"Oh, the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow
Man it doesn't show signs of stoppin'
And I brought me some corn for poppin'
The lights are turned way down low
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow
When we finally kiss good-night
How I'll hate going out in the storm
But if you really hold me tight
All the way home I'll be warm..."
The delicate sound of Christmas music drifted down the lone hallway. The bitter cold remained locked outside the brick walls as the heater blared on full blast. A hint of gingerbread and cinnamon roamed freely around the kitchen.
As long last, Christmas has finally arrived.
It has been two months since their initial meeting, and a little over a month since they moved in. Even with the confusing adjustments and unanswered questions, there was still much to celebrate.
While the holiday season was upon them, Tenko and Touya weren't really expecting anything when they woke up that morning. It wasn't hard to see that Jiro had some money issues since he hasn't been keeping up with his deadlines. The amount he did manage to gain was all spent on food and clothing for them.
You could only imagine the look of shock on their faces when they were welcomed with a small number of presents under the tree. Even if it was only a few, it was more than enough for both of them to grow tears in their eyes.
Large smiles grew on their faces as they rushed towards the brightly decorated Christmas tree. The phone in Jiro's hand was just quick enough to catch the childish wonder in their eyes.
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A loud yawn passed through Jiro's lips. Never in his life did he believe he would be decorating a Christmas tree at four in the morning, but here he was! Eye bags so dark they could pass as designer. But for some reason the lack of sleep didn't bother him. Not in the least.
In fact, he could barely contain his excitement as he looked at all the gifts he tucked away. He had to admit he wasn't completely thrilled about not being able to spoil them the way he wants, but there was only so much he could handle on such a short budget. Hopefully it would bring a smile to their faces, that is all he wanted.
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After a second of just standing in awe at the huge tree in front of them, the two wasted no time as they charged to their presents. Tenko was the first one to begin ripping open the wrapping paper. This action alone was enough to make Touya pause for a second. It just hit him; how much they've changed. Before Tenko would think twice before touching something, but now he doesn't even hesitate. Even he changed, he used to always be on edge and push himself to the fullest just in hopes for a shred of validation. Yet now he could do what seemed like the bare minimum in his mind but still get praised. It was a strange feeling. But not bad in the least.
"Gloves! Gloves! Gloves!" Tenko squealed out in excitement. A pair of small blue artist gloves rested in a mess of torn gift paper. The five-year old could barely contain his joy as he rushed to pull them on.
Seeing as how the child kept putting the wrong finger in the glove Jiro rushed to help. "Hold on now! Let me help you before you hurt yourself silly!" He gently teased as he delicately pulled the glove over his hand. "There! They don't look half bad if I say so myself!" Admiring his work, Jiro backed off slightly as Tenko stared and stretched his fingers.
Laughing quietly at the sight, Jiro glanced back at Touya to see how he was doing. The pre-teen was too caught up in his thoughts as he stared at his gift that he didn't even feel the e/c eyes watching him. His hands hesitated to pick up the box in front of him, almost as if it would break in his grasp. Touya may not know a lot about electronics, but he knew a laptop wasn't cheap. Was it really okay for him to accept it? What if he accidently broke it?
Carefully, his hands held the box close to his lap. Not even daring to break the seal, he just stares at it with wide eyes.
Jiro's lips curl into a knowing smile as he ruffles Touya's hair. "I thought you might want to go back to school full time, obviously you don't have too but you seem anxious without anything to do." Rubbing the back of his neck, Jiro shrugged slightly disappointed in himself. "I know it isn't the newest model or anything, but I think it would be a good start..." he began to trail off before a pair of arms wrapped around his neck.
"Thank you," Touya's voice came out as a whisper as he hugged Jiro tightly. Not even Touya was sure what he meant by it. But if he had to answer, he'd say everything. Thank you for not only taking them in but allowing them to be children.
L/n rubbed Touya's back as he hugged him back. "You're welcome, it's what family does."
The rest of the day seemed to go by in a blur. While Touya and Jiro had their little moment, Tenko didn't even bat an eye as he tore open the rest of the presents he had. He now had a bucket full of crayons and markers that he was free to draw whatever he wanted with. There was even a small stuff animal for him. The pink moth rested safety tucked under Tenko's arm the rest of the day. Every once and awhile the young boy would outstretch the moth's wings and admire its softness. Jiro recalled how much the boy liked the movie Mothra and spent eternity searching for a moth plush, only to find one that he thought would be perfect.
After taking a moment to compose himself, Touya opened his remaining gift. He wasn't sure what he would have expected, but a box of Legos was not on the list. The large box would take him days if not weeks to put together! He couldn't even recall even asking for them in the past. When he tried asking Jiro about them, the male only shrugged and stated that every child deserves at least one toy. The young boy could only smile to himself as he held the box of Legos close to him. He finally found the word for what he was feeling. Home, he was home.
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Jiro gently pulled the blanket over the two sleeping boys before making sure the moth was secured in Tenko's arms. He could only imagine the horror of what would happen if Tenko accidently dropped Eilir, the name Tenko decided on for the moth, on the floor and couldn't find him. It took nearly the strength of an army to convince Tenko that he didn't need to sleep in the gloves, but every time he'd argue that he wanted to. Seeing as how it wasn't because he was scared of his quirk but just liked the gift, Touya and Jiro finally caved. How could they say no when Tenko was giving him the best puppy eyes he could muster?
The kid was a weapon of war they swore. Seriously, he could probably turn tides with one please.
Flickering his sights on the two one last time, Jiro closed the door behind him. His hand remained on the doorknob as he stared at his now silent apartment. The silence felt foreign now. After years of being alone he never would've thought that his dead life would turn into something so bright.
Don't get him wrong, he would do it all over again if it meant he could tuck them into a comfortable sleep at least one. But Jiro couldn't help but worry. Was he doing the right thing for these kids? Was raising them on his own and not trying to find their families? Morally he wanted to say yes until his throat hurt, but he knew legally this wasn't the right thing.
Letting out an aspirated sigh, he runs his hand down the front of his face. "No use questioning it now Jiro, you already know you wouldn't have the heart to leave these kids. I'm sure they'll decide what they want when they're older." He whispered to himself before pushing himself off the door.
He cleaned the apartment in silence, not daring to allow his thoughts to roam.
A very, very late Christmas special.
But at least I finally wrote something :D in the last chapter it mentioned how Touya never called Endeavor's house home so COUGH COUGH.
Anyway
I'm writing a demon slayer book too, I haven't read the manga in years so we're going with my own version of it
I begin college at the end of August and I honestly don't know what that means for my writing, but I hope you'll stick around till the end :)