"Eiji fell asleep," Hiroki whispered as he stood over the portable crib at the foot of the bed. Miyagi glanced up from Shinobu, whom he had tucked in after he had fallen asleep crying.

"Stupid brat…" Miyagi murmured. "His eyes will be so red tomorrow."

"You're not exactly beauty queen material, either."

"I know."

They stood in silence, listening to the winter wind billowing outside. There was a beeping sound, and in the dim light, Hiroki watched Miyagi lift his arm to look at his watch.

"It's midnight. Christmas is over," Miyagi whispered. He turned to Hiroki. "Merry belated Christmas."

"Yay," Hiroki cheered quietly, raising his hands in mock-excitement. Miyagi and him simply stared at each other before Miyagi walked to Hiroki. He reached up to stroke back a chestnut lock from his face.

"Has anyone ever told you… that you're an angel?" Miyagi breathed. Hiroki rolled his eyes.

"A lot more than you know."

Miyagi brought his former assistant into his arms, wrapping Hiroki up in warmth. Hiroki sighed exasperatedly and reached around to embrace Miyagi back, burying his nose in the strong shoulder.

"Thank you for everything. For showing us how to change diapers, and how to feed, and… everything. Thank you for giving us a reason to be happy again," Miyagi murmured, tightening his grip slightly.

"Well, someone had to kick that punk's ass, and kick you into gear, old man," Hiroki teased. Miyagi chuckled softly.

"If there's absolutely anything I can do… anything… name it," Miyagi said solemnly, pulling away and holding Hiroki by the elbows. Hiroki gazed up at his former superior, his best friend.

"There's only one thing I'd like. See, I've got this crazy fiancé at home who's pretty angry with me…"


"Do you have them all?" Miyagi asked, his breath going up in puffs of steam as Hiroki straightened with an armful of packages wrapped in Christmas wrapping paper.

"I think so," Hiroki said, adjusting his grip on his bundle. Miyagi shut the trunk of his car

"Hehe, Kusama's going to love his gift," Miyagi said slyly, fingering the grey scarf around Hiroki's neck. Hiroki furrowed his eyebrows.

"The scarf…?" Hiroki asked, tilting his head.

"No. This," Miyagi said. He reached under the scarf and flicked the bell on the jingle bell collar skillfully concealed under the grey cloth. Hiroki blushed furiously. "It's very uncharacteristically sexy of you to have it on."

"Fuck off, you forced me to put it on! It's never going to work on Nowaki," Hiroki hissed.

"Maybe not that one, but the one on your cock will. Kusama will forgive you in no time after seeing that cute little thing."

"Shh-hh-hh!" Hiroki sputtered, glancing around as if someone was there at two in the morning. His heated cheeks melted the snow that fell around him.

"I assure you, Kusama will love it. Me and Shinobu have made many memories with products from that sex store. Prepare yourself for a night of amazing makeup sex."

"Miyagi!"

Miyagi laughed heartily, patting Hiroki on the head.

"I hope it goes well with Kusama, Kamijou. I have two brats to get home to. If Shinobu wakes up and sees that I'm gone, he'll bite my dick off," Miyagi said.

"Serves you right, you old pervert."

Miyagi laughed again.

"Goodnight, Kamijou."

Hiroki stood on the sidewalk in front of Akihiko's apartment building as he watched Miyagi drive off into the snow. Then he sighed and turned around to face the building.


"I'm back," Hiroki whispered as he very slowly opened the door to Akihiko's apartment. The large living room was lit by only the Christmas tree, casting a warm glow onto Hiroki's pale face. As he stepped inside and bumped the door shut with his hip, his breath hitched as he saw the back of Nowaki's head hovering over the back of the couch. Hiroki gulped and slid out of his shoes before padding towards the Christmas tree and the two couches.

Nowaki was absorbed in Akihiko's laptop, scrolling through pictures of houses. Fuyumi lied on the couch beside him, wearing a new pair of footie pajamas with candy canes and stockings printed on them. She dozed, suckling on a new pacifier as Nowaki absentmindedly stroked her back.

"…Nowaki?" Hiroki murmured, fearfully taking a step closer. Nowaki jumped and snapped his gaze towards Hiroki. Hiroki froze, sheepishly hugging the pile of packages in his arms.

"Hiro-san," Nowaki breathed. He continued to stare at Hiroki as he leaned forward and set the laptop down on the coffee table. He slowly stood from his place on his couch, taking half of a step towards his little fiancé. Hiroki's eyes skimmed over Nowaki's black turtleneck sweater and black jeans, and he felt a warm sensation awakening between his legs. He blushed slightly, ashamed for thinking about sex already.

"Um… Merry Christmas," Hiroki mumbled, going to the Christmas tree and setting the gifts down. He turned back towards Nowaki. Nowaki took another step towards him, and Hiroki stumbled back slightly, bumping into the Christmas tree and making the decorations rattle behind him. He couldn't read Nowaki's expression, and didn't know what to expect from the situation.

"Don't run away," Nowaki whispered, outstretching a shaking hand. "Please don't run. Don't be afraid of me."

Hiroki scowled.

"I'm not a stray cat, you idiot," he bark-whispered. Nowaki put his head in his hand.

"I didn't know how long you were going to be gone. I had no way of knowing if you were in danger or not," Nowaki whispered. "I got so afraid when I thought about that… I lost control and I ended up being the person who frightened you. Please, please don't be afraid of me."

"You… I'm an independent man too, you know," Hiroki said quietly, looking to the floor. "I'm no longer pregnant. I could run and hide if I needed to. Even then… no one can tell that I was pregnant before, so what kind of danger was I in?"

"None… but still..."

"But I'm glad," Hiroki said, looking up. Nowaki resurfaced from his hand, staring at Hiroki in surprise. Hiroki smiled gently, his russet gaze glimmering as he reached up and cuddled the scarf to his face. "I'm glad you love me so much that you would become terrified over something trivial like that. I am truly loved, aren't I?"

"Always!" Nowaki exclaimed in a raspy whisper. "From the moment I saw you, I have loved you more than anything on this planet!"

Hiroki smiled, shutting his eyes and drinking in Nowaki's love. He didn't care about pride or embarrassment at that moment. Only Nowaki.

"I'm so happy," Hiroki said, a joyous blush rising to his cheeks. He opened his eyes slowly and outstretched his arms towards his most precious person. Nowaki immediately leapt forward and gathered Hiroki into his arms, holding him tightly.

"I will never lay a harming hand on you again," Nowaki whispered in a frantic voice, burying his face in Hiroki's shoulder. "Please forgive me."

Hiroki giggled lightly and pulled away from Nowaki, holding him gently by the neck, his thumbs grazing over his strong jaw.

"There's nothing for me to forgive," Hiroki said. Nowaki's eyes shut and the crease between his brows faded.

"Thank God," he breathed. Hiroki craned his neck to kiss his fiancé, bringing Nowaki's head down for better access. Nowaki's arms naturally found themselves around Hiroki's waist. Without the obstruction of the baby bump, their bodies could meld together, the curves of their forms fitting together like puzzle pieces.

Nowaki pulled away, tugging lightly on Hiroki's bottom lip with his teeth.

"I… please tell me your hemorrhoids are gone or at least healed enough for us to have sex," Nowaki said sheepishly, shifting uncomfortably. "The last time we made love was… when I proposed to you."

Hiroki laughed as Nowaki pouted.

"The hemorrhoids are gone. Tonight is our last chance for sex, though. Miyagi already booked the flight for Sweden."

Nowaki frowned.

"And…?"

"New Years day," Hiroki said. He reached up to thumb Nowaki's pale lips.

"That's only a week from now," Nowaki whispered sadly. "Can't we have sex on New Years Eve, too?"

Hiroki shook his head.

"We have a lot of work to get done before I leave. Like… passports… migrant papers and everything. We have yet to find a house," Hiroki said. He combed his fingers through Nowaki's hair. "So… tonight will be our last night for sex. Tonight, I want you to give me enough to last until spring. Tonight… I want you to ravage me thoroughly."

Nowaki's eyes widened slightly as Hiroki pulled him in for another kiss. Hiroki pulled away, laughing softly as he caressed the pink blotches that had risen to the top of Nowaki's cheeks.

"Maybe we should open presents first…? You look like you're about to shove me down into the Christmas tree," Hiroki said with a chuckle. Nowaki was silent, and Hiroki narrowed his eyes. "Seriously. You better not."

"Yeah… presents…" Nowaki said dazedly. Hiroki smirked as his idiot fiancé turned on his heel and stumbled back to the couch. He shakily scooped up Fuyumi and cradled her as he sat down on the couch.

"Let me take off my coat first," Hiroki said. He went back towards the door, unbuttoning his brown overcoat, then taking it off and hanging it up on the coat hanger. He glanced back at Nowaki, who was distracted by his snoozing daughter. When Hiroki was sure Nowaki wasn't looking, he primped himself, flattening his hair with his hand and adjusting his white button-up shirt. He stooped down to brush off his jeans.

"Hiro-san?" Nowaki asked. Hiroki jumped.

"Coming," he said. He rushed back to the Christmas tree. He went to the gifts and transferred them to the coffee table. When he finished, he straightened. Nowaki looked up at him curiously.

"Why are you still wearing the scarf? Are you cold?" Nowaki asked. Hiroki gulped and reached up to clutch the scarf.

"Um… yeah… I'm cold. This was supposed to be one of your presents but… I got cold, so I put it on," Hiroki said shakily, blushing furiously.

"Then come sit next to me. I'll keep you warm," Nowaki murmured. Hiroki blushed even harder and padded to the couch. He hesitantly sat beside Nowaki, only three inches apart from him. Nowaki chuckled, moving Fuyumi to the crook of one arm. "Silly… you're not close enough."

Hiroki squeaked as Nowaki's arm snaked around his waist and pulled him closer, pressing him against his fiancé's unbearable warmth.

"Better…?" Nowaki breathed into Hiroki's ear, making him shudder.

"Y-Yeah. Let's get started," Hiroki mumbled. He felt Nowaki's hand on his hip as he bent forward to retrieve a gift. He set it on his lap, then reached for Fuyumi. Nowaki handed his daughter to his fiancé, then took the gift from Hiroki's lap.

"What could it be?" he asked softly. He unwrapped it slowly. He blinked down at the contents of the gift, two thick books. "A Japanese to Swedish dictionary? I understand that, but why are there two?"

Hiroki smiled shyly.

"Open that flat one next," Hiroki murmured. Nowaki set the dictionaries aside and reached out to grab the next gift.

"Oh, this is kind of heavy," he said. He unwrapped it, and out slid a black laptop. He stared down at it, blinking stupidly. "Oh wow, Hiro-san. A laptop… you didn't have to."

"Open it," Hiroki said softly. Nowaki opened it and stared dumbly at it.

"I don't…" he trailed off. Hiroki blushed and pointed to a large, black box on the top of the screen. Nowaki inhaled shakily. "Oh… it has a webcam."

"And a built-in microphone. They're quality, too," Hiroki murmured. "So we can video chat, like you said. We can teach each other Swedish on video chat together… that's why I got two dictionaries."

Nowaki turned to Hiroki, a gentle smile on his face.

"I love you," he whispered. He leaned forward, and Hiroki leaned away, guarding his lips with his free hands.

"No kisses until you open all of your presents," Hiroki said. Nowaki pouted and turned to the three presents still sitting on the coffee table. He leaned forward hurriedly and grabbed another. He unwrapped it, revealing a box. He opened the box and peered inside.

"Oh, Hiro-san," Nowaki cooed. He lifted a black overcoat with bulky silver buckles on it out of the box. "This is even better than my old one!"

"Idiot," Hiroki grumbled. "It's just a coat."

"But you chose it for me, so I'm happy," Nowaki said, playfully leaning against Hiroki as he cuddled the coat. Hiroki's cheeks nearly burst into flames.

"Y-Yeah. Just keep opening presents."

Nowaki set his new coat aside and leaned forward once again to grab another present. He unwrapped it, but froze as he saw the picture on the box of the gift he had unwrapped.

"…Video camera?" he asked slowly. He excitedly turned to Hiroki. "Are you going to let me video record you touching yourse-"

"Absolutely not," Hiroki growled immediately. He sighed, then glanced at Nowaki. "You're not going to be there for some of Fuyumi's most important firsts. Like her smile, laugh, the first time she rolls over and stuff like that… so when I'm in Sweden, I'm going to record Fuyumi as much as possible and capture all of her firsts on camera. I'll set up a live feed to that laptop that you got… so you can view it live. If you're busy, it'll record so you can watch it later."

Nowaki stared down at the video camera in his lap, his eyes shining.

"Thank you. Thank you so much, Hiro-san," Nowaki whispered. He looked up, his smile wavering. Hiroki grinned back at him, shrugging.

"Whatever. Just open your last present."

Nowaki leaned forward to pick up the last present, which was the smallest.

"Okay… this isn't much of a Christmas present, really," Hiroki said shyly, his heart pounding as Nowaki slowly unwrapped it. He opened a little box, revealing a folded slip of paper. Nowaki furrowed his eyebrows, slowly taking out the piece of paper and setting the small box down. He unfolded it and read it. His fingers quivered, and when he finished, he flapped his lips speechlessly.

Before Hiroki could register what was happening, he was pushed onto the armrest of the couch and kissed by frantic, desperate lips. He growled into Nowaki's mouth in protest, holding Fuyumi out of the way of Nowaki's crushing body.

The paper Nowaki had read fluttered to the floor.

'I want to get married as soon as you get to Sweden.'