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Kaminari browsed through the store, looking for something- anything- that might resemble what his six year old son had asked him for. He looked through the holiday decorations, knowing it had something to do with Christmas but he had no idea how exactly. He really wished his son had been able to explain it better, but at his age he didn’t have a huge vocabulary and stuff like this was always a guessing game.
He dug through the different candies and ornaments that were on display, hoping something there would give him a clue. Eventually he ran his hands through his hair and groaned in frustration, wanting nothing more than to just sink to the floor and give up, while at the same time not wanting to disappoint his son.
One of the store employees approached him. He had dark hair and a shy smile. His shoulders were hunched and he avoided eye contact; he looked a little like a deer in headlights. He was obviously not used to approaching people and this was clearly out of his comfort zone. Kaminari felt bad for the guy being stuck in a customer service job when he was obviously so ill-suited to it.
“Sir, can I help you find something?” he asked.
Kaminari could feel the anxiety pouring off of him. He really hated to bother the guy, but he could not for the life of him figure out what this thing was.
“I sure hope so,” he sighed. “My son is asking for this thing... that he sort of gave me a vague idea of, but he couldn’t really describe...” Kaminari trailed off, the frustration taking over again.
The employee gave him a nervous smile, staring out at him from under his long bangs. Kaminari noticed his name tag read ‘Tamaki.’ “It’s all right, we’ll figure this out,” he said. “How old is your kid?”
“He’s six,” Kaminari told him proudly. “He gets so excited about all this Christmas stuff, it’s adorable!“
“He sounds so cute!” said Tamaki, warming up to him a bit. “Now let’s take this one step at a time. Why don’t you start by explaining to me what he told you?”
“Sure, but it doesn’t make any sense,” said Kaminari. “He said it’s a thing you keep in your house while you wait for Christmas, and you open little doors and it gives prizes. I have no idea what that even means!”
“Oh!” said Tamaki. “Could he be talking about an advent calendar?”
“A... what?” To Kaminari it sounded like gibberish.
“An advent calendar. Let me show you,”
Tamaki reached for an item on the shelf and held it up. It looked like a cardboard cut-out of a house with a lot of doors.
“Wow, okay, yeah!” Kaminari’s face lit up. “That looks like it might fit the description. But what is it for?”
“Each of these doors represents one day,” Tamaki explained, showing him. “There are twenty four of them, and starting on the first of December you open one door each day.”
“Oh! It’s like a countdown, almost,” said Kaminari, beginning to understand.
“Yeah, exactly!” said Tamaki. “A countdown to Christmas. There are different types and there is something behind the doors when you open them. Some of them have things like inspirational quotes, but this one has little pieces of candy.”
“Oh my god, thank you!” Kaminari exclaimed. “I never would have figured this out without your help. Ad-vent calendar.” He rolled the strange phrase off his tongue.
“I’m glad I could help,” said Tamaki. “I can ring this up for you if you’re ready.”
“I’m ready,” said Kaminari. “That’s all I need.”
“So is your son at home with his mom?” Tamaki asked as they walked to the register.
Kaminari sensed something leading in his tone and wondered why he would ask the question.
“Nah, he’s with some friends,” said Kaminari. “They’re watching him for me while I do the shopping. I’m a single dad so it’s just me and him.”
Tamaki finished ringing up the purchase and Kaminari handed him his credit card.
“Denki,” Tamaki muttered as he looked at the name on the card. “It was nice to meet you today, Denki.”
Kaminari thanked him and took the bag. It was not until he got home that he pulled out the receipt and looked at it. His stomach fluttered when he saw the phone number written on the back, along with an invitation for a dinner date.