#((ahh

      at the mere mention of a mistletoe ,  the Grinch’s heart skipped a beat ,  following the other’s gaze to the piece of ceiling above them and sure enough —— there dangled the iconic ,  accursed plant.   then ,  his heart beat rapidly ,  stomach somersaulting within him.   “  ohh ,  dear ...  ”    he mumbled ,  nearly frozen solid in fear in spite of the rather warm interior of Bricklebaum’s home.   they knew what that meant.   and the man before him even reminded the Grinch ,  unfortunately.

          before he even stopped looking at the mistletoe in a glare of disbelief ,  he wondered to himself ...  how did Bricklebaum notice that ?   the green fellow didn’t even notice ,  and his head is more close to the ceiling than the other’s !   he was probably just very attentive to these little things ...  no way it was deliberately placed there ...  right ?   the Grinch gulped.

        releasing a shaky sigh ,  he shut his eyes and squatted to the other’s height in that same instance.   when they opened ,  the Grinch felt his stomach jump even more now ,  his digits clawing into his knees out of the nervousness that crawled through his body.    “  err ...  uhh ..  s - so ,  what n ——  ”    but he’s cut off at the warm palms that gently pull at his jaw and bring his head closer to the others until ——

        their lips connect.   it’s in this moment he wished he was a better kisser ,  since sitting here doing ...  nothing was probably the worst thing he could do.   but the butterflies and fireworks that brought him alive from the inside out were too much of a distraction.   his nerves were ignited but at the same time put to rest ,  his grip on his own fur easing.   the uncomfortable wide eyes he held flutter shut within a few seconds ,  relishing the soft touch of Bricklebaum’s mouth pressed to his and the delightful scent he donned and the gentleness of his beard —— the list goes on of the smallest of things he noticed within these moments.   the warmth and softness of his hands ,  how tenderly his lips nudged against the Grinch’s in a satisfying ,  melting frenzy ,  and his own hands twitched to hold onto Bricklebaum in return but ...  before he could raise them from his knees enough they had parted.   and it was disappointing.   could it not have gone on for any longer ?   why did it have to stop ?   why did he not want it to end ?

          nevertheless ,  his lips quiver as he finally gazes at the other — his heart pounding so hard he was sure it had grew another size.   the Grinch gulped ,  at a loss for words ,  but the twinkle in his eye and how his mouth stood agape surely spoke enough for him.

North Korea closed her eyes, trying to think of something. “The time Yong Soo got stuck in a vase? No… or… well there was that one time…” She grinned. 

"That one time back when we were kids. It was when China was taking care of us, before we met our father." North was laughing now, smiling widely. "It was after South Korea got stuck in the vase. So, all of us went out with China to a really sunny hill. When we got back the house was FULL of baby pandas!”