A/N: This is another idea I had in the shower and I don't know if that is a good thing or a bad one. I'll have to think about it.
I feel like there have been a lot of serious stories around lately, and as wonderful as they are sometimes you just need a little… innocence, right? Oh and also a lot of silliness with a pinch- no, with a whole punch of fluffiness.
This is basically what that is.
It's also kinda nonsense and crack-ish, but you get the drill by now.
. . .
Kid-Sized Pen Pals
Janauary 11, 20XX
hi! my name is gintoki and from today ill be yor penpal!
my teacher said to tell you some things about me, so ill tell you but be careful cause im really amaziing and after you read this you mite cry since your not me.
im six years old and my favorit thing is drinking straebery milk and watch a lot of cartoons. not the cartoons for little babies but cartoons for big kids cause my mommy says that im very meatur for my age.
by the way im not going to school anymore because im too smart and too rich and verry Awesome but since im a very good person i decided to help my teacher cause he needed some kids to write leters to other kids and i said okay ill do it so thats why im writing to you.
okay i finished. i hope you dont feel too bad cus of how awesome i am.
sincerely,
gintoki
January 23, 20XX
Hi, nice to meet you my name is Toshiro and Im 6 too.
I didnt cry at all so dont worry I dont want to be you Im fine being me thanks.
You told me two of your favorite things so ill tell you mine. My favorite things to do are :
1) Eating sanduiches with mayonnaise, some time I like eating mayonnaise on its own becase its very very very very very very good
2) I like reading comics with superheroes cause their cool. I read comics for big kids, not for babies
Thats imposible because even if your smart and rich you still have to go to school because how do you get a job without school? I think your lyin.
Ps. I don't believe the part that youre awesome by the way
Sincerely,
Toshiro
February 2, 20XX
dear toshiro,
you have a cool name. but my names cooler.
you should belive it case Im realli very Awesome and people aluays ask me how I can be so Awesome and I tell them they shuldnt try cause theyll never be awesome like me and they start cryng.
But if we become frends you can be a little awesome too.
My teacher told me to write some questions cus my letter is too short so ill write one i gess
What is yor favorite subject?
sincereley,
gintoki
February 17, 20XX
Dear Gintoki,
Your name is also cool but I think mine is stil better.
To me it looks like you want everyone to think your awesome but im not easy like the other kids to manipulate (that means make oters do what you want them to do. I learnd it when I was watching a cartoon and it was a cool one because I also watch big kids cartoons)
And Im already awesome any way so if we become frends youll be awesome thanks to me.
My favourite subject is math. Whats yours?
Sincerely,
Toshiro
March 3, 20XX
dear toshiro,
BLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!
Why do you like math? its really boring and you dont need it for anything!
you should like something that youll actuali use in life, like eating 100 skittles without pukin. im reali good at that.
and everyone knows that when you get big you only use math to cont the money the tooth fairi brings when yor teeth fall out.
and im not lying, i only lie when i tell my parents i dont know who eat all the cake or when i tell the teachers my dog eat my homwork (i dont have a dog by the way)
no im realli awesome but if we becom bestest frends youll be Awesome thanks to me and make the other kids cry case yor too Awesome.
my favorit subject is lunch becus i like eating hahahahah!
my teacher told me i can draw somthing if i wanna so i added a drawing of myself to show you just how Awesomee i am.
sincerely,
gintoki
March 24, 20XX
Dear Gintoki,
Hahahaha. Your drawing made me laugh. A lot. Hahahaha.
Sorry its not that awesome.
I still dont believe that your Awesome, but its okay I wont call out your lie to any one else bcause im a loyal person (I dont know what that word means. My teacher told me yesterday but i forgot. But my teacher is nice so I think it means a good thing, if its not a good thing than im not loyal).
I never met someone who can eat a wole cake and if you dont have a dog you shuld say that you did it yourself like one of my frends. He ate his homeowork in his sleep and the teacher told him to go to the principal but the principal started lauging a lot and he didnt put him in detention. You should try,
And ok we can be frends but youll be Awesome thanks to me.
Since you put a drawing in your letter Ill do it too.
P.S. Whats the name of your school?
Sincerely,
Toshiro
April 4, 20XX
WoW! yur drawing is so cool ill give it a 10.
But the max is 10000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
so 10 means that its not that great. Hahaha!
sorry im still too Awesome for you and my drawing is more Awesome too and if it made you laugh it means that its even mor cool becus cool people make oter people laugh.
but even if im more awesome i tink its still kinda awesome. and your kinda awesome too.
thanks for telling me that trik next time ill try it.
ps.
my old schools name is Toya, but like i told you i dont need school anymor becaus im too smart already. I just come here to play and teach other kids som time case some teachers are so stupid a little silly and not the most good.
sincerely,
gintoki
April 18, 20XX
Dear Gintoki,
That number dont even exist but OK .
And im happy it made you laugh so it means im cooler too case i make people laugh like you wrote in yor letter.
If you give my drawing a 10 ill give yors three micheline stars. But the max of the stars is infinity.
So you lose.
Haha!
Thanks. I dont think your very awesome…. but your still kinda awesome too.
We also have teachers that are very stupid not so good, but i never heard about kids doing teachers jobs. If its true then its realy cool. If your lying is not that cool. but still kind of fuuny tho.
My brother told me that education is very important so you still have to get a little education.
Sincerely,
Toshiro
May 8, 20XX
dear toshiro,
its true a lot of teachers call me to do their job but im a very busy men so i tell them to talk with my asistant (my asistant its a model by the way and every one loves her and she loves me. but i dont realy love her. shes prety tho and every one is jealos)
if you have a brother who do yor mommy and daddy love more? my mommy and daddy told me im the favorit son. im there only son but i know im there favorit and even if i wasnt the only son ill still be ther favorit becase im the bestest in the whole universe. theres not another favorit son just like me.
you can ask my pearents if you dont believ me. its all true.
and even if i dont go to school anymore i still do PE and every one knows its the biggest part of edication so its okay.
what do you want to be when you grow up?
sincerely,
gintoki
May 15, 20XX
Dear Gintoki,
Its very cool that teachers call you to do their work. (I dont believe that your assisant is a model and every one is jealus but OK.)
Its fine I believe your parents and my mommy and daddy told me that me and my brother are both their favorite sons.
When I grow up I want to be a police oficer. But not a normal one but one who lives in space and fits with a cool sowrd and punces all the bad guys! What do you wanna be when you grow up?
Today I got 2.00 so Im really rich now and with all that money Ill biuld a space ship now.
My mommy told me that your school and my school are close so if you wanna I think we can meet and I can show you my space ship when i finish it and you can be the 2 captain caus Im the 1.
My teacher says that its the last letter we have to write… it makes me a little sad :(
…Bye.
Very sincerely,
Toshiro
June 2, 20XX
dear toshiro,
When i gro up i wanna be a dog. the Captain Dog that Will kick all the bad guys and get all the ICE CREAM in the world ahahahahahaahahahahahah!
wow yur so rich give me sume money. im still rich by the way but i just wanna be more rich. and i want to meet you and see yor spaceship! but ill never be captain 2. im only 1. or captain 0. we can decid later.
my teacher told us this is the last letter we have to writ too : (
but its okay cuse in a bit we can finaly meet so dont be sad! you should aluays be happy and smile big okay?
bye bye see you soon! : )
very sincerely,
gintoki
ps. im still mor awesomeeee then youuuu!
"TOSHIIIIIIII!"
The voice seems to boom in the streets and with his heart thundering in his chest Toshiro spins around to see a force of nature wrecking whatever is in its path to get to him.
Or, to put it simply, he sees Gintoki running toward him. In his defence he has only seen that kind of speed in the big boys cartoons he watches.
Toshiro's jaw unhinges and his mouth forms the perfect 'o' shape because even if he already knew it still dawns on him only now what day this one is.
It is finally here, the day the pen pals will meet in person for the first time.
Toshiro, in a hurry to go and talk to his little friend and see him in all his glory of flesh and bones and curls, starts to wave his limbs in a frantic, uncontrolled way. A middle ground between dancing when you have no idea how to dance and trying to run on the spot because someone spilled hot coffee on your pants. Needless to say Toshiro is impatient.
In a split second decision he pulls at his mother's azure dress and points at the other kid, who keeps on running at a speed not even Bugs Bunny can compete with, and he hopes that is enough of a signal for his mother to understand that he needs to run to his pen pal now or he will probably catch on fire. So, that being done, he begins his path toward the missile boy, going as fast as his little legs will let him go.
The two boys meet halfway.
But instead of the slow motion that happens in movies when two destined souls find each other it almost seems like it happens at twice the regular speed, probably because they are two little kids who can't wait to tackle each other to show their happiness.
They are close, so close their faces start becoming startingly clear and they can just clearly see the outline of blue and red sparkling irises and-
They collide.
With a loud oomph the boys fall on their butts.
"You!" Gintoki shrieks at the top of his lungs, not bothering to contain the excitement anymore. Not like he was really able to, in the first place.
"You!" Toshiro repeats in a squeal just as loud.
They scramble to their little feet in a haste, or rather they help each other scramble to their little feet, and the lack of coordination coupled with the force of gravity makes them fall, again.
After a bunch of trial and errors in which their backside meets the ground more times than they want to admit, they finally manage to stand upright.
Gintoki's eyes seem to shine like the stars Toshiro dreams about chasing in his spaceship.
It's all a little overwhelming for them both. Even if they have absolutely no idea what that word means.
But Toshiro is sure that time stops, maybe, he is not sure anymore, when Gintoki puts his plump hands over his squishy cheeks and leans in until-
Smack!
Gintoki kisses his cheek.
Toshiro's brain is overworking but at the same time it feels so empty he swears he can hear the echo and the only thing he can really focus on is two very red eyes and the warmth on his cheek that spreads over to every part of his face.
"Hi! My name is Gintoki but you already know that." Gintoki then grins, thinking that this is the perfect moment to re-introduce himself and his voice is nice, the kind of nice Toshiro hears when he watches cartoons with superhero kids. He thinks this boy could definitely play the role of a superhero kid.
And for some strange reason that he will probably never find the answer to Toshiro start giggling and feels his face becoming warmer, he also notices there is a loud pounding coming from somewhere inside his chest.
"Hi… my name is-" The boy stops because he forgets his name, too excited at the prospect of… everything, really. He thinks about it for a few seconds with his eyebrows knitting in the center of his forehead and his lips forming a tiny pout, the perfect picture of what cute must look like, until a little lamp turns on above his head and he remembers. "-Toshiro!"
Gintoki grins whole heartedly. "Hi!" He greets him again.
This time Toshiro sees that there is a small gap in his smile and notices the other boy has a tooth missing, just like he does. Gintoki's happy smile and his all around joyous aura makes him feel all giddy inside, just like when he is about to play football with his friends. Toshiro thinks Gintoki's happiness is contagious.
"From your letters I thought you were kind of cool." Gintoki mumbles in a concentrated voice, as if he is thinking hard about something. Then his face breaks out in what Toshiro starts thinking is a usual and natural expression to him, a big grin. "But you're so much cooler!"
"You're so much cooler too." Toshiro mutters, feeling a little exuberant because of Gintoki's enthusiasm and a little shy at the compliment. If he saw himself in the mirror he would be looking at a tomato right now.
"I told you I was cool!" Gintoki exclaims all proud and mighty, then stops and pouts in a way that makes his cheeks look even softer. "Ah no- wait, I'm awesome!" He quickly corrects himself.
Toshiro blinks. Then he starts laughing, because, once again, he realizes that he is meeting his pen pal which he hasn't been able to stop talking about to anyone near a ten radius feet for months. And now that they are finally face to face, he hears Gintoki's voice for the first time, he sees the way he crosses his arms like an adult, puffs out his chest proudly and emphasizes how awesome he is… somehow the ordeal is hilarious to him.
"Hey! It's true!" Gintoki protest, but his goofy grin is still stamped on his face.
And soon they are both wheezing and holding onto their tummies for no reason at all and all the reasons in the world and it's all kinds of wonderful.
"Gintoki! How many times have I told you not to run away like that?"
"Toshiro! Are you okay?"
The boys turn their heads in opposites directions to see their mothers running toward them (at a normal speed because only cool boys who watch cool cartoons can run faster than light).
"Moooommy!" Gintoki practically launches himself to his mother and hugs her long skirt, looking up at her with huge and round puppy eyes and pointing at his new best friend. "This is Toshi!"
Gintoki's mother is beautiful. That is the first thing Toshiro can think of when he sees her. So this is where Gintoki's red eyes come from.
"Hello darling, it's nice to finally meet you." The woman says in a gentle and happy voice, very different but somehow so similar to her son's.
Toshiro feels his face burn a little when she gives him that warm and sweet smile that he witnessed on Gintoki's face only a few seconds ago. After a little while he seems to unfreeze and nods his head somewhat shyly, looking at the ground and playing with his fingers behind his back, making the woman's sweet smile widen at the adorable display.
All of a sudden, not wanting to seem rude, Toshiro grips his mother's fingertips and gently pulls her towards the little boy. "This is Gintoki."
"Nice to meet you too, honey." The woman's voice is as soft as her smile and she holds her hand out to the little boy.
"The pleasure is all mine Toshi's mommy!" Gintoki answers in the way he has heard the cool gentlemen on television do and takes hold of her hand in his smaller one, shaking it vigorously.
The woman laughs, still soft and light, and her blue eyes look sparkly like diamonds in the sunshine, the same way Toshiro's eyes seem to be tinkling, and a light blush blooms on Gintoki's face.
By the way he just made a pretty woman laugh, that definitely falls within the category of being Awesome.
"Gintoki has been talking so much about you." Gintoki's mother adds while in a delicate gesture she tucks behind her ear a few white strands of hair that managed to escape from her side braid.
Toshiro steals a glance at Gintoki, who sports an energetic smile as he looks back, and for some reason the thud thud in his chest goes faster.
"So has Toshiro, he was so impatient to finally meet his pen pal." The other boy's mother joins in, stroking her son's hair tenderly.
The two women begin a conversation that the boys quickly ignore, far more interested in spending time with each other. Gintoki scurries off to the other little boy and without hesitation grabs him by the hand.
His hand is small, but it's soft and it's warm and Toshiro has only ever held the hands of his parents and his older brother, and their hands are nice. But he thinks that holding Gintoki's hand is really, really nice and he wants to hold onto it for as long as he can.
"Let's be bestest friends forever!" Gintoki says it like it's the only possible option at this point or the world will end up imploding and he has never felt the need to agree more about anything else like he does right now.
Toshiro feels happiness fill him in clouds and rainbows and bunnies inside and he nods faster than he probably ever has in his six years alive. "Yes!"
Gintoki's grin, if possible, becomes even brighter and with a pull on his hand they start marching toward… well, somewhere.
"Mommy! We have to go!" Gintoki calls over his shoulder to get the two women's attention who have been chatting non-stop for the past minute or so.
"Where would you boys like to go first?" Toshiro's mother asks them then, smiling at the two adorable grins with a couple missing teeth the boys are showing on their chubby faces.
"To space!" They announce in synchronization, as if they are ready to throw themselves in a battle.
Gintoki starts running and Toshiro follows, letting himself be guided by the boy with the happy smile, already lost in a world of their own.
The two women exchange a look and they chuckle.
"Ah, kids. They have such a vivid imagination." The woman with blue eyes observes the two with a tender sigh, her cheek resting in her palm as the smile refuses to leave her face.
"Tell me about it. My Gin-chan said he is going to become a dog of all things. And fight off criminals…. not because he cares about keeping people safe but because he wants to take all their ice cream." The other sounds disbelieving and amazed at the same time.
"And my Toshiro has been talking about how he needs to build his own spaceship in our backyard to defeat all the aliens after he finds an invincible sword." The woman with dark hair hides a small laugh behind her hand.
They both shake their heads in clear amusement, almost as in sync as their sons.
"Since they have so much fantasy, who knows, maybe one day they might write a book about all their 'adventures.'" Toshiro's mother muses, already thinking about the craziness the two boys might include in their stories.
"If that's the case I want half of whatever they make!" Gintoki's mother exclaims, immediately thinking about the money instead.
They look at each other and both start laughing, quickly falling into another conversation like two old friends seeing one another for the first time in years as they follow behind their sons and look for a cafè where they can sit down and talk about the fun day ahead they will spend together.
When the next day at school the boys have to name one of the best things that has happened in their lives in a short essay they will write about a certain pen pal.
And Gintoki will also add:
straeberry milk is the second best thing in my life cus straeberry milk is life.
. . .
A/N:
-I ADDED THE DRAWINGS TOO but they don't show here. If you want to see them you can go in my AO3 profile, the name is the same :) -
I wanted to write about these two as kids for forever now! I finally found the way to do this! And it's the first time I don't have to cringe when I read over my mistakes and rush to fix them, I should write about kids writing more often.
I really liked adding 'but OK' in Toshi's letters, I feel like that was his way of being a little sassy?
Also, can you imagine Shoyo-Sensei reading Gintoki's letters and shaking his head fondly at his little student?