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Chapter Text

"Christmas?"

It was December and the weather was getting colder. The sweaters were out and it seemed like the Christmas spirit was well and truly in the air.

"Yup, it's our last year so we're all thinking of staying back to celebrate together", Akemi said excitedly, while Itome nodded silently alongside him. They were a lot closer after the Cultural Festival, with Akemi somewhat coming to terms with Minami becoming a father.  

"I'm staying here regardless", Shikatani said. It gets pretty cold up in Hokkaido, where he came from. That and he wasn't sure if he was ready to face Shou again. They had made amends during the Cultural Festival and promised to keep in touch, but Shikatani realized that there was still a tiny portion in his heart that still wanted to be a little bit more than 'just friends'. 

"I usually go home to visit my family during this time", Kashima said thoughtfully. He came from a big family and they were all very close knit. "I might have some difficulty explaining to my siblings why I won't be home this year".

"Aww c'mon, it'll be fun!" Akemi pleaded. "I usually go skiing in the French Alps, I'm sacrificing my holiday time too!"

"Hrmph", Tamura snorted, looking a bit disgruntled. "What's so fun about Christmas anyway?"

Akemi looked scandalized.

"Christmas is the best time of the year!" He declared, his blue eyes sparkling. "Eggnog, warm fires, silly sweaters, chocolate log cake... and best of all, Christmas presents!"

The boys stared at each other around the room. Most of them had not engaged in Western-style Christmas celebrations before and the concept was frankly, a bit lost on them.

"The chefs often cook a special meal for everyone staying back during this time of the year," Akemi said. "From what I've heard, it's quite the spread! We can even get some fried chicken delivered to the clubroom just for us too!"

"Fried chicken?" Toono asked incredulously. "I didn't know we had a store nearby. How are you going to get that delivered?"

Itome smiled mysteriously.

"We have a private jet".

That's right, the Itome family are so insanely wealthy that they have a private jet, which they are free to charter whenever they want. Itome rarely used it, but with it being his last year at Mori-mori he thought it might be a good time to milk those benefits.

"Well I'm happy to stay", Toono replied. "Not like I have anywhere else to go".

Kashima stole a look at him quietly. He knew that Toono had some ongoing issues with his family, clearly that had not been resolved yet.

Tamura threw a vibrator across the room at a surprisingly silent figure lying on the couch. It bounced off his head with a dull thud.

"Oi Yuri, are you staying too?"

The pink haired boy looked up, his eyes obscured by his trademark sunglasses. He had been a bit of a forlorn figure after Fujisaki decided to keep his distance from him after the Cultural Festival. Since then, it had been months of working through very confusing feelings within him.

"Stay," he agreed, nodding his head furiously.

"So that settles it!" Akemi announced. "As club president, I declare that we are officially in Christmas season!"

He pulled a party popper that he had somehow procured from one of the many boxes lying in the room. It had certainly been a trying year, especially for Toono. He had grown used to being in the club, and even God forbid, started to feel part of it. The Third Years had proven themselves to be extremely supportive (when they are not trying to convince him to partake in a gang bang) and even Tamura and Yuri had shown that they could be somewhat caring and responsible towards the First Years. 

And of course, there was his fellow First Year club member, Kashima. He made no secret of his feelings and it was starting to weigh on Toono. Kashima had been infinitely kind and patient, but surely this couldn't last forever....

The door to the clubroom opened.

"Knock knock!" a familiar voice sounded out.

The boys turned and gasped; a brown-haired woman with glasses stood there beaming at them. Talk about a sight for sore eyes, it had been months since they had seen her.

"Okada-sensei! You're back!"

Miyu Okada, their English teacher had previously returned to Australia for personal family business. Accompanying her was her boyfriend, Konno-sensei whom she had reunited with after many years apart. 

"Kon and I are back for good now," she advised. "My mother has moved back too and has settled in a new place not too far from here. We will both be back on board in the new school term!"

"Does that mean you will be celebrating Christmas with us then?" Akemi asked excitedly.

Miyu smiled. "Well I guess we are! Have you got anything planned? Parties? Presents?"

She looked at Kashima. "Surprises?"

Kashima's eyes met hers and he blushed. He knew exactly what she was referring to; she had been very supportive of his efforts with wooing Toono. A few things had happened since she took her leave, which somehow discouraged him. Nonetheless, Toono had not made his choice yet and it was very much an even playing field.

He will need to consult a responsible adult for advice.

"Oh, speaking of Christmas", she said, opening a couple of bags that she had brought in with her.

"I come bearing gifts!"

She had brought two bags with her: one was full of Australian snacks and treats and the other was full of souvenir plushies for the boys; there were a few kangaroos, koalas and other exotic animals that they had never seen before. The boys clamoured over one another to claim their item.  

"Is this a hedgehog?" Toono asked, picking up one of the plushies.

"That's an echidna", Miyu replied. "They are native to Australia. They are quite similar to a hedgehog, but echidnas are egg laying mammals!"

Toono stared at his toy intently, the echidna looked kind of cute but it was clear he was a bit disappointed at his choice. Sensing his feelings, Kashima spoke up. 

"Here Toono, I'll trade you my penguin", Kashima offered kindly, handing over his fat penguin plushie. "You like penguins don't you?"

Toono blushed. 

"I..I can't do that!" he sputtered shyly.

"It's no trouble at all", Kashima grinned. "Think of it as my Christmas present to you!"

"What? No way", Akemi protested "You can't just pass off Okada-sensei's present as your gift! You need to buy something for Toono yourself!"

"Hmm, I'm afraid I agree with Akemi-kun", Miyu replied in a serious tone. "Kashima, you'll have to buy Toono a proper present and Toono, you in turn will need to buy one for Kashima too!"

"Hey!" Toono cried out." I never agreed to-"

"Christmas day", Akemi interrupted. "We will all meet here at midday for lunch and exchange our gifts."

Toono groaned in defeat.

*

Later that afternoon, Kashima headed back towards his dorm room. He smiled when he remembered how hard Okada-sensei was working to help him and Toono get together. Kashima and the other boys had been instrumental in helping Konno come to terms with his feelings for Miyu; she would absolutely pull out all the stops to ensure that Kashima too, got the happy ending he deserved.

While he was deep in thought, he bumped into someone. The man he walked into dropped whatever it was he was holding and scowled. Kashima recognized that look immediately, as well as his boyishly handsome face and mop of messy black hair. It could only be-

"Konno-sensei!"

"Kashima!" Konno cried out in exasperation. "Watch where you're going! Were you sleepwalking or something?" It seemed like not even becoming Okada-sensei's boyfriend had quelled his quick temper and sharp tongue. 

"Huh? Oh I was just thinking about Okada-sensei", Kashima started. Konno shot him a glare that could pierce glass before Kashima realized what he had said.

"No no no, it's not what you think!" Kashima replied hastily. "She was just in the club room and... did something really nice for me".

It was now Konno's turn to look distracted. Kashima realized that he wasn't looking or listening to him, instead, he was frantically looking around. 

"Did you see the thing I dropped?" he asked.

"What thing?"

"The-, um, I...I can't tell you", Konno replied shiftily. Kashima gave him a defeated look. 

"Sensei, I can't help you if I don't know what I'm looking for!"

Konno's face blushed. "I....it's erm, well..."

"Ahem!"

Both of them turned as someone cleared their throat. Standing before them were the Third years, Akemi, Itome and Shikatani. For some reason, they all had rather smug expressions on their faces. Konno and Kashima knew that was not a good sign. 

"Looking for this?" Akemi asked innocently, as he tossed a small black box in his hand. 

"Oi, give that back!" Konno yelled as he lunged towards him. Shikatani and Itome grabbed him and held him back as Akemi opened the box. 

"Oooooooh", the boys all gave a collective gasp as they saw the contents of what was clearly, under closer inspection, a jewelry box. 

"Sensei, are you going to-" 

"Yes! Ok great, you got me", Konno admitted, his cheeks flushing. "Way to ruin the surprise, you little shits!"

"But it's still going to be a surprise. Okada-sensei doesn't know this yet, right?" Shikatani offered. 

"I guess not", Konno conceded. "At least, I hope not! It's been so difficult to hide this from her when we basically live together, you know?" 

"Soooo, do you have a plan yet?" Akemi prodded. "When are you going to ask her? How are you going to ask her?"

"I....haven't thought about it yet," Konno admitted. Everyone groaned; it seemed like Konno had not quite learnt the ways of romancing women yet. He broke free from the clutches of Itome and Shikatani and snatched the box back off Akemi. 

"Anyways, why am I talking to you kids about this?" he asked as he turned his back and scurried down the corridor.

"And please don't breathe a word to Mii-chan about this!"

Chapter Text

Christmas fever soon swept through the club and the clubroom was slowly transformed into a festive, winter wonderland. They had procured a small Christmas tree and even a snow machine, which was immediately confiscated because of the mess it made. 

The tree didn't come with ornaments, but the boys were a creative bunch. They spent an entire afternoon decorating it with things they could find around the place. 

The First Years had been taking extra classes that afternoon and missed out on the decoration shenanigans. By the time they walked into the clubroom, the tree was already half decorated.

"Wow, look at that" Kashima exclaimed. The tree was covered with glittery baubles of various colours.

"Why do those baubles look so familiar?" Toono asked. There was something he couldn't quite put his finger on.

They noticed Yuri working quietly in the corner. He appeared to be crafting something with glue, loose glitter and gold cord. Yuri noticed Toono looking at him and he held up a pair or scissors and a string of brightly coloured beads, smiling excitedly.

"Kashima! Don't touch the baubles!" Toono cried out as he finally figured out what they were.

"They're anal beads!"

And sure enough, they were. Yuri had rolled each bead in glitter and attached gold cord to them. 

Kashima laughed. "Hey that's pretty creative!" he marveled as he inspected one of them closely. Toono felt himself turn green. 

"Don't worry, Tamura had a new batch of beads delivered and we used those", Shikatani piped up in his little corner. He appeared to be writing Christmas cards. 

"Did someone say my name?" Tamura asked as he came into the room. He caught side of the tree and immediately recognized the baubles for what they were. His gaze fell upon Yuri, who brandished the scissors and a half-snipped row of beads. 

"OI YOU ASSHOLES!" he bellowed, as he started chasing a cackling Yuri around the room. "GIVE ME BACK MY STUFF!"

As the others laughed at Yuri and Tamura, Kashima came over to Toono.

"Oh Toono, did you hear?" Kashima started.

"Kyousuke is staying back for Christmas too."

Toono kept quiet. Despite them destroying a huge portion of the set for the play during the Cultural Festival, they were able to still put on a performance on the night with the help of everyone in the club. They were able to clean up the set and salvage whatever was left so the play could go on. The performance was a huge success but Toono found himself unable to follow through during the pivotal kiss scene. Nonetheless, Yacchan took it upon himself to show Toono how it's done backstage.

Toono had still not spoken about it to anyone. Yacchan had also not brought it up but there was definitely some tension. He still spoke and interacted with Toono normally enough on a daily basis, but Toono couldn't help but feel confused the entire time. He had thought he would be happier with how things had unfolded; he did find Yacchan cute for the longest time. 

But now that he knew that Yacchan himself was interested....

It had been a very awkward few months between them. 

*

Kashima felt down. He had a strong feeling that something had happened between Toono and Kyousuke, but in true Toono fashion, he had not spoken about it. He thought about asking Kyousuke instead, but he doubted he would have gotten far there too.

He couldn't help but feel that all three of them had drifted apart ever since the Cultural Festival. Toono had an odd reaction to his photos and even though he had laughed it off, Kashima couldn't help but be bothered by what he said. 

"We are looking at the same scenery, but when I look at the pictures you took, I see something completely different".

He could feel his chest constrict with disappointment. He couldn't imagine losing Toono to his own cousin. 

He was walking past the staff room when a thought crossed his mind. Perhaps there was a responsible adult in there who could help him.

He knocked on the door and entered. Thankfully, the person he was looking was in there correcting papers.

"Okada-sensei!"

Miyu looked up from her work in surprise. Students rarely approached the teachers directly in the staff room unless it was an urgent matter.

"Do you have time for a chat?" he asked. 

She nodded. They left the staff room and went into an empty classroom nearby. 

"How have you been, Kashima-kun", she asked in a concerned voice. "Is something bothering you?"

Kashima smiled.

"I'm glad to see how happy you are", he congratulated her 

"Forget about me," Miyu said casually. "What about you? Something's bothering you, isn't it?"

Kashima's face fell. He had a lot on his mind that he wanted to share, but he didn't know where to start. 

"Is it.. about Toono-kun?"

Bingo, there really was no hiding things from her.

"Have you had any...progress?"

Kashima sighed defeatedly.

"Not really. I honestly don't know what to do."

Miyu looked at him curiously. 

"We're too different," he concluded. 

To his surprise, Miyu laughed.

"You're saying that like it's a bad thing."

"It's...not?" Kashima asked. "At the Cultural Festival, Toono pointed out that we seem to be drawn to different things. For example, I'll look at a photo and see the mountains in the background and yet he'll see the butterfly in the foreground."

He paused, his face awash with sadness. 

"We're too different for it to work, aren't we?"

Miyu touched him gently on his shoulders.

"Well, have you ever considered that having two different perspectives means that you will both be able to have a greater understanding of each other?"

She put her fingers out and formed a lens, peering at Kashima through the opening. 

"If you both only saw the mountains in the photo, it'll be a pretty boring photo wouldn't it? But if you bring the butterfly into it as well, suddenly there's another layer to this photo and it becomes a little bit more intriguing."

She noticed a look of understanding start to dawn on Kashima's face.

"Life's a bit like that too. It's not good to be blinded by your own views", she continued. "Being able to share your differences with someone else will make you both grow closer to each other."

She met his eyes and flashed him a sunny smile. 

"I genuinely believe you are both good for one another."

"Do you really think so?" he asked, sounding rather unconvinced. 

"Kashima, you have a kind, selfless heart. Toono-kun needs someone like that in his life."

Kashima thanked her for her generous words of praise. 

"Sensei, do you and Konno-sensei struggle with any differences between both of you?"

Miyu laughed. "Of course we do! We're actually complete opposites of each other. Kon is more quick-tempered, while I'm a bit more patient. And on the flip side, I'm super messy while Kon is much more organized. It drives him crazy when I leave a mess for him to clean up," she admitted with an embarrassed grin.

"I've also spent a lot of time in a Western country," she reminded him. "Which means I'm a bit more open-minded about some things while Kon has a more traditional view. But we always try to hear each other out and respect each other's opinions."

"He's also done a lot for me. I didn't expect him to go so far as to accompany me to Australia. That was something really out of his comfort zone", she continued. "But he also brought me out of my comfort zone many times. Because of him, I was able to come out of my shell. I was really shy as a kid! I don't think I would have become a teacher if not for his influence."

She sighed wistfully.

"But you know what I love the most about him?"

"Um, is he....really good in bed?" Kashima guessed wildly. 

"N..not that!" Miyu cried out, obviously flustered. After their first night together, Konno had only gotten better at sending her to the heights of ecstasy, but she was not going to discuss that with Kashima any time soon. 

She composed herself, her cheeks still pink with embarrassment. 

"He accepts me for who I am. Kon has seen me at my most vulnerable and I can tell him anything and everything, because he will always be there for me. And I will be there for him too".

Kashima's heart swelled when he heard Miyu's words. She spoke about Konno with so much love and trust it was no wonder Konno was willing to conquer his fears and follow her to Australia. Konno's English skills were notoriously bad, even if he didn't want to admit it. For him to put his ego aside, he must really love her too.

"So Konno-sensei was really worth waiting for huh?" Kashima asked with a searching smile. 

Miyu laughed.

"Absolutely! It only took eighteen years, but we still found our way back to each other. I guess that's a sign that we really are meant to be together."

"I'm willing to wait", Kashima said with a bright grin. "As long as Toono hasn't made his choice, it means I have a chance, doesn't it?"

Miyu returned his optimistic smile with one of her own. 

"I hope that you don't have to wait as long as I did, but let's just say my gut tells me you won't!"

*

Miyu continued on her way after speaking with Kashima. She had started offering supplementary classes again and they remained as popular as ever. The students were a lot more well-behaved now that they knew she was with Konno, but it didn't stop them from trying to sneak the odd look down her top or up her skirt. 

After her last class of the day, she noticed one of those cheeky students quietly try and slip past her. It was uncharacteristic for him to be so compliant in class and she called out to him. 

"Tamu-kun!"

The blue haired teen turned around when he heard his name. His face flushed when he looked at her; he was still a bit upset that he did not get to sleep with her after boasting about it to everyone. And as much as he liked giving Konno shit about his previous relationship with Akizawa, he knew that trying to pull something with Miyu again would result in instant death for him. 

"Sensei," he muttered in acknowledgment, his eyes nervously avoiding hers.

"What's wrong? You were pretty quiet today. Are you not feeling well?"

He shook his head, pouting sulkily.

"Did you get to say what you wanted to say to your friend?"

Despite the embarrassment of his disastrous seduction attempt, Tamura remembered how she had so kindly and patiently listened to him speak about his struggles and admit his feelings for Yaguchi Kyousuke. 

In his own words, he was 'emotionally violated'.

He shook his head again.

"I... don't know how to show someone I care", he admitted finally.

"What do you mean you don't know how to show it?" she asked. "You now how to hug someone don't you? It's just like that time I did it to you at the Fireworks Festival."

"Uhhh, actually all I remember from that time was how nice your boobs were," Tamura admitted sheepishly. Miyu rolled her eyes.

"C'mon Tamu-kun, focus!" she said sharply. She sighed.

"Do you need me to show you again?"

"Yes!" Tamura answered immediately. 

Miyu spread her arms out and gestured for him to get closer. Tamura laid his head on her chest as she wrapped her arms gently around him. 

"Just like this, nice and simple. Do you want to try doing it?"

Tamura gave a muffled grunt. Miyu felt something pushing against her and she jumped, letting go of him hastily.

"Tamura Yui! Did you just..."

They both looked down at his crotch and noticed that Tamura was pitching a tent.

"Sorry sensei, but I couldn't help it," he said indignantly. "It's been a while since I...."

He gave an exasperated sigh.

"Well I didn't stop sleeping with others, but when I do it just doesn't seem quite as fun anymore," he conceded. 

Miyu smiled slyly.

"Tamu-kun, it looks like you're really in love!" she teased. 

"D..don't tease!" he cried out, looking extremely embarrassed. He spread his arms open awkwardly.

"Are we doing this or not?"

Miyu put her head on his chest and he wrapped his arms around her. She immediately started choking.

"Tamu-kun....too tight! Too tight!" she gagged as she slapped his arm repeatedly. 

Tamura released her in alarm. 

"Were you trying to strangle me?" she gasped. "You'll need to be much more gentle than that!"

Tamura looked thoughtful.

"What if he was into that though?" he asked. "Wouldn't I be doing him a favo-"

He stopped talking when he saw the look she gave him. He spread his arms apart again and gestured for her to lean in.

This time round, he was much more gentle. It was a marked improvement from before. Just as Miyu was about to give him some glowing words of praise,  Tamura suddenly spoke.

"Sensei, am I a horrible person?" he asked in a low voice. "I...I know I'm rough and talk a lot of shit, but I don't always hate on others, you know? I don't know why, but every time I try and say something nice I end up insulting them instead."

His voice trembled.

"I...is there something wrong with me? Is that why he....he doesn't like me?"

Miyu wrapped her arms around his back as his body started heaving with soft sobs. 

"Tamu-kun, you have a strong sense of loyalty. I think that makes you an exceptional person," Miyu comforted him gently. 

"But, how can I show him I care? I can't just go around hugging him out of nowhere, he'll probably punch me", Tamura said.

Miyu pondered for a second, and then she broke out into a triumphant smile. 

"I've got it! Maybe you could get him a Christmas present?"

Tamura's face screwed up in disgust. He had never cared about Christmas. Even Akemi's attempts to liven up the holiday season had no effect on his Grinch-like heart and he refused to help them with anything.

He still hadn't forgiven them for cutting up his anal beads. 

"You know, most people love getting presents for Christmas", Miyu wheedled. "I'm looking forward to what Kon has gotten me!"

"Oh yeah? And what have you bought Konno-sensei?" Tamura challenged.

"I..it's a secret", she replied hastily, her face turning red. 

She still hadn't gotten Konno anything. 

"But it's no fun if I give something and I don't get anything in return though", he retorted obstinately, his arms folded.

"Well, how would you feel if he smiled at you and thanked you because he loved your present so much?"

Tamura looked stunned and Miyu grinned. She definitely had his attention now. 

"He's got a pretty cute smile, doesn't he?"

Tamura suddenly remembered that time he saw Yacchan smiling when he was with Toono and he immediately felt his heart beating faster. 

What he would do to be on the receiving end of that smile. 

He balled his fists and nodded at Miyu with determination. 

"Let's go shopping!"

Chapter Text

Konno was anxiously rushing to the club room. Someone had notified him that he was needed urgently and as the advisor of the Photography Club he had a responsibility to make sure that everything was in order. 

However, when he got to the room, it seemed like nothing was out of order. In fact, it seemed more organized than ever, and it was wonderfully decorated for Christmas. 

Sensing something amiss, he turned to leave by it was too late; he found himself surrounded by the club members. 

"Get him", Akemi ordered as Konno found himself suddenly flanked by Itome and Kashima. He struggled but they were deceptively strong when they combined their efforts. Yuri came up and bound his wrists up with some shibari rope and shoved a ball gag into his mouth. 

"Mmmpphhh!" His words were muffled as he tried in vain to speak. 

Toono looked alarmed and hurriedly removed the gag. Konno gasped.

"What the hell is this?" he shouted as he tried to wriggle free.

"This is an intervention", Shikatani said nonchalantly. "The ball gag was Yuri's idea though".

Yuri started cackling as Konno scowled, looking thoroughly unimpressed. 

"Now now, there's no need to be upset", Akemi said in a sing-song voice.

"We're here to help you with the proposal!"

Konno's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe it; was that what this was about? He had a good mind to send them all to detention once he was free from their clutches. 

"I don't need any help", Konno retorted bluntly. "That's between Miyu and I."

"Well? How do you plan to ask her then?" Akemi challenged. 

"I'll...just give her the ring and tell her something nice", Konno replied quickly. "Something like, 'I really want to eat the food you cook every day'."

The boys groaned collectively.

"Konno-sensei, that is...so cringe. Also did you forgot Okada-sensei grew up in Australia?" Shikatani reminded him. "That is simply not going to cut it."

"Haven't you watched those Western soap operas?" Kashima asked. "They always have really dramatic proposals, usually in front of a crowd in some public place".

"Uh uh, no way!" Konno shot back. "I am not doing that in public!" He knew Miyu would much rather die than be subject to a public proposal, a sentiment that he also shared. 

Tamura rolled his eyes. "Surely you have some kind of idea how you want to do it? Or at least where you want to do it?"

"Hmm, actually...."

They looked at him expectantly. 

"Tokyo", he said firmly. "I want to do it in Tokyo. That's where we grew up".

"That's a start", Kashima said brightly. "Anything else?"

He shook his head and everyone groaned again. This was going to be much harder than expected. 

Suddenly, Itome spoke up.

"Sensei, do you trust us? Will you let us handle the proposal?"

"I- what?"

"We'll cover all the costs. You just have to show up".

Konno eyed him suspiciously. 

"What's the catch?"

"There's no catch. Just consider this a thank you from the Itome family for your help over the years."

Backed into a corner and against his better judgment, Konno agreed.

*

Later that afternoon, Konno asked to see Toono privately.

"Toono, all students need to get parental consent to stay back over Christmas," Konno said. "I still haven't received anything from you".

Toono nodded silently in response. He had not really spoken to his father since their last phone call. His father was looking to remarry and Toono had mixed feelings about it. He had reluctantly confided in Kashima during their summer onsen trip and Kashima had unexpectedly lifted a weight off his heart. 

Toono suddenly didn't feel so ashamed about having those feelings towards his family. What he wasn't expecting was the rush of feelings and emotions he felt when he looked into Kashima's eyes that night...

The fireflies appearing also didn't help the atmosphere.

"Do you have any questions?" Konno asked. "Is anything else bothering you?" He had worked in the school long enough to pick up on certain signs of discomfort from the students, and there was clearly something on Toono's mind. 

Sure enough, Toono spoke up.

"Sensei, um what do you like about Okada-sensei?"

Konno looked taken aback. He was not expecting to get interrogated about his relationship, especially not from Toono since he was never the inquisitive type. Nonetheless, he didn't attempt to deflect the question. He stopped and pondered for a while, suddenly realizing that he did not have a straightforward answer. 

"Miyu..is the sweetest person I know", he said, his voice visibly softening. "I love the kindness and the patience she shows everyone. She's such a gentle person but I've seen how fierce she can be. She once tried to fight the school bully for crushing her chocolates!"

Konno laughed at the memory and even Toono managed a chuckle. He couldn't imagine Okada-sensei get into a fight with anyone, much less a burly school bully. 

"I could have told her how I felt earlier and looked after her better in the past", he admitted. "But now I've got a chance to make up for it. It might not seem like much, but having her love and support means a lot".

Toono shot him an uncertain look. "No offence, but that sounds kind of.... boring".

Konno raised his eyebrows.

"What do you think we do on a daily basis? Fight crime and solve mysteries?" he asked sarcastically. "Even something simple like sitting next to her on the couch makes me feel happy. Just her presence is enough."

Konno had never been able to put his feelings towards her into words. All he knew was that being with Miyu made him feel like everything was right in the world. It gave him a sense of peace that he never had previously. 

"It hasn't been easy for me to adjust back to being in a relationship with a woman, and it's been tough on her too."

"It's not something that many people can accept so readily, but Miyu did. And I love her even more for that."

Toono had never seen Konno speak so tenderly about anyone before. It was a stark contrast compared to the way he handled his relationship with Akizawa. Sure, he might have been coy about their relationship but they seemed to have fun together. Toono genuinely didn't understand why Konno picked one over the other. 

"Was it hard choosing between Akizawa-senpai and Okada-sensei?"

Konno flinched. He had not heard Akizawa's name or thought about him for a really long time. Their parting was in one word: bittersweet. Akizawa was the one who forced his hand and made the decision for him, and Konno had to admit that it was the right choice. 

He had never been happier since. 

"What I had with Aki..." Konno paused. He genuinely did not know how to describe their relationship. He certainly cared about Akizawa to an extent, but their understanding of each other was skin deep at best. They had sex, a lot of it. In fact that was basically all they ever did. But there was never consideration of what's to come, no talk about their future. 

If they even had one.

And it seemed like Akizawa realized that before Konno himself did. 

"I cared a lot for Akizawa, and I still do", Konno said. 

"But Miyu is the one I can truly share everything with. She's the one I want to lean on for the rest of my life".

"Wow, Sensei", Toono said, sounding impressed. "You must really love her huh? I've never heard you say anything this nice about anyone before".

Konno face turned red. 

"Why do you boys always make me sound like such an asshole?" he complained. 

"But to answer your question, yes I love her a lot".

The bell rang, signalling the start of the next period. As Konno headed off to his next class he suddenly turned around to address Toono again. 

"And oh, one word of advice".

"Don't mistake stability for being boring".

He flashed Toono a cryptic smile before he hurried off.

*

Back in the common room, Toono stared blankly at the phone in his hand. He really needed to call his father to get parental consent, but the thought of having to talk about his feelings again made him stupidly nervous. 

He was so distracted that he didn't notice someone walk right up to him. 

Someone he had been trying to avoid for the last few months. 

"Hey Toono".

He looked up and froze. It was Yacchan looking down at him with a rather indifferent look on his face. Their interactions over the last few months had been awkward and Yacchan couldn't remember the last time they hung out alone together. The visits to Yacchan's room had also completely stopped and Yacchan stopped making as much effort to clean his room. He was starting to find mushrooms growing in the corners of his room again but he didn't care.

This all stemmed from him kissing Toono after the play. 

Yacchan was upset at Toono for not talking to him about it afterwards, but he also knew him not bringing it up to Toono was also highly hypocritical.

"What are you doing staring at your phone like that?"

"I...um..." Toono stuttered. "I need to call my father to get parental consent to stay here for Christmas".

Yacchan scoffed. 

"What's so hard about that? Why are you so scared to speak to your own father?" Yacchan asked curiously as he sat down next to him.

Toono lowered his head. 

"It's complicated."

"You gonna tell me about it or not?" Yacchan asked in a slightly impatient tone. 

"Um, well..my father wants to get remarried and I don't know how to feel about that", Toono confessed. "She's a lovely lady, but it kind of feels like my own mother is getting replaced you know?"

"I didn't know your mother had passed away", Yacchan said in a low voice. "Was she the one who taught you that trick about being louder than the thunder?"

Toono nodded with a sad smile on his face. 

"Yeah. That was such a silly idea wasn't it?"

"But it worked, right?" Yacchan asked. "It made you less scared of the thunder and lightning".

"Yeah but you thought it was annoying", Toono replied. 

"Only because I thought you were acting like a nutcase", Yacchan retorted. "After I found out why you did that, it became less annoying."

He paused. 

"No matter what, your feelings are valid after all."

Yacchan looked up in surprise as Toono suddenly laughed. 

"What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing", Toono said, a smile plastered across his face. "It's just that, Kashima also told me the same thing when I told him about my issue with my father".

Whatever positive feeling that existed within Yacchan evaporated at the sound of Kashima's name. His feelings of disdain towards his cousin had only intensified ever since they started developing feelings for the same person. He knew Toono found him cute, so he thought he had an edge over Kashima.

The play was supposed to be the turning point. He wanted Toono to kiss him in front of the entire school and cement their relationship publicly. That was the statement he wanted and needed. 

However to his frustration, Toono did not, or could not, follow through on the day. 

And he was pretty certain he knew why.

Why? Why is it always Yuu? 

His insides burning with a mixture of anger, disappointment and jealousy, Yacchan got up abruptly. 

"I gotta go hang out with the guys in the soccer club", he said in a low, distant voice.

"Good luck with your phone call".

Toono could only stare at Yacchan's retreating back as he sat in his spot, feeling quite alone and more conflicted than ever.

Chapter Text

The decorations in the clubroom were getting more and more outrageous the closer they get to Christmas Day. Konno was looking for Toono and found himself inside the club room again the next day. The Second and Third Years were all there and they displayed varying levels of the Christmas spirit. Konno rarely went into the club room, visiting only when he was required for club advisory stuff or if he needed to keep an eye out for Miyu getting dragged into their antics.

"Is Toono here?" he asked, scanning the room.

Tamura and Yuri shook their heads. 

"You're lucky you came alone", Tamura said. He pointed his finger upwards and Konno followed it, noticing that he was standing under a sprig of some mysterious shrub.

"Akemi said anyone standing under this Mr Toe thing needs to kiss", Tamura said. 

Shikatani roared with laughter. 

"It's called 'mistletoe', not 'Mr Toe'", Shikatani said, still doubled over. "I bet you failed English again, didn't you?"

Tamura went red; he had been outed. 

"These decorations are so annoying. Why does Akemi keep insisting on putting them up?" he complained.

"Did someone say my name?" Akemi chimed in as he popped his head out from behind a shelf. He emerged fully with Itome carrying a box behind him. He opened the box and started handing out the contents: Santa hats!

"Here, you have one too, Konno-sensei", Itome offered. Konno took one but stared at it grudgingly.

"Bit early for this, isn't it?" he asked as he put it on. "Hmm not sure if I like this look much".

"Would you prefer these instead?" Shikatani asked as he popped some reindeer antlers onto Konno, who immediately took them off.

"Well there's other ways to wear the hat," Akemi said brightly. "Yuri's got the idea!"

They turned and saw Yuri completely naked, with the Santa hat the only thing covering his modesty. "Helicopter!" he cried out as he started twirling it around. Everyone except Konno were rolling on the floor with laughter. 

"Hey, what's so funny?" Kashima asked as he came into the clubroom with Toono following closely behind. While they stood at the door observing, everyone suddenly froze. 

"Uh oh", Shikatani said.

"W.. what?" Toono asked nervously. 

Everyone pointed upwards.

"Ha! You're both under the Mr Toe, and the rules are you have to kiss!" Tamura said triumphantly.

Kashima laughed. "I believe it's pronounced 'mistletoe. And you're quite right, I believe we do have to observe tradition and kiss!"

He turned to Toono with a huge smile on his face. Toono immediately recoiled and slinked over to the other side of the room. 

"That's enough, no more Mr Toe pranks, I think we've had enough for the day", Konno ordered. He looked at Toono.

"Toono-kun, how are you doing with getting parental consent?"

Toono shook his head. He was going to call yesterday, but Yacchan's appearance and behaviour had thrown him off. Since then, he had been so distracted that the call to his father had been driven clean out of his mind. 

"You have one more day", Konno warned. 

"I need it by tomorrow morning, otherwise you won't be able to stay".

*

Konno was grumbling under his breath as he left the club room. He tried to leave the Christmas themed headgear behind but a sharp eyed Akemi spotted him. Now armed with both a Santa hat and a some reindeer antlers, he headed back to his room. 

With the principal's approval, both him and Miyu had moved into a larger room together. While it was wonderful to be living together, it definitely made hiding things like presents and engagement rings very difficult. And now there was going to be additional clutter thanks to Akemi...

What could he possibly do with the hat? There was no way he would do what Yuri did, that's just plain stupid.

His phone chimed - it was a message from Miyu. She had gone into town to do some shopping and she was just letting him know she was nearly back. 

A sly smile suddenly spread across his face. 

There was certainly something he could do now....

Miyu had finally had the opportunity to buy something for Konno but once again, hiding it from him was going to be difficult. She hurried back to their room, hoping that she would have time to stash her little surprise away before he got back. 

She opened the door.

"Mii-chan..."

She dropped her bags and stared. Konno was sitting in bed waiting for her. He was completely naked and had one of those Santa hats rather strategically placed over his lower body. 

"Do you.. want to open your Christmas present?" he asked hesitantly, his face flushed. 

Miyu stifled a giggle. She loved how embarrassed Konno looked, but coming home and seeing his sexy, muscular body completely exposed and waiting for her was enough to drive her wild.

The shopping bags laid forgotten on the floor as she slinked across the room towards her waiting partner.

"It's a bit early for it, isn't it?" she purred seductively as she straddled him, making sure to avoid touching the hat. "Although, I have a confession to make".

Konno raised his eyebrows in curiosity. She started unbuttoning her blouse, her cheeks also flushed for some reason. As her clothes came off her body, Konno's jaw dropped.

"I've been a bit naughty this year".

She was wearing a red bra with a fluffy white fur trim and a matching, barely there G-string. Konno felt like his heart was going to stop when he saw how devastatingly sexy she looked, especially when she was pretending to be shy about the whole thing.

After being with her for a while, he knew that she was anything but shy in that department. 

Miyu noticed the Santa hat twitch visibly as she continued to strategically avoid coming into contact with it. Konno's hand found the bow that held the front of the bra together and he grinned.

"Can I open my present early?"

She nodded shyly, all an act of course but Konno didn't mind. In fact, it turned him on even more. With a quick tug, the bow undid itself and freed her rather magnificent bosom. At the same time, Miyu grabbed at the hat, feeling around for the thing that kept it upright.

Konno let out a low groan. She was cheeky and deliberately avoided touching him directly. He was going crazy; she was very good at teasing him like that and he loved her more because of it. 

"Kon-chan," she murmured in an innocent-sounding voice as she rubbed her face against the fabric, tracing her lips with the increasingly-phallic looking hat. 

Ugh, she will be the death of me, Konno screamed silently in his head.

"Mii-chan....touch me, please!" he begged with a frustrated groan. They haven't had many opportunities to be intimate recently and he was an impatient man. 

He reached out and brushed a finger against her lips. She met it with her tongue, sucking on it gently while looking him in the eye, drawing another strangled moan from Konno.

Miyu laughed. She loved it when Konno begged her like that. He was a dominant force in the bedroom most of the time but there were times he turned into putty in her hands and it was so unbelievably cute.

She finally pulled the hat off, feigning a look of curiosity and surprise at what was underneath it. Konno was hard as a rock and his pre-cum was spilling. At his insistence, she took him in her hands, rubbing him with long, seasoned strokes. Konno will never not be blown away by her hand job technique; she always had the right grip and the way she flicked her wrist was downright elegant. Only she could make a hand job look like performance art.

"Come here", he whispered as he pulled her in close, kissing her hungrily. His breathing was heavy against her face as her hand continued to ensure the pleasure did not stop. His hand snaked up her torso and found her breasts, squeezing them gently. She emitted a soft moan from her lips, sending Konno's heartbeat into overdrive.

She started kissing his neck and moved downwards, lingering on his broad chest and tweaking his nipples playfully. Konno shuddered and his cock twitched in her hands. She had moved even further down now, licking his well toned abs and nipping away at his crotch. 

"Mmmm", she murmured as she nuzzled his cock. "Is there anything you want me to do for you?" she asked, blinking up at Konno with that innocent look again.

"I want you to suck my cock," Konno mumbled softly. Miyu tilted her head to one side and pouted.

"Hmm? What's that, Kon-chan?" she replied slyly, feigning ignorance. Konno drew a deep, frustrated breath.

"Suck my cock," he said, a little louder this time. "Mii-chan, I want you to suck my coc-ahhh!"

She did not allow him to finish. He threw his head back and his body shook as his entire shaft slid down her throat. Her mouth was so warm and he could feel her tongue moving around, adding to the stimulation. Feeling this good should be illegal, Konno thought as he wrapped his hands around her head, holding her down in place as his tip hit the back of her tonsils. Her eyes widened as her face started to turn red and he could see her eyes prickle with tears as she took his cock like a champ. She loved it when Konno got a little assertive like that, it was the sexiest thing ever and she was more than happy to hand over the reigns to him. She let out a gasp as he let her come up for breath.

"Did you like that?" he asked, looking at her with a kind smile. She nodded meekly.

Konno kissed her on her head. "Good girl," he praised.

And just like that, he was back in control. 

"Let me look at you again."

She stood up shyly, blushing as she saw Konno's eyes inspect her body. His hands moved up her legs and stopped at her hips, poised against the strap of her G-string.

"Can I unwrap the rest of my present?" he asked as he pulled at the bow. The ribbon unraveled and the G-string fell open, sliding down her legs and leaving her completely bare. Konno smiled as he saw her clit peeking out beneath her folds; she was already so turned on and he hadn't even touched her properly yet. He put his mouth against her and sucked on her clit gently, causing her to gasp and her knees buckled slightly.

"You're already so wet," he observed as he slid his finger in. She whimpered as her legs trembled, she could feel herself dripping down onto his hands and her insides were sucking his fingers in. 

"Kon!" she squealed. "I...I can't!"

"Hmm, would you like to take a break?" Konno asked cheekily as he sat on the edge of the bed, looking at her invitingly. She put her hands on his shoulders as she mounted him, his cock brushing against her wet opening.   

"Do you want to put it in yourself?" Konno inquired with a naughty smirk. Miyu nodded as she slowly lowered herself over Konno's throbbing, erect cock, letting out a small scream as he entered her. Konno cupped her face, planting her another encouraging kiss on her lips as her warmth engulfed him. She trembled as she felt him somehow get harder inside her.

"Does it feel good?"

Miyu nodded as pleasure shot through her body. She loved it when he used that voice. Konno always had a low, husky voice every time he took control and it was so sensual. She didn't think it was possible, but Konno was still able to find new ways to titillate her.

"I...it feels so good," she stammered, her voice weak with pleasure. Konno smiled as he saw how aroused she was. He wrapped his hands around her firm butt cheeks as  she got up on her feet so she was in a squatting position; she knew he could get really deep like that. She lifted herself and brought herself down again, both of them moaning in unison as he hit her most sensitive spots.  

Every time he thought he couldn't love her more, she outdoes herself. She was taking his entire length hard and fast from this angle and Konno was absolutely losing his mind. In their haste to unwrap each other, he realized he had not put any protection on. Her heat was so much more pronounced without a barrier between them and he felt closer to her than ever. 

This won't do, at this rate he was going to blow in seconds. 

"Mii-Mii-chan, slow down, slow down!" he cried out. 

"Let me get a condom."

 As he reached for the drawer next to the bedside table, her hand prevented him from doing so.

"It's ok," she whispered. "I want you to cum inside."

Konno couldn't believe his ears. He always prided himself for being responsible but when deep in the throes of passion with her, when they have come that far already....it was impossible to stop. No matter, he already knew he wanted to make her his wife, what else was there to question between them?

"Bend over."

Miyu obediently got on all fours, presenting him with the curve of her back and her perfect, peach-shaped ass. Lining himself up against her, he pushed himself inside, letting out an exhilarated sigh. She was so fucking sexy in this position and it allowed Konno to really go wild. He reached out and wrapped her long hair around his hand. Her back arched even further as he pulled her hair, bringing his other hand down against her butt cheek in a loud slap. He did it again as she gave a loud gasp as she felt the sting of his hand send shivers through her body. Konno could feel her clench down even harder every time he spanked her as he drove his hips harder and faster against her.

"Kon...Kon...harder! It feels so good!" she begged him desperately. 

Konno couldn't take it anymore. Being in that position and hearing her beg him like that was tipping him over the edge.

"Mii-chan," he choked. "I...I'm going to-"

He couldn't get his words out in time. Just at that moment she cried out in pleasure as she came without warning, prompting him to do so as well. He doubled over as he let out a loud groan, filling her up with his load. He kissed her on her shoulder, only for her to turn her head and meet his lips with hers, lapping at him hungrily with her tongue as well. Finishing inside her was so visceral, so intimate, so pleasurable. 

"Merry Christmas, my love," she murmured, looking love-drunk from her orgasm. Konno giggled, it was still a few days before the actual day but it seemed like she was currently incapable of thinking straight. He kissed her again as he pulled out of her, watching his hot cum dripping down her legs.

"I love Christmas," she declared weakly as she sank into bed in an exhausted heap. 

Konno smiled a secret smile; she probably didn't know, but things were only going to much more exciting in the next few days.

Chapter Text

With Konno's final warning, Toono knew that he had run out of excuses. He really had to call his father today. He didn't know what he was so afraid about, his father was not a scary man. In fact, he had tried his best to be as available as possible to Toono after his wife passed away. However, he was a busy man and Toono was often left to his own devices.

Come to think of it, they had never really spoken about his mother's death.

On the day of the funeral, he remembered his father explaining things as simply as possible to him. Toono only nodded in silence as his father told him that his mother had 'gone to a faraway place'. He wasn't an idiot, he knew what had happened but now that he was older he couldn't help but wonder if that was his father's way of softening the blow for himself more so than for his son. 

They had not brought her up ever since.  

Mustering his courage, Toono dialed the number on his phone.

His heart was beating furiously as the phone rang. After several rings, he heard the phone click on the other end and a familiar deep voice ask, "Hello?"

His father's voice was warm and gentle and any fear he had previously immediately dissipated. 

"Hey Dad".

"Taka-kun?" his father's voice sounded a little worried. "Is something wrong? You never call, is there an emergency?"

"No nothing's wrong!" Toono assured him immediately. "It's just....I will be staying back over the Christmas break. So can you please fill in the consent form I just emailed to you?"

"Ah, is that so? I see," he replied, sounding rather disappointed. Toono couldn't help but feel his heart start to clench; he had never noticed it before, but he had heard this tone in his voice more times than he would have liked. Had he been so self-absorbed in his own problems that he had never realized how tired and sad his father was? 

"Um, Dad?" Toono started nervously. "When are you getting remarried?"

There was an awkward pause.

"Well...I decided to put those plans on hold for now," his father finally answered.

"But why?" Toono exclaimed in shock. 

"Because you don't seem very happy about it," his father answered simply.

"Dad, you don't have to consider my feelings that much!" Toono cried out. "I...I'm being unreasonable, I know I am!"

Now he really felt like an asshole.

"Takashi, you are my son", he said firmly. "Your feelings are valid regardless of how you feel. Besides.."

His voice trailed off.

"I promised your mother to always put you first, so if you are not happy about anything I will always consider your feelings first and foremost."

There was suddenly silence between them. Toono hadn't thought about his mother for a while. She died when he was in elementary school and he realized that he never really spoke to anyone about how he felt. His memories of his mother were getting fuzzier by the day, but there were things she taught him that he never forgot. He still remembered her kind smile when she taught him to be louder than the thunder, how much fun they had shouting out the things he liked so he could be bigger and braver than Mr Thunder...

"Dad", he asked, his voice starting to crack. "Do you still miss Mum?"

He heard a sigh over the phone. Toono felt his eyes fill with tears as he registered how painful that sounded.

"Of course I do. A day doesn't go by where I don't think about her."

Toono sniffed as tears finally overwhelmed him.

"Your mother was a wonderful woman. When we lost her, I gave up on ever finding love again. But then..."

His father gave a small, hopeful-sounding chuckle.

"The world works in mysterious ways. One day, someone will walk into your life and treat you with so much kindness that you start thinking that maybe, just maybe you can find the same kind of happiness you had before."

"I miss Mum too," Toono finally admitted through his soft sobs. "It's not that I don't want you to be happy, it's just....I'm scared that one day I will forget all my memories of her."

He wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he was crying anymore. Toono couldn't remember when was the last time he cried so hard. Those quickly-fading memories suddenly became much clearer and he could finally picture his mother's face again. He suddenly remembered that he had dreamt about her many times, but for so many years, her face had been a blurry mess.

But now, he could picture it as clear as day; light brown hair, that kind face that always had a bright smile for him, those bright green eyes that he inherited from her...

She really was a beautiful woman.

"Takashi, I'm so happy you are finally talking to me about your feelings. You have no idea how much this means to me," his father said, sniffling softly on his end.

"I worry about you, you know? Are you happy at school? Have you made friends?"

Toono laughed feebly through his tears. His Dad was acting like a Dad again, and he frankly really missed it. He realized that he had unintentionally shut his father out, especially after the move to Nagano. He never resented his father for it, but not speaking about his feelings and not processing them properly had resulted in him drifting apart.

"Yes I have! That's why I'll be staying back, we want to spend Christmas with the Third Years in my club."

"Ah yes, that's a lovely thing to do. Your senpais must have done a great job looking after you then," he said encouragingly.

"So what made you decide to talk to me after so long?"

"I- well," Toono stuttered.

"A frie-, I mean, someone from school told me that I'm allowed to feel what I feel. There is nothing wrong with having negative feelings about something. Even if they are sad or unpleasant, they are mine."

Toono took a deep breath.

"And I realized that he's right," he finished.

His father sighed again.

"Takashi, I am your father. You can always come to me and talk about everything. Can you promise me that? No more suffering in silence, ok?"

Toono promised.

"You have a very wise friend. I guess I have to thank him one day!"

Toono laughed. He had Kashima to thank for that. Ever since he had confided in him on that bridge, it was like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Come to think of it, he hadn't really spoken about it with anyone else. He kind of spoke to Yacchan about it the other day, but somehow it felt....different. 

It was like the person he could trust to always give him the comfort and assurance he needed was....

"Sorry Takashi, I need to go", his father apologized. "I'll sign that consent form and send it back to you later today."

"Ok. Thanks Dad. I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble, but I'm glad we had this talk," Toono replied, his voice sounding much lighter and happier than before.

"I..I promise I'll call more often."

"And whatever you do," his father advised.

"Hang on to this friend of yours."

*

With the form finally signed and printed out, Toono was hurrying towards the staff room to hand it to Konno. He was considerably happier after he got to speak to his father. After staying back for a couple of terms, Toono was actually looking forward to going home during the next break.

His father's words echoed in his ears:

"Hang on to this friend of yours."

Toono smiled. He had never been able to lean on someone like this before, not even his father. This didn't feel like a normal friendship either; he had other people at school that he would not hesitate to call his friends. To be able to let him feel so safe like that.....

"Kashima!"

The dark haired boy turned around in surprise. He smiled when he saw who had called out to him. For some reason, Toono felt his face grow hot.

Kashima has such a lovely smile, he thought. 

"Ah, did you get the parental consent form signed?" Kashima asked. 

Toono nodded. 

"And how did your conversation with your father go?" He continued, a look of genuine concern in his eyes. 

"It went really well. I...I'm glad I called him."

They both exchanged a smile. Kashima realized that Toono looked genuinely happy for the first time. He had looked at his favourite photo of Toono and studied it many times. Everytime he admired his beauty, he couldn't help but notice the sadness in his eyes. It was like that time he caught the sadness in Okada-sensei's eyes for the first time. These days, her eyes sparkled with so much happiness and so did Konno's, who now could live openly with the love of his life.

"Hey Kashima," Toono started, his voice starting to shake nervously.

"Thank you."

Kashima laughed.

"Why are you thanking me? I didn't do anything!"

"No, I mean it," Toono cried out, as he reached out towards him. 

Kashima froze as he felt Toono's arms wrap around him. He had never seen him take the initiative before and he felt himself blushing. Does this mean...

"I...I like you."

It felt like time had stopped for Kashima as he processed the words that just came out of Toono's mouth. 

Was he dreaming? Surely he must be hallucinating or something.

"I like you," Toono repeated, a little louder that time. 

"I like you, Kashima Yuu. I don't always see things the way you do, so please, stay by my side to always show me the bigger picture."

Kashima's face turned red and his lips broke into a huge smile. He put his arms around Toono and hugged him tightly, feeling his body tremble. Toono's body was so slim and putting his arms around his waist felt like he was cuddling a woman. It wasn't the first time Kashima had held him like this of course, but it felt so different when he knew that the person in his arms was finally reciprocating his feelings. 

"Toono," he whispered gently. "I...I'm so happy." 

He could feel Toono breathing heavily against his chest as he buried his face in there. Being this close to him and feeling his hot breath against him, Kashima had a natural, biological reaction, which Toono also felt. 

"Ah, one more thing" Toono continued nervously.

"I...I can't do that stuff with you yet," Toono said, averting his eyes shyly. "I hope you can understand."

Kashima smiled as he ruffled his hair affectionately. "That's ok, we can figure that part out later."

Their eyes met again and they both blushed. 

"Oh no!" Toono suddenly exclaimed. He brandished the signed form he was holding.

"It's all crumpled now."

Kashima laughed. 

"You can always print another one out," he offered, as he put his arm around Toono's shoulders.

"There's no hurry to get this to Konno-sensei, I heard he disappeared into the room with Okada-sensei and I really don't want to interrupt whatever they are doing in there!"

They both shuddered and giggled nervously as they headed towards the library again. Kashima noticed that Toono appeared to be leaning into him. Their hands touched and Kashima expected Toono to immediately recoil like he always did.

But he didn't.

Kashima bumped against Toono's hand again, as his fingers slowly laced with his. He felt his stomach flutter as Toono's hand tightened and squeeze his gently.

It felt like they were in their own little world, where nobody could see or interfere.

But they were not aware that there was someone who did see everything.

And he was not happy.

* 

Yaguchi Kyousuke was an enigma. He was unapologetically an asshole and he knew it, but he also learnt very quickly that it was important to pretend he wasn't one if he wanted any shot of being accepted by society. And it was easy to do so, especially when he had a perfect example in front of him that he could mimic: his cousin Kashima Yuu.

The act was working perfectly. He made friends, lots of them, and he proved to be popular in the soccer club. That was until Yuu himself transferred to the same school, alongside that pesky Toono Takashi.

It started as a petty act of retaliation against his cousin, but now Yacchan found himself increasingly attracted to Toono. He was already on the backfoot against his cousin, and he tried to establish dominance by kissing Toono as well but it seemed like that hadn't worked in the way he intended.

Even his latest attempt at showing Toono care and concern backfired because Yuu had got there first. 

Again.

Even so, he wasn't going to give up. There was still a glimmer of hope. Toono hadn't made his choice yet, and Yaguchi Kyousuke did not become one of the top players in the soccer club by fluke. The boy loved staring down his competition and would never back down from a fight.

One more chance, he told himself that day. 

Toono will have no more reason to doubt his choice, and his choice will be Yaguchi Kyousuke.

Yacchan smiled secretly to himself as he hunted down Toono. Someone told him they saw him talking on the phone in the common room; no doubt that was to his father. Yacchan wondered if he was ok, it sounded like there was a bit of tension there. He regretted not staying to hear him out the other day, but hearing Toono bring up Yuu's name filled his heart with anger and jealousy.

He spotted a familiar back profile down the corridor. Perfect, there he was, Yacchan thought.

As he got ready to stride confidently up to him, who would get there first but Yuu. Again.

Yacchan immediately hid in a corner. He didn't like his odds when his cousin was there as well. This was just a temporary, tactical retreat, he told himself repeatedly.

Just a temporary setback. When Yuu leaves he will be able to-

"I like you!"

Yacchan froze. He thought he was hearing things. That must be it, there was too much distance between them. He had misheard things.

"I like you, Kashima Yuu!"

No. No it can't be!

Yacchan trembled as he felt his world crumble down around him. He clenched his fists so tightly his nails were starting to dig into the skin on the palms of his hands. His vision blurred as tears swirled up in his eyes and he let out a soft whimper as his bottom lip trembled. This hurt more than every single defeat he had on the soccer field. He wanted to punch the wall and scream until he lost his voice; he was angry, hurt, disappointed, jealous....he couldn't feel anything in his heart anymore because he felt like it had been broken into smithereens. 

He couldn't bear to look at Toono and Yuu again, he just wanted them to get out of his sight so he wouldn't be reminded of how badly and thoroughly he had lost to Yuu once again. Instead, he turned around and stormed off in the other direction.

Tamura Yui was having a rather frustrating day. He had bought something for Yaguchi and he was quite excited about presenting it to him on Christmas day, but he was still having some trouble understanding how to do so in a nice way. Okada-sensei had been wonderful at giving him guidance, but Tamura knew himself better than her; when the time came he was no doubt going to say something stupid and nasty again.

He was practising saying some nice things to himself when he saw Yaguchi heading down the corridor towards him. Tamura's heart lurched; this was as good of an opportunity as any time. All he needed to do was to say something nice.

It can't be that hard, right?

"Oi, Yaguchi!"

As Yacchan came closer, Tamura noticed something amiss. Yacchan had a twisted expression on his face, quite unlike the usual placid and angelic expression he always wore. He also noticed that he appeared to be crying.

"Oi Yaguchi," he repeated, as Yacchan stormed past him like he was part of the wall. "Yaguchi!"

Tamura reached out and grabbed his arm. 

"What's wrong with you? Don't you know it's rude to ignore people who are talking to you?" he snapped.

"SHUT UP!" Yacchan shouted as he turned to face Tamura. 

"Wait, Yaguchi," Tamura started, looking bewildered. "Are you ok? Are you cry-"

"SHUT UP! I DON'T NEED TO LISTEN TO YOU, STUPID TOILET!"

Yacchan was openly sobbing now. Tamura looked horrified as he saw how different he looked. He looked so much scarier with his face all screwed up with sadness and anger, but something about it stirred something up in Tamura. He didn't even have the heart to fight back when he was called a stupid toilet, that didn't matter at that point. 

"Wait-"

"FUCK OFF!" Yacchan spat. Tamura stared at him in shock. Yaguchi had previously given him some choice words in the past so Tamura knew he wasn't exactly one to mince his words, but this was different.

Yacchan was broken and it hurt Tamura beyond measure to see it.

He saw past the anger and saw only an insecure, heartbroken boy who needed to be comforted.

Yacchan opened his mouth, ready to dish out another tongue lashing but that never came.

To his surprise, Tamura pulled him into his arms and held him tight.

"W..what are you doing?" Yacchan asked in confusion; he was no longer shouting but he was still squirming. "Let me go!"

"Quiet," Tamura growled in a low voice. "You're upset aren't you? So just cry if you need to. I..I'll just stand here like this for as long as you need."

He could feel Yacchan grow limp in his arms, his body shaking with emotion. He adjusted his arms and cradled him just a little more protectively.

For the first time, Yacchan registered how exhausted he was. It was like being in Tamura's embrace forced him to stop letting his feelings and emotions run rampant. He couldn't bring himself to continue fighting the person who had so bravely thrown himself out there at great personal risk.

He couldn't believe it; he had been subdued, of all people, by Toilet-kun himself, Tamura Yui.

Helpless against his touch, Yacchan did the only thing he could. 

Tamura thought his heart would stop as he felt a pair of arms slowly wrap around him. He smiled tenderly as he tightened his embrace. This all seemed so intuitive to him now, Tamura had no idea why it seemed so hard before.

"Feeling better?" Tamura asked quietly, as his hand stroked the back of his head. Yacchan's messy orange locks were soft and fluffy against his touch, like a little puppy. 

Yacchan nodded silently, his head still pressed up against Tamura's chest. From this position, he could hear his heart beating frantically against his ribcage, and he could smell the light scent of his deodorant. And it frankly smelt....really good. 

Right there in his arms, Yacchan felt every negative feeling within him start to subside. Tamura's embrace was gentle and an unfamiliar feeling welled up inside Yacchan's heart as he felt himself melt into nothingness.

A feeling he had never experienced before.

He felt safe.

Chapter Text

Christmas Eve

Today was the day. After passing on the schedule for the day to Konno, Akemi and Itome made their way to the club room.

"You really pulled out the stops, Kou-kun", Akemi praised. 

"I can't see Okada-sensei rejecting him. I bet she'll cry!"

As Itome smiled and nodded in agreement, they noticed Shikatani sitting on the couch in silence. He was uncharacteristically quiet and appeared to be reading a letter. Ever the caring individual, Akemi bounded up to him. 

"Shikatani! What's wrong? It's Christmas Eve! Aren't you excited for Christmas?"

"Not really", he replied flatly. "I don't get why you're making such a big deal about this, honestly".

"Because it's the most wonderful and magical time of the year!" Akemi exclaimed. "Miracles happen during this time, don't you know?"

Shikatani rolled his eyes. 

"Like what?"

"Oh I dunno", Akemi replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I have a feeling we're going to get a few surprise announcements over the next day or two".

He tried to grab the letter off Shikatani but he was too quick for him. He got to his feet grumpily.

"Don't touch my stuff", he snapped before he hurried out of the room. In his haste to leave, a tattered envelope fell out from his pocket. 

Akemi picked up the envelope and inspected it. A mischievous grin spread over his face and he picked up the phone.

The recipient picked on on the fourth ring. 

"Good afternoon, Akizawa Ryokan", a friendly, familiar voice sounded at the end of the line. 

"Akizawa-senpaiiiiii," Akemi sang. "It's me, Ake-"

"We're full", Akizawa shot back mercilessly, his friendly customer service voice disappearing immediately. "You were just here a few months ago and I'm not letting you guys back here anytime soon. I had to disinfect everything and I ain't doing that again so soon-"

"Wait! Hear me out, senpai", Akemi pleaded. "I'm not here for a group booking. It's just a booking for two for Shikatani."

"Hmm?" Akizawa's tone softened considerably. He had a soft spot for Shikatani; they had enjoyed it when Shikatani bottomed for him and they had a lot of good times together when he was still at Mori-mori.

"Booking for two did you say? I didn't know Shikatani-kun had a boyfriend".

"Well, he doesn't," Akemi said. "But I'm hoping that after some time away things might change".

"I see," Akizawa replied. "Well you're in luck, I do have room for two next week. How many nights are you looking to book for?"

"Just two nights should be enough", Akemi advised. "Although, if things do change and they want to stay longer, let them. I'll cover the costs".

Akizawa guffawed. " Wow you're really embracing the Christmas spirit this year, aren't you? What happened?"

"Just thought I would do something nice for everyone before I graduate", Akemi said. "I am club president after all and I should look after the members".

"I didn't think you would have it in you, but I'm glad Minami made you President," Akizawa said. There was a sudden pause at the end of the line and Akizawa slapped himself on the mouth. 

"Sorry, I shouldn't have brought him up", he apologized. While it looked like Akemi had come to terms with his relationship with Minami during the Cultural Festival, Akizawa knew first hand how some things you just never fully get over. 

"It's fine, really", Akemi said quietly. "I..I've got Koushiro now."

"Well, I'm glad that you've moved on. I never wanted to say this, but what was going on between Minami and you was really hurting both of you", Akizawa divulged. 

"What about you, senpai?" Akemi asked cautiously. "Are you over Konno?"

It was Akizawa's turn to fall silent. Telling Akemi how his relationship with Minami was toxic was so easy, but now that the shoe was on the other foot, it became a harder pill to swallow. He had kept himself busy to avoid thinking about Konno but trust Akemi that little brat to remind him again. 

Blatantly ignoring the 'No Smoking' sign on his own work counter, Akizawa lit up a cigarette. 

"Uh, isn't he on the other side of the world with Okada-san now?" Akizawa asked, puffing away. "Wherever they are, I hope they're happy."

"Erm, yeah," Akemi started. "They just came back a few days ago. And also..."

There was a slight pause.

"Konno is going to propose soon."

Akizawa felt his stomach plunge, like he had just been dropped from the top of the tallest building in the world.

"Really? Ha, he really isn't wasting any time is he?" Akizawa said with a short laugh. "He did say he wanted to start a family one day, so I guess it makes sense".

Akemi recognized that fake-ass laugh he always had whenever he was uncomfortable. 

"Senpai, are you really ok?" he asked suspiciously. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut, Akemi swore regretfully. 

"Keii, I never told you this but the last time you were here, I had a chat about Koushiro about this so I guess I'll give you the same advice."

"Love doesn't change people. It's people who change for love." 

"What Konno and I had.... will never compare to what he has with Okada-san," Akizawa conceded quietly. "He was staying with me out of obligation, it would have been wrong of me to hold him back from the person he truly loved".

"Wow, senpai", Akemi replied, sounding awestruck. "That was....surprisingly noble and profound. I didn't think you were smart enough to ever come up with something so philosophical!"

"In that case, I'm canceling that booking of yours", Akizawa snapped. "And I'm putting you on the blacklist indefinitely."

"Hey c'mon, I was just joking!" Akemi cried out. "Don't punish Shikatani because I was being a smart-ass."

Akizawa laughed. He wasn't upset; in fact it was exactly what he needed to stop thinking about Konno. 

"Just kidding! Ok, I'll send you the booking confirmation now. And no more group bookings, I'm swear one more orgy-"

Akemi hastily thanked Akizawa and hung up. He turned to look at Itome.  

"What do you want?" Itome asked cautiously. He had recognized that look at once; it was his puppy-dog look that he reserved for very special occasions (like that time he made a 'Koushiro Sandwich' with Shikatani on the other end of Itome)  

Akemi's face lit up excitedly and he showed the envelope to Itome.

"Can your private jet make it to Hokkaido and back tomorrow?"

*

"Hey Kon-chan," Miyu started as they made their way out of the school. 

"When you told me you had planned a trip to Tokyo, I didn't expect this!"

Konno had told Miyu about a spontaneous, pre-Christmas day trip to Tokyo. He hadn't given her further information besides that, only for her to trust him and to dress up. 

She was ready to leave for the train station together, but instead Konno led her out the back of the school where a private jet was waiting. 

"Itome-kun offered to help", Konno yelled over the loud whirling of the aircraft engine. A middle aged man dressed in a smart suit emerged from the plane and bowed.

"Good morning, Konno-sama, Okada-sama. I will be your butler and chauffeur for the day. Koushiro-sama has advised me to make sure you are well looked after".

He led them up the stairs into the plush interior of the jet. The seats were a neutral beige colour as were most of the internal decor, with the exception of the carpeted floor which was a dark teal colour. 

"French champagne is available at your request, as well as caviar and crackers. Just press this button here", the butler instructed briskly as he disappeared into the cockpit.

"Take off will commence in five minutes, please make yourselves comfortable".

Miyu and Konno quickly explored the plane, marveling at the wide, comfortable seats and the beautiful colour palette. 

"I'll definitely need to thank Itome when we get back here", Miyu said as she settled into one of the seats and fastened her seatbelt. Just as the plane started to move, she took Konno's hand in hers. 

"Are you nervous?" Konno asked anxiously. She shook her head vigorously with a smile. 

"No no, just thinking how lucky I am."

She squeezed his hand. 

"Thank you for arranging this."

Konno couldn't help but feel slightly guilty. While he was thrilled at the plan that Akemi and Itome had put together, something about it felt incredibly impersonal. 

Was the eighteen year gap too much for their relationship to bear? He was confident that Miyu hadn't changed much over the years, and neither had he. So why was it so difficult to plan this proposal? Was he that bad at showcasing basic declarations of love? He did not have to bother with that sort of stuff with Akizawa, so was true love this much harder to maintain?

His insides twisted at the thought of Akizawa. It wasn't fair to compare what they had with what he had now. It was at that point when Konno truly understood how differently he felt towards both of them.

"Mii-chan."

She turned to look at Konno expectantly. He couldn't help but smile; she had dressed up as per his instructions and she looked absolutely stunning in her black dress and make up. Konno too was smartly dressed in a navy blue shirt and straight cut chinos. He even wore a matching tie! As a PE teacher, Konno lived in his activewear so Miyu rarely got a chance to see him dress up.

She had a good mind to show him exactly how she felt later.

"Why do you love me?" he asked.

She laughed.

"It's a bit late to ask this, isn't it?" she teased. 

"No I'm serious", Konno insisted. "I'm a pretty useless guy when it comes to romantic stuff. All that stuff we did together when we were young don't count, because we were just dumb kids and that sort of stuff was harmless fun-"

Konno stopped when he thought he saw her face fall slightly. 

"Oh," she started, her voice sounding rather far away. "It's just...I thought those things we did together were really fun."

She looked into his eyes and smiled. 

"It meant a lot to me anyway".

Konno had never felt like a bigger ass. His biggest flaw was his ability say the wrong thing at the wrong time. He didn't mean to discount all the times they had spent together in their adolescent years. That had meant a lot to him as well, what he meant to say was that things were different now that they were now adults, and adults want different things and show their love in different ways.

Love changes when you grow up, right?

She had turned to look at the clouds outside the window, but there was no mistaking the disappointment in her voice.

The flight to Tokyo was short and sweet. She had resumed chatting to him normally afterwards but Konno couldn't help but feel like there was a weight upon his heart.

Her words continued to echo in his head.

It meant a lot to me anyway.

After they landed, the butler doubled up as the chauffeur and ushered them into the waiting Mercedes Benz on the runway. 

"Ooo where are we going?" Miyu asked excitedly, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"You'll find out soon," Konno replied mysteriously. He knew exactly what the plan was: the next stop was to a fancy restaurant at the top of the Tokyo Skytree, where a special lunch and bouquet of flowers had been prepared.

All Konno had to do was show up with the ring.

"It's been so long since I've been back here," Miyu said wistfully, as she gazed outside at the passing scenery. "So many memories are coming back to me now!"

As he watched her face, his heart started beating furiously. Something dawned on him and somewhere in his brain, Konno felt everything fall into place.

He hurriedly tapped the chauffeur on the shoulder as he whispered into his ear.

"But Konno-sama, the reservation-"

"Change it to dinner or something," he hissed. "If not, just cancel it."

Miyu watched their exchange curiously.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing," Konno assured her. "Oh wait, actually..."

He took his tie off and wrapped it around her eyes.

"It's a surprise".

Miyu thought it was Konno playing some sort of kinky joke on her, but she went along with it.

Reluctantly, the chauffeur keyed in updated coordinates on the GPS and took another turn,

A turn that did not lead to Sumida City.

After around fifteen minutes, the car pulled into an unassuming neighbourhood where they came to a stop next to a park.

Konno led her out of the car before he took the blindfold off.

"We're here!" he announced.

Miyu gasped.

She felt a lump in her throat when she finally realized where they were.

Time appeared to have stood still. While the playground had been upgraded in some sections, the park looked exactly the same as they remembered. It was like a time capsule that preserved those precious memories that were exclusively theirs. 

He led her to a bench with an excited smile on his face. Miyu thought the smile looked exactly like the one he showed her all those years ago: sweet, charming and oh-so cheeky.

As she looked around the park, she started reminiscing. "Ah, that's where you fell off the swing," she pointed, giggling at the memory.

"And that's where you twisted your ankle when you tried to prove you were faster than me!" Konno shot back as he pointed at another spot.

They laughed. Suddenly, they felt like they were fifteen years old again. Young, innocent, bellies full with their favourite chocolate waffles and with hearts full of hope. 

"And this bench,' she said, as she gazed at it rather sadly. Her memories of this park had been bittersweet over the years. All the happy memories had been overshadowed by the day they parted ways. They had promised each other to always be there for each other, only for her to break her word shortly after. But it was Konno's words of encouragement on that fateful day that helped her through her downward spiral and led her back to him again.

"That's where I said goodbye to you."

To her surprise, Konno let out a small snort of laughter.

"That's funny, because that's where I realized that I was in love with you."

Miyu's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. It was also at that moment of parting when she realized that her feelings for Konno could be more than just friendship. Her fifteen year old heart was confused and afraid, but it didn't matter because it was all too late anyway. She was going away forever and Konno could never possibly feel that way for her...right?   

It was wishful thinking on her part.

"I broke my promise," she said in a small voice.

"I promised I would be strong and yet..."

He put a finger to her lips to stop her from continuing.

"You did not break your promise."

Gently, he kissed her on her forehead.

"You came back, didn't you?" he said, his voice starting to crack. "And you did that through your own strength. Even after everything you went through, you rose above it all, and you came back to me."

He took her hand in his.

"Mii-chan," he whispered, the look on his face turning serious as he looked into her eyes.

"I'm sorry for making you wait this long, and I'm even sorrier for discounting the love we had growing up. I...I'm really bad at romantic stuff and I'm terrible at talking about my feelings, but there is something I can no longer wait to ask you."

Konno got down on one knee. With a trembling hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a box. He opened it to reveal a white gold ring with a single, dainty sparkling diamond.

"Miyu Okada, will you marry me?"

Miyu's heart began to swell as tears glistened in her eyes. When she was last at this park, her heart had been broken into pieces. As the sun set that day, it wasn't just about saying goodbye to her life in Japan, but also to the love she dare not admit to having. A love she thought she had no right to desire.

But now, she finally knew that it was not unrequited.

Time had always played tricks on them. Eighteen years ago, a fifteen minute delay caused Miyu's Valentines day gift to be destroyed.

Eighteen years later, their reunion revealed that Konno was in a relationship with Akizawa.

But time was no match for their love. Mustering her strength, Miyu gave her answer.

"Yes. Yes I will marry you!"

Konno slipped the ring onto her finger. It was a little large but that wasn't important right now. With a huge, happy smile on his face, he swept her in his arms in a tight embrace as tears prickled his eyes as well. Konno was stupidly clumsy with his words, but this time round he knew he did not falter.

His sweet, beautiful Mii-chan.

He loves her so, so much. 

As he felt her trembling with emotion in his arms, Konno felt like his heart would burst. He couldn't believe it. How could it have taken him so long to see it?

Nothing had ever changed, it was all so simple.

All Kon-chan and Mii-chan wanted was to be together forever.

And what better place to make this promise than the place that nearly ended it all.

"Mii-chan, one more thing".

Their eyes met again and Konno couldn't hold back a smile. Her immaculately done makeup was now ruined and her smudged mascara made her look like a panda. But even so, Konno thought she had never looked more perfect. 

He caressed her cheek and wiped a stray tear away.

"I promise that I will never let you go ever again."

He stuck out his little finger.

"Pinky promise".

She giggled feebly and locked her finger with his.

"Pinky promise". 

Chapter Text

Christmas Day

It was finally Christmas morning. Akemi and Itome were putting up the finishing touches in the club room in preparation of the gathering at midday. He had organized for the school chef to send some food into the room and the fried chicken was on it's way. There was a mountain of sliced ham, a creamy chicken and mushroom stew, mashed potatoes, gravy and a couple of different salads. 

A phone pinged. It was Itome's.

He checked the notification and smiled.

"They're on their way," Itome said to Akemi in his trademark whispery voice. Akemi rubbed his hands in excitement.

The first person to show up to the party was Shikatani. He was frankly, not exactly feeling it but wallowing in self pity in his dorm was an infinitely worse way to spend his time. 

"Merry Christmas!" Akemi yelled, jumping out from behind the couch and making him jump. He had dressed up as Santa Claus and Itome was in a cute, green elf outfit. 

"Have a sweater!"

He pulled out a sweater from the sack and handed it out. Shikatani pulled a face.

"Don't you have anything cuter?" he complained, looking disgusted at the vividly coloured outfit. 

"They're supposed to be ugly," Akemi explained, as Itome pulled his polaroid camera out.

"Say cheese!"

"Oi I wasn't ready!" Shikatani cried out, as Itome snapped away without warning. 

The couple sniggered at the photo.

"That's perfect. He's going to love this!" Akemi said, as Itome nodded silently in agreement. 

"Who's going to love this?" Shikatani asked suspiciously, trying to swipe the photo from their clutches.

"You'll see," Akemi sang in a teasing voice. Shikatani scowled in reply.

Tamura walked in with Yuri next. As usual, Yuri appeared to be poking and teasing Tamura, but Tamura looked strangely distracted and was not reacting to any of Yuru's taunting. 

"What's wrong Tamura?" Shikatani asked. "You're looking real fidgety".

"Huh? Oh nothing, just waiting for someone that's all," Tamura replied cryptically, his face suddenly turning red.

Before Shikatani could probe further, he was interrupted by Yuri.

"MISHTATOWW! TIME FOR KISSSHH!"

Everyone laughed as Yuri wrestled Tamura, trying to plant a kiss on him. 

"Arrgh get off me Yuri! I don't want my boyf- I mean, anyone to see!"

"Oh Tamu-senpai, did you say 'boyfriend'?" Kashima asked brightly, sneaking up behind them with Toono in tow. They were both carrying little packages that had been clumsily wrapped in wrapping paper. Toomo seemed to be a bit quieter than normal and he appeared to have choked on his own spit when Kashima said 'boyfriend'.

It wasn't the first time the First Years showed up to the club room together, but something seemed a little different this time. Something they couldn't quite put their finger on.

"Presents!" Akemi exclaimed loudly, seemingly oblivious to how different Kashima and Toono were acting with each other. "Please put your presents under the tree for now! We will exchange them when everyone gets here".

"Where's your contribution?" Shikatani asked pointedly as he placed his gift under the tree. Akemi gave a cute chuckle.

"Heehee, it's on it's way!" he replied gleefully. "For the time being, has everyone received a sweater?"

Everyone nodded reluctantly. Akemi had somehow managed to get his hands on a lot of the ugliest and most garish looking outfits they have ever seen. 

"Sorry we're late!"

Konno and Miyu walked through the door hand in hand. Everyone gasped; although it was a known fact that they were dating this was the first time they had openly flaunted their relationship in front of others.

"I made Christmas cake!" she announced, placing a decadently decorated dessert on the table. "It's a strawberry shortcake with lots of fresh strawberries and chocolate buttons on top!"

"You're very lucky," Konno said. "Miyu is an amazing cook and she makes the best cakes and desserts." Everyone was practically salivating at the sight of the cake; Miyu had ran some cooking classes previously and they knew she had wonderful, nearly fool-proof recipes.

"I'm glad you could join us! I have enough sweaters to go around", Akemi announced, as everyone groaned. 

"Geez, they're kind of ugly aren't they?" Konno observed. His sweater had a strange looking animal on it that looked like a reindeer. 

"Ugly Christmas sweaters are a tradition in Western countries," Miyu reminded him as she put hers on. Her sweater had little kittens in bows all over. 

"Ugh I'm never wearing this again", Konno complained as he reluctantly pulled it over his head. "I like it better when you wore that red-br-ahhh!"

He jumped when Miyu poked him sharply in his ribs.

"Ah sensei, didn't you both just come back from Tokyo last night?" Kashima asked curiously. "Do you both...have news for us?"

Everyone's attention was suddenly on the couple. They both blushed and smiled shyly, causing Shikatani to immediately leap up and grabbed her left hand to inspect it.

"Where is it?" he demanded with an air like a kidnapper asking for his ransom. The others clamoured around noisily, looking shocked when they noticed her bare finger. 

"Sensei, I thought you..."

"Did you get rejected?" Akemi cried out. "I knew it, you shouldn't have cancelled the booking-"

"Calm down!" Konno interrupted. "The ring just needs to get resized so we're keeping it in the box for now. And we didn't cancel the booking, Akemi. We just changed it to dinner instead because I decided I was going to propose my way instead".

"Oh? So where did you end up doing it?" Kashima asked, wide eyed and hanging onto their every word.

"In a park near the area we both grew up in," Miyu replied with a smile on her face, exchanging a knowing look with Konno. He had fessed up and admitted that Akemi and Itome basically planned everything for him, and that he had felt bad about how impersonal everything was. Choosing to go to the park instead was something only Konno himself could have come up with; that was their own special place after all.

And it was the correct decision. 

"Well, I said yes, so we are definitely getting married!"

A collective round of applause went round the room as they congratulated the couple. 

"So what's going to happen when you get married?" Toono asked. "Does that mean there'll be two Konno-sensei's in the school? That's going to get confusing"

"You can keep calling me Okada-sensei, I don't mind", she said.

"But I do," Konno interrupted. "If you're going to change your name to Miyu Konno, we can't have students referring to you by your maiden name".

"Who said I was going to be 'Miyu Konno'?" she shot back. "You could take my last name and become Okada-sensei instead!" She laughed loudly at Konno's bewildered and scandalized expression.

"I'm kidding," she guffawed. "How about 'Mrs Konno'. That's how students address their teachers in Western countries and I am an English teacher after all."

Konno grinned. 

"Mrs Konno...I like that!", he said, putting his arm around her and kissing her cheek lightly. "I can't wait until that day comes".

Everyone whooped and cheered as Miyu blushed, both of them conveniently ignoring calls for them to kiss each other on the lips.  

Akemi checked his watch and clapped his hands together loudly.

"Attention everyone!" he called out in his high, clear voice. "It's time to exchange presents!"

Kashima and Toono looked at each other. Kashima shot him a cheery grin and Toono returned it with a small smile, blushing as he looked away. Toono had finally accepted Kashima, but being intimate with him still made him nervous. They had started slow and just held hands for now, but even that happened only when they were alone. Kashima as expected, had been nothing but patient.

"Here, Merry Christmas!" Kashima said, handing over his gift.

"Thank you," Toono replied. "And uh, this is for you".

They both ripped the paper off at the same time. Kashima's face lit up when he saw the gift: a book on nature photography. Toono's eyes widened when he saw what Kashima had prepared for him: a scrapbook of the photos he had taken of both of them together. There was a little note at the end of the book:

Please show me the world from your perspective. 

"I love this, thank you," he said, his fingers reaching out and brushing Kashima's hand subtly. Kashima reacted by touching his fingers against his as well, both of them looking at each other and exchanging a sweet smile.

"Oooo what do we have here?" Akemi asked, sticking his head in between them nosily. They both hastily drew away from each other, but Akemi caught sight of the words Kashima had written in the scrapbook.

His mouth dropped into a big, surprised, 'O'. 

"Toono....and Kashima? Are you both dating now?" he cried out, grabbing both their hands tightly and shaking them in his excitement. 

"And most importantly, are you having lots of sex?"

"W..we're not dating!" Kashima said hurriedly, knowing that Toono probably wanted to keep things low key for now. The last thing he wanted was for Toono to feel extra pressure to do anything sexual with him. He hadn't even kissed him since the confession.

"This is just a normal gift exchange, you know, because it's Christma-"

Kashima didn't get to finish his sentence, because Toono put his arms around his face and pulled him in, kissing him on the cheek. 

"K... Kashima and I are together now," Toono muttered shyly, lowering his blushing face. "So please don't ask us any more".

Everyone stared at the duo in silence. A quick scan of the ceiling showed that they weren't standing under any mistletoe. Kashima's face was frozen in shock and everyone had their jaw on the floor. 

It took Yuri's screaming to jolt them back to their senses. As he whooped and hollered, everyone started smiling and laughing. Kashima and Toono caught the eye of both their teachers and exchanged a thumbs up.

But their happiness was short lived, because in the midst of the chaotic admission of Toono and Kashima's relationship, nobody had heard the door open again, nor see a figure slip into the room.

Kashima saw him first and a look of shock spread across his face. 

"K..Kyousuke?"

Nobody had been expecting Yacchan to show up that morning. He wasn't part of the club for starters, and...well, he wasn't a part of the club. 

So what the hell was he doing there?

"Y...Yacchan! Fancy seeing you here", Toono stammered. They had not said said anything to Yacchan after they got together; they were biding their time and were going to tell him together after Christmas, when things had hopefully, officially sunk in for both of them. Now Yacchan was somehow in the club room, watching them with an odd expression on his face.

Even Kashima couldn't tell if he was angry or upset, or both, or neither. 

Yacchan strode across the room, his arms swinging with purpose. Toono huddled up to Kashima, his face turning pale. Was Yacchan going to beat them both up in front of everyone? Surely not, Yacchan had his unhinged moments but even so he was smart enough to not pick a fight in a situation where he was outnumbered. 

As both boys braced themselves for the onslaught of abuse from Yacchan, the boy walked past them like they were part of the Christmas decorations. They stared wide eyed as he instead walked up to Tamura, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him in for a deep kiss on his lips. 

A huge shout of disbelief rang out through the room. Even Tamura looked like his eyes were going to pop out of his head. 

After what felt like an eternity, Yacchan finally freed Tamura's lips. "Oi," he growled in a low voice. "I...I thought I told you to wait for me before you came here".

He blushed. 

Screams of "TAMURA!" and "YACCHAN!" rang out throughout the room. They too had kept their relationship secret, with both of them spending time together privately in each other's rooms between club activities. Unlike Kashima and Toono, Yacchan was a bit more open to speaking up about what his boundaries would be in the future.

"Tamura and Yaguchi....well that was unexpected", Shikatani observed, finally recovering from the shock. "Does that mean you're both-"

"I'm not a neko!" Yacchan interrupted hurriedly, his face flushed. Tamura gave an awkward grin; this was a non-negotiable that was brought up very quickly during one of their private hang outs. Although they had yet to put that in practice, Tamura was only too happy to oblige. 

He would do anything for Yaguchi.

The senior club members raised their eyebrows as a thought crossed all their minds:

Whelp, there goes Tamura's 70/30 tachi and neko ratio!

"And oh, some weirdo was hanging around outside too", Yacchan said pointedly. "Some dark-haired guy, kept talking to himself like a creep."

Everyone peered outside curiously. Yuri's face lit up when he saw who was standing outside. Fujisaki, who had been avoiding Yuri for months, was standing outside the room holding a covered plate.

"Y...Yuri-kun," he stammered, his eyes filling with tears. Staying away from Yuri had been the most difficult time of his life. He forced himself to avoid contact but it didn't stop him from pining and hurting. Every day, he looked on from afar as Yuri went about his day, collecting anything remnants of him he could get his hands on: from strands of his pink locks to his old underwear.

"Yuri-kun, I...I made you some log cake," Fujisaki said, uncovering the mystery plate. Everyone visibly retched when they saw the cake: when he said 'log cake', it looked exactly like the logs one would find in a toilet. They really didn't want to know how it tasted either, they've been on the receiving end of his cooking in the past, with disastrous results. 

Yuri looked at the dessert in silence. Everyone watched on as he picked up a piece and put it in his mouth, pausing to savour the morsel. Itome had his phone on standby, ready to call for an air ambulance if required.

"Thank you," Fujisaki whispered, flashing a watery smile. He turned to slink out of the room but Yuri caught him.

"Oh no, he's poisoned him!" Yacchan whispered in shock, unwittingly clutching onto Tamura's arm. Tamura patted him on his arm reassuringly.

"Don't worry, Yuri's survived one round of Jimi's food. He's basically indestructible at this point."

"Let me go!" Fujisaki cried out, his tears flowing profusely. "Don't touch me or I won't be able to resist you anymore!"

"Then don't resist. Stay!"

Yuri's stance was clear and simple. His grip on Fujisaki's arm was also not letting up. 

"B...but Yuri, I-"

"Stay," Yuri repeated. He pulled him into his arms and hugged him tightly, the plate of the toxic looking dessert clattering noisily onto the floor.

"Don't leave me again".

Fujisaki sobbed loudly as Yuri patted his shaggy head, a huge smile on his face. It had been a while since Yuri smiled so happily like that. The cake laid in squished up pieces on the floor, quite forgotten and looking like someone had an unfortunately bowel-related accident. Everyone couldn't help but sigh; they were an odd couple but if Yuri was the only one who could survive Fujisaki's cooking attempts, there couldn't be a better sign for how perfect they were for each other.

As everyone cosied up to their partners new and old, Shikatani couldn't help but feel a bit lonely. He knew that Christmas was a time for couples to celebrate their relationship; Akemi would be ordering everyone to have sex soon as part of his Christmas club message. As the resident neko of the club, he was quite popular with the other students and even a few of the teachers, although the less said about the latter the better.

The scars of what happened with Matsumura were yet to heal. And speaking of not getting over things, he still had feelings for Shou....

"Excuse me, is this the photography club room?"

There was room for one last surprise for the day. Everyone stared at the unexpected guest, but nobody was more shocked at his appearance than Shikatani.

He blinked at the rosy cheeked, fair haired boy who walked into the room carrying a bag. Judging by the smell wafting out, Shou had come with plenty of fried chicken. 

"Shou? What are you doing here?" he exclaimed. "And how the hell did you get here on Christmas day?"

Itome smiled as Shou waved to him. Of course, Shikatani had introduced them during the Cultural Festival.  

"Someone organized a lift," Shou mentioned casually, as Itome hi-fived him. "It was short notice, but I've never been on a private jet before!"

"Private jet?" Shikatani squeaked, gaping at them. Akemi laughed.

"Merry Christmas Shikatani!" he said with a huge smile. "And oh, Shou-kun, here's something else for you to welcome you to our little town."

He pulled the voucher out.

"Two night's stay at the Akizawa Family Ryokan," Akemi said with a smile. "It's one of the best in our town, and I have already instructed the owner to look after both of you."

Shou's eyes lit up.

"Oh wow! Keii-kun, Kou-kun, I couldn't possibly accept this! What with the private jet ride and now a holiday? This is too extravagant!"

Shikatani looked on silently, scowling slightly at Akemi and Itome. He was mad at them for meddling in his life again; he always kept everything to himself, even what was happening with Matsumura. He never asked for their help, but they got involved anyway and....well, the results were pretty fucking funny. Shikatani sniggered softly to himself when he recalled Matsumura's last day, how much pleasure he took flipping him off when he packed his bags and left the school.

None of it would have been possible without this group of nutjobs, and especially Akemi for instigating everything. 

He sighed again, but this time with a small smile spreading across his face. 

Goddamn it, he had some really good friends at this club.

He wasn't sure if things were going to develop any further with Shou, but he was eternally grateful to Akemi and Itome for giving him the opportunity to make amends.

Perhaps starting things from a clean slate with Shou might be exactly what he needed all along.

"Hey Shou," Shikatani said, reaching out for Shou's arm. "Have you met the rest of the club? Here, let me introduce you."

Akemi and Itome stood back and smiled contentedly as they watched everyone happily snuggle up to their other half, excitedly opening presents and feasting on the food. 

"Ahhh I thought this day would never come", Akemi sighed. Itome put his arm around him and gave him an affectionate squeeze.

"It did take a while to get to this point, didn't it?" Itome nodded in agreement. Tamura, who was sitting the nearest to them overheard their conversation.

"Yeah at this rate I thought this story would turn into a Valentine's Day event instead", Tamura teased, his mouth full of fried chicken. Yacchan's hand had been sitting on his thigh and had not moved it for the last few minutes. 

Akemi's ears pricked up immediately.

"Hey, that's not a bad idea at all!" Akemi said, his face lighting up. He turned to Itome. 

"Koushiro, we've got work to do!"