Haikyuu x Reader

Iwaizumi Hajime - Season's Greetings

You really didn't think that the mall would be this packed the day before Christmas Eve, but apparently everyone in the city decided to procrastinate on their holiday shopping too. And, listen, you really did plan on doing your shopping earlier this year. You didn't want to wait until the last possible minute, but two weeks ago you got caught binging Grey's Anatomy for the fifth time and you can't just take a break to go shopping when there are lives to save. And last week you were trying to decide what you would wear to the office holiday party, something that shouldn't have taken all of your time, but it was a big deliberation! The red dress with the white shoes? Or maybe the white sweater with some cute boots? It was a constant back and forth and shopping for gifts was the last thing on your mind (You chose neither, instead opting for a nice black turtleneck with some statement jewelry). Monday it was scouring Pinterest for recipes that would maybe impress your family at Christmas dinner. Tuesday was set aside for watching Hallmark Christmas movies, as it should be. And when Wednesday came, the December 23 on your phone screen became all too real. It had you out of bed, dressed and ready faster than you could say Happy Holidays.

But, barely two hours into your shopping trip, you realized that you were fresh out of ideas and that's what brought you here: sniffing every single candle in the Yankee candle store in hopes that something would spark some sort of inspiration in you or that you might just leave to make your home smell like peppermint mochas or freshly fallen snow.

You twisted the lid off of a new candle from the stack, something called 'Holiday Hearth,' only to twist your nose up and lower the candle back down without a second sniff. The man across from you let out a short snort, eyeing you over his own candle.

You almost opened your mouth to make some kind of smart remark, but you couldn't help but stop yourself as you saw his face contort into a smile as you met his eyes. "I made that same mistake too," he says. "Here, this one's really good." The man reaches over the stack of candles on the table, holding out a jar for you to smell. "The label says it's sugar cookies, but it really just smells like vanilla and cinnamon, if you ask me."

"That does smell really good."

"Right? Too bad I know my mom will hate it. She's the pickiest when it comes to candles, but she loves these things, so what kind of son would I be if I just didn't get her one? Hey, what do you think about this one? Does it smell- I don't know . . . Mom-ish to you?"

Before you have a second to respond, he's thrusting a green candle towards your nose, waiting for you to give him feedback on his candle picking skills. The scent takes you aback at first. The strong scent of evergreens and cranberries would be enough to make anyone wish this season was over. "It smells like an old man."

He snapped his fingers, bringing the candle back towards him. "I knew it smelled familiar! It smells like my grandpa!"

"I got my mom this one last year and she really liked it- had it burning every time I was over," you say, holding a new candle towards him.

He just gave you a polite smile. "I think she was just lighting that when you were over to make sure you didn't feel bad about giving her a candle that absolutely reeks."

"Hey! It's not that bad!"

"Sure, if you like the smell of sadness and despair, this really isn't bad, but it doesn't really scream holiday cheer, you know what I mean?"

"Well, you aren't exactly the best at picking candles either, mister."

"It's Iwaizumi."

"Fine, but you still suck at picking out candles."

Iwaizumi shakes his head, tutting his tongue at you, an index finger waggling teasingly in your direction. "Now, hold on. You're not going to stand there and tell me that I can't pick out candles when you just made me sniff the actual manifestation of the plague and then not even bother to tell me your name after I tell you mine."