#I put away all the snowman decor

[longlivetv]

Today I created my own holiday called “handle your shit saturday” in which I had to actually deal with all the shit piling up in my house and actually do the projects I’d been planning and it was so satisfying and made me feel SO much better. If you’re struggling rn, I highly recommend, even if you just handle a small chunk of your shit, giving it a name made it feel all official and whatnot and somehow let me trick myself into doing things I’ve been putting off since November.

[www-jungwon]

in which jay can’t decorate the christmas tree for the life of him, and says you only keep him around to hang the star ୨୧

tw. reader is shorter than jay, jay has a hickey wc. 362

“jay, no!” you desperately claw at the white ornament, its high placement making it impossible for you to reach.

jay squints down at you in an exasperated sort of way, but reaches back up to take off the snowman he just hung on the christmas tree branch.

“it’s not supposed to go there! you have to put all the snowmen spread out.” you point a ‘see?’ finger at the snowman on the next branch over.

he rolls his eyes. “if you don’t want my help, i can just-”

“no, i do!”

“to put ones up on branches you can’t reach, yeah,” he scoffs.

“no, i promise i-”

“you’ve taken down every ornament i’ve tried to put up.” he kicks at the box full of ornaments he’s set down, only authorized to be re-put up by you. 

“well, that’s because you put them all up wrong!”

“that’s because you have too many rules.”

“well, they’re intuitive! plus, that’s like twenty, you must have learned them all by now.”

“that’s what i thought! at five. and ten. and fifteen.”

“well, i promise there are only twenty.”

“you promise?”

you cross your fingers behind your back. “promise.”

“hey, i saw that!”

“ok, ok, fine.” you put your hands in front. “i promise, i only have twenty rules.”

he reaches down into the box to grab another ornament, watching you carefully like a bunny watches a person through a glass window, ready to jump away at any second.

“what? i don’t bite.”

jay raises his eyebrows, pointing to a hickey on the side of his neck and you slap his hand down.

“shut up!”

he grins, finally hanging the star-shaped decoration on the branch.

your heart sinks, and your hand fidgets at your side.

he raises his eyebrows, laughing at you. “how does it look?”

you grit your teeth. “great.”

he laughs again, spinning you into a hug with your back to him.

“what about this?” he reaches around your shoulder, calmly unhooking the star and putting it in the yn-puts-up box as he talks. “i stand here, and when you want me to put something on a higher branch, you tell me where.”

“but i-”

“twenty-one.”

“sounds perfect.”

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

part of winters of us, an advent calendar : day 007 prev

comment or send an ask to be added to the taglist !

enhypen tl : @eupherbia @cutsiepatootsie @sammm5225

sry for the late upload everyone <//3

[jo-harrington]

You don't have time for Christmas.

Work and home and this friend in a crisis.

Work and home and, let's be honest, probably work again.

And before you know it, it's December 20th and you don't even have any decorations up. Barely anyone does. The neighborhoods that are usually lit up with lights and figurines enough to rival the Griswolds are noticably dark this year.

What holiday? What festivity? It's wake up and hustle and lay in bed in a dreamless sleep. Then wake up to do it all again.

You are a cog in a machine.

You don't know how to voice these things, your displeasure, the secret yearning for the pomp and circumstance and childhood whimsy for the holiday season that's tucked somewhere deep inside your weary body. You can't bring yourself to indulge in it.

You're tired.

You glance down the card aisle at the grocery store but don't stop to grab any for friends. You pick up a bag of peanut butter bells for your candy jar at work but then second guess it at the checkout. Gifts are bought with as much care as you could, but you can't even bother to wrap them as prettily as you usually would.

You can try again for Valentine's. Chocolate hearts with the crispy rice inside and roses for your coworkers. Something.

But this year, you don't have time for Christmas.

And he notices.

It starts with cookies.

He likes to bake--started with boxed cake mix and then you bought him a handheld torch one year so he could try his hand at creme brûlée after he watched a little too much Jacques Pepin on PBS--so it's not anything suspicious. No ulterior motives detected.

Only he's dug up the little handwritten notebook full of your grandma's favorite recipes. Grandpa's handwriting because he wrote it while she dictated. Cookies he's never tasted before himself but seemed to have nailed exactly the way she made them. The love he poured into the treats matched hers exactly.

He brings you a plate and a cup of cocoa when you come home and collapse on the couch.

You cry when you eat them. And he lets you.

Then he digs out the tree from the garage.

The one-car garage that you pay extra for doesn't fit either of your vehicles but fits all your crap. You both vow to clean up at some point and never do. He slogs through the boxes of old band tees that don't fit him and kitchen crap that you don't miss or really need, to get to the plastic 6 ft tree that used to have stickers to note which bough went in what slot but those are long gone.

He spends hours figuring it out and decorating it, and imagine your surprise when you come home to an otherwise-dark apartment illuminated by the fat, colorful incandescent bulbs that you're sure he spent a significant amount of time untangling. You'd both given up last year and went without lights. But there they are.

"What?" you drop your bag by the door. "What is this?"

"I dunno," he grins proudly. "Thought it would be nice. Get in the Christmas spirit. Saved the star for you to put on top if you want."

And you did. You wanted it so bad. Ever since you were a kid, you were the one to put the star on top of the tree.

After it's up, you marvel at the special care he's taken with the important ornaments. Fragile little wooden ones from your grandma, popsicle stick frames with baby pictures of both of you, a macaroni snowman that he gave his mom once-upon-a-time that his uncle had stashed away, and then a fancy hallmark one you got the year you moved in together.

They all have special places on the tree and tell a story of your lives, separate and then together.

You both lay under the tree that night, staring up at the glittering lights as you hold hands.

Finally it's Christmas Eve. Which to him really meant nothing, but to you meant the world. Christmas Days were spent with individual families but Christmas Eves of old meant a big dinner and time spent with your cousins and It's a Wonderful Life on the TV.

It's a tradition that got put to the wayside as everyone got too old and too tired. As you started getting scheduled to work, like this year. And it's almost worse this year, as you've done a stretch of you-can't-remember-how-many days, that you even turned down an invitation for the two of you from your mom for a small dinner with her.

You're exhausted by the time you get home and, more than anything, you're looking forward to the day off tomorrow.

Not the holiday. The day off.

Still, you remember to bring in the handful of gifts from their hiding place in your trunk. You don't really do gifts between the two of you anymore. Nothing big at least. Just a cheesy little thing. Something fun, not something serious. But you did a little more this year than you usually would--all of the OT you'd clocked for one, and too many things you saw that you knew would make him smile for another.

You try to tip toe into the house as quietly as possible so you can throw the boxes under the tree and shower but he's vigilant. He's been at the stove cooking for a while, and he greets you at the door as you shut it behind you.

"I thought we said no big gifts," he admonishes you and snatches the boxes from your hands. The wrapping paper isn't festive--just brown craft paper you stole borrowed from work since you wrapped on your lunch--but you managed to slap on some red and green bows from the drugstore that you grabbed the other day.

"They're not big," you explained. "I promise."

"Well neither are mine," he winked.

You slap a hand against his chest and then give him a kiss in greeting and thanks.

"One better be the RC racer I wanted when I was nine," he mutters against your lips.

"Hmmm, you're just gonna have to wait," you tell him. "And no shaking the boxes.

You're almost a little ticked off'; one of them is the RC racer.

You kick off your shoes as the smell finally hits you.

Dinner.

Thick and savory and fragrant.

Some kind of fish and roasted potatoes and the starchiness of a pasta and the tang of its sauce.

Recipes, again, taken from your grandma's little notebook. They stir something deep inside of you. That yearning you never voiced.

The weariness that's been slowly building within you finally comes to a head when you make it to the kitchen and see the pots and pans and two plates already portioned out.

An ice cold beer for him, and a Shirley temple, extra cherries, for you.

"Remember when you told me," he comes up behind you and his arms snake around your midsection, "that you and your cousins would sneak extra maraschino cherries from the fridge when your gram wasn't looking. And then she went to go get them for the pistachio salad and they were gone."

Your knees shake and you practically collapse against him.

"Speaking of which, there is a pistachio salad in the fridge for dessert."

"Why?" you sniff.

"Because that's actually my favorite, so sorry to your grandma's tiramisu." He pecks a kiss to the side of your head and rocks you back and forth. "But if you want to make that for New Year's Eve, I won't say no."

"No," you let out a watery laugh. "Why are you so good to me, why did you do all of this?"

"Because I know it's been a hard few weeks. Few months." You can feel him shrug. "Fuck, it's been hard for me too but...I know this is one of your favorite parts of the year and you just...haven't been in the spirit for it. So whatever I could do to make it happen for you..."

You turn in his arms and bury your face in his shoulder, in his neck, so he doesn't see your tears. Again. Worse this time as you begin to shake from your sobs. He shushes you, runs a hand over your back, and leaves kiss after kiss against your head.

"Baby, I'll do anything for you," he tells you, voice thick with emotion. "I just want you to be happy."

"I am happy," you whine against his skin. "I'm so...so happy."

"Good."

"Thank you," you repeat it over and over again until it feels like you're empty of all the void and indifference that have filled you for the past few months are gone. In their place just...love and gratitude for him.

"Merry Christmas baby. I love you."

"I love you too, Merry Christmas."

[citrinae]

gingerbread kisses.

or: christmassy things you do with them. there are some more holiday-themed drabbles/headcanons in the works so hopefully i'll get around to posting some of them anytime soon!

ft. the monster trio

☆*。luffy

• hot cocoa, ornaments dangling from his ears, snowman-building contests, him pushing you into a pile of snow and joining soon after, snow fights turning into snow angel-making contests, crumbles of the gingerbread he stole from sanji’s kitchen, once he exposed a fake santa in front of a bunch of kids at the christmas market. 

• he’d make it his life’s mission to make sure you’re laughing, always, especially around this time, when his restlessness and impersonation skills increase tenfold. luffy on christmas eve is like mixing coffee with an energy drink. and even though he vehemently claimed he’d help you decorate the tree, he cannot help throwing everything on him instead, tinsel and ornaments and lights, turning himself into a walking greeting card. 

• after one, two, three more attempts at placing decorations on the actual tree, a defeated sigh leaves you eventually as you hang a glass bauble around your nose. luffy’s eyes are glowing brighter than the lights blinking around his neck and he leans forward to press a kiss upon your lips, long and sweet, bauble slipping off and unfurling into constellations on the floor as he does. do remember to brush those under a carpet before someone witnesses the mess you’ve made in here.  

• “what’s that for?” you laugh, a pinker shade crossing your cheeks, only for you to be met with a shrug and a smile reaching luffy’s ears. “felt happy, was all,” he says, and it’s completely genuine, even more so when he adds, “you’re awesome.” you smile back. and just as spontaneously you pull luffy in for a hug, wiggling the rest of the ornaments off him, encircling you both in a sea of colour and glitter. the moment doesn’t last for long and it’s the silver star lingering at the bottom of your decorations box that catches his attention now. “who makes the coolest half gets to place the star on the top.”

☆*。zoro

• mulled wine, hesitant pecks under the mistletoe, a freshly cut conifer carried on one shoulder and chopper cheering merrily on the other, damp wood and pine filling your nose when you rest your chin over his head, pinkies touching, his hands wrapping themselves around you after you’d both have fallen asleep at the fireplace. 

• it’s common knowledge that zoro isn’t good with dates. neither is he someone to put as much importance on a holiday, “i guess people needed an excuse to drink without feeling bad for it,” and at first you are more than sure he’d spend christmas morning training. therefore not finding him in his usual spot, barbells and swords and towels untouched and forgotten, should come as a total shocker to you. 

• but you’d have found what he’d been up to way sooner if he hadn’t gotten himself lost on the way to the town and back to the ship. sunset victoriously colouring his outline and a hand at his nape, he blames his absence on an old lady mistaking a sword shop for a tavern. for all you know, it was probably him mistaking a tavern for a sword shop. there’s a rectangular object in his fist you cannot take your eyes off—a knife case. “found nothing to grab my attention, dunno. still i thought this might come in handy to you,” he lies. better throw yourself into his arms because getting presents from roronoa zoro is like seeing him rip himself open for you. of course the quiet sigh coming with his reaction isn’t always that reassuring, but deep down he’s happy to know his efforts brought a smile to your face. 

• you two spend a good part of that night in the storage room, clinking bottles and letting yourselves get carried away with stories from your homelands. before you get to open yourself another one, he gestures with his knee towards your pocket knife. “let’s see what this devil can do, shall we?” you know exactly what he means by this. with a swift hand, you slide the knife under the bottle cap. when it pops, there’s a smirk climbing on zoro’s face, “that’s my babe.”

• apple and cinnamon tea, matching sweaters, him spinning you around the kitchen while humming some carol he picked from the north blue, scented candles, sugar melting in a frying pan and your lips touching the tip of a wooden spoon after he asks if this syrup is sweet enough for you. "at least half as sweet as you are, mon cœur."

☆*。sanji

• food shopping is the default. he’s got everything planned out, lists and schedules of the best providers on the island, and he wants to make sure everything goes immaculately at dinner on this special occasion with you. you’re not surprised when you notice that a good part of his basket is made of either foods you like or stuff you’ve asked of him before. mans does his homework all right. 

• be watchful of zoning out because if you keep your eyes on something for more than thirty seconds he’ll get it for you. no questions asked. he might also make some other additions on the spot if you happen to stumble upon any trinkets that remind him of you in one way or another. does someone sell heart-shaped ornaments at the stall on your left? he’ll get one for you. snowflake ornaments? he’ll get one for you, “because, darling, you landed on my heart the way snow graces a withered tree.”

• shopping bags at your feet and your cheeks rosy after shouldering past animated gushes of people at the market, your retreat is an isolated bench near the docks and the clicking sound of sanji’s lighter. he folds an arm around you. “cold,” you try to reason for huddling yourself into him. snowflakes begin to dot the sky a whiter canvas, floating on your head and nose. sanji doesn’t say it out loud, but a selfish part of him wishes you were feeling cold more often. 

[dem-obscure-imagines]

Merry Little Christmas

Druig x Reader

Fandom: MCU

Prompt: @the-sunflower-room “can’t stop thinking about druig and have yourself a merry little christmas- so cozy 😭🙏🏻”

Note: This was actually requested last year, I believe, but I’ve always wanted to write it. I’m sorry it took me so long to get around to it, but I hope you like it! Happy Holidays, everyone <3

Warnings: None! Just cozy Christmas celebrations <3

Word Count: 1.6k words

Reader Is: Gender Neutral!

Druig was never one for holidays. He wasn’t a scrooge, per se, but, as an Eternal, the seasons came and went so quickly. Years were mere blinks to a being who was thousands of years old. However, the look on your face as you put the ornaments on the tree made something stir around his heart, he had to admit.

He was sipping cocoa from a mug with a snowman on it, one from your vast collection. Kingo was in the kitchen, mixing up beverages, which was why he sensed a bit of liquor in the chocolatey beverage. It was still good, obviously, but he definitely blamed that for the rosy hue his cheeks had taken on.

Definitely not the cute little reindeer antlers you were wearing. Definitely not the way your laughter sounded from across the room.

All of the Eternals were there. A rare feat, but with the danger defeated, for now at least, it was cause for celebration, a time to be with family. It was your house you were all celebrating in, a large place tucked away in Northern Michigan, which, at this time of year, was absolutely covered in a thick layer of snow, more and more fluffy flakes coming down as the moments passed.

You spent your time as a writer. One of the most prolific of your time, the reviews said. But then again, you did have a thousand year head start on the rest of them.

Druig would never admit to it, but he had read them. All of them, every single one. He’d borrow them from libraries, read excerpts in bookstores, but Makkari had a collection of them, too. She was your most loyal beta reader. Therefore, when one went missing, she always had a pretty decent suspicion of who the culprit was.

And he wasn’t positive, but he was pretty sure most of your love interests shared a certain resemblance with…well, him. He didn’t like the way it stirred around in his chest, the way it made him feel so warm and…hopeful. But then again, he’d never asked you what you felt.

“(Y/N), where are your Christmas records?” Phastos asked, standing over with his husband, Ben, as they dug through a crate of records.

“Oh! I forgot to bring them down, I think. I’ll go grab them. I needed to get the topper anyway.” You stepped down from your stepladder and handed the ornament in your hand to Sprite, who was sitting on the floor under the tree, shaking gifts. Typical.

Druig watched as you left, eyes glued to you. Which was why he didn’t notice when Sersi had joined him, standing right beside him.

He gasped, mug rattled, but not to the point that he spilled any on his sweater. He cursed and looked over at her. “What?”

“You look rather festive, Druig. I thought you didn’t care for holidays.”

“I thought so too…” He muttered into his mug, taking a long sip.

“Right. Well, I think I saw some mistletoe in that box of decorations. I can put it up if you’d like?” She asked, that glimmer in her eyes that she got when she wanted to meddle.

Druig thought on it, as he heard your footsteps coming back down the stairs. He met her eyes and that was all that was needed. She nodded and set across the room, plucking it out of the box, along with a length of fishing line.

“I found it! The Muppets and John Denver!” You said excitedly, presenting another crate of records, this one all Christmas. “And some other stuff.”

“May I?” Phastos asked.

“Yeah, of course.” You handed them over and walked back over to the tub of ornaments, searching for a very special one. It was a large mug of cocoa with eleven marshmallows in it, each one etched with the name of an Eternal. You smiled softly and tucked it into the branches of your artificial tree, curling the fake pine to support its weight.

“Where did you find one with so many slots?” Druig found himself asking as he crossed the room to stand behind you.

“Had it custom made.” You replied, turning to face him.

“It’s beautiful, (Y/N).” Ajak complimented warmly from her seat by the fire.

“Thanks. Thought we needed something like that.”

“What are these?” Sprite asked, digging through the other box and pulling out a stocking with Thena’s name embroidered on it.

“Stockings.”

“You had those made, too?” Ajak asked, getting up to see for herself.

“Well, I did them. The embroidery, at least.” You admitted with a shrug, motioning to the hooks under the mantle. “We can put them up, if you want.”

Makkari nodded and grabbed the stockings, putting them all in one clean row in a blur of red and green. She stood next to Druig, elbowing him and tilting her head towards his stocking, which she’d put on the end.

Right next to yours.

He nearly choked on his cocoa. So did everyone know, then? Sersi, Makkari, who else? Kingo, no doubt.

“You alright there, Druig? Looking flushed.” Ikaris jabbed, that wicked gleam in his eyes.

Alright, then, yeah, it was everyone. Everyone but you, it seemed.

It was as if a stormcloud manifested above his head. He shook his head and stalked off towards the kitchen. He didn’t know much, but he did know a cookie would make him feel better. Snacks always seemed to. And there was no shortage of them, especially now, when you and Gilgamesh had baked nearly twelve dozen batches of them. Gingerbread, snickerdoodle, sugar cookies shaped like trees, chocolate chip, oatmeal no-bakes.

He reached for a sprinkle-covered tree and bit off the tip of it, the frosting sweet. The oven started beeping and you rushed in, arming yourself with an oven mitt before reaching in for what he assumed must be one of the last trays. Oatmeal raisin, it looked like.

“Do you need any help?” He asked, staring as you straightened up and brushed the hair out of your face.

“Oh! Thank you, Druig. I’m all set, though. Are they good?”

“Are what—” He looked down at the half-eaten tree in his hand. “Oh, yeah. They’re great.”

“Awesome.” You grinned. “New frosting recipe.”

“Well it’s perfect, whatever it is.” He leaned against the counter, that boyish smirk on his face. He wasn’t sure what came over him, then, but he had to get it out. “It’s great, by the way. That new book of yours.”

“You read it?”

“I read all of your books.” He confessed. “I think this one’s your best.”

Your heart raced as you met his eyes. Surely he knew, right? He had to. That you’d been writing about him for centuries. When he’d left all those years ago, hundreds of years ago, he’d taken a piece of your heart with him, a piece you’d only found in fiction, it seemed.

“Thank you. It…it means a lot to hear you say that.”

“Can’t wait for your next one.” He winked, plucking up a second cookie and leaving the kitchen before his tongue got him in any more trouble than it already had.

***

Later in the night, when almost everyone had gone to sleep, you were up, wrapping presents in front of the fireplace, folding the paper neatly, complete with name tags and perfect little bows.

You’d switched records. It was an older one, the Rat Pack.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas…Let your heart be light…

The words were smooth, glided right out of the speaker. Snow was still coming down in droves. It was good you had nowhere to go, otherwise you’d be snowed in. Well, if your family didn’t have every superpower known to man, you would be anyway. You were glad they were there.

You were glad they were home.

“Can’t sleep?” Druig’s voice startled you from your reverie and you turned around, grateful his present was already wrapped and under the tree.

“Not until I get these wrapped.” You told him.

“Christ, you really do go all out, don’t you?” He chuckled, crossing the room and sitting on the floor beside you, yet another cookie in his hand.

“I think I’d lose my mind if I didn’t. Keeps me…in synch. The routine of a year, you know?”

“Mmm.” He hummed, nodding, face alight in the warm oranges of the flames. “I didn’t see it that way until…recently.”

“Until right now?”

“Yeah, something like that.” He chuckled, watching as you carefully wrapped the last one, taping every edge perfectly and putting a tag on top, printing Sprite’s name with a pen. “What’d you get her?”

“You’ll have to find out tomorrow morning.” You told him, shifting to slide it under the tree with the others. “What did you get her?”

“It’s a surprise.” He grinned as you settled in next to him.

“Is it a surprise to you, too?”

He gasped, offended. “I got presents for everyone!”

“I believe you.”

“Sure you do.” He shook his head, laughing softly. “Say, ehm, (Y/N), I’ve been wondering…”

“Mistletoe!” You gasped, staring straight up at the ceiling where, sure enough, a string of mistletoe hung, glittering in the low light. “Who put that up?”

“Well I’ll be…” He breathed, staring up at it, too, heart racing faster than it had in any battle. “What…do you suppose we do about that?”

“I have a few ideas.” You slowly brought your gaze down, meeting his eyes.

He may have been the telepath, but you could tell the only thing on his mind was you as he leaned in, thick eyelashes fluttering shut as his lips met yours, pink and plush and warm. You kissed back, not leaving a single doubt in his mind that you wanted this, wanted him. Your hand rose to his flushed cheek, holding him close as his arm wound around your waist.

The grandfather clock struck midnight, and he pulled away to rest his forehead on yours, noses flush, eyes on you, glimmering with a million words unspoken. He did have a few, though. “Merry Christmas, (Y/N).”

“Merry Christmas, Druig.”

[stayteezdreams]

Snowball Fight

Plot: Changbin takes snowball fights a little too seriously...

Pairing: Seo Changbin x Gn!Reader

Warnings: Nothing I can think of!

Words: ~0.7k

You, Han, Lee Know and Changbin laughed at the tiny snowman army you had created as you decorated them with sticks and pebbles. The other's created their own snowmen, snow angels and forts nearby. The recent snow had inspired all of you to take a break and come out and frolic, so to speak.

Too distracted by your snowman building, you were unaware of the attack being conspired behind you.

When you were suddenly hit in the shoulder by a large snowball, you spun around in alarm. Seungmin cackled at your face, proving himself to be the culprit behind the sudden attack.

"Ya!" Changbin suddenly yelled, having witness this.

He stomped in front of you, putting on what you have referred to his 'protective boyfriend stance' as he pointed threateningly at Seungmin.

Seungmin only laughed more at Changbin's reaction as you spotted Han and Lee Know quickly making snow balls nearby. Getting the hint, you slowly started to form your own as Changbin yelled empty threats at Seungmin.

Another snowball flew towards you, hitting Changbin in the thigh. Seeing Felix giggling nearby, Changbin only became more overexcited before he began forming a snowball.

"You wanna fight!? Huh!?"

You giggled at his over the top behavior, "Changbin, relax!"

He looked back at you with a wide-eyed stare, "I'm just protecting your honor!"

You chuckled as you handed him a snowball, "Then do it with this before you lose your voice."

His expression molded into one of amusement as he quickly turned and ran towards Seungmin, before pelting him with the snowball and giggling almost maniacally.

The park you had been in turned into a battleground as a full blown war seemed to break out. Alliances formed and broke just as quickly. You, Han and Hyunjin spent a good five minutes hiding from the others before Lee Know eventually found you with a shovel full of snow.

Now, as you stood at the edge of the park, you tried desperately to catch your breath after you narrowly escaped a run-in with Chan.

Seeing Changbin nearby, you watched him for a moment as he chased after I.N. Suddenly, a snowball collided with his face causing the white powder to explode like a firework from the impact.

You were unable to refrain from laughing in surprise at the sight.

Changbin, after recovering from the shock, turned to see you laughing. As his face turned to one of offense, you placed your hand over your mouth.

"Why are you laughing?!"

You repressed a giggle, "I-I'm sorry!"

He pointed at you dramatically, "Traitor!"

"Wha-Ah!" Before you could defend yourself, Changbin began charging at you. You yelled back at his desperately as you ran away, "I said I was sorry!"

"Too late!" He yelled through a laugh as he caught up with you. Wrapping his arms around your middle, he picked you up into the air, causing you to yell out in surprise.

Lying you down somewhat gently in a pile of snow, he began throwing handfuls of it at you as he seemingly tried to bury you. You fought back as you threw and kicked snow at him in return.

Your actions only stopped when you both suddenly heard yelling coming closer.

Looking to your left you saw Lee Know, Seungmin, Han and Chan running towards the two of you with snowballs.

You and Changbin exchanged an alarmed glance that not only held a pact of truce, but a silent agreement to run.

Changbin took your hand and pulled you to your feet before the two of you ran away in amusement and fear.

Changbin forgot about your betrayal, and once again turned into your protective boyfriend as he shielded you from the onslaught of snowballs being pelted towards you. And as you hid behind a bench you formed snowball after snowball for the two of you to return fire with.

The original plan to spend an hour or two out in the snow turned into half a day. And though most of you ended up catching a cold, none of you regretted it.

xx End xx

Honestly, I didn't have much of an idea for this, or how to end it, but I hope you liked it anyways! lol

General Taglist: @otsilliak, @brattybunfornct, @bahng-chrizz, @otakutrash669

Stray Kids + Changbin Taglist: @laylasbunbunny, @skz1-4-3, @prettymiye0n, @thunderous-wolf, @dlmlufics, @thedistractedwriter, @lieutenantn

[k3m1y4]

“nothing in the world belongs to me.”

fyodor x gn!reader

summary: just a calm night with ease, nothing else belongs to you but for your love for yourself, and him, he was you. before you could die, let him be the heat that warms the cold. nothing in the world belongs to him, nothing. belongs to you.

author’s note: fluff and angst?, not proofread, no warnings. here’s a little fic before i go to sleep early because i need to fix my messed up sleep schedule <3 love u pookies, have a great morning/night/day.

. . . ecard: my love all mine . . . by mitski.

The breeze was indeed cold.

Your weakened body walked through the thickened snow. Your feet barely even moving by a single step, your tracks tainted the snow deep into the ground. Waiting for it to melt and disappear in a fragrance of a snowflake landing gracefully on the chill land. You hum quietly as you continued to forward yourself into finding your beloved, you hold him so dear. The dark shade of the leaves painted by the snow falling from the sky, what a keen eye could see from the mesmerizing scenery. The moon kept it’s guidance into leading you through the snowed forest. Light coloring your skin to a brighter tone as you pause in your pace. You flutter your eyes closed as you sigh, puffs of air blowing throughout the wind, carrying the last and first time of your breath.

You hum an unfamiliar tone; you were clueless must to know of what you sing. You’ll never hear the heavenly melody of the birds chant and echo during the spring. When the flowers will now bloom, welcoming it’s beauty it hides within the cold to keep a surprise of amusement. You knew you’d meet him here, back to where you met. The last will be the better of the first. Clasping on the trunk of the tall tree tightly as you lean against the wood. Breathing heavily as the warmth of your presence was no longer protecting you from the cold, it gave in to give up. You watch the snow continue to fly as the wind pushes it away from your gaze. You chuckle silently to yourself, wherein deaf ears could hear.

“Fedya…”

You impatiently fix your composure as you wait for the man awaiting you for your final remorse. “Fedya…” You say out again, you felt numb and weak. Though, there was no chains pulling you back to the darkness you merely seek at the chances life was already tearing you to shreds, unperfected and flawed. Just like any other fool lighting the world with its’ unmarked glow. You sigh in faux disappointment as you fold your arms, your vision started to blur in a trance as you blink twice to keep up with your fatigue. “Fyodor!” You weakly yell as you step on the chill as it sent a chill down to your spine. You hug yourself tightly as you shake your head, waving the pain away from you.

You knelt down, your clothed knees meeting the veins of the unsettling, cold atmosphere. The wind brushing your hair as it flew the flakes away from your flesh. You start to shape the piece of snow into a large rounded ball. Placing it forcefully on the ground, you make another, another. Repeatedly. The size decreasingly shrunken to your desired measurement. You stand up, inspecting the area surrounding you in barriers. You look down at your coat as you avert your eyes to a leaf slopingly resting on the coldness. You carefully put it on the rounded ball at the very top of the structure as you giggle in joy. Whether then it be your last snowman, you had the bit of joy from the heat of a candle so small and easily melted.

“Myshka.” Fyodor spoke deeply. You were back to him. You trace along the snowman’s head forming a curved smile on it’s face. Fyodor chuckles at your pointless yet adorable antics you’d always do during the winter season. Not like he was complaining. You gently decorated the snowman as you softly placed your headwear on your masterpiece as Fyodor watches you silently observing your actions as he sighs. “Моя любовь, ты можешь простудиться.” He reminds you at you just smile at him tilting your head as he rolls his eyes at you. “Stop being so stubborn for once, my love.” He walked towards you and poked your nose with his slender finger. “But Fedya! I’m going to die anytime soon. Let me have some fun…” You whine at him, but who was he to reject.

“Alright, alright, myshka. Just be careful, okay?” He runs his surprisingly warm hands against your silk hair. “Hmm? Fedya, your hands are unusually warm!” You exclaim at him as you test out how heated he was by hugging him tightly. Oh he was warm! He stumbled back slightly; his back gently hitting the wooden tree. You bury your face in his chest as he couldn’t help but just groan at your stupid acts. “Моя любовь...” He sighed, preventing his urge to just scold you he instead pulled you towards him. As you hug him, desperate and pleading for his affection.

He embraces you back in a form of acceptance as you “sleep” within his warmth. His eyes look down at you and gently caress your lifeless face, tilting your chin up, your eyes fluttered already closed. He smiles slightly as he lets your head lay on his shoulder as he leans his head back to relax in the slightest moments of these. You taught him how to love, when he couldn’t. You taught him to do the simplest forms of affection he could not show. You taught him how to love you. You gave him the lesson, nothing belongs to him, not you, not his treasure, nothing but only his, only love. Stroking your hair as his chest breathes, yours didn’t. Your heart slowed down quickly, he couldn’t feel your voice nor your life anymore carrying with him. And here he was. You were his teacher, and he was the student. Despite your intellect lower than his, you somehow managed to teach him things a normal human could simply display to those who they love. Love was weird to him, he hated the idea of affection, adoration, and admiration. He knew how to define its’ meaning, but never how.

He was grateful of you, when you unexpectedly barged into his life like the upcoming of his mistakes on the bumpy road all the way. He will die too, he will be with you. He is a bad person, you weren’t. You were the first to tie the string, you tied the strings. And you were the first one to cut it apart. You may disappear, but. You filled a hole in his heart; ripped many times. And you tainted him with your goodness.

“Sleep well, my love. I love you.”

He never received a letter written, I love you too.

—

GAAA. Not too angsty for me but idk idk. Tried to experiment here and it kinda failed. I’m sleep so i’m wayyyy tooooo lazy to read it. Kinda lazy for the plot. Thanks for reading tho 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

[the-offside-rule]

Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes AMG) - Snowman

Requested: no

Prompt: Snowman by Sia

Lewis hated fights and what was worse was fights with his friend and roommate Y/n. She was an angel, he could admit that. Whenever he was at races or at the factory, she would take good care of the place and when Lewis needed space to relax after a race weekend, she would understand and give him all the time in the world. The only downside to them being roommates was the arguments and they'd become more and more frequent. Both Lewis and Y/n figured that if the arguing continued, they wouldn't be able to stay as roommates because they'd end up saying something or doing something they would later regret.

This argument in particular started all because of the Christmas tree. The week before the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix, the pair decided to decorate their house, since they probably wouldn't have the time or chance to do it after the double header; they were planning on visiting their families up until boxing day. They'd had everything done, bar the tree and all that needed to be done on the tree was the angel. Y/n grabbed the angel from the box and turned back around, only to see Lewis with a can of fake snow, opened and ready to be sprayed.

"No! Don't spray the fake snow on the tree!" Y/n shrieked. "Why?" Lewis asked, the can still in his hand. "It makes the tree look tacky." She explained. "Just add some ribbon on some of the branches and we're good to go." Lewis stared at her, not even blinking. Y/n knew what he was thinking of doing. "Don't." Lewis lifted his hand and pressed down on the canister. "Whoops." Y/n clenched her jaw and slapped the can from his hand. "It's our tree Lewis."

"Yeah, our tree Y/n. We both decide what goes on it." Y/n rolled her eyes. "But you've already chosen the baubles. The least I can do is choose whether or not the tree will have fake snow on it!" Lewis scoffed and continued to spray the tacky snow onto it. "You can honestly just go and fuck yourself Lewis." Y/n stormed out and slammed the door. Lewis kept looking forward to the tree until he heard an ornament smashing. He turned and saw some glass sprawled out on the floor in shards, then to a piece of paper, colouring a memory of a past Christmas. He walked towards it cautiously and picked what remained up. He looked at the photo inside the ornament. Him and Y/n back in 2014, their first Christmas as roommates. He turned it Iver, remembering they had a note written.

No matter how often we fight, we'll never leave

Because we'll be roommates and friends until we die freezing.

Lewis felt a tear trickle down his cheek. He wasn't one for crying but here he was, crying on the ground beside a shattered Christmas bauble.

Y/n had been in her room. With every second, she grew more and more guilty with storming out on Lewis and after she had heard something smash, it was getting worse. She tried justifying what she did but she couldn't. She felt like an asshole. She gave into her thoughts and decided to go to the living room and apologise. She knocked on the door. "Lewis? I'm so sorry.

"Don't cry. It's Christmas." Y/n said, wiping away the few tears that fell from his cheeks. "I can't give you a hug if you're soaking with tears." She joked, earning a joke from Lewis. "I hate fighting with you." He croaked. "Especially over stupid things like this." Y/n smiled softly and put her arm around him. "Still, it isn't an excuse to go crying now, is it?" Lewis chuckled and wiped his eyes with his jumper. "No, it's not."

"Exactly, so come on Sir Lewis Hamilton, we've got to clean this up." She stood up and held her hand out to help him up. She grunts as she tries to lift him. "Jesus Christ, a week without racing and you're already gone back to being heavy." Lewis laughed and continued to get himself up. "I don't know what to do with this photo now." Lewis showed the laminated picture to his roommate. "Here, just put a hole in it and then feed the string through the hole." She suggested, carefully taking it from him and doing exactly what she said. "See?" she smiled, showing him the new masterpiece. "Much better." Lewis chuckled. "Exactly, now come on Mr Snowman Hamilton. We have to finish this bloody tree."

[multi-fandom-imagine]

Are they on the Naughty List? Or have they’ve been good all year?Well that’s for you to decide.

Start:November 12

End: December 31

«timeline»

◇ day 1-7: {Nov 12-18}

Day 1: Luis Sera - Ice Skating

Day 2: Carlos Oliveira - “I can’t believe you did that to Santa…”

Day3: Raiden - “I made you some hot cocoa.”

Day 4: Peter Parker - we were going to a Christmas party but fuck if you don’t just look sinful in red, and you know what? Fuck that Christmas party || Insomniac Peter ||

Day5:Goro Takemura- Dancing In The Snow

Day 6:Johhny Cage-Sucking on a Candy Cane

Day 7: Peter Quill- “are you really playing christmas music already? it’s barely november”

◇ day 8-14: {Nov 19-25}

Day 8:Gale Dekarios-Watching the snowfall from inside a cosy house

Day 9:Sam Drake-“Carmel apples, leaves falling down. What could better then November?” “I don’t know maybe fucking June?”

Day 10:Peter Parker -we got a little too carried away with the Christmas lights, and now suddenly my hands are bound with the lights and oh my god are we about to have sex? || Insomniac Peter ||

Day 11:Nathan Drake- it’s holiday dinner with your family, and oh Jesus where are your hands going?

Day 12:Peter Parker-“Do you need help hanging up the Christmas lights?” || MCU verse ||

Day 13: Peter Parker-“HAPPY NOVEMBER!” “No one wishes anyone a happy November.” “Well I just did.”|| MCU verse ||

Day 14:Tadashi Hamada-one lending the other their scarf to keep them warm.

◇ day 15-21 {Nov 26-Dec 2}

Day 15:Jacob Seed-Handing their S/O a positive pregnancy test with a sprig of holly and a note reading ‘Merry Christmas’

Day 16:Spencer Reid-Baking holiday cookies.

Day 17:Alejandro Vargas-Reader wearing nothing but a Santa hat

Day 18:Loki-A naughty sleigh ride || Exhibitionism sex ||

Day 19:Alex Casey-Build A snowman.

Day 20:Chris Redfield-“Let’s do something that puts us on the naughty list.”

Day 21:Mike Schmidt-Santa Baby: reader has decided to dress as Mrs. Claus for a little more “adult” Christmas fun. Oh boy!

◇ day 22-28 {Dec 3 -9}

Day 22:Matt Murdock-I picked you for secret Santa but I wrapped the wrong box so now I’ve given you a very festive sex toy, and oh my god this is so embarrassing

Day 23:Halsin-“Breasts/thighs are my favorite part to nibble on.”

Day 24:Miguel O’Hara-“You know, tying the legs together keeps everything moist.”

Day 25:Ethan Winters-Christmas Morning.

Day 26: Johnny ‘Soap’ McTavish-Hanging Stockings.

Day 27:Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley-“The turkey’s not the only thing getting stuffed today.”

Day 28:Modern!Mizu-“Save some of that whipped cream for later.”*soon*

◇ day 29- 35 {Dec 10-16}

Day 29:Bigby Wolf-“You look even more beautiful covered in snow.”

Day 30:Harry Osborn-Christmas shenanigans under the tree, if you know what I mean

Day 31:Ethan Winters-“I’ll be content if you are the one stuffing my stocking.”

Day 32:Mike Schmidt-“Go on, open it.”

Day 33:Wyll Ravengard-“Did you decorate the tree without me? I can’t believe this!”

Day 34: Bruno Madrigal-Kiss Me Under The Mistletoe.

Day 35:Jordan Li-“Excuse me—where is my Christmas kiss?”

◇ day 36-42 {Dec 17-23}

Day 36:Mike Schmidt-"Why are there so many mistletoe?"

Day 37:Gojo“I’d like to be one of the unhealthy things you put inside your body this weekend.”*Soon*

Day 38:Luis Sera-“Alright, mister. I know you’re the one who keeps hanging up mistletoe everywhere."

Day 39:Chris Redfield-“Thanksgiving is for giving thanks” “And for body slamming each other during the family football match!”

Day 40:Aaron Hotchner-The scent of real Christmas trees

Day 41: Derek Morgan -“I’m going to have you stuffed better than the turkey by the end of the night.”

Day 42:Victor "Sully" Sullivan-“I’m not much of a cook, but I’m good at glazing.”

◇ day 43-50 {Dec 24-31}

Day 43:Leon S. Kennedy-Cabin Sex { Christmas Eve sex }

Day 44: Billy Butcher-“Merry Christmas, motherfuckers!”

Day 45: Bucky Barnes-“Did you spike the eggnog again?”

Day 46: Spencer Ried-“Will you make a gingerbread house with me?”

Day 47: Clint Barton- “It’s Snowing”

Day 48: Joel-Peppermint-flavoured everything

Day 49:Mizu-Snow/temperature play

Day 50:Johnny Cage-“It’s time for hand turkey’s everyone.” “FUCK YES YES!”

[corroded-hellfire]

Where The Heart Is, Part 3 - Eddie Munson x Reader

Summary: Christmas is getting closer, and your and Eddie’s relationship only grows stronger as you prepare for and enjoy the festivities together. You can read part two here!

Note: Merry Christmas! I would just like to apologize for any more errors than normal because I tried to rush this to be done by Christmas lol.

Warnings: underage drinking, smut, oral m!receiving

Words: 17.4k

[Where the Heart Is masterlist]

Wayne has to know what’s going on. There’s no way he could not know, with the way the two of you are constantly touching one another, giggling at whispered words, and the ever-present grins that have never come off your faces. He’s not a dumb man, and he knows what’s going on in that small back bedroom in his trailer. He also knows that Eddie’s a smart kid and that there’s a box of condoms in the bedside table right where Wayne told him to keep it.

And though Wayne hasn’t known you long, he can tell you’re a smart kid, too. The way you make Eddie smile is all he ever wished for his nephew. Wayne’s a proud uncle and knows he brought the boy up right when he sees him open doors for you, compliment you until you’re red in the face, or makes sure that you know you’re welcome in their home and to help yourself to anything. Wayne likes you. And he can see that Eddie clearly more than likes you.

One evening before Wayne has to head out to work, you and Eddie come in the front door, shopping bags in hand - Eddie being the gentleman and carrying most of them, of course - both with rosy cheeks from the winter air, laughing as you have some silly debate.

Wayne swears he’s never seen so many Christmas decorations before as you and Eddie unload them from the bags. There’s candy cane striped garland, snowman salt and pepper shakers, nutcrackers dressed in toy soldier attire, angel candle holders, snowflakes hanging from strings to be hung in the window, and even a small porcelain nativity set that sits perfectly on the counter. Wayne’s sure he’s never seen a more beautiful decoration in his life as he admires the mini baby Jesus asleep on the fragile yellow painted hay. He knows that when he comes home from work, the trailer will be a winter wonderland.

But Wayne hadn’t even seen the ornaments that the two of you had purchased. There were baubles in bright reds, purples, and pinks. Little golden bells, smiling elves, even an adorable tiny kitten wearing a Santa hat that you just needed to buy. The ornaments would stay in the bag for now though, since you hadn’t gotten the tree yet.

Since the dark of night came so early in the winter, putting lights up outside would have to wait until tomorrow, so you two would actually be able to see what you’re doing.

It was the end of a fun, cold day that you’d spent with Eddie.

“Hot chocolate?” Eddie asks.

“Mm, yes please,” you hum. As Eddie prepares the drinks, you walk over to the window and look out at the dark evening. If the orange streetlights weren’t so bright, you’d be able to see the stars since there wasn’t a single cloud above.

The hot chocolate is hot and comforting as you sip it while in Eddie’s arms on the couch. He sips on his own, coming away with a chocolate mustache each time. There’s no television, no music, just the two of you sitting in a cozy bubble, enjoying your drinks and each other’s company. Once the drinks are finished however, you two enjoy each other's company in a different, more naked way.

In the morning, once you’d thoroughly wrecked each other once again, you take a shower - together, to save water Eddie claims. But you can’t fault him for his idea while the hot water streams down your back and Eddie leaves scorching kisses on your lips and neck.

Finally putting clothes on that you intend to keep on for a while, you bundle up to face the bitter air outside. There’s a light dusting of snow on the ground as you and Eddie head outside, arms full of light strands. You untangle the mess of extension cords while Eddie drags out the ladder from behind the trailer. It’s tall enough to get Eddie on the roof, which was the goal. Carefully holding the handle of the staple gun in his mouth, Eddie climbs up, a string of lights hoisted on his shoulder.

Eddie’s been on the roof of the trailer many times in his life. Once even resulting in a broken arm. So he knows the perfect spot to start hanging the lights. You watch him work as your fingers move through the tangled wires. Bundled up in his leather jacket, boots, black jeans, the red scarf you insisted on buying him, and his adorable black beanie, he’s just about the most precious thing you’ve ever seen. As he gets down on his knees, ready to staple the strand of lights into place, his tongue pokes out of his mouth in concentration. It makes you giggle softly to yourself.

Eddie continues with the strands along the roof and you start connecting the plugs to everything once the cord situation is handled. By the time you’re both done, lights are hanging off the top of the trailer, framing the front door, and wrapping around the railings on the porch steps. A triumphant smile comes to your lips as you look at the cozy trailer all festive. Eddie wraps his arm around your shoulders as he takes in the view, too.

“Can't tell ya the last time this place had Christmas lights on it,” Eddie says, eyes still roaming around.

“Why?” you ask.

Eddie shrugs.

“Never seemed to matter. Christmas was never a big thing for us. Wayne and I get each other a present, exchange them, then the rest of the day goes about the same as any other day.”

“No Christmas dinner?” you ask.

“Sometimes,” he says. “It depended on Wayne’s schedule. We’d eat fish if he was home.”

“Fish?” you ask, nose wrinkling.

“Mhmm,” he affirms. “My grandmother - my dad and Wayne’s mom - was very Italian. It’s an Italian tradition to have the Feast of Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve. But it became mine and Wayne’s tradition to take one of his catches from the lake and cook it up for Christmas dinner.”

“That’s sweet,” you tell him, snaking your arms around his middle.

“What about you?” he asks. “How do you decorate your apartment?”

“Can’t put up lights outside, unfortunately, but I always get a nice wreath for our door.”

“Like that one.” Eddie nods to the pine wreath woven with red ribbon that’s hanging on the front door of the trailer. Another one of your purchases yesterday.

“Yeah, usually something like that. Then we’d have the tree in the living room, but that’s about it. I’d put up lights in my room, though. I’d hang them all around, watching them blink and twinkle as I fell asleep.”

“What about your Christmas dinners?” he asks.

“When I was little, they were pretty perfect. Four of us around the table in our house in the cutest suburb. There’d be chicken and mashed potatoes, and I always insisted on biscuits. But after Dad died, sis left, it was just me and mom in the tiny apartment. Christmas dinners became meatloaf if I could scrounge up enough ingredients around the kitchen. If I couldn’t? Maybe canned soup if there was any.”

Eddie presses kisses to the top of your head and opens his mouth to speak, when he’s cut off by a shout from behind you.

“Looking to connect with someone, Munson?”

Over your shoulder, you see Max bundled up in a hoodie, coming your way.

“What?” Eddie asks her as she comes to stand behind you.

“The lights,” she says, nodding her head at them. “Gonna talk with someone?”

Your brow is pinched in confusion until you remember what Nancy told you about Will communicating through the lights when he was in the Upside Down.

“No, just being festive, brat,” Eddie says.

“Hey,” Max says to you, a small smile on her face.

“Nice to see you again,” you tell her.

“You too. You here for Christmas?”

“I’m here until school starts back up again in January.”

“Really? That’s awesome.” Max looks genuinely happy that you’ll be around, and it warms your heart. “I can always hang out with you when Van Halen over here has to work.”

Eddie rolls his eyes and drops his arm from your shoulders.

“That sounds great to me,” you say and Eddie scoffs.

“She’s a horrible influence,” Eddie says, gesturing to Max. The redhead doesn’t deny it, just shrugs her shoulders.

“I think I’ll be okay,” you tell your boyfriend, patting him on the shoulder.

Late that afternoon, Eddie drives the two of you up to the tree farm, where families stroll through the rows of pines, trying to find the one that’s just right for their home. Hand in hand with Eddie, the two of you take your time walking around the small space. The scent of pine is overloading your senses and you think you’ll be able to smell it for a month after you leave this place.

The perfect tree for the Munson home is found in the back corner. It’s tucked away, two bigger pines trying to hide it from view. But Eddie catches sight of it first. He tugs you in the direction and reluctantly drops your hand so he can move offending brushes out of the way. The tree is the perfect size for the trailer. It’s full, needles dark and green. An employee helps you both load the tree onto the top of Eddie’s van and tie it down for the drive. You give the rope one more tug for good measure before you slip into the passenger seat.

The first mini argument you and Eddie have starts when you’re trying to set the tree up in the living room.

“No, the water goes there.”

“Babe, can you hold this or what? It’s going to fall on me.”

“I already said that! Twice!”

“It goes like this. Yes, I’m positive.”

There’s a part of you that likes squabbling back and forth with Eddie like this. It makes it feel like a real relationship, where you feel comfortable enough to express your thoughts and opinions without fear the other person will just leave you high and dry. You know you can have these silly little arguments with Eddie, but at the end of the day, he’s still yours. It’s a beautiful feeling, you’re just not used to experiencing it.

It’s decided that no decorations will go on the tree until tomorrow. That would give Wayne the chance to see it in all its natural glory, plus it’s getting late and Eddie wants to get you in his room. Now.

When you wake in Eddie’s arms the next morning, you can hear Wayne is already home, moving around out in the living room. One look at Eddie’s adorable sleeping face you can’t bring yourself to wake him. Doing your best not to move him too much, you carefully lift Eddie’s arm and place it down on his chest. You slip off the bed and tug on a pair of your boyfriend’s sweatpants and a Black Sabbath sweatshirt. The bedroom door hinges squeak as you open it, so you carefully close it behind you so you don’t wake the sleepy boy.

Wayne greets you with a smile as he sees you come into the living room.

“Mornin’ doll,” he says. “What’s got you up so early?”

You shrug as you pad into the kitchen to pour yourself a glass of water.

“Dunno,” you say. “You hungry? I could make pancakes.”

“Nah, you don’t have to do that,” Wayne says, waving a hand.

“I don’t mind,” you tell him with a smile. “I like to cook.”

Eddie opens his eyes to a cold, empty bed and frowns to himself. He thinks maybe you’ve gotten up to use the bathroom so he closes his eyes to wait for you. But when he hears your familiar giggle coming from out in the living room, he opens his eyes again and smiles to himself. He gets out of bed and is about to open the door to the hall when he remembers the only thing he’s wearing is his boxers. When he sees his Black Sabbath sweatshirt is no longer laying over his stereo, he rolls his eyes to himself, but there’s a fond smile on his lips as he thinks about you wearing it. Pulling on an old Hellfire shirt and a pair of sweatpants from his many piles of clothes around the room, he heads out into the hall and can tell by the buttery scent in the air that you’re in the kitchen.

“No, it’s true!” you’re saying as Eddie steps into the kitchen. You let out a squeal in surprise as Eddie swoops in, wrapping his arms around you from behind and hugging you close to his body. He places a big kiss on your cheek with a loud mwah!

“What’s true?” he asks you, sliding his hands down to your hips.

“Wayne doesn’t believe that you picked out the tree,” you say, gesturing to the Christmas tree in the corner with your batter-covered spatula.

“You usually come back with a sad looking thing,” Wayne says in his defense.

Eddie turns to his uncle who’s leaning against the other side of the counter. Even as he turns, your boyfriend manages to keep one hand on your hip.

“I have impeccable taste, thank you very much,” Eddie says.

“Before, I woulda said that was questionable,” Wayne says. “But you picked a winner as your girlfriend, so maybe you’re right.”

You beam in pride as Eddie turns back to you, resting his chin on your shoulder.

“What’s the best girlfriend making, hmm?” he asks.

“Pancakes.” You reach up and wipe a bit of flour on the tip of Eddie’s nose. His tongue comes out of his mouth and tries to lick it off, but as talented as his tongue is, it’s just not long enough.

“You really are the best.” Eddie’s tempted to give your ass a playful smack, but he remembers his uncle is standing right behind him so he only kisses your shoulder before stepping back. He uses the sleeve of his sweatshirt to wipe his nose clean and walks around the corner to stand next to Wayne, giving you space in the kitchen.

“You kids got any plans today?” Wayne asks.

Nothing you need to know about, Eddie thinks to himself.

“Don’t think so,” is what Eddie says aloud. He looks at you to double check and you shake your head to say you don’t think so either.

“What’s up?” Eddie asks.

“Well, this lady at work, Abigail, has this booth at a Christmas fair. Was thinking it might be fun.”

“Aw, that sounds nice,” you say, using the spatula to stack the pancakes on a plate.

“A lady at work?” Eddie asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yep,” Wayne says, not looking at Eddie as he accepts a plateful of pancakes from you. “Thanks, darlin’.”

You slide a plate over the counter to Eddie, who blows you a kiss as he accepts them. Picking up the bottle of syrup and your own plate, you walk around and perch yourself on Eddie’s lap. He wraps an arm around your waist as he eats with one hand. It takes him a bit longer, but it’s worth it to hold on to you.

“These are delicious,” Wayne says between bites.

Eddie hums in agreement as she shoves half a pancake in his mouth at once.

The Christmas fair is in downtown Hawkins, and the entirety of Main Street is set up with booths, stalls, and tables selling an assortment of goodies. There are baked goods for sale, making the air smell sweet and delicious as you walk, fingers laced, with Eddie. Wayne walks on the other side of Eddie, his eyes scanning the owners of the booths as you pass, making you think Eddie might’ve been on the right track with his teasing before.

Wayne buys the three of you hot chocolate when the wind picks up and starts to whip around the street. Eddie’s bundled up in his leather jacket and you smile at seeing the red scarf you bought him around his neck again. You’d slipped your own jacket over Eddie’s Black Sabbath sweatshirt, having refused to take it off. Why would you want to when it kept you warm and smelled so strongly of your boyfriend?

You tug Eddie over to a few stalls, one selling handmade jewelry, one selling miniature figurines of animals, and another selling hand woven blankets and quilts. The talent showcased at each stop amazed you, unable to fathom how people could make such beautiful things with their bare hands.

The three of you are more than halfway down the street when Wayne says he’s spied the woman from work and you and Eddie follow him over to a booth where a friendly looking older woman with graying blonde hair looks over the table she’s behind, a beautiful assortment of ornaments spread out before her. Wayne clears his throat as you all approach and the woman looks up, a smile lighting her face when she sees Wayne. You and Eddie share a knowing look, sensing this crush isn’t one sided.

“Wayne, what are you doing here? I didn’t think this was your scene.”

Eddie’s uncle slips his hands into his pockets and gives a charming smile.

“Thought I’d come on by, bring the kids out for some Christmas fun,” he says. He’s silent for a moment, before apparently remembering you and Eddie are standing behind him. “Oh, this is my nephew and his girlfriend.”

She introduces herself as Abigail as you and Eddie shake her hand, introducing yourselves in return. As you look over the trinkets on the table, Eddie tugs on Wayne’s denim jacket and pulls him to the side.

“You’re not subtle,” Eddie whispers.

“What?” Wayne asks and Eddie rolls his eyes.

“Just ask her on a date.”

“Eddie, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” Wayne says, shaking his head.

“Oh, come on,” Eddie whines, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I’ve known you as long as you’ve known me, old man. You like her. Admit it.”

Wayne rolls his neck and Eddie smirks at the obvious nerves.

“Eddie…” Wayne trails off, not really knowing what to say. “Eddie, the more I get to spend time with Abigail, the more I can leave you two alone.”

Eddie’s face lights up and he nods.

“Come on,” Eddie says, hitting Wayne lightly on the chest. “I’ll be your wingman.”

“Good Lord,” Wayne mutters as they both step back up to the table.

“These are beautiful, Abigail,” Eddie says. He wraps an arm around your shoulders as he joins you in looking over the ornaments.

“Thank you, dear.”

“Oh, hey Wayne,” Eddie says, looking over his shoulder at his uncle. “Didn’t you say you wanted a new ornament to put on the tree?”

Wayne huffs out a sigh and you bite your lip to keep from laughing. You slip out from under Eddie’s arm and back up to where Wayne is standing. Abigail picks up an ornament to show Eddie and you let out a quiet giggle as he feigns interest.

“Tell me,” Wayne whispers to you. “How did Eddie manage to pick you up if this is how he is with women?”

This time you giggle louder and have to cover your mouth with your hand.

“I have no idea,” you whisper back.

Wayne steps up to the table, asking about the ornament Abigail is showing. Eddie politely backs away and comes over to you. He sends you a wink as he wraps his arm around your hips.

“See how I work my magic?” Eddie asks.

“Oh yes, Casanova,” you answer, leading him away from the booth. “Now come on, leave them alone.”

A few more stalls down, you come to a booth that’s selling custom painted clothing and accessories.

“Oh, look at these shoes,” you say, walking over to a pair of high top converse painted with symbols of New York City. There’s the Empire State Building, taxi cabs, the Statue of Liberty, and Broadway marquees. “They’re amazing.”

“Yeah,” Eddie agrees. “They remind me of the sneakers Robin wears.”

“Well, that’s perfect,” you say, nudging his arm. “What custom painting would she like on a pair? You can give them to her as her secret Santa.”

“Shit, you’re right.” Eddie’s brow furrows as he looks at the shoes, thinking of what he should have painted on them. His face quickly turns into a smirk and you don’t know if you should be worried or happy that he’s thought of something.

“Can I help you?” The woman who runs the stall comes up to you and Eddie. He inquires about getting a pair of the shoes painted, and when the woman tells him that she’s the artist and asks what he has in mind, he asks her for some paper and pencil. You stand over Eddie’s shoulder as he sketches. Quickly, you realize what the images are and you roll your eyes, in a loving manner, at your boyfriend. You hadn’t known Eddie was so good at drawing, though. You tell him as much when you’re done at that booth, the woman saying the shoes should be ready any day and Eddie would get a call.

“I didn’t know I was dating such an artist,” you say.

“Eh, I can doodle,” Eddie says as you walk farther down the street together.

“More than doodle, babe,” you say. “That was really good.”

Eddie’s cheeks are already flushed from the cold, but you think they get even redder at your words. The two of you come to the end of the fair, so you turn back around and head in the direction of where Wayne’s truck is parked. When you walk by Abigail’s table, Eddie’s uncle is no longer there, but he’s waiting for the two of you at his truck with a small package in his hands.

“Oh boy,” Eddie says as the two of you get closer. “What did she swindle you into buying?”

Wayne frowns and gives Eddie a huff.

“I don’t get swindled, boy. But I did see this and thought y’all might like it. If not, if I overstepped, just tell me and I’ll take it back.”

Both you and Eddie share a face of confusion as Wayne offers forward the package. Eddie takes it and starts to unwrap the layer and layers of tissue paper it’s rolled in. He pulls the ornament out by its red ribbon and holds it up for you both to see. It’s a wooden disc with a Christmas tree carved into it. The details are beautiful, from the star on the very top, down to the lights and ornaments adoring the branches, to the wrapped presents underneath. At the very bottom is the year 1986 carved in. To the left of the tree is your name, painted on in a delicate hand in red paint. Eddie’s painted name sits on the right of the tree, written in the same lovely handwriting.

“S’your first Christmas,” Wayne says with a shrug. “Something to remember it by.”

“Oh Wayne, this is beautiful!” You rush forward to throw your arms around his neck, pulling him in for a hug. He’s a little stiff at it at first, but eventually returns the affection. “Thank you so much. I love it.”

“Me too,” Eddie says, still staring at the ornament. He packs it back up in the tissue paper and pats Wayne on the shoulder as he walks by him to get in the van. It might’ve seemed cold to other people, but you were learning it’s just how these two were with one another. No flowery words or long embraces. There was teasing, small acts of kindness, and the occasional pat on the back or arm between this uncle and nephew.

You climb into the truck next to Eddie, and he immediately takes your hand in his own.

Once you get home, Wayne has to get some sleep before his night shift, so you and Eddie stay out of the house. Eddie makes sure your new ornament is safely in his room before the two of you get in Eddie’s van and drive.

It’s dark when the two of you get back, and Wayne’s already headed to work. The heat inside the trailer warms your bones and you let out a content sigh as you toe off your boots. You’re hanging up your jacket when Eddie comes back down the hall, your new Christmas ornament in his hands.

“What do you say?” he asks. “First one up on the tree?” When you nod with an excited grin, Eddie offers the decoration up to you. “You may do the honors.”

The tree is taller than you, but not so much that you’re unable to reach the top branches on your tiptoes. There’s a sturdy branch high up, protruding out a bit farther than all the rest. It’s the perfect spot, you decide, so you stretch your body up as high as you can reach and hang the red ribbon on it. Stepping back towards Eddie, you lean into his side to admire your handiwork. With the dark green background of the tree, the light brown wood and bright red paint stand out vibrantly.

“I love it,” you say.

Eddie wraps his arm around your neck and presses a kiss to the top of your head.

“It means a lot, actually.” You sense that he isn’t don’t talking yet, so you look up at him as you wait for him to continue. “Wayne’s not a very sentimental guy, if you haven’t noticed. Bet he’s not mentioned my Aunt Laura to you since you’ve been here, right?”

“His wife you told me about? The one who died when you were little?”

“That’s her,” Eddie says with a nod. “He never talks about her. Or any of our family, really. He doesn’t buy souvenirs, he doesn’t save birthday cards, he doesn’t even have photos on the walls at all. So that,” Eddie says, nodding to the ornament, “says a lot. About you. About us.”

“He likes me?” you ask, though you were already kind of getting that feeling anyway.

Eddie turns to face you and takes both of your hands in his.

“More than he likes me, I think,” he tells you with a smirk. “But really. This is him basically saying you’re family so you’re stuck with us now. That he sees you sticking around for a long time.”

“Well, I wasn’t planning on going anywhere, so that’s good,” you say. Eddie leans in and presses a kiss to your cheek.

“Maybe he just wants you to keep cooking for us.”

You snort and swat Eddie on the chest.

“Come on, sweet talker,” you say. “Let’s get the rest of these ornaments up.”

Eddie has a mixtape of metal covers of Christmas songs - because of course he does - so he blares that as you break out the ornaments you bought at the store the other day. Eddie says he’ll take the higher branches, even though you can clearly reach most of them, and that you can take care of the shorter ones. Halfway through decorating, you realize you don’t know the last time you decorated a tree with someone. It’s usually you all on your own, putting the few ornaments you had on your small tree. But now, you look up as Eddie hangs a golden bauble on a high branch, tongue poking out in concentration, and you can’t help the well of emotion you feel. This tiny trailer you just stepped foot in for the first time the other day feels more welcoming and more like home than your own home of the last ten years or so.

Eddie takes notice of your misty eyes and comes over to cup your face in his hands.

“What’s wrong, beautiful?”

“Nothing,” you say with a watery smile. “This is just really nice.”

He leans in and presses a slow, soft kiss to your lips.

“Having fun?” he asks.

“I am. Just emotional.”

“Well,” Eddie says, pausing to peck a kiss to the tip of your nose. “Then it’s probably as good a time as any to bring out these.”

Eddie goes over to the hall closet and reaches for something on the top shelf. Brow pinched as you watch him, you wipe away a stray tear that decided to go rogue and slide down your cheek.

“Aha,” Eddie says, pulling an old shoe box out of the closet. He closes the door with his foot and makes his way back over to you. “Wayne may not be a sentimental guy, but I am. Enough to keep these, anyway.” He lifts the lid of the shoebox and there are a little over a dozen ornaments inside, most of them looking as old as Eddie.

“Who’s are they?” you ask quietly.

“Mine now, I guess,” Eddie says. “They’ve all got some kind of meaning.” He sits down on the floor and gestures for you to join him. Once you’re sitting next to him, he pulls out the first ornament. It’s a little toy soldier, plastic, with fading colors of red, blue, and green. “This was my mom’s. I don’t have a whole lot of good memories with her, but I remember her lifting me up so I could put this one on the highest branch of the tree. And this one.” Eddie takes out an Elvis ornament that makes both of you laugh. “This was Aunt Laura’s. She was in love with Elvis. Sometimes she’d sing me Elvis songs as a lullaby.”

“Which was your favorite?” you ask.

“I always liked Jailhouse Rock,” he says.

“That’s a good one. I think I like Can’t Help Falling In Love best.”

“Pretty sure that was her and Wayne’s wedding song.” He sets that ornament down and picks up one that’s got Santa Clause riding a motorcycle. “This was my dad’s. Don’t know why I still have it, but I don’t want to throw it away either.” He sets that one aside quickly and lets out a sigh. “I think this one here is my favorite, though.” Eddie holds up an ornament that shows two polar bears in a boat, fishing. “Wayne bought me this for my first Christmas with him.”

“Beautiful,” you say, and Eddie knows you don’t just mean the polar bears. He puts the ornaments back in the box and stands up with it, offering his hand to help you up.

Eddie balances the shoebox on his arm as he scopes out places to put these new additions. His dad’s goes towards the back of the tree, while his Aunt Laura’s gets a place of honor in the front. The two polar bears go near the ornament Wayne had just given you today. For hanging up his mom’s toy soldier, Eddie sits the box down and opens his arms for you. You look at him in confusion as you step into them. He places the ormanament in your hand and leans down to wrap his arms around your legs, just under your ass. You’re hoisted up and let out a squeak, balancing yourself by putting a hand on Eddie’s shoulder.

“Go ahead,” Eddie says, smiling up at you. “Put it on the highest branch.”

His eyes are watching you with so much adoration that you can hardly take it. You reach down and cup his cheek, your thumb stroking over his cheekbone. Turning back to face the tree, you spot the highest branch and lean towards it while trying to stay steady in Eddie’s grip. The hook slips easily over the branch and the little toy soldier looks ready to defend the tree from any incoming enemies.

Eddie sets you down and admires your handy work.

“Perfect,” he says.

Taking a few steps back so you can take in the tree as a whole, you nod to yourself in approval.

“Perfect,” you agree.

Eddie has to work the next day, so after your morning shower session, he heads out and you call up Nancy. She says she’ll be by in fifteen minutes to pick you up. Part of you wanted to take Max up on her offer to hang out while Eddie is working, but you and Nancy had already scheduled your plans for the day, and Eddie was working tomorrow as well. Hopefully, Max is available then.

Nancy takes you to a cute little sandwich shop and you’re glad it’s mostly empty because once you and Nancy are seated with your food, she gets into the questions she’s been dying to ask.

“So,” she says with a smirk. “How long after Steve and I left the other day did you two do it?”

Sprite almost comes out of your nose and you have a small coughing fit, which amuses your friend greatly.

“Who says we did it at all?” you finally respond, voice still raspy from the burn in your throat.

But she’s not dumb, she can see all the signs. Eddie wanting to explain his scars to you, sleeping in the same bed every night, alluding to the fact that you had phone sex the other day, and you have a pep in your step that you didn’t have the last time she saw you. Nancy rolls her eyes and leans in towards you across the table.

“Spill. I want to know everything,” she says.

“Everything?” You raise your eyebrows.

“Yep.” It’s so casual, as if she’s asking to hear about a test you took in class.

“I’ve never talked about it before because I’d never done it before,” you say with a giggle. “I’m not sure what to say.”

“Hey, I told you about my first time,” Nancy says.

“I know! And I’ll tell you about mine, I just don’t really know what to say.”

“Was it good?” She takes a bite of her chicken salad sandwich, but her eyes never leave you, eager for an answer.

“It was really good,” you tell her.

Nancy looks around and sees there’s a mom with her two kids sitting not far from you and she frowns. It seems she’ll have to talk in code.

“Did you…get there?” she asks.

You clocked the small family the minute you sat down, so you know Nancy’s trying to be conscientious for their sake.

“I did,” you say, a smile pulling at the corner of your lips.

“During?” Nancy sounds astounded. Not only did most girls not reach orgasm from penetration during sex the first time, but Nancy didn’t either.

“Before. When he, um…” You can’t think of a way to phrase it without it being crass, so you just tap your finger against your lips.

Nancy’s brain processes it quickly and her mouth drops open.

“Lucky you!” she says with a smirk. “I don’t know how many times Steve and I did it until he finally got to that.”

“Eddie said he liked it,” you tell her.

“Steve does too, I think. He’s never said it, but the longer we’ve been together, the more he wants to do that.”

“We’ve got generous boyfriends,” you tell her with a teasing wink.

“So, it’s official? You’re his girlfriend?” she asks.

“Officially, I am. Which actually changes the rules of the game for me.”

“What rules?” Nancy asks. “What game?”

“Secret Santa,” you tell her. “Rules were couples can’t have their boyfriend or girlfriend since they’ll already get them a gift. I didn’t pick Eddie, but now that I’m his girlfriend I guess I have to find a pretty damn good gift for him, huh?”

“That doesn’t change the rules then,” Nancy says with a laugh. “As long as he didn’t pick you, nothing changes. Except that you’re buying Eddie something.”

“I would’ve done that anyway,” you admit with a sheepish smile. “And no, he did not pick me for secret Santa. I did help him find the present he is giving, though.”

“There are some cute stores just a few blocks over. We could go there once we’re done eating?” Nancy offers.

“Perfect.”

The grilled cheese on your plate finally gets your attention as Nancy’s questions have slowed. But they still came.

“Did it hurt? Or just, like, uncomfortable?”

“Have you been on top yet?”

“So…how big?”

That last question got a potato chip thrown her way. But truthfully, it was nice to have a friend to talk to about all of this. Nancy understood. She knows Eddie, she’s the reason you met to begin with so she’s been invested from the start.

Once you’ve finished lunch, Nancy takes you to the stores she mentioned, and the two of you stroll around, seeing if anything catches your eye. Nancy already has her gifts for her secret Santa, Steve, and her family, so she’s just here to help you now. You browse for a few hours, neither of you having anywhere else you need to be. It’s nice to have a girl’s shopping trip with Nancy, though. Sure, you hung out constantly at school, but this was different. You weren’t talking about tests or papers. You weren’t bitching about professors or roommates. You were in Nancy’s hometown - where you feel just as at home - shopping for Christmas presents with your best friend.

The stores you went to turned out to be successful, and you clutched the bag holding Eddie’s gifts in your lap the entire drive back to Forest Hills. When you hug Nancy goodbye, she says she’ll see you in two days at the party. You tell her you can’t wait and wave as she drives off.

No one’s home when you walk inside, which feels a little odd. Wayne had already left for work, and Eddie hadn’t come home from work yet. You wander around the trailer, looking at the different hats hung on the walls, counting how many different metal bands are featured on t-shirts scattered around Eddie’s room, but then decide to do something useful.

Rummaging in the kitchen leaves you with limited options, but you can work with what they’ve got. By the time Eddie is walking through the door, the trailer smells like a starving man’s dream - which Eddie is currently considering himself.

“Holy shit,” he says as he sees you working in the kitchen. “Come home from a long day at work, just wanting my girl, and here she is making me dinner? Jesus Christ, what did I do right in a past life to deserve this?”

You chuckle and shake your head at his dramatics.

“It’s nothing fancy, Eddie.”

He goes to strip himself of his oily t-shirt, a habit that he usually does after coming home from work, but he sees oil in a pan and senses there’s a chance of splatter. The last thing he needs is another type of oil to be his enemy.

“What is it?” Eddie comes up behind you and runs his hands up and down your sides.

“Chicken.”

“Why’s it look all crispy and good and shit?”

You turn in his arms so you can give him a proper kiss hello.

“I covered the chicken in butter and ritz crackers. Super easy. Super tasty.”

“My woman’s a genius,” Eddie says, going in for another kiss.

“How was your day?” you ask.

“Long,” he says with a sigh. “I’m usually fine at work, it never seems too boring. But today all I could think about was the fact that you’re here, in Hawkins, and I wasn’t with you.”

“You’re with me now,” you tell him. “And you helped fix cars that people need for their jobs and to take their families places. So you did good.”

Eddie’s smile is bashful and he presses a kiss to your forehead before walking out of the kitchen.

“M’gonna go change,” he tells you as he starts down the hall.

Eddie would never admit it - maybe to you one day, but not yet - but he always wanted this kind of domestic life. It always seemed so foreign to him, never having it, but always seeing it in friend’s families and in television and movies. When he walked in the door and saw you cooking, it hit him that this is what he wants. He wants to come home to you everyday, or have you come home to him. Whoever gets home first would make dinner, then you’d eat it together and talk about your days, just like you’re doing now. It’s pure domestic bliss and he’s mentally kicking himself because that does not go with the metal head persona he’s got going on.

When you go to bed, you’re both already taking your clothes off before you’ve even crossed the threshold to the bedroom. This is also part of what Eddie wants. To hold you in his arms every night, to make you moan and whimper and call out his name in pleasure. He wants to take care of you, in every sense of the word.

Once you’ve gone three rounds, you're both thoroughly exhausted. But as he pulls you to his chest afterward and you press your nose against his shoulder, placing soft kisses along his skin, the word smacks him in the face.

Love.

This overwhelming feeling of needing you, wanting you, but wanting you to live the wonderful life you’ve built before you even met, too. Eddie wants the world for you and he’ll be damned if he doesn’t help you get it.

“I’ve got a question,” Eddie says.

You hum against his skin in acknowledgment.

“I’m not asking for, like, now, okay? I don’t want you to freak you.”

Frown pinching your face, you look up at him and melt under the large doe eyes he’s giving you. You’re pretty sure he doesn’t even know he’s doing it.

“Okay…” you start. “What is it?”

“Do you want kids? You know, someday.” His fingers trail up and down your bare back in a soothing manner as he speaks.

“I do,” you tell him with a smile. “What about you?”

“Yeah,” he admits. “Used to think I never wanted them. But, I don’t know, it doesn’t seem as scary anymore.”

“You can take a test run with my niece one day. She’s seven and a total firecracker,” you say.

“I’d love to meet your other favorite person,” Eddie says.

In the morning, you whine when Eddie starts to get out of bed to get ready for work. All you want is him snuggled up next to you, keeping each other warm in the cozy space.

“I’ll see you tonight, baby,” Eddie promises with a kiss on the forehead.

When you finally force yourself out of bed, you dress in warm clothes and tug on your boots. You’re pretty sure you remember which trailer Max came out of the other day, so you roll the dice and knock on the door. The redhead herself answers, and smiles when she sees you standing there.

“Hey,” she says. “What’s up?”

“Well, you said we could hang out when Eddie’s at work. And…well, he’s at work,” you say with a nervous chuckle.

“Totally,” Max says. Then she realizes how cold you must be so she steps aside so you can come in. You rub your hands together and blow some hot breath on them. It helps a little.

Growing up, being the little sister sucked. You got less time with your dad before he passed, you got abandoned when your sister left you with your then-alcoholic mom the moment she turned eighteen, and you had no choice but to raise yourself because the older people weren’t there for you. You’d always imagined you had a little sister to play with in those moments when it just became too much. You’d imagine a girl a few years younger than you who made you laugh when you needed it. You see every single quality you gave to your imaginary sister in Max.

She tells you about Lucas, and hanging out with the guys, and once she realizes you know about the Upside Down, it’s like a weight has been lifted off her chest. She can talk about it to someone who will believe her and actually listen. So, Max tells you her story. From the moment she moved to Hawkins with her asshole ex step-father and her step-brother, to when she finally woke up in the hospital, barely remembering anything that had happened to land her in there. As she’s finishing up, you realize that she needed this. She needed to tell someone about everything she went through. Someone who wasn’t there, who didn’t already know. It was probably itching her to tell her mom, and though you’re nowhere close to that, you think maybe this helped ease the burden she felt a little bit.

For lunch, Max encourages you to try a peanut butter and marshmallow sandwich, which you have to admit tasted pretty damn good. You’re glad to see there’s still some kid left in her, even after all the awful shit she’s been through in her life.

“So, who’d you get for secret Santa?” Max asks as you two wash the dishes together.

You almost spill, having already told Eddie and Nancy. But you catch yourself at the last moment and shrug your shoulders, hoping it seems nonchalant.

“You’ll see tomorrow, I guess,” you say.

“Come on,” Max says. She takes a plate from you and dries it off with the towel. “What if I tell you who I got?”

“Still not telling.”

“You’re telling me you don’t want to know who I’ve got?” Max asks.

“I didn’t say that.” You can’t help the smile from forming on your lips. Of course you want to know. “You’re more than welcome to tell me, but I’m not telling you.”

“Ugh, fine.” She’s silent as she dries the next plate so you assume she’s not going to tell you. But it seems like she can’t hold it in. “I got Steve.”

“Oh, really?” You chuckle as you turn the faucet off. “What’s Steve got to look forward to getting tomorrow?”

Max laughs, and it sounds slightly diabolical.

“I got him the ugliest sweater I found at the store.”

“Why?” The thought of Steve in an ugly Christmas sweater is pretty hilarious though.

“Watch,” she says as she walks back over to the couch. “When he opens it he’s going to say he loves it. I’d put money on it.”

“And why’s that?” you say, sitting down next to her.

“Because he loves me so much. I don’t think he’d ever say it out loud, but he totally does. He’s taken on the role of being my big brother, and that was even before I was in the hospital. After? He’s like a damn mother hen.”

“So, you bought the ugliest sweater on purpose? To test his love for you?” you ask.

“I don’t need to test it,” she says with a scoff. “This is purely for a good laugh.”

“I knew I liked you,” you tell her.

Max tells you that she’s not sure when her mom will be home from work, and you relate to that too much, so you invite her over to the Munson trailer for dinner. She helps you make spaghetti that’ll be ready by the time Eddie comes home, and you tell her more about your home life as you get everything together.

“So, your sister just…left you? Even though she knows what your mom is like?”

“Pretty much,” you say with a sigh. “She was only eighteen, so I get that she couldn’t support me. But I’d hoped she’d come back for me. Two years later she was pregnant though, so I knew she’d never come take me away.”

“Jesus. How old were you?” Max asks.

“Eight when she left. Ten when Chloe was born.”

“Chloe’s your niece?”

“She is.” You just can’t help the fond smile on your face whenever you talk about her. Max takes notice.

“You’re the cool aunt, huh?”

A laugh comes out and you nod your head.

“I am. Her dad’s sister is a total bitch, so I’d win anyway, but I’m still her favorite.”

The loud engine and blaring music from Eddie’s van reaches your ears and you roll your eyes in a fond way. You know the minute it starts to get warmer outside he’s going to want to have sex in the back of it. He needs to make it smell better in there, then.

“I hate that stupid thing,” Max says as Eddie’s brakes squeal.

“Honey, I’m home! Oh. Hi, Max.” He ruffles her hair as he passes her, leaving her huffing and reaching up to fix it. He gives you a soft kiss as he tosses his keys down on the counter, adjusting a package under his arm. “Smells good.”

“Thanks,” you say. “What’s that you’ve got?”

“Robin’s gift,” he says. “Just gotta wrap it. But later. Now, I’m starving.”

“It’s almost done. Go change.”

Max’s eyes dart back and forth between the two of you, amusement lighting her features. You give her a questioning look as Eddie goes down the hall to the bedroom.

“You’re like a couple in a 50’s sitcom,” she says.

“Calling me a housewife?” you ask with a smirk. You drain the water out of the pasta and Max takes the sauce off the burner.

“That’s not a bad thing!” Max says.

“I agree,” you tell her. “It’s hard work.”

“Is that what you want?” Max asks. She pours the sauce over the pasta and you begin to mix it together.

“I don’t know,” you say. “Not right away. Maybe eventually, though. I’d like to have a career. But when the day comes that I have kids? I think I’d like it.”

“Aww, you wanna be a mom?” Max teases.

“What?” Eddie asks as he comes back into the kitchen.

“Your girlfriend wants babies,” Max tells him.

“I know,” he says, opening the fridge and pulling a beer out. “We literally had that discussion last night.”

“You what?” Max asks. “Are you guys crazy? You’ve barely been a couple!”

Eddie rolls his eyes and you let out a laugh.

“Not like, tomorrow, Max!” you say. “One day. Far in the future.”

“Yeah, why do you seem the most freaked out about us having kids?” Eddie asks, giving her a playful shove as he walks by you. “You’d only be the babysitter.”

“I’m the Steve here?” Max asks.

“Eh, you’re right,” Eddie says as he plops down on a barstool. “I don’t think we’d trust you enough for that.”

“Here,” Max says, dropping a plate of spaghetti in front of Eddie. “I poisoned it. Enjoy.”

There’s not much to do the next day before the party at Steve’s. So once you’ve officially worn Eddie out enough that he lets you out of bed, you take a look around the kitchen and talk Eddie into taking you to the store so you can buy ingredients for cookies. As you make them, he keeps trying to steal dough, so you’re forced to threaten him with no sex tonight if he doesn’t stop. It’s an empty threat and you both know it, but it works.

While the cookies are in the oven, Eddie breaks out the wrapping paper and you wrap your gift for Max while he wraps his for Robin. Once they’re all nice and fancy looking, Eddie asks you to help him pick out an outfit for the party. He’d look drop dead gorgeous in anything, but you can’t say no to him when he turns those doe eyes on you. He sits on his bed while you dig around in his closet. Towards the back you find a long sleeved green t-shirt and you pull it out.

“This!”

Eddie catches the shirt when you toss it at him and he looks it over.

“Yeah?” he asks.

“Green is a Christmas color, plus it looks really good with your eyes,” you tell him.

Eddie smirks and whips off the Metallica tee he’s wearing, eyes never leaving yours. You don’t back down from the stare, raising an eyebrow at him as he sits there shirtless.

“You’re going to get cold,” you tell him. He shakes his head but you know he’s full of shit because his nipples are so pebbled. After holding out for a minute, he groans and slips the green shirt on over his head.

“Black jeans and your leather jacket will work with it.” You walk over to perch yourself on Eddie’s leg. “I’d ask you to pick my outfit but I’d be a little scared.”

“Oh no, I’ll do it.” Eddie smirks and tosses you back on his bed so he can walk over to your suitcase. He sits down in front of it and thoughtfully goes through your articles of clothing.

“See anything you like?” you ask.

“Besides your bras and panties?” he asks, and you don’t have to see his face to know he’s smirking.

“I think I’d be cold if that’s all I wore.”

“You’ll just have to wear them, and only them, when we get back to my nice warm room,” Eddie says.

“Wow, you want me wearing that much clothing?”

“Good point.” Eddie tosses a piece of clothing over his head and you have to dart to the left to catch it.

“This is a cute cardigan,” you say, holding the purple material in your lap. “Kind of need something under it.”

“Is there a dress in here?” Eddie asks.

“A few,” you say. “Uh, black one, blue one, and green one that I’m wearing tomorrow.”

“Black works with purple, right?” Eddie asks and you hum in confirmation. “Aha!” Eddie stands up, brandishing the dress above his head.

He stands there and watches you change, of course, a dopey smile on his face the whole time. While you add a touch of makeup, Eddie changes into his black jeans and puts the cookies in a bowl to take with you. If one or two don’t make it in the bowl, he’s sure no one will notice.

Eddie helps you into your coat, then you’re out and on your way to Steve’s.

When you get there, the house is already loud and crowded, not that you expected anything different. Eddie drops your gifts on the pile and you join the rest of the gang in the living room.

“Hey!” Robin calls when she sees you. She makes her way over to you, almost tripping on her feet as she does. “Ooh, you made cookies!”

“Cookies?” Mike’s head snaps up and he looks in your direction. You shake the bowl at him like you’d shake treats at a dog, and he’s by your side in the blink of an eye. “How are you?” he asks, but doesn’t stick around to hear the answer before he’s walking away with the baked goods.

Nancy walks out of the kitchen, bottle of wine in her hand and a smile lights her face when she sees you.

“Hey! Want some wine?” she asks.

“Always,” you say. She tugs you over to a couch with her and pours both of you a glass. You sit shoulder to shoulder, leaning back on the couch as you enjoy your glasses of merlot, and you breathe a contented sigh. You didn’t realize how much you’d missed being around this gang.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Nancy says, as if she was reading your mind.

“Me too,” you say. “Makes me not want to go back to Boston. Again.”

“You may be the only person who prefers Hawkins to Boston,” she says.

“Boston has you,” you say. “Hawkins has you and Eddie.”

Nancy chuckles and nods her head.

“Fair enough.”

Max walks over and sits down on the other side of you. She raises an eyebrow as she looks over the rim of your glass.

“Can I have some?” she asks.

“No,” you and Nancy say at the same time.

“You guys aren’t 21!” Max argues.

“Closer than you,” you tell her.

The redhead huffs and crosses her arms over her chest.

At dinner, you sit between Eddie and Will, who you notice are more alike than you thought. They talk about D&D, art, books, over you during the meal, with you piping in here and there. Will starts to ask you about Boston and school, and he tells you he’s probably going to major in art, but he might minor in psychology. You tell him about your classes, which ones you like, which ones you find boring.

Dustin sits on the other side of Eddie and keeps trying to say kind things to him to make up for hitting the back of his van a few days ago. Eddie insists on acting like he’s still pissed at the boy, but the truth is that Eddie is secretly finding it all hilarious.

Looking over, you see Nancy sitting between Steve and Lucas, and the two guys are arguing about a basketball game. She widens her eyes when she meets your gaze, mouthing the words “help me” to you. You chuckle and give her a helpless shrug.

Eddie takes your hand under the table and gives it a squeeze. Lacing your fingers with his, you give a squeeze in return. Across the table from Eddie, El is giving the two of you a smile. As you return the gesture, you realize this is the first time you’re seeing her since finding out she basically has super powers. Then you get in your head and tell yourself not to stare, but of course once that’s in your head, it’s all you can think about. Like Eddie can sense where your mind has gone, he leans in towards you and whispers in your ear.

“Doing okay, baby?”

“Mhmm,” you say. “You full yet?”

“Never,” he says with a smirk.

“Really? Even after sneaking those cookies?”

“You saw me?”

“No, but I know how many I made,” you say with a laugh. “It was not the number that was in the bowl when we got here.”

Once everyone has finished eating, Jonathan offers to help Steve clear the table while the kids start clamoring to open presents. Nancy, stepping in as the deputy mom of the group, tells them that we can all get to presents quicker if they help clean up. It doesn’t work, but it was a valiant try.

They finally get their way, though, and Mike and Eddie carry in all of the gifts, piling them up on the Harrington’s coffee table.

“Who goes first?” El asks.

“I think there should be a fight to the death to decide,” Robin says.

“What’s the prize?” Dustin asks. “Dying?”

“As someone who almost died this year, maybe it should be me,” Max says.

“I’m sorry, who came closer?” Eddie asks her, raising his eyebrows.

“Oh my God,” Steve says, running his hands through his hair in exasperation. “El, you go first.”

With a smile on her face, El leans forward to find the present with her name on it. She picks it from the pile and sets the box on her lap. Everyone’s quiet as she rips into the paper, waiting to see what she’s got.

“Remember,” Dustin says. “You’ve got to guess who gave it to you.”

El nods as she pulls the top off the box. She pulls out a pair of overalls that have different colorful patches all over them. All eyes turn to Robin, who has a smirk on her face because she’s wearing the exact same outfit.

“Robin?” El asks with a laugh.

“I thought you might like to have matching outfits!”

“It’s great,” El says, looking back down at the outfit. She doesn’t look like she’s patronizing either, you notice, it seems to mean a lot that El received a matching outfit with her friend. “Thank you.”

“You are very welcome,” Robin says. “Do I pick mine now?”

“Yeah,” Lucas says.

Robin wiggles her fingers as she leans forward to inspect the pile of presents.

“Aha!” she snatches hers up and shakes the box next to her ear. You try not to laugh, Eddie rolling his eyes next to you.

She’s not careful about ripping through the paper, and you can basically hear Eddie’s jaw clenching as he remembers how long it took him to wrap it. Robin lifts the lid of the shoebox and pulls out one of the painted converse.

“Whoa,” Robin says. She turns the shoe in front of her face. The Hellfire logo looks amazing painted on the outside of the shoe, while the instep is decorated with different types of dice that are used in D&D. “This is sick.” She sets the shoe back in the box and pulls out the other one, painted with “Corroded Coffin” on the outside, musical notes on the instep. “These are so cool. But I wonder who gave them to me…”

She whips her head to the side and gives Eddie a smirk.

“They’re hand painted,” Eddie tells her.

“Shit, really?” She takes another look at the shoes, jaw dropping in awe. “I’m afraid to wear these now.”

“I was told they’re fine even out in the rain. Snow? I’m not so sure,” Eddie says.

“Thank you!” Robin drops the shoe back in the box and lunges over Max’s lap to hug Eddie. He’s startled at first, but pats her back when he recovers.

“You’re turn,” Dustin tells Eddie. Eddie’s gift is in a flat, square box and you instantly have an idea of what could be inside. You’re proven right when he opens it to find four new vinyl records.

“Hey!” he calls out happily. “Metallica, Ozzy, all the good shit. This is the best.” He narrows his eyes as he looks around the circle of friends, trying to find out who gave them to him. His tongue pokes out of his lips as he thinks, and that’s quickly become one of your favorite habits of his. Eddie and his damn tongue.

“Take a guess,” Mike says and Eddie waves him off.

“I’m thinking,” he says. “Uh, Lucas?”

“Nope,” Lucas says, shaking his head.

“Shit,” Eddie says, resting the albums in his lap. “I’m the first one to get it wrong.”

“To be fair,” Robin says, “yours is the hardest one so far.”

“Yeah, only you would give Corroded Coffin and Hellfire shoes,” Max says. “And Robin’s literally wearing a replica of her gift.”

“So who was it?” Eddie asks.

Nancy raises her hand, a shy smile on her lips.

“Wheeler! Thank you. Really, I love them,” Eddie tells her.

“You’re welcome,” Nancy says.

“Who goes now since Eddie guessed wrong?” Will asks.

“Since this isn’t even officially a game, I don’t think,” Steve says with a shrug. “Nancy can pick.”

“Mike looks impatient,” Nancy muses. “So not him. Um, Lucas. You can go.”

Lucas grins as he digs his present out of the pile. The box is kind of large, but when he opens it to see an official Boston Celtics basketball, he stands up so quickly the box gets knocked to the floor.

“Holy shit!” he yells. “This is the coolest thing ever!”

“Whoa,” Steve says, getting up to look at the ball as well.

“It’s a ball,” Eddie whispers in your ear and you pinch his thigh, making him snort.

“There’s two people here who spend their time in Boston. And one was already outed as giving a gift, so…” His gaze falls on you but you shrug your shoulders.

“Sorry, wasn’t me.”

“Who?”

El giggles and waves her hand at him.

“I had Nancy get it for me,” she says. Lucas wraps her up in a hug that almost suffocates the small girl.

“Another wrong guess. El can pick,” Nancy says.

El picks Jonathan, whose gift is a set of film and developing solution. He guesses it’s from Max, which is wrong. Lucas takes credit for the gift, then picks Will to go next. His present, to no one’s real surprise, is art supplies. He would’ve guessed Eddie since they have that hobby in common, but Eddie had already been called. Will’s not sure but guesses Max, which was incorrect. Steve stands up and takes a bow, glad that he wasn’t guessed correctly for the present. Max picks Nancy to go next, and she opens her small box to see a beautiful silver tennis bracelet. It’s gorgeous and dainty, and just exactly what Nancy would wear. Nancy guesses Will and she’s right. There’s a cheer from the group, because she’s the first one to guess correctly in a while. Will chooses Mike to go next, whose gift is a new outfit, consisting of a t-shirt, button up shirt, and pants. He looks stumped on who gave it to him before he notices the clothing label and something seems to click in his mind.

“Jonathan! These are the clothes Argyle was saying he’d get me when we were in California,” Mike says and Jonathan shrugs sheepishly.

“You didn’t get them then, so you get them now.”

Since Jonathan already opened his, he declares it your turn to open your gift. You’re not expecting a particularly thought out gift, just because no one here knew you particularly well, and you knew neither Nancy nor Eddie had pulled your name. But when you spy your present inside the box you know exactly who gave it to you. With a laugh, you pull a stuffed Ewok out of the box, and upon closer inspection, you notice he’s wearing a pick necklace just like your boyfriend’s. You hug the toy to your chest and smile at the only person in the room you remember talking about Ewoks with.

“Dustin!”

The boy grins and shrugs his shoulders.

“What can I say? I couldn’t resist.”

“It’s perfect,” you tell him. “My little metal Ewok.”

“I thought that was me,” Eddie says with a smirk.

“You’re the metal teddy bear,” you remind him. “Get it right.”

“Dustin’s turn,” Robin says.

Dustin unwraps a package stuffed with new books. His face lights up as he goes through them, rambling off title after title and author after author as he looks them over. He correctly guesses that Mike gave them to him, and Mike chooses Max to be the next one to open her present. Now that most of the gifts have been revealed, Max only has two options to guess from. It’s either you or herself, so that makes it an easy choice.

“Hmm, I wonder who,” Max says, sending you a smirk as she tears into the wrapping paper. When she pulls out her new skateboard her jaw drops open. She runs her hand along it before flipping it over and seeing the artwork on the deck.

“No way.” There’s a painted picture of Wonder Woman on the bottom and Max’s eyes are wide in astonishment. It makes you feel proud that you found that for her. You’d already liked Max from the first time you met her, but you’d come to know her even more on this trip and become her friend.

“This is…wow,” Max says. She’s shaking her head, like she can’t believe what she’s holding. “Thank you so much.” She turns to you and gives you a smile that’s pure joy. For a moment it reminds you of Chloe’s smile when she gets very excited.

“You’re welcome,” you tell her. “I saw it and had to get it. Eddie did give me some clues about what you like, though.”

“This damn snow needs to melt so I can ride it,” Max says, still staring at the board.

There’s only one gift left and it’s for Steve. But he knows Max is the only one who hasn’t claimed a gift given yet, so this is obviously from her. It’s good it worked out this way though, because it further tests Max’s theory that Steve’s going to say he likes the sweater just because Max gave it to him. The redhead’s grin would look excited to anyone else, but you could see it for the maniacal smile it was.

Steve opens the box and stares down at the sweater inside. His mouth is hanging open and his eyebrows raise up.

“Oh,” he says. “Wow.”

“What is it?” Mike asks.

Steve picks up the sweater and holds it up against his chest. Max wasn’t lying. It’s one of the ugliest things you’ve ever seen. It’s blue and white, dotted in snowflakes and candy canes, and right in the middle of the chest there’s a gray cat wearing a Santa hat. Steve nods his head as he looks down at it.

“It’s…great,” he says, and you have to turn your head away to keep from laughing. Max is still grinning at him when Steve meets her eyes. “Thank you, Max. I love it.”

“I’m so glad,” Max says with fake cheeriness. “I saw it and immediately thought of you.”

“Yeah?” Steve asks, though his voice sounds strained.

Max nods enthusiastically and you have no idea how she's managing not to laugh. You volunteer to help with the clean up, and as you pass Max she smirks and whispers, “Told you.”

Steve heads into the kitchen to toss some of the wrapping paper away, but Eddie stops you as you go to follow behind him.

“Sit, princess,” he says, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “I’ve got it.” He takes the garbage from you and heads towards the kitchen.

Giving him a grateful smile, you sit down next to Max on the couch and look at her new skateboard with her. Eddie tosses the garbage out in the big bag Steve got out, but he stops his friend from going back out into the living room.

“Dude, I need to talk to you,” Eddie says.

Steve shrugs and puts his hands on his hips.

“What’s up?”

Eddie chews over his bottom lip and slips his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He wasn’t sure how to start this conversation without sounding like a complete idiot.

“Spit it out, man,” Steve says.

“It’s just…fuck, it’s going to sound crazy,” Eddie says.

“A lot of the things you say do.”

Eddie throws a glare his way before he begins to pace back and forth in front of the sink.

“I know I’ve only known her a month,” Eddie says. “And I don’t know, I don’t have any sort of reference for this. But, like…shit.”

Steve tilts his head to the side, waiting for Eddie to get to the point.

“I think I love her,” Eddie says, halting his motions and coming to stand in front of Steve. “Is that crazy?”

Steve shrugs his shoulders and leans against the counter.

“I wouldn’t say it’s crazy. A little fast, yeah? But since when do you do things like everyone else anyway?”

Eddie rubs his hands over his face and Steve lets out a sigh.

“Look,” Steve says. “No one else can tell you when you’re in love or not. It’s just something you know.”

“I do,” Eddie says, nodding his head. “I do know. God, I love her so much.”

“Then you love her,” Steve says. “What’s the problem?”

“I just feel like if this was anyone else I would be saying that they’re crazy. Saying it’s not possible to fall in love so fast. Especially with someone they’ve only communicated with by phone the majority of the time they’ve known them.”

“But it’s not someone else, it’s you. And who gives a shit what anyone else thinks? You of all people have never cared about that,” Steve says.

“I care what she thinks,” Eddie says, gesturing towards the living room. “I don’t want to scare her.”

“Then don’t tell her yet,” Steve says.

“I’ve already almost let it slip. It’s just a matter of time.”

“Dude, you’re too much in your own head about all of this. You guys are great together. Like, it sounds straight out of a fairytale type of great. Just keep doing what you’re doing. It’s obviously working.”

Eddie nods and comes to lean on the counter next to Steve.

“How quick until you loved Nancy?” Eddie asks.

Steve scratches at his neck, eyes looking up as he searches his memories.

“Maybe between two and three months,” he says. “But I never stopped. Does that make me crazy? That even though she and I were broken up for years, she had a serious boyfriend, and I went on countless dates, I still loved her the whole time? Everyone’s love story is different, Munson. None of them are supposed to be the same or they wouldn’t be special and yours.”

Eddie lets out a deep breath and nods his head.

“Thanks, Harrington.”

“You’re not going to pop the question, are you?” Steve asks.

“No!” Eddie rolls his eyes. “I’m dumb, but I’m not that dumb. We have talked about kids, though. Not like, for now. But talked about if we both want kids in the future.”

“That’s good,” Steve says. “Nance and I have those conversations too. Even if something is years off, it’s still good to know where you both stand.”

“When’d you become the guy to go to for dating advice?” Eddie asks with a smirk.

“Some of it I’ve just absorbed from Robin talking so much,” Steve says. “But Nance and I are really good now. I was bound to learn some things at some point.”

Dustin walks into the kitchen and stops short when he sees the two guys standing there.

“Is everything okay?” he asks.

Eddie walks over and slings his arm over Dustin’s shoulders.

“You’re forgiven,” Eddie says. “You’ve made it up to me.”

“Really?” Dustin asks excitedly.

“Made up for what?” Steve asks.

“When he hit my van,” Eddie says.

“With a car?” Steve’s eyes look like they’re going to pop out of his head.

“Drivers Ed class,” Dustin mumbles.

“Jesus Christ,” Steve says, running a hand over his face. “You’re never driving my car. Not even when you’re thirty.”

“What did I do to make it up to you?” Dustin asks Eddie, ignoring Steve’s remark.

“The Ewok with the pick necklace. She loves it. Like, she really fucking loves it. And you put that smile on her face, so we’re all good.”

“Sweet,” Dustin says.

“He’s forgiven for hitting your car because he got a teddy bear?” Steve asks.

“It’s not a teddy bear,” Eddie and Dustin say at the same time.

Christmas mornings had become less magical since you’d grown up. That thrill of excitement that shoots through you when you see what Santa’s put beneath the tree for you. As you got older, you didn’t care about getting up early to open any gifts. You’d rather get the extra sleep. But this year, waking up in Eddie’s arms, there’s a whole new type of magic surrounding you. He’s still asleep when you open your eyes, and you smile at the sight of him, lips slightly parted, chest steadily rising up and down, his eyelashes fluttering. Your mind cannot comprehend that at one point the whole town hated this sweet boy.

You can tell Eddie’s waking by the way he squirms a little, muscles stretching as life is breathed back into them. He lets out a sigh as he lifts one arm above his head to loosen it up. His eyes blink open and a sleepy smile comes to his lips when he sees you’re already up.

“Merry Christmas,” you say.

“Merry Christmas, gorgeous.”

“How’d you sleep?” he asks, voice still a little hoarse.

“Good. I was exhausted last night,” you say.

“From the party or our after party?” Eddie asks with a smirk.

“Both!”

Eddie chuckles and there’s a soft knock on the door.

“Everyone decent?” Wayne calls.

“Jesus Christ,” Eddie mumbles. He rubs one of his eyes with the palm of his hand and peeks under the covers to make sure he’s still got his boxers on. You, of course, had slipped into one of Eddie’s shirts, so you were presentable from the waist up.

“Come in.”

“Merry Christmas,” Wayne says with a smile, eyes crinkled in the corners. “I ran out and got us some doughnuts for breakfast.”

That’s got Eddie sliding out from under the blankets and rummaging around for pants to put on.

“We’ll be right there,” you say. You’ve got to stay put in the bed since you only have your panties on your bottom.

Wayne nods and closes the door behind him.

Both of you and Eddie dressed in warm and comfortable clothes you’d found scattered around the room. The box of donuts is on the coffee table, so Eddie sits on the couch and pulls you down beside him.

“I suppose you want Boston cream,” Eddie says with a smirk.

“You’re so cheesy,” you say, laughing.

He hands you the donut anyway, and practically inhales a glazed donut whole. While you’re still working on your first one, he eats a jelly filled one in two bites.

“Alright,” Eddie says when you’re done. He rubs his hands together in anticipation. “Presents.” He slips off the couch and sits in front of the tree. You come down to join him and he taps his hand against your knee as he looks over the handful of packages laying in wait.

“Wayne first.” Eddie picks up a present with his uncle’s name on it and tosses it over his head to the man. “That’s from the lovely lady sitting on my right.”

Inside there’s a green and gray flannel buried in a mountain of tissue paper, and Wayne smiles as he appraises it.

“Thanks, doll,” he says. “Don’t think I’ve got a green one.”

“Thought it might make you blend in a bit more when you’re fishing,” you say.

“You think the fish can see him up on land?” Eddie asks but Wayne throws a ball of tissue paper at his head before you can respond.

“I’ll save the best for last,” Eddie says. “So I’ll open next.” He picks up Wayne’s gift to him, a small box, and he shakes it near his ear. Since no sound provides him with any clues, he rips the paper off and opens the box. “Oh, thank God! Or well - Wayne. Thank you!” Eddie pulls out new guitar strings and a small baggie stuffed to the brim with picks. “Gonna be playing with my sweetheart later.”

Eddie’s looking down at the gift in his lap as he says it, but you can still see the smirk. You feel the tips of your ears turn red and reach forward to grab a present labeled to you from Wayne.

It’s a larger, flat box that you lay in your lap. Eddie sets the accessories for his guitar down to watch as you strip the box of its paper. Lifting the lid, you gasp when you see the neatly folded kitchen apron. It’s a turquoise material, soft under your fingertips as you touch it. But the best part is your name stitched on the apron in big, purple letters. You lift it from the box and hold the material tight to your chest.

“I love it! Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Wayne chuckles and nods his head.

“Knew after you’ve been cooking for us so well that I should repay the favor. And I figured since you like to be in the kitchen it’ll come in handy.”

“It’s perfect,” you say. “I’m constantly getting flour all over myself, so this will save me from doing a lot of extra laundry.”

Eddie leans forward and scoops up a small box from under the tree.

“Here,” he says, tossing it to Wayne. Once Wayne’s ripped the paper off, he starts laughing, dropping his head forward as his shoulders shake. Eddie’s smirking and you’re looking back and forth between them in confusion.

Wayne holds up the small box and you see it’s a box of condoms.

“Eddie!” But you’re laughing too, not able to actually scold him.

“Ribbed, for your lady friend’s pleasure,” Eddie says and you fall forward in laughter, your head resting on Eddie’s knee.

“You think you’re so funny, boy,” Wayne says, laughter still in his voice as well.

“Well, here.” Wayne tosses a small box to Eddie. When he catches it you see it’s a different box of condoms, this one with a nice red bow taped to it. “We don’t want no little Munsons around here anytime soon.”

Both you and Eddie blush - but definitely more you - despite the fact that you’re both laughing.

There are two more boxes under the tree and one of them is for you.

“I really hope those aren’t condoms,” you say.

“You’ll have to wait and see!” Eddie says as he scoops up his gift from you. It’s a small box, and yet again, he shakes it. There’s a light rattling coming from inside and his brow pinches together.

“Will you stop shaking it?” you ask with a laugh.

“That’s no fun,” Eddie says, but he stops. He rips open the paper and almost rips the small box as he tries to open it. His face splits into a grin when he looks inside. There’s a silver ring with a pair of skeletons hands making a heart. He picks it up out of the box and inspects it in the light. “I love it.”

As you watch his eyes trail over the details, you see him pause when he sees there’s an inscription inside.

“The date we met,” Eddie says. November 28, 1986 is engraved on the inside of the silver ring, and Eddie’s sure he’s never come closer to crying when he’s gotten a gift. “Best day of my life.”

You’re pretty sure he’s only saying that because Wayne is in the room. He’d definitely say it was the other day when you had sex for the first time if it was just the two of you alone.

“Mine too,” you tell him.

He leans over and presses a soft kiss to your lips.

“Thank you. I love it.”

“You’re welcome,” you say.

“Your turn.” Eddie hands you a small box, a little bigger than the one his ring was in.

“Should I shake it?” you ask and he pinches your knee playfully. As impressed as you are with the care Eddie took when wrapping it, you still just tear through the paper. There’s a velvet box inside and you’re already afraid Eddie spent too much on you. Lifting the lid, a silver charm bracelet sits inside. It’s shiny and delicate, and there are three charms attached. You carefully pick it up and bring it closer to your face. The first charm is a music note, which makes you smile. It’s very Eddie. The second charm is a small phone and you blush, knowing what it represents. Eddie chuckles softly at your expression, too lowly for Wayne to hear. The last charm is a beautiful silver “E” with a little jewel dotted in the top corner. This one is automatically your favorite. Whenever you’re sitting in a boring class or just missing your boyfriend, you can look at your wrist and see the pretty reminder of him.

“Eddie, this is so beautiful,” you say. Eddie’s noticed you haven’t taken your eyes off of it yet and it fills him with pride. He’s glad he got something you truly like.

“I figured I could just add a charm every year or something. Maybe like a tradition?”

Hearing him already talk about your next Christmas and starting a tradition with you fills your eyes with tears. You refuse to let them spill over as you launch yourself at Eddie, wrapping your arms around his neck. Traditions weren’t something you had in your life. The thought of having one with Eddie makes your stomach all tingly in the best possible way.

“That sounds perfect,” you tell him. And you mean it.

He hugs you back tightly and you’re sure he can sense how much you need the embrace in that moment.

“Can I put it on you?” Eddie asks.

You nod as you pull back from him, unable to trust your own voice. He takes the bracelet from you and you hold your wrist out. Once he successfully opens the small clasp, he hooks the gift around your wrist. You turn your wrist to inspect it from all angles, heart thrumming in your chest. The silver of his new ring catches your eye and you pick it up.

“Can I put this on you then?” you ask.

“You proposing?” he asks with a smirk, and another wad of tissue paper hits his head. Eddie ignores his uncle though and slips the skull ring he has on his left ring finger and puts it on the middle finger of his right hand.

“Why don’t we wait until we’ve known each other for at least a month before we talk about marriage?” you say, raising your eyebrows at him.

“Sounds fair,” Eddie says with a shrug.

He holds his hand out and you slip the silver skeleton hands down his finger.

“I accept,” Eddie gushes playfully, holding his ringed finger up. You roll your eyes but lean forward to hug him anyway. His harms instantly encircle you and he hugs you close to him.

“Thank you, beautiful,” he mumbles against your head.

“And thank you, handsome.” You look up at him and he presses a quick but sweet kiss to your lips.

“Okay, lovebirds,” Wayne says from behind you. Red creeps on your cheeks as you pull away from Eddie and move to stand up. Eddie follows your lead and stands, bending down to pick up all the discarded wrapping paper.

“Thank you, Wayne,” you say, going over to hug him. “I’m going to use the apron when I make dinner.”

“I’m glad you like it, darlin’,” he says, patting your back.

“And thanks for these,” Eddie says, swiping up the box of condoms. “I’ll make sure and put them to good use.”

“Eddie!” You cover your face and Eddie chuckles, coming over and wrapping his arms around your waist.

“Aw, baby,��� he coos. “You’re so cute.”

“I’m traumatized, is what I am,” you say.

The dinner you make is simple, but you want to honor the tradition Wayne and Eddie have of having fish for Christmas. The salmon, potatoes, biscuits, and asparagus are served earlier than you’d typically eat dinner, but unfortunately Wayne had to work even though it was Christmas. He said he didn’t mind because he got to spend the morning and most of the day with you two. You manage to keep your apron clean except for one spot of potato on your chest, which Eddie offers to lick off.

After Wayne leaves for work, you and Eddie curl up on the couch, a blanket cocooning the two of you, and watch Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. When it’s over, you start to feel butterflies in your stomach as you think about the other present you bought for Eddie.

He stands up from the couch and turns the television off. The room is cloaked in darkness as he spins around and wiggles his eyebrows at you.

“Ready for bed?”

“Mhmm,” you hum, standing up. You follow him into his room and snatch up the shopping back that you’d hidden in your suitcase. “I’ll be right back.”

Eddie acknowledges you with a hum as you slip down the hall and into the bathroom. When you’d gone shopping the other day with Nancy, you’d bought Eddie’s ring. As you passed a lingerie store later, Nancy joked that you should buy something as a second present for him. You’d surprised her by walking into the store, leaving her outside. Her surprised face as she followed in behind you amused you more than you’d let her know.

In the mirror over the sink in the Munson bathroom, you turn to try and see yourself from all angles. It’s the first time you’ve ever worn anything like this and you feel self conscious. The black lace bustier held your boobs up and together, which even you had to admit, looked damn good. The matching panties and garters holding up the sheer black stockings made you feel sexy. It’s a weird mixture feeling self conscious and sexy at the same time. But you have no doubt Eddie will make you feel beautiful, like he always does.

You step out of the bathroom and your heart races as you make your way back to Eddie’s room. The mattress creaks, which lets you know he’s already on the bed. With a deep breath, you summon the courage and step into his doorway. He’s leaning over to his nightstand, putting the new condom box in next to the current one you’ve been going through.

“Ready to unwrap another present?” you ask. Eddie turns to answer but does a double take when he sees you, his eyes growing wide as saucers. The way he’s staring at you makes heat pool between your legs. It feels like his eyes are burning you as he rakes them up and down your body.

“Holy shit.”

You giggle as you step inside the room, making your way over to the bed. Eddie hurries off the bed, needing to touch you or he’ll combust. His hands find the strip of bare skin between the bustier and the panties, and he settles them there.

“Baby, you look so fucking sexy,” he says. “I mean, you always do, but this outfit? Fuck. You’re going to kill me.”

“Mm,” you hum, resting your hands on his chest. “No dying until I’ve had my fun with you.” You give him a gentle push and he falls back on the bed. When you sink to your knees in front of him he feels like he must be dreaming. You haven't even reached for his belt yet and he already knew he wouldn’t last long. You rub your hand over the growing bulge in his jeans and Eddie throws his head back. The way he reacts to your touch makes you smirk. The handcuff belt that used to give you trouble getting off, now you’re an expert at it as you work your hands at the waistband of his pants. Originally, you were just going to reach into his boxers and pull his cock out, but you decide you want him fully naked. He gets the hint when you start to pull his jeans and boxers down his legs and he lifts his hips to help you. Next you go for his shirt, yanking it over his head and tossing it behind you. You’ll never get over how beautiful he is. His dark hair and dark eyes framing his face, dotted with freckles and highlighted by his pink lips, already parted as his breathing increases. The pale skin of his torso, covered in both tattoos and scars, and his pretty cock, already hard and leaking precum, waiting for your attention. You run your hands up his thighs and dig your fingers in up close to his hips.

“Never done this before,” you tell him, even though he already knows. “Gonna have to tell me what you like.”

“Shit, babe,” he says, voice straining. “Pretty sure your mouth won’t be on me for a minute before I blow my load.”

“I’m doing the blowing,” you say with a pout. Eddie chuckles and reaches out to caress your face.

“Fuck, you’re perfect,” he says.

“Eddie?” you ask, looking up at him through your eyelashes.

“Yeah, baby?”

“I want you to cum in my mouth.”

His dick twitches and he grabs a fistful of the blankets on his bed. You can’t help but smile in satisfaction at how he reacts to your words.

“A-Are you sure?” he asks.

“Mhmm,” you hum as you wrap your hand around the base of him. He nods his head and you start to stroke him a few times. You lean in and give the head a few kitten licks, making a whine escape his throat. When you run your tongue along the vein on the underside of his cock, from base to tip, he shudders and squeezes his eyes shut.

“Jesus Christ,” he pants out.

You can’t help the smile on your face, loving seeing him in so much pleasure. And the fact that you’re the one causing it is making you even wetter. You lower your mouth onto him and his hand instantly grips your hair. It’s not too tight, just enough so he grounds himself. And even though his dick is literally in your mouth, he still feels the need to touch some part of you with his hands.

Trying to remember everything you’ve heard or pieces of advice friends gave about giving head, you take more of Eddie into your mouth, not sure when or if a gag reflex will kick in. The noises he’s making above you encourage you to take him deeper, trying to relax your jaw as you go. You pull back until you’re just sucking on the tip, which has a guttural moan escaping him.

“M’close,” he says.

Your drool is leaking down his cock and you spread it with your hand as you start to pump down at the base. Eddie’s thigh muscles tense on either side of your head and you hollow out your cheeks.

“Fuck! I’m cumming.” One more bob of your head and Eddie is filling your mouth with his sticky release. You take as much of it as you can, some dribbling out the corners of your mouth. Swallowing all that he gives you, you pull back and lick over your lips, trying to get every last drop.

Eddie’s breathing hard as he looks down at you. The way you’re looking up at him through your eyelashes as you clean his cum off your face might be the prettiest sight he’s ever seen.

“How was that?” you ask.

He has no words to respond with, so instead he reaches down and pulls you up from the floor. He lays back on the bed, pulling you on top of him. You place your hand on his chest and his heart is beating so fast that you’re afraid it’s going to jump out of his skin. Hand coming up to tangle in your hair, Eddie brings you down for a messy kiss full of tongue and teeth. His hands slide down to your ass and squeeze.

“I’m not done with you and these yet,” he says, snapping the elastic of the panties against your skin.

“It’s a good thing we’ve got all night then.”

The week after Christmas is full of laughter, friends, sex, snow, and feeling more at home than you should in a place that’s never been your home. The few days Eddie has to work you either spend with Nancy or Max, once even going with Nancy to spend time at Family Video when Steve and Robin were working. The days Eddie had off all started and ended the same - naked - but each day you have a new adventure. One of the most interesting included going on a double date with Wayne and Abigail to a nice restaurant. Both Munson boys dressed in nice shirts and slacks was a rare sight and you were indeed enjoying it. Even if you did have to help both of them pick out what to wear. You’re so focused on what a good time you’re having in Hawkins, and dreading going back to school, you forget all about New Year’s Eve until Eddie brings it up.

“So,” he says once he’s finished giving you your second orgasm of the night. “I’ve got a surprise for you.”

“And what’s that?” you ask, trying to catch your breath.

“How would you like to go to a concert?”

“A concert?” you ask and Eddie nods. “Who’s playing?”

“Corroded Coffin.”

You sit up straight, jaw dropping open as you look at him.

“You are? I’m going to get to see your band?”

“Talked to them all today,” Eddie says. He smiles and tugs you back down so you’re laying against his chest. “Gareth got us a gig on New Year’s Eve at the place we used to play.”

“I forgot all about New Years,” you say.

“Well, this is the first year I’ll have a New Year’s kiss, so I wasn’t about to forget.”

Your thumb strokes over his skin as you press a few kisses to his bare chest.

“I’m excited!”

“Nancy, Steve, and Robin are coming too,” he tells you.

“Are they going to be embarrassed to be seen with a girl who is clearly trying to get into the lead singer’s pants?”

“Well,” Eddie says, running his fingers up and down your arm. “I hate to disappoint you, but I hear he has a girlfriend.”

“That’s a shame,” you say.

“Heard she’s gorgeous, too. Like, the most beautiful girl ever.”

“Well, he’s so sexy, he definitely deserves a girl like that.”

Eddie chuckles and leans down to press his lips against yours.

Even though it’s so cold out, you insist on wearing a Corroded Coffin t-shirt to The Hideout. You layer a cardigan over it and your coat on top as you help Eddie load his guitar and amp into the van. He stares at your ass as he helps you into the van, eyes taking in your tights and skirt.

“Being a perv?” you ask once you’re in your seat.

“For you? Always.” He presses a kiss to the back of your hand before heading around to the driver’s side.

The Hideout is pleasantly full when you arrive, and Eddie takes you backstage to introduce you to the other guys.

“This is Gareth, Jeff, and Andy,” Eddie introduces, pointing to each man in turn.

“Holy shit, she is real,” Gareth says.

Eddie rolls his eyes and rests his arm over your shoulders.

“It’s nice to meet you,” you tell them. “I’m excited to hear you perform.”

“I heard it was your idea,” Jeff says, but you shake your head.

“All I did was ask if I could hear Eddie’s band play. He took it from there.”

“You’re sticking around after the set, right?” Andy asks.

“Of course,” you say.

“Oh good, we have a hundred stories to tell you about Eddie,” Gareth says.

“Alright,” Eddie says with a sigh. “I’m going to walk you to your seat now.”

You giggle as Eddie leads you away from the guys, but you can hear one of them whispering loudly to the others as you leave.

“Damn, Eddie got a hot girlfriend.”

Your friends are already there and at a table near the stage when Eddie walks you back out to the front. Robin waves you over and you give Eddie a kiss and tell him to break a leg before you go over to them.

“Looks like we’ve got a groupie here,” Robin says, gesturing to your shirt.

“I think she’s hoping to score one of the band members,” Nancy adds with a smirk.

“Maybe,” you say with a shrug as you take your seat.

The lights dim and you squirm in your seat, excited nerves taking over your body. Steve smiles to himself as he watches you, knowing you’re just as deep in it for Eddie as he is for you.

When Eddie walks out on stage with his guitar, you squeeze your thighs together in your seat. He looks insanely sexy all the time, but seeing him strut out like a rockstar has you even more feral for him. With a smirk, he throws a wink your way as he adjusts the microphone.

“Well, hello, Hideout,” Eddie says and there are a few scattered cheers across the bar. “It’s been a minute since we’ve played together, but we’re back for a special reunion this New Year’s Eve.”

Robin subtly nudges Nancy in her ribs and nods her head towards you, where you’re looking at Eddie with almost literal heart eyes. When he begins to strum his guitar, Nancy thinks you just might pass out. By the second song you’re standing, dancing around to the band’s songs. The way you’re moving and swaying your hips has Eddie glad his guitar is held in front of his crotch.

It’s not long before your friends join you in your dancing, and eventually all people at the tables closest to the stage are on their feet. Sweat pours down Eddie’s face and you’re surprised when you have the urge to lick it off. Wouldn’t be the first time you’d licked something off of him.

During the last song, Eddie kneels down on one knee in front of you and tilts your chin up to press a possessive kiss to your lips. Your knees go weak and your tummy flip flops. When he pulls back he gives you another wink before finishing the song. It wouldn’t surprise you if your voice was gone tomorrow after shouting and screaming so loud for the band. And then maybe some more when you guys got home.

It’s 11:30 pm when the guys come out from backstage and join you at the table with the others. The bar has some music playing over the speakers now that isn’t nearly as good as Corroded Coffin’s music was, but no one’s paying any attention to it anyway. Your table is full and everyone’s shouting over one another and laughing so hard they’re practically crying. Jeff tells you about the time Eddie got detention for smoking weed in the gym, but Gareth tells you that was nothing compared to the time he got caught trying to break into a teacher’s car to try and steal the answer guide to a test. Eddie’s groaning and rolling his eyes, but you can tell he’s happy to be surrounded by his old friends. You smile to yourself how they all keep teasing him. How Wayne tries to embarrass him. It’s because they care so deeply about him.

At five minutes to midnight the bar announces the time and everyone starts to get ready for the big countdown. Somehow Steve found some party hats and everyone at the table was wearing one now. Eddie has you practically in his lap, ready for your midnight kiss. Steve has his arm around Nancy’s chair and she’s leaning into him. A girl who wandered from her own friend group over to yours is cuddled up with Jeff, so you’re pretty sure he’s set for a kiss as well. Gareth tries to talk Robin into giving him a midnight kiss but she shudders and physically pushes his face away from her when he tries to get too close.

“One minute, everyone!” a waitress calls out.

There are murmurs around the bar, then everyone begins to count down from sixty.

“To a happy New Year!” Steve says, raising his glass.

“To an amazing 1987!” Andy echoes.

All of you clink glasses in cheers before Eddie pulls you fully into his lap.

“I was going to say I don’t know how 1987 could possibly be better than 1986,” Eddie starts.

You raise an eyebrow and lean in so only he can hear you.

“You mean the year that you discovered there’s a secret dimension under your town and you almost died?”

“Let me finish,” Eddie says, tickling your sides. “I was gonna say that because 1986 is the year I met you. But I only got to know you for about five weeks this year. Next year it’ll get to be a whole fifty-two.”

It may have only been about five weeks but you already know you’ll never get used to him saying such sweet things to you. You lean in to kiss him, but he holds up a finger to your lips to stop you.

“Ah-ah-ah,” he tuts. “You still have to wait another fourteen seconds.”

The bar gets louder.

Ten.

Nine.

Eight.

Seven.

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Eddie cups your jaw in his hand and presses his lips firmly against yours. One hand makes its way to his hair as you kiss him, smiling into it the whole time. When you pull apart, he’s smiling as well. He rests his forehead against yours and you tangle your fingers with his in your lap.

“Happy New Year, baby.”

“Happy New Year, Eddie.”

[nyukyusnz]

after christmas with nct dream! <3

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

mark lee - singing your last christmas songs together

during christmas and even before so, you and mark were always singing christmas themed songs during december cause it was the holidays! how could you not? at the end of christmas day, you two listened to your christmas playlist for the last time. "we have to do this again next year." he laughed, it was very joyful, you couldn't lie. "definitely will." you smiled back, you planned on it for next year and every time year after that.

huang renjun - taking down decorations

one of the saddening parts of the end of christmas would be taking down the decorations :(( the pretty ornaments coming down off the tree along with the tree itself is so depressing <//3. "i cant reach the star." "youre too short for this stay at the bottom of the tree, elf." renjun mocked you, it wasn't your fault the tree was like 8 feet tall and he picked it out?! you still couldnt reach with the help of a ladder but that's okay cause youll make renjun do it <3 same as for the hanging lights and paper decorations. you think youll stick to the lower levels when it comes to this.

lee jeno - putting away christmas clothes

we all know about matching ugly sweaters and so and so, so you offered to do that with the rest of the dreamies and they were all glad to! but after christmas day, you and jeno spent time together washing the sweaters from the messes you'd made throughout the day and neatly putting them away. "give me that hanger." he asked as you handed it to him, making sure all the other sweaters were dry. "this one's still damp..." you felt across the sleeves of the woven yarn, noticing it hadn't fully dried. "it's fine it'll air dry." jeno said, taking the sweater from you and hanging it with the others.

lee donghyuck - building a specific christmas snow man

it was dark out, and you were walking home with haechan from a christmas party. the snow was so pretty under the street lights, you stopped for a moment and kneeled down to draw a heart in the snow just in front of your house before speaking up, "hyuck, can we make another snowman for christmas?" you slipped off your scarf ready to tug it around the head as haechan had already started at the lower body immediately after you said so. he huffed as he set the head on top of the other two parts of the body and you finally settled your scarf around it. you grabbed spare christmas lights you saved for this and set the stones on its face alone with a top hat. "amazing." haechan smiled as you two posed for a photo with it.

na jaemin - eating the rest of the christmas cookies

"why did you make him dead?" jaemin questioned having finally recognized the x's you'd drawn as the eyes of one of the snowmen with it's tongue hanging out. "because we're gonna eat him regardless, i put him out of his misery the moment he was born." you stated. he chuckled, mumbling something before sliding the head of the cookie into his mouth "see? and you killed MY cookie." "he was already dead!"

zhong chenle - cleaning gift paper and trash

after you'd made a complete mess and not realized it, you offered to clean with chenle. "at least the gifts were nice." you said with a handful of balled up wrapping paper from opening gifts. you half sighed and laughed, a little disappointed in the mess but you enjoyed cleaning at the same time. "we might as well clean the whole living room, huh?" you wished it wouldn't be as logical but it made sense... you and the boys basically turned it into a junkyard. you were all still little kids when it came to christmas.

park jisung - breaking and eating a gingerbread house

you and jisung stared at your creation that was honestly.... half failed. one side of the roof on the verge of slipping down but was held in place by the dry icing. you picked off one of the candies and popped it into your mouth, handing jisung a candy. "this house is such a disaster i don't even know if i wanna eat it." he hesitated. "just because it looks bad doesn't mean it tastes bad." you said, shoving m&m's into your mouth and taking off the roof that was already partially off. jisung sighed, tasting a part of the gingerbread. "its okay i guess."

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

kyas note: sorry if the lengths are unfair i wanted to make them make sense🙏🏼🙏🏼 this is also for funsies like all of my writing but i do hope you have fun reading <3

[baratiddyappreciator]

Christmas with the Baki Cast

So uh, here's the lost post! :D I got all the way down to the beginning of the NSFW short for Chiharu when I did a fucky and lost *everything* up until the HCs for Hanayama. So uh, merry (belated) Christmas! Enjoy y'alls juice! SFW HC's and NSFW short stories (coming soon) This is gonna get posted late because I have to fly back to Canada and won't have internet until late. Natsue and Doppo are being written as a "you are the third" type deal because I love them as a couple too much to break them up.

Baki:

He never really had a proper Christmas since both Yujiro and Emi were very neglectful of him, but he did sometimes have people swing by his place with gifts, which stopped after Emi’s death, so he hasn’t really celebrated since. He does get Musashi some gifts, but dog treats and a toy don’t make proper gifts for him. You’re going to have to show him the ways.

He’ll indulge you in Christmas activities, especially the ones that involve him getting something to eat! Hot chocolate with marshmallows, Christmas cookies, he’s down with all of it. Getting a tree? Yeah! Sounds like fun! He’s not as good decorating, his trees make a big chaotic mess every time he tries to decorate, so you’ll have to help him, or embrace the chaos.

Take him skating and watch the great and powerful Baki Hanma fall flat on his ass several times. He’s strong, graceful, agile and he has pretty good balance, but he’s never been skating before and he has no idea how to. You’ll have to drag him over to the boards and show him how. Once he gets the hang of it he’s not too bad, but he has no idea how to stop even though you’ve showed him five times, so he’ll just slam into the boards or fall on his ass.

He does try to behave about Christmas gifts, but he doesn’t always succeed. The man is determined to get a peek at what you got him, since all of his gifts would be dropped off on Christmas eve. That was for a reason. You’ll need to get dummy boxes so he gives up on looking for his actual gifts. As to him giving you gifts, he goes a bit all-out. Careful what you mention wanting around him, because he will get it for you with no regard for how much he has saved up in his inheritance (a lot) and you won’t be able to put it all away.

He’s actually really good about stockings though! You can fill his stocking with just about anything and he’d be absolutely delighted to have it! Snacks, knick-knacks, practical stuff, he loves it all because it’s from you. On his end though, your entire stocking will be full of snacks and tinier gifts he couldn’t bother to wrap (he sucks at it).

Chocolate advent calendars are a win with him, but he’ll only go along with them for a few days before he tears the whole thing open in the middle of the night while you’re alseep. You’ll notice evidence of his crimes (missing calendar, little pieces of cardboard he didn’t see) in the morning when you wake up. He’s both very sorry and not sorry. Yours is safe though, he promises not to touch it.

Kozue:

For the longest time it was just her and her mother for Christmas and they didn’t really celebrate it that intensely, but now that she has you she has an excuse to go all-out. You’ll walk to her house one day and discover that the entire thing has been shot with a Christmas canon. There are lights and decorations everywhere, and it’s glorious. Inside isn’t much better, her poor mother has to accept the fact that Kozue is just going to take over their shared living space temporarily.

She loves the more low-key Christmas activities, like sitting curled up on the couch and drinking hot cocoa or eggnog, but she’s not opposed to going out and sledding down a hill or building a snowman (weather permitting). As long as she’s spending time with you, she’s perfectly happy! Just don’t make her watch those Hallmark Christmas movies unless you’re both hatewatching.

She’s pretty good on the ice! Not some godess or something, but still, pretty good! She’ll be glued to your side for most of the time, snuggling as you two skate around or holding your hand, but she will take off at some point to do a few laps around the rink to get the energy out. It’s like when cats get zoomies, just taking off at full speed, zipping around and then returning for cuddles when they’re done.

She does actually behave about her gifts! She’ll be perfectly fine with you leaving her gifts beneath her tree at home, won’t even think about peeking until maybe Christmas eve. This being said, all of your gifts are wrapped by her mother, because Kozue is helpless when it comes to wrapping things up. She can put them in a gift bag no problem, but actually wrapping? Can’t do it. She’ll try for one or two and you can tell which ones she did. Her gifts are very thoughtful, so there aren’t usually many unless there are a lot of smaller things.

She loves stocking stuffers because she also doesn’t have to wrap those. She’ll have a stocking for you hanging on her door, and she’ll put a little gift inside it every day leading up to Christmas. A lot of her gifts are either practical or knick-knacks she saw that reminded her of you. As for what to get her for stocking stuffers, anything practical is greatly appreciated! She’d adore you for giving her socks, a scarf and a hat, and you will absolutely see her wearing them for as long as possible.

She’s good with chocolate advent calendars, she’ll do as she’s supposed to do and open a flap every day. Hell she even has a routine so that she can have her chocolate before bed every day and end it on a high note!

Hanayama:

You’d think he’s not into Christmas at all but you go to his house on the first of December and it looks like someone’s been decorating for weeks and not just a matter of hours. He goes all-out for the holidays because he knows that his mother really used to like them, and it’s a tradition he’s going to carry on. He’ll at least wait for you to pick out a tree though.

Speaking of trees, that’s one of his favourite christmas activities if he’s being honest. Going out to pick out a tree is always fun because then he can look at other things at the same time! Efficient? Yes! Fun? Well, he’s enjoying himself, but after the fifteenth stop before even looking at the trees you’re going to get bored. He’ll also enjoy sitting in and drinking, but don’t expect him to carol or watch movies, he can’t stand them. (He already watched all of them at least once when he was little.)

Normall he’s pretty damn sturdy, you’re not going to shake him if you shove him while he’s on stable ground. Put him in a pair of skates on the ice and it’s like he’s a newborn fawn though. You can poke him and he’ll collapse, he has absolutely no balance on skates in general, the ice just makes that worse. He’ll be stiff the entire time and won’t relax until he sees some kid pitch themselves full-force against a sideboard and be completely fine because they went limp. You’re going to have to hold his arm because he’ll obliterate your hand if he wobbles.

He’s so good at ignoring his own Christmas gifts that you’ll have to remind him that they’re there when it’s time to open them. He appreciates them, of course, but there’s literally no temptation for him because he knows he’ll open them eventually. Good luck opening yours though, they’re wrapped so well that you’re going to need a knife to get them open. I’m serious, there are no visible seams that can be felt, the tape is going to be your only hint as to where to pull. It’s impressive.

Stocking stuffers from him are no less frustrating because he’ll wrap those too. Did he get you a candy? It’s wrapped. Socks? Wrapped. Little trinket? Wrapped. Does he do it to watch you suffer? Partially, yeah. Doesn’t matter if it’s already pre-wrapped anyways, he’ll tear that off and wrap it himself. And he does get you a fairly good mix of things! As for what to get him, anything practical is a win in his book, but you can hit him real good with a proper thoughtful gift.

He doesn’t really care about chocolate advent calendars unless they’re dark chocolate. He’ll leave the milk chocolate one for you to eat on Christmas, but dark chocolate? Oh no, you can’t even look at the thing or he’ll glare at you. That’s his, don’t touch it.

Chiharu:

He tries his best with what he’s got, but his Christmas decoration collection is so sad. He’s got old stickers he can put on the window that are so beat up they look like they were in a house fire, he’s got a little snowman he puts outside his front door and another one he likes to put on his kitchen counter, but that’s about it. Please get this man Christmas decoarations he will use them all and love you forever.

He’s down for literally every Christmas activity there is. Caroling? Bet your ass! He’s off-key the entire time but he’s having fun! Sledding? He has no sense of self-preservation, so you’ll have to drag him away from anything legitimately dangerous. Driking cocoa and eggnog? Hell yeah! Especially if there’s booze involved! Getting a tree? Hell yeah! He’ll make room for it in his living room! Decorating said tree is one of the few moments where he’s genuinely calm. He has the most beautiful tree too, it’s just the right mix of cluttered and bare that makes a tree look stunning.

He sucks at skating, even he will tell you that, but he’ll always accept an offer to go! You’ll find him zipping around the ring only to hear him crash straight into the boards. It’s fair to worry that he might break some bones. It’s absolutely because he doesn’t know how to stop by the way. He has no clue how and he’s too scared to ask at this point. Besides! It’s fun! Good luck getting him to stay next to you though. Once he’s gone he’s gone.

He’s just as bad as Baki when it comes to his gifts. He just has to know what you got him! He’ll try his best to sneak a gift, only to find that the most appealing one was a dummy! Surely the others wouldn’t also be dummies, right? You’ll wake up to him begging you for forgiveness because he knows that you’ll notice all of his “gifts” have been opened. He’s surprisingly pretty good at wrapping gifts though! So if he really wants to hide the evidence, he will… For about an hour, then he’s spilling his guts. He can’t lie to his baby!

Stockings aren’t safe either, but they’re safe for longer. Once he cracks open all his gifts, you have about two days before he tries for the stocking. Mess with him, fill his up with coal and he’ll properly give up until Christmas. knick-knackks and snacks are greatly appreciated, but he won’t turn down anything more practical either! Hair care is a quick way to ensure he’s happy for the rest of the day. Your stocking stuffers from him are surprisingly thoughtful and really sweet, he gets you things he knows you’d like and appreciate, a mix of everything is in there.

Advent calendars aren’t safe from him no matter what they contain. Chocolate? Gets eaten. Puzzles? They get assembled over the course of one night. Anything you can think of in an advent calendar just gets ripped out and admired over the course of a few minutes after you give him the calendar in the first place. No patience from this man. Yours is safe for as long as you tell him it’s boring.

Katsumi:

Everyone, meet santa himself. I’m serious when I say that he decorates his appartment and the dojo on the first of December. He comes home dead tired afterwards, but he still does it every year. He puts a lot of effort in, he even organises a Christmas party for Shin-Shin-Kai members and their families, with a hired Santa and everything. The dojo is rarely going to look that festive ever again, and it’s a good way to get the future generation into Karate! Also: Christmas at his parents house is mandatory.

He’s down for all of the activities, and the bonus of getting not one, but two Christmas trees! One for home, and one for the Dojo! He loves decorating them too, if he can get the kids to help him decorate the one at the Dojo it’s even more fun and special, they all absolutely adore him. Katou can make fun of him all he wants, but he knows for a fact that he’ll get more gifts from the kids than anyone else, and Katou can then sit and be jealous in the corner.

He is beauty he is grace, he will not fall on his face. Take him ice skating and see some lingering influences from his time in the circus as a child. If this man knows how to figure skate, then he won’t tell you, but you won’t be able to tell if he does or not because he’s just doing stuff to impress you. He’ll eventually come back to you though, don’t worry! He’ll hold your hand and skate with you, you’ll both wind up with sore cheeks from laughing so hard.

He’s good about his gifts, if only because Natsue would kick his ass if she found out he ruined your fun by peeking at his gifts. Please do let him open one on Christmas eve though, boy is about to combust in anticipation. He’s about average when it comes to wrapping gifts, but he does make a considerable effort to make yours look pretty. And speaking of yours, he gives you some pretty extravagant stuff.

Stocking stuffers are the things he finds hardest to resist. Like he knows there’s goodies in there, they’re easy access, but he’s not going to touch them because he knows you’ll be disappointed in him. He promises he won’t. He doesn’t care what it is, gifts are gifts and he appreciates whatever you get him. He’ll do his best to get you something sweet that you can use.

Advent calendars are used properly with him, he loves the chocolate ones, and he will use each piece of chocolate in a new way. One day it’s in his coffee, the next it’s in his hot chocolate, he’s going to take full advantage of having some. Your advent calendars are safe, but once you pull the chocolate out you’d better immediately eat it or else you’re getting a cup of the exact same stuff he’s drinking.

Jack:

He’s religious, so that aspect of the holiday is somewhat important to him, but in general he doesn’t care about Christmas. He doesn’t really do well with gifts, and he’d rather just spend time with the people he cares about, so his mother, his brother and you, but he’s not going to complain if that doesn’t happen since he didn’t get much of a Christmas when he was younger, so anything you do is probably going to be better than what he had.

He honestly just doesn’t mind going out to do Christmas activities with you, other than caroling. It brings back good memories for him. He’s especially fond of getting some nice hot chocolate or apple cider and going for a walk through the woods, it fulfils his need to just get outside and enjoy the cold weather he’s more used to before the warmth comes back.

Actual god out on the ice. You don’t really expect for such a big man to be able to move that fast or that gracefully, but he does, and it’s both enchanting and terrifying to watch. He’s gone skating a bunch in his past, so this is nothing new. You actually get to see a much softer and more energetic side of him, becase the second he touches the ice he’s gone, but he’ll come back for you after about 10 mintues asking where you went. He’ll be skating ahead of you, backwards so he can look at you. You won’t be able to keep up with him unless you’re holding onto him.

He’s so good about gifts, you can hand him a shopping bag full of his gifts and ask him to go put them in the bedroom so you can wrap them and he’ll do exactly that, no questions asked, no peeking. Just there and back asking if you need help with anything else. As for getting gifts, he’s surprisingly sweet about the stuff he gets for you. He’s not the best at wrapping, not by a long shot, but he tries fairly hard for you.

He honestly forgets about his own stocking until you hand it to him on Christmas, he just sorta stares at it for a second before he opens it. He won’t complain about anything you get him, it’s more than he thinks he deserves, but he does always appreciate more practical things. Snacks are very hit or miss for him. As for what he gets you, it’s a mix of practical and knick-knackk, he’ll take you to go get treats after Christmas when most of it goes on sale, that’s when it’s the best.

He doesn’t really care for or about advent calendars. Chocolate, puzzles, they’re all pretty eh to him. He’d rather save his to give to you later since he doesn’t have a big sweet-tooth. Chocolate is nice, sure, but he doesn’t really care for sweets and candies. Pastries on the other hand, are a guilty pleasure of his, get him a danish or a beaver tail and he’ll melt.

Kosho:

He’s the complete opposite of Kureha in the sense where he does anything for Christmas in the first place. He’ll decorate, he’ll get a bit festive, but he does keep it fairly subtle. Don’t expect him to go even close to the level that say Hanayama or Katsumi go to, but he is a happy medium. He even has a rug he puts by the door to get a bit more openly festive.

He’s open to doing most Christmas activities, sledding is fun, getting drinks and treats is an automatic yes, but caroling won’t happen. Over his dead body. You won’t manage to even bring it up, you get the first sylable out of your mouth and he’s already done listening. He won’t turn down apple cider though. If he does, assume that something is very wrong or that he’s been replaced.

He’s not bad at skating at all! He’s gone a few times when he was younger but it was never really his thing. He’ll stick by you pretty happily, especially if you can have cider on the ice. In that case it’s easily the best thing to do, going to skate, holding hands, and drinking cider. He will be laughing at the kids that fall flat on their faces though.

He’s the worst at gifts, because he’ll mess with the wrapping and you won’t even notice. He gets subtle with it, he’ll slice through the tape, so unless you get patterned tape that you keep hidden expect him to break into all of his gifts. He’s wicked good at wrapping too, so if he messes one up, which isn’t likely, he’ll just re-wrap it and you won’t know until he opens them in front of you and has like no reaction. He’s okay at getting you gifts, if you can tell him what you want he’ll get it for you as long as it’s within his price range, otherwise he might struggle a bit.

He’s bad with stocking suffers too, so unless you rig up his stocking he’ll absolutely get in there and see what he has. He really likes sweets and practical stuff, so mess with him by just filling his stocking with balls of old wrapping paper and he’ll realise that you’re onto him. Your stocking from his is just full of sweets. He expects you to share.

Advent calendars aren’t even safe. He’ll go along with them a day late so he has extra chocolate for Christmas day itself. No he’s not sharing, it’s not his fault that you don’t know the trick. He absolutely learned it from Kureha by the way. They both do this and it’s infuriating.

Kureha:

He’d prefer not to celebrate if he can avoid it, it’s just more cleaning in the long run, though he can’t deny that it is fun to get gifts, he’d rather not deal with the predatory donation seeking and all of the caroling. It annoys him to no end. He works in a hospital, you think he wants to hear any mention of a holiday where people are infamously nasty and usually also drunk? He can tell you horror stories that will permanently ruin the holidays (and some liquors) for you.

You mention getting a real Christmas tree and he shuts you down immediately. He’s not dealing with the mess of the needles and sap. He’s not doing it. He’ll get you as realistic of a fake tree as he can if you really beg, but that’s it. He will at least decorate and have drinks and snacks with you, but don’t expect him to do much else.

He can skate pretty well, he’s fairly graceful out on the ice, but he’ll probably get bored. That’s when you remind him that it’s either skating or going to work, and he’ll shut up real quick. Don’t expect him to jump in and help anyone if they fall. Unless there’s blood, and a lot of it, he’s not saying anything about him being a doctor, and if you don’t want the cold shoulder for a solid three days, you better not say anything either.

Gifts are his favourite part of Christmas! At least, getting them is. He’s kinda bad at giving gifts, but getting gifts is no problem. He’ll try for you, of course. It’s honestly better to just give him a list of things you want and he’ll look into it for you. He’s surprisingly easy to buy for though, he’s not super picky about gifts like one might think, he just likes getting gifts. It means that he was on your mind, and he loves being on your mind. He can wrap gifts pretty well, he’s good with his hands. Has to be, considering he’s a surgeon.

He’s really good about stocking stuffers. He puts a new item in yours every day until Chrismas eve, saving the biggest gift for the last day. It’s a lot of surprisingly sweet gifts and healthy little snacks he thinks you’ll enjoy. He enjoys some healthy snacks and more practical things, but get him a knick-knack and you’ll find it on his desk the next time you pop into his office, or hanging on his wall. Get him something for his nametag and he’ll use it.

He’s the same as Kosho when it comes to his advent calendar, but if he catches you copying him he’ll outright just steal your chocolate unless it’s milk chocolate. He doesn’t mind it as an occasional treat, but he much prefers dark chocolate. If you catch him he’s not even sorry, it’s your fault for trusting him around his favourite sweet treat.

Retsu:

He didn’t really do Christmas when he was younger, it wasn’t super popular at the temple, but now that he’s grown he’s fully embraced that he’s a Christmas adult, and he’s not sorry about it. He’ll decorate nice and subtle, because while he adores Christmas now, he doesn’t really care for an over abundance of decorations, he thinks it’s a bit ignorant to have too many, and too much of one colour gives him a headache.

He’s down to do almost every Christmas activity, but ask him to bake with you and he lights up. The kitchen is where he thrives, and if you give him the recipies and the ingredients, he’ll provide you with some really good food that you can enjoy. He’ll make a lot too, like, too much for just the two of you, so everyone in his appartment building gets a small basket, and he brings whatever is leftover to the underground arena for the other fighters to enjoy before or after their fights. Apple cider is a fast win for him, he adores it, especially if it’s fresh and warm.

He’s fairly graceful on the ice when he still has both legs, but he needs a bit more stability after he loses one. Either way, he’s sticking by your side, holding your hand and overall just having a really nice time doing some relaxed laps around the ring. Unfortunately for you though, you’ll get very warm because he insists that you bundle up.

He’s an angel about gifts. You could wrap his gifts right in front of him and he’ll just keep his eyes on whatever he’s doing, be it also wrapping yours (in which case he keeps the couch between the two of you) or cooking. Hell, he might even just be training a little. Whatever he’s doing, his attention is on that and not what you have in your hands. He likes to gift you things he knows that you’ll use, so expect some clothes and all that fun stuff. But sometimes he just gets you something because he thinks it’s nice and that you’d think it was cool.

Stocking stuffers are his one weakness, he can’t help but want to peek at what’s inside, though he’ll restrain himself. He doesn’t want to ruin the surprise, and he knows you’d be sad if he did peek. He likes practical things, but he won’t turn down snacks. As for what he gets you, it depends on the kind of year you’ve had. He’s very intuitive with his stocking stuffers.

Advent calendars with chocolate are nice, and he really likes the dark chocolate ones, but he won’t touch them until Christmas eve so he can use the chocolates to make something for the two of you to share. He doesnt’ mind, it means that he can see you smiling.

Doppo:

He’s such a stereotypical dad about Christmas it’s insane. He wasn’t that bad before he and Natsue adopted Katsumi, but he is terrible now. Constant puns and jokes, it doesn’t stop. He’s the kinda guy to wear the ugliest Christmas sweater you’ve ever seen and be proud of it. He and Natsue have Katsumi over for supper every year since he moved out, and he usually stays until the day after Christmas, then he hauls all his gifts home and doesn’t come by until new years, when they all have another big family dinner.

He’ll indulge in almost every Christmas activity you can think of. You wanna go sledding? He’ll go with you and drag Katsumi along. You wanna get some Hot Chocolate and sit by a fire? He’s down for that too. He’s happy to go along with whatever you and Natsue want to do. It’s the holidays and he’s not stingy about his time.

He, unlike Katsumi, isn’t the best at skating. He can do it, but he can really only skate slowly and stop, he’s not going to be racing you around the arena unless you piss him off enough, in which case, yeah, he’ll go after you, and poor Natsue will be stuck dealing with the two of you being way too boisterous. (She loves it)

He’s fine with gifts. He has patience, he knows good things are worth waiting for That being said, any big gifts are going to have his attention immediately and he’s going to pester you about said big gifts until he can open it. He’s very thoughtful with his gifts to you and Natsue, he wants the two loves of his life to be happy with what he gives them, and normally, you two will be very happy.

Stocking stuffers are always right for pranking. Prank him and he’ll love it, but prank each-other and it’s a glorious night where you both end up laughing so hard your ribs hurt. DO NOT open your stocking from Doppo in front of Katsumi, that’s a fast way to traumatise the poor man. He’ll get you something, whether it’s good, bad, or just downright hilarious is up to chance at that point honestly.

Get him a puzzle or model advent calendar, one of the big ones, he’ll be busy with it for hours once he gets all of the pieces. He’s a secret lover of puzzles and model kits. Anything he has to put together by hand is an automatic win. You’ll walk into the livingroom to do something and he’ll be there late at night, a light on, glasses equipped, slowly working on that puzzle or model kit. Getting him a Warhammer or Gundam kit would sweep him off his feet.

Natsue:

She likes Christmas a lot, she ropes you and Doppo into helping her Decorate about a week into December and you won’t regret it, because it winds up looking really good and being a really pleasant experience with two of your favourite people out there.

She’s down for literally any Christmas activity, be it just the two of you, all three of you, or just her and Doppo. At least once before Christmas though, she’d love to break out the hot chocolate platter and watch some movies. Bonus points if Katsumi is there, because the she has the three most important people in her life all together, getting along and having a good time.

She’s not bad at skating, but much like Doppo, she really only goes one speed. If you rile Doppo up he’ll chase after you, and usually she’ll wind up being used as a human sheild between you and her husband, and it won’t really work, as a heads up. She’ll let him get you with no hesitation.

She’s great at gift wrapping, if you need help you ask her and she’ll show you as many times as you need until you get it down. She doesn’t want a lot of gifts, never does, but somehow she winds up having the most. It’s just easy to see something and go “Yeah, Natsue would really like that!” She gives you some of the most heart melting gifts too, she’s good at doing that. Let her get a gift for each of the usual arena fighters and I guarantee you even Hanayama will start tearing up with how thoughtful her gifts are.

Stockings from Natsue are always safe, in sharp contrast to Doppo. She gets you an even mix between snacks, knick-knacks and practical stuff. You get at least one piece of jewlery from her in your stocking by the way.

Natsue likes advent calendars, she thinks they’re neat. Get her any kind and she’s perfectly happy, but if she expresses an interest in starting a new hobby around Christmas, you can and absolutely should look into getting an advent calender with supplies for said hobby in it, she’d melt.

Motobe:

He’s quiet in his enjoyment of the holidays in general, but he won’t lie, Christmas isn’t his absolute favourite. He’ll put up a few decorations (or more realistically, he’ll convince someone from his dojo to do that for him), but he doesn’t really do much about Christmas.

He’ll indulge in more laid-back Christmas activities, but anything more energetic is usually a polite no from him. He doesn’t mind, but depending on the weather and what it is, he might have to tell you no and suggest an alternative instead.

Skating is a really relaxed affair with him. Unlike Doppo, he maintains his one speed with you, and it doesn’t matter if you try and rile him up, he’s pretty patient. He mostly just wants to skate around and hold your hand, enjoy the weather and each-other’s company.

He’s good about gifts. Hell, he’ll even help you wrap his stuff if you let him. At the very least, he’ll help you put stuff away under the tree. He doesn’t really mind secrets, and he’s not really one for surprises, but he understands if you want to surprise him with whatever you got him. His gifts to you are usually pretty fun I won’t lie. Man will full on get you a good knife for Christmas every year that you’re together. Lessons on how to use that knife come without charge.

He will outright tell you to be careful with his stocking to you. He’ll put god knows what in there, and honestly, the thought is really sweet, but opening a stocking to several sharp and dangerous objects is very jarring. Especially considering that beneath all the weapons will be really sweet gifts and candies. He outright tells you he prefers practical things in his stocking, and while he won’t refuse a gift, if he doesn’t think it’s useful it’ll just sorta sit in this little cubby he has in his room.

Advent calendars are fun, he’ll accept any one you can get him, but dark chocolate and model kids are popular with him, especially if it’s a proper model kit of old battleships and fighter planes. Your advent calendar from him, shockingly enough, usually is a perfume calendar (unless you’re allergic).

Shibukawa:

Mischeivious old man will take every opportunity to rub the fact that it’s getting to be Christmas in the face of every young fighter he meets. They start charging him? “Well, I know who’s going to be on the naughty list!” It gives them just enough pause that his crazy old man act completely drops and he whoops them so hard they legitimately need to take a break.

He’s good to do almost any Christmas activity as long as it’s not too cold out, his old bones can’t really take the cold as well as they used to. Either way, toss a heavy coat at him and he’ll stop his grumbling and drop the act. He expects you to dress up as much as he does though, so don’t think you can get away with wearing a coat less thick than his.

He’ll skate, sure! He’s not bad at it either, he’s pretty graceful.Given the chance he’ll zip around the ring once or twice before he comes up to you expecting you to hold his hand and hang around him for a surprisingly wholesome moment with him, free from his pranking and mischief. That being said, if a kid eats it in fornt of him, he’s going to laugh.

He’ll peek at his gifts out of sheer spite if you ask him to behave. And he’ll do it blatantly too. Don’t worry, he’ll tear the wrapping off while the gift is still in a bag or something so he doesn’t actually know what it is. His gifts are fun, admittedly. They’re real good too. The first one he hands you will always have you snorting so hard you give yourself a headache. He doesn’t expect you to keep that one, he’s just happy he can catch you off-guard.

Stocking stuffers are sacred to him. He gets you the sweetest most tear-jerking gift in that stocking and it’ll be the very last ting you find because he deliberately stuffs it way into the toe. It’s enough to make you cry, and for once, he’ll be nice and not tease you about it right away. He’ll wait a week, at least. He’ll take anything you give him, but fun little tools of mischeif are always appreciated. He’s got a collection that started from when he was young, it’s honestly impressive.

His favourite advent calendars are, in fact, candy ones, if only so he can be that kind old grandpa that hands kids a candy, only for it to be the most sour thing in existence. He’ll troll the neighbourhood kids so hard, but don’t worry, it’s a mutual prank war.

Tokugawa:

He loves Christmas, his entire home gets decorated for Christmas, and he even tries to gussy the arena up a little bit. Once Jack came around, he convinced him and Baki to help him hang an upside-down tree from the ceiling near the lights, it was a great source of confusion for quite some time.

He’ll do his best to convince the fighters to come participate in Christmas activities with him, and if you’re one of the fighters then you’re no exception. If he can’t bring them to Christmas though, he’ll bring Christmas to them in the form of Christmas drinks being served to them before and after fights. He often bonds with the other hot chocolate enjoyers about the richer flavoured ones.

He absolutely loves going skating, but including the fighters in it is a bit messy. Between the younger fighters getting a bit chaotic and the others that may be present, he usually takes shelter with the older fighters or Hanayama, who tends to stay fairly calm. Once Jack gets the initial “I need to go” out of his system though, he’s happy to hitch a ride. He hasn’t ever gone that fast over ice and it’s absolutely thrilling to him, though he doesn’t get to enjoy that long before Baki insists on racing his big brother and he’s relegated back to skating on his own two feet.

Gifts are fun with Tokugawa. He makes it clear that has favourite fighters, and they often get gifts from him, though what he doesn’t ever expect is another gift in return. Sometimes it’s a stunning match dedicated to him, and other times it’s an actual gift. Upon learning that he was a hot chocolate lover, Jack got some of the good stuff from Canada, and Doppo got him a brand new pipe.

Stocking stuffers from Tokugawa are fun, because he leaves one on each changing room door. They’re refilled for each contestant that fights, so everyone gets at least one. It’s not a lot, but it’s something that they’ll all use and appreciate. Most of the time it’s a first aid kit, just to be on the safe side, but sometimes it’s a little something to show his appreciation.

Tokugawa has a lot of time on his hands when he’s not planning fights or tournaments, he pays people to do the simpler stuff, so he enjoys picking up new hobbies. Puzzle advents are popular with him, especially if you can get custom puzzles. Getting the main fighters to agree to take a picture for Tokugawa to be turned into a puzzle isn’t the easiest thing, but they’ll all eventually cave in and agree to it.

[sourw0lfs]

frosting the snowman

written for @thefreakandthehair spicy six winter challenge prompt: decorating cookies | also on ao3

betas: @imfinereallyy & @jkrockin

2.1k words | teen and up | steddie | cw: implied sex at least twice

How hard could it be?

How hard could it be?

Glancing between the recipe and the mess around him, Eddie decides that either the answer is ‘very’, or he is, in fact, a fool. There’s flour strewn across the counter. Or maybe it’s sugar? He isn’t exactly sure because it all looks the same. Either way, he’s got quite a mess on his hands, and… probably ten minutes before Steve gets back. Fuck.

Still in the process of developing a battle plan to tackle the mess, Eddie lets out a shriek at the sound of the front door opening. Steve, one foot still outside and letting snowflakes in, freezes and stares at him like he’s grown a second head. “Do I want to know what kind of Munson Tornado hit the kitchen this time?”

Eddie sulks just a little, though he’ll deny it later. “I was trying to surprise you,” he mutters petulantly. 

Steve chuckles. “Well, I’m certainly surprised, so mission accomplished,” he says as he finishes stepping inside, letting the door fall shut behind him. He toes off his boots, leaving them by the door with the rest of the shoe pile, before heading to the kitchen to inspect the damages. 

Still pouting, Eddie watches him. “I wanted to make cookies,” he explains as Steve swipes a bit of flour off the counter with his fingertip. “Except that I forgot I don’t actually know how to do that.”

“Want me to help you?” Steve asks as he leans in to press a kiss to Eddie’s cheek. It’s enough to wipe the pout right away. 

“Is it still surprising you with cookies if you help me make them?” Eddie asks, raising a doubtful eyebrow.

Taking a moment to think it over, Steve shrugs. “It’s a surprise that we have all the ingredients,” he offers. 

It’s good enough for Eddie, who’s back to smiling as they work in tandem to clean up his mess and start over again. There’s something magical about watching Steve bake, a grace that Eddie is sure he’ll never be able to mimic, no matter how hard he tries. The mess is minimal this time, with just the smallest puffs of flour flying free of the mixer bowl as it stirs rather than a full-on tornado. 

Once everything is mixed together and, like, actually a dough this time, Eddie is ready to immediately cut into it with the festive cookie cutters he’d gotten specifically for today. Still, Steve stops him, earning another pout. “It has to chill first,” Steve explains. “Or they’re not as good.”

Eddie thinks that’s a lie, but he doesn’t argue with Steve. After all, it’s Steve’s surprise, so Eddie thinks he should do as he’s told. So he helps wrap the dough in plastic wrap and puts it in the fridge. “So, we’ve got an hour, right?” he asks with a smirk. “What should we do to pass that time?”

“I’m sure we can think of something,” Steve replies with a smirk of his own, already reaching out for Eddie’s hand to pull him toward their bedroom. 

In the end, the dough sits in the fridge for over  an hour, but no one’s really complaining about it. The two of them just work together to get it rolled out, even though Eddie somehow gets the entire thing stuck on the rolling pin almost immediately because he doesn’t flour anything. Steve chastises him about it fondly. 

“Do you want… is that supposed to be a snowman?” Steve asks as he squints at the cookie cutter he just picked up. “That doesn’t look like a snowman.”

Eddie snorts but takes it anyway. “Are you body shaming the cookie cutter, Stevie? That’s kind of rude.”

“I’m not body shaming the cookie cutter. I’m just saying that it looks more like a dick than a snowman,” Steve explains with a roll of his eyes as he snatches the cookie cutter back from Eddie, noticing the mischief sure to be in Eddie’s eye “And now I don’t trust you with it. You can have the tree.”

Laughing, Eddie doesn’t argue. Instead, he focuses on cutting out as many trees from the circle of dough as he can. It’s not perfect, and he definitely messes up more than a few while moving them to the baking sheet, but most of them are kind of tree-shaped still and Steve is looking at him like he hung the moon so it’s gotta be fine. 

With the trees and the questionably-shaped snowmen cut out and in the oven, the two of them take a moment to clean up the newest mess, spreading it a little further in an impromptu flour fight for a moment before actually cleaning anything. Eventually the ding of a timer, one Eddie didn’t even realize Steve had set, chimes through the kitchen. 

“Well,” Eddie comments as he leans on the counter and watches Steve’s ass as he pulls the cookies out. “It smells like cookies, so I’m assuming that means they’re not a disaster this time?” 

Steve shrugs. “We’ll know for sure in like twenty minutes when they’re cool enough to taste.” 

“And then we decorate them, right?” 

Eddie doesn’t miss Steve’s grimace. “Yeah, Eds. We’ll decorate them once they’re cool.” 

If Eddie does a fist pump, that’s between him and Steve and the cookies only. He has to be good at that part. He paints stuff all the time. It’ll be his second chance to impress Steve with his cookie-making prowess, considering actually making the cookies hadn’t gone quite to plan. 

Waiting for the cookies to cool off enough to actually put the icing on them, though, feels like it’s taking forever. It's so long that Eddie’s taken up a seat on the couch, feet against the back and head on the floor, singing an impromptu song about being impatient. Steve, for what it’s worth, looks like he’s trying to follow the song, but he’s mostly just checking the cookies every thirty seconds while side-eyeing Eddie super hard. 

“Do you wanna help me mix the icing?” he asks eventually. 

Eddie nearly falls in a heap in his haste to right himself again. “Does that mean they’re cool enough now? Is the long wait finally over?”

Snorting, Steve nods. “Get in here and pick your colors.”

Bounding into the kitchen, Eddie takes a second to appreciate the fact that at some point during his serenade to impatience, Steve had taken the time to lay out bowls and all of the food coloring in the house. “You’re amazing,” he sing-songs as he hovers into Steve’s space to plant a kiss on his cheek. “What would I do without you?”

This time, Steve chuckles. “Lose your head, burn down the kitchen, spiral into a deep, deep boredom. Take your pick.”

Which— rude, but honestly kind of fair. “All of the above, and I love you for making sure those things don’t happen,” Eddie agrees as he starts picking through the colors. On the other side of the kitchen, he hears the mixer running again. A glance over his shoulder reveals a puff of powdered sugar, and maybe it’s best he’s not helping with that part if even Steve can’t keep the mess contained. 

But sooner than later, Steve is scooping the icing (“That looks like jizz, Stevie, what the fuck?”) into the bowls he’s put out, and Eddie is put to the task of mixing colors. He probably takes it more seriously than he needs to, but eventually, they have an array of Christmas-y colors to work with. He’s only just pulled open the drawer that Steve keeps his fancy piping bags in when a paintbrush is shoved in his face instead. “Nuh-uh,” Steve tells him with a cheeky grin. “I don’t trust you with those.”

Sighing dramatically, Eddie takes the paintbrush, but he’s grinning the whole time anyway. “That’s fine, I don’t trust me with them either.” 

If anything, the paintbrush feels the most natural, even if all the videos he’d watched about how to make the cookies used piping bags for decorating. He would just have to be extra good at this part to impress Steve with his artistic skills. But finally, finally, they migrate to the kitchen table and get the cookies split between the two of them. Deciding to be at least a little normal to start out, Eddie dips the brush into the bowl of green and drops the glob right in the middle of his tree cookie. 

Tongue between his teeth, Eddie lets himself laser focus on getting the color on as evenly as possible, not even looking up to see what Steve is doing until the whole tree is bright green. When he does look up, Eddie frowns. “That’s cheating!” he accuses as Steve works on his own cookie with a piping bag of icing. The very same bags Eddie wasn’t allowed. 

“It’s not cheating,” Steve replies without missing a beat or even looking up. “I know how to use these, and you don’t.”

And, like, yeah, fair, whatever. But that doesn’t mean Eddie can’t pout a little bit. “How am I supposed to impress you with my cookies if you’re like a baker extraordinaire?” he whines slightly.

This time, Steve looks up, and his expression is endearingly soft and fond. “You know you don’t have to do things to impress me, right?” he asks gently. 

Eddie nods. “Doesn’t mean I don’t like doing it anyway, though.”

It was just a thing they did, being proud of each other over new accomplishments. It always made Eddie feel warm and fuzzy inside. Like baking cookies. Something he knows Steve likes that Eddie also wants to be good at so they can do it together and have a good time. Just like… they are now. Maybe he’s a little dumb.

“Consider me impressed, then,” Steve tells him with a smile as he goes back to carefully piping lines on his snowman cookie. “And even more if you manage to make all of them look normal and not like they’re out of some fantasy novel.”

Eddie snorts, but it’s enough to get him focusing on his tree again. “Fantasy trees would be so much fun, though,” he points out as he diligently covers them all in green icing anyway. Doesn’t stop him from trying to paint on fantasy-esque ornaments anyway.

The cookies are about halfway done when Eddie finally decides he’s actually bored of it and flicks his paintbrush in Steve’s direction. A drop of bright blue lands in his carefully leveled out white icing, and he looks up with a raised eyebrow. 

“Wanna go fuck again and finish these later?” Eddie asks hopefully. “Let them dry or whatever for a bit.”

“Finish the base layers on all of them, and we can,” Steve bargains. And it’s not a no, so Eddie decides he’ll take it. 

Finishing up the cookies feels like a chore now that he’s decided it’s boring, though, so maybe his paint strokes are a little sloppier than before. It’s probably fine. No one is going to see them but him and Steve anyway, right?

“Did you have a plan for all of these cookies?” Steve asks as he finishes up the last of the snowmen. “Or did you just think that we’d be the ones eating all…” he does a quick count, “forty-seven of them.”

Which, when Steve says it like that, maybe assuming no one else would see them was a dumb move. Even if Eddie is good with eating the majority of them, that’s a lot of cookies for just two people. “We can give the nicer ones away to our friends, I guess? But only the nicer ones.” 

Steve chuckles as he grabs one of the remaining trees to help Eddie finish up. “So only the ones I do, then?” he asks as his eyes flick between the two sets. And yeah, Eddie can give him that one. Even though he’s good at painting, icing and actual paint are, in fact, very different. 

“Yes,” Eddie admits softly but they’re both grinning so it’s probably fine. “That’s the last one, so can we go fuck now? I’d prefer my brain to be mush from that than from this.” 

“Yeah,” Steve laughs brightly as he stands from the table and offers a hand out to Eddie. “Yeah, we can go do that. Decided this isn’t the hobby for you?”

“No, no, definitely not. It’s mind-numbing,” Eddie replies as he takes the hand happily, using the leverage to pull Steve into a kiss where he also swoops a sneaky streak of royal icing down his cheek. 

“Eddie!”

Cackling, Eddie lets go of Steve and scurries down the hallway to their bedroom for the second time that afternoon. If some of the icing follows them, well, it’s all fun and games, and they can do laundry. 

It wouldn’t be the first weird stain their bedding has gotten on it, anyway. 

[yenqa]

how you would spend a snow day with enhypen!

pairing : enha x reader :)

warnings : kissing, mentions of being sick, destroying things, mentions of eating/food

wc : 0.7k again 😭😭

a/n : another one bc my last one did well :)

heeseung - as soon as he sees the snow he fr RUNS out there with you ofc. but he’s so excited and then you’re like “babe we have to put on warmer clothes we’re going to get sick!” and as much as he does want to be sick so he could be pampered by you, he decides a snow day is much more fun. together you build a snowman and he pushes you down a hill with a sled :)). and you like insists on pushing him down but he’s like no bc he doesn’t want you to do the work for him :( and when you get inside he makes ramen and hot chocolate 😭😭 </3

jay - he wakes you up bc he’s made soup and hot chocolate to contrast the cold day :( and when you’re about to go outside to play in the snow he literally puts every single jacket on you known to mankind 😭😭 and you’re like “jay that’s too many jackets! i’m sweating right now!! 😠😠” and he’s like “hun i can’t have you being sick :(“ but in the end, he makes you wear three layers plus snow pants and a hat that covers your ears :). together you make snow angels and (try to) build a snowman ☹️

jake - actually drags you out of bed to play in the snow. and like jake i feel like is the kind of guy to make tiktoks of you two dancing in the snow if your relationship was out he would post it on the enhypen acc but if it wasn’t he probably has a private account he would post it on. but you guys literally spend like an hour making that video because one of you two keeps messing up. then when you get back inside you watch corny christmas movies together and cuddle :)

sunghoon - he’ll take you to a frozen lake and he’s so happy bc he bought skates for the both of you and he like teaches you how to skate properly :((. hes like “y/n-ah you’re so bad at this” and you’re like “i know 😒😒”. and eventually you give up so you both make snow angels and he turns it into competition obvi “y/n my snow angel is way better then yours!” “no sunghoon yours has your boot prints in the legs mine don’t so mine is better 😒😒” and you keep arguing and you know he’ll never give up so you give up and gives you his lil gummy smile ☹️☹️ guys im crying

sunoo - he would get a driver to drive you guys to the city so you can see all like the tree’s with the lights and snow on them 😣😣 and he like writes on the sidewalk “y/n <3 sunoo!” but he know’s it won’t be there for long so he takes a picture of it :((. when you’re admiring the scene he secretly takes a photo of you bc you’re so cute and he wants to remember this moment forever :(. and he asks a random person walking on the street to take a photo of you two and you both make it your wallpapers 😖😖

jungwon - would make hot chocolate for you guys and add like whipped cream and peppermint bits to make it all fancy and things :(( and once you finish it you has to make sure you’re warm by putting you in his jackets 😏😏 and when you’re outside you have a little walk stopping sometimes to throw snowballs at eachother :(. then when you get back inside you two would make gingerbread houses and eat them (maybe idk i find them gross)

niki - he literally doesn’t care about getting sick so he puts on a jacket but you its different he puts you in his warmest jacket! and a sweater underneath obvi. and the whole time you’re throwing snowballs at eachother and running away from eachother and you make a life sized snowman which takes sooo long and when you make the head he has to put it on and he teases you for it obvi “y/n aish you’re so short, here i’ll put it on for you like the best boyfriend i am.” and you’re like whatever 😒 and when you add all the decorations to the snowman he gets a tripod and takes a picture of you two :( then he try’s to knock down the snowman by running into it which fails terribly.

tysm for reading! i appreciate likes, comments, and reposts! have a great day!

yenqa © please do not copy, steal or translate.

[hmshermitcraft]

Etho isn’t… used to spending the holidays with people. Sure, the Hermits always did something together but this felt different. He was going to spend the holidays with Joel, and by proxy, with Lizzie. Ren and Cleo were both far more chill about it than Etho felt, Ren chattering away while Cleo hummed or gave the occasional appropriate response to whatever he was saying. Etho fidgeted with his seatbelt, watching trees and cars pass.

Etho was gently shaken awake when they arrived, Cleo giving him a good natured smile before prodding him to get his bags. The house, Joel and Lizzie’s, was nice. Homey looking.

Joel greeted them in an apron holding a tray of what looked like rolls, apologizing for leaving them out in the cold while waving them inside.

“Sorry about that, had to get the rolls out of the oven,” He held up the tray and Etho smiled, nodding. They all let Joel out the tray down on the kitchen island, and Etho spotted Lizzie chewing on her lip and decorating cookies. He set his bag down, stepping closer.

“Want any help?” He offered, tilting his head a little. Lizzie jumped, clearly not expecting him.

“Oh! Etho!” She chirped, bright blue eyes wide. Etho waved, though he really didn’t have to.

“I think the others are arguing about the best roll toppings so…” He motioned over his shoulder to where Joel, Cleo, and Ren had managed to get themselves into a heated discussion about whether butter, jam, or peanut butter was the best thing to put on a roll. Personally Etho usually ate them plain but he had a feeling he’d be relegated to sleeping on the couch if he said that.

Lizzie glanced over his shoulder, rolling her eyes fondly before gesturing to the undecorated cookies and bowls of colored frosting. “Go ahead, I’d appreciate the help,” She smiled, handing him a knife. They were quiet for a while, listening to the sounds of the other three talking in the connected living room before Lizzie spoke up again. “You know…” She began conspiratorially, glancing at Etho where he was attempting to make a snowman cookie look… like a snowman. “I usually eat them without anything on.” She whispered it like it was a secret, and Etho grinned beneath his mask.

“Me too,” He replied, bumping his hip against hers. “Think we should tell them?”

Lizzie laughed, turning her head to look at him fully. “I think we’d start an even worse argument,” She didn’t sound like she was disagreeing, so Etho leaned in closer, tugging his mask down to let her see his mischievous smirk.

“Exactly.”

(they then proceed to cause absolute chaos together the entire time they’re there and Joel and Cleo agree that they need a chaperone, Ren likes being dramatic and has arguments for fun so he doesn’t mind.

-💕anon)

Etho doesn't mind the holidays with the hermits, but there's something to love about these smaller, intimidate celebrations. Especially with this lot.

The iced cookies vary dramatically in quality, but they're loved all the same. They mix different holiday staples of their culture into dinner and make sure the rolls come plain to prevent further disagreements.

And in the brief breaks from the chaos, they all lounge around the living room, feeling very full and content.

[tac-bat]

Why I love How Sky Portrays Death

Before I start, I go into detail about death and loss, and description of the afterlife and dying and examples of it in sky and a little mention of religion irl.

I wrote this while sleep deprived if this makes no sense, i'm not sorry

Take this all with a grain of salt as this is purely my observation and interpretation

To many, death is scary, unpredictable, and inevitable. Death is frightening because it represents the end of life, the loss and grief it brings, and the uncertainty of where we will go. Every religion has its own version of the afterlife, from our soul moving to a new body, places ranging from rewarding good and punishing evil, to simply being nothing. Death is scary because we'll never truly know what lies beyond or what awaits. It's complicated ,heavy, and it's something that many have delved deeper into too. I only bring this up because the sky not only answers, but embraces death. How? Let's take a look.

Orbit

Sky's interpretation of the afterlife is perfect. "All are given breath by starlight," as stated in the intro mural, everyone ends up back in the stars someday, becoming spirits that travel to this small part of the galaxy. They even seem to become one with the light and stars if they so please. And it's relaxing; it's soothing.

They know it exists.

Spirit's have shown from the beginning of the game that they can descend and ascend whenever they please. See all TS's, Grandma, and event spirits like Yeti, who appear briefly during Feast to cast a snowman spell before ascending. According to this logic, orbit is widely known because ancestors were bound to descend to explain what happens. And spirits aren't gone from their loved ones' lives; they're still present. They're not gone and can visit anytime they like; it's not hard for me to imagine them visiting others during holidays and events.

Gravestone's

In every social space, there are gravestones for every base-game ancestor. What's interesting is how they're laid out; unlike regular graveyards, which are organized in a line, none of the graves are uniform, some being lengths apart. This is very clear in Prarie, with one near the closet and another nestled in a cave; even irl graveyards that are less uniform don't tend to put burials that far away, but Sky does. It almost seems like an ancestor could've possibly chosen the placement themselves. You also have the special burial site at the 8-player door, a working elevator and all, the graves have their own little buildings and stones draped in gold, implying a ceremony as we know. Not only that, but Valley's way of honouring death is extremely interesting.

Let's talk about Samekh's temple

Valley really demonstrates how death is viewed—not in a morbid way but in an honourable way. The hallways of both races are lined with gravestones, with the exception of some open spaces. When compared to decorations such as the eight-player door, the gravestones themselves are painted in gold. They're unlike any graves seen so far, and you can argue that these were reserved for champions, and if so, I feel like the halls would be packed considering this is the valley of triumph, but no, there are still a few open spaces. Which makes me adore how there are gravestones in the twin's temple.

Their temple is the only one that not only has gravestones inside, but is lined with them! And considering their position and how we know they play a big role in the sky as leaders, to the point where they have a temple, it makes the fact they share it as an ancestor's final resting place so heartwarming to me. They were under no obligation to place gravestones; they could have dragged the banners down, added more statues, or even designed something similar to Daleth's temple like the murals we see, but they didn't. They allowed the room with their shrine to be a graveyard, they value their people's lives; they regard it as an honour, and whether those are the graves of champions or ordinary people, they value them all the same.

And it still hurts.

Even in the sky, where the question of death is answered, it still hurts.

It hurts when Mindful and a Tearful miner witness the deaths of their friends, Tearful having to bury their own. It hurts when Teabrewer returns with herbs for their loved one who died while they were away, so much so that they become anxious when they leave anyone alone, as seen in their info card. It's horrifying to know how many ancestors died in the war with no way to escape, faced with the fear of death every day.

Death is still scary in Sky, and I love it for that. Even when you know where you'll go, you still value your life; you don't want to die, and you don't want to go. But when that time comes, when you choose to be one with the universe, or roam your home with your star-kissed body, you'll never be alone. And that's why I adore the way death is depicted:

Because it's bittersweet.