Me: Yosh! My entry for the contest 7227li challenge! The idea and the challenge of it caught my interest XDDD
When I saw it; it just hit me- bam!
And I have to write it so I can let myself squeal about it in the future XD
The details of the challenge are at the bottom but I'm sure some of you might want to go ahead to the story first.
I would suggest you would listen to the song "Sawakaze" while reading this- it fits so well! It's the second opening of Kimi ni Todoke and I love it so much! Oh! And on some of the Yamamoto and Tsuna parts, try listening to the Kimi ni Todoke ost: Houkago!
My Warmth to Yours
It all started with a simple (yet not so simple) request from Reborn on one peaceful, cold night.
"Help me with the Christmas preparations."
"Huh…?"
There, Reborn had asked Tsuna out of the blue, without any explanation as to the reason why, to help him with the Christmas preparations. The Vongola-boss-to-be doesn't want to say yes (because this is Reborn; there is always a hidden meaning to what he does…) but he dare not whisper the word 'no' either (though he might as well say yes since he always gave up in the end).
"Don't 'Huh?' me Dame-Tsuna? It's for the-" Tsuna pleaded in his mind that Reborn wouldn't say 'Vongola-Style', anything but 'Vongola-Style'. Something bad always happens in these 'Vongola-Style' events. "Vongola-Style Christmas Gift Exchange Party." He said it… "What? Don't tell me you don't know what Christmas is."
"I know what Christmas is!" Tsuna retorted back. There is a limit to how stupid people think he is. The teen admits that he is Dame-Tsuna, but he's certainly not brainless or oblivious to the point that he doesn't know what is going on around himself.
Christmas is the most joyous holiday in the world. Though only less than 1% of the population in Japan is Christian, people still celebrated it bearing gifts to their family and friends. But Christmas is also not a national holiday in Japan either; so people would still go to work and students would still go to school on the day of the holiday. But apparently, Christmas is on a Sunday this year; a great day to celebrate the merry holiday. And that is what Reborn plans to do.
In his younger years as a child, Christmas would be the day that his father would come home and bear gifts for his son and they would celebrate the happy holiday with his mother's cooking and her smiles that seems to last for an eternity.
Now that he's older, his father's visit became very rare and Christmas is celebrated with just the –more than usual– extravagant dinner from his mother.
But Reborn (like all the other times in his life) decided to change up his usual customs in life and make it a lot more… "interesting".
Reborn then sprouted off about how Christmas is an important Italian holiday (Tsuna questioned about how Italian holidays have anything to do with Japan but was then quickly shut up with a kick from Reborn) and how Christmas originated from Italy (from there, Reborn had started a short history on Christmas with graphs and charts that apparently came out of nowhere) and how it is important as a boss to be accustomed to Italian traditions since Reborn intended to take Tsuna to Italy one day (Tsuna once again complained about how he didn't want to be the boss in the first place).
Tsuna tried to gather Reborn's entire lesson inside his head (lest the Arcobaleno decided to blow him up again) but he just couldn't grasp the fact on why Reborn is making him help with the Christmas preparation (for a 'Vongola-style' party nonetheless…).
Reborn has made a lot of parties before: Tsuna was sure (since he always ends up being injured at those parties). So the dame-teen was pretty certain that the small hitman can handle any preparation for a party on his own, andReborn isn't a person (more like the devil's spawn) who needs any kind of help … out of all the things he could've asked for… this is just too suspicious.
Tsuna heard a rather uncharacteristic sigh from Reborn. What is that hitman planning…?
"Fine, if you're so against it…"
Tsuna eyes widen. Wait… is Reborn giving up? With the added help of his intuition blaring alarms, he knows that something is not right here…
"…I'll make you a deal."
Tsuna narrowed his eyes by a fraction, looking upon his tutor with a sense of wariness. A deal…? That's like trying to make a contract with the devil himself!
As if hearing his thoughts, Reborn, once again, kicked Tsuna on the head. The poor teen ends up squirming on the floor while holding onto his throbbing skull.
"Do you want to hear the deal or not?"
Begrudgingly, Tsuna looks up at his tutor. Well, he should at least hear the deal. If he doesn't like it, the he could always turn it down. But with the twinkle of confidence in the hitman's eyes, he has a feeling that this is something that he couldn't so easily refuse. Looking at the baby, he hesitantly nodded.
Tsuna has a feeling that he'll be regretting this; if Reborn's smirk isn't any indication.
"If you help me with the Christmas party preparations; I'll let you kiss the person that you most desire under the mistletoe."
At this, Tsuna's eyes almost literally pop out of his skull. And the first thing that came to his mind was: Kyoko.
"Do you accept?"
"O-Of course!" Tsuna replied without thinking of the subject (or how suspicious the subject is) any further, too busy dreaming about his innocent kiss with his crush.
"Good. We'll discuss the details in the morning." And with that, somehow already in his pajamas and nightcap, Reborn jumps onto his hammock and fell asleep soon after along with his partner, Leon; bubbles blowing and eyes opened.
There was a moment of silence in the Vongola Decimo's room before Tsuna, with a sense of dread, realized what he has agreed to. While the idea of kissing his crush is rather delightful, Reborn's tasks are going to be living hel- for him.
What do you know? They are living hel- for him.
With only a week till Christmas, preparations have to be done now.
Reborn explains that his Guardians wouldn't be able to help him with the arrangements, so he has to do everything by himself. Though he had already agreed to the terms of the deal Reborn has made, he still wonders why he has to help in the first place. Reborn stressed that learning how to plan parties is an important job as a boss too (though Tsuna complained once again about how he isn't planning to become a boss) and the Vongola boss-to-be has no choice but to come along since this is an assignment to make him become a better boss (well, not like he has a choice in the matter anyway).
Reborn's task wasn't easy at all. Well, the Vongola Decimo didn't expect them to be easy anyway, but that doesn't make the job of doing them any less dangerous.
He has to wrestle an alligator for the party ("Why do we need an alligator?" "It's green, isn't it?" "What kind of answer it that?"), he has to gather white doves for some type of decoration ("Reborn! Help me!" "What? It's not my fault you accidently let the doves out, Dame-Tsuna." "You tripped me! A-And why do we need doves in the first place; it's a Christmas party! Not a Circus!"), he has to catch a turkey for the Christmas dinner that would be taking place ("Can't we just get dead turkey at the supermarket like normal people?" "It's not as fresh." "Wait a minute, what's the point of me catching all of these animals when you could talk to them?"), and buy all the Christmas decoration ("Wait a minute Reborn! I can't pay for all of these!" "Don't worry, I'm paying for it Dame-Tsuna." "All of this? Where did you get the money? Robbing a bank?" "Of course not, it's from-" "I don't want to know! And even if you are able to pay for all of this, where in the world are we going to put it?").
To say that the last three days are tiring; is an understatement. Tsuna was surprised to be even found alive. But it has to be worth; to get that special kiss under the mistletoe.
Apparently, he wasn't the only one preparing for a party.
His school, Namimori Middle, likes the idea of a Christmas Gift Exchanging party and started to plan their own little get-together (Tsuna has a feeling that this is Reborn's doing…).
Tsuna watches his fellow classmates from his seat as they talk over about the details of their own special Christmas party, already making a list of who to invite. He couldn't help but fumble with his bag, full of the invitations he had made last night under Reborn's threat, as he continuously heard Kyoko's name being one of the very people who everyone wanted to invite. It's not surprising really, being as popular as she is, but he was really hoping that maybe… she would come to his party…
"Yo Tsuna!"
Automatically turning his head from the call; Tsuna flushed a deep red at the sight of Yamamoto, waving at him from the door of the classroom. Before he could think about it any further, he then quickly turns his head away and patted his cheeks as if it would help him keep them under control. Wait, why is he flustered? Is he embarrassed by something? But what is there to be embarrassed about?
"Tsuna? Oiiii~ Tsuna~" Finally noticing the hand that is waving in front of him, Tsuna snap his head upwards, looking at Yamamoto's face which is right above his. Face blaring red, the awkward teen immediately stood up stiffly, his chair screeching behind him.
"Y-Yamamoto-k-kun! O-Ohayo!" he stuttered.
I stuttered… wait, I stuttered? Tsuna yelled in the back of his mind, the thought making him blush even more if that's possible. W-Why am I nervous?
"What's wrong Tsuna? You're all red."
"N-Nothing's wrong Y-Yamamoto-kun! It's just the cold w-weather!" he reassured his concerned friend, waving off the worry as he unintentionally looks away from Yamamoto. Yeah, maybe it's just the cold weather! T-That would explain his flustered self and stuttering speech!
"Oh? Ok then!" Yamamoto, as he is, believes it whole heartedly. "You know, at this rate, it might actually snow!"
"Yeah…" Tsuna noncommittally agreed, trying to will himself to look at Yamamoto without looking like a fool.
Tsuna doesn't remember when or why conversing with Yamamoto became such a hard task; all he knows that every time he saw the baseball nut, his heart beats faster.
Maybe because I'm anticipating something? Tsuna tried to reason inside his mind. Though he wasn't sure what he's anticipating on…
"I-Is there something y-you need Y-Yamamoto-kun…?" Tsuna questioned, mentally giving himself a reward at the fact that he is abled to look at Yamamoto right now, though slightly red in the face. He has a feeling that Yamamoto came for a reason, not just to talk to Tsuna… why in the world does he feel so sad about that thought?
"Oh! The kid-"
"Yamamoto-kun~" Looking at the doorway, both of them saw the girls waving towards Yamamoto, seemingly wanting to ask him about something that looks rather important. "Could you please come here? ~"
"Oh? What for?" Yamamoto asked curiously as he tilted his head cutely, making many of the girls squeal. Unknown to the rain guardian and to Tsuna himself, the Vongola boss-to-be blushes bright red once again.
"Please Yamamoto-kun? ~"
Though he was not sure as to what is going on, he laughs it off and nodded. "Sure! I'll talk to you later Tsuna!"
Slowly nodding, Tsuna watched disappointedly as Yamamoto wander off to his fangirls… wait, why is he disappointed?
"Tsuna-kun!"
At the sound of Kyoko's voice, Tsuna snaps his head towards the petite figure walking over to his seat; his nervousness replaced with simple happiness… wait, should he be nervous around Kyoko?
"Kyoko-chan!" Tsuna exclaims as he smiles towards his cheerful crush… wait, what has happened with his stutter?
The girl known as the idol of the school smiles softly towards Tsuna, making the teen scratch the back of his head in embarrassment… wait, what has happened to his blush?
"I heard from Reborn-kun that you've having a party?"
Remembering the invitations, Tsuna quickly swipe his bag and dig through the mess of papers and books that are inside. He made sure that Kyoko wouldn't see the rather not-so-impressive scores of his papers…
Instantly finding the envelope with Kyoko's name on it, he thrust it out to the girl, hoping that she would accept it. Much to his delight; she did, gratefully taking the invitation as she voiced out an "I'll be there!". He grins at her happily. Maybe he'll get his special mistletoe kiss after all! He doesn't care whether it's on the cheek, if Kyoko kisses him…
"Juudaime!"
Tsuna slightly jump at the sudden appearance of his storm guardian, all shiny-eyed with a wagging tail.
"Does that mean I'm invited too, Juudaime?" Cue the puppy dog eyes.
Of course, Tsuna doesn't have the heart to say no to Gokudera. Well, his storm guardian is invited anyway so he doesn't necessary need to say no in the first place.
While watching Gokudera revering the invitation as if it was a gift from the gods, Tsuna remembers that he has to give Yamamoto his invitation also. Digging into his bag, he grabs the envelope with his rain guardian's name on it and stride over to his usually happy-go-lucky friend.
He paled at the huge crowd surrounding his target. Of course, he has forgotten to take an account over the fact about how popular Yamamoto is. And now looking back at Gokudera, Tsuna could see his storm guardian's fangirls nearby outside of the classroom, calling out to the object of their affections. Turning his attention back to his rain guardian, he wonders if Yamamoto would even consider going to his party, already having so many invites from many cute girls…
Before he could chicken out and return to the safety of his desk, some girls coming up from behind him accidently pushed the meek teen into the masses of giggling females, and Tsuna could do nothing but let the wave of girls thrust him to whatever destination he may end up in. Sooner or later, he was shoved out of the crowd of girls… but was then shoved into Yamamoto.
"Tsuna, you ok?" his… friend..? Why did he say 'friend' in a questionable statement?
"Y-Yeah Yamamoto-kun." Tsuna stuttered once again, his face unknowingly bright red.
"Eh? You're still cold Tsuna? Your face is red."
At the mention of his red face, Tsuna jump out of his rain guardian's grasp and patted his warm cheeks once again.
W-Why is my cheeks r-red again? I don't understand my body's reactions! Tsuna panicked inside the depths of his mind, frantically trying to find a way to cool down the blood rushing to his face.
Though Yamamoto gave a questioning glance at Tsuna's sudden jumpiness, he shrugs it off and laughs at the end.
"You need something Tsuna?" the baseball nut asked innocently, oblivious to the inner turmoil happening inside the brunet right in front of him.
Remembering the invitation once again, Tsuna quickly shook off his nervousness (though it's proving to be difficult) and thrust the invitation right in front his friend… Tsuna tried to erase the picture of him giving a confession letter to Yamamoto.
"Y-You see, Reborn w-wanted us to h-have a l-little get together for C-Christmas a-a-a-and…" Tsuna's face became fully red from down his neck to the tip of his ears. Is it just him or does this sound like a confession? HIIIIEE? HE'S NOT CONFESSING TO YAMAMOTO, HE SHOULDN'T EVEN BE THINKING LIKE THAT!
Before Tsuna could curl up in despair at his rather weird thoughts about his friend, his heart skipped a beat when Yamamoto grabs the invitation, his body trembling as their hands accidently brushed each other. He could only watch with wide eyes as the baseball player looks at the invitation as if inspecting it to see if it was legit, before giving Tsuna a breathtaking grin that seems to light up the room and make the air sparkle. And the best part about it: the grin was only directed at him. At that moment, the dame-teen founds it hard to breath, his heart beating faster at an impossible rate.
For a second, in Tsuna's eyes, there was only him and Yamamoto.
"Yamamoto! The coach wants you! Stop wasting your time with Dame-Tsuna and let's go!"
Well, that instantly slaps him out of his stupor.
"Ma~ma~ That's mean guys."
"Oh, sorry. We're all just use to call him that."
Well, at least the guy does sound genuinely sorry…
Looking from his teammate to Tsuna, Yamamoto once again grin his happy-go-lucky grin before ruffling the smaller teen's fluffy hair making the Vongola Decimo blush an unique color of bright red. The hand was unusually cold though…
"I'll come!"
His heart skipped a beat once again as he could only stare at the parting figure of Yamamoto, his fangirls coming along right behind him. It's amazing how a few words make him feel like the happiest guy in the world… wait…
"Juudaime! What are you doin- J-Juudaime! I-Is something wrong?"
A few seconds after Gokudera came up to his precious boss, Tsuna fell onto the floor, his spirit hanging out from his mouth.
"J-Juudaime!"
There was only one thought that ran through Tsuna's mind like a racecar on its final track: What was that?
And apparently, this thought invaded his mind for the whole day, leaving him unable to do the simplest task. That is; until Reborn literally kicks him out of his shock state. What would he do without Reborn's kicks?
With only four more days till Christmas, Tsuna is still preparing for the Gift Exchanging party.
Apparently, the point of a gift exchanging party is to exchange gifts- that mean you need gifts to exchange or there's practically no point in such a party. So, that leads to Tsuna's little shopping spree at the mall; after being kicked out of his own warm house by Reborn just so that he could do some shopping. The funny thing about it is: he wasn't allowed to pick which kind of gift to give to his friends and family. Right after kicking Tsuna out of his own house, Reborn gave him a list of presents to buy for his family and friends while saying something mean like "Dame-Tsuna, you're going to mess up their presents" or something like that. While he hates to admit it- what Reborn said is probably true. And so, he went out to hunt for the perfect gifts.
The first one on the list is Gokudera: Reborn predicted that the storm guardian wanted the latest edition of the magazine "Mysterious Inspector" or something close to that. Of course, since Reborn's tasks are never easy, he has to wrestle the last edition away from many elated UMA fans. That earned him a few scratches.
The next one on the list is Ryohei: the present for him would be a new punching bag… full of pieces of steel? Where in the world would he get such a thing? Apparently, there was a boxing sport shop at the east end of the mall (Tsuna could've sworn that the shop wasn't there in the first place…) and they gave him what he needed… unfortunately, he would have to carry the heavy punching bag the whole time while he's shopping…
Next was Hibari. As a present for the skylark- "You will let Hibari Kyoya bite yourself to death." is what written on the list next to Hibari Kyoya's name.
"I can't do that!" Tsuna exclaimed in the middle of the mall, many people passing by giving him strange looks. Then, Tsuna found the small side note that said "I'm just kidding Dame-Tsuna."
Reborn… that jerk.
After that so-called 'innocent' joke, the list then explains that Hibari should have a birdhouse, for Hibird… the present seemed so simple and homey, that Tsuna has to really wonder if Hibari would even like his gift. Then, the list gave more details about the birdhouse: like how there should be a miniature AC with a living room containing a flat screen T.V. and a bedroom nearby with a fully functional kitchen that has a fridge full of his favorite birdseeds… what kind of bird house is this? More like a vacation home for birds!
Wondering where in the world would he find such an extraordinary birdhouse; he ends up in front of a store called "Custom Birdhouses"… Tsuna is wondering where these weird stores are coming from… After paying for the birdhouse that completely fits the description on the list, he went on his hunt for the next present.
For Mukuro: "Let him possess your body."
Tsuna, hoping that his tutor was just kidding, look around for the note that could be under his mist guardian's name. There isn't one. Tsuna decided to skip Mukuro's present for a while.
Under Chrome's name: "Of course I'm kidding Dame-Tsuna. Use your head."
…Tsuna has nothing more to say.
Reborn decided that the gift for the whole Kokuyo gang would be the temporarily release of Mukuro only on the day of Christmas… wait, how in the heck is he going to do that? The Vendicare is in Europe! How in the world is he going to negotiate with them while he's all the way on the other side of the world? Plus, even if it is Christmas, they wouldn't be so lenient to let one of the most dangerous criminals out of Vendicare!
As Tsuna tried to find an alternative Christmas present for the Kokuyo gang; he came across a store that said "Vendicare Trades"… really, where in the world did these stores come from?
Coming into the store (after a lot of internal debating), Tsuna couldn't help but gulp at the sight of the Vindice at the counter. Surprising, business is booming and there are a lot of people interested in the Italian trinkets that the store has. Hoping to live through the whole ordeal, Tsuna hesitantly went up to the counter. Reborn better be grateful for this…
"Um…" Tsuna did a small 'Hie!' as the Vindice turn his head towards him. Gulping, he opens his dry mouth to voice out his request. "I asked for the temporarily release of Rokudo Mukuro on the day of Christmas…"
Suddenly, the Vindice slam his hands onto the counter, making the poor Vongola boss-to-be jump right out of his skin. Has he done something wrong? All he did is just ask! The Vindice couldn't just say a simple 'no'….
With teary eyes, Tsuna quickly tried to beg for his feeble life. "I-I'm s-sorry f-for a-asking-"
"Sure."
There was a moment of silence between the two.
Wait, what did he just said?
"S-Sure…?" the Vongola Decimo questioned as he blinks in disbelief at the Vindice.
"Yes, we will release Rokudo Mukuro."
Tsuna blinks once again in incredulity. "Wait, it's that easy?"
"Of course not."
Of course not; these are Reborn's tasks after all.
"You must sign these first, then we would talk about the details later."
Tsuna looks to where the Vindice is waving towards, only to meet face to face with the horrifying stack of four tons worth of paper. He has to sign all of this?
"As the Vongola Decimo, you should be used to this."
But I'm not the Vongola Decimo yet! I don't want to be the Vongola Decimo anyway! Of course, he couldn't say that out loud and proceeds to do the impossible number of paperwork. Miraculous, this only took about five hours to finish (Tsuna right hand is incapable of lifting a feather as of now) and Tsuna was able to convince the Vindice to at least let Mukuro out on Christmas night (apparently, they were a bit wary about letting Mukuro roam around for a whole day). With that business done, he went to the next person on the list.
Lambo: a bag of candy. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. Apparently, the candy store in the mall is having some big sale and children flock the store at every corner. Tsuna couldn't count the numerous times he had been stampeded by said 'innocent' children with their rather scary parents (there was a father with a biker jacket and has various tattoos all over his body).
Finally. He just has one more person on the list. He didn't think shopping for his guardians could be so dangerous… well, anything innocent might as well be dangerous in his life… like a baby…
The last one on the list should be Yamamoto. Reborn had previously explained that he should continue shopping for the others tomorrow. He's really not looking forward to that, though he does want to get a gift for Kyoko…
He smiles at the thought of Kyoko thanking him for the gift that he would give to her. Enduring a few scratches and some bruises would be worth it in the end…
Looking his rain guardian's name, he blinks in surprise at what Reborn had wrote: "Dame-Tsuna, go pick the present yourself."
Reborn is letting him pick Yamamoto's present? Well, his happy-go-lucky friend is pretty flexible and his present is very easy to pick- no doubtfully something akin to baseball. But Gokudera, Lambo and Ryohei are the same too. His proclaimed right-hand man would love anything that the dame-teen had gave him, Lambo's a kid so candy and a few toys would easily meet his approval, and Ryohei's present is very predictable as well, since all he ever talks about is boxing. He understands the need of assistance on Mukuro's, Chrome's, and Hibari's presents but there wasn't the need for help on his other three guardians. Maybe Reborn felt that the others needed a more specific present? Well, that's kinda reasonable… even if he gave Yamamoto something completely unrelated to baseball, the rain guardian would like it all the same. That's Yamamoto alright; but Gokudera is the same also in a way too if the gift was from him…
Tsuna shook his head vigorously, deciding that he should rethink about this later (his head is starting to hurt at the prospect of doing so in the first place). So he has to pick Yamamoto's present by himself- that shouldn't be hard, right? All he needs to do is wander inside a nearby sport shop and pick out a bat for his cheerful friend. Nothing hard.
So, Tsuna did just that. Finding the nearest sport shop, he drags the rest of the presents and went inside, inspecting the many varieties of bats. He never thought that there would be so many to choose from; he is familiar to how Baseball goes and such, but he didn't think the equipment would matter so much. There are different brand, different size, different weight- he wonders what would be right for his cheery friend.
But at the same time, Tsuna doesn't feel like getting a bat for Yamamoto. It seems too predictable, not unique at all… for some reason, he wanted to get something special for Yamamoto.
Something exceptional that only he could've thought of.
"Tsuna? Yo Tsuna!"
At the sound of Yamamoto's voice, the meek teen jump into the air, holding onto his beating-heart as if he had just a recent heart attack. Slowly turning his head towards his tall friend (silently hoping that Yamamoto hasn't heard his embarrassing thoughts), he saw Yamamoto waving towards him happily with that shining grin and sparkling aura… wait, was Yamamoto always sparkling this brightly?
"Y-Yamamoto-kun!" Tsuna couldn't help but exclaimed in astonishment, blood rushing to his cheeks immediately. W-What is Yamamoto-kun d-doing here- wait, he's a sportsman; of course he would be here! Tsuna pathetically wailed in his mind, panicking at the thought of Yamamoto being here… though he wasn't exactly sure as to why…
"Haha! I didn't think you would be here Tsuna-" The baseball nut then eyed the stuff Tsuna has with him. "Opps! I shouldn't be here, right? That's all the Christmas presents for the party, right?"
"N-No, it's fine!" Tsuna soon after reassured, wanting to stay near Yamamoto for just a little while longer… wait a minute… "I-I mean, I-I'm still looking for your present a-and as long as you didn't tell the o-others…" Tsuna then trailed off, squirming slightly under Yamamoto's gaze at him, his blush gone brighter.
…Why is he acting like a blushing high-school girl?
"Cool! That means we could hang out for a while, huh?" Yamamoto stated, flashing his million-dollar grin at Tsuna. The poor boy couldn't do anything but shyly nod his approval, not trusting voice enough to express his agreement of the situation.
"Customers. There are only 30 minutes left till Namimori mall is closing. Please take your purchases to the register and have a good day."
Tsuna widen his eyes at the announcement. It's that late already? He missed dinner then! A-And he hasn't even picked Yamamoto's present yet!
"Ma~ It's pretty late now, huh?"
"Y-Yeah…" Tsuna admits, giving himself the courage to look at his joyful friend once again. He almost wished he didn't, since seeing Yamamoto's breathtaking grin almost made him want to faint.
"Hahaha! You've been shopping for a while, huh Tsuna? Let's get a quick snack at the food court and I'll walk you home!"
"E-Ehhh? Y-You don't have to Y-Yamamoto-kun!"
What is he, a girl? He doesn't need to be escorted back home!
"Nah, I want to!"
Steam explodes out of Tsuna's ears at Yamamoto's words; the Vongola Decimo doesn't know whether to be flattered or embarrassed.
After a lot of internal debating (on Tsuna's part), the two then went over to the food court and decided to get some Taiyaki after a few suggestions. In some way, Tsuna is glad to have missed dinner. The Taiyaki is strangely more fulfilling than his mother's cooking and he's somehow a lot happier being here with Yamamoto than with the noisy bunch that usually comes eating around their dining table back at home. Yamamoto laughing, Yamamoto smiling, Yamamoto talking to him- everything the taller teen does made his heart beats faster and his cheeks feel warmer than they have ever been in his entire life. At times, Tsuna wonders if he's sick or something with the heat that he's emitting. But being with Yamamoto-
"Ready to go Tsuna?"
Looking up from his thoughts, his heart skips a beat for the umpteenth time today as Yamamoto gave him another one of his stunning grins; reserved just for him.
"U-Un…" The Vongola boss-to-be replied softly, ready to leave the mall as he buried his face into his scarf, only hoping to hide his very obvious blush.
Being with Yamamoto- it's almost as if he's in love.
"I'll help you carry that!"
"N-No! It's fine Y-Yamamoto-kun!" Tsuna quickly reassured as he pulled Ryohei's punching bag away from his friend's grip. Sure, he's tired of having to drag the thing around for hours but this is an assignment that he has to do and he didn't want Yamamoto to have to burden himself with it.
"Don't worry about it, I want to!"
Tsuna blush a deeper red at Yamamoto's words once again. There he goes, saying stuff like that again…
The feeble teen couldn't do anything but let his friend grab onto the punching bag and sling it over on his shoulder.
"Well, let's go!"
Looking down as he tried to bury his face even further into his scarf, Tsuna nodded and followed beside Yamamoto.
The streets and pathways are nearly empty and night has already consumed Namimori. Street lights and Christmas lights shine brightly as they walked, giving them clear view of the path in front of them. The night is rather peaceful, though cold to the point that Tsuna couldn't help but shiver. Despite that he's already wearing gloves and a scarf; it slowly feels as if he is turning into a Popsicle.
"Cold Tsuna?"
"J-Just a l-little b-bit…" The Vongola Decimo admits, trying to take his mind out of the cold weather. How is it that Yamamoto not freezing…?
"Then I guess we should hurry?"
"N-No, t-that's f-fine."
Just a little longer. Somewhere in the depths of his mind told him. Just a little while longer with him…
Tsuna proceed to mentally slam his head repeatedly against a pole. He would've actually done it with a nearby pole but Yamamoto would certainly give him weird looks.
What in the world is he thinking? He could see Yamamoto at school tomorrow! There's no reason to prolong their time together!
Trying to keep his mind off of… well, his mind, Tsuna looks around to find something that would catch his interest. Then, in the corner of his eyes, he notices for the first time that Yamamoto has three plastic bags in his arms.
"W-Were you shopping, Y-Yamamoto-kun?" Tsuna couldn't help but questioned, eyeing the bag full of things that he couldn't identify. He then quickly looks away as he realized something. It might be the Christmas presents for everyone at the party!
"Hm? Oh yeah!" The rain guardian raises the bags a little, shaking them slightly as he grins his happy grin... then again, when is he not grinning or smiling in some form of fashion? "These are everyone's presents! Though, I'm still trying to find yours…"
Tsuna felt a bit disappointed at that… wait, why is he disappointed? So Yamamoto didn't find his present as quickly as the others- that doesn't mean Yamamoto isn't getting him a present at all!
"Hey Tsuna." The dame-teen watches as Yamamoto brought his forefinger up to his lip, making a 'shhh' kind of gesture. "Don't tell anyone, okay?"
After a few seconds of staring at the adorable gesture that Yamamoto has made, Tsuna quickly turn his face away from the black-haired teen, his cheeks burning even hotter than they already could- to the point that the moist air around his cheeks is evaporating into steam.
"You won't tell, right Tsuna?"
Even without looking at Yamamoto, Tsuna could imagine the innocent look on his friend's face.
"O-Of course n-not!" Tsuna managed to squeak out.
W-What is with this r-reaction? T-There's absolutely nothing to be flustered about!
"Oh look, we're here!"
Looking up from his panicking state, Tsuna then realized that they are now in front of his house. He didn't expect to be home so soon…
"Hahaha! There you go Tsuna!" Yamamoto happily exclaims as if he has accomplished such a great deed and leisurely set the punching bag down near the gates of Tsuna's home before going off towards the direction of his household. "See you later at school!"
The Vongola Decimo, a bit shocked at how he was already home when he could've sworn that it would took at least 30 minutes to get from his house to the mall, watches with wide eyes at Yamamoto leaving figure; the carefree teen giving Tsuna one last wave and astonishing grin before turning around and continue his way back home.
Tsuna couldn't help but unintentionally reach out for his rain guardian, as if he doesn't want him to go. "Y-Yamamo-"
And then the bearer of the sky ring froze as if he has been caught by his own Zero Point Breakthrough: First Edition move. Tsuna stayed like that for a long period of time, not noticing that snow is starting falling from the sky, while he replay the events that had happened just a few minutes ago. After staying in that stiff position for a while, Tsuna eyes widen at an impossible length, his face going red for the umpteenth time as of today.
He then screams into the sky while trying to pull out every possible hair on his cranium, wondering why in the world is he reaching for Yamamoto as if he isn't going to see his rain guardian ever again.
Sadly, even a kick from Reborn who is telling him to "Shut up Dame-Tsuna." couldn't even help him get rid of his unending thoughts of Yamamoto.
The next day, Tsuna came to school sleep-deprived. Rather than listening to his lessons like he supposed to, the Vongola boss-to-be tried to rearrange his thoughts on Yamamoto- his best…friend? Wait, he put that in a questionable statement again!
Tsuna slam his head onto his desk, earning a few snickers from his fellow classmates.
Why in the world is he suddenly getting so possessive of Yamamoto? He wasn't this possessive before! He's even questioning whether he thought of his friend as a… well, a friend! To Tsuna, this is unending torture- for he likes Yamamoto and wanted to continue to be his… friend..? Ugh! He's questioning the 'friend' statement again!... Like…. He likes… Yamamoto…?
"WAIT A MINUTE! WHAT AM I THINKING?"
"I hoped you are thinking about your lessons Sawada-san."
Tsuna blinked as he slowly came into a realization that he just yelled out his thoughts to the class, everyone already erupting in laughter while making snide comments about his dame-ness. The teacher shook his head in disapproval along with Hana; Gokudera is trying to get everyone to stop laughing at his precious Juudaime; Kyoko looks at him rather innocently, asking him if there is something wrong; and Yamamoto stares at him confusingly, and then smiles as if he founds something rather cool about what Tsuna has done. For some reason, Yamamoto's reaction towards his abruptness made him a lot more embarrassed than the class laughing at him.
After that little episode, Tsuna decided that he should continue his confusing thoughts for another time and try to pay attention to the lesson on the board.
Key word: Try.
In the end, the poor dame-teen doesn't understand anything on the board.
"Yo Tsuna!"
Tsuna turn his head slightly as he caught the sight of his rain guardian, Yamamoto, his cheeks slightly turning red though it is hard to see when most of his face is attached to his desk.
Act normal. Act normal. Tsuna repeated continuously inside his head like a mantra, trying so desperately not to look weird in front of Yamamoto.
"H-H-H-H-Hi Y-Y-Yamamoto-kun."
That's not normal!
Being as he is, Yamamoto gave no thought to Tsuna's more than usual stuttering self.
"Hahaha! I don't know what it's about but it sounds like you were yelling something important!"
Tsuna couldn't deny that his exclamation earlier is rather important- an important help to keep his sanity!
"So, what were you thinking?"
At the question, steam came out of Tsuna's ears as he remembers his earlier thoughts and inner battle.
"S-Stuff!"
"Oh cool! Stuff!"
Only Yamamoto would just accept a vague answer like that without any questions.
"What kind of stuff?"
Or so he thought.
"J-Just s-stuff-"
Tsuna then notice how unusual red Yamamoto's hands are and couldn't help but stare at them. He never saw hands that red before unless Reborn decided to use his Leon hammer to abuse his poor hands… And reaching for the baseball nut's hands, he jerks back his touch at the icy feeling coming from the hand.
"Y-Yamamoto-kun! Your hand!"
"Hm? Oh! I was outside practicing my swings!"
Dedicated as ever: Yamamoto would go out and practice his swings in the cold weather.
"E-Eh? Weren't you wearing gloves?"
"I would but the gloves made it harder to get a good grip on the bat." Yamamoto flexed his fingers curiously, though Tsuna could tell it was hard for Yamamoto to even move his fingers if the trembling digits gave no indication. "But I have to stop early because the bat kept falling out of my hands and my fingers wouldn't listen to me."
That's because your fingers has gone numb from the cold! Tsuna exclaimed in his head at the ridiculousness of it. Yamamoto, with no doubt in his mind, is strong; but even the star player of Namimori middle baseball team has to bow down to the elements.
"D-Didn't you have an indoor facility? W-Why didn't you go there?" Tsuna questioned. At least he would be warm!
"Because it's snowing!"
Tsuna blinked incredulously at the answer. Yes, it has been snowing since last night and throughout the whole morning, but what kind of answer is that?
"It's really cool that when I swung my bat, snowflakes would flutter around in the air like they were dancing or something! And when I got a hit, the ball would-" Tsuna could only listen as Yamamoto explains about how fun it is to play baseball while it is snowing (though his teammates have another opinion about that).
The Vongola boss supposed that Yamamoto's like for the snow isn't unusual. He means- the snow is just frozen rain, right...? Or was that hail? Anyway, snow and rain falls out from the sky, right? Gently or unforgivingly; it depends on the wind, right? Both are also wet and cold, yet fun to play with at the same time. Snow and rain are very similar- so in one way, it wasn't surprising that Yamamoto would like the weather this much.
Soon after, Gokudera came into the picture and complained about how the 'Yakyu-baka' is bothering his precious Juudaime, which leads to a one-side argument between the two, and all Tsuna could think about is Yamamoto's icy hands.
It wasn't long till the day of Christmas- and the day of the Vongola-style Gift Exchanging party. It also wasn't long till he could get his kiss from Kyoko.
He already sent out all the invitations. He gave one to the Kokuyo gang (Reborn kicked him out of the house and made him walk in the snow to Kokuyo Land), he gave Ryohei his invitation (Kyoko is more than happy to give her brother the invitation and Tsuna explains that Hana is welcomed to the party if she wanted to go), and he was able to give the invitation to Hibari, though it is questionable whether Hibari would come or not (well actually, when he went up to the reception room to give the skylark his invitation, he was relieved to know that Hibari wasn't there and gave the invitation to Kusakabe instead and told the vice-chairman that he was invited too). The Varia is even coming (Tsuna asked why the Varia has to come to their get-together, which led to Reborn explaining about how they are family and that Tsuna doesn't need to buy them any presents since they won't be having any gifts to exchange for either), along with his dad, Basil, Dino and his subordinates, Timoteo (the Vongola ninth), and some of the Arcobalenos.
What was, at first, a simple get-together, ends up becoming a huge party. His mom is so happy at having so many guests over for Christmas (not to mention that his dad is coming home), that she is –literally– cooking up a storm.
Tsuna has already acquired all the presents he need to exchange for. Haru is getting a costume-making kit (how he finds such a thing is another story to be told…), Fuuta and I-Pin are getting toys (which wasn't easy since he has to face the dread of stampeding children yet again), Dino is getting a Leon plushie (Reborn's idea, not his), his parents are getting tickets on a 7-day Caribbean cruise (he could practically imagine their coddling with each other), Timoteo (Grandpa, as he would like to call him) is getting a homemade Christmas card made from Tsuna himself (which, he might as well add, sucks), and for Kyoko, Tsuna is getting her a coupon book of her favorite cake stores (actually, Reborn threw the book at his face before he could find her a Christmas present on his own and told him that the coupon book will be Kyoko's gift).
Tsuna smiles at the fact that Kyoko would love his gift- being one of the very few people who knows of her sweet tooth.
But apparently, his school is also busy giving out their own gifts to the people that they most desired- meaning Gokudera-kun, Kyoko-chan, and Yamamoto-kun.
On a cold Saturday –Christmas Eve– morning during school, girls and guys alike were flocking around (Tsuna could've sworn the whole population of their school is here) inside their classroom, giving presents to their admires. Tsuna is actually surprise that Hibari is not here trying to 'bite them to death' for crowding but Tsuna has a feeling that it's because the skylark is smart enough not to test the patience of fangirls (they are quiet scary…).
Gokudera has left the classroom, trying to shake off all the girls gathering for his attention (Tsuna will pray for his right-hand man).
Yamamoto is currently in the center of the mob of girls, all their gifts in his arms as he repeatedly say "thank you!" and "yes, I like it!" of many forms.
And Kyoko is in the midst of the crowd of boys- Hana trying to get them away and scare them off with her scary demeanor (Tsuna could've sworn he saw horns poking out from her hair).
Though, what was bothering him wasn't the fact that Kyoko is being hounded or crowded by a bunch of boys that could have gotten a better present than him; what bothered him is the fact that Yamamoto is being hounded and crowded by a bunch of girls that could easily have gotten a better present than him. Tsuna doesn't really understand as to why really. It's just that his heart falters even more whenever he saw the more extravagant gifts in Yamamoto's arms.
Tsuna has already bought Yamamoto his gift after much consideration as to what to get him. It wasn't easy to pick; but the Vongola Decimo sincerely thought that Yamamoto would like it all the same. He's starting to have second thoughts after seeing all the baseballs and bats (some which are signed by professional baseball players) in his rain guardian's arms. Compare to all of those presents- his seemed silly and insignificant.
"Yamamoto-kkkkuuuun~ I got your present right here! ~"
Blinking at the unexpected shrilling loud voice that somehow stands above the others, Tsuna looks over to the running figure heading towards Yamamoto- and then paled as he saw what is dangling in her hand.
A mistletoe.
"Pucker up Yamamoto-kkkuuuuunnnn~"
Sadly, the baseball nut was too busy with the other girls to notice the one running towards him with the mistletoe.
In the state of panic, Tsuna stood abruptly out of his seat and wave towards his rain guardian. "Y-YAMAMOTO-KUN!"
At that instant, by the call of his name, Yamamoto instantly connected his eyes with Tsuna's; the Vongola Decimo felt his heart skip by several beats once again.
"C-Could you c-come o-over h-here…" Tsuna felt his resolution slip as his voice became quieter and quieter, unable to look away from the warming, milk-chocolate brown of Yamamoto's eyes. Yamamoto tilted his head –insert squeal here– but nonetheless complied, grinning towards Tsuna as an affirmative. There were no words to describe how happy the brunet is; that Yamamoto would answer his call despite being busy with all the other girls.
As the baseball nut weave through the crowd of girls, reassuring them that he'll be back, Tsuna started to feel shy again. And before the Vongola boss-to-be realized it, Yamamoto was already in front of him, peering at him with curious eyes. It took a while before Tsuna realized that he has been staring into Yamamoto's eyes, instantly bringing his gaze down to the many easily guessed presents in the rain guardian's arms. Looking at them, Tsuna couldn't help but feel a bit down-trodden; there is just no way his present would stand out from the rest.
"You need something Tsuna?"
Remembering the fact that he's the one that called Yamamoto away from his fangirls in the first place, he raked his brain for an excuse of some sort. W-What was he thinking; asking Yamamoto to come here without a reason as to why? Who Yamamoto ends up kissing shouldn't concern him at all! So he gets to kiss a girl… it's expected since Yamamoto is so popular…
Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his heart.
"Tsuna?"
The said teen jumped, remembering that Yamamoto is still waiting for his answer.
"S-Sorry Yamamoto-kun… I forgot what I wanted to say to you…" As he said this, Tsuna's turn his eyes away from the taller figure. For some reason, it hurts just to look at him.
"Hm?" The rain guardian blinks at the brunet several times before shrugging it off, laughing at the rather vague answer. "That's fine! I do that too sometimes!" As Yamamoto ruffles the brunet's hair –Tsuna briefly noticing how cold his hand felt– and the Vongola Decimo watches as his happy-go-lucky friend merged back with the crowd of girls, saying a 'see you later!' to Tsuna. Faintly, stuck in the back of his throat, he wanted to tell Yamamoto to stay with him and don't go. But he couldn't.
The girls sooner or later found out about the female holding onto the mistletoe (who mysteriously disappeared) and shortly after made a pact that no one is allowed to kiss Yamamoto, lest there be a bloody war (everyone can practically imagine it at that point). In one way, Tsuna was relieved… wait… relieved? Why should he be relieved? Maybe because he didn't want his friend to be forced into a kiss?
And at the mention of a kiss under the mistletoe- his usual fantasy of kissing Kyoko transformed into the image of kissing Yamamoto underneath the mistletoe.
When that image flashes through his mind- Tsuna fainted. Again.
Tsuna later found himself home in his bed, the signs of morning shining through his window. Apparently, Reborn decided to excuse the Vongola boss-to-be from his school for the whole day and let him sleep out his shock throughout the entire night. But now that the Decimo is well rested and awake; Reborn has no qualms to threaten the Vongola boss-to-be out of his bed and to start on decorating the house for the Christmas party. At first, Tsuna –still shocked at the sudden change of his kissing partner– couldn't do a single thing without getting flustered or embarrassed, everything reminding him of his not-so-innocent thoughts on one of his best friends.
That is, until, Reborn decided to shoot continuously at him when the baby tutor noticed his student's pathetic state.
Thanks to Reborn (though Tsuna did most of the work), everything was ready just in time for the party. The decorations are all put up and the food is already set up by his mom (and Bianchi…). I-Pin, Lambo, and Fuuta are already playing around with the games set around the area of the living room.
Gokudera was the first to appear (not surprisingly), already bearing a huge gift just for his precious Juudaime. Haru came in next, practically doing the same thing as Gokudera (except that she shoved the present into his arms). Soon after, Kyoko and Ryohei came to the party, the boxer carrying two huge bags which Tsuna guessed are the presents that they'll be exchanging (Tsuna faintly wonders what was in the bag since the bag is towering over him…). Chrome, Ken, and Chikusa came knocking at his door next; all holding onto fairly sized bags of things that Tsuna couldn't identify (Tsuna has a feeling that Ken's bag is full of junk food). Coincidently, that's when the Vendicare decided to drop off Mukuro and there was a touching reunion soon after (and Ken dedicated the present that was originally for them all to Mukuro). Hibari came in next, along with Kusakabe, without bothering to knock as if he owns the place (then he saw Mukuro and everything went from hel- to there). Varia literally burst into his house (now Tsuna has to get a new lock) and Dino came in with a very boss-like aura (before he tripped because his subordinates are still at their hotel getting ready for the party and Dino thought it would be fine to just go to the Sawada residence by himself). Timoteo, Iemitsu and Basil came together, entering in without knocking (Tsuna, Basil and Timoteo shared mutual glances at the teary and lovey dovey scene that both Nana and Iemitsu are making). Soon, most of the Arcobaleno came into the mixture of people (of course, Verde isn't here as well as the Sky Arcobaleno).
His house by then is full of people mingling with each other (or fighting each other to the death on some occasion…) and Tsuna couldn't help but smile at the warm atmosphere. Sure, parts of his house are getting destroyed, explosion are exploding in his very own living room, and he might as well be scarred by whatever illusions Mukuro has exposed (he was using them in his battle against the aloof cloud guardian); but he's happy that everyone is here having a good time during Christmas, probably the only time of the year where there could be peace in the mafia (somewhatly…).
Then, Tsuna noticed that not everyone, in fact, is here. Strangely… Yamamoto is not here yet…
"There was a last minute customer, and Yamamoto has to stay and help his father clean up."
Tsuna jumped right out of his skin at the sound of Reborn's voice, holding onto his beating heart as he frightfully look at his tutor… in a Santa costume?
"R-Reborn, what are you wearing?"
"You should go and escort your rain guardian here." The baby hitman instructed, practically ignoring Tsuna's last question.
Blinking at his tutor's instructions, the brunet looks through the see-through door to his yard to find it now night-time with snowing falling gently from the sky. It has been snowing for a while now; a good layer of snow has already spread on the ground.
"You want me to go out in that cold weather?"
"Of course, it's your job as a boss Dame-Tsuna."
Isn't it the other way around? Tsuna couldn't help but wonder as he twitched, knowing that his tutor is up to something… suspicious. Then again, his tutor is always up to something suspicious.
Either way, Tsuna got kicked out in the end (he's getting kicked out a lot lately these days…) with help of Leon (who turned into a giant boot just for this occasion) and went head first into the cold snow. After pulling his head out of the freezing slush, Tsuna looks back at Reborn who is standing at the opened doorway.
"R-Reborn! You don't have to kick me out!" Again. Tsuna mentally added, still having bruises from the last time Reborn has kicked him out. "A-And I'm sure Yamamoto-kun is capable of coming here by himself!"
"It's fine, isn't it? Since you like him very much, Baka-Tsuna."
And with that vague statement, Reborn slam the door shut, leaving the meek teen frozen on the cold, snowy ground.
Like…him…?
Tsuna has a feeling that Reborn is applying something… but what? When Reborn said that he like Yamamoto- what does he mean by that?
Tsuna slowly shifted so that he could get up from the ground, stopping as his already gloved hand (apparently, he was able to put on his scarf and mittens on time as he was being forced out of the door) bumped into an unknown objective. Looking to see what his hand had bumped into, his eyes widen at the appearance of Yamamoto's wrapped gift. When did Reborn…?
"It's fine, isn't it? Since you like him very much, Baka-Tsuna."
Tsuna blushed when he remembers what Reborn had said.
Shaking his head as to clear his thoughts and focus on the task at hand, the brunet grabs the present near him and walks out of his yard; before Reborn decided to shoot him that is.
"Since you like him very much, Baka-Tsuna."
The words kept replaying in his head, never giving him a moment of peace. Even on a peaceful night like this –with snow gently fluttering around, Christmas lights brightening up the neighborhood, and laughter filling the air in many places– Tsuna just couldn't stop the frantic thoughts racing through his mind. Somewhere deep in his mind, he knows exactly what Reborn is talking about. But at the same time, he still wasn't exactly sure as to what his tutor is talking about either.
"Since you like him very much-"
Since… he likes him… very much…?
"Tsuna!"
Snapping out of his thoughts, Tsuna looks up in surprise to find Yamamoto running towards him, grinning that happy-go-lucky grin.
"-like him very much-"
He likes Yamamoto.
Without noticing it in the first place, he fell in love with Yamamoto.
When he finally noticed that, Tsuna felt as if he could faint- happily even. That he could cry- but with tears of joy. For some reason, he felt so relieved. When did it suddenly change…? He could've sworn he was in love with Kyoko… but suddenly… the target of his affection turned to-
"Tsuna! What are you doing out here?"
Once again snapping out of his thoughts, Tsuna looks up at Yamamoto, who is already right in front of him without his knowing. At the close proximity, the brunet blushed. And now noticing his feelings for the teen right in front of him, he blushed even brighter than before. Oddly, he wasn't bothered by the sudden change of affections, and now, he doesn't even know what to do.
"R-Reborn a-a-a-asked me t-t-to e-escort y-y-you to t-the p-p-party…" Tsuna managed to choke out, mentally slapping himself for stuttering too much. Yamamoto is going to think something is wrong with him!
"Hahaha! The kid? Cool!" Yamamoto exclaimed, not noticing Tsuna's awkward position.
Oh yeah… if Yamamoto didn't notice his strange behavior for the past week, there is no way he's going to notice it now.
"W-Where's all the gifts that you a-are giving..?" Tsuna tried to change the subject as he noticed that Yamamoto doesn't have a huge bag of stuff unlike the others. He remembers Yamamoto having three bags worth of gifts…
"Oh, the kid came and brought it over to your house in advance!"
Yep… Reborn is definitely planning something suspicious.
"Hey, what's that Tsuna?"
The Vongola Decimo blinked as he followed the rain guardian's bare fingers to see it pointing at the present he is carrying on the side. The brunet's embarrassment has gone up to another level as he recalls his present for the baseball nut. In one way, he wanted to give his present to the baseball nut, but seeing all of those extravagant gifts that the black-haired teen was given; his Christmas present looked rather cheap and replaceable. But he really wanted to give Yamamoto his present…
"I-It's for y-you." Tsuna admitted quietly after a long internal dispute, suddenly shy as he presented the wrapped box in front of Yamamoto.
The baseball nut peered at the present with a curious expression, but nonetheless gently took it into his hands as he widely grins at an impossible length. The grin was different- there was something in the grin that Tsuna couldn't see.
"Thank you Tsuna." The show of gratitude was easily expressed on Yamamoto's face, his words sincere and comforting. There was something different by the way he said 'thank you' compared to how he would say it to the girls back at their school…
As Yamamoto took his time unwrapping the present, Tsuna fidgeted with whatever he could get his hands on. Whether it would be his scarf, his gloves, the snow, his jacket- anything that would ease the nervousness of having his –now recently noticed– crush opening his present. Tsuna was surprised to have taken this 'in love with your guy best friend' thing a lot more calmly… actually; he's surprised that he hasn't fainted yet on the spot. The brunet was pretty sure that he would at the realization of his feelings. Maybe he would if Yamamoto wasn't here in the first place…
When the sound of tearing paper stopped, Tsuna turn his attention back to his crush. Tsuna watches with anticipation as Yamamoto opens the box, the sound of his heart beat drowning out the rest of the noises around him.
A pair of gloves is then pulled out from the box.
Tsuna just stared at them as he realized how foolish the present is in the first place, blushing brightly in embarrassment.
"Gloves?" Yamamoto questioned as he examines the gloves with curiosity. He wasn't questioning the present because he dislikes it; it's just different from the usual presents he has gotten. He has acquired expensive and rare things from his admirers- this is the first time in a long time that someone gave him something so cheap and simple.
But Tsuna, being negative as he is sometimes, thought the opposite. "W-Well, you're always out practicing b-baseball and I don't w-want your h-hands to get f-frost-bite o-or s-something a-and you s-should have s-something t-to k-keep your hands f-from g-getting n-numb and t-there's a-a gripping f-feature w-where y-you c-could have a b-better g-grip on your b-bat e-even if you got the g-gloves o-on and-" Tsuna kept on babbling on as if he needs to explain himself to the black-haired teen about the present; Yamamoto during so touch the palm of the gloves, noticing how rubbery it felt. Tsuna's right, with these gloves, he could wear them and still get a good grip on the bat. While the brunet continues to prattle, he puts the gloves on, feeling the warmth between his fingers. "-A-And y-you k-know that a l-lot of p-people are worried about y-your well b-being and y-you shouldn't even be o-out in the cold in t-the f-first place-"
"I love it."
"-D-Do p-please take care of y-yourself Yama- Wait, what?"
Without any warning, Yamamoto gathered up the brunet into his arms, his chin resting on top of the Vongola Decimo's head. There was a big grin on his face, not that Tsuna could see it, and he looks as if he's the happiest man in the world.
"I love it."
There- a true gift of sincerity. A warm gift: only thinking about his well-being rather than to benefit the giver themselves. A gift that came from the heart with thoughts that is only about him. A gift that doesn't sought out for his approval- a gift that sought out for his heart.
Apparently, Tsuna decided that now would be a good time to freeze, his body stiff with shock, and yet, with happiness that seems to explode on any given minute. His thoughts- actually, his mind is blank right now, not able to think of anything coherent. Being this close to Yamamoto… being this close to Yamamoto…!
Tsuna prayed that he is not actually melting- unlike how he's feeling right now.
Much to Tsuna's disappointment, they have to pull away sooner or later. But he supposed the stunning grin on Yamamoto's face would be a good substitute for now.
Yamamoto really loves his present… he sure hoped that the baseball nut would use it- he has a dreadful feeling that Yamamoto's fingers would've fallen if not… But Yamamoto really loves his present. There is just no way to describe how happy Tsuna is.
"Hey Tsuna… is that…?"
Blinking at the sudden and random question from his rain guardian; Tsuna looks up to where the black-haired teen is looking up at, only to drop his jaw at the sight of a floating mistletoe… wait, floating? Mistletoes can't float! Tsuna then reached up to the mistletoe, immediately pulling back his hand as he actually felt the plant brushing his hands. He then waver his hands around the mistletoe, finding no invisible strings that could be holding it up. His intuition is telling him that the mistletoe is there by some kind of… technique? It wasn't really clear… but he senses this before…
Looking from the mistletoe, Tsuna then looks at Yamamoto to see if the rain guardian knows what is happening… he unintentionally eyed Yamamoto's lips and quickly look down towards the ground, his face turning several shades of red. No, no! Sure, he admits (kinda) that he has feelings for Yamamoto but that's way too fast! A-And he's pretty sure that Yamamoto didn't feel the same way-
"Tsuna."
Shifting his eyes towards his crush as he heard his name being called, the dame-teen breath hitched up at the sudden close proximity of Yamamoto's face to his.
And his face is coming even closer as every second ticks by.
"If you help me with the Christmas party preparations; I'll let you kiss the person that you most desire under the mistletoe."
Reborn, that jerk.
Tsuna didn't have time to step back or pull away. He didn't have time to react to the incoming closeness. All he could do is let…
Their lips touch.
It was a simple but lovely gesture of just their lips touching; nothing further. But Tsuna found himself completely melting against Yamamoto, his eyes slowly closing as he clung onto the rain guardian's jacket. Without noticing it, Yamamoto's arms wrapped around his waist, sending his body much closer to the other. And when the taller of the two tilted his head to deepen the kiss, a shiver racked Tsuna's spine. At that moment, he didn't care what is going on around the world. He didn't care of the fact that he has been picked as the Vongola Decimo, he didn't care of the fact that Reborn would shoot him for being so late to come back with Yamamoto, he didn't care if there was a floating mistletoe hanging above their heads (actually, he's still a bit suspicious by that…) and he didn't care whether the whole population of girls at his school (except Kyoko and Hana. Hana would've cared less and he has a feeling that Kyoko wouldn't mind either…) would hate him for this. He didn't care what is going around the world. It was just him and Yamamoto.
Their lips stayed together for what seemed like an eternity, both never wanting to let go of each other, before they had to part for air. Tsuna was so distracted by their kiss, that he didn't even notice that he stopped breathing during so. Tsuna's breaths came in short, shaky pants and Yamamoto, because of the fact that he's the better athlete, regained his lungs much quicker. While Yamamoto has a dust of pink on his cheeks, it's nothing compared to Tsuna's red face that looks as if all of his blood has gone to his head. The Vongola Decimo slowly looks up –his mind still in a haze at the kiss– at his rain guardian, only to quickly look back down when he noticed at how intensely Yamamoto is staring at him. He didn't think his blush would get any darker. But being with Yamamoto made his body do weird things, made his mind into an unmanageable mess, made his heart beating into an unbearable pace.
Then, laughter rang in the cold, snowy night, penetrating the silence that was previously between the two. Tsuna doesn't have to look back at Yamamoto's face to know that the baseball nut is widely grinning happily once again.
"You're so cute Tsuna!"
Steam is now currently, once again, blowing out of the Decimo's ears; the melodious laughter echoing once again before Tsuna felt the contact of Yamamoto's forehead against his. This time, Tsuna has no choice but to look at his rain guardian.
"Do you like your gift Tsuna?" Yamamoto couldn't help but asked, entertained by the fact that the brunet is trying to make a new shade of red. "My warmth to yours; since you always seemed to be so cold."
"Y-Yamamoto-kun!" Tsuna sputtered in indignity at Yamamoto's tease, sending another array of laughter coming out from the taller teen's mouth, brushing Tsuna's face lightly with his hot breath. It's a wonder how Tsuna could feel it at all since his cheeks already felt as if they're going to melt off any time soon.
"Daisuki, Tsuna." Yamamoto confessed in a low voice, his eyes sparkling with happiness. "I love you, Tsuna." Is it possible to just die by listening to those words?
In that instant, Tsuna was render speechless, his mouth cutely hanging open as he gape at his crush. What should he say? Should he reply back- of course he should reply back! Yamamoto is waiting for his answer…
You can tell that the athletic teen really is; keeping their foreheads together as he peers into Tsuna's eyes waiting for the other's answer. He still has that refreshing smile shining just for the brunet and his arms are still encircled around the latter's waist. He's waiting patiently but eagerly for the brunet's response.
Finally, Tsuna opened his mouth.
"I-I-I-I-" Tsuna wanted to look away, but Yamamoto made sure that he wouldn't. "I-I-I l-l-l-lo-lo-lov-ve y-y-y-y-you t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-" Sadly, Tsuna wasn't able to finish the confession, unable to say 'too' as he was already dizzy from even thinking about the confession he was making, his mind jumbled into a mess as bad as his room.
Noticing the brunet's state, Yamamoto couldn't help but smile a tender smile, placing his lips on the Vongola Decimo's forehead for a short period of time that only puts Tsuna's nerves and mind into even more chaos. "I know Tsuna." Yamamoto softly said near the brunet's ear before tenderly kissing the corner of his mouth. Poor Tsuna; all he could do is bury his face into Yamamoto's chest and hope to disappear because of his embarrassment- yet at the same time, he wanted to stay with Yamamoto forever…
Then, there was a loud cheer of 'Extreme!' in the background, followed by an angry shout of 'you lawn-head!'.
Detaching his face away from Yamamoto's chest, an expression of horror appeared on his face as he noticed the group not too far from where they are, watching them as if they were some kind old romantic movie. Everyone is there: including Kyoko and Haru (who were crying as if they saw something miraculously beautiful), his guardians (Gokudera is in between trying to blow up Yamamoto and congratulating his boss but also telling Tsuna that he could've done a lot better than the 'Yakyu-baka'), the Varia (they seemed really awkward, trying to look at anything but them), his parents (his father is blubbering about how 'Tsuna is growing too fast!' or something like that), Basil (who is trying to comfort his dad), the Arcobalenos (Reborn, the devil's spawn…), Dino (who is practically showing Tsuna off to his subordinates) and even Timoteo (there was a tiny tear in the Vongola Nono's eyes at the thought of his grandson already growing up). In the back of Tsuna's mind, he was glad that Lambo and the other kids weren't here… but back to the more important matters at hand.
Tsuna is currently gaping at his friends and family like a fish out of water while Yamamoto only waves at them ever so cheerfully, too happy about what had happened before to even be bothered with the fact that everyone has been watching them for who-knows-how-long.
A scoff came from Reborn's lip.
"Finally, Dame-Tsuna has grown a back bone- though still pathetic as always."
The signature laugh of the mist guardian rang soon after.
"As payment for the mistletoe illusion, you would extend my release for another 24 hours?"
"Already done."
Mistletoe…? You mean the mistletoe above Tsuna and Yamamoto was an illusion made by Mukuro?
"Yare, yare… What about my money for the mistletoe girl illusion?"
"It has already been transferred to your account."
You mean… the girl that has been running towards Yamamoto with the mistletoe… was an illusion also…?
"It took you too long to realize your feelings, Dame-Tsuna."
"R-R-REBORN!"
And the name echoed throughout the neighborhood; with Yamamoto's unending laughter, the mistletoe still above their heads, and their gloved hands entangled with each other, sharing the warmth that they have now.
Daisuki- I really like you or I love you (if you guys don't know what this means, shame on you!)
Yosh! I finally finished with this!
I apologize for the grammar mistakes. Really, I tried to look over them (but failed).
This is the most one of the cutest things I have written in my entire life (other than my Ten Years Make No Difference) story.
8027 is one of the most refreshing couples I know! The two reminds me soooooooooo much of Kimi ni Todoke! And when I think about it, I squeal in happiness!
*hugs Yamamoto and Tsuna plushies*
I wish there were more contestants for this challenge. I would like to see more 8027 Christmas stories ^^
Oh yeah, here is the challenge:
And so here is the challenge: It's quite simple actually! You just have to make a story centering around the object of love for this season: MISTLETOE
It must be a one-shot, the pairing is 8027, and also the genre romance (it's up to you on what the other genre must be)
The challenge is fairly easy but as I have mentioned before: you must create a unique idea with your skills, something that will capture my attention and will rise above others. The rating can be anything, I don't mind as long as the story is AWESOME.
You will be rated accordingly:
Grammar (15 points)
Choice of Title (5 points)
Content and Idea (20 points)
Whether the characters are totally in-character or not (10 points)
The use of the theme object: mistletoe (20 points)
And the sweetness of the pairing itself! (20 points)
Uniqueness (10 points)
