naivette

 Hakkai spotted the calendar in the restaurant they were eating and smiled. It was already that time of year, wasn’t it? There were only two weeks till Valentine’s Day. He had first learned of the odd holiday from Hazel, but grew fond of the custom once he had learned of it. A day to show your appreciation for others, both family and friends, and also romantic interests. It seemed quaint, but he wanted to have some fun with his cooking. Plus, Goku likes sweets, so even if the others didn’t want any, his effort was guaranteed not to go to waste. He reminded himself that he would pick up some supplies before they left town.

 The next morning, after they had breakfast, Hakkai told the others that he had some additional grocery shopping to do and got up to leave.

 “Hakkai, can I come along too??” Goku looked at him eagerly, with a bright smile on face. He knew that the chance of scoring some extra snacks was extra high if he helped Hakkai with the groceries. Hakkai hesitated for a moment, which piqued both Sanzo and Gojyo’s interest. Normally the other man was happy for the company and the help, and the other two were happy to have Goku out of their hair for a little while. They’d never seen Hakkai consider turning Goku down when he asked for something, especially when he begged so cutely like he was doing now.

 “Um.. sure! I guess I wouldn’t hurt to have someone help carry everything. Are you ready to go now?” Hakkai asked, after gaining his bearings again. It was unlikely that Goku would realize what he was buying stuff for, considering that Valentine’s Day wasn’t even that well known here. It was even possible that the market didn’t have any of the necessary ingredients. If they didn’t, he would probably improvise and make other types of sweets.

 Goku nodded, and walked out the door first. “We’ll see you guys later!” He said cheerfully.

 Sanzo snorted. “Make sure to get me another pack of cigarettes too.” he said, as he tossed his credit card to Hakkai.

 “Okay~” The other man said in a sing-song voice, as he followed Goku outside.

 Sanzo looked at Gojyo with a puzzled look. “He’s definitely up to something, isn’t he?”

 Gojyo shrugged. “Yeah probably. But the monkey is with him, so how bad could it possibly be?”

 +++

 After picking up their usual groceries (and Goku’s reward for helping out), Hakkai strolled through the markets, looking for something particular.

 “Whatcha looking for, Hakkai?”

 “I wanted to try making some new sweets, but they require some rare ingredients, unfortunately. Hazel gave me some new recipes.”

 Goku’s eyes started shining brightly, as a wide grin spread across his face. “Maybe I can help look too! That sounds super tasty!”

 Hakkai chuckled. “Okay, we’re looking for this specific type of fruit, it’s probably being sold by a merchant from….” Hakkai explained what a cacao fruit looked like, and who was likely to be selling one.

 “Okay! Let’s do another loop and check all the stalls!”

 They diligently checked all the produce selling stalls and merchants. Goku went up to each seller, and asked them the same question. “Do you guys sell cacao fruits here?”

 Most of the merchants and produce sellers looked puzzled, but the last merchant had a look of recognition. “Oh! One of my buddies in the stall next to me has that cacao-something! But I don’t think it was a fruit.”

 Goku sighed dejectedly, but Hakkai intervened. “We’d be quite interested in purchasing it if it’s the correct product.”

 The merchant called his friend over, a darker skinned man with black hair and black eyes. “These two are looking for something called “cacao”, didn’t you say you had a hard time selling something like that?” the first merchant said.

 The second merchant smiled. “Yes, I do! Let me go grab it now.”

 He returned with a bag of brown powder. “You two are quite discerning customers! This is such a rare and valuable product, but nobody in this area seems to be interested in this! It’s powder made from the cacao fruit.”

 Hakkai flashed Sanzo’s signature golden credit card. “We’ll take it.”

 +++

 Hakkai and Goku returned, with groceries and supplies in tow.

 “We’re back!” Goku said loudly, instantly annoying Sanzo as usual.

 Gojyo sighed. “Ah… our precious few minutes of quiet…gone…”

 “Shut up Gojyo!” The two of them began their regular bickering, while Hakkai returned Sanzo’s credit card.

 “You guys were gone longer than usual.” said Sanzo, not looking up from his book.

 Hakkai gave a slight chuckle. “I thought I would give you guys a little more time to relax.”  He began sorting the groceries into groups, some to be packed away with Hakuryuu, and others to be used sooner. Mysteriously, there was an extra set of supplies set aside.

 Sanzo wanted to ask what those items were for, but Hakkai cleared everything away before he could muster up the curiosity to ask.      Whatever, we’ll probably find out later anyways.  

 +++

 They were stuck at that particular town until the blockage at the mountain pass leading to their next destination was cleared. It was one of their rare breathers during their hectic journey.

 Hakkai had asked the inn’s owner if they wouldn’t mind him using the kitchen to cook, since they were stuck there anyways, and it was a little cumbersome to eat out for every single meal. The owner and their family agreed, since it was a rare chance to experience a different cuisine.

 One week passed without any significant demon attacks or occurrences, leaving plenty of time for Hakkai to experiment with the cacao powder in different sweets.

 After coming up with a couple different variations of chocolates, cookies, and cake, Hakkai felt satisfied that he had come up with something that everyone in the group would like. One night, while he was cleaning up after his most recent test batch, Sanzo knocked on the wall next to the entrance, letting him know that he was there.

 “So this is what you’ve been holed up all day working on? Are you planning on opening a bakery or something?” the blonde man asked. “It smells disgustingly sweet.”  

 It wasn’t exactly a secret, but Hakkai was hoping that he could keep it a surprise. But, well, there was no helping it, considering how close the four men were.

 “Ahaha~ Can’t keep anything from you, right Sanzo? I’m actually working on something for an upcoming… celebration? Hazel told me about these sweets from his country.”

 Sanzo raised his eyebrows at the mention of Hazel. As far as he knew, neither Hazel nor Hakkai had really had the chance to have a civil conversation. But maybe he was wrong.

 “What, like someone’s birthday?” Sanzo paused for a few seconds. “I’m pretty sure none of us were born in February.”

 Hakkai couldn’t help but laugh. Maybe he should just include Sanzo as part of his preparations.

 “You see, Sanzo, it seems like there’s this thing called Valentine’s Day where Hazel is from….”

 Afterwards, both Hakkai and Sanzo spent time in the kitchen, cooking up who knows what.

 A couple days later, Gojyo came back from a local bar, only to see that the room they were used to hanging out in was pretty empty, sans Goku playing with a wooden kendama toy he had found laying around.

 “Hey Monkey, where’s the shitty priest and Hakkai?” Gojyo said.

 Goku looked up, and the ball fell to the side, rather than the point that Goku was aiming for. It fell onto the floor, making a rattling sound.

 “Uh, I know Hakkai is in the kitchen, but I dunno about Sanzo. Maybe he went for a walk?” Goku answered nonchalantly. It would be problematic if the man they were supposed to protect suddenly got himself killed wandering around, but neither of the men could imagine that anything that dramatic would happen in such a peaceful town. Plus, even if something did happen, the sound of gunshots would have alerted them to the trouble anyways.

 Goku shrugged, and went back to playing with the Kendama. Gojyo laid down on the bed, allowing a pleasant feeling of drunkenness to wash over him. First Hakkai, now Sanzo? What were those two up to?

 As Gojyo started to drift off to sleep, he heard a faraway sound of the door opening and closing, and smelled a strong, richly-sweet scent entering the room.

 +++

 The next day was February 14th. Unknown to Gojyo and Goku, it was Valentine’s Day. The day began normally, like any other. The four men washed up, got dressed, and then proceeded downstairs to the dining area. It was a little late for breakfast, so they decided to go ahead and eat lunch directly.

 After finishing lunch, Hakkai took their plates back to the kitchen, and appeared once again with a tray.

 On it, was a chocolate cake, and three little cloth bags, bound with different colored ribbons. Sanzo snorted.

 Goku saw the cake, and started beaming. “Oh my god! Hakkai, is that our dessert!!?” The younger man was sitting at the table, but seemed to be bouncing with joy. “Is this the super special treat that you’ve been working on?”

 Hakkai set down the tray, and distributed some smaller plates. He ruffled Goku’s hair while patting his head.

 “It’s part of it! I told Sanzo about this before, but today is actually a festival called ‘Valentine’s Day’ where Hazel is from. I thought it was a nice thing to celebrate, so I’ve been working on the customary sweets made from chocolate that people normally use to celebrate.”

 Hakkai then handed an appropriately colored bag to each man, and then cut each of them a slice of cake as well.

 They all received their presents, and then dug into the cake.

 Goku’s reaction was the most obvious. He took a big bite, and then squealed. “This is so good! This is seriously delicious! Thank you so much, Hakkai!!” He said, gobbling upt he rest of the cake as fast as possible.

 Gojyo and Sanzo took much smaller bites, but smiled after they tasted the result.

 “Wow, what’s the occasion for such luxurious sweets? What kind of festival is Valentine’s Day?” Gojyo asked.

 Hakkai ate his own slice, satisfied with the positive reactions. “I’m told it’s a holiday where friends and lovers give each other chocolate as a symbol of their affections.”

 Gojyo looked at Hakkai with a raised eyebrow.

 Goku, meanwhile, looked at him innocently, before asking the first question that came to his mind. “Hakkai, does that mean you love us?”

 Both Sanzo and Gojyo sputtered, almost choking on their cake. Hakkai smiled.

 “Of course I do, Goku. I made these sweets as a symbol of my feelings towards you all.”

 Goku smiled back, beaming as he opened his present. His bag contained an assortment of milk and white chocolates in cute heart shapes. He ate one, and loudly proclaimed how delicious the chocolate was too.

 “The dessert was amazing! Thanks a lot Hakkai!” exclaimed Goku. After a pause, he continued. “I love all of you guys too! I’m glad we’re traveling together!” Before running off outside in a rush.

 Hakkai blushed slightly, before composing himself. He picked up the rest of the dirty dishes, and went back into the kitchen to clean up after themselves.

 Gojyo sat unmoving, stunned at what had just occurred. He then looked at Sanzo, who casually opened his bag, revealing some dark-chocolate-dipped biscuits.

 Sanzo proceeded to pour himself a cup of hot tea, and then relaxed, eating his biscuits. The priest returned Gojyo’s confused look.

 “You bastard, did you already know what Hakkai was doing?!” Gojyo said.

 Sanzo smirked. “Unlike you, I don’t go gallivanting off to the bar.”

 “And the holiday is romantic?!” Gojyo exclaimed.

 Sanzo nodded, but also interjected. “It can also be platonic. But I did make some sweets for Goku myself.” The priest then pointed towards the bag that was next to Gojyo. “You should open yours too.”

 Gojyo opened his bag, revealing similar heart shaped chocolates. When he ate one, he realized that the filling was made with alcohol, giving it an interesting taste. He popped another one in his mouth, and then stood up from the table.

 “Um, I have errands to take care of. I’ll be back later probably, bye!” Gojyo said, taking his chocolates with him.

 “Tch, amateurs.” Sanzo muttered. Goku had run off before Sanzo had the chance to give him      his     gift, but that could wait until later. They were sharing a room anyways.

 Hakkai came out of the kitchen again, and sat across from Sanzo. He poured himself a cup of tea, and sipped it leisurely.

 “You know it’s unfair to surprise them like this, right?” Sanzo said.

 Hakkai smirked slightly. “I just thought it would be cute to see their reactions.”

 +++

 Goku came back after wandering around a bit, and then deciding on his next course of action. He wanted to do something nice for everyone too!

 He couldn’t make chocolate things like Hakkai, but he figured other sweets were probably okay. There was a stall selling sweet red-bean buns, and he thought those would be perfect! They all liked those, and fought over them when they ordered them in a restaurant.

 Goku returned to their room in the late afternoon, and found Sanzo doing a crossword in today’s newspaper, while Hakkai was reading a book.

 “Um, hey guys! I wanted to do something nice for today too, so Happy Valentine’s Day!” said Goku.

 Hakkai smiled, while Sanzo’s usual grumpy expression lightened up to one of mild amusement.

 “Aw, thanks Goku. Happy Valentine’s Day to you too.” Hakkai said. They all ate the buns, but in a strong show of self-restraint, Goku left some for Gojyo too. They continued to chat, and Gojyo returned some time later, closer to sunset.

 “Hey Hakkai, got a moment? I need to talk to you alone.” said the red-haired man as soon as he got back.

 Hakkai nodded, and followed Gojyo out to the room that they were sharing.

 Sanzo saw his chance, and grabbed another decorated bag from his things. “Hey monkey, catch!”

 The blonde threw his present at Goku, who caught it easily despite not anticipating it. “What’s this for?” he asked.

 “Happy Valentine’s Day. That’s your present from me.” replied Sanzo.

 Goku opened the bag swiftly, revealing what looked like chocolate sugar cookies. He took a bite from one of the cookies, and grinned. “These are really good too! Did you make them, Sanzo?”

 Sanzo huffed. “I can do at least that much.”

 Goku walked over to the table that Sanzo was sitting at, and then leaned down. He quickly gave Sanzo a chaste kiss on the cheek.

 “Thanks for the cookies!”

 Sanzo grabbed Goku before he could straighten up again, forcing him to lose balance, and fall into his lap.

 Goku twisted and maneuvered himself into a sitting position where he could look at Sanzo, who was holding him by the waist.

 “Where’s my gift?” Sanzo asked innocently.

 “Pervert priest.” Goku joked.

 Sanzo stroked Goku’s face gently before leaning in. “Shut up, idiot monkey.”

 +++

 Gojyo and Hakkai returned to their room; Hakkai didn’t even need to ask what Gojyo wanted to talk about, because he already knew.

 After they reached their room, Gojyo grabbed some flowers and a bottle of wine that he had bought in town, and presented them to Hakkai, a faint blush revealing itself on his face.

 “Sanzo told me that Valentine’s Day is considered a romantic thing too, so I wanted to show you how      I     felt.”

 Hakkai laughed. “You didn’t have to go out of your way to-”

 “Of course I did! You’re the kind of idiot who always does things for others, but never expects anything in return!”

 Hakkai joyfully took the flowers and bottle, accepting the present. He set the flowers down on the table in their room, and internally reminded himself that he needed to dry some, to save as a memento.

 “Should we open this now?” Hakkai asked teasingly. Gojyo presented him with two glasses, not exactly for drinking wine, but they would do.

 They poured themselves a drink, and sat on one of the beds together.

 Hakkai finished his drink after some time, and then set it down on the floor.

 “Done already?” Gojyo asked, surprised. The man could usually hold his liquor quite well, and this wasn’t a particularly strong alcohol to begin with.

 Hakkai looked at the red-head with a pointed look, before reaching for an embrace. Gojyo wrapped his arm around the other man.

  “I was just thirsty for something else.”

 “Hah, that’s a request I can answer!” Gojyo smirked.