Chapter Three – Festive Cheer

"Okay, I'm going to be honest with you." Jean began. "It's the last day before we break for Christmas and we're having a field trip. I know that, if I gave you some bullcrap worksheet or stupid questionnaire, nobody would do it. Half of you don't even want to be here and would rather be in bed, so would I."

Marco rolled his eyes slightly. He and Jean were standing in front of a crowd of teenagers, all from one of Jeans favourite classes. Trost was hosting its annual Christmas Market and, as Jean's class consistently made high grades in any tests he gave them, he had treated them with a field trip to enjoy the market before the weekend crowds made it unbearable. Most of the students seemed happy doing this instead of watching cheap Christmas movies or being forced to participate in online Christmas quizzes, and those that weren't would only be content if they were still asleep at home, something Jean didn't think he could convince Levi to let happen.

The group of students and teachers were standing at the entrance of the market, which had a small amount of people there already. From where they stood, they could see the wooden stalls that bordered both sides of the streets and could smell the intoxicating mixture of all the food on offer, all melding together to make a fantastic aroma that would remain throughout the day.

"So, here's the deal." Jean continued, the class obviously wanting to enter the market instead of standing around in the snow. "I won't bother you with any school stuff, but if anyone asks, you have to say I gave you a tour and told you about why the market has historical importance, and you only had an hour to shop."

The students all nodded or hummed in agreement, making Jean smile. The deal worked for him, as if he had given them work he would have been obligated to make sure they all did it. He couldn't be bothered with that.

"Great. So, have fun, don't get into any trouble and don't stray too far." Jean smiled, knowing the student's attention was slipping away. "And at one o'clock, I want you all to come to the big Christmas tree for registration. Other than that, you're free to do whatever you want."

Jean and Marco watched as all the students wandered into the market, splitting off into friendship groups and looking at the nearby market stalls. Both teachers hung back for a few moments, just in case any of the students wanted to talk to them away from the rest of the class. It was standard procedure for field trips, but neither minded.

As they watched the class, Marco intertwined Jean's fingers with his own. The two had been dating for just over three years, almost all students knowing of their relationship. Practically all the students had been supportive of them, and those that weren't seemed more uncaring about it than unaccepting. And, although they couldn't prove it, they felt partially responsible for making some of the gay students at the school more confident in coming out.

"You know," Marco spoke with a grin. "It's admirable how much effort you put into teaching. Even on the last day, you make sure the kids are constantly learning. I don't know how you do it."

"Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, Marco." Jean chuckled. "And, if I remember correctly, the only reason you came here was so you didn't have to deal with kids asking you to watch Cool Runnings instead of doing a lesson all day."

"It happens every year. They think because it's about a sport I'll be more likely to do it." Marco chuckled slightly, squeezing Jean's hand. "And that's not the only reason. I also wanted to come because it would let me spend the whole day with my boyfriend, so I can kiss him in the most romantic place in the city."

And to prove this, Marco dragged Jean in front of him, placed his hands on the other mans hips and slowly kissed him. It was soft, gentle and loving, leaving Jean with a blush on his face despite how long they had been dating. The history teacher would probably blame the redness on the cold, but Marco knew better.

After pulling away, Marco took Jean's hand again. The couple slowly began to walk into the market, standing close together and smiling. It seemed that, as they stepped onto the cobbled streets, the smell of cooked meat, crepes, beer and hot chocolate increased. That, mixed with the gentle snow falling from the sky and the heavily decorated streets, made the entire place look like the Christmas wonderland it was advertised to be.

Other than the gentle chatter of patriots and stall owners and the far off singing of a live music performance, the place was quiet. The sun was just shining through the clouds, making the place seem even more beautiful that it already was. At this, Jean pressed himself closer against Marco, who smiled.

"You've really never been here?" He asked his coach boyfriend.

"No, never had the chance." Marco smiled. "I've heard the crowds here get so busy at the weekend you can't enjoy it and I'm always working in the week."

"Could you have come before you joined the school?"

"Never thought about it. The only reason I moved here was to work, so I've never been unemployed in Trost." Marco smiled as they turned a corner, seeing a group of students buying some food from a steaming grill. "And I never thought about coming here for a day trip. The town I grew up in hosted a European market which was basically the same, only a lot smaller."

"Well, I'll have to be your guide then." Jean grinned. "Come on, I want something to eat."

Marco nodded in agreement, the small bowl of cereal he had for breakfast not having done much to satisfy his stomach. The couple walked past the grill their students were huddled around, Jean assuring him that he knew the perfect place to eat. Because Jean had claimed that, as a kid, he had gone to the market every year, Marco trusted him.

After a short walk through the maze of wooden shacks, passing by quite a few food stalls that made Marco's stomach yearn, Jean stopped in front of a stall with a hand painted sign above it advertising the 'Best Pretzels In The World'. Jean walked to the man behind the wooden counter, who smiled when he saw the couple approach. Jean glanced at the menu on the back wall, grinning when he saw both of his favourite dishes were still available.

As Jean ordered, Marco read through the menu with interest. Marco only knew of three kinds of pretzels: the warm, salted bread ones; the cinnamon, sugary ones he could always find at any shopping mall; and the small, crunchy ones that his mom always brought when she was having a house party. If the length of the menu was anything to go by, he certainly needed to brush up on his pretzel knowledge.

"Here you are." Jean grinned. "You'll love it."

Marco looked at the food Jean offered him. It was a large, steaming hot sausage with a thick, salted spiral of pretzel surrounding it, all wrapped up in a small napkin. Jean was also carrying one, though his had a large bite taken out of it. Marco brought it to his lips, taking a tentative bite at the heat of the food. After biting down, his eyes widened slightly at the taste. It was fantastic.

"I know, right." Jean grinned, swallowing the bite he had taken. "I used to insist on having them every year. Once, my mom felt sick, so we had to go early, and I couldn't get one. I threw a tantrum in the car and only stopped when my dad promised he'd make me some when we get home. They weren't as good, so I refused to eat them."

"I can't imagine that." Marco smirked slightly. "You, being particular about what you eat and drink, it's practically unthinkable."

Jean nudged Marco's side as they began to wander down the pathway of stalls. It was still quiet, Jean suspecting that his class constituted more than half the people there. As they walked, they got closer to the live band playing a song in German, so neither man could understand. The singer was good, though, and the gentle guitar and keyboard combination was certainly relaxing. The two decided to sit at one of the empty benches and watch the musicians as they ate, Jean leaning his head on Marco's shoulder.

They sat in silence, enjoying the tranquil atmosphere of the market clearing. Marco, after finishing his 'Pretzel-Dog', cleaned up his fingers and slowly began to run them through Jean's hair, looking at the sight before him.

The cobbled streets were covered in a thin, soft layer of snow. The band were all standing on a circular stage positioned in front of the large, heavily decorated Christmas tree that was also the designated meeting point for the class. It was so reflective of a Christmas card that Marco almost found it unbelievable.

"It's like a fairy tale, isn't it?" Jean murmured happily. "My mom used to tell me this is where Santa went on vacation. It made me feel bad whenever we went to the Santa's grotto, I felt like I was bothering him."

Marco laughed slightly, Jean punching him gently on the arm. They leant back against the bench, watching as the snow fell and their students wandered around. Marco eyed a large wooden stall that sold hot chocolate, topped with whipped cream, chocolate sprinkles, marshmallows and wafers. From where he was sitting, he could just about smell the strong scent of the drink he loved. He shuffled slightly, removing his wallet from his pocket. Jean pushed his head off Marco's shoulder, looking at him with curiosity. When Marco nodded towards the stand, Jean rolled his eyes; Marco would only drink damn cocoa if he could.

Half way across the small-town square, Marco paused. Reiner was chasing Eren with a snowball in his hand, the two practically sprinting. Eren was laughing loudly, Reiner with the remnants of what looked like a snowball on his face. The teacher cringed when Reiner threw the snowball, barely missing a stall with some glass memorabilia.

"Hey." Marco raised his voice, getting both young men's attention. "If you really need to do that, do it somewhere that won't cause any trouble."

They both gave him a 'yes sir' in reply. They began to jog to the entrance of the market, where they could have as large snowball fight as they wished. Marco rolled his eyes when he saw Reiner kick a pile of snow towards Eren, obviously not realising Marco was still watching them. He wouldn't bother them again, they were just having fun. And it was Jean's class, so if they did cause any trouble it was their responsibility and he wouldn't have to deal with it.

Marco continued to walk towards the stall, leaning on it and looking over the menu to see if they had any coffee related drinks that Jean would like. As the woman who owned the shack realised he was there and Marco opened his mouth to relay his order, something struck him.

A snowball!

The teacher turned around, expecting to see one of the students he got along well with grinning at him and ready to throw another snowball at him. But the yard was exactly the same as it had been moments ago, with one key difference. Jean was now suspiciously interested in his phone.

"Excuse me." Marco smiled as he turned back to the drinks stall. "I'll be back in a moment."

Walking slowly, Marco removed the snow from his hair and bent down. He created a large snowball, tossing from hand to hand as he walked closer to Jean. With a slight grimace at being caught out, Jean looked up and smiled weakly at Marco, who grinned back at him. Watching as the compact snowball was tossed from hand to hand, Jean's grimace got larger. The second the snowball was thrown at him, Jean scrambled to the side, barely avoiding it. When he saw Marco lean down to make another snowball, Jean began to run. Marco was soon hot on his heels.

"Get back here Kirstein." Marco yelled as they passed Reiner and Eren. "You can't escape me."


"Thank you so much."

Marco smiled at the pianist of the band, handing him twenty dollars before slipping his wallet into his pocket. The musician smiled and nodded, wishing him good luck as he walked to the gaggle of teenagers that were collected in the middle of the yard. The majority of the class had arrived in front of the Christmas tree on time as Jean had asked, but a few of them had yet to arrive. Jean had taken it upon himself to find them, knowing the students well enough to be sure they had simply lost track of time instead of not attending on purpose.

It worked well for Marco, so he didn't mind.

Looking past the class, he smiled. Down one of the pathways of stalls, Jean was returning with the two missing students. The road was now covered completely in snow, which was gently falling in light flakes. With his boyfriend wrapped up in his winter clothing, going so far as to wrap a scarf around his mouth, Marco couldn't help but find the sight beautiful. At the thought, a large and goofy smile painted itself on his face.

Jean and the two students slowly returned, Marco grinning slightly at Jean. His hair was still yet after the large snowball fight the two had. Jean glared slightly at him, though it was playful. Marco was just as much a mess as Jean was.

Standing in front of the crowd, Jean clapped his hands loudly a few times to gather their attention. They all looked towards him, even though some of them still glanced down at their phones whenever they thought neither Jean nor Marco was looking. Neither teacher particularly cared, as long as they were quiet and partially listening, at least one person in each group would be listening to him.

"Okay, we need to be back on the coach at two forty-five." Jean began, speaking over the light playing of the band. "So I want you all back here at two forty at the very latest. If we're not on the bus at time because one of you is late, everyone else gets permission to pelt you with snowballs in revenge."

A few members of the crowd laughed slightly. Marco was one of them, but he was fiddling with his hands behind hi back. Thankfully, Jean was too busy looking at the class to notice his little nervous habit.

"And I'm sure you all know this already, but it's getting busier now." Jean continued. "I don't want anyone complaining to me that you've been disturbing them or just acting stupid. I know it must be difficult for you all to do, but please try and remain calm and don't cause any trouble for the rest of the day. It's only an hour and a half, it shouldn't be that hard. For most of you, anyway."

Jean sent a glance towards Eren and Reiner, both of whom looked away slightly with redness on their cheeks. When Jean looked back to the mass of students, Marco took a somewhat shaky breath and walked towards Reiner.

The coach's phone was unlocked and was opened on the camera. He made sure it was on the video mode before tapping Reiner on the shoulder. The larger student turned towards him, frowning in confusion when Marco placed his phone in his hand. When he looked at Marco for an explanation, Marco spoke quietly.

"When I take Mr Kirstein in front of the stage, film it." He demanded in a whisper, winking at the student to keep him quiet. Reiner nodded, shrugging at Bertolt in confusion.

As Jean continued to speak, Marco wandered to the back of the crowd. When walking, he nodded to the pianist on stage. The gentle, generic Christmas tune was replaced by a slow, semi-acoustic instrumental version of 'All I want For Christmas Is You.' Marco smiled at how relaxing and romantic it sounded at the slower tempo, the fact it was Jean's favourite Christmas song was an added extra that made the situation even more perfect.

Still breathing shakily, which he could blame on the cold, he plunged his hands into his pocket. His fingers began to squeeze around the small velvet box, eventually grasping it tightly for support. It filled him with a slight warming sensation.

"And if any of you haven't had anything to eat yet, please do now. It's a long bus drive and I don't want to heave any grumbling stomach all the way back." Jean grinned slightly. "And if any of you spent all your money and forgot food, please just say and I'll buy something for you. Don't abuse that power, I will know of you do. I've got snitches."

Marco continued to count to ten in his head to calm him down. The effect was nothing compared to when he opened his eyes and looked at Jean, adoration clear in his eyes. Damn that man was beautiful.

"I think that's all I need to say." Jean concluded. "Anything you want to add, Mr Bodt?"

At Jean's question, Marco was snapped out of his nervous bubble. He nodded, walking to the front of the group, Jean frowning as he wondered what else his boyfriend would want to say. As Marco walked to the front, he nudged Reiner and winked at him again. The student nodded slightly and raised Marco's phone, pointing it towards them both and filming whatever was going to happen.

Upon reaching Jean, he took the other mans hand in his own and slowly dragged him in front of the stage. It was then that Jean noticed the music the band were playing was a quiet version of the song he loved. A small bubble of nervousness grew in his stomach.

"Jean Kirstein." Marco spoke as he settled in front of the stage, voice slightly shaking. "Ever since I awkwardly asked you out in the staff lounge three years ago, I've been completely and totally enamoured with you. More so than I thought possible. I don't know what it is about you that makes me love you so much, maybe it's your sarcasm, maybe its your ridiculous rules about what constitutes as good coffee, maybe it's the fact you mock some of your students when they're not around. Probably not the last one, I only mentioned that one to annoy you, really."

The class laughed slightly, almost all of them paying complete attention to what their teachers were doing. Jean was red now, looking at Marco with a mixture of love and confusion. He was soothed by the feeling of Marco's thumbs gently running over his hands.

"But, I don't think for a second it's one thing I love. Because I love you, Jean, I love everything about you." Marco's smile was wide, a large blush on his face. "And I don't see that changing. Ever. So, there's only one thing to do really, isn't there?"

Still holding Jean's hand with his right, Marco slowly got down and buried his left knee into the snow. With his left hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the small box, flipping it open to reveal a silver wedding band encrusted with small, golden diamonds. The jewellery glinted in the snow.

Jean looked down at the ring. His eyes were wide, heart pumping manically and stomach flipping madly. His hand was shaking just as much as Marco's had been as his eyes moved from the beautiful ring to the beautiful man on his knee. Marco was smiling so widely and lovingly, it was impossible not to melt as he looked at his chocolate brown eyes.

"Jean Kirstein, I really love you. And I don't want to spend another day without you in my life." Marco's voice still shook, but it w as filled with so much love that it was palpable. "Will you honour me by agreeing to become my husband?"

Everyone in the class, and the small class that had also gathered, all looked at Jean for his answer. The history teacher was still looking at Marco, obviously somewhat overwhelmed by the situation he found himself in. With just a glance at his boyfriend's face, Jean knew that there was only one answer he could give. He shook slightly, all he had to do was answer Marco and the two would be engaged.

"Erm, well." His voice was shaking too, but carried the same love that Marco's had. "You know what they say about great minds."

Before Marco could ponder what Jean meant, Jean moved. He, too, planted his left knee into the snow. He reached around to his back pocket and pulled out a small, leather box. Just like Marco had, he flipped the small box open to reveal a sparkling silver band, encrusted with a ring of black diamonds. Marco looked at the ring, then at Jean; he then let out a shaky chuckle, lowering his ring slightly.

"They think alike." Jean finished, smiling. "Marco, I never thought I'd meet anyone perfect for me. I didn't think it actually existed, other than in books. But meeting you, finding myself falling in love with you, I must have been an idiot. Because you are everything I've ever wanted and so much more. And now, while we're in our own little fairy tale, I can't think of a better time to ask this. Will you marry me?"

Marco laughed slightly, overwhelmed by all the emotions flowing through him. But the strongest one, the one he had only known since meeting Jean, was that of love.

"Although, you kinda screwed me over by having a better speech than me." Jean joked lightly. "Asshole."

"No, no. It was perfect. You're perfect." Marco leant forward to give Jean a slow kiss, which Jean happily returned. "You're so fucking perfect and I love you so much. And I know I just swore in front of the kids, but I'm allowed to right now."

Jean grinned and chuckled. "So, is that a yes?"

"I asked you first." Marco laughed. "But, yes, I'll definitely marry you."

"Good" Jean beamed. "And, since you did ask first, of course I'll be your husband you fucking idiot."

To the sound of applaud and cheering, the two kissed again. It was short, but the most loving and thoughtful kiss the two had ever shared. Upon pulling away, they both slid their respective rings onto the other mans fingers, looking at them both with wide, emotional smiled on their faces. The second their glances met, they kissed again, this time lingering slightly before resting their foreheads against each other.

Still being filmed by Reiner, still covered in the melted snow from their snowball fight, still on the ground, they smiled at each other.

"I love you." Jean sighed happily.

"I love you too." Marco whispered.

Unable to do anything else, they kissed to the sound of Jean's favourite song, the snow falling around them and surrounded by a mixture of everything they both found beautiful. It truly was their own little fairy tale and neither could be happy.