Fanfiction - Hidden Jumpers, Christmas Thumpers (Part 3)
Title: Hidden Jumpers, Christmas Thumpers (Part 3) - Round and Round and Round it goes.
Author: crazy_otaku911
Pairing: ten!JUMP gen || Bits of Yabu/Takaki and Yuto/Yamada (...well, more than a bit in this one.)
Rating: PG
Summary: Two concerts in a row are exhausting but the boys are still excited for the gift exchange and other little Christmas things. Yamada likes cookies, Yuto likes Yamada, and short boys dislike their stature.
Disclaimer: This work is purely fiction.
Warnings: Uhm...
A/N: Beta'd by hotfruits ♥ For littlemelonblue
I think the timeline still works... Right? RIGHT!? Getting this posted before anything happens. xD Omg. Just. LOL. THIS IS SO STUPID AND FLUFFY, IDEK.
By the time the last concert came to an end, they were all pretty spent. They made their way to their hotel rooms, splitting off into their own ones.
“Shower and change and then get your butts to our room!” Chinen and Hikaru were rooming together, and they'd been sharing far too many mischievous smiles since they'd met up that morning. Yabu wondered if it had to do the the mysterious extra bag Chinen had brought with him.
It really had been a full day, but just thinking about what was ahead made them hurry up to shower and change, most of them slipping into the sweats they used as pajamas. Takaki pulled on his own pair of sweats, even if he had no intention of sleeping in them.
Yabu watched Takaki with a smile. Despite all the disappointments, Takaki seemed pretty happy as he towel dried his hair.
That would hopefully make later on in the evening even more perfect than Yabu had imagined.
*
Chinen stepped back to admire his and Hikaru's handiwork. “I think it survived.”
“They're taking so long,” Hikaru groaned, staring at the door from their corner. “It looks empty.”
“I think we'll do this first and then do the exchange, don't you think?” Chinen asked, tilting his head, brushing damp bangs away from his eyes.
Hikaru nodded in agreement right as there was a knock on the door. “Ah, forgot it'd be locked.”
Everyone had managed to arrive at the door at the same time and nearly tumbled in when Hikaru finally got the door open.
He grinned down at the few that had managed to fall into a heap at his feet, stepping aside. “Enjoying yourselves?”
“Stuff it,” Takaki grumbled from the bottom of the pile, pouting profusely.
“Ugh, Takaki, your butt is like-oooh,” Whatever Yamada had been intending to say was lost when their eyes all alighted at the corner Chinen was standing in. Or rather, what was occupying it with him.
Standing just as tall as Chinen, looking a littler tattered but pleasant all the same, was an undecorated christmas tree.
“We brought decorations too!” Chinen chirped, pointing to a small box filled with ornaments and another small box filled with tinsel and other odds and ends. “Come on guys, it's Christmas!”
Hikaru draped a bit of tinsel over Chinen's hair, grinning toothily. “It was Chii's idea,” he explained. “He was like 'Zo-my-gosh, Hikaru, Christmas will be ruined!'”
“I did not!”
Keito bit his lip and placed a bauble on a branch. “This makes me think of Charlie Brown...”
“Hey,” Hikaru placed his hands on his hips “My tree does not look that bad.”
Inoo was singing again. “Christmas tiiiiime is heeeere.”
As they busied themselves with the Christmas tree decorating, Yabu watched, placing a few orbs on the tree but mostly stepping aside to give Yuto and Ryutarou room. “You know, they have cookies downstairs,” he said, seeing his chance. “Why don't you guys finish this and I'll go raid them.”
There were a chorus of yes's and Yabu met Takaki's eyes with a smile, blowing a kiss before leaving.
*
Yuto couldn't help but grin at Yamada's enthusiasm with decorating the tree. It took them a moment to realize that it was silly to put all the decorations on when they hadn't even gotten the string of lights on, but it only took a few minutes to strip the tree down and fix it, the lights glowing brightly in multiple colors. And while Yamada wasn't being like Daiki and tossing tinsel over every inch of the tree's branches, every time he would put a decoration on, he'd tilt his head and smile.
It was just such a picture perfect moment, the way Yamada looked with his damp hair and oversized hoodie. Yuto wished he wouldn't look weird if he got his phone out.
“Daikiiiii!” Chinen's voice squalled above the softer conversations. “You can't hog the stupid tinsel, now gimme!”
“If it's so dumb, why do you want it?” Daiki asked cheekily, holding it up as high as he could. “Tell me what you got Ohno-kun for Christmas.”
Chinen gave him a withering look before bouncing on the balls of his feet. It only took a quick jump for him to snatch the container of tinsel out of Daiki's hand. “You're not tall, Daiki,” He scoffed. “And I'm not going to tell you, okay? It's a surprise.”
Daiki huffed, turning away as Inoo and Hikaru collapsed in laughter. Chinen smiled smugly, turning to drape a bit of tinsel over Ryutarou's shoulder. “C'mon, help me put the rest of this on.”
Ryutarou grinned, tossing some at Chinen. “I don't think this tree'll look very green by the time we're done with it.”
Takaki tilted his head as he placed a reindeer ornament near the top of the tree. “Funny that Kouta's not here yet. You'd think that it'd be easier to get a dozen cookies...”
“Maybe he's getting extra for Santa,” Inoo suggested. “Or maybe he's creepering on elves, who knows with Yabu.”
As if on cue, the door to the hotel room swung open and Yabu stood there, a plate piled with cookies in one hand, a carton of milk in the other. “Kobayashi-san had this,” he explained. “But you'll all have to share, cause there's no cups.”
Handing the load off to Yuto, Yabu grinned. “Ne, Yuuyan, can you come here?” He glanced at the rest as he tugged Takaki out of the room. “We'll be back in a bit, okay?”
Hikaru let out a wolf-whistle. “Let me guess, you're going to drag him under the mistletoe and snog for hours.”
“Oh, ho, the mistletoe, hung where you can see~,” Inoo hummed under his breath. Yabu rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out.
“Like I need mistletoe to kiss my boyfriend,” he shot back before shutting the door, drawing Takaki down the hallway to their room. “Okay now, you have to close your eyes, Yuuyan. You can't see.”
Takaki frowned in confusion, but closed his eyes anyways, even allowing Yabu to cover his eyes with a hand, 'just in case'.
“And since I've got you like this...” Yabu mumbled almost inaudibly before kissing Takaki soundly, position slightly awkward because he had his hand on Takaki's eyes. But the kiss was just as warm and sweet as ever and he regretted having to pull away, guiding Takaki to the bed where his laptop sat open, waiting.
“Merry Christmas, baby!” The voice that spoke wasn't Yabu's and Takaki jerked in surprise. It was his mother's. Yabu finally pulled his hand away and Takaki stared down at the screen of Yabu's laptop. Crowded on the screen, beaming and waving, was his family.
“Oh...” He said faintly, sitting down on the bed, speechless. “I...”
Yabu kissed his forehead, finger waving at Takaki's family. “I'll leave you guys alone. Take your time, but don't forget we have to exchange gifts before Daiki passes out, kay?”
Takaki just gave him a watery smile, nodding before pulling the laptop closer. “Hi Mama...”
Smiling wider than ever, Yabu excused himself, pulling his phone out once the door was shut. When the line picked up, he grinned. “Hey Mom, it's Kouta~. Did you like my present?”
*
“You know,” Inoo said, licking his fingers. “Those are pretty good cookies for store bought.”
“I love chocolate,” Keito laughed, snagging the milk carton. “Mom used to make the best chocolate chip cookies. I bet I could still make them too, I remember the recipe.”
“I demand a batch when we go home,” Hikaru bumped shoulders with him before turning to the rest. “Now guys, don't forget to save some for K-- Why are there no cookies?”
They all stared at the empty plate and then Yamada, mouth full, flushed guiltily. “Oh my god, I'm sorry,” he said after swallowing, beet red. “I didn't even think of that, they were just so good...”
They all burst out laughing and Ryutarou beaned Yamada with a pillow. “Piggy.”
“Not!” Yamada launched himself at Ryutarou. “Says the stupid hamster boy!”
“Not stupid!”
“Hamster boy!”
“Arrrrgh!”
Yabu and Takaki entered the room, holding hands. “... Well, it's nice to see everything's still intact,” Yabu said finally, glancing from the crowded beds that had been pushed together to the sparkling tree. The tree lights cast a soft light over the room, breaking up the monotony of the yellowed lamp lights and he noticed that minus the presents he and Takaki were holding, there was a small pile underneath the tree's fake branches.
“There's no cookies for you,” Chinen stated. “We're having domestic battles between cookie-loving omnivore and old-man hamster.”
“I am not an old man!” Ryutarou chucked a pillow at Chinen next.
Laughing, Yabu and Takaki joined them on the beds. “Okay, okay. Let's start this gift exchange. How do we want to do this?”
“H-height order, tallest last,” Yuto squeaked, feeling a surge of panic. Yabu gave him an odd look before shrugging.
“Okay. Why not?”
“I hate you, Yuto,” Daiki muttered under his breath, looking scandalized.
Chinen didn't seem to mind as he selected his present, a prettily decorated envelope that had been tucked in the tree branches. Trotting back over to the bed, he promptly crawled onto Inoo's lap, giving him the envelope and a big hug. “Here you go~.”
Letting Chinen snuggle on his lap, Inoo slipped a finger under the envelope, carefully opening it and unfolding the similarly brightly decorated stationary. “One full treatment spa day at your leisure for one Inoo Kei. Love, Chinen Yuuri.”
“I thought of getting you something practical and useful,” Chinen told him with a smile. “But if you get too practical and useful, you stop being fun. And I'm going with you.”
Laughing, Inoo hugged Chinen close, kissing his cheek. “You're the best, Chii.”
Yamada and Daiki gave each other intense looks before Yamada slipped off the bed. He was pretty sure he was still the shorter one of the two, he just didn't think it was that much.
With his present in hand, he climbed back on the bed, refraining from climbing into the lap of his recipient. Mostly because that was such a Chinen thing. Also, Yabu would do that not quite pouting but upset frowning at him.
“I hope you like this,” he said, handing his present over to Takaki.
Unlike Inoo, Takaki happily ripped the wrapping off the box, sticking the bow on the top of his head as an afterthought before tugging the flaps open.
There was a card on top, and once he pulled that away, nestled carefully in soft material was a snow globe, snow floating around the center, which was a blue and green, beautifully painted earth. He shook it, letting the snowflakes swirl around as he read the card.
“Dear Yuya. I know you've always wanted to travel the world, but I hope this will do for now. I hope you don't mind that I also got your dog a present. Love, Ryousuke.” He blinked, looking down at the box. “Dog?”
Yamada grinned, pulling the material out of the box. “You guys can match!” He laughed, holding up two separate jackets. One was just the right size for Takaki. The other one was much, much smaller; just the right size for a small chihuahua.
As Takaki squealed and glomped on Yamada, Daiki slid off the bed to retrieve his present, which was a thin envelope like Chinen's had been. He moved over to Ryutarou, grinning before offering him the gift.
Ryutarou had three guesses. Cash, gift card, or maybe the cruel joke of nothing. (He discounted the last one because Daiki was not Shintarou and therefore not half as evil.)
He was wrong on all accounts and thoroughly confused when he opened it up and slipped out a picture of... his hamster.
“What?”
Daiki burst out laughing. “Sorry, I had that picture on hand... well, and it worked.” He ruffled Ryutarou's hair. “I'm buying you a hamster.”
“... What?”
“A new hamster for your hamster!” Daiki exclaimed. “Your mom said it was okay. And I would have bought it already, but I figured you'd want to pick it out... I wasn't sure if you would be okay if I relied on Shin-chan's judgement.”
Ryutarou was torn between excitement and dry amusement and settled for throwing his arms around Daiki as a thank you.
He had to pull back though, because he was next. Grinning sheepishly, he handed Keito over his gift. “I figured it was something you'd have fun with Yuto or something.,” he explained as Keito unwrapped the three video games he'd bought.
Keito laughed and gave him a hug. “These are great, Ryu. I was actually wanting this one, but I kept on forgetting.”
Ryutarou refrained from commenting that it was actually Shintarou's idea. Keito seemed genuinely pleased with the gift and that relieved Ryutarou quite a bit.
There was some various bickering about who went next because Inoo insisted that it wasn't his turn but Hikaru was pretty sure Keito wasn't next. Keito, gentleman that he was, decided to go next anyways. With no present on hand, he boffed Hikaru with a pillow. “Hikaru~ Dad says I can take you with us the next time we go to England and our schedules work out.”
He would have said more, but Hikaru was already smothering him, flailing around and declaring that Keito was his one true love and he was never going to let him go.
“You're hopeless,” Keito laughed once Hikaru was finished, trying to flatten his now rat nested hair.
Hikaru just grinned profusely as Inoo got up and and selected his package. Trotting over to Daiki, Inoo made a show of trying to crawl onto Daiki's lap before settling at his side. Smiling, Daiki started tearing the wrapping out. The first thing he noticed is that he had two gifts.
The second thing he noticed was that the first gift was a book titled 'The Short Book: Tall Stories, Freakish Facts, and the Long and Short of Being Small in a Great Big World.'.
“Inoo Kei~!” Daiki yowled and Inoo shot across the bed, escaping the smack Daiki had been sending his way. “You! It's not funny!”
He was the only one though, as everyone else burst out laughing. He grumbled, shooting them all a disgruntled look before the book slipped and he realized there was still a second gift.
Inoo was instantly forgiven as Daiki realized he'd also given him a variety pack of all his favorite chips. “Yesssss.” He sighed happily, popping a bag open and stuffing a chip in his mouth. “Thank you, Kei.”
Hikaru looked put out at Inoo. “How dare you,” he told him as he picked up his gift and pulled Chinen onto his lap.
Inoo shrugged. “Not my fault.”
Chinen pouted, already realizing exactly what that had to mean. And sure enough, when he peeked in the gift bag, the bottle inside was labeled 'Herbal Fushion' with the tag line of 'Ginger-Jasmine - to promote healthy growth'. “Guuyyyys, I can still grow on my own.”
Hikaru snuggled him a little closer. “If it makes you feel better, there's still more in the bag besides tissue paper.”
Chinen squealed happily as he reached in and pulled out three different fashion scarves, one of them being the one he'd been wanting for ages, a black one with silver stars. “Hikaru, this is awesome~!”
“See?” Inoo pointed out. “Neither of us are that mean.”
Takaki bit his lip as he got his box. It was slightly larger than the rest and it was obvious that he was feeling nervy. “I... I really hope you like this,” he blushed as he put the box in front of Yabu, shuffling his feet.
Yabu laughed, pulling Takaki down onto the bed next to him. “You think I'd tell you if I hated it?”
“You would, wouldn't you...?” Takaki gave him a worried look. “I tried really hard to think of something else since I already got you one for later and all but--”
Yabu planted a kiss on his cheek. “Shush, I'm sure it's great.”
“If you're done being sappy, I'd like to see what's in there,” Hikaru said pointedly.
Letting Takaki go, Yabu tore the wrapping paper full of penguins and igloos, pulling the lid off the box. There were layers and layers of tissue paper but a card lay on top and Yabu read that first. “Kouta. I love you a lot and I hope you use this throughout the rest of the year and future years when I'm not there to keep warm or make you look good.”
Takaki giggled, hiding his face in a pillow as Yabu playfully whacked him over the head.
Turning back to the gift, Yabu parted the tissue box, pulling out a gorgeous, fitted leather jacket.
“Niiiiice,” Keito whistled as Yabu turned it around, fingertips gently running over the print on the sleeves. It was black, pure, gorgeous black; except for the inscription on the left sleeve. It was his name, embossed on the leather, with the kanji for 'bright hope' below it.
Ignoring any and all reactions for his bandmates, Yabu turned and drew Takaki in for a singularly loving kiss that lasted just a bit longer than either expected but they continued to ignore everyone else as they pulled back. “I love you...”
“I know.” Takaki smiled, biting his lip as he blushed happily.
“Guys, I want to know what happens neeeext,” Chinen's insistent voice cut into the mood and the two broke apart, clearing their throats.
“Right...” Yabu nodded, padding over to the tree and retrieving his present. He plopped himself next to Yuto. “Got these from the tall people's store and I figured it'd be reeeeally hard to mess up on you.”
The wrapping was colorful but there was nothing as colorful as the contents inside. Red, blue, and yellow skinny jeans, all in what Yabu was hoping was Yuto's size, which meant they pretty much went on for forever.
Yuto was esctatic and wanted to try all of them on, but Inoo and Chinen were both yawning and Hikaru and Ryutarou were insisting that he just shut up and give Yamada his present, because he was the only one that was left.
Laughing and trying not to panic, Yuto pushed himself over to the other bed where Yamada was. Nervously fingering the presents, he shuffled the two gifts over to Yamada.
Yamada ripped the wrapping paper off, bits flying through the air as the gifts fell onto the bed. The first item that fell into his lap was a glasses case, decorated purple, crocodile style.
“I know you were complaining about your glasses getting scratched up in your bag,” Yuto muttered, blushing a little.
Yamada grinned up at him, nodding quickly. “Thanks, Yuto~!”
The next present was unwrapped though and Yamada's eyebrows dipped in confusion. “Why... why is this a t-shirt...autographed by Tsuyoshi-san and Koichi-san?” A girl's t-shirt, no less.
“Err...” Yuto blinked, trying to remember why exactly he'd gotten that particular gift. “I... well. Your mom likes them.”
“...” Yamada's frown deepened and Yuto quickly realized that his initial idea probably hadn't been all that intelligent.
“I... ah....” He flailed slightly. “At least she'll approve of me?”
Poor Yamada looked so confused and Yuto felt the words all tumbling out.
“It was a dumb idea, really! I don't know... I just...” Yuto was tomato red and finally gave up on trying to explain it with words, hoping his actions were loud enough. He leaned forward, supporting himself on his palms as he kissed Yamada.
He wasn't sure what he was expecting from that. He certainly hadn't been expecting Yamada to kiss back, though he'd been desperately hoping.
All would have been perfect for that first kiss except Yuto's hands slipped out from under him and he fell forward, knocking Yamada off the bed and tumbling after him, the two of them ending up in a tangle of limbs.
“... Idiot.” Yamada sounded more affectionate than annoyed though and everyone else burst out laughing.
“I was beginning to think he'd never say anything,” Chinen confided in Inoo.
Inoo just shrugged. “Boys are stupid.”
*
Kobayashi found them all asleep, draped over each other and curled up. Most of them were on the bed, but he noticed that Yuto and Yamada were sprawled out on the floor next to a Christmas tree.
He considered waking them and getting them all back in their own rooms, at least because he didn't want them waking up so sore, but he couldn't help but leave them there. They all looked so innocent and happy.
Smiling, Kobayashi shut the door. “Merry Christmas, boys.”
____________________________________________________________________________
A/N: Not exactly my best attempt at a multi-chapter after a year, but hey, I had fun writing it. xD Even if I stressed over details and OMG coming up with that many gifts was kinda hard... Lame, I know, right?
Author: crazy_otaku911
Pairing: ten!JUMP gen || Bits of Yabu/Takaki and Yuto/Yamada (...well, more than a bit in this one.)
Rating: PG
Summary: Two concerts in a row are exhausting but the boys are still excited for the gift exchange and other little Christmas things. Yamada likes cookies, Yuto likes Yamada, and short boys dislike their stature.
Disclaimer: This work is purely fiction.
Warnings: Uhm...
A/N: Beta'd by hotfruits ♥ For littlemelonblue
I think the timeline still works... Right? RIGHT!? Getting this posted before anything happens. xD Omg. Just. LOL. THIS IS SO STUPID AND FLUFFY, IDEK.
By the time the last concert came to an end, they were all pretty spent. They made their way to their hotel rooms, splitting off into their own ones.
“Shower and change and then get your butts to our room!” Chinen and Hikaru were rooming together, and they'd been sharing far too many mischievous smiles since they'd met up that morning. Yabu wondered if it had to do the the mysterious extra bag Chinen had brought with him.
It really had been a full day, but just thinking about what was ahead made them hurry up to shower and change, most of them slipping into the sweats they used as pajamas. Takaki pulled on his own pair of sweats, even if he had no intention of sleeping in them.
Yabu watched Takaki with a smile. Despite all the disappointments, Takaki seemed pretty happy as he towel dried his hair.
That would hopefully make later on in the evening even more perfect than Yabu had imagined.
*
Chinen stepped back to admire his and Hikaru's handiwork. “I think it survived.”
“They're taking so long,” Hikaru groaned, staring at the door from their corner. “It looks empty.”
“I think we'll do this first and then do the exchange, don't you think?” Chinen asked, tilting his head, brushing damp bangs away from his eyes.
Hikaru nodded in agreement right as there was a knock on the door. “Ah, forgot it'd be locked.”
Everyone had managed to arrive at the door at the same time and nearly tumbled in when Hikaru finally got the door open.
He grinned down at the few that had managed to fall into a heap at his feet, stepping aside. “Enjoying yourselves?”
“Stuff it,” Takaki grumbled from the bottom of the pile, pouting profusely.
“Ugh, Takaki, your butt is like-oooh,” Whatever Yamada had been intending to say was lost when their eyes all alighted at the corner Chinen was standing in. Or rather, what was occupying it with him.
Standing just as tall as Chinen, looking a littler tattered but pleasant all the same, was an undecorated christmas tree.
“We brought decorations too!” Chinen chirped, pointing to a small box filled with ornaments and another small box filled with tinsel and other odds and ends. “Come on guys, it's Christmas!”
Hikaru draped a bit of tinsel over Chinen's hair, grinning toothily. “It was Chii's idea,” he explained. “He was like 'Zo-my-gosh, Hikaru, Christmas will be ruined!'”
“I did not!”
Keito bit his lip and placed a bauble on a branch. “This makes me think of Charlie Brown...”
“Hey,” Hikaru placed his hands on his hips “My tree does not look that bad.”
Inoo was singing again. “Christmas tiiiiime is heeeere.”
As they busied themselves with the Christmas tree decorating, Yabu watched, placing a few orbs on the tree but mostly stepping aside to give Yuto and Ryutarou room. “You know, they have cookies downstairs,” he said, seeing his chance. “Why don't you guys finish this and I'll go raid them.”
There were a chorus of yes's and Yabu met Takaki's eyes with a smile, blowing a kiss before leaving.
*
Yuto couldn't help but grin at Yamada's enthusiasm with decorating the tree. It took them a moment to realize that it was silly to put all the decorations on when they hadn't even gotten the string of lights on, but it only took a few minutes to strip the tree down and fix it, the lights glowing brightly in multiple colors. And while Yamada wasn't being like Daiki and tossing tinsel over every inch of the tree's branches, every time he would put a decoration on, he'd tilt his head and smile.
It was just such a picture perfect moment, the way Yamada looked with his damp hair and oversized hoodie. Yuto wished he wouldn't look weird if he got his phone out.
“Daikiiiii!” Chinen's voice squalled above the softer conversations. “You can't hog the stupid tinsel, now gimme!”
“If it's so dumb, why do you want it?” Daiki asked cheekily, holding it up as high as he could. “Tell me what you got Ohno-kun for Christmas.”
Chinen gave him a withering look before bouncing on the balls of his feet. It only took a quick jump for him to snatch the container of tinsel out of Daiki's hand. “You're not tall, Daiki,” He scoffed. “And I'm not going to tell you, okay? It's a surprise.”
Daiki huffed, turning away as Inoo and Hikaru collapsed in laughter. Chinen smiled smugly, turning to drape a bit of tinsel over Ryutarou's shoulder. “C'mon, help me put the rest of this on.”
Ryutarou grinned, tossing some at Chinen. “I don't think this tree'll look very green by the time we're done with it.”
Takaki tilted his head as he placed a reindeer ornament near the top of the tree. “Funny that Kouta's not here yet. You'd think that it'd be easier to get a dozen cookies...”
“Maybe he's getting extra for Santa,” Inoo suggested. “Or maybe he's creepering on elves, who knows with Yabu.”
As if on cue, the door to the hotel room swung open and Yabu stood there, a plate piled with cookies in one hand, a carton of milk in the other. “Kobayashi-san had this,” he explained. “But you'll all have to share, cause there's no cups.”
Handing the load off to Yuto, Yabu grinned. “Ne, Yuuyan, can you come here?” He glanced at the rest as he tugged Takaki out of the room. “We'll be back in a bit, okay?”
Hikaru let out a wolf-whistle. “Let me guess, you're going to drag him under the mistletoe and snog for hours.”
“Oh, ho, the mistletoe, hung where you can see~,” Inoo hummed under his breath. Yabu rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out.
“Like I need mistletoe to kiss my boyfriend,” he shot back before shutting the door, drawing Takaki down the hallway to their room. “Okay now, you have to close your eyes, Yuuyan. You can't see.”
Takaki frowned in confusion, but closed his eyes anyways, even allowing Yabu to cover his eyes with a hand, 'just in case'.
“And since I've got you like this...” Yabu mumbled almost inaudibly before kissing Takaki soundly, position slightly awkward because he had his hand on Takaki's eyes. But the kiss was just as warm and sweet as ever and he regretted having to pull away, guiding Takaki to the bed where his laptop sat open, waiting.
“Merry Christmas, baby!” The voice that spoke wasn't Yabu's and Takaki jerked in surprise. It was his mother's. Yabu finally pulled his hand away and Takaki stared down at the screen of Yabu's laptop. Crowded on the screen, beaming and waving, was his family.
“Oh...” He said faintly, sitting down on the bed, speechless. “I...”
Yabu kissed his forehead, finger waving at Takaki's family. “I'll leave you guys alone. Take your time, but don't forget we have to exchange gifts before Daiki passes out, kay?”
Takaki just gave him a watery smile, nodding before pulling the laptop closer. “Hi Mama...”
Smiling wider than ever, Yabu excused himself, pulling his phone out once the door was shut. When the line picked up, he grinned. “Hey Mom, it's Kouta~. Did you like my present?”
*
“You know,” Inoo said, licking his fingers. “Those are pretty good cookies for store bought.”
“I love chocolate,” Keito laughed, snagging the milk carton. “Mom used to make the best chocolate chip cookies. I bet I could still make them too, I remember the recipe.”
“I demand a batch when we go home,” Hikaru bumped shoulders with him before turning to the rest. “Now guys, don't forget to save some for K-- Why are there no cookies?”
They all stared at the empty plate and then Yamada, mouth full, flushed guiltily. “Oh my god, I'm sorry,” he said after swallowing, beet red. “I didn't even think of that, they were just so good...”
They all burst out laughing and Ryutarou beaned Yamada with a pillow. “Piggy.”
“Not!” Yamada launched himself at Ryutarou. “Says the stupid hamster boy!”
“Not stupid!”
“Hamster boy!”
“Arrrrgh!”
Yabu and Takaki entered the room, holding hands. “... Well, it's nice to see everything's still intact,” Yabu said finally, glancing from the crowded beds that had been pushed together to the sparkling tree. The tree lights cast a soft light over the room, breaking up the monotony of the yellowed lamp lights and he noticed that minus the presents he and Takaki were holding, there was a small pile underneath the tree's fake branches.
“There's no cookies for you,” Chinen stated. “We're having domestic battles between cookie-loving omnivore and old-man hamster.”
“I am not an old man!” Ryutarou chucked a pillow at Chinen next.
Laughing, Yabu and Takaki joined them on the beds. “Okay, okay. Let's start this gift exchange. How do we want to do this?”
“H-height order, tallest last,” Yuto squeaked, feeling a surge of panic. Yabu gave him an odd look before shrugging.
“Okay. Why not?”
“I hate you, Yuto,” Daiki muttered under his breath, looking scandalized.
Chinen didn't seem to mind as he selected his present, a prettily decorated envelope that had been tucked in the tree branches. Trotting back over to the bed, he promptly crawled onto Inoo's lap, giving him the envelope and a big hug. “Here you go~.”
Letting Chinen snuggle on his lap, Inoo slipped a finger under the envelope, carefully opening it and unfolding the similarly brightly decorated stationary. “One full treatment spa day at your leisure for one Inoo Kei. Love, Chinen Yuuri.”
“I thought of getting you something practical and useful,” Chinen told him with a smile. “But if you get too practical and useful, you stop being fun. And I'm going with you.”
Laughing, Inoo hugged Chinen close, kissing his cheek. “You're the best, Chii.”
Yamada and Daiki gave each other intense looks before Yamada slipped off the bed. He was pretty sure he was still the shorter one of the two, he just didn't think it was that much.
With his present in hand, he climbed back on the bed, refraining from climbing into the lap of his recipient. Mostly because that was such a Chinen thing. Also, Yabu would do that not quite pouting but upset frowning at him.
“I hope you like this,” he said, handing his present over to Takaki.
Unlike Inoo, Takaki happily ripped the wrapping off the box, sticking the bow on the top of his head as an afterthought before tugging the flaps open.
There was a card on top, and once he pulled that away, nestled carefully in soft material was a snow globe, snow floating around the center, which was a blue and green, beautifully painted earth. He shook it, letting the snowflakes swirl around as he read the card.
“Dear Yuya. I know you've always wanted to travel the world, but I hope this will do for now. I hope you don't mind that I also got your dog a present. Love, Ryousuke.” He blinked, looking down at the box. “Dog?”
Yamada grinned, pulling the material out of the box. “You guys can match!” He laughed, holding up two separate jackets. One was just the right size for Takaki. The other one was much, much smaller; just the right size for a small chihuahua.
As Takaki squealed and glomped on Yamada, Daiki slid off the bed to retrieve his present, which was a thin envelope like Chinen's had been. He moved over to Ryutarou, grinning before offering him the gift.
Ryutarou had three guesses. Cash, gift card, or maybe the cruel joke of nothing. (He discounted the last one because Daiki was not Shintarou and therefore not half as evil.)
He was wrong on all accounts and thoroughly confused when he opened it up and slipped out a picture of... his hamster.
“What?”
Daiki burst out laughing. “Sorry, I had that picture on hand... well, and it worked.” He ruffled Ryutarou's hair. “I'm buying you a hamster.”
“... What?”
“A new hamster for your hamster!” Daiki exclaimed. “Your mom said it was okay. And I would have bought it already, but I figured you'd want to pick it out... I wasn't sure if you would be okay if I relied on Shin-chan's judgement.”
Ryutarou was torn between excitement and dry amusement and settled for throwing his arms around Daiki as a thank you.
He had to pull back though, because he was next. Grinning sheepishly, he handed Keito over his gift. “I figured it was something you'd have fun with Yuto or something.,” he explained as Keito unwrapped the three video games he'd bought.
Keito laughed and gave him a hug. “These are great, Ryu. I was actually wanting this one, but I kept on forgetting.”
Ryutarou refrained from commenting that it was actually Shintarou's idea. Keito seemed genuinely pleased with the gift and that relieved Ryutarou quite a bit.
There was some various bickering about who went next because Inoo insisted that it wasn't his turn but Hikaru was pretty sure Keito wasn't next. Keito, gentleman that he was, decided to go next anyways. With no present on hand, he boffed Hikaru with a pillow. “Hikaru~ Dad says I can take you with us the next time we go to England and our schedules work out.”
He would have said more, but Hikaru was already smothering him, flailing around and declaring that Keito was his one true love and he was never going to let him go.
“You're hopeless,” Keito laughed once Hikaru was finished, trying to flatten his now rat nested hair.
Hikaru just grinned profusely as Inoo got up and and selected his package. Trotting over to Daiki, Inoo made a show of trying to crawl onto Daiki's lap before settling at his side. Smiling, Daiki started tearing the wrapping out. The first thing he noticed is that he had two gifts.
The second thing he noticed was that the first gift was a book titled 'The Short Book: Tall Stories, Freakish Facts, and the Long and Short of Being Small in a Great Big World.'.
“Inoo Kei~!” Daiki yowled and Inoo shot across the bed, escaping the smack Daiki had been sending his way. “You! It's not funny!”
He was the only one though, as everyone else burst out laughing. He grumbled, shooting them all a disgruntled look before the book slipped and he realized there was still a second gift.
Inoo was instantly forgiven as Daiki realized he'd also given him a variety pack of all his favorite chips. “Yesssss.” He sighed happily, popping a bag open and stuffing a chip in his mouth. “Thank you, Kei.”
Hikaru looked put out at Inoo. “How dare you,” he told him as he picked up his gift and pulled Chinen onto his lap.
Inoo shrugged. “Not my fault.”
Chinen pouted, already realizing exactly what that had to mean. And sure enough, when he peeked in the gift bag, the bottle inside was labeled 'Herbal Fushion' with the tag line of 'Ginger-Jasmine - to promote healthy growth'. “Guuyyyys, I can still grow on my own.”
Hikaru snuggled him a little closer. “If it makes you feel better, there's still more in the bag besides tissue paper.”
Chinen squealed happily as he reached in and pulled out three different fashion scarves, one of them being the one he'd been wanting for ages, a black one with silver stars. “Hikaru, this is awesome~!”
“See?” Inoo pointed out. “Neither of us are that mean.”
Takaki bit his lip as he got his box. It was slightly larger than the rest and it was obvious that he was feeling nervy. “I... I really hope you like this,” he blushed as he put the box in front of Yabu, shuffling his feet.
Yabu laughed, pulling Takaki down onto the bed next to him. “You think I'd tell you if I hated it?”
“You would, wouldn't you...?” Takaki gave him a worried look. “I tried really hard to think of something else since I already got you one for later and all but--”
Yabu planted a kiss on his cheek. “Shush, I'm sure it's great.”
“If you're done being sappy, I'd like to see what's in there,” Hikaru said pointedly.
Letting Takaki go, Yabu tore the wrapping paper full of penguins and igloos, pulling the lid off the box. There were layers and layers of tissue paper but a card lay on top and Yabu read that first. “Kouta. I love you a lot and I hope you use this throughout the rest of the year and future years when I'm not there to keep warm or make you look good.”
Takaki giggled, hiding his face in a pillow as Yabu playfully whacked him over the head.
Turning back to the gift, Yabu parted the tissue box, pulling out a gorgeous, fitted leather jacket.
“Niiiiice,” Keito whistled as Yabu turned it around, fingertips gently running over the print on the sleeves. It was black, pure, gorgeous black; except for the inscription on the left sleeve. It was his name, embossed on the leather, with the kanji for 'bright hope' below it.
Ignoring any and all reactions for his bandmates, Yabu turned and drew Takaki in for a singularly loving kiss that lasted just a bit longer than either expected but they continued to ignore everyone else as they pulled back. “I love you...”
“I know.” Takaki smiled, biting his lip as he blushed happily.
“Guys, I want to know what happens neeeext,” Chinen's insistent voice cut into the mood and the two broke apart, clearing their throats.
“Right...” Yabu nodded, padding over to the tree and retrieving his present. He plopped himself next to Yuto. “Got these from the tall people's store and I figured it'd be reeeeally hard to mess up on you.”
The wrapping was colorful but there was nothing as colorful as the contents inside. Red, blue, and yellow skinny jeans, all in what Yabu was hoping was Yuto's size, which meant they pretty much went on for forever.
Yuto was esctatic and wanted to try all of them on, but Inoo and Chinen were both yawning and Hikaru and Ryutarou were insisting that he just shut up and give Yamada his present, because he was the only one that was left.
Laughing and trying not to panic, Yuto pushed himself over to the other bed where Yamada was. Nervously fingering the presents, he shuffled the two gifts over to Yamada.
Yamada ripped the wrapping paper off, bits flying through the air as the gifts fell onto the bed. The first item that fell into his lap was a glasses case, decorated purple, crocodile style.
“I know you were complaining about your glasses getting scratched up in your bag,” Yuto muttered, blushing a little.
Yamada grinned up at him, nodding quickly. “Thanks, Yuto~!”
The next present was unwrapped though and Yamada's eyebrows dipped in confusion. “Why... why is this a t-shirt...autographed by Tsuyoshi-san and Koichi-san?” A girl's t-shirt, no less.
“Err...” Yuto blinked, trying to remember why exactly he'd gotten that particular gift. “I... well. Your mom likes them.”
“...” Yamada's frown deepened and Yuto quickly realized that his initial idea probably hadn't been all that intelligent.
“I... ah....” He flailed slightly. “At least she'll approve of me?”
Poor Yamada looked so confused and Yuto felt the words all tumbling out.
“It was a dumb idea, really! I don't know... I just...” Yuto was tomato red and finally gave up on trying to explain it with words, hoping his actions were loud enough. He leaned forward, supporting himself on his palms as he kissed Yamada.
He wasn't sure what he was expecting from that. He certainly hadn't been expecting Yamada to kiss back, though he'd been desperately hoping.
All would have been perfect for that first kiss except Yuto's hands slipped out from under him and he fell forward, knocking Yamada off the bed and tumbling after him, the two of them ending up in a tangle of limbs.
“... Idiot.” Yamada sounded more affectionate than annoyed though and everyone else burst out laughing.
“I was beginning to think he'd never say anything,” Chinen confided in Inoo.
Inoo just shrugged. “Boys are stupid.”
*
Kobayashi found them all asleep, draped over each other and curled up. Most of them were on the bed, but he noticed that Yuto and Yamada were sprawled out on the floor next to a Christmas tree.
He considered waking them and getting them all back in their own rooms, at least because he didn't want them waking up so sore, but he couldn't help but leave them there. They all looked so innocent and happy.
Smiling, Kobayashi shut the door. “Merry Christmas, boys.”
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A/N: Not exactly my best attempt at a multi-chapter after a year, but hey, I had fun writing it. xD Even if I stressed over details and OMG coming up with that many gifts was kinda hard... Lame, I know, right?