The Best Christmas Present

(Yes, yes, I know, it's a sucky title, now SHUSH! XD)

Simoooooon~! 3

Dahlin', Merry Christmas! Merri Kurisumasu~! ^^ Hooray! Hooray to... *counts* 9? ...10? Hm, let's just go with 9. Hooray to 9 months of knowing my favorite queer British stripper~! ^^ (Yeah, no, I'm never letting that go. Ever.) Look, Simon, since it's been 9 months, if you'd been straight, I'd be in labor now~! ^^ Wait... what? Oh god, SimonxNaty babies... *shivers* That'd be scary. Some kind of... Vocaloid-Minecraft hybrid... What I'm wondering though is what it'd prefer, yaoi or yuri...? Hm.

ANYWAY, to all those reading who have no idea who the hell Simon is, Simon is the adorable shota on the other side of this screen who, even though he's three years my senior, looks about half my age. (Hehehehe, dem shotas are so cuuuute~) He's been mentioned several times within my A/Ns as my fabulous British stripper, because of... Well, I don't even know how that started. (How did that even start, Simon?) To be honest, Simon would probably be a really bad stripper (sorry). He'd be too shy, so you'd practically have to force him (easily done), but he'd be super awkward and clumsy, and blushing the whole time too... He'd probably manage to burn the building down somehow. ... Huh. The awkward moment when you're picturing your gay friend stripping... ... ... Oh god, what is wrong with me?! o-o" (He has that effect on people. XD Pedo-bait, that's what he is. :P)

Anyway (again), because I'm terrible when it comes to happiness (have you read the Snowflakes oneshot? Any time you feel like depression, just go read that), I forced Simon to come up with his own plot for this oneshot. And, after a loooooong few days of 'Well?' 'I DON'T KNOW! DAMNIT NATY, YOU'RE THE **** WRITER HERE! YOU DO IT!' 'No', Simon finally came up with an idea that I liked that wasn't just, 'yaoi lemon' ('Keep it PG!'). And so, here it is.

Lo and behold, I am finally writing a story for my favorite yaoi pairing. FINALLY.

'It's almost been a year.' Send.

'Huh? A year since what?'

'A year since we met, silly. :P' Send.

'Wow, you remember that? :") On Christmas... It doesn't seem like that long...'

I smiled at myself. Even though I couldn't see her, I loved it when she blushed like that. Or, sent blushing emoticons, at least.

'Are you saying you forgot?' And... Send.

'I'd never forget something like that!'

"You'd better not," I whispered, typing down the words as I spoke.

"... Is that your girlfriend again?" I nearly had a heart-attack.

I spun my chair around and glared at my spy. "She's not my girlfriend, Rin. And how many times do I have to tell you not to read over my shoulder?!"

She brushed a strand of blond out of her face. "What, I'm not allowed to see what my brother's girlfriend is like? Gee... you're so lame."

I rolled my eyes and spun back to my computer. "Whatever you say."

"How old is she?"

I sighed. "You've asked this so many times already, it's really hard to believe you can't remember."

"My memory's terrible, you know that!"

Uh-huh. I had a feeling she just wanted to tease me about it again. "She's thirteen."

A pause and then a loud laugh. "Oh... my gosh! My brother's a pedophile!" She snorted and then laughed louder. I only rolled my eyes in response.

"She's only two years younger than us and she's not my girlfriend, so bugger off."

"Awww!" She squeezed her arms around my neck and squished our cheeks together. "Is wittle Wen getting annoyed with wittle Win? Poor wittle Win?"

I chose to ignore her.

'I'm not sure what to do for you this year for Christmas. Last year I didn't get the chance, so I kind of want this year to be special... ^^' Soon after came another message, like and added thought. 'I probably shouldn't be asking you though, it'll ruin the surprise!'

"Awww, that's cute," 'Wittle Win' cooed. "Is my cute little brother finally going to lose his cute little virginity? Hmm?"

"You say that as if you aren't one."

"And what if I'm not?"

"Pfft," I laughed, "You wish, A-cup."

Her face just then was totally worth it. Oh god, I wish I'd have taken a picture of her gasp, that look of horror and absolute repulsion and then that final glare as she released me from her hug of death. "For your information," she snapped, "there are plenty of men who prefer small breasts!" She gestured at the screen. "Obviously, you seem to be one of them."

"She's a C-cup," I lied, anticipating her reaction.

There was a moment of shock before her face shriveled in envy. "D-Damn it... Twelve-year-olds these days..." She huffed and took her leave, yelling back at me saying, "You know, pedophiles ADORE flat-chested girls like me! I'm serious! There are some men who prefer small chests!"

Finally; gone.

I turned back to my screen and thought for a moment. 'I'm not sure what to do for you either,' I typed. 'I don't actually give Christmas presents out to many people...'

The reply came back quickly. 'Oh, well, um, don't feel like you have to, that's not what I meant, I mean, like, I just wanted to do it for you because I wanted to, so don't think you have to give me anything back, I'm okay, so, like... yeah.'

Aw! How adorable!

'And if you don't want me to get you anything, I guess that's okay too, because... um... Like, if you don't want anything...'

A sudden thought came to my mind. 'Hey... You don't live too far away, right? Only about an hour or two, right?'

'Um... I think so... It's been a while since we checked, I can't really remember. ^^" But yeah, it's not that far.'

Perfect. 'Well then... What if, for Christmas, we somehow arranged to meet up?' And... Send.

And this is how it began.

I stood in the food court area of the mall and waited. Mom and Rin were somewhere shopping and Dad had to work today, but I wanted to be alone. I knew how Rin would react if she were here to see her... Rin would definitely embarrass me.

I'd somehow convinced Mom to drive us two hours on Christmas Day to the biggest mall in her city. It was a rather big city, but we'd arranged this together, the date, the time, which area we'd meet up in... I even warned her what I'd be wearing.

I'd spent at least twenty minutes trying to decide, but I ended up wearing a gray turtle-neck and a warm fur-collared coat. I wondered now if maybe I was dressed a little too casual, if she'd be dressed up prettier and I'd feel like some poor person, or if maybe, by some odd chance, it would end up being national fur-collar day, or something. There was so much that could go wrong... My hands were already sweating.

Okay, calm down, Len, calm down... I pulled my big headphones over my ears and pressed play on my iPod. The shuffle mode was on and, just my luck, the song that played happened to be one of my favorites. Light and happy, it was just as I needed. Kind of silly too, cute, though not really holding any meaning. One of the really talented and famous dancers made a dance cover to this song, I remember, and I began to picture the dance in my head. Melochin is a pretty awesome guy, huh...?

"Um, excuse me?"

I barely even heard the voice over my music. My eyes flashed open and I quickly pulled my headphones off.

The girl had shoulder-length brown hair and thin-shaped brown eyes. She had a really sweet smile and I felt my heart beat a little faster, seeing her dressed up so nice. So this is what she looks like? She's so pretty... I knew I had to leave a real good first impression, because no one else could make my heart beat this way... "Y-Yes?" Maybe that was a little too eager. Hm.

She smiled at me and her eyes went even thinner, hidden by her long black lashes. A strand of hair fell into her face and as she reached to brush it away, I noticed her perfectly manicured finger nails- not painted, but obviously well taken care of. Would she think of me badly for not having perfect finger nails? Shoot, I should have thought of that earlier...!

"Sorry to bother you, but, um..." She brandished her cell phone. "Would you mind taking a picture of my friend and I? I don't want to take just a selfie, 'cause mine never turn out." She laughed and I felt my heart kind of crush. Tch, what had I been thinking, she wasn't pretty! How could I ever have mistaken someone so... so vulgar to be the answerer to my messages?

Still I took her flip-phone and snapped a picture of she and her 'friend' (who seemed way too close to her to really be just an innocent buddy) and went back to waiting. Geez... that was embarrassing. I couldn't believe I'd actually mistaken a random girl for my girl. Maybe I should have asked her what she'd be wearing...

"Hey, you, kid!" Oh god. It was an old guy, a forty-year-old man, walking up to me and squinting. He had wrinkles on his face and a goatee and was kind of on the fatter side and... OH GOD. MY ONLINE ANGEL WAS ACTUALLY A PEDOPHILE. HOLY CRAP, RUN, LEN, RUN! "Kid, can you just drop this in the trash can for me? You're right beside it, so..." ... I did it again just now, didn't I? Of course this guy wouldn't have been able to act all cute and innocent like my girl...

We met a year ago on Christmas Day exactly. It'd been online on NicoNicoDouga; this new band that had just started out decided to have a Christmas concert and live-streamed it, and out of fate, I decided to watch. Even though it was only just a beginning band, I really liked their music. Well, so did she.

I don't really know when I started feeling the way I do for her. I guess it just kind of... happened. Maybe it's a little creepy, but I swear I didn't think it was possible to fall in love with someone through the internet until I met her. Yes, I do admit, I... I love her.

We exchanged emails and talked a while about Square Root, the band we both liked, until we realized Square Root wasn't the only thing we had in common. We moved to Skype instead and though we never called or video-chatted, I was perfectly happy just messaging her back and forth. I think she enjoyed it too.

She'd promised me she'd be here today, and I trusted her to keep that promise. It wasn't like she was really that late... I'd gotten here fifteen minutes early and had only been waiting twenty-five.

"L-Len!"

I turned around to find someone pushing through a clog of people. It was this really cute girl with a round face and big caramel eyes, and... I knew as soon as I laid eyes on her that this was my girl (the fact that she yelled out my name kind of helped, though).
Her peachy-blond hair was cut short and cutely tousled with a loose Christmas ribbon hanging from one side (in danger of falling out, too). Fluffy earmuffs decorated like a hair-band. That, the melting snowflakes on her sweater, as well as the gloves on her hands made me wonder if she'd sprinted from outside. It kind of seemed like it- which was adorable.

I don't think she wore any make-up, yet her cheeks were still rosy-colored and her lips pink and pretty. Watching her run up to me, it seemed like everything was happening in slow motion. I took in her clothes - black leggings with high-cropped shorts and a loose white shirt - and felt relieved I wasn't under-dressed. Good. ... Phew.

She finally stopped a few steps away from me and bent over, panting. ... I think I just stood there with a huge creepy grin on my face, but I can't really remember. All I could think was that this was the girl on the other side of the screen, this was the girl I'd been dreaming of for at least half a year now.

"It's really you, isn't it?"

She looked up and our eyes locked. Her cheeks got kind of rosy and it was really adorable, and... Ah! I felt myself grow equally embarrassed and lowered my face so she wouldn't see. "Len?"

"Yeah, Lui, it's me!" Back up to her face my eyes travelled. She was a good head shorter than me and flat as a board, but I didn't mind. Besides, I'd have been very surprised if a thirteen-year-old - not to mention, a Japanese thirteen-year-old - had an actual rack at her age.
I mean, Rin was almost fifteen at that time, and she was still so flat I wondered sometimes if she really was the female twin... She could probably cross-dress without anyone realizing her real gender. ... Oh god. She'd look exactly like me, then. Has Rin ever dressed up as me before...? I'd bring it up with Lui later, she'd probably find it funny, and- oh, wait. She's right in front of me. Staring at me expectantly, as if waiting for the answer to something... Oh. Crap.

My face flushed again. "I-I'm sorry, I spaced out all of a sudden, so, um..."

She laughed, her small hand cutely rising to her timid lips. "I was just asking where you wanted to go..." She cocked her head. "It's funny, though... You sound just like you."

She meant I sounded like I did on the computer. "Y-You too," I stammered, and to my surprised, she blushed a deep red. I remembered how she reacted to compliments on the internet; I guess it really wasn't an act after all. She was just naturally this cute. "O-Oh yeah! You asked me a question!" She nodded and waited, smiling at me, and just looking at her, at that cute smile... uh... "... Sorry, what was it again?"

She laughed. "I asked you where you wanted us to go! We can go get something to eat or we can go visit some stores or go to the arcade... Or there's the bowling alley-"

"There's a bowling alley here?!"

"Yep! There's a gym too, but that's in the downstairs area." She blinked a moment and smiled. "It's a big mall for a big city. Wh-Which reminds me, you probably had to drive a long time to get here, didn't you?" Her face darkened a moment. "You know, you could have told me to meet you halfway... I feel bad having let you drive all the way here."

"Well, um, it's not like I drove myself, um..." I nervously scratched my head. "My mom drove Rin and I..."

"What?" She perked up there. "Rin is here? Where?" The whole area she scanned, searching for my mirrored image.

"She's shopping somewhere, so she's not here now, but..." I remembered something and lightly smacked my hand against my forehead. "Damnit, this is just like what happens on the internet! I still haven't even answered your question..." She giggled. "Um, I bought us tickets to the movies. You know, the new one you said you wanted to see? Rin likes it too. She keeps squealing though, so..." I winced. "You'd really better appreciate me doing this, 'cause my head is really going to hurt when we're done with it..." I smiled just in case she didn't realize I was teasing.

Instead her eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Wh-Whaaaat? You mean Lovely Complex? But, Len, th-that's a shojo manga!"

I shrugged. "Rin made me read some and it's actually kinda funny, so I won't mind. Besides, if I'm accompanied by someone as pretty as you are, at least I have an excuse, right?"

Her eyes seemed to widen to the impossible when she heard my compliment. She began stuttering, her face dangerously heated, before finally giving up and just nodding.

We walked together and discussed the manga, and I felt... well, I felt really good. Being with Lui was different than being with my friends, though I'm not completely sure why. Maybe it was because she knew me better; I'd told her everything without ever seeing her face, and maybe that made me a little more comfortable. I felt like I knew her too, though. Normally around girls, I'm kind of awkward or try to show off, but with Lui I didn't feel I needed to. She listened when I spoke and actually seemed interested, which was a huge encouragement. It made me think I might even like school if she were enrolled in it.

And so I decided on that very day that I had completely fallen in love with Hibiki Lui, even if back then I didn't fully understand what love was.

The movie itself wasn't too bad, actually. Naturally, as a guy I was more shonen-manga-orientated, but it was funny and the actors did well playing their role. But... if anyone would later ask me for a full summary of it, I probably wouldn't have been able to give it to them. Throughout the entire thing I couldn't help but glance over at her every ten seconds, and by the blush on her cheeks, I think she noticed.

It must have been maybe twenty minutes before the end of the film that I finally leaned over and called out her name.

"Hm?" She looked up to me with those big, pure caramel eyes filled with such innocence that any doubt I might have had was completely wiped from my brain.

Slowly I leant closer and closer and I knew she'd realized what was going on when her eyes began to widen. To be honest, I was so nervous I was shivering, yet that didn't stop me from reaching up to cup her face.
Our noses were touching now and I was just that close, that close to actually doing it, but I had to ask her first: "Can I?"

For a long time her mouth just opened and closed and I knew she was probably unable to think straight from all the blood rushing from her head to her... um, well... I don't really know where the blood rushes to in a girl, but... The point is it took her a long time to answer. Shh. "Y-Y-Yes, y-you can...!" she stuttered.

I made sure to be extra gentle since this was probably her first kiss, which proved a lot more difficult than I'd thought it'd be. When at home I'd often wondered if something strange would happen but had dismissed it no problem. 'She's only thirteen. What kind of guy gets hot for a thirteen-year-old kid? I'm not a pedophile! I'll be fine.' Well, according to my own logic, I was a pedophile. Just... wow.

She was so shy and nervous that at first she jerked away, breathing so heavily I thought she was having an asthma attack or something, and she kind of just stared at me with this really surprised look, but then she leaned back in and I guess she decided this was alright (even though I'd already asked before). And I could tell just by kissing her how inexperienced she really was. She didn't know what to do at all, yet I think that only made her even more appealing. (At least she didn't bite me.)

Finally we let go of each other, both of us panting a little, and she was so nervous she couldn't even look at me. "I can't believe you... you did that..." she whispered. At first I was a little panicked because I thought she was angry with me, but she quickly added, "Not that I didn't like it," and blushed.

"How could I help myself?" I asked her teasingly, and for a moment when she looked at me, I thought she looked scared. But she wasn't really scared. She was just staring at me with those beautiful eyes of hers and I felt like kissing her again, but she looked like she wanted to say something. I decided I'd give her a chance to say it and instead reached for the uneven ribbon in her hair. "It's falling out," I said with a sigh, and she sat there blankly until I held the ribbon in front of her face.

She gasped in horror. "Oh no...! I... I forgot to take it off!" She quickly snatched it and stuffed it into her pocket. "R-Ring put it in my hair and I forgot to take it out before I left... Oh gosh." She buried her head in her hands. "I must have looked so girly...!"

I thought it was funny then that she wouldn't want to look girly. "You know, I think it's cute when you wear such pretty stuff. Ring... That's your sister, right?" He nodded and I pointed at his outfit. "Did she dress you?"

She blushed and nodded again, hiding her face now and probably regretting having let Ring anywhere near her closet.

"Tell her I approve, okay?" I grinned at her and she shyly smiled back, fingering a piece of hair. Lightly, slowly, I kissed her one more time on the lips and then sat back in my chair and let her enjoy the rest of the movie (it was almost over anyway). I, on the other hand, would be entertained by my own fantasies instead.
I wonder when she'll introduce me to her family... If she wants to meet Rin, then I want to meet Ring, for sure! Oh, hey, that's funny how their names are so similar... Just one letter difference! Mm, I wonder what Lui will look like when she's older... I don't think her boobs'll get any bigger, but I actually don't mind. For some reason I just can't picture Lui with boobs; she'll probably be like Rin and stay forever flat- not that I mind! In fact, I think I prefer it.

... Oh kami-sama: I really am a pedophile...

Next thing I knew the credits were rolling, and you know, I felt pretty good about myself. I'd somehow managed to be brave and totally cool in front of the girl of my dreams, which was good, because, well... I confess, I'd ran the script several dozen times in my head as I'd waited for her to get there, and for things to have turned out as well as they did, well, phew! That was a first.

We were leaving and I was holding her hand, and I was in this great mood. Two hours wasn't all too long, so I could still come visit her once in a while and everything would be great, right? Right?

"Here, I just have to p-" Oh no, Len, don't you dare be vulgar now! "-go bathroom." Good boy. I glanced over and smiled. "Just wait for me, 'kay?"

"Um... I'll go too..." Her face was so red, you'd think it'd gotten stuck that shade.

So I let go of her hand and stepped around a crowd of people to get to the guys' washroom. The girls' toilets were just across, so I figured I'd just meet up with her in between (you know, since guys always take less time than girls, right?).

The guys' washrooms are always kind of empty. I don't know, maybe girls just have smaller bladders or something and always have to pee, or... Oh wait, I forgot. ... Women problems... Ew. I really hope Lui won't rant to me about those things the way Rin does... Ugh. Gross.

And then, maybe just by chance or maybe because I sensed someone behind me, I happened to turn around.

And Lui was standing there. In the middle of the men's room.

"W-Wow, what are you doing in here?!" I asked, hesitating between listening to her reasoning and quickly dragging her out before anyone noticed. Well, there were only like, two other people, but still. The guy washing his hands looked up and watched us through the mirror's reflection. Damn nosy people...

Lui looked confused. "I thought... I was just going to the bathroom, Len. That's all..."

Huh? Did she not realize bathrooms were split for each gender? I began guiding her out. "Lui, you have to go to the girls' room, across from here, silly." I tried to smile but I'll admit I was a little embarrassed... I mean, who doesn't realize at thirteen years old that boys go in the boys' washroom and girls go in the girls'?

"What? The girls' room?!" Her confusion only became greater. "But Len, I'm not allowed in there!"

"What do you mean, you're not allowed?" My steps slowed. I turn around to face her frontally because there were a lot of things she could answer. Maybe there was someone in the girls' washroom right now that she didn't like, o-or, maybe she'd only ever gone out with her dad and her dad made her go with him to the men's room... A lot of possibilities, right?

She frowned and looked at me as I were the one acting weird here. "Len," she said very slowly, "only girls are allowed in there. I mean, it is the girls' washroom... right?"

"... What are you saying?" The way she'd said that just now... The way she'd said that...

"Len... I'm a boy!" She said this in such a way, as if it should have been completely obvious and all that. Like this wasn't some big joke.

"It's not funny."

"What?"

"You're kidding, right?" I looked up and her and felt kinda angry. I mean, come on! This... This joke wasn't funny at all. In fact, it was kinda cruel.

For some reason, she looked angry too. "I'm not kidding, Len!" And then suddenly her expression morphed into one of hurt. "A-Are you saying that... This whole time... you thought I was a... girl?"

I stared at her for a long time. I stared at her short peachy-blond hair and those big caramel eyes, those cute lips of hers and her round face. And even though at first I thought, 'No way, of course not!', the more I looked, the more I saw it. The more I realized she could be male. And then my gaze traveled down to her chest and I thought, 'There are plenty of flat-chested girls in this world', but I knew I was only humoring myself.

And her clothes, they weren't strictly feminine either, but rather ambiguous. Sure, those shorts were kind of - really - girly, and... guys don't usually wear leggings, do they...? And her shirt, there was this big floppy bow in the middle of it, and that too-big knit jacket...? It was in noticing the 'too-big' part that I realized the answer: Ring. Ring had dressed Lui up for today. ...Most likely using clothing from her own closet.

Well then, that settled it. Lui - the girl I'd completely fallen for through the internet, the girl who'd been so easy to talk to, the girl I felt I could admit anything to, the girl I just felt the sudden urge to kiss only half an hour ago - was actually a boy. ... Oh... my... kami-sama, save me.

"I-I'll just wait for you outside." I didn't even realize what I was doing until I was up the stairs into the mall area again, when I realized I'd just accidentally ditched her- him. And even if... even though she- HE was a boy, it was still rude to just ditch someone like that. Duh... So I turned around and walked back into the movie theatre.

... I kissed a boy. I kissed a boy. I fell in love... with a boy! How could it be that in the year we'd been friends, I never knew she was a boy? How is it that even though I'd felt I knew so much about her, even though I thought I loved her so much, I didn't even know the answer to the most basic question, the answer to her gender? How had I kissed a boy and not realized it?! A-And... oh god, I'd felt good about it too! Thinking back, I'd liked it, hadn't I?! OH MY GOD, I ENJOYED KISSING A BOY. Even if I hadn't known it was a boy, I still... I still... kissed him and... liked it, and... Oh my god. Am I... Could I be... gay...?!

Oh my god. I kissed a boy and liked it. There's... There must be something wrong with me. I'm... I'm straight, damn it! I LIKE GIRLS! Oh my god... What... What am I going to do...?

I could see her from here. She looked worried, glancing all around trying to find me, and... all I could think of was that 'she' was a 'he'. And that I'd kissed 'her'. And that I'd liked it. And... for at least half a year now, I'd been in love with a boy, and I hadn't even realized it.

I took a deep breath and walked up to her. Her eyes locked onto mine and... I hated the way she looked so scared when she saw me, not that I'd hurt her physically, but that... well... It was like she was afraid I'd hate her, or something. Him.

"We need to talk," I said as soon as I was close enough.

At first I'd been worried she hadn't heard me, but she nodded. "I know."

And... I just started walking. I didn't even really know where I was going, just... I had to go somewhere, somewhere we could be alone. And somehow we ended up outside, on the side of the building were there was no parking lot, no entrance, except for some small staff door and a staircase leading to it. I sat on the top step of the stairs; she sat beside me.

"... So this whole time, you really thought I was a girl?" Lui asked me.

"And this whole time, you were actually a boy." ... I couldn't believe how casual I sounded. Inside, I was completely freaking out. I'd become a mess in only two minutes. And it was all because of Lui.

"I... I know I look kind of girly." He bowed his head down as if in shame. "Everyone tells me all the time, and... I'm always mistaken for a girl. My nose is too small or my face is too round or I have really long eyelashes... And my voice is too high and I guess I don't dress like a boy either, but... I usually just let Ring dress me, and it's not like I can help what I look or sound like, so..."

I couldn't really say anything to that. I just couldn't find an answer.

"I thought you knew already..." He propped his elbows up on his knees and let his face sink into his open palms. "I thought you knew, so... I guess I didn't tell you... Oh god Len, I'm so sorry...!" I heard him sniffling and knew he was on the verge of tears, and, well... gee, I felt bad. I mean, it was my fault really, my fault that I'd made a big deal about his gender, but, um... still... We're both boys. It... It couldn't just work out perfectly anymore, because, well... I was straight! And... And he probably was too! Gee, I'd probably gotten him so confused, kissing him like that and then just... just so casually... Oh god. I'm such an ass.

"I'm sorry, Lui. I'm sorry I... I should have known." I just didn't want to see him crying. I put my hand on his shoulder and kind of turned him towards me, made him look up at me. "I can't even say how big a jerk I am for having thought for like, a whole year, that you were a boy. Like, how stupid can you be, right?" I chuckled but his face didn't brighten. I'd probably damaged him unconditionally and no therapist will be able to undo the hurt I caused him and the only way he'll be able to cease the pain will be to jump off that bridge and- FUDGE! I CAN'T LET HIM DO THAT! "Look, um... I'm sorry for um..." I blushed a little. Just thinking about it embarrassed me. "I'm sorry for... kissing you... before... in the movie theatre? Um... I didn't know, so... yeah. I'm sorry."

Instead of seeming relieved, Lui's eyes widened until I thought he was going to hurt himself, and slowly he pushed me away. "U-Um, th-that's..." He swallowed noisily. "That's... what I thought... Right... Of course..."

I didn't get what was going on. Shouldn't he be laughing, telling me how relieved he was to hear so? Shouldn't he be glad?

... Shouldn't I be glad? I just let him know I took that kiss back now that I realized I'd mistaken his gender. That meant I wasn't gay. So shouldn't I be glad...?

But no. I felt really bad inside. I was really in love with this girl, even though I'd never met her before today. When I'd kissed her, it had felt really good and I'd been really happy because, well, I loved her. And now to realize I couldn't love her, I wasn't allowed to love her... I guess that made me really sad.

Did Lui feel that way too? No... that couldn't be right. Lui knew I was a boy all along, so... it'd be impossible for him... to...

...Right?

"You know... You might think I'm weird for saying this..." He spoke barely louder than a whisper. "But even though... you did it because you thought I was a girl, I-I..." He trailed off for a moment but somehow regained his courage. "I really liked it... when you... did that. It made me... really... happy..."

When I did 'that'? Was he talking about when I'd kissed him? W-Wait... "It made you... happy?"

The wind blew a little colder. I hadn't realized it'd been snowing, even though the flakes had been falling all morning. I only noticed when I saw them catch onto Lui's long lashes.

"I-I know it's weird," Lui repeated a little louder, "but still, I... I feel like..." He let out a short sob and tried to muffle it with his sleeve. It was way too cold to be out wearing what he was. He had to be freezing.

I took off my coat and tried to wrap it around his shoulders but he flinched, and it fell into a puddle around him. Yet, the way he looked up at me... It was like he couldn't believe I'd do something so nice for him, even if it was just letting him borrow my coat so he wouldn't freeze to death.

And then, thinking about it a little more, I couldn't believe I'd done something like that either. I don't think I've ever done that before with any of my previous girlfriends. I'd never really considered their feelings, how they might feel cold or hurt or anything like that. I never really bothered.

He lowered his head as though ashamed of himself and said quietly, "Len, even though it's weird, even though we're both boys, I... I really like you... Len... I always have."

And then everything kind of went silent. The wind kept blowing but I couldn't hear it anymore. I'm sure we both kept breathing, yet we made no sound. Maybe I'd gone into shock or something. It was really bothering me the way he was shivering and I wanted to put my coat back on him again, but... he was waiting for an answer, and... I guess I had to give him one.

"I... I really don't... know... what to say." And I didn't. I was completely confused. It was hard making such a big decision in such little time. Did I still love him, now that I'd realized he was a boy?

My answer wasn't a yes or a no, so he kept waiting for the verdict, his head bowed, tears still sliding down his face, and I felt like he already knew he was going to get rejected. That's just how it looked to me. And... he was just shivering so much... Ah, I couldn't help it: I pulled my coat back over his shoulders and held them there, and, slowly, he looked up, and that face he made... He seemed so full of hope, like maybe there was this small chance I wouldn't say no, that maybe somehow I felt the same way as him, and... just something in that look made my head a little fuzzy.

"I... I don't really know... how, but, um... I guess... I can try."

He blinked as few times, snowflakes melting on his lashes. "What?"

"I guess we can try to, um..." Ah, awkward. "Yeah..."

"So... You're saying you'll... go out with me?"

Well, when he said it like that, I felt kind of dizzy. I thought of my friends at school and how they'd react if they ever found out I was dating a boy, and of Rin, who'd tease me non-stop, and I thought of my parents who might be disappointed in me, and how I'd probably get made fun of a whole lot because of this, but... I guess my head was still a little fuzzy somehow, 'cause when I looked at his face again, that hopeful sparkle in his eyes and the way he bit onto his lip so preciously, it just... It kind of replaced all other thoughts. And somehow I ended up answering "Yes".

It was the best decision of my life.

He was so happy he started crying again and it kind of made me laugh a little because he was just so damn cute, and... somehow, we ended up real close to each other.

It was a lot more awkward since I'd never consciously kissed a boy before, and, well, it seemed really more important than kissing a girl, right? So... was there a different way of doing it, or was I just supposed to...? Oh kami-sama, I was about to kiss a boy?! What was happening?!

And then somehow his lips were on mine and... I don't really know. Even though I was kissing a boy, even though we both knew it was weird, it just... felt really good. Even though we weren't really doing anything, just sitting there with our lips stuck together, I felt I favored it over any of my previous experiences. It wasn't hot or sexy or lust-filled, it was just a kiss, but... at the same time, it was way more than just that. I never really wanted it to end.

It was like... magic. Christmas magic, I guess.

It was the best Christmas present I'd ever received.

'Ah, I really suck at bowling... Last time we went, Rin had like, 100 points and I managed to get about 30...'

'Haha, that's funny! That's okay, I'm really bad too, so we can be terrible together, right? ^^" I just hope they don't throw us out for being so bad at it...'

We meet up every two weeks or so and talk all the time via email and Skype. And even though we're dating now, our conversations haven't really changed all too much, which I'm glad for. I still like talking to him and we're not awkward talking to each other. Rin still thinks Lui is a girl, but it really doesn't matter what she thinks.

'Oh, Mum says I have to go now... There's school tomorrow, so I have to go to bed earlier, I guess... But I want to stay up to talk with you! I don't want to go to bed...'

'It's okay, I'll probably be going soon too. And besides, I'll be here tomorrow, right?'

Nobody but us needs to know what happened that Christmas. Maybe it was because of something sweet in the air or something in my orange juice that morning, but thanks to what happened on that day, I've never been happier.

'Oh, hey... Len?'

'Mm?'

'... I love you... /^/^/'

And we didn't even need a mistletoe to make things special.

'Hey Lui?'

'Yes?'

'I love you too. 3'

'That makes me happy.'

'UH-OH! Wrong chat, sorry!'

'You'd better be joking. -'

'I am, I am, I'm just kidding. XD Goodnight.'

'Nighty night...' Lui is offline.

'... You really have no idea how happy I am to have you. I love you Lui... I mean it.' And... Send.

December 15th, 2013; 10:59 PM

Wow. That was a lot better than I'd thought it'd be... o.o I guess Naty17 isn't as bad at fluff as she thought she was... huh.

I FINALLY FINISHED A ONESHOT FOR THIS COUPLE, OH MY GOSH. I have tried SO many times to write something for Len x Lui, but... I just couldn't. Nothing I wrote was good enough. I'm so glad I finished this, 'cause I actually like it, and... I don't know. I feel like I did a good job. Sure, Simon will be disappointed that I kept it PG, buuuuut... ^^"

And for once I have a Len that doesn't fit into the same mold as the others. O.O Wow. That's good, I guess. Amongst my many flaws in writing, one of them is the Len clone, where every Len in every story seems to be exactly the same, but this one seems to have broken out of the pattern, which I think is good. This one is a lot more simple and innocent. He's kinda cute. ^^

This story had a weird kind of tense, which was kind of fun to experiment with. Well, it wasn't really conscious experimenting, I guess... I kind of just wrote it, noticed it, thought, 'Huh, this is neat', and didn't think much of it until now. I don't really pay too much attention to this or that, I usually just sit and write. (I don't know it that's a talent or just being lazy... I don't think it's laziness though. o.o I mean, if it were laziness... hmm... *shrug*) I find it kind of funny though. It's in past-tense and then suddenly there'll be a line of two like a comment told in present tense or a thought voiced in present, before letting it go back into past again. It kind of works with this lighter-themed story though, so I don't mind it. It's interesting though... ^^

Oh, and in case anyone was wondering, I've never had a Christmas like that; I'm just as single as you are... TTwTT Hehehehe. Don't worry, being single gives you more time to do stuff, like reading fanfiction! And just think, if I got a boyfriend (or girlfriend), I wouldn't have as much time to write my stories, so there's no need to feel bad for me either, 'kay? *laughs* We single-people need to stick together, right? Although making a special 'Singles Awareness' Day is a little much... That has got to be the most depressing holiday ever! XD (It's the day after Valentines' Day too, on February 15th...)

Aaaanyway... I have a blog now. :3 I'd been meaning to start one for a while now but was a little hesitant, 'cause I thought, 'Will this last? Will anyone really read it? Will I ever update it?' But hey, if it makes my A/Ns a little shorter, even for a little while, it can't hurt, right? ^^"
On that blog I'll post updates about my writing, random rambles about random topics, maybe some memes/quizzes and some previews/spoilers. Maybe I'll even put up never-before-seen stories that I wrote but never posted... I mean, I have tons of stuff here that I've started but never finished, so...? ^^ I don't think FFN likes links, so please go to my profile; the link is at the top of the page (somewhere). Please read my blog, it'd mean a lot! You know, it'd make me feel super warm and fuzzy inside, like when a volcano erupts and you get swallowed by a wave of lava and kind of burn to crisps within and... ... ... that doesn't sound all too sweet. Hmm...

Anyway, Merry Christmas to everyone! Simon, I hope you liked it~!
~Naty

(1) 'Oh wait, I forgot. ... Women problems... Ew. I really hope Lui won't rant to me about those things the way Rin does... Ugh. Gross.'
What's funny is that, as I wrote that, even though I am (unfortunately) female myself, I couldn't help but shiver. XD Talk about getting into character, huh? Still though... I guess it is kinda gross for a guy, huh? Then again, no different than stuff coming out of- OKAY THAT'S ENOUGH OF THAT, AHAHAHAHAHA! O_O" Wow, that was... That was weird just now... Let's just pretend this conversation never happened. o^o" *shivers*

If you choose to review, I will put you on the Nice List~! Unless you're kinky and just too badass for the Nice List, in which case you can join me on the Naughty List... ;) Either way, if you review, you're going to end up on a list, so crack those fingers and get typing~!

HO HO HO, MERRY CHRISTMAS!