Sweet Devil [BL]

Chapter 97. Hi Santa

Breathing in and out to push down the lump in his throat, Misha stood before a small table on which lay a plate of cookies and a glass of milk. Just beside the food, there was a beautiful golden wristwatch and a note that said:

"We need to talk."

Back when he had a little chat with Santa Claus, just before his transmigration, Misha vaguely remembered asking if the golden watch could do more than just travel back in time, to which Santa Claus had said something about being able to stop the time. This way, he could distribute the Christmas gifts to all the children in the world in a single night. However, this also meant that Misha would be frozen in time like everyone else and wouldn't see Santa Claus when he passed by his house. It made it impossible to ambush him, and thus Misha decided to leave a message instead.

Misha had set the table between the hearth and the Christmas tree, so he was confident that Santa Claus would undoubtedly see it if he did come to drop gifts under the tree tonight. Now, he only had to wait for midnight, the time at which people said Santa Claus was passing by.

Because no one in his immediate family celebrated Christmas Eve this year, they all went to sleep early. They were emotionally exhausted by today's excursion to the cemetery, and Misha was left alone in the living room. Earlier, he had pretended to go to bed, and once he heard Gabriel's even breathing, he quickly fled downstairs, the time-travel device in his hands.

As midnight grew closer, Misha became increasingly nervous, glancing at the clock every second. Deep down, he was afraid that Santa Claus wouldn't come or wouldn't care about his note. He knew he was betting everything on something very uncertain, hoping that Santa Claus would consent to meet him and listen to his request. Honestly, Misha didn't even know why Santa Claus saved him in his first life; neither did he know why he sent him back in time. Misha wasn't foolish enough to think it was because he was "special" or "unique". He was well aware of his own shortcomings.

Still, Santa Claus did allow him to transmigrate into his nine-year-old self, so why wouldn't he accept to do it a second time?

As such thoughts came and went, tormenting his mind, the clock hands fell upon midnight. One second, there was no one in front of Misha, and the next, a figure clad in red appeared before his eyes, fiddling with the wristwatch, a pensive look on his face. Following his sudden arrival, the temperature in the room drastically cooled, making a shiver crawl down the boy's spine. Instinctively, Misha rubbed his arms as he lifted his head, staring into the man's gray eyes.

Although Santa Claus had the same chubby face as he remembered, the expression he wore wasn't the same. It was far less kind and much more cold. It was a little shocking, and Misha was left at a loss for words, unable to utter anything. Time ticked by, but neither talked, silently sizing each other up.

After what seemed to be an eternity, the chubby man opened his mouth. Misha could hear the silent threat permeating it despite his gentle voice, giving him goosebumps.

"So, tell me, where did you obtain this watch?"

"Ah? What are you saying?" Misha blurted out, looking at Santa Claus as if he was an idiot. "You're the one who gave it to me!"

"...I did?"

"Yeah, of course! Didn't you say something like there's only one device in the world like this one? So who else could have given it to me if not you?"

"When did that happen?"

"In my past life...? I guess you can say it like this? You kinda saved me from freezing to death on Christmas Eve, and after a long chat, you just threw me back in time. Back then, I was drunk out of my mind, so I thought you were being senile and spouting nonsense about time travel. Well, even if I had been sober, I'd never have guessed you were telling the truth! Do you have any idea how shocked I was when I woke up in my nine-year-old body?! What's with that look? Don't tell me you don't remember!"