“What’s this?” You ask, looking down at the strange box in your hand. After watching it closely to ensure that it will not suddenly explode, you turn your attention to the blond man who gave it to you. He says nothing, so you ignore him once more and look at the box. It is about the size of your head and wrapped in green and red paper, revealing that it is, in fact, a Christmas present. A silky, white ribbon is wrapped around it.

You have only been in the Akatsuki for less than two months and you have already been proven wrong on so many occasions. When you were forced to join, you thought that you would hate every moment of being in the same base as your once-enemies. However, you have enjoyed the last month or so, since you began to truly give them a chance.

Another, more recent thing is that you thought the Akatsuki would not celebrate holidays, and yet, here you are, in a thoroughly decorated room. Colored lights line the tables and the bottoms of the walls, along the framing. Red and green streamers decorate the ceiling, giving you the sense, once again, that the Akatsuki is not all that bad of a place to be. Even though no one would openly admit it, all of them act more like a family than a team.

“A present, but don’t open it until tomorrow, un.” The blond man finally says, his cheeks turning an odd shade of red. If you hadn’t known the reason for the coloring of his face, then you would have said he was sick.

About a month after you were brought into the Akatsuki, the blond, who had been your temporary partner while Leader-sama found someone more permanent, suddenly blurted out that he liked you, and then ran off. Ever since then, he has been pointedly avoiding you and keeping any needed contact between you two at a minimum. You asked Sasori about it, but the puppet would give away nothing, as, despite his obvious dislike towards the blond, he is quite loyal to his partner.

“Um, alright.” You answer, giving him a guarded look. He never gave you the chance to answer, not that your answer would have been positive for him. He probably already knew that, which is why he has been avoiding you in fear of your rejection. After all, you hold no affection towards the man that brought you here. It is his fault you were forced out of the village and taken to the enemy.

Three months ago, you bumped into a strange man wearing a cloak on the way home from your mission. A blizzard had been raging at that time and you both decided to stay together, hanging on through the snow storm in each other’s company. You had grown fond of the man in the twelve hours you spent together. He was surprisingly smart and you talked for many hours.

You fell asleep at one point, and when you woke up, he was gone and left no signs that he was ever there. At first, you though it might have just been a strange dream, but what happened barely a month later said otherwise. He appeared once more in your village on a cold, snowy night.

At that time, you had been inside, sitting by your fire. Sometimes, living in the Hidden Frost Village can be a real problem, as it is almost always snowing there. Only in the spring can it be pleasant, while the rest of the year is cold and dreary.

There had been a knock on the door and you remember opening it to find a blue-eyed blond on your doorstep. You grin, inviting him in and asking how he found you. You walked into your living room, hearing him close the door behind him. When he doesn’t answer, you turned around to face him and froze, the smile dying on your face.

Even though he had been alone when you opened the door, there are two people standing in your living room with you. The blond man and an older, hunched over form. You remember asking what was happening, and then blacking out a few minutes after getting cut by the edge of the hunched form’s tail. You didn’t fight, knowing the second the poison entered your body, you had lost.

When you woke up in a foreign place, you tried to escape, but stopped when you realized where you are. Or really, realized you didn’t know where you are. Later that day, you challenged one of the Akatsuki members to a fight. If you won, you could leave. If you lost, then you would not complain about staying here.

You lost, of course. And while you may not hold a grudge against your opponent, Kisame, and even became friends with him, you still hold a certain dislike towards Deidara. He is the reason you were put into this whole mess and you even trusted him. You understand that it was your fault for trusting him after only knowing him for a short amount of time, but you really felt like he was like you, an undiscovered talent. Plus, he was your type.

With a sigh, you head back to your room, the box safely tucked under your arm. The dark, hard wooden door makes you put an effort into opening it whenever you want to enter or exit the room. The other members seem to have no trouble opening these doors, but since you have a slighter build and are not as strong as those S-rank criminals, the doors have become your worst enemy.

The door slowly swings closed behind you with an even slower, more eerie creak. A shudder of fear runs through your body at the sound before you carefully place the present on your bedside table and fall back onto your dark bed. After a long moment of staring at your white ceiling, you find your attention being drawn to the mysterious present beside you.

Even if it was the blond who gave it to you, that does not mean the present cannot be something interesting. With a sigh, you relent and pick up the box once more. He told you not to open the present, but there are other ways to find out. You are just about to get up and look for said ways when you stop yourself.

Deidara might not be your favorite person in the world, but you do respect him enough to follow his wishes. And if he knew what you were planning on doing, he would be very unhappy. Your thoughts travel to the blond now that you are on the topic. You are also reminded of the one thing you hate more than anything.

Just then, a loud, booming noise comes from somewhere outside the base. Every muscle in your body suddenly stiffens up, in an action very similar to a frighten cat. Lightning flashes outside your window, and before it is over, you are under your bed and clutching your pillow, which had fallen to the floor when you practically flew under your bed.

Loud noises. That is what you cannot stand. It is your greatest fear and something you wish would just disappear. Whether it is thunder, explosions, or any other loud noise, you are scared of it. You have been ever since the age of five, when your parents left you at home while they were working in the middle of a thunder storm. It was a terrifying experience, one that you never got over.

Outside, there is another clap of thunder, and you bury your face in the large pillow, trying to tune out the noise. You hear the rain start a moment later, quickly followed by yet another thunder clap. Following the thunder clap is a knock on your door.

“Go away!” You shout, lifting up your face from the pillow just enough to make your voice clear. The person on the other side of the door only knocks harder, drawing both your attention and your annoyance. What if it is urgent? What if it is just someone trying to annoy you?

Momentarily having forgotten about your fears, you crawl out from under your bed with every intention of opening your door to shouts more at the offender. However, you barely make it three steps before another loud boom causes you to make a quick retreat under your bed once more.

There’s one more loud knock, then a hesitant knock before the door swings inward, admitting a single pair of legs. From you position, you cannot see anything above the intruder’s knees. The person walks around the room once, making very little noise as they go. They go in a full circle until they stop a foot away from the bed.

Next thing you know, the person is dropping to their hands and knees, pressing their face close to the ground, looking into your hiding spot. You scowl at the man who you did not want to see. He raises an eyebrow at you, and then holds out his hand to you.

“Come out of there, [Name], before someone else sees you. You know how embarrassed you were when I found out, what would you do if someone like Hidan or Leader-sama came looking for you?” The young blond asks, frowning as if he is imagining the scenario.

Hesitating for a moment, you realize that he is right. Thunder and other loud noises are common things in Amegakure, the village where the Akatsuki base is stationed. So far, a few of the members have seen you reaction to loud noises. However, most of them have simply assumed the noises surprised you, as they would any person who was not used to them. However, thunder happens every week or every other week, so they would begin to get suspicious if they found you under your bed even though you should be used to the sound by now.

There has only been one person you know who has figured out what was wrong. After all, he is the cause of a lot of those loud explosions that startle you at random times of the day, giving no warnings but the occasional shout to get down if the explosion is close.

It happened last week when you were cleaning the kitchen after assisting Konan in making a sweet dessert to celebrate Deidara and Sasori's return from a two-week-long mission. Konan left halfway through cleaning because Kisame said something about the training room pool having fish. Since the pool wasn’t supposed to have fish, she had to go check it out.

Deidara came in, carrying a box of Christmas decorations. He noticed you, but was afraid to say anything, so he tried to make a quick retreat after setting the box down on a pulled out chair. It was the moment he disappeared though the door that you felt the noise before you heard it. That was the only warning you had before thunder boomed outside.

The closest place to hide was under the kitchen table, which is where you escaped to. However, in your action to get under the table, you knocked the closed box and its chair over, making a loud clatter as they hit the floor. Nothing was broken or scratched, but the damage was down and Deidara came running in to make sure you were not hurt.

And that’s how it happened. He figured it out and now he is the sole person in the Akatsuki base who is privy to this knowledge. You would rather nobody know, but at least it was him, not Hidan or any one of the other irritating members. They would never let you live it down, nor would they make it easy for you to live in the base. Konan would have been a better confidant, but one person is enough for now.

Ever since Deidara found out, which has become somewhat of a blessing actually, he has either given you extended warnings ahead of time, allowing you a chance to cover your ears or leave the base for a short time, while he blew things up. Though, this is the first time since that time in the kitchen that there has been thunder. You did not expect him to notice or even care, and yet, here he is.

Without any more hesitation, you let go of your safety pillow and take his outstretched hand, letting him carefully pull you out from under the bed. Lightning flashes in your darkening room, as the sun is hidden behind darker clouds and you did not have the time to turn on your light.

When the thunder shakes your room, and fear clutches your heart once more, you find yourself hugging Deidara like he is the safest safety pillow you could have. Despite how you are mentally cursing yourself for your weakness, you do not let go. Not that he would let you go, even if you tried.

The warmth of his body against yours is a great comfort and you no longer feel so alone. You have spent many years dealing with situations like this by yourself. And it has been effective, but not desirable. Loneliness would often take hold after the fear was long gone and you were left hiding somewhere no one would think to look.

“Don’t worry, [Name], I’ll protect you no matter what, un.” He mutters into your ear, hugging tighter. No longer minding, you let him and stay with him the remainder of the storm.

Now that you have someone protecting you, you don’t ever want to be lonely again…

~Time Skip~

The next morning, you are woken up by a constant shaking. It is only when you are truly awake to do you realize that it is Tobi who is shaking you, not an earthquake. Suddenly very irritated, you punch the masked man into a wall, then stretch and yawn while he picks himself up off the ground.

Tobi moans, but you pay him no mind, as this is the fifth time he has down that this week, and he deserves whatever injury it is that he has suffered from your punch. You take Deidara’s present off the bedside table and stuff it under your arm. Then, you move over to the closet of your room and pull out a large bag that is half full. Inside are the presents you have to give to everyone.

Since Konan told you that Christmas at the base is a present exchange, you went into the village to gather presents for everyone. Still in your pajamas, you head downstairs and into the living room, where the large, decorated tree is located. It seems that everyone but you had woken up early, which must be why Tobi woke you up this morning despite your warning when he tried it yesterday.

Not feeling the least bit guilty, though, you find a spot on the floor, close to the fire in the fireplace, between the tree and a couch. Tobi comes running down, jumping up and down three times before retaking his seat on the other side of the tree, where he also has a bag of presents.

The exchange goes one, starting with Pein and Konan, and ending with you and Tobi as the final two to get your presents. Deidara gave presents to everyone but you during the exchange. Not that you minded, since he already gave it to you. Having kept the present close during the game, you are prepared to open it when Deidara suddenly pulls you aside.

“What’s up?” You ask, not entirely sure why he would not let you open your present yet. He gives you a shy smile, turning his gaze away from yours.

“Nothing, I just wanted to be the first to see you open the present, un.” He says sheepishly. With a shrug, you accept his answer and untie the ribbon. Then you carefully rip the wrapping, not wanting to harm the contents, even if it is inside a box.

The box is made of simple cardboard, and it gives nothing away about what could be inside. With one last look at the blond, you pull the top of the box open and…start shaking your head with a grin. Inside the box is a pair of red earmuffs, the kind you would wear on a cold day, but there is something special about the inside of the ear covers, as it has an almost leathery feel to it.

The leather is soft, and as you slip it onto your head, you find that the sounds around you are almost completely muted. Deidara’s mouth opens, but you can only barely hear the sound of his voice. Letting the earmuffs fall so they hang around your neck, you ask him to repeat what he just said.

“What do you think?” He asks, looking very nervous and unsure. Despite the possibly permanent grin on your face, he still cannot be sure you like the present.

“I think that I love it.” You reply, giving in to the urge to hug the blond man. Surprised, he hesitates before hugging you back, then chuckles nervously, but you can feel that he relaxed with your words. “Oh, and how did you like my present?”

He smiles. “You know, everyone always gives me clay or explosives for gifts, as they think that is what I want. It is true that I like it, but it gets old with the years. However, you gave me something I did not expect, un, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like it.”

You laugh, thinking about the two scented candles you gave him. One was cinnamon and the other was ginger apple, and you also remember the smile that lit his face when he opened the two small boxes and pulled out the carefully-protected glass candles.

Deidara shuffles his feet awkwardly, having no clue what to say next, now that he has said what he wanted and the topic is no longer usable. However, before he can take his leave, you stop him with your words.

“When you confessed to me, did you mean it?” You ask, curious. Seeing his surprised expression, you look away, suddenly nervous yourself. Slowly, he begins to nod, a flicker of hope in his eyes. He says nothing, so you add, “And do you still feel the same way?”

“Completely, I could never not love you, un.”

“Then, will you listen to my response to your confession?” You ask carefully. You don’t want to give him any false hope, but you also do not want to make it sound like you are just going to reject him. After a moment of thought, Deidara nods.

Taking a deep breath, you begin. “When you confessed, I admit that I would have rejected you right away. However, that was more because I held my kidnapping as your fault. However, my opinion on the matter has changed. It was only last night that I realized how my unreasonable anger affected my relationship with you. And then I realized how I absolutely did not hate you.”

“I may not love you yet, if ever, but I do like you. I cannot promise this will turn out well, but I’m willing to try if you are. Dating, I mean.” You finish, feeling just as shy as Deidara must have when he confessed to you.

When silence is all that meets your personal confession, you look at the blond. His jaw is slack and he has the look of a child who just received a cookie. He finally shakes his head, his mouth snapping closed. He opens and closes his mouth multiple times, but no words come out. With another shake, he stops himself, giving up on the idea of saying something.

With a single action, he is able to confirm your confession and his, saying with no words that he will happily try dating you, even when the odds could be stacked against him.

The small peck on your cheek also reassures you that he has no plans on moving too fast. Like you first thought when you met him, he’s just your type…