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❄️🍊🤍🍌❄️
One day before Christmas, the snowflakes glided from the sky like soft feathers. Covering the small town fully in white, it appeared like the wings of an angel, spread out all over the area and protecting all living things.
Shivering in the cold, Shimoda Rin, aged 23, stood before the house of his neighbour. More specificially, the neighbour she has had a crush on for years. Finally, this would be her chance to confess!
... if she had the guts to do so.
Which was why she wasn't standing in front of his front door, but the mailbox.
Yes, she wrote a love letter. Well, confession letter. After all, love developed in a relationship and she wasn't that delusional.
The blonde sighed in frustration.
Ever since she moved into the place a few years ago, she caught glimpses and sights of him leaving his house, probably to go to uni or work. She only talked to him briefly so far, but every interaction sent an electric surge through her body and let her heart beat faster. It didn't help that he looked very cute and always beamed at her with sparkling eyes everytime they crossed paths. She loved how he was always so kind because he wanted to, not to gain something out of it. It simply seemed to be in his nature. That was what she really appreciated about him...
On top of that, he also liked music, just like her!! They could write and sing romantic songs together...!
She regretted not asking him out sooner. At the same time, if he had been interested, surely he would have asked her out already?
It wasn't like Rin lived in the last century. Girls could ask out guys nowadays as well!! Yet, it felt like she was forcing herself on him. Needless to say, if she got rejected, there was no way she could look him in the eye anymore.
All their interactions would be so embarassing!
And knowing he didn't even want to get to know her, didn't want to date her... the thought hurt.
All she wanted for Christmas was him not rejecting her!
Rin couldn't stop picturing and analyzing all possible scenarios, situations and even its outcomes while holding onto the letter even more tightly, almost crumbling it under her gloves.
Apparently, her little battle distracted her enough to not notice or even hear the door moving, revealing her surprised neighbour in his full winter gear, ready to leave the house.
He just looked at her dumbfounded at first, then he discovered a letter in her hands. It wasn't that hard to put two and two together, as he caught her staring at his mailbox intensely, as if she could make it move with the power of her mind.
Unconciously, he started giggling, at which her eyes widened in shook, letting out a very breathy gasp. "Len!!!"
"Hi. Are you going to kill my mailbox with your eyes or..." The other blonde joked.
"N-no!! I was just..." Simultaneously, the girl hid the letter behind her back, hoping he hadn't noticed. But it was too late.
"Hmm..." Len closed the door behind him and the small gap between both of them. "Was there something you wanted to put inside there?" He pointed towards the box.
"Ah!" Rin squeaked, her head empty of any valauble answer to that. Well, she did want to throw the letter in, but not while he was looking!!
"Hihi, the thought of receiving a Christmas card from you is very sweet. Now, I'd feel bad for not having something for you."
"Don't worry... maybe you don't even want the card." The blonde thought about Len possibly dating someone already and it made her feel sick. Yet, she already wondered how a guy like him was even possibly still single...!
"Why not?" The boy pouted like a golden retriever that got his snack taken away.
"Who knows. Um... alright. I'll put it into the box then, but... you're not allowed to open it before tomorrow!!" She declared with cheeks that could even rival tomatoes.
"Alright" Len laughed. "But... you can just hand it over to me as well, if you want. That feels more personal."
"Oh... I-I guess..."
Why am I still so nervous after so long...
If Len appreciated that more, she would just give it to him directly.
And there was her first mistake. As she brought out the letter from behind her back, she remembered the small little hearts and poor attempt at a Christmas tree that she drew on the white envelope. As she looked at her art, so did Len. They both looked up from the object in question and locked eyes, to which Rin blurted out. "Haha, I thought only white looked kinda boring, right!!
The other blonde just smiled in amusement and glanced at it interestedly as he took the ominous letter in his hands.
"No problem, it's really cute."
Just like you.
Rin just wanted to melt here and there.
Surely, he didn't realize what those hearts actually meant, right???
But also... it was all over now. If he did reject her soon, nothing would be the same. Their dynamic, the ease between them, it would become so weird. Nothing would be as it was before.
But if he said yes...
... she would still be so embarassed!!
How could she impress him on their future dates without wanting to be absorbed into the ground? Oh god...
"Hey Rin."
She looked up, not caught in her worries anymore.
"Yeah?" She answered curiously.
"Are you celebrating with your family?"
"Yup. Everyone's comimg again and it's gonna be a big party. I'll go home again, the day after..."
"I see. That seems stressful, but-" He looked concerned. "you'll enjoy it, I'm sure. I bet your sister will bring her self-made biscuits again, so do look forward to that."
He even remembered that... she couldn't even recall it when she told him about that!!
"Thanks Len... ah, I'm trying. But so do you! Are you going to your family or will they visit you?"
"I will stay home, but my parents are visiting."
Rin nodded at that.
"I hope... you'll have a great Christmas then. Well, a Merry Christmas, of course." She tilted her head shyly.
The boy looked at her warmly. He thought she was always so cute when she looked at him with her big puppy eyes, yet he never told her.
"Merry Christmas to you as well... please enjoy it. I will think of you tomorrow." He reassured her.
Now, this was her cue.
"Thank you Len... um, I still have things to prepare, okay? So..." she already started moving away slowly. "See ya around"
"Oh, sure! See ya around, Rin. And thank you for the-" That was all she still heard as she started sprinting in panic out of his garden and into her own apartment.
As soon as she closed the door, she glided down and breathed heavily.
She did it!
Whatever would happem now... was up to Len.
Who knew what fate had in store for her?
🌲🍊💞🍌🌲
Two days later, an exhausted Rin came home with her little suitcase and a bag full of presents.
Oh well, if she had brought another rucksack with her, carrying all that stuff would have been easier, but the more you know.
Tired, she threw all of it into a corner of her bedroom. Warmed up some hot chocolate. Got into her comfy pajamas covered with little bears that clung onto half moons (yes, they were very old. But they still fit and no one would see her like that anyway, so who cared?).
Maybe she would play a video game for another hour and then just fall into bed. She skipped her uni lectures today, but she wanted to attend them tomorrow...
As her milk was warming up in the microwave, the blonde heard a strange sound coming from outside all of a sudden. The kitchen was very close to the front door, after all.
"Ouch...Oh fu... hurts..." she heard someone moan and immediately ran for the door, but put the security chain in front of it. After all, you could never be safe enough...
She opened the door, ready to fight a thief (or shut the door and call the police) when she set eyes on a rather curious sight.
Len was lying on the ground, tangled in his scarf while holding onto his butt, which was probably the area he fell onto...
If he didn't look like he was in so much pain, she would have probably laughed at it.
"Oh my god, are you alright???" Rin removed the security chain and joined him on the ground, trying to help him up.
"Ah... I'm sorry..."
"Huh? Who are you apologizing to, it's not your fault. Here-" she yeeted him up, but underestimated the wobbliness in his sore body, leading to him stumbling into her and both falling into the front door. Which wasn't close so they effectively fell into the hallway.
"Oomf!" was all that left Rin's lungs when his heavy body landed on top of her. Before she could properly grasp the situation, the other blonde tried to unsuccessfully remove himself from her, but failed due to his scarf somehow ending up tangled between them.
"Ah, I'm sorry... Rin, are you alright??" The boy asked. If he tried to get up now, he would end up strangled. Now, that was not how he envisioned his death. He would still like to live a little, thank you very much.
"Oh... um..." The girl was speechless. He was so close, his body directly on top of hers. His pleasant scent hit her nose and she felt every contour of his form. It was a very compromosing position...
She could feel a blush forming while one shiver after another raced through her exhausted, but very alert body. No, she didn't have these thoughts, she was innocent...!!
While Rin fought with her mental state, Len was still struggling with his scarf, observing Rin going completely silent, not even protesting. Len was embarassed himself, so he tried to solve the problem before it got uncomfortable for her. Yet, she certainly didn't seem like it.
"I think my scarf is under you. Maybe you could bend your back..." He suggested. His message arrived at Rin's brain, but she didn't exactly process it. "Bend... my... back?" She uttered and looked at him helplessly, blushing.
He couldn't help but be drawn to her beautiful blue eyes and adorable expression...
"Yeah... I can't free myself otherwise...so" he added absentmindedly but he found himself trapped in Rin's gaze and the magic in her sparkling eyes. The blonde didn't really register he was starting to lean forward before it even happened. Until there was only a little gap between their faces.
Rin lowered her eyes and just followed her instincts, put her hands on Len's cheeks urging him to go on. That was all he needed to slowly put his lips onto her, kissing her softly.
Rin's whole world exploded into tiny little fragments, as she closed her eyes to feel him even more. It all felt warm, soft, fluffy. She wanted to stay like this forever and melt into his embrace.
Unsure of how it worked, she somehow kissed him back, but let him take the lead. Funny enough, Len seemed just as inexperienced, sometimes biting into her and not even knowing what to do with his tongue. Sometimes when he stopped so they could breathe a little air, both giggled before they dived back in. At some point, Len became braver and dipped his tongue into her, to which she gasped. They explored each other's mouths and fought even more aggressively every time their tongues met until they ended up gasping for air breathlessly, as if they had just run a marathon.
Rin couldn't even comprehend what happened when she opened her eyes to a very red Len, who looked at her with half-lowered eyes. Did this just really happen? Or was that just a fantasy, a dream? Her stomach still felt all fuzzy and her body was on fire... she felt like he lit her up and burned her down.
They shared a moment, and the male blonde still seemed all starry-eyed towards her when he all of a sudden tried to get away, as if a bee had stung him. Sadly, Rin still laid on his scarf, which led to Len strangling himself momentarily.
"Urgh..." Apparently, choking was a better option as long as he got away from Rin, for some reason. At first she was confused, but it all made sense when she felt something hard brushing against her leg, when he stumbled to the side.
Len seemed to have noticed it too...
Thankfully, Rin was able to get up from the restricting scarf and untangled Len from it. After that was done, they stood up from the ground, she closed the front door (it was getting quite cold inside) and smiled shyly at him, while he just tried to avoid her gaze. She took one of his hands into hers and said: "Don't worry, your secret is save with me." At that comical statement, Len could only giggle slightly, still blushing, still embarassed, but now more confident. "Thanks, I appreciate it. I hope you're not mad."
"No, hihi!" They both giggled now, although Len just wanted to crawl into the next corner and hope Rin would forget about what awakened... on him.
The female blonde noticed Len's fuming and tried to change the topic.
"So... I assume you read my letter..."
He only gawked at her and sheepishly nodded his head.
"Ah... yeah. I guess you know my answer now?"
"Do I?" Rin raised her brow. They were still holding hands and no one wanted to let go.
"Mhh... well, actually, I threw my answer letter into your mailbox-" he finally let go and she immediately missed his warmth. "and um, yeah, I didn't expect that we would, you know. At least not that soon. Hmm..."
He struggled with his words. Shouldn't it now be easier? Considering the fact they made out (quite heavily for beginners like them) just seconds ago??
"It's fine," Rin tried to relieve him, showing him he is not the only one who was embarassed. "Sometimes, feelings are wild and overwhelming."
"Huh, so true. Well..." He swallowed hard. "It was hard to resist you and... I do like you back."
Rin's eyes opened wide like saucers. "Whaat??"
"Yeah. I'm sorry but I didn't think you would reciprocate, so I only admired you from afar."
"But that's exactly what I was doing! I even thought that maybe you already had a girlfriend!" She insisted.
"Ohh? Me??? Gosh, no. As if I could make a move on anyone... I hadn't even kissed yet. Well, until now..."
They stared at each other intensely when Len took hold of both her hands and stuttered his way through a confession.
"So, Rin... would you then maybe like to... go out with me?" He mumbled nervously, looking more like a lost puppy. Rin thought he was very cute.
"Of course~" She smiled, making sure he had no reason to doubt himself and his feelings.
Len felt ease and joy wash over him when Rin accepted. A smile ghosting on the corner of his lips, he guided one of Rin's hands to his mouth and kissed her hand. "My pleasure is yours."
The female blonde blushed at that. That was quite romantic and charming... who knew what other sides Len would show her soon. She was very eager to find out. Very excited to get to know him better and explore this tension between them. But also...
"So, technically, it's still Christmas today. Wanna celebrate?"
"Hell yeah! Although, aren't you exhausted from your long trip home?" He asked with a concerned voice, massaging her hands now.
The sweet gesture sent another horde of butterflies through her stomach.
"Hmm, yeah that's true. But I guess I must have been awakened by a kiss. Like Cinderella, you know?" She flirted shamelessly. Well, still blushing.
"Is that so... I'm glad that I, as your prince, am happy to finally have found you. Since all I want for Christmas... is you~"
"Oh? Well, that's good to hear, because I planned to be the special gift you receive this year. Especially so that I can say next year: 'Last Christmas, I gave you my heart...'" She slightly sang the last part.
"Oh boy. Time to feliz navidad or something."
They bursted out laughing and continued with their cringe takes on Christmas songs.
"Honestly, I can't hear them anymore but joking about them made them much more bearable!" Rin said.
"I agree... hmm, wanna get comfy in your living room, though? We can watch a movie too, if you want."
Rin made little jumps and dashed to the kitchen. "That sounds great. You go there already, while I'm preparing hot chocolate."
After a while they were sitting down on the couch, sipping their hot chocolates and eating biscuits.
"Seriously, your sister makes the best ones I ever ate!" He aknowledged.
"Right? I'm glad she literally gave me a bag full of them again." She bit into one filled with marmelade. "So which movie are you up to?"
"Hmm..." Len scrolled through the available movies. "What kind of movies do you usually watch? Also, we don't have to watch a Christmas movie." He wasn't a fan of those, but if Rin wanted one, that was fine with him.
"W-well, usually I go for anime or horror movies... um."
He knew she was also an anime fan, but not the horror movie part.
"Oh? You like them too?? Awesome."
Rin glanced at him in surprise. "Actually," she admitted. "I'm very scared, but somehow also addicted to them."
"That's valid. Maybe we could find- OH!" He stopped scrolling and both couldn't believe what they saw.
"GREMLINS?"
They shared one look and it was decided.
❄️🍊💞🍌❄️
Later at night, while watching the movie together, both cuddled and snuggled close together while being covered by cozy kashmere covers. Two candles were burning and the room was dimmed except for the screen of the TV.
Rin still couldn't believe this was really happening: Len liked her back after all and they would now go out together and intensify their relationship. Of course, one could never know if it worked out in the end or not but... she felt like this was something serious, something special. And she was already addicted to his kisses too. There was no way she could go without them anymore. Even though one usually didn't even end up kissing their date long before at least a few times of meeting up (at least, in her world)... she didn't mind that they already went this step today. It felt good, it felt right.
Out of nowhere, his hand sneaked around hers again, massaging her delicate fingers. The blonde looked up, surprised again to spot Len's eyes on her instead of the movie.
"Are you watching the movie or me?"
"You."
He didn't need a second to answer this one.
Rin's heart increased rapidly again for the umpteenth time today and she snuggled closer, testing the waters. He chuckled sweetly and pulled her closer as well. The blonde ended up eyeing her intensely and leaned in again. Ever so happily, Rin met his lips and started melting again. He tasted like chocolate. When Len looked at her again, he had a dreamy look on his face. Then he said something, he already wanted to point out the moment he saw her. "You know..." He started. "These bear pajamas are really cute on you." The blonde smiled when he spotted yet another heavy blush on Rin.
Granted, they celebrated a quite passionate second Christmas Day.
🌲🍊🤍🍌🎄