Christmas Date

(Takes place in my Chase The Truth canon, during the story. You can see where pretty easily.)

(The added art at the top isn't the most festive, but I thought it was cute enough to add here.)

Begin!

~Normal POV

12/24 - Saturday

When Kanji got to school today, he had one thing on his mind, and it most definitely wasn't schoolwork.

The one thing on his mind was asking Naoto to have dinner with him tonight for Christmas. Some would see this as a simple task, but to him it was anything but. After the team had managed to catch a serial killer, and dispel the deadly fog covering the town, things had been peaceful. The case was solved. And that should mean Naoto would be free tonight. Kanji knew he'd had feelings for her for quite some time, but with how the case kept getting the way, he thought it best to wait before acting on them. A wise decision, according to Yu. He thought Naoto would appreciate the gesture.

That didn't mean Kanji wasn't still terribly nervous about it. It was before school started, and that meant he had just enough time to do this. He didn't want to do it in front of all their friends at lunchtime, (that would be way more embarrassing) so going to her classroom was the better idea. He walked in and found Naoto sitting at her desk reading one of those books she likes so much. He wondered what they were like... maybe he could ask sometime. But nevermind that now. Kanji took a calming breath and approached her desk.

"Hey, Naoto..."

Naoto looked up from her book and smiled at him, "Good morning, Kanji."

Kanji blushed. "Uh... I got something to ask you."

She marked her page and set aside her book. "What is it?"

"So- So I was thinking... If you aren't busy tonight- do you wanna maybe go to Aiya's with m-me? I got a... present for you." He couldn't help avoiding eye contact to try to get the words out. Speaking was difficult with those big pretty eyes looking up at him.

Naoto looked a little surprised to hear this but kept smiling. "Sure, I'd like that."

He snapped his gaze back to her in shock. "Wha- really?"

"Yes, I don't have any special plans at home. I'd be happy to join you instead."

Kanji grinned, "A-Awesome!"

The early bell rang, so the two quickly picked a time to meet up later before Kanji had to go to his own classroom.

~...

Kanji waited patiently outside Aiya's. Naoto texted him after school let out saying that she had to stop somewhere first, but he wasn't worried. She wasn't the type to stand someone up for an outing. He had a gift bag in his hand that contained Naoto's Christmas present. (His house was right across the street, so picking it up was no problem.) He wondered if she'd like it. He spent the better part of a week working on it, in his spare time. Usually his knitting took no time at all, even if it's a big project, but this gift was for her... Thus, it had to be both perfect, and nerve-wracking to think about. And that made him take longer.

It wasn't like he'd never made her something before, but that didn't help his nerves.

"Hello, Kanji."

Kanji jumped a little and turned to see that Naoto had arrived. She had a bag on her shoulder. He must have been more distracted than he thought since he didn't even hear her coming... Or maybe she's more stealthy than she looks. That's probably a good trait for a detective to have, right?