This was written for yuseirra on tumblr for the Danganronpa Secret Santa 2018. I love writing fluff for these two, who deserved much better than they got, and I couldn't resist doing a Secret Santa for the Secret Santa. DR protagonists are so focused on giving presents to their friends anyway, it only seemed fitting. Thanks for the request, and happy holidays!
Title is from Invent It All Again by Faded Paper Figures, because it's a song I associate with them that had a vaguely wintry lyric and all the Christmas tiles I could think of were too cheesy even for me.
Having a class-wide Secret Santa might have been a bad idea, especially given the look of excitement on Iruma's face when Momota proposed it. Saihara was still excited for it. He'd always enjoyed giving his friends presents, after all. This was a great excuse to do so without making things weird.
He was so pleased he didn't question it when Momota decided to handle the matching himself. "Can't we just put our names into a hat?" Toujou had asked.
Momota laughed. "Where's the fun in that?" he asked. "Just leave everything to me."
They did, a decision Saihara promptly regretted when he opened his assignment and saw Akamatsu's name. Akamatsu, the person Saihara had been crushing on since the start of the year. He didn't need to be the Ultimate Detective to tell that it wasn't a coincidence, especially since Momota didn't even try to hide it. He confessed as soon as Saihara confronted him. "Okay, so maybe I started this as an excuse to set you up, but is that really such a bad thing? This way, everyone else gets to have fun, and you have a perfect chance to confess. You can't back out now."
Saihara wanted to protest, but Momota had a point. Left to his own devices, he probably would have just pined after Akamatsu for another semester at minimum. This was the perfect opportunity to actually do something about his crush. "Well, thanks, I guess," he said. "Just… a little bit of warning, next time?"
"Ah, don't worry about it. You've got a week to find a present for her. You'll figure something out." Momota slapped Saihara on the back and changed the subject, and that was the end of that, at least in Momota's mind.
Saihara wished he was able to let things be that simple. The thing was, he had ideas for presents for pretty much everyone else in their class. He had pages bookmarked for everyone's birthdays, the art supplies Angie had mentioned and the miniature planetarium that made him think of Momota and even the shaved ice machine Harukawa would act confused about but secretly appreciate.
None of it seemed good enough for Akamatsu. He had ideas for her too, but they were all related to her talent. They were safe and utterly impersonal. Anyone could buy them for her, making them useless for a confession. But if he tried to find something more specific, he might get it wrong, and then the Secret Santa would be ruined for her.
He ended up staring at the computer screen late into the night, scouring the internet for some sort of inspiration. Maybe if he clicked through enough of his bookmarks, he'd confuse the algorithms into giving him suggestions for Akamatsu.
He was about to admit defeat when he saw them. A pair of headphones, sleek and elegant and well-reviewed. He didn't know much about music, but the description made them sound impressive, at least. Akamatsu would know what bass extension was anyway. They weren't cheap, but there were advantages to having celebrities for parents. Saihara didn't hesitate before clicking "Add to Cart."
The next issue was how to present the headphones to Akamatsu. He was well aware that trying to wrap them himself wouldn't end well, so he settled for the next best thing and bought a gift bag for them. He could handle crumpling tissue to hide a present, at least.
He went out with a simple mission: go to the store, buy the bag, come back to the dorms. It worked perfectly until he noticed the bakery along his path. The store was advertising its Christams cakes, "perfect for spending the holiday with that special someone!" Saihara stopped and stared at them. If he was going to confess, he might as well go all out. He didn't want to be unprepared if Akamatsu accepted his feelings and wanted to spend Christmas Eve with him.
And if she rejected him, this way he'd have cake to cheer himself up.
He managed to get the presents back to his room without anyone stopping him, though Amami gave a knowing nod as he passed. He carefully arranged the bag so it looked absolutely perfect. After that, all that was left to do was wait.
Momota had only given them a week to prepare, but it was still a surprise that the 24th came so quickly. The classroom buzzed with excitement. The gift exchange wasn't supposed to happen until after class, but it was all anyone seemed to be talking about during lunch. Saihara pasted a smile on his face and tried not to think about the contents of his bookbag.
There was a flurry of motion when class let out, everyone grabbing their presents and rushing to their assigned recipients. Saihara was so nervous it took him some time to react. It wasn't too late for him to back out. He could leave the cake and just give Akamatsu the headphones, and there would be nothing incriminating or romantic about it. No one would have to know. Momota would be disappointed, but it was his fault for putting Saihara on the spot like this.
He was still debating when a shadow fell over his desk. He looked up to see Akamatsu smiling at him, and nearly fell back in his chair in surprise. "A-Akamatsu-san! Give me just a second, and, um, I'll have your present ready."
"Oh, what a coincidence," Akamatsu said. "I'm actually here to give you your present too."
Saihara laughed weakly. Curse Momota and his constant well-meaning meddling. "Really? How funny…" His hands were still in his bookbag, clutching the presents he really needed to make a decision about. He hoped it didn't look to awkward.
"It looks like you're not quite ready yet, so…" Akamatsu held out her hands. "I guess I'll go first? Merry Christmas."
She set a box on his desk. It was neatly wrapped, the paper shiny and silver with a pattern of white snowflakes. Saihara finally took his hands out of his bag to open it. He lifted the tape carefully, not wanting to ruin the care that had been put into wrapping it.
Inside the box was a set of cufflinks. They were black stones set in a silver metal, with a musical note inlaid in silver on each gem. "I thought they'd look nice with your uniform and your normal clothes," Akamatsu said. Her cheeks were pink. "And, well, I thought the music notes would make you think of me."
Saihara didn't know what to say. They were incredible, something he would never have thought to ask for but would treasure having, even if they hadn't come from Akamatsu. "Thank you," he managed. "They're perfect."
Akamatsu's blush deepened. "So you like them? I'm so glad!" She scuffed her feet, then apparently made up her mind about something. "Actually, before you accept them, I have something to say. …I really like you, Saihara-kun. And if that makes things weird, I understand, and I can get you something else if you want. But I thought you should know."
Saihara froze. He managed to swallow his first response, which was to ask if Akamatsu was joking. She was too nice to do something like that, and he wasn't about to imply otherwise. But the alternative was that she might actually like him back. He had a hard time believing that.
There was one way to confirm it, though, and conveniently it was the thing he was planning to do anyway. He got out his gifts for Akamatsu and pushed them across the desk. "Um, these are for you. Merry Christmas, Akamatsu-san."
She looked confused, but reached into the bag anyway. Her face lit up when she saw the headphones. "Oh, wow, these are really nice! I've been meaning to get new headphones for a while now, but I never seem to get around to doing it. Thank you very much."
Saihara was just as glad she recognized them. He'd looked up what made these headphones so special, but he was too nervous to remember it, let alone explain it to someone who'd know if he messed it up. "I didn't think to have them personalized or anything, but I'm glad you like them." He tugged on the brim of his cap. "And, uh, that's not the only thing in there."
"Hmm?" Akamatsu reached into the gift bag and pulled out the cake.
Before she could say anything, Saihara started to speak. "I really like you too, Akamatsu-san. I was actually thinking, if you wanted, maybe we could spend Christmas Eve together?"
Akamatsu started to laugh. Saihara looked at her, panicked, but she didn't seem to be laughing at him. She just looked amused. "Did we really both confess in the same way at the same time?" she asked.
"Yeah…" Saihara smiled back, relieved. "Momota-kun is going to be so smug about this."
"Wait, is that why he put all this together?" Saihara's eyes widened. He probably wasn't supposed to give that away. Akamatsu didn't seem upset, though. She just shook her head, a small smile still on her face. "Wow. That's almost sweet, in a weird sort of way."
"That's Momota-kun for you." Saihara stood up, careful not to disturb the box on the desk. "Anyway, um, do you want to just head out now, or…?"
"That sounds nice." Akamatsu gathered her things, taking extra care when putting the headphones into her bag. Saihara did the same with his own belongings.
When they were ready, Akamatsu held out her hand. After a moment of hesitation, Saihara took it. He knew his face had to be bright red. He couldn't complain, though. Akamatsu liked him back. They were going to spend Christmas Eve together, because Akamatsu liked him. He still couldn't quite believe it.
Her hand was solid in his, though. Its warmth was comforting. For the first time he could remember, Saihara felt like the world might really be that simple.