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It’s still the beginning of April, but there’s only been one thought running through Gintoki’s mind since the second the month started.
The fact that it’s April means that it’ll soon be May. That, in itself, shouldn’t be that big of a deal, except that there have been some significant changes since last May. Namely, the fact that he’s now in a relationship with the one and only Demon Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi, Hijikata Toushirou. Again, this shouldn’t be too big of a deal, but in combination with the fact that Toushirou’s birthday happens to be in May, Gintoki finds himself in a dilemma.
He has no fucking clue what kind of birthday gift to buy.
After wracking his brain for days about possible gift ideas, he doesn’t know what to do anymore. It’s not like the Shinsengumi officer has a list of hobbies for him to reference when all the bastard does is work. Besides, he’s the type who just buys whatever he needs, so there’s really nothing left for Gintoki to get him.
He’d probably appreciate a bottle of mayo, but Gintoki isn’t about to buy his lover a fucking condiment for his birthday. He’s not that shitty of a boyfriend.
Gintoki finds that he’s tired of his own thoughts and figures it might be helpful to ask for someone else’s opinion. It doesn’t take much to determine who would be the best person to ask. Finding a way to talk to this person without Toushirou present, however, may prove to be a bit more difficult.
Still, Gintoki has a plan.
Gintoki’s plan works wonders.
He walks Shinpachi back to the dojo one night, claiming that the streets of Edo have been too dangerous lately and that, as a responsible adult, Gintoki has a duty to make sure he gets home safely. Of course, Shinpachi gives him a pointed look, clearly not believing a single word out of his mouth, but he lets Gintoki walk with him anyway and that’s all that really matters.
At the dojo, he greets Otae before taking a glance around and finally spotting his target. Hiding behind a tree is none other than Kondou Isao.
“Oh, would you look at that! It seems like a gorilla escaped from the zoo! Well, since I’m here, I might as well just escort him back on my way home,” Gintoki announces, pulling Kondou by the collar and dragging him away from the dojo.
“Oi! Yorozuya-san, what do you think you’re doing to a police officer!?”
“What police officer? I only see a stalker gorilla.”
“Where are you even taking me? The barracks are in the opposite direction.”
“I already told you, I’m taking you back to the zoo.”
Kondou struggles out of Gintoki’s grip and tries to smooth out the newly formed wrinkles from his jacket, sulking at having been forcefully pulled away from the target of his affections. “What’s gotten into you today?”
“Nothing. I just thought we could enjoy a nice walk since the weather’s so nice.”
Kondou studies his expression, trying to figure out where he’s going with this. “I guess it is,” he says, playing along.
“It’s getting a lot warmer now that it’s almost May,” Gintoki says, trying to inch closer to the question that’s been on his mind without making it blatantly obvious.
“May is still weeks away though.”
“Yeah, but it’ll be here before we know it. Time flies, you know?”
“I guess you’re right,” Kondou says, eyeing him suspiciously.
Goddamn it. This isn’t going as smoothly as Gintoki had imagined, but he has no choice but to continue on anyway.
“I like May though. Exciting month. It’s got so many fun things like Children’s Day.”
“Aren’t you a little old for Children’s Day?”
“It’s for Kagura, obviously. Besides, it’s just a fun holiday. Golden Week and all, you know?”
“I don’t know, Yorozuya. It’s been quite a while since I’ve done anything to celebrate it…” His eyes suddenly light up in recognition. “Oh! But Toushi’s birthday is on Children’s Day!”
“Oh? Is that so? I totally forgot,” Gintoki replies, hoping his lie isn’t too obvious.
Kondou chuckles. “I get it now. If you wanted to ask about Toushi’s birthday, you could’ve just said so.”
“Where did you get that idea? I totally forgot about it until you brought it up!” Gintoki shouts. “But… since you brought it up, what do you think that mayo freak would want for a gift?”
“To be honest, Toushi banned everyone in the Shinsengumi from giving him gifts. He doesn’t like making a big deal out of his birthday.”
“Tch. It’s not like anyone would go out of their way to do anything for that bastard anyway,” Gintoki says, as if he isn’t trying to do exactly that right now.
“Well, I usually try to assign less work for him anyway and everyone usually puts a bit of mayo on their food. It makes him happy, you know? He doesn’t like to let it show, but he really likes to see other people enjoying his favorite food. Toushi’s nice like that.”
Gintoki can’t help the dopey smile that spreads across his face as he imagines that scene. Everyone at the Shinsengumi pouring mayo onto their plates and Toushirou trying to hide his excitement behind a scowl. “Yeah, I know.”
Kondou studies him once more and Gintoki feels incredibly exposed under the officer’s gaze. He doesn’t even realize how stiff he’s become until Kondou breaks out into a loud laugh, effectively breaking the tension. “I’ll make sure Toushi gets the day off this year, so I’ll leave the rest to you, Yorozuya.”
“W-who said I was gonna do anything for that idiot? I don’t even know what a dumbass like him could possibly want.”
“If it’s from you, I’m sure Toushi would appreciate anything.”
“That doesn’t help at all.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure something out. That’s what the Yorozuya does, isn’t it?” Kondou pats his shoulder, before leaving to head in the direction of the Shinsengumi barracks. He turns back with a shout of, “I’m counting on you!”
“Oi! Don’t just leave! I’m counting this as a job, so you better compensate me properly!” he shouts back, but Kondou makes no indication of having acknowledged his demands.
With a sigh, Gintoki decides to head back home, disappointed that he wasn’t able to get the answers he was searching for.
Back to square one.
So Gintoki has already decided that getting him mayonnaise is out of the question. But that doesn’t mean that mayonnaise related things aren’t okay, right?
He does some quick searching on the internet and finds that, surprisingly enough, there are a variety of Mayorin themed goods being sold. He can’t help but wonder how many people have actually bought them and how there can possibly be a sustainable enough market to justify manufacturing something like this in the first place.
As he clicks on the merchandise tab on the official website, he sees two words that he always dreads: limited edition.
Gintoki is a firm believer that limited edition items are a scam created by capitalism just to hike up prices for absolutely no reason and as someone who can barely afford things at their normal price, that simply is not something he can stand for.
Still, he can’t help but notice a few items that catch his eye. There’s a calligraphy brush set with tiny little Mayorin figures attached at the ends. Toushirou seems like the type who would want something practical and his workaholic tendencies mean that, other than his sword, there’s probably nothing he uses more than his brushes.
Scrolling a bit farther down, he sees that the best-seller is, for some reason unbeknownst to him, a Mayorin plushie. The few reviews say it’s incredibly soft and while Toushirou may not seem like the type who would want something like that, maybe it’s more Gintoki’s own selfish desire to see the scary Demon Vice Commander hugging a cuddly toy that drives him to add it to his cart.
Now, he’s left with a cart full of items and a wallet that may or may not be too empty to purchase them. He might have to actually seek out some jobs and do some budgeting if he’s gonna make this work. But then he reminds himself who it’s for and if there’s anyone he’d be willing to give up his weekly parfaits for, it’s Hijikata Toushirou.
Without any further hesitation he clicks “proceed to checkout.”
Gintoki takes one look at the price on his order confirmation and curses under his breath.
Fuck limited edition items.
A few days after he makes the purchase, Gintoki comes to the grim realization that just because he was fully prepared to face the consequences of spending the money that probably should’ve gone to food for the next few weeks, some others might not be happy with him for it.
“Gin-chan, we’re out of food!” Kagura yells.
“It’s not my fault you already ate all of it!”
“I didn’t though! I barely ate anything today!” She gestures to her stomach as if to show that it’s flatter than usual. “See? Empty!”
“Well, I guess we’re going on a diet then because we’re short on money recently.”
“Gin-san, you’re always short on money. I can’t even count how many months late you are in rent,” Shinpachi chimes in.
“Oi, you can’t even count to three? Maybe you should be going to school instead of hanging around here all the time.”
Shinpachi chooses to ignore that comment, continuing his earlier line of questioning. “What’s so different about now compared to any other time?”
“Gin-san found himself in a predicament recently and spent a little more than he should’ve,” he says, purposefully being vague and hoping the kids won’t pry too much.
“You better not have been playing pachinko again,” Kagura chides.
Gintoki chuckles nervously. “Ah, looks like you caught me. Sorry, I promise it won’t happen again.”
“You say that every time!” Kagura shouts.
Gintoki resents how she’s making it sound like him wasting all their money on pachinko is a common thing. Maybe he’s been known to go a few more times than is probably advisable, but he’s not that bad. Still, now that he’s supposedly admitted to it, it’s not like he can go back on his word.
“I’m serious this time!”
Shinpachi eyes him suspiciously. “You’re lying.”
“It hurts that you’d doubt me.” Gintoki clutches his heart as if in great pain. “I’m saying it for real this time, I swear.”
“Not that. You’re lying about pachinko as a whole.”
“I have no idea what you mean, Pattsuan.”
“Normally, you’d deny it more, but this time you admitted it too easily. You’re hiding something.”
“Wow, did you get new glasses or something? They must be really sharp.”
“Gin-san, you’re avoiding the question.”
“Fine. Nosy ass kids,” he sighs. “Toushirou’s birthday is coming up and I wanna actually be able to afford to do something nice for him for once, okay? Satisfied now?”
There’s a moment of silence, which Gintoki resents because the least these insolent brats could do after prying the answer out of him is respond. He almost immediately regrets that thought though because Kagura then pretends to gag exaggeratedly and he thinks that, even for a fourteen year old girl, she’s being a bit too dramatic.
“That’s awfully sweet of you, Gin-san,” Shinpachi comments.
“I think it’s gross,” Kagura says, throwing in an extra grimace for good measure.
“Oi, oi, is it really that unusual for me to do something nice for my boyfriend?”
“Yes,” they both say in unison.
“Tch. Aren’t you guys supposed to be on my side in situations like this?”
“The facts are the facts, Gin-chan.”
“Arf!” Sadaharu chooses that moment to bark loudly, as if voicing his agreement with Kagura. He can’t believe even the dog is against him. People always say dogs are the most loyal creatures, but Gintoki has never felt more betrayed.
“Okay, fine, I get it. I’m clearly the bad person here, but if you’re so determined to side with my boyfriend over me, then that means we can all agree to be a little more careful with this month’s expenses for his sake, right?”
“It’s not like I minded in the first place. It wouldn’t hurt you to cut down on parfaits either,” Shinpachi says and despite the hurtful jab about his parfaits, Gintoki is grateful for how supportive the younger has always been of his relationship.
Kagura, on the other hand, still seems a little reluctant. “Fine,” she finally huffs, not at all hiding her lack of enthusiasm. “The stupid mayora better be grateful.”
“Thanks,” Gintoki says, ruffling each of their heads affectionately.
“Treat Hijikata-san well, Gin-san.”
“Yeah, I don’t know what the mayora even likes about you, but I bet no one else is stupid enough to want a lazy bum like you, so you better hold onto him.”
“Yah! Since when did children get this disrespectful?” Gintoki complains with a roll of his eyes. “Besides, even if you didn't tell me, I was already planning on doing that.”
It’s the truth. He’s going to make this the best birthday Toushirou’s ever seen. He’s going to treat him so well that the Shinsengumi vice-commander will never even think to let him go.
And well, if all else fails, as a backup plan, he can always try to lure him back with a few extra bottles of mayo.
When the time comes to actually give Toushirou his gift, it’s rather anticlimactic. After sharing dinner and a few drinks at their usual spot (because Gintoki was already scraping pennies just to cover that bill and definitely couldn’t have afforded anything fancier), he drags Toushirou home with him.
Gintoki plops Toushirou on the couch and tells him to wait, to which the Shinsengumi officer grumbles, “I’m not a fucking dog.”
“Hey, don’t say it like that. Sadaharu will get upset.”
Before Toushirou can respond, Gintoki unceremoniously drops the crudely wrapped present right in his lap. He didn’t have proper wrapping paper, nor the funds to buy any, so it’s sloppily covered in newspapers, barely held together by a few pieces of tape and topped with a makeshift ribbon he made from some random strip of fabric he found lying around.
“Yorozuya, why the fuck did you just give me your garbage?”
“It’s not garbage, you asshole!”
“Then, what else is this crumpled mess supposed to be?”
“Just fucking open it and see for yourself!”
Toushirou rolls his eyes, but does as he’s told anyway. It doesn’t take much for the tape to give away, the Mayorin doll and set of brushes tumbling out, and Toushirou’s eyes widen in shock.
Gintoki watches his lover’s face carefully for any sign of reaction, but is disappointed to find that there is none. In fact, he’s just about ready to get up in search of another weird Amanto clock because Toushirou appears as if he’s completely frozen in time again.
He’s never seen the officer not react positively to anything related to mayo, so he can’t help but wonder how on Earth he could’ve fucked this one up.
“O-oi, just so you know, these were limited edition, so even if you don’t like them, I can’t return them,” he says, hoping to appear nonchalant and not as if he’s about to cry about his failed attempt at a gift.
Toushirou finally breaks his staring contest with the Mayorin plush, abruptly lifting his head to look Gintoki in the eye. “This is a birthday gift?”
Now, it’s Gintoki’s turn to freeze, because what kind of dumbass question is that? “Well, it’s definitely not a fucking Christmas present, is it?”
“Fuck you, that’s not what I meant.”
“Then, what was it supposed to mean?”
“I just—I wasn’t expecting you to get me anything,” Toushirou admits. “You already paid for dinner, I thought you just brought me here to fuck or something. You’d say some dumb shit like ‘I’m your present’ and then call it a night.”
“I—” Gintoki doesn’t know how to respond to that because— “Do you really think I’m that lousy of a boyfriend?”
“No! That’s not—I’m just not used to this. I never celebrate my birthday. Cake, balloons, presents, all that dumb shit—it’s never really been my thing. I would’ve been happy with just that, or even without any of that.”
“Cake isn’t dumb.”
“Of course that’s the part you would take away from that, you sugar freak,” Toushirou scoffs, but there’s undeniably an underlying fondness in his tone.
Gintoki smiles, bringing a hand up to caress Toushirou’s cheek. “You’re worth it, you know?”
“What?”
“You don’t like people to celebrate your birthday because you get embarrassed from all the attention and you don’t think it’s worth their time, but that’s not true. You’re worth it, you’re worth so much more.”
“It’s not that big of a deal. A birthday is just a day.”
“Yeah, a day for you. The one day a year that gives me a reason to spoil you rotten.”
“Tch. As if you could afford any of this for more than one day a year. You’re a few million yen too short to be trying to be my sugar daddy.”
“Oi, oi, are you telling me you’d leave me for some old man just because of his money? That’s heartless, Toushirou-kun.”
“I couldn’t get rid of you if I tried. Like some stubborn stain that won’t go away.”
“Now you’re comparing me to a stain! Yah, that’s too much, isn’t it? Gin-san can only handle so much verbal abuse. One day, I really won’t be able to take it anymore and I’ll—”
“Listen carefully because I’m only saying this one,” Toushirou interrupts. He plants a quick peck on his lips before leaning forward even more and whispering into his ear, “Thank you, Gintoki.”
“You’re welcome, asshole. You better treasure those gifts. I spent a fortune on them. I haven’t eaten a parfait in at least a month and I practically exhausted my entire life savings for you.”
“So like max 1000 yen?”
Gintoki knows it’s probably frowned upon to bash the birthday boy in the head, but he’s feeling pretty tempted at the moment. “Is this what you call gratitude, shitty bastard?”
“How’s this for gratitude?” Toushirou smirks, climbing over to straddle Gintoki’s lap and grinding downwards.
Gintoki lets out a moan at the sensation, threading his hands through Toushirou’s hair and pulling him even closer. “I guess that’ll do.”
Needless to say. Gintoki makes sure that Toushirou thoroughly enjoys the rest of his birthday. One might even say that it goes out with a bang.
The next time Gintoki visits the Shinsengumi barracks, he’s disappointed to find that Toushirou is not in fact using the new set of brushes he gifted him.
“Yah! What are you doing using those crusty old brushes?” he yells without even a basic greeting first.
Toushirou looks up from his desk to acknowledge his unexpected visitor. “Well, hello to you too,” he says, giving Gintoki an unimpressed glare.
“I literally just bought you brand new, mayo-themed brushes! Where are they?”
“They’re over there,” Toushirou answers curtly, nodding his head towards a shelf in the corner of the room. The whole set, packaging still untouched, is indeed on display right at the top of the shelf.
“Okay, fine. Better question. Why the fuck aren’t you using them?”
“They’re mine, so I can do whatever the fuck I want with them.”
“Do you know how hard it was to get those? They were limited edition! I’ve basically been living off of only plain rice all month in order to save up for it!”
“That’s exactly why I can’t use them, dumbass!”
“How does that make any sense? They’re just going to waste sitting there unused!”
“They’re too precious to use, okay!?” Toushirou practically shouts before quickly regaining his composure. When he continues, his voice is much softer, almost timid. “I don’t want to get them dirty or ruin them.”
Gintoki stills at the sudden declaration. A few calligraphy crushes really shouldn’t be such a big deal. They’re essentially just glorified sticks that get dipped in ink. And yet, Toushirou is treasuring them, as if he doesn’t have tons of other ones. He’s treating them as special because they were given to him by someone special and that someone is Gin himself.
While Gintoki is pretty sure that he’s supposed to be a shounen protagonist, a part of him starts to doubt that fact at the suspiciously shoujo protagonist-like fluttering that suddenly fills his chest.
“But Toushirou, that’s what they’re made for. Isn’t it a shame if they sit on the shelf forever? And if they get worn out, I can just buy you different ones.”
Toushirou scoffs. “With what money? You just complained that you could barely afford these.”
“Hey! I’d find a way, okay? I can’t believe you’d doubt me,” Gintoki pouts.
Toushirou just smirks back at him. “What did you even come here for?”
“I’m not allowed to miss my own boyfriend? You never come visit me. Do you not miss me?”
“I’m busy.”
“You didn’t deny missing me though,” Gintoki points out cheekily.
He tries to hide it, but a light pink spreads across Toushirou’s cheeks. “S-shut up.”
“Aren’t I a good boyfriend for coming all the way here to make sure you’re not overworking yourself?”
“No one asked you to do that, idiot. Besides, some of us have real jobs to do,” Toushirou says, turning his attention back to the paperwork on his desk.
“You’re no fun,” Gintoki whines, plopping himself down on Toushirou’s futon, which is luckily still laid out.
“Oi, get your filthy ass off my futon.”
“My ass is not filthy!” Gintoki protests, shifting around on the blanket, but unable to find a comfortable position. “And why the fuck is your futon so bumpy? What are you hiding under here?”
“Nothing!”
The response is a little too immediate, bordering on defensive, and Gintoki raises his eyebrow in suspicion. “Got something to hide, Toushirou?” he teases, picking up the edge of the covers tauntingly.
Toushirou bolts up from his desk, which only arouses more suspicion. Gintoki smirks as he yanks the blanket aside in one swoop. In the center of the futon lies none other than the Mayorin plushie that Gintoki had bought him.
“Oya? What do we have here?” Gintoki picks it up, pretending to examine it closely. “I never would’ve imagined the Demon Vice Commander would be the type to hug a plushie to sleep.”
“Shut up! I don’t!”
“Then, do tell, what other explanation do you have for this being on your bed?
Toushirou’s practically beet red, refusing to make eye contact with Gintoki. “I have no clue how that got there. I probably tried to throw it in the trash can and missed.”
“Now, that’s just cruel, Toushirou. How could you try and throw away the gift I bought for you with my hard-earned money?”
“Tch. Hard-earned, my ass.”
“If you’re gonna be like that, then I’m leaving. And I’m taking Mayorin with me,” Gintoki announces petulantly. He expects to at least make it to the door before Toushirou calls him back, but he’s barely even stood up when he hears the yell of protest.
“Wait!”
Gintoki turns his head back, but stays in place. “Hm?”
Toushirou strides over to where Gintoki is standing and steals the plushie out of his arms. “Give Gin back.”
Gintoki blinks. He remains frozen as his brain slowly tries to process the implications of those words. On the one hand, he’s slightly bothered by the fact that Toushirou cares more about the plushie leaving than him. On the other hand, he can’t help but be elated that Toushirou named the plushie after him. It’s fucking adorable.
In the end, the latter feeling wins.
“You named him Gin?”
“N-no! You clearly misheard me.”
“Oh, really?”
“I said Rin. You know, short for Mayorin.”
If it weren’t already such a blatant lie, the fact that Toushirou’s gaze is currently planted on the ground would be another dead giveaway.
“Okay, okay. I’ll believe you.”
The death glare that Toushirou sends him means that he can tell Gintoki’s obviously lying, but that just makes them even, doesn’t it?
“Just a word of advice, Toushirou-kun—that glare doesn’t seem nearly as threatening when you’re hugging a plushie in your arms.”
“S-shut up. If you’re done bothering me, I do have actual work to do.”
“You’re so mean. I don’t get any form of thanks for coming all the way out here just to keep you company?”
“No one asked for your company!”
“Come on, don’t be like that. Gin-san deserves at least one kiss, don’t you think?”
“Fine. If that’s what it’ll take for you to leave me alone.”
Gintoki is just leaning in to claim his kiss when suddenly he’s met with an obstacle. Toushirou lifts the Mayorin up, blocking the space between them, and to Gintoki’s horror, places a kiss on the plushie instead.
“There. A kiss,” Toushirou says, smiling smugly.
Gintoki pouts, upset at being deprived of the kiss he was promised, but suddenly realizes something. “Does this mean you’re admitting you named him after me?”
Toushirou splutters, not having anticipated having the tables turned on him. Gintoki laughs, taking the opportunity while Toushirou has his guard down to pull him in for an actual kiss this time.
When they pull away, Gintoki’s met with the sight of an adorably blushing boyfriend. “I win.”
“Shut the fuck up.”
“Make me.”
Toushirou squints his eyes at him in suspicion. “I’m not falling for that, idiot.”
“I have absolutely no clue what you’re talking about. Please enlighten me as to what you’re referring to because I really, really don’t—mmrph!” The rest of whatever gibberish he meant to ramble on about next is cut off as Toushirou covers his mouth with his hand.
Unable to protest verbally, Gintoki does what any sane human would do in this situation. He sticks out his tongue and licks the palm of Toushirou’s hand. The Shinsengumi officer immediately recoils, pulling his hand away in disgust.
“What the fuck are you doing!?”
“It’s rude to cut people off like that, you know?”
“You’re the one who said to make you shut up.”
“Not like that!”
“Well, beggars can’t be choosers.”
“Ouch. That one hurts, Toushirou-kun,” Gintoki says, pretending to wipe away tears from his eyes.
“You’re such a baby.”
“I’m not the one sleeping with a plushie.”
“No, but you’re the one who fucking bought it for me.”
“Because I knew you would like it.”
“Who said I like this stupid thing?”
Gintoki eyes the way Toushirou’s arms are wrapped protectively around the plushie. “Sorry, my bad. Clearly, you love it.”
Toushirou mumbles something under his breath, but all Gintoki can really hear is the “bastard” tagged onto the end.
“What was that? You’re gonna have to speak up a bit more, stupid.”
“It’s not my fault you can’t hear properly, dumbass!” he practically shouts back.
“Don’t make me sound like some old man with hearing problems when we’re literally the same age, asshole! How the fuck am I supposed to hear you when you’re mumbling?”
“I said it’s only because I love you, stupid bastard!”
Gintoki freezes, all he can manage to get out is a choked, “O-oh.”
“Oh? That’s all you’re gonna say? Just a measly fucking oh?”
“Can’t you give a guy time to mentally process things!? It’s not every day I hear you professing your undying love for me!”
“S-shut up! It’s not my fault a dumbass like you can’t process things faster! And stop making shit up, no one said anything about undying love.”
“Ehhhh? Does that mean this is just a fling for you? You’re gonna get tired of me in a few months and decide to leave me?”
“That’s not what I said! How the fuck does your brain even come up with this ridiculous shit?”
“So that means you’ll stay with me forever?”
Gintoki can’t help but admire the beautiful blush that paints Toushirou’s cheeks as he mumbles, “That’s still not what I said, but yeah, whatever. It’s not like you’d leave me alone anyway.”
“You should be more honest, you know? It wouldn’t hurt you to say what you really mean for once.”
“If it’s so easy, then why don’t you do it first?”
“That’s such a childish response, but because I’m nice, sure.” Gintoki cups Toushirou’s face in his hands, making sure he can’t squirm away as he continues, “I love you, Toushirou. And I’ll keep loving you until the day that I die.”
Gintoki watches with delight as the man in his arms grows even more flustered. “That day might be coming sooner than later if you don’t lay off the sugar.”
“So what I’m hearing is you don’t want me to die because you want to spend more time with me.”
“Then you need to get your fucking ears checked. You keep twisting my words.”
“I’m not twisting them, I’m translating them from Toushirou language to normal people language.”
“I hope the Yorozuya never gets any translating jobs then, because you suck at it.”
“I beg to differ. In fact, I think my translations are pretty accurate.”
“Translate this,” Toushirou says, using the Mayorin plush to whack Gintoki on the head.
“First of all, ow! That plushie isn’t as soft as it looks. But that clearly means ‘this is the best birthday gift I have ever received, I’m so thankful towards my handsome, wonderful boyfriend who bought it for me. I love him so much.’”
Toushirou scoffs at him, but smiles fondly nonetheless. “Tch. I guess you’re not too far off.”
Gintoki presses a kiss to Toushirou’s forehead and smiles to himself, finally being able to deem this birthday a success.
That marks one down and many more for rest of their lives to go.