Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

Warnings: Unbeta'ed

Rating: K+ (doubt that it requests a T)

Genres: Romance/Humor/a (really) tiny bit of Family

Summary: Tsuna has a slip of the tongue. Set between 8YL and TYL after the end of the manga.

A/N: Yeah, I don't really have a summary. Extremely silly. Still hope that it will entertain someone. Please enjoy!

Both Reborn and Tsuna were in the latter's office. The Vongola Don was completing his tremendous paperwork while giving a new mission to the hitman. Tsuna couldn't help but paused in his work, observing how his current-and-sort-of adviser looked at the files he had been given, quietly and efficiently learning everything he needed to know about his target. Even though the brunet hated sending Reborn doing hits, sometimes, he couldn't avoid it. Some people simply refused to accept how Tsuna was changing the Mafia. Those who couldn't be reasoned became quickly dangerous for his family so measures had to be taken.

Tsuna always made a point to personally discuss the matter with Reborn –to ensure that there was really no other choice and to check if Reborn had all cards in his hands before leaving. The hitman belonged to the family after all and Tsuna protected whoever was his even if –like Reborn or Hibari- some of them didn't show any particular desire to be considered as such and valued their freedom over almost everything else. Reborn had been his devilish tutor who had believed him and brought him his family to him. Tsuna considered that he owned the hitman more than his own life.

That wasn't the only reason.

Tsuna cherished Reborn for what he had done, and his feelings had quickly grown from admiration and thankfulness to fondness and love.

Yes, Tsuna held feelings for Reborn for years now.

Of course, he hadn't told anything to the concerned man. Tsuna didn't want to risk losing the friendship they shared. More than anything, the thought of losing any member of his family –death or otherwise- absolutely terrified him. So, he had decided that he wouldn't act on his feelings and entertained the highly improbable hope that his feelings for Reborn would fade away –just like they did for his silly crush on Kyôko-chan.

"This shouldn't be a problem for me."

Reborn's confident voice drew Tsuna out of his thoughts. He lifted his gaze to meet the hitman's onyx eyes, resolutely ignoring the arrogant smirk on his lips.

"That's good to hear." He answered before glancing down at his boring paperwork. "I take it that you don't need anything then?"

Reborn scoffed, folding the file in one of his hands.

"Who do you think I am, Dame-Tsuna?" He retorted, using the old and familiar nickname to irk the Decimo. He turned around –ready to leave- when he remembered the assassination attempt from only a few days ago. "Try not to get killed while I am away."

"Yeah, yeah." Tsuna answered absently and casually, setting aside a report. "Love you too."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he stilled in his chair. Where the heck did it come from? His earlier thoughts had apparently lingered on his mind, transforming his usual "Be careful" into this catastrophe. At the following silence, he just knew that he should have added something –anything, maybe laugh it off or stuck to sarcasm- before it turned so awkward.

Even as Tsuna slowly raised his head, he silently prayed any deity that the hitman had already left before hearing the traitorous slip of his tongue. Unfortunately, his prayers went unanswered.

Reborn stood frozen on his spot, staring intently at him. Their eyes locked and Tsuna completely ceased to breath, trying to read the emotions swirling in these onyx orbs. The atmosphere shifted from awkward to tense, similar to the one preceding a storm.

It was completely shattered when Hayato knocked on the door, calling out softly Tsuna's title. The Guardian opened the door without waiting for a reply, momentarily pausing when he noticed Reborn's presence.

"What is it, Hayato?" Tsuna asked once he recovered his breath, his voice coming out almost even.

Reborn sent him a last glance before swiftly leaving the room. Hayato observed how his boss's shoulders seemed to be stiff.

"Is everything okay?" He asked in concern, dropping the few papers on the desk.

Tsuna closed his eyes and released a deep sigh, looking both nervous and worried.

"Yes, don't worry, Hayato." He finally replied, sending him a soft smile that wasn't really convincing.

Hayato briefly considered pushing the issue but knowing that Tsuna was on the verge of apparently fall into a complete panic frenzy, he wisely chose to drop it. Instead, he pointed to the papers he brought with him.

"There is a request made by the Papavero Family to meet you, Jûdaime." He began to explain while Tsuna quietly read their letter and the information they had on this relatively small Family. "They are actually interested in the perspective of abandoning some of their policies to follow ours. However, they ask for our guidance and some clarifications."

Tsuna hummed thoughtfully. "Basically they wish to form an alliance and stay in our good graces. Well, that is to be expected. Their Family isn't that powerful. If they wish to follow our steps, I don't see why I should stop them."

"When do you want to meet with them?"

"It would be better to see them before the end of the week." The Vongola boss reflected. "I think that I should be able to free Thursday for them."

Hayato eyed in disbelief the different piles of paperwork in front of him, wondering if it was possible to make it disappear in three days.

"Is there anything else I should know?" Tsuna asked then, taking another report.

"No, that was all." His Storm answered, looking at him carefully. "I'll see you later, Jûdaime."

The Don simply smiled, waving at his best friend who left quietly to return to his duties.

For the following days, Tsuna completely drowned in his work to prevent himself from thinking about Reborn and their last conversation. It was the only effective method he knew to keep his mind occupied –well, that and sparring with either Hibari or Mukuro. He still preferred to complete his paperwork since it didn't snap at him neither did it laugh unnervingly at him. Anyway, he gave so much time to it that he rarely went out, only pausing to share his meals with his Guardians. However, his behavior started to worry his Family who barely saw him –kind of missing his attempts to escape his paperwork. They noticed how pale and tired Tsuna suddenly appeared since he didn't allow himself to rest, refusing to let his mind stray.

On Friday, a little before noon, Hayato raised his hand to knock on his boss's office door but stopped half-way. He hesitated for a moment, wondering how he should introduce the subject. He was no fool and knew that whatever affected his best friend found its cause in the short discussion Reborn and Tsuna shared on Monday. He hadn't said anything then and was beginning to regret it. Taking a deep breath, he straightened, determined to help Tsuna.

He didn't have the time to do anything before steps came towards him. Glancing around, he recognized Takeshi who was gazing at him with concern, his smile dropped. Hayato scoffed, easily guessing that the Rain had come with the exact same intention than him.

"Wait, Hayato." Takeshi grabbed his shoulder and the Storm resisted the urge to shrug it off. "He's coming back today."

Hayato merely raised an eyebrow, silently demanding.

"It's probably best if we let the both of them resolve their problem by themselves, right?" Takeshi developed, scratching the back of his head almost sheepishly.

His fellow Guardian huffed, glancing back at the door. He agreed after a moment of hesitation. Tsuna chose this timing to open the door, looking surprised to see the both of them standing there.

"Hayato? Takeshi?"

"Hey, Tsuna!" Takeshi easily grinned. "Want to share lunch with us?"

"Yes, of course." The Don answered with amusement, briefly reminded on how his Rain would ask him to eat with him on the rooftop, when they were still in middle school. "Plus, as amazing as it is, I don't have any paperwork left."

"Great!" His easy-going Guardian commented as they walked down the hallway. "Wish it was always like this, huh?"

"Idiot." Hayato muttered. "Between the Skylark and the Pineapple, it's nearly impossible."

Tsuna winced at the truth of these words. He couldn't help but chuckled fondly though. Yes, his Family was rather destructive but well, they easily made up for that by their sheer warmth and support –even the most violent and twisted of them. His thoughts went back to Reborn and suddenly, he tensed again. He had no idea how he would face him later, when the hitman would be back with his report.

Hours later, after a requested spar with Hibari and a well-deserved shower, Tsuna's steps unconsciously brought him back to the office he hadn't left for the past few days. He stared at the –for once- impressive and well-organized desk, full of completed paperwork. He kind of felt a little bit lost, wondering about what he should do. Maybe he would relax in the gardens for a bit, enjoying the sun and the flowers. He turned around, ready to get outside, when the door opened suddenly. Tsuna instantly flinched away, surprised and half-defensive. He then backed away when he recognized who his visitor was.

Reborn casually walked in, flicking his fedora up. Tsuna took a deep breath, deciding to act like nothing happened. After all, the hitman acted as usual, completely unfazed. Starting to feel a bit silly for worrying about it –for days at that-, Tsuna finally relaxed.

"Welcome back, Reborn." The younger man greeted Reborn, smiling warmly. "You didn't encounter any problem, did you?"

Reborn didn't answer, handing his report to him instead. As soon as Tsuna grabbed the paper, Reborn grasped his forearm. Startled, the Don lifted his eyes up.

"You took your time, Dame-Tsuna."

Tsuna stared dumbly at him for a few seconds before it clicked.

"You knew?!" He exclaimed in shock.

The smirk he received was enough of an answer. He huffed in annoyance, taping lightly his shoulder with his free hand.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Reborn hummed thoughtfully, pulling Tsuna closer to wrap his arms around him.

"And miss your romantic and passionate confession?" He teased, enjoying the sudden scowl appearing on the other's lips. "It was probably the most casual and out of the blue confession I've ever received."

Tsuna flushed, burying his face in his hand. "S-Shut up."

Instead of receiving the thwack on his head he expected, a chuckle was heard, causing him to lift his eyes up. The arms around him shifted swiftly, swirling him and pressing him against the locked door. He let out a startled sound that was immediately muffled by Reborn's lips. Completely taken by surprise, Tsuna almost dropped the report. Closing his eyes, he unconsciously reached with his free hand to grab the jacket in front of him. The kiss was unexpectedly sweet and gentle, void of any aggressive desire. It left Tsuna breathless all the same, shaken by the sheer intensity of Reborn's feelings he could feel in it.

As they broke apart, Tsuna couldn't hide the wide smile on his lips. Then Reborn thwacked him on the head. Hard. Tsuna yelped, instinctively rubbing the sore spot. He stepped away –an instinctive reaction he developed from all the training he suffered from the hitman. He also had a sudden burst of fear each time he heard Reborn saying training and punishment –either they were in the same sentence or not.

Reborn calmly unlocked the door, opening it. Before leaving, he turned around with a sinful smirk.

"Now I'll go take a shower. You're welcome to join me, of course."

Tsuna instantly flushed bright red, watching him chuckle at his innocent reaction and walk away.

"Reborn!"

A/N:

Well, did I mention it was a bit silly?

Thanks for reading! Don't hesitate to point out any mistakes.

Happy Holidays~