pulling out the ribbon tying it shut and delicately sliding the lid off the box. Majima vibrated with barely contained energy as Saejima picked up the wood carving knife inside and looked it over, eyes crinkling with emotion as he saw the tiny engraved lily on the handle. “It was just a little somethin’ since ya like to carve wood. I thought ya might want somethin’ a bit different than that chisel ya usually use and it’s not like I made it myself or anyth-.” His rambling was cut off as Saejima threw his arms around him and engulfed him in a bear hug, holding him tightly. Majima patted his back, relaxing as Saejima nuzzled against his cheek.
“Thanks, bro.”
“You’re welcome,” he chuckled quietly. “Merry Christmas.” Saejima loosened his grip and turned Majima’s head, soft lips pressing to his as he was pulled into a warm lap. They cuddled together for a while, affection hanging in the air until the silence was broken by Majima’s stomach growling. “Ya said there was cake earlier, right bro?”