THIS STORY IS GAY.

If you have a problem with that, keep it to yourself. I don't care.

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THE GIFT

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The earth was naked and barren. Brown half-rotten leaves covered the dead grass, some floated in the mud puddles next to the sidewalk. Asphalt glittered from the rain a few hours ago. Trees' branches hung ominously, their dead fingers reaching towards the ground as if to pick up the leaves they had lost. Every house, every yard, every street seemed abandoned, ghastly. Christmas lights and decorations with no snow or children's laughter seemed creepy. They flashed and blinked the message of joy without anyone seeing them. Air was grey, the smell of autumn lingered on the streets. There was no wind.

It was ugly.

It had snowed, once. Then, as quickly as it had arrived, it had melted away.

Roy sat on the sidewalk, holding his head in his hands. On New Year's Eve he had made a promise to tell Link about his feelings before the year would end. He still hadn't done it. Christmas was just a few days away and before he would even notice, another year would start, condemning him to make the same promise again. The same promise he had already made three times. It was a vicious circle.

He had been close a couple of times.

That was what he tried to make himself believe.

A deep sigh erupted from his chest. He hugged himself tighter. Although it wasn't cold, the air was resentful. He hated this kind of weather. Even as early as on Valentine's Day he had bought chocolate for Link, but when the "right moment" hadn't arrived, he had eaten it himself. At Easter he had hidden a note in one of the eggs for Link to find, but removed it at the last minute. On his birthday Roy had pulled him into the garden for a private picnic, but had got cold feet, again. He had drunk the wine alone, in the privacy of his own room. Each try had been sabotaged by himself, he couldn't even blame anyone else.

He got up as it started snowing. Another sigh forced its way out. Few white snowflakes floated down on the asphalt and it swallowed them without hesitation. He passed a house with extravagant christmas decorations, lights lining each window and embracing every bush, a smiling life-size Santa Claus-doll standing on the yard, his blinking sleigh on the roof. Roy glanced at it, shaking his head. He didn't want to be reminded how little he had time. As he continued to stroll on, an old man emerged from the house, lighting a little lantern on the porch, humming "Jingle bells" quietly. He admired its soft glow for a while before going back inside.

Roy heard his stomach growl, but he wasn't particularily hungry. His body demanded energy, but his mind was too busy elsewhere. He looked at the vast sky above him, filled with the whirling, dancing snowflakes. Those fallen on his face melted immediately, their cold touch felt nice on his skin.

A hobo passed him, pushing a piece of old bread into his hand. Roy snapped out of his thoughts, frowning. He looked at the bread, then at the hobo walking away. The poor man had no shoes, only old woollen socks, a long grey jacket and a warm hat. It looked homemade, maybe it was the memory of a life long ago.

"Hey, wh-"

"It's Christmas", the hobo stopped and turned to face him. "Eat it, pal." Half of his face was covered in beard, the hat covered the other half. Only his eyes could be seen. They were friendly, yet a hidden melancholy shone in them.

"But I'm not-"

The hobo interrupted him again. "It's the time of sharing, just eat it."

Roy looked at the bread. It had once been soft and succulent, but now all that remained was a dry, hardened piece of something that remotely reminded him of bread. But it didn't matter. It wasn't the bread that made him feel different, cared. The gesture, a hobo giving him whatever little he had in the name of Christmas suddenly released a feeling inside of him. It was the time of giving and loving. The time of looking after others, not number one.

To be polite, he took a bite and gave the rest back. It tasted terrible, but he wouldn't let it show on his face. He was in a hurry. He had realised that he already shared his heart with Link, now was the time to give it completely in his hands. He didn't dare to think what would happen if the elf rejected him, all that mattered was letting him know. For a hobo, life was constant battle for food, death of starvation lurking around every corner, yet this man had given him everything. He didn't want to end up admiring the elf from afar for the rest of his life, regretting his actions on his death bed. He would need to give Link his everything.

The snow no longer succumbed into the asphalt, instead it covered everything like a veil. The barren ground was turning white, like a butterfly hatching out of its coccoon. Autumn's dark shadows and shades of brown and grey metamorphosed into a world of crystal, delicate whiteness and glittering ice. Roy's footsteps were soon covered, leaving the street as if no one had ever set foot upon it. At first he had walked, then trotted, but it hadn't been fast enough. He needed to get his feelings out, they were boiling and bubbling inside him, burning his insides.

Roy dashed into the Smash building. Without bothering to take off his jacket, cap, gloves or even his shoes he ran to the living room, where most of the smashers were decorating their christmas tree. Peach and Zelda were concentrated on making the tree look perfect, each decoration was carefully placed. They had been talking to each other quietly, giggling as if they exchanged secrets like teenage girls. Young Link and Ness were looking at the presents sitting under the tree, their eyes glowing with childish enthusiasm. They were trying to guess which ones were for them, and most importantly, what was hidden under the wrapping paper. Marth was given the task of putting the star on top, but he sat patiently in an armchair, reading an old book. They all stopped what they were doing as the snow-covered general rushed into the living room, a gush of cold air preceding him.

Roy wasted no time. Knowing everyone's attention was drawn to him, he asked: "Where's Link?"

Marth glanced at him, a smile tugging at his lips. He knew why Roy was looking for the elf. In moments of desperation the prince had been the only one Roy had been able to trust, letting him in on his secret. They had even tried to ambush Link together, but the general had always backed away on the last minute.

"I don't know", Zelda answered. She was holding a glittering string while Peach tried to hang the other end to the tree. "He was here just a minute ago."

Roy turned on his heels, hurrying to check the elf's room. He needed to find him fast, before he would back away again.

The two met in the stairs, Roy almost crashed to the elf head-on. Link was taken aback on how anxious the redhead looked, he tried to lean against the wall to let him pass in such a hurry. Whatever was going on with the general, it seemed important. Before he could step aside, Roy grabbed his wrist. It was a strong grip, almost painful. Link could feel his own pulse, the tremble of the redhead's hand, the cold sweat on it. He looked at the general with a confused expression, unable to determine what was going on. This kind of nervous behaviour wasn't at all like the usually very composed general. His shoulders were covered in snow, it had piled on his head, some of the tiniest snowflakes had stuck to his eyelashes. Had he been calm he would've looked like an angel in disguise, embraced in white. Instead, he looked like a broken doll.

Roy held Link's wrist with a desperate grisp, struggling on the inside. The confidence seconds ago had vanished under the elf's scrutinizing gaze. He only wanted to run away, dismiss his feelings, bury his head into his pillow and accept his defeat, his shyness. He couldn't have felt more uneasy under the cerulean eyes drilling into him, trying to read him, seeking at least one intelligible page. He forced the thoughts away, pulling Link into a kiss. It was now or never. A better moment would never arrive.

At first Link froze. Roy's icy lips had locked on his, the coldness of the air outside still radiating from him. Their lips touched only for a second, only enough to brush. Roy pressed his wrist even tighter, as if to make sure he wouldn't run away. His grip would leave a bruise. Awkwardly the general jerked away as suddenly as he had pulled Link close, hesitation shining in his eyes. His mouth tried to form something to say, but nothing happened. For a while he gawked under Link's questioning gaze. The moment had been nothing like he had imagined, no magic had occurred, no choir had sung, no bells had rung. Nothing divine or life-changing had happened. Only the lamp above them flickered once.

"M-m-merry chris-christmas", Roy mumbled as he dashed off, snow shedding off him. Link looked after the redhead, not quite grasping what had just happened. In a matter of seconds his mind had been turned upside down, and from a direction where he would've never expected it to come. He touched his lips in disbelief. It felt so nonsensical that he needed something tangible to believe they had just shared a kiss.

Roy didn't stop until he was in his room, leaning against his door in the dark as if to make sure no one would come. He let himself sink on the floor, sighing heavily. Snowflakes danced against the dark blue background outside his window. Everything else was still in the darkness. He could hear the smashers' muffled voices downstairs, nothing else. His heart beat against his chest with a desperation so deep it was about to crack his ribcage, yet something very heavy had been lifted off it, allowing air to pass freely to his lungs again. He couldn't have felt more humiliated yet relieved. The two opposite feelings were tearing him apart, ripping him through the scale from rapture to despair.

He had no idea how long he had sat there when he heard a knock on the door. Panic took him over. For a while he looked for a place to hide, his gaze locking on the door of his closet. He wanted to yell "go away", but his heart smothered the words. It forced him to get up and drag himself to the edge of his bed, gazing at the floor as he said weakly, with a voice barely hearable: "Come in."

A bright light spilled into his room for a passing moment as the door opened and closed. He heard the soft steps coming closer, smelt the cologne he knew far too well. He didn't know what to say. Suddenly swallowing felt hard. Breathing felt hard. His hands sweated. His heart beat in an unsteady rhythm, skipping a few beats when he felt Link's hand on his shoulder. It was warm. From the corner of his eye, he could see the elf sit down, looking at him gently. Roy fiddled the hem of his jacket, biting his lower lip.

For a while they just sat there, snow falling outside, piling on the windowsill.

"I think…" Link began, but fell silent, as if he was wondering what to say.

Roy geared up to apologise feverishly. He shouldn't have done it, he should've just kept his crush to himself, let Link spend a nice Christmas without disturbing it with his personal feelings. He should've just watched the elf from afar, loving him only in his imagination.

"I think", Link repeated, feeling how the redhead trembled under his touch. "That was the best present I've ever had." He said on a soft tone, as if to himself. Roy's eyes widened and he turned to look at the elf in agape. Link leaned his head, smiling a little sheepishly. The general cupped his cheek, unable to believe what was happening, trying to speak but there were no words. And those words were left unsaid, words that probably never even existed. They were replaced with a kiss, in the darkness of Roy's room, with no one but the snow falling to witness them.

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There it is. You can blame the supercuteness on the season. I hope you liked it, and will review. You know it makes my day!

Happy holidays!