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Description

Once again, it was that time of the year. Colorful assortments of lights decorated the outside of homes and businesses. Children chased each other, screaming and launching snowballs through the air. The streets were overcrowded with shoppers looking for the perfect last-minute gifts at the best prices possible. Cheerful holiday-themed music played throughout almost every store.

Shivering slightly, you pulled your scarf closer to your face and slipped your gloves back on before gathering several store bags filled with newly purchased items and stepping out onto the snow-covered sidewalk. Normally, you weren't a huge fan of celebrating the holidays. You always thought the idea of gift-giving and being festive was highly overrated.

But this year was different. This year, you would be celebrating Christmas for the very first time with the one person in your life who meant the most to you.

After making one final stop to pick up a 'gift' you had ordered several days earlier from a local café, you hurried home so you could begin decorating the home you shared with a certain tattoo-covered ghoul.

~

"I'm home." You called as you stepped inside the warm apartment, kicking your shoes off by the door.

"Welcome back. I was beginning to think you had gotten lost." A familiarly smooth voice answered.

"Yeah, sorry it took so long. Obviously everyone else had the same idea to wait until the last minute to go shopping." You sighed as Uta walked into the room.

"Need help?" He asked, gesturing towards the many store bags you were currently holding.

"Sure, thanks." You answered, but stopped when you looked at the man standing in front of you. "Uta... what are you wearing?" You asked, giggling slightly.

"Do you like it? I found them in one of those boxes." He replied, pointing at four large boxes labeled 'Christmas Stuff'. Seeing Uta wearing a Santa hat and a red Reindeer nose certainly wasn't something you were prepared for, which made it that much more difficult to control yourself from snickering.

"Yes, you look lovely as usual." You said with a smile as you handed all the bags over except for two. Noticing this almost immediately, your best friend and lover removed the Reindeer nose from his face and leaned in close to you.

"Hm? What are you hiding from me, [Name]?" Uta asked as he began sniffing you. In response, you reached up and gently pinched his nose, ceasing his sniffing actions.

"Your presents, so please don't do that." You stated, moving the bags further away from Uta in a protective manner. Almost as a form of retaliation, Uta placed his tattooed hand on the top of your head and ruffled your hair. This caused you to pull away from him, releasing his nose in the process. "Uta!" You whined as you tried your best to fix your now messy hair. A small smile appeared on Uta's normally stoic face.

"I only found four boxes with decorations." He changed the subject as he carried the store bags into the living room, setting them on the coffee table. You nodded.

"I thought there were only four, so that's why I bought more ornaments while I was out." You replied as you slipped off your scarf, gloves, and jacket. You then took the two bags that contained Uta's presents and hid them in your bedroom closet, locking the door as an extra precaution and tucking the key safely in your pocket.

As you re-entered the living room, you saw that Uta had already sorted through most of the items you had bought.

"Since when do you like these?" He asked, holding up a package of assorted candy canes.

"I don't. But I thought they'd look nice on the Christmas tree." You replied as you began gathering several rolls of wrapping paper in your arms.

"...We're going to hang candy on our Christmas tree?" Uta asked skeptically, tilting his head to the side.

"Yup. A lot of people hang different edible items on Christmas trees, such as candy canes, popcorn... stuff like that." You explained with a smile.

As you stood back slightly and scanned over the newly purchased decorations and supplies that were now displayed on the coffee table, you paused. "Uta, did you see any Scotch tape?"

When he shook his head, you sighed. "Dammit... I knew I was forgetting something." You mumbled as you reached for your coat and slipped it back on.

"Do you want me to go buy some tape?" Uta offered.

"No, that's okay. It's my fault for forgetting it in the first place." You replied before walking towards the front door. "I'll be right back. But while I'm gone, you can start decorating the tree if you want."

"Okay." Uta agreed simply before you ventured back outside.

~

One roll of tape and an hour later, you were finally back in front of your doorstep. Since it was already Christmas Eve, most of the local stores closed early. This resulted in an hour long search for the only open store in the whole city just so you could purchase a simple roll of Scotch tape.
You were just relieved to finally be home, especially since it began to snow rather heavily again.

"Uta, I'm back." You called as you walked through the front door for the second time that day, removing your shoes and jacket in the process.

As you made your way through the living room, you froze. "What...the Hell...is that?"

"You said people like decorating Christmas trees with edible treats, right?" Uta asked before he added another human eyeball to the dozens that were already hanging on your Christmas tree.

"But that's not.... I didn't.... I thought you were running low on eyeballs?" You asked, trying to come up with the right words to say without hurting your boyfriend. Looking at you with his red and black eyes, Uta smiled at you.

"I think I can last one night without them." He replied. You stood there, staring at him with a confused expression.

After a moment, your eyes widened slightly. "You didn't break into my closet, did you?!" You asked in a panicked voice.

"Of course not." Uta said before coming over to you. He bent forward and sniffed you, enjoying your unique fragrance that overwhelmed his senses. "But I know your scent, [Name]. And you certainly don't smell like a jar of eyeballs."

After registering what he said, you began to pout slightly. "That's so not fair, Uta-chan... I wanted to surprise you with a gift that I thought you'd actually enjoy. But obviously, I couldn't even accomplish that much."

"Your efforts are still appreciated. Normal humans wouldn't be so willing to go out of their way to get a jar of human organs for a ghoul." Uta replied, wrapping his arms around you and resting his chin on the top of your head.

"So now you're saying I'm not normal?" You asked, trying to hide the smile forming on your lips.

"Isn't that obvious?" These words caused you to look up at your boyfriend. "I certainly wouldn't be able to develop feelings for any normal human girl, [Name]. Or for any normal ghoul, for that matter." Uta finished, causing you to bury your face into his chest to hide the blush on your face. "You still haven't noticed the other decorations." Uta spoke after a moment.

As you looked around the living room, you smiled. Everything looked perfect, from the different colors of garland that were strewn around the room, to the stockings that were nailed to the wall, to the Christmas window-clings that hung in the windows. Even the Christmas tree, which was decorated with colorful lights and various ornaments... even the eyeballs decorating the branches somehow looked oddly nice.

"This place looks really beautiful, Uta." You commented in an endearing voice.

"You're still missing one." Uta replied, pointing up above where you two were standing. As you looked up, a small blush returned to your face. Mistletoe hung directly over your heads. Before you could say a word, Uta leaned down and pressed his lips against yours. Despite your blush deepening, you wrapped your arms around Uta's neck and kissed him back.

As the snow fell outside, you were grateful to be sharing your Christmas Eve with the man you cared about and loved the most... even if that meant dealing with his strange fascination for eyeballs.

Description

Once again, it was that time of the year. Colorful assortments of lights decorated the outside of homes and businesses. Children chased each other, screaming and launching snowballs through the air. The streets were overcrowded with shoppers looking for the perfect last-minute gifts at the best prices possible. Cheerful holiday-themed music played throughout almost every store.

Shivering slightly, you pulled your scarf closer to your face and slipped your gloves back on before gathering several store bags filled with newly purchased items and stepping out onto the snow-covered sidewalk. Normally, you weren't a huge fan of celebrating the holidays. You always thought the idea of gift-giving and being festive was highly overrated.

But this year was different. This year, you would be celebrating Christmas for the very first time with the one person in your life who meant the most to you.

After making one final stop to pick up a 'gift' you had ordered several days earlier from a local café, you hurried home so you could begin decorating the home you shared with a certain tattoo-covered ghoul.

~

"I'm home." You called as you stepped inside the warm apartment, kicking your shoes off by the door.

"Welcome back. I was beginning to think you had gotten lost." A familiarly smooth voice answered.

"Yeah, sorry it took so long. Obviously everyone else had the same idea to wait until the last minute to go shopping." You sighed as Uta walked into the room.

"Need help?" He asked, gesturing towards the many store bags you were currently holding.

"Sure, thanks." You answered, but stopped when you looked at the man standing in front of you. "Uta... what are you wearing?" You asked, giggling slightly.

"Do you like it? I found them in one of those boxes." He replied, pointing at four large boxes labeled 'Christmas Stuff'. Seeing Uta wearing a Santa hat and a red Reindeer nose certainly wasn't something you were prepared for, which made it that much more difficult to control yourself from snickering.

"Yes, you look lovely as usual." You said with a smile as you handed all the bags over except for two. Noticing this almost immediately, your best friend and lover removed the Reindeer nose from his face and leaned in close to you.

"Hm? What are you hiding from me, [Name]?" Uta asked as he began sniffing you. In response, you reached up and gently pinched his nose, ceasing his sniffing actions.

"Your presents, so please don't do that." You stated, moving the bags further away from Uta in a protective manner. Almost as a form of retaliation, Uta placed his tattooed hand on the top of your head and ruffled your hair. This caused you to pull away from him, releasing his nose in the process. "Uta!" You whined as you tried your best to fix your now messy hair. A small smile appeared on Uta's normally stoic face.

"I only found four boxes with decorations." He changed the subject as he carried the store bags into the living room, setting them on the coffee table. You nodded.

"I thought there were only four, so that's why I bought more ornaments while I was out." You replied as you slipped off your scarf, gloves, and jacket. You then took the two bags that contained Uta's presents and hid them in your bedroom closet, locking the door as an extra precaution and tucking the key safely in your pocket.

As you re-entered the living room, you saw that Uta had already sorted through most of the items you had bought.

"Since when do you like these?" He asked, holding up a package of assorted candy canes.

"I don't. But I thought they'd look nice on the Christmas tree." You replied as you began gathering several rolls of wrapping paper in your arms.

"...We're going to hang candy on our Christmas tree?" Uta asked skeptically, tilting his head to the side.

"Yup. A lot of people hang different edible items on Christmas trees, such as candy canes, popcorn... stuff like that." You explained with a smile.

As you stood back slightly and scanned over the newly purchased decorations and supplies that were now displayed on the coffee table, you paused. "Uta, did you see any Scotch tape?"

When he shook his head, you sighed. "Dammit... I knew I was forgetting something." You mumbled as you reached for your coat and slipped it back on.

"Do you want me to go buy some tape?" Uta offered.

"No, that's okay. It's my fault for forgetting it in the first place." You replied before walking towards the front door. "I'll be right back. But while I'm gone, you can start decorating the tree if you want."

"Okay." Uta agreed simply before you ventured back outside.

~

One roll of tape and an hour later, you were finally back in front of your doorstep. Since it was already Christmas Eve, most of the local stores closed early. This resulted in an hour long search for the only open store in the whole city just so you could purchase a simple roll of Scotch tape.
You were just relieved to finally be home, especially since it began to snow rather heavily again.

"Uta, I'm back." You called as you walked through the front door for the second time that day, removing your shoes and jacket in the process.

As you made your way through the living room, you froze. "What...the Hell...is that?"

"You said people like decorating Christmas trees with edible treats, right?" Uta asked before he added another human eyeball to the dozens that were already hanging on your Christmas tree.

"But that's not.... I didn't.... I thought you were running low on eyeballs?" You asked, trying to come up with the right words to say without hurting your boyfriend. Looking at you with his red and black eyes, Uta smiled at you.

"I think I can last one night without them." He replied. You stood there, staring at him with a confused expression.

After a moment, your eyes widened slightly. "You didn't break into my closet, did you?!" You asked in a panicked voice.

"Of course not." Uta said before coming over to you. He bent forward and sniffed you, enjoying your unique fragrance that overwhelmed his senses. "But I know your scent, [Name]. And you certainly don't smell like a jar of eyeballs."

After registering what he said, you began to pout slightly. "That's so not fair, Uta-chan... I wanted to surprise you with a gift that I thought you'd actually enjoy. But obviously, I couldn't even accomplish that much."

"Your efforts are still appreciated. Normal humans wouldn't be so willing to go out of their way to get a jar of human organs for a ghoul." Uta replied, wrapping his arms around you and resting his chin on the top of your head.

"So now you're saying I'm not normal?" You asked, trying to hide the smile forming on your lips.

"Isn't that obvious?" These words caused you to look up at your boyfriend. "I certainly wouldn't be able to develop feelings for any normal human girl, [Name]. Or for any normal ghoul, for that matter." Uta finished, causing you to bury your face into his chest to hide the blush on your face. "You still haven't noticed the other decorations." Uta spoke after a moment.

As you looked around the living room, you smiled. Everything looked perfect, from the different colors of garland that were strewn around the room, to the stockings that were nailed to the wall, to the Christmas window-clings that hung in the windows. Even the Christmas tree, which was decorated with colorful lights and various ornaments... even the eyeballs decorating the branches somehow looked oddly nice.

"This place looks really beautiful, Uta." You commented in an endearing voice.

"You're still missing one." Uta replied, pointing up above where you two were standing. As you looked up, a small blush returned to your face. Mistletoe hung directly over your heads. Before you could say a word, Uta leaned down and pressed his lips against yours. Despite your blush deepening, you wrapped your arms around Uta's neck and kissed him back.

As the snow fell outside, you were grateful to be sharing your Christmas Eve with the man you cared about and loved the most... even if that meant dealing with his strange fascination for eyeballs.