Edited on 26 December 2020.
❤️
The rain has lost the ambient temperature of early fall, freezing and paling everyone's skin on contact. The path through the park was muddy water in motion, filling deep puddles that hid the ruts of dryer weather. To feel it wasn't enjoyment, not fun like the gentle sunshine of springtime, yet it was a part of life, and Momo wanted to feel it just the same. The Takeshita's home transformed into a wonderland of twinkle lights. The smell of gingerbread, honey, wine, and lemon flew around the house like a ghost. Osamu's stomach grumbled every time he and his brother passed it. Mr. Takeshita loved icy months as it reminded him of his home, Ireland.
"Honey! Come down here!"
Momo rushed into the kitchen as her father called her. She tied her hair into a ponytail and looked over his shoulder. He held a large piece of paper in his hands—a plane ticket to Dublin for one person who leaves tomorrow afternoon.
"Oh! Uncle Liam got through with it?" asked Momo, very excited.
"Yes, however, it's only one ticket."
"That's alright," spoke Momo, "it's not the first time I'm going to spend Christmas alone."
Mr. Takeshita wasn't delighted with his daughter. He hated to leave her alone, even if it was only for a matter of seven to ten days. His stepbrother, Liam O'Connor, lived in Ireland, and his yearly present was a plane ticket for his brother to come over and visit him. Momo managed to go over a few times; however, she couldn't join because of her mother in the past years. Yua wanted to spend more time with her and the winter holidays were always open because she didn't have any appointments.
"I know," sighed Momo, "but this year, you aren't even going to your mother's because she will be in the states."
"What is she doing there?"
"I don't know," groaned Mr. Takeshita, "anyhow, are you sure you aren't going to be lonely? I can take some money from your savings and-"
"No, no, no! We need that money to pay for my education!"
"Please," chuckled Mr. Takeshita, "you are going to become a photographer. You won't go to college!"
Momo let her eyes roll around in her head. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and gave her father a grim glance.
"I don't know if I'm going to do that yet," sighed Momo, "maybe I'll just study marketing or something."
"But that's so boring," laughed her father.
The bell suddenly rang, and they glanced at each other before racing to the door. Mr. Takeshita pushed his daughter from the door and tore it open. Suna jumped back when Mr. Takeshita glared into his forest green eyes.
"And how might you be?"
"Dad, let go, for fucks sake!"
Momo pushed her father out of the doorway and flashed an apologetic smile at her friend, who still looked like a startled deer.
"Dad, this is Suna Rintaro, a friend of mine. Suna, this is my dad. Are the others coming as well?
"Others?" asked Mr. Takeshita.
"No, the twins have to clean their bedrooms before they are allowed to leave the house," said Suna.
"Well, I guess it's just us then. Let me get my shoes, and we can go."
"Go where? Honey!"
"My god, dad! I told you that I'd be hanging out with friends today!"
"You failed to mention that all your friends are male!"
"Does that matter?"
Mr. Takeshita threw his hands into the air, and angrily walked away. Suna didn't say anything and watching with his tired eyes how Momo pulled her shoes on a yanked a long coat from the door before joining him outside.
"Sorry about that," laughed Momo when they left Momo's street.
"Don't sweat it."
The two of them walked in utter silence. While Momo gathered her thoughts on games she would want to play, Suna spent the time daydreaming. Since it was the first day of their winter break, the couple had more than enough time to play.
"Is it alright that we are going to your place?" asked Momo.
Suna glanced at her and shrugged his broad shoulders.
"I don't care where we play," sighed Suna.
Momo felt herself overthinking about the matter too much. She knew, at least she hoped she did, that Suna would be honest with her and let her know if he didn't want to spend the game night at his place. The twins suggested going to his home as he owned nearly all of their favorite games. After a short walk, they arrived at his apartment.
"Mom! I'm home!" yelled Suna.
He closed the door while Momo took off her shoes. She glanced around the clean white halls. There were a few pictures on the walls, but none of them showed his family. He and his family lived in an apartment approximately twenty minutes away from Momo's place. The floor plan was very open, with only four doors. Mr. and Mrs. Suna sat in the living room when Suna and Momo entered. Suna was an image of his mother. The two had soft, deep black hair and eyes as green as the Amazon. Momo gasped as his father walked towards her. Suna was already half ahead (or more) taller than her, but Mr. Suna had to be a full head taller than she was. Instead of green eyes, he had fiery red eyes and looked at her in astonishment.
"You must be Momo, correct? I'm Yoshi, and this is my wife, Hina."
"Hello, it's very nice to meet you," smiled Momo.
"Let's go."
Suna dragged Momo away from his parents and pushed her into his room. Unlike the rest of the apartment, his room was painted in a dark blue. Neon lights hung on the wall, and a few plants stood in some corner. His desk was filled with books and notes, and his bed wasn't made. The smell of his cologne hit Momo, and she chuckled when she saw his amazing game collection.
"Oy, Rin...I didn't know you had company!"
A small girl around the age of thirteen marched into the room. Her hair was just as dark as his, but she had their father's eyes.
"Asoka! What did I tell you?" groaned Suna.
"Yeah, yeah. I know. Knock before I come in. Who are you?"
"Takeshita Momo."
"Didn't know he had any female friends, or are you his girlfriend?"
"No, no," chuckled Momo, "I'm just a friend."
Asoka let her flaming eyes glance up and down Momo's body. Scratchy shivers ran over her spine, and Momo tried her best not to let her patience run away. Before Asoka bounced out of her brothers' room, she thumped Suna up with an enormous over the top wink. Suna let his eyes roll to the back of his neck as he fell into his bed. Drained and exhausted, his eyes fell shut. His mind completely forgot there was another presence in his room until Momo went through his game collection.
"What do you want to play first? Mario Cart? Super Party? Smash?"
"Don't care," sighed Suna.
"Good to know," exhaled Momo. She grew slightly annoyed with him.
"Mario Cart. I'm Yoshi."
"I wanted to Yoshi, Rin!"
"Rin?" Suna crocked a brow.
"You don't like it?" asked Momo with a gentle smile tugging on her lips.
"No, it's fine."
Momo beamed and placed the CD into his console. He rose from his bed, sat beside her, and took one of the controllers into his large hands. They played a few rounds, Suna winning most of them. Momo couldn't stop smiling when he saw the soft and gentle smirk on his handsome face. His eyes twinkled with excitement, something she never saw before. Suna never seemed more relaxed than in this moment, and Momo was glad she could see him like this. When the sunset behind the horizon, the doorbell rang, and a few seconds later, the twins along with Ginjima busted into his Suna's room. The relaxed and gentle smile vanished from Suna's face, and he glared at his teammates with his classic and loveable deadpan face. Atsumu beamed at Momo and jumped next to her, causing her to fall to the ground underneath him. Momo coughed, and the air in her lungs got crushed by Atsumu's weight. Atsumu didn't care about the questionable glance from his mates as he fell deeper and deeper into pools of grey.
"Uhm, Atsumu? Could you get off me?" asked Momo, her voice low.
Her soft voice rang inside his head, but he didn't move other than brushing a curl out of her beautiful face.
"Atsumu, get off, Momo!"
Suna and Osamu grabbed him by the shoulders and yanked him off Momo, whose cheeks were as red as a rose. Atsumu finally snapped out of his trance and stared at them like a bewildered deer. Ginjima snickered into his chest, and Osamu began to roast him like a pig for dinner. Suna merely glanced at Momo with cold eyes to make sure she was alright.
"You gotta keep it in your pants," hissed Osamu in his brother's ear.
"Oh, shut yer trap! Suna! I'm going to beat your ass in the next round."
"You wish," sighed Suna.
"By the way," said Osamu, "our mother heard that you are spending Christmas alone."
Momo and the other glanced at him in wonder.
"Huh? What are you talking about, Osamu? How did she find out – my dad..."
"Yeah, I don't know when or how," sighed Osamu, "but they got talking, and she nearly had a heart attack when she found out that you are spending Christmas alone. So, like every mother (Momo visibly disagreed), she wanted me to invite you to come over to our Christmas."
Momo turned pink, and she ignored the burning looks of her friends on her head.
"I – uhm – thanks, I guess?"
"You don't seem happy," said Atsumu.
"Oh, no, no! I guess I just grew used to spend Christmas by myself."
"What do you mean you are used to spending Christmas alone? Where are your parents?" questioned Ginjima.
"Well, my mom usually spends her holidays somewhere around the world, and my dad visits his family in Ireland."
"Ireland?" exclaimed Atsumu and Ginjima.
"Yeah, it's kind of complicated," sighed Momo, exhausted.
By the absorbed looks, she knew she had to explain the story. Momo sat herself up and glanced around the room.
"So, my grandfather was Irish. He wasn't the most faithful man and managed to get two girls pregnant at the same time. One of them was my father's mother, Yui. Sadly, she died a few months after giving birth. My father grew up with his stepbrother, Liam, in Dublin."
"How did he meet your mother?"
"My mother, ironically, was part of English and Japanese. She and my father met when they were eighteen, and nine months later, I was born."
"So, you're 50% Japanese, 25% English, and 25% Irish?" questioned Atsumu.
"Exactly," laughed Momo.
"I never knew that," said Osamu, "I mean, it makes sense. You're ginger."
"I know right," chuckled Momo.
Mrs. Suna invited them all to stay for dinner, and Asoka was more than happy to have a new female company on her side. "There are too many guys here sometimes!" She had explained to Momo as they sat down for supper. Asoka and Atsumu acted like a cat and a mouse. They both wanted to sit next to Momo and fought like soldiers in the war. In the end, Osamu and Suna took the seat next to Momo and smirked at their siblings. The rest of the dinner was quiet, and the gang set off to leave around midnight. Momo roamed around her bag and pulled out a package of cigarettes.
"You're smoking again?" asked Atsumu, angry.
"You got a problem with that?"
A cigarette dangled between her lips when Osamu decided that third-wheeling wasn't for him. Momo searched for her lighter when the cigarette was pulled from her lips. She glared at Atsumu, who threw the toxic drug away.
"What did you do that for?" snapped Momo.
"Do you know how bad smoking is for your lungs!" barked Atsumu at her face.
"I know how bad it is, but I don't care!"
"Why do you even smoke?"
"It's called an addiction."
Burning rage hissed through their bodies like deathly poison, screeching a demanded release in the form of unwanted violence. It was like a volcano erupting, fury sweeping off them like ferocious waves. The wrath consumed like, engulfing their moralities and destroying the boundaries of loyalty.
"You are killing yourself!" yelled Atsumu.
"Since when do you care about this sort of stuff?"
Atsumu really lived in anger, almost as cartoon characters do, so lost in that moment and the torment his brain was in. In his eyes, she saw it first, then the tension of his muscles, an inability to think clearly soon followed. The rare rational Atsumu was offline, and the primitive Atsumu who reverted to his old habits was in the room. Suddenly his liberal opinions were gone, his ability for nuance and emotional generosity were gone too. His fists would stay firmly by his sides, yet his words did more damage than they ever could.
"Because you are my friend!" lied Atsumu.
"Oh, don't give me that bullshit! You don't know a single thing about me!"
Momo's face was red like a tomato, and her hair fell all around her head. She didn't care about the danger she slowly dived into or the burring heat in her stomach. She could only see his golden eyes and shimmer on his parted lips.
"Well, it's not like you know much more about me!" hissed Atsumu back at her. A deep, atypical chuckled rolled off her lips.
"Your birthday is on the fifth of October. Your favorite food is fatty tuna. The first time you saw a horror movie was when you were twelve, and you pissed your pants! Sometimes you sing while you study because it calms you down!"
Atsumu wasn't sure how to react to her answers. He didn't even remember when he told her about all these things, and he was sure Osamu gave up a few of his secrets. There was only one logical thing for him to do now. He bent down, his lips against her heated cheek, brushing it lightly – and still, that light touch sent shivers through her nerves, shivers that made her whole body tremble.
"You were five when you took your first photo," breathed Atsumu, but Momo couldn't understand a word. She knew he was talking as his lips moved in front of her eyes. When Momo still said nothing, he brushed his mouth against the hollow of her temple.
"And you bought your first camera when you were eight. Your father was so proud..."
Again, his lips moved, but not a single sound rang inside her ear. Atsumu traced the line of her cheekbone.
"You don't know how long I wanted to this," whispered Atsumu.
His lips were against hers.
"God, you're so–"
But Momo had reached up and pulled him down to her, and the rest of his words were lost against her mouth. He kissed her gently, carefully, but it wasn't gentleness she wanted, not now, not after all this time, and she knotted her fist in his shirt, pulling him harder against her. Atsumu groaned softly, low in his throat, and then his arms circled her, gathering her against him, and they pressed against each other, tangled together, still kissing. After what felt like hours, they broke apart, gasping for air, sweating, and their hearts racing each other. Neither knew how to address the matter, and neither was able to speak.
"We – uh – we should get inside," breathed Atsumu.
Momo waggled her head, and dizziness overcame her as she agreed with him. Only now did she noticed her package of cigarettes lying on the wet floor. She didn't care about them any longer. She turned to grab them, her hair falling into her eyes when Atsumu grabbed her hands and yanked her back to him. Her whole body tingled. The feel of his frame leaning on hers as his arms wrapped around her felt nearly forbidden. He pulled her in, claiming her mouth again, hungry and intense, until her knees gave in. By the time Momo became aware of her fingers, they had already slipped under his shirt, his skin smooth and radiating heat. Atsumu moaned, low in his throat, when her cold fingers stroked over his abs, making him shiver. Atsumu felt everything around him in a daze. He felt deeper into darkness, moaning low and sucking hard on her lips. He desired her, craved more, needed more, but his body required air to keep his body functioning. They pulled apart, gasping for air as if they had been holding each other's breath for hours.
"We should really...get going..." gasped Momo.
"Mhm," panted Atsumu.