Funny story. I had a draft for this with a completely different beginning ready to go, but it just didn't gel with the chapter as a whole. As such, my Christmas present to you is late, and for that I'm sorry.

Still, I hope this finds you safe and I hope you enjoy the chapter.

[- December 23: Evening -]

"She's not gonna text you if you keep looking at your phone."

"Hush. You don't know that."

Morgana rolled his eyes and curled up again, leaving Akira to sit at his desk and stare at his blank phone screen. "I wish I had a phone so I could text you, just to see what happens."

"You can't type with those beans of yours."

"I so can. Gimme your phone, I'll text Makoto to prove it."

"No! Don't jinx it."

"You're such a dork."

Before Akira could agree with the cat's point, his phone emitted a cheerful ping. His screen lit up, and when he looked at it...

Makoto: Are you still up?

"Ha! I knew it."

"Oh, brother."

Akira was about to reply when he felt an odd pressure on his shoulders. His hands froze dramatically. For a moment it felt like the weight of the world was bearing down on him.

Am I really that nervous? No, wait...

On second thought, the pressure felt oddly like a massage. One that was somehow tackling four points at once. Finally, he looked to his right to see none other than Morgana standing on his right shoulder. The cat simply gave him a look that functioned better than any shrug possibly could. "Oi."

"Don't look at me. You're so tense I could probably stack stuff on your back."

"Ha, ha."

He knew asking Morgana to leave him be so he could text Makoto in peace would be folly, so he gave up. Instead, he focused on his phone.

Akira: Yeah.

"Smooth."

"I'm gonna give you your Christmas present a day late."

"I'll be good. Can you warn me if you're gonna type something saucy, though? I don't need to see that."

"You're having way too much fun with this."

Makoto: I forgot to ask if you were free tomorrow. We have the Christmas party all planned out with everyone else, but…

I guess I just wanted to have you to myself for a bit before that.

"I feel like I shouldn't be reading this."

"Uh-huh."

"Okay, one more sentence. Go on, say something."

"..."

Akira: I told Sojiro to spend tomorrow with Futaba, so I'll be taking care of the cafe.

Makoto: I see. That's sweet of you.

"Ehe."

"Quit looking so smug."

Would it be alright if I came over closer to closing time then?

Akira: Sure.

Makoto: Also…

Akira and Morgana shared a look as the wait for the next line took a little longer than they were expecting.

Would you mind if I spent the night?

Sis already gave me the OK if you're fine with it…

That doesn't mean you have to say yes, obviously!

"...Oh."

"Oooo."

"Hey, what happened to 'one more sentence'?

"I live here too, you know. Don't worry, I'll go hang out with Haru or something."

"Oh...thanks."

"Sure. Now text her back, 'cause I wanna keep reading."

"...Fine."

Makoto: Akira?

Akira: Sorry.

Yes, of course you can. I'd be really happy if you stayed over.

Makoto: Great!

Akira could almost see the smile on her face from how quickly she typed the reply. Morgana rolled his eyes, but any onlooker could tell he was happy for the two. Not that he would ever admit it out loud.

Thank you. I'll probably come over a bit before closing time.

Akira: Okay.

Makoto: I'm looking forward to it.

I'll let you go for now. I have to pack some things for tomorrow.

Good night!

Akira: Good night, Makoto.

"Sheesh. One chat with your girlfriend and someone's all smiles."

"What~? No, I'm not."

Akira had a dopey grin on his face as he slowly stood up from his desk and moved to his bed. Morgana did a remarkable job of keeping his balance on Akira's shoulders until he was close enough to hop onto the mattress. "Oh god, you're even talking with that dumb singsong voice. I gotta tell Ryuji his best friend is lost."

"I dunno what you're on about. I'm cool as a cucumber."

"Ugh, I can't believe you just said that."

[- December 24: Evening -]

Makoto felt a natural smile cross her face as she stepped over Leblanc's familiar threshold. Akira was behind the counter as usual, scribbling something down on a small notepad. In accordance with the holiday, he was wearing a Santa hat that his messy mop of hair still managed to peek out from, and his usual olive apron was replaced by an almost garish red. She took a deep breath and savored the scent of coffee, today tinged with a bit of peppermint, before she finally addressed Akira. "Hi, Akira-kun."

"Hey, welcome. You picked a good time."

She sat at the counter, second seat from the right as always. Over time, this particular spot had become her favorite. Akira would almost always be nearby when he wasn't taking calls or ringing up a customer. When he was, she was just far enough away that he wouldn't get distracted. "Cocoa?"

"Thank you. Where's Morgana?"

"Ah, he...graciously decided to leave the place to the two of us today."

Akira placed a steaming mug of cocoa in front of her and squeezed her hand for a moment before pulling away. Anyone who wasn't paying attention wouldn't have seen the gesture. Makoto smiled and used the same hand he had touched to pick up the cup. When he spoke again, he did so quietly, as not to disturb the other customers. "It's almost closing time. Just letting whoever's left take as long as they need."

A quick glance let Akira see the medium-sized duffel bag Makoto hanging across her shoulder. "You can leave that upstairs if you want. I'd carry it for you, but I can't really leave the counter unattended."

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'll bring it up after I sit for a little bit."

"Sure. Let me know if you need anything."

Makoto answered with a smile and left him to his devices. She had been around for closing time long enough to see that he was taking his time readying the place to close for the night. Akira worked quietly; he didn't want the remaining few customers to feel like they needed to rush and leave. A solid half hour passed with this comfortable silence.

Makoto had excused herself to head upstairs as the last of the customers for the night filed out of Leblanc, both as an excuse to put down her bag and give Akira time to finish closing up. It had been a while since it was just the two of them rather than a group meeting, but it was sort of comforting to see that the place looked the same as always. As she studied the familiar souvenirs that decorated the shelf, she let her mind wander a bit.

Sure, she had been planning on staying over, but that meant she would have to go home and get the present she prepared for him the next day.

That was fine.

Then she would probably have to endure an interrogation from Sae about just what she and Akira were up to the night before.

Slightly less fine. Speaking of which…

What were they going to do? Makoto felt her face heat up a bit at the thought. "Get it together, Makoto…"

"All done."

"Ah."

It was telling of what Akira had picked up from his time as a Phantom Thief that the stairs didn't let the slightest creak as he made his way up the steps. "Ah, right. The bathhouse is still open if you need to shower or anything."

"Right. I think I'll go ahead now, then."

"Sure. I'll have dinner ready for when you get back."

[- Later -]

Two empty plates lay forgotten on Akira's desk as the two sat on the edge of Akira's bed. There was probably a plan somewhere in Makoto's head for how the night was supposed to have gone, but those had gone out the window. Instead, he had happened to sit next to her and she had happened to kiss him. It was short, chaste even, but it lit a fire in their chests.

Makoto lay back on Akira's pillow and took Akira's hand in hers. She wore a small smile on her face as Akira loomed over her as she simply said, "Hey."

"Hey…?"

She said nothing more, just pointed at the ceiling as her smile seemed to take on a cheeky undertone. Akira raised an eyebrow but complied nonetheless, turning his head to see…

How odd. A sprig of mistletoe was hanging from one of the beams, a few feet above the bed. So maybe Makoto hadn't thrown all her plans out."How did that get there?"

"I wonder…"

Akira looked back down at Makoto, who was laughing despite an increasingly intense blush on her face. He shook his head with a smile and leaned down, kissing her jaw, then her cheek, then finally claiming her lips. The mattress whined a bit in protest when their combined weight edged it ever so slightly closer to the floor. While the kisses they were sharing had started out gentle, almost inquisitive, Makoto felt an urge to push Akira, just a little. She raised her head to meet him a little more and tilted it slightly to deepen the contact. Akira took it in stride, adjusting his legs a bit so she would have room to move. She tried to brace her hand on his chest, but he pulled it off and pressed it into the mattress. It was with just enough force to take control of the pace, but gentle enough that she could break his grip easily. She elected not to, making a little noise of contentment that would surely echo in his head for a long time. They said nothing, just sharing kisses both long and short for the next few minutes. When they finally parted, they were both breathing just a little heavier than earlier. The two shared a light, breathless laugh as Akira murmured, "I guess we kinda jumped the gun a little."

"Maybe. I don't mind, though."

"I don't either."

Makoto raised her arms and linked them around the back of his neck, smiling happily at how right the world seemed this night. Akira, seemingly sensing this, smiled gently and reached for the lights before lacing their fingers together and sealing her lips again.

May have rushed this a bit, but I wanted to send this out at least on Christmas Day. It's been a minute since I tried my hand at writing more intimate stuff.

Hope you enjoyed, stay safe and Happy Holidays!