Temari hadn't always had good Christmases. She couldn't very well remember her mother, so it was always just her father, her siblings and her. Rasa wasn't one for holidays, at least not after Karura passed away. According to her father, Temari's mother loved Christmas. So every year, Christmas was the worst day next to the day she actually passed.
She wasn't really close with Gaara when they were younger. Her and Kankuro were allowed to hang out together, but Kankuro just annoyed her most of the time. Temari wanted to hang out with Gaara, but her father wouldn't let her.
After her father passed and her and her siblings grew closer, they started to celebrate the holiday. Each buying only two gifts, one for each of the other sibling.
So this year, she had been sent on a mission to Konoha that would last past the new year. It was the first time she spent Christmas away from her brothers and she wasn't exactly sure about what to do. She wanted to hang out with Shikamaru, but she also didn't feel like interrupting whatever him and his mother had planned.
Everyone in the Leaf village had family to hang out with, so she figured she would be spending her holiday alone. That was, until a voice came up behind her. "Temari?" She was currently walking down the main street of Konoha, looking down and kicking the snow on the ground. She hadn't realized that she had spaced out that much. Temari turned to see Shikamaru approaching.
She wasn't really sure what to call their relationship. They had gone on dates, and they both really liked each other, but neither of them were brave enough to start the conversation of clearing up what they are. She smiled at him. "Hello, Shikamaru." She was now facing the man, hands in her pockets.
"What are you doing out here?" He asked.
"I was just wandering around. What are you doing out here? Aren't you going to spend your holiday with your mother?" She replied.
"I am," he paused, realizing she had nothing to do for the day. "I'm on my way to Kurnai's house. I'm bringing some gifts for Mirai." He smiled at her.
Temari just noticed the boxes in his hands and gift bags on his arms. "I see, you sure do spoil her." He merely smiled at that.
"Well, since you have no plans why don't you come with me?" He asked.
"I don't want to intrude-"
"Don't be silly, you aren't intruding. Mirai would love to see you. She talks about you all of the time," He paused, thinking about the last time he saw the small girl. "She actually thinks we're married. Last time I saw her she told me that since you're my wife you need to move to Konoha."
Temari laughed at that. "Good to know I missed my own wedding." Shikamaru laughed in return as they walked towards the house.
"Big Brother Shikamaru!" They heard the small voice. "Ms. Temari! I'm so happy you came with big brother. I didn't know you would be here for Christmas!" She smiled at the little girl.
"It wasn't really my choice." This made Mirai frown.
"You don't want to spend Christmas with me and big brother?" Whoops.
"No, that's not what I meant. I usually spend Christmas with my brothers. But it's okay, I'm happy to spend it with you!" The girl hugged Temari with excitement. They then went inside and let Mirai open her presents.
About an hour later, the couple was leaving. They waved good bye to the mother and daughter waving to them from their door. "They are so sweet." Temari spoke. Shikamaru nodded.
The walk to the Nara compound was a quiet one. Everyone seemed to be inside, enjoying time with their immediate family. The only movement outside was from a lone deer and the snowfall. Temari smiled. She had never seen one of those creatures this close before. Shikamaru had told her about how he would help his dad take care of the deer when they both got home in the evenings. The thought of Shikamaru and his dad made her smile. She didn't know Shikaku very well, but she knew he was a good father. And she knew Shikamaru missed him a lot.
He must have noticed her looking at the animal, because he stopped his movement and turned towards her. "Do you want to pet her?" He asked. Temari jumped, not realizing that she had spaced out. She turned towards him with a questioning look. He repeated the question. "Do you want to pet her?"
"Am I allowed to?" She asked. He let out a small laugh.
"Temari, I'm the clan leader. I can let you pet the deer if I want to." She rolled her eyes at him. Temari followed closely to Shikamaru as they slowly approached the deer. Shikamaru help out his hand and set it on the side of the deer's neck. Temari did the same, moving slowly, slower than Shikamaru. She looked kind of nervous. Eventually Shikamaru just grabbed her hand and placed it on the animal next to his. "She's nice, see?" Temari blushed.
He hadn't let go of her yet. His hand was resting on the top of hers, and she wasn't sure how to react. She just stared at their hands, causing Shikamaru to realize what he was doing after a moment. "Oh, I'm sorry.." He said. After a moment of awkward silence, he spoke up again. "We should get going. It's getting dark and mom will be wondering where I am." She nodded and walked with him to his mother's house.
Upon arrival, they were greeted by Yoshino yelling from the kitchen to her son. "Shikamaru! I have been waiting! What took you so long?" She then walked out to the doorway where the two younger people were taking off their shoes. "Oh, Temari. I didn't know you were joining us today. It's nice to see you!" The older woman pulled Temari into a tight hug.
"It's nice to see you too, Yoshino. I hope I'm not intruding." Yoshino waved her off.
"Nonsense. You're practically family, right? You're welcome anytime. But, I figured you would be in Suna celebrating with your brothers?" She nodded.
"Usually I am, but I had a mission that has gone longer than expected and it seems I will be here until next year." Shikamaru decided to speak up.
"She was going to spend Christmas alone in her hotel, so I figured you wouldn't mind." Yoshino smiled at her son.
"It will be nice to have someone to talk to after eating. Shikamaru always falls asleep." Temari rolled her eyes at her friend. Of course he would. This is probably one of the only days now where he gets to nap considering hes always working. "I am just about to finish cooking dinner, so you can make yourself comfortable in the living room. Shikamaru, get her something to drink."
"I'm okay," Temari started. "But, would you like any help with anything?" Yoshino turned to her, thinking about what she could do.
"If you would like, you can set the table. Shikamaru will help you." Temari nodded and followed her into the kitchen. Shikamaru sighed.
He was the last one in the kitchen. Shikamaru grabbed all of the plates and utensils they would need, leading Temari into the dining room. She followed and took the plates out of his hands, laying them down on the table. It was silent between the two once again, but it wasn't awkward. Well, until Temari had a thought cross her mind. A thought about her future and how this is what it could possibly look like. Setting the dinner table with Shikamaru on Christmas. She wasn't mad about the thought, just flustered. What if he knows what I'm thinking? Don't be ridiculous. He isn't Ino, he can't read your mind... "Uh, Temari? Are you okay?" She snapped out of her thoughts and noticed her face starting to heat up.
"Restroom?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Down the hall to your left.." He noticed she was acting strange but had no idea why. Nothing weird had happened. Maybe she was just homesick? Who knows.
Shikamaru finished setting the table and helped his mom bring the food to the table. "Where is Temari?" She asked.
"She needed to use the restroom." He replied. The two sat down at the table right as Temari walked in.
"Oh, I'm sorry," She said.
"You're fine, we just sat down." Temari then sat at the table next to Shikamaru. They gave thanks and ate. Dinner was uneventful. It was actually really peaceful, which made Temari smile. So it this what a normal Christmas looks like? She hadn't even known what it was like to have a mother, so anytime she was with Yoshino she could pretend for a moment that she did have a mother.
After eating, Shikamaru cleared the table and put the leftovers away as Temari and Yoshino washed the dishes. When Shikamaru finished his task, he made his way to the couch to sleep no doubt.
"Thank you for helping, Temari. You're the guest, you should be resting." Temari shook her head.
"No, thank you for having me. Like you said, I'm like family. So I can help clean up too." She smiled.
"Can I ask you a question?" Yoshino spoke.
"Of course, what is it?"
"How do you feel about my son?" Temari was not expecting that to be her question. She panicked, not really knowing herself.
"Uh, well.. To be honest with you, I don't know exactly how to put it," She started, not looking up from the dishes she was drying. "I know I care for him and I want him to be happy. I don't know what I would do if something happened to him," Yoshino knew she really did care about him, especially since he went to the Land of Silence and Temari had busted in to save him. "But, he also terrifies me. I don't know how to explain it, but I've never felt these feelings until Shikamaru and I became close. I don't exactly know what these feelings are, but they're scary. And I don't really know where our relationship stands because we have never talked about," She stopped herself when she realized what she was doing. "Okay, now I'm just rambling, how embarrassing.."
Yoshino smiled at the woman. "Don't be embarrassed. This happens to a lot of people. It happened to me when I became close with Shikaku. I don't mean to scare you anymore than you already are, but I think it's love. And don't worry, he loves you too. He won't admit that to me, but I can tell. The way he talks about you, the way he looks at you. And when you leave to go back to Suna, he gets moody." The two laughed at the thought of him throwing a fit.
Little did they know, Shikamaru was still up. He was listening to the conversation going on in the kitchen. He sighed after hearing what his mother had said. But, Temari had reassured him with her words, which made him happy. He heard footsteps enter the living room and he pretended to be asleep. "Wake up, lazy! Temari needs you to walk her home!" Yoshino yelled.
"I can walk myself.." Temari said under her breath, causing Yoshino to glare at her. Oh, gotcha.. "Actually I forgot which way it was.." Yoshino then winked at the girl. Shikamaru groaned.
"Seriously? Why don't you just stay here, there's an extra bed." He stated, not wanting to move from the couch.
"She doesn't have any extra clothes, Shikamaru. Now get your ass off the couch and take her to her hotel!" Shikamaru sat up.
"Fine, I'll be right back." He then made his way to his childhood bedroom. He still hadn't gotten everything out yet and moved to his new house. He grabbed a box and stuffed it into his pocket before returning downstairs.
"Ready?" He asked as he put his shoes and coat on. She nodded, turning towards his mom.
"Thank you again for having me, Yoshino. Merry Christmas!"
"Merry Christmas to you too, Temari. Come over anytime. It's nice to have someone to talk to that doesn't fall asleep in the middle of a conversation." Temari just laughed and Shikamaru walked out of the house.
"Goodbye, mom," Temari smiled once more and left, shutting the door behind her. "She can be such a drag sometimes." He stated as they moved out of the Nara compound.
"I really like your mother, Shikamaru. She's very kind." He scoffed.
"Yeah, to you." She rolled her eyes.
They walked a little more in silence until Temari stopped. When Shikamaru turned around, he was bent over facing away from him. "Did you find something?" He asked. But, when she turned back around, all he saw was her smirk and something cold hitting his face. "Hey!" She was laughing really hard, and he was annoyed. Wiping off his face, he saw her bent over laughing.
"You should have seen your face-" Her sentence was cut off by a snowball in return hitting her in the face. "Nara!" She yelled back at him. "This is war!" Temari started scooping up snow and molding it into snowballs, Shikamaru in return did the same. Back and forth, they threw snow at each other. Laughing and yelling, until Temari decided to tackle Shikamaru into a pile of snow. They were both laughing, until they made eye contact. For a moment, they just looked at each other. Shikamaru moved his cold hand up to her cold face, pulling it towards him as she laid on top of him. And he kissed her.
Temari kissed him back, but just for a moment before she pulled away. "Temari," He started. "I really like you," Shikamaru then sat up. He pulled out a rectangular box out of his pocket and held it out to her. "Will you be my girlfriend?" She looked shocked.
"Of course I will, but what's this?" She took the box from him and opened it.
"It's a tradition. When a Nara clan member gets into a relationship, they give their significant other a necklace with the clan symbol on it. Although, you don't have to wear it if you don't want to.." She smiled at him, taking the necklace out of the box. She handed it to him and turned around. Shikamaru was slightly confused.
"Well, are you going to put it on me?" She asked. He smiled, sitting up more so he could do so. Shikamaru's hands moved the necklace around her neck and secured it. She turned back to him and hugged him. "We should go, it's pretty cold out here." He nodded, standing up with her.
They continued to Temari's hotel. She held onto his arm and smiled as they walked. Once they made it to the building, he stopped at her door. "Goodnight," He said. She smiled at him after she opened her door.
"Shikamaru," She paused, looking away for a second. "Would you like to come in?" He nodded immediately. She drug him inside and shut the door behind her. "Thank you for walking me to my hotel." She said.
He smirked. "Anytime," He spoke. Shikamaru found this moment good to lean down and kiss her again, this time with more force. She kissed him back, a little longer than last time. "Merry Christmas, Temari."
"Merry Christmas, Shikamaru."
AN: Okay, so uh I have never written anything this long for one chapter. I hope it wasn't boring. I don't really know why I wrote it, Christmas isn't my favorite holiday. I think I just feel bad about not writing anything for Halloween (which is my fave). Anyway, thanks for reading! I hope you all have a wonderful day!