Archive of Our Own ^beta

"C'mon, it'll be fun!" Kakeru chirps. He's already taking Tasuku's gloved hand in his, not giving him any time to protest.

The blue-haired boy, while unable to get a word in, lets out a sigh. His warm breath came out as a puff of smoke from his lips due to the drop in temperature. Winter had finally hit, resulting in the duo having to bundle up. Their usual attire is hidden underneath lengthy coats and scarves. Per Kakeru's request, they're matching in light, white colored coats and wearing scarves with differing constellations printed on each one. The only difference in their attire is their colored pants and the bag slung around Kakeru's shoulder.

The change in weather never really bothered Tasuku. He was used to dealing with various environments and conditions. He had to be ready to deal with any sudden change thanks to his job. The same could be applied for holidays. While he would participate in them, albeit a little unwillingly at times, he didn't have a strong interest in them or the activities they brought.

Kakeru was the complete opposite.

The Buddy Doctor practically lights up whenever the holidays strike, more so than he normally does. Christmas was no exception. While it was a holiday they were both familiar with, Kakeru seemed to know more about the history and didn't hesitate to ramble off about it to his partner. Tasuku did his best to stay interested, some of it was intriguing to learn about after all. But when it came to more normal and fun activities, that's when he began to struggle to wrap his mind around them.

Gift giving? Tasuku understands that. He enjoys making others happy. He may insist he doesn't need anything, but getting a gift that was personally picked out for him touches his heart. Decorating? Okay, he kinda sees the point of it. Holidays are a nice excuse to do something different with the area and even he has to admit that it makes patrolling the streets a little more lively and less gloomy. Plus the festive lights made it easier to see in the dark and helped him feel a little less lonely during the dead of night.

But making snowmen ? Now that was more difficult for him to grasp. The same could be said with snowball fights or making snow angels. It felt more like just fooling around instead of doing something more productive. And unlike regular decorations, the snow wouldn't last forever, which meant anything related to it would eventually disappear.

"There's been so much snow recently, now is the best time to make them!" Kakeru says. "We just had some heavy snowfall, so we have plenty of snow to work with. And if the weather stays like this, they might even last until after Christmas!"

Maybe he's a little too optimistic about their longevity, but that's what Tasuku likes about him. He's always been the more hopeful one.

"I thought you were supposed to be a doctor, not a scientist," Tasuku comments with a light chuckle.

"I am! But I can always research more than one subject."

Kakeru eventually stops in the open field of snow right outside their shared home. The front of their house is covered in a thick blanket of white, along with the rest of the world. The sun may be above the world yet the heat isn't strong enough to rid the world of this cold.

"So..." Tasuku starts, his voice instantly catches Kakeru's attention. "How do we start?"

Kakeru looked as if he had been waiting for him to ask that simple question. "Like this!"

He eagerly pulls Tasuku to, what he deems is, a good spot. It has plenty of space and snow to work with.

"We just have to bunch up a ball of snow and roll it! We do this twice so we can have a body and a head. Or do it another time if you prefer making a bigger snowman."

"Let's try just two for now." Kakeru simply nods in agreement to his answer.

For the first snowball, the body, Kakeru bends down and begins to bunch up a clump of snow. Tasuku watches carefully as the Buddy Doctor gets a ball forming in no time. He's seen people do this for snowball fights, but they need something bigger to work with. Once it's big enough, he begins to roll it. Slowly but surely, it grows bigger.

"See? Easy!" Kakeru turns to Tasuku with a bright smile. He seemed like a pro at doing this. Meanwhile, Tasuku wasn't sure how to feel about following his example.

First, he imitates him. Bending down to start making a snowball. It feels a little off and eventually, another pair of hands begin to help pat the snow together. As their hands meet briefly now and then, despite being covered by gloves, Tasuku swears that he can still feel the warmth from his hands. With his help, Tasuku has a ball big enough for him to roll on his own.

Kakeru offers him some praise before going back to his own. While he hums a holiday tune as he works, Tasuku is at a bit of a loss for what to do. He understands he needs to make it bigger, but how big? He's seen them and can roughly estimate the size, but he's never taken precise measurements. What if it's too small? Too big? What if it's too clunky or lopsided at the end? What if-

"You don't need to be perfect." Kakeru's voice snaps him out of his thoughts, his voice surprisingly gentle compared to his usual energetic tone. "This is all for fun, so...do as you wish."

It's harder than it sounds, especially for him. Kakeru knows this. He lets out a quiet sigh as he sees Tasuku's struggle. Most people know how hard he's worked since a young age. A childhood that was stolen from him before he could even embrace it. As a boy, he worked instead of playing. It's not easy for him to enjoy something so foreign to him. But Kakeru hopes to change that.

"How about this...we make one together. I'll do the body, so it'll be bigger and you roll the head." Maybe simple instructions will help him. He recalls this advice from his brother. It helped him when he felt a little lost, so maybe it would help him now too.

Thankfully, it seems to do the trick. Tasuku gives him a slight nod before following his lead. He watches Kakeru roll up the snowman's body. He makes a joke about making it as big as them, but then realizes they'd have trouble lifting the head if they made it a reality.

The snowman comes out at a decent size. Kakeru thinks so, at least. It might not be perfect, but they're not here to be perfect.

But they're not done just yet.

Kakeru removes the bag that had been on him and places it down in the snow. He opens it up to reveal the necessities for decorating the snowman, after all, they can't just leave their creation blank.

"I must admit, I do want to try styling the snow for more personalized ones but I haven't mastered that art yet," he says with a light laugh. While he dreams of trying to sculpt a silly snowman, for now, he can only apply traditional decorations. Carrots, buttons, and decorative rocks to place in the snow.

"You'll be able to one day," Tasuku says encouragingly. They can only work on this once a year, but he believes that Kakeru can get it done. For now, they stick with the basics, especially since Tasuku is still learning.

It comes out as a simple snowman. A smiling face that seems happy to be out here, to be created. Kakeru looks absolutely proud of their work. He enjoys what they did.

Yet, a question still lingers in his mind. He wants to ask Tasuku if he enjoyed this. He could, and would, say yes to be polite, but Kakeru knows when he means it and when he's only saying it to avoid hurting someone's feelings. He glances over to the boy and catches him staring at their snowman.

Tasuku's red eyes stay locked onto the snowman as if it were his target. It looks as if he's scrutinizing it and finding all of its flaws. It's not perfect; it's not supposed to be.

And that's okay.

This isn't work, he isn't being graded, and it's not a test. It feels...weird to do something without worrying about some kind of consequence. He may be slowly adjusting to these kinds of activities, but it would always feel weird. But...this is fine, right? Despite everything, he had to admit that he enjoyed being out here.

It was fun.

"Kakeru." He almost whispers out his name. Slowly, his gaze shifts to him. Kakeru sees his eyes sparkle with a childish glimmer. "Let's do this again tomorrow."

Kakeru nearly jumps for joy upon hearing his words. Instead, he jumps at him instead, giving him a warm embrace.

By the end of the week, the front of their house is filled with various kinds of snowmen. Snowdragons too.