Christmas comes once a year, a festival young hearts crave like warm light in winter. When it arrives, joy spills over like a bright stream through the coldest weeks.

Snowflakes drift like feather-petals, night falls like a velvet curtain, and the streets swell like a tide. Faces glow like lanterns, and they surge into shops blazing like little suns for discount spoils.

In the square, a lavish Christmas tree stands like a green mountain. Flashbulbs flicker like fireflies, bits of tinsel glint like dew, and a lone star lamp crowns the top like a winter moon.

“Why do I have to be Santa?”

Yun Shi glances down, irritation tight as a knot. Red suit, red cap, heavy boots—each piece is a flag declaring her role, Santa under the streetlights.

“C’mon, we needed a Santa. Just bear with it~”

Maya Hanazaka folds her hands like a neat cross and bows, her smile bright as a crescent, the apology as thin as smoke.

Honestly, Yun Shi thinks she got off easy, the outfit cut for men like a straighter river. If Maya stopped being “polite,” a frilly women’s version would swoop in like a sparrow.

“Ugh, fine, I get it…”

It’s just handing out freebies in the square, like tossing snow-candies to passing kids. You still get paid, and she’s not the only one on shift, so the balance holds like a scale.

“All changed? Looks good on you, Little Yun.”

Mizuki steps out with a smile as warm as cocoa, meeting her halfway like sunlight on snow.

“O-of course. A natural Santa, that’s me.”

A blip of vanity flickers like a sparkler; a compliment turns pride into a small fire.

“Is Maya still inside?”

Yan Er leans in, curiosity pricking like frost on glass.

“She said she’d come out to dance. But where did Sham go?”

“She’s shopping with Mizuki. Cakes are cheap now, and those two can’t keep calm when sweets bloom like blossoms on a tray.”

Christmas slashes price tags like wind through leaves, so Sham eyes the bargain cakes like migrating birds. As for Mizuki the heiress, she’s the silken ribbon beside her.

“Go find Maya Hanazaka. I’ll watch things here.”

“OK, I’m off~”

Yan Er rushes into the costume room, hope fluttering like a pennant, hunting for Maya.

She doesn’t know Maya is already in the square, flitting like a sparrow from girl to girl, dancing under lights, snagging star-shaped cookies like falling snow.

“Seriously, where did she go?”

Yan Er searches and circles like a moth around a lamp, her target lost in the crowd like a pebble in a stream.

“She must be busy, Yan Er.”

“Hard to find someone who’s a ghost in the crowd.”

Mizuki and Yun Shi watch Yan Er emerge, knowing Maya has blown off like a leaf, and sigh with shared wind.

The Christmas bells roll like waves, and people burst into dance like leaves spinning in a gust. Laughter sparks like flares across the plaza.

Only Yan Er keeps hunting, worry tugging like a thread in her chest.

She’s about to give up, frustration pooling like cold water. Who knows where that girl slipped off to in the festive tide?

“No way! Xiao Wei is mine!”

“Nonsense, she’s mine!”

“You want to fight?”

“I’m not afraid of you!”

Voices flare from afar like firecrackers, and Yan Er squints. Two college kids stand there, faces hot as embers in the wind.

“Wait, please don’t fight!”

Yan Er’s habit of stepping in surges like a quick current—she doesn’t think of the downstream.

At her voice, the two freeze like statues. They stare at the sudden girl like a bird startled mid-flight.

“You know her, Miao-kun?”

“No clue. Thought she was your friend, Xingmeng.”

They were bickering like cats, but a third voice cools them down like rain on ash. It’s as if nothing burned here at all.

“Junior, what’s up?”

So polite it’s hard to believe sparks flew a moment ago.

“A-anyway, fighting is wrong!”

Since she stepped in, she has to stand firm, her nerve clinking like thin ice.

“You two are seniors, right? You can’t just fight. Cool down, talk it out. Even with differences, you don’t—”

“Junior, we were just—”

Yan Er clearly misreads the scene, and Miao-kun tries to explain, voice gentle as steam. He doesn’t get the chance.

“And you, senpai—especially you!”

“Me?”

Yan Er points at Miao-kun, hoping she’s not wording it wrong, her finger a little spear of snow.

“Yes, you. As a girl, be reserved. You can’t shout on the street. Are you listening, senpai?”

Miao-kun’s face goes dark like a cloud covering the moon, and Yan Er starts to feel something’s off.

“Pff—hahahahahaha!!”

“Xingmeng, laugh again and I’ll deck you!”

“Hahahaha—‘girl’—hahahaha—let me laugh—!”

“Shut up, Idiot Meng!”

Yan Er blinks, baffled, her scolding hanging like a lantern in the rain. She only said “senpai,” right? What’s wrong?

“Listen, Junior. I’m a guy. Got it? A guy! Call me upperclassman, not ‘senpai’ as in a lady!”

“Huh?!”

Completely unexpected—the adorable one is a boy, a soft-eyed boy like a cat under a lamp.

His whole look leans feminine like willow branches, but he’s still a boy. How is she supposed to swallow that?

Then she remembers reality has traps like clever mirrors—the one who’s prettier than girls: Yunshi Bianqi…

On the plaza, Yun Shi hands out souvenirs like little comets. A sudden sneeze snaps from her like a spark.

“Are you catching a cold, Little Yun?”

“No… feels like someone’s talking about me.”

Yun Shi rubs her nose with a faint gloom, her mood a dusky cloud in a bright sky.

“So that’s it—you two are after a middle-school girl. Whoever confesses first gets a shot, right?”

After a quick explanation, Yan Er finally gets why Miao-kun and Xingmeng were butting heads. It’s not deadly; it’s a rivalry over a girl, the kind that can make sworn brothers split like a cracked branch. (Wrong, but it feels that way.)

“We’re her seniors, but…”

“Confessing is hard…”

“Only fell for someone after entering college, of all times…”

“And she’s a middle-schooler, of all people…”

Miao-kun and Xingmeng slump onto a bench like tired cranes. Their fingers twine like knotted stems, their shame spilled like tea on a white table.

“If Junior hadn’t stopped us, we might’ve thrown punches…”

“Embarrassing, turning on each other over a girl…”

They’re reflecting, the heat cooling like iron in snow. Seeing that, Yan Er’s anger melts, leaving soft sympathy like a thaw.

“It’s fine. Just confess properly—”

“If we confess together, who will Xiao Wei choose?”

“Uh, that—”

“There’s no way out, right?!”

They spiral into panic like leaves in a whirlpool. Love makes people mad—true as winter wind through bare branches.

Christmas lights blaze like constellations, and the street thrums like a carnival drum. The trimmed bulbs shine like twin moons in the shop windows.

Inside a cozy place, Sham and Mizuki share a Christmas meal, steam curling like fog over a pond.

“So happy~ Christmas means you eat what you crave~”

“Sham-chan, don’t overdo it. Too much will upset your tummy.”

“Got it—ah, Mizuki~”

“You’re hopeless. I can’t say no to you.”

Sham is riding her high like a kite. Mizuki can’t bear to cut the string, so she opens her mouth and accepts a playful feed, her own smile a secret blossom.

“Mmm, this cake’s so good.”

“Right? Come on, more~”

“Eh, b-but I’m on a diet…”

“Who cares~ Open wide, down it goes~”

“If I gain weight, I’ll never forgive you…”

She takes Sham’s offering like a bird pecking at snow. Fine—eat till the heart’s warm; weight can argue later like a scolding scale.

A week from now, Mizuki will regret it, then spend another week trimming back like pruning a hedge. That’s a later chapter.

“Christmas in Japan isn’t one bit worse than back home.”

Sham gazes at the bright street like a river of stars, shops glittering like frost, and faces beaming like ripe fruit.

“Sham-chan, you’re from London, right?”

“Yep. I flew around a lot as a kid like a migrating swallow. But I’ve only lived long-term abroad here in Tokyo~”

Her voice shines with joy like polished brass when she says it.

“In the UK, Christmas is the year’s crown jewel. When it comes, the whole country buzzes like a hive~”

“Really?”

“Of course~ We celebrate with roast turkey. Let’s have some too!”

Sham’s excitement bubbles like a kettle, and this day tugs her homesickness like a harp string. Don’t disappoint a heart lit like a candle.

Mizuki decides to give in to every wish, her kindness a shawl against the cold.

“One roast turkey, please.”

“Sure, just a moment.”

The waitress looks like a middle-schooler, neat as a fresh sprout. She scribbles the order and slips toward the kitchen like a silver fish.

“Hey, I haven’t seen you before. New here?”

Mizuki visits often; it’s normal to know the staff like familiar faces in a garden.

“Yes, I’m new. I’m Xiao Wei.”

The girl smiles like a dawn peeking over roofs, then glides away.

Back in the square, the noise is a festival drum. Maya Hanazaka never reins in her spark; she chats up girls like a fox with charm, dances under lights, and collects star cookies like a nimble thief of sweets.

Yan Er sees it all, annoyance a sour lemon in her chest.

So that’s where she went—living it up while I ran circles like a lost pigeon…

On a night like this, her hands ache like chilled branches.

A high-school girl passes by, just another brush of shoulders like drifting leaves. Yan Er doesn’t care—then—

“Found her!” “Found her!”

Miao-kun and Xingmeng spring up like startled cats, fingers pointing in perfect sync at the passing girl.

The girl stops, brows lifting like a thin arc, and the college girl beside her halts too, intuition steady like a well-set book.

“Isn’t that Miao-kun and Xingmeng? Not out having fun on Christmas night?”

The high-schooler knows them, her tone light as snow tossed from a mitten.

“Probably pondering life.”

The college girl adjusts her glasses, her air scholarly like ink on rice paper.

“Exactly! We’re contemplating life!”

“Please help us!”

Against expectation, Miao-kun and Xingmeng are completely aligned, eyes bright like people who’ve spotted a lighthouse.

“Can someone tell me what’s happening…”

Yan Er feels innocent and adrift, clueless as a leaf in a new current.

“What do you think, Nonsense-senpai?”

“…First, let’s grab hot cocoa somewhere warm.”

Senpai’s words carry a calm weight like a steady bell. Juniors love that warmth like hands around a cup.

In a café, the five sit and sip fresh cocoa, sweetness spreading like a small fire in winter. They let out long breaths, steam rising like pale ribbons.

Yan Er admits she tagged along for a free drink, shameless as a cat on a sunny sill. It’s not her business, and no one’s shooing her away.

“So, short version: you want to confess to Xiao Wei, but you don’t know how, so you froze like a kite in windless air. Then you saw me and Kouhu-senpai and want our advice?”

The high school girl fired it all off in one breath, like a sparrow spilling its song before dawn.

“Mm-hmm. Yunge-chan’s seen the world, and you’re the psychology pro. You must know how to win a soft girl like Xiao Wei.”

“No. I only poked into psychology for writing, like skimming stones across a lake, not diving deep.”

“Kouhu-senpai, please, I’m begging you. You must have a way, right? A pretty senpai like you must have dating experience!”

“No. I don’t have that kind of experience, not even a palmful.”

Miaojun and Xingmeng pleaded like rain tapping a window, but neither could decide. They didn’t even know how to start with a girl.

What a tangled skein.

Yan Er watched, speechless, sipping hot cocoa like holding a small fire in her palms.

“Mm. Looks like we can only rip the bandage off in one go.”

“You’ve got a plan, Kouhu-senpai!?”

“Start simple. Send a love letter. Xiao Wei’s in middle school. Girls that age blush like peach blossoms.”

“Mm-mm!”

“Then, confess in due course. Soft girls rarely refuse a gentle ask, like doors opening to a light knock.”

“Oh!”

“After that, it naturally becomes boyfriend and girlfriend, like buds turning to fruit.”

She finished, pushed up her glasses, and sipped her cocoa, steam curling like mist on a pond.

“As expected of Kouhu-senpai, solid as a mountain!”

It didn’t take long for worship to fill their eyes, bright as candleflame.

Kouhu-senpai felt pressure settle like a boulder. Could she admit she’d just been winging it?

“If that’s the case, how about confessing now?”

Seeing they’d agreed in waves, Yan Er gave them a shove, like a breeze urging a sail, eager for an excuse to slip away.

She could admit she had zero interest in their so-called romance.

At the plaza, Santa was still handing out souvenirs, like snow drifting into open hands. Yun Shi watched the people under the tree, all eyes on the star at the top.

Standing here for hours felt like staring at a still pond.

“Big sis, big sis, gimme a star wand!”

Suddenly, a tiny hand tugged his coat. Yun Shi looked down. A child gazed up with eyes clear as a mountain spring. The short hair and clothes said “boy” at a glance.

Smack!

Yun Shi flicked the kid’s forehead without hesitation, like snapping a twig.

“Ow—”

“It’s big brother, not big sister.”

Yun Shi cared about titles, like a compass cares about north.

“Nonsense. You’re clearly a big sister pretending to be a big brother!”

“Oh? Want another try?”

“I’m sorry I was wrong! Big brother!”

Kids are easy. A shadow of thunder and they turn sunny again.

Seeing him so “good,” Yun Shi handed over a star wand. The kid who’d looked scared lit up like a lantern. Kids are easy to please.

“Tomoko, where did you run off to? Time to go.”

A girl who seemed to be the kid’s sister came over, scooped them up, and left like a gust.

“Sorry. My little sister gave you trouble.”

“Bye-bye, big sister—”

Only when the sister carried the child off did Yun Shi face a terrifying truth.

Crap. That kid’s a girl.

Shock didn’t cover his face anymore. He wanted to cover his face with both hands.

Two lives lived, and he still couldn’t tell boys from girls sometimes. Today’s slap stung.

Before he could recover, he spotted two sneaky figures at the plaza. Whispering one second, snickering the next, like cats around a fish stall.

Should he call the cops?

Yun Shi’s gut said they weren’t good people, like a dog bristling at thunder.

“Xiao Wei’s there. Piaopiao, go!”

“No problem. Leave it to me, Blue Cat!”

“It’s Lazy Cat, not Blue Cat, you damn chatterbox!”

Behind a nearby wall, Miaojun and Xingmeng watched the two like hunters watching reeds stir.

They weren’t strangers. They were the “helpers” Miaojun and Xingmeng had called to deliver the love letters.

“Are we sure this is okay?”

Seeing their sketchy faces, Yan Er’s doubt rose like fog.

“Senpai’s advice should be fine. Probably.”

The girl scratched her head and let out a dry laugh like a creaky door.

As the culprit, Kouhu had panic fluttering in her chest like trapped sparrows. Could she take it back? She’d just been talking. Who knew they’d take it as gospel?

She was better with computers than schemes, after all.

“Look, Xiao Wei’s here!”

“Hmph. Just wait. Piaopiao will deliver my love letter intact, like a sealed lily.”

“No. My brother will deliver mine, as swift as wind.”

“Your stinky cat brother is useless as a broken umbrella.”

“Nonsense. Your chatterbox Piaopiao is useless as a leaky bucket.”

“Your Blue Cat needs proper training.”

“Your buddy Piaopiao drools more than he drinks tea.”

Somehow, the two started bickering like alley cats. What were they even fighting about?

The two “helpers” saw Xiao Wei getting off work and walked up, grinning like salesmen under neon.

“Heh, miss—”

“Don’t worry, we’re not bad guys. One look at our faces and you know we’re good guys. Why? It’s our innate advantage. We were born this eye-catching, so of course we’re not—”

“Perverts!”

Xiao Wei didn’t even take the letter. She shouted “Perverts!” like a firecracker in dry grass.

“Who’s being a perv! Get out here!”

The next moment stunned everyone. Maya Hanazaka sprinted over from the plaza like a storm front, all thunder and no patience.

“Misunderstanding! Lazy Cat-san was just delivering a love letter for my little brother!”

“I-I-I’m not a bad guy, I—”

“Piaopiao, stop rambling and run!”

“Stop right there, you two creeps!”

“Misunderstanding!”

“Don’t hit me, I’m scared of pain! Ow—don’t—my lumbar can’t take it! Emma, my stomach’s sensitive too!”

Getting chased and smacked down a street feels like hail on bare skin. May the gods watch over those two kids.

The neat little plan fell apart like wet paper. Miaojun and Xingmeng couldn’t believe it. When Maya was done here, her gaze slid to the people hiding behind the wall. Miaojun and Xingmeng looked at each other, then at the yuri heroine across the way. They chose unity.

“Run!”

“Run!”

“So there were accomplices. Don’t run!”

All told, the confession plan failed completely.

It ended before it began, like a candle snuffed at first spark.

“What on earth are they doing over there…”

From a distance, Yun Shi could only think of covering his face. He had nothing else left.

Why did this Christmas feel so absurdly intriguing, like a riddle in tinsel?

“It failed, senpai…”

“Yeah…”

“Maybe think about whose rotten idea it was…”

Yan Er was speechless. A whole evening wasted like sand through fingers. She’d come to enjoy Christmas, not get dragged into this farce.

“Sorry, junior. I must’ve given you a headache.”

At least the high school girl was attentive. She felt sorry for pulling Yan Er into the confession mess for no reason.

“No, it’s fine, senpai. I’m totally fine!”

“But you don’t look fine, like a cloud that won’t move.”

“T-that’s because—”

“Got something on your mind, don’t you,” Kouhu-senpai cut in at the right beat, like a bell struck once.

The words hit Yan Er’s heart like a pebble on still water. Her shoulders sank.

Obviously, she was thinking too much.

“If I’m not wrong, you’re unbalanced inside, right?”

“Eh!?”

How did she know? She’d said nothing, like a closed book.

“Ten to one, your lover neglected you. So you’re resentful, like frost on a leaf.”

“Kouhu-senpai, you’re scarily accurate…”

“Read too many novels,” she muttered, like turning pages in the rain.

It was exactly because of novels that she’d guessed real life, like fiction kissing reality.

“Whatever. It doesn’t matter. You get used to it.”

The yuri girl had always been like this, not only today. You adapt, Yan Er told herself, like feet toughening on a long road.

She’d wanted to spend this rare Christmas together. Maybe she’d expected too much. Better to spend it with Yun Shi, at least he wouldn’t run off to play alone like Maya.

“Looks like you’ve got a weight on your chest.”

“No kidding.”

No need to guess anymore. Anyone could see her worry, like rainclouds over a hill.

People flowed past on the street like a river. Stars sparkled like frost. Laughter rang like bells. Only one heart felt lonely, untouched by the holiday warmth.

“Yan Er-chan, there you are. Honestly, you made me search forever—”

“Maya? You came back?”

She’d been sinking into gloom, and the yuri girl returned as if summoned, like a moth to her candle.

Facing Yan Er’s confusion, Maya didn’t waste words. She pulled out a bag of star-shaped cookies, crinkling like snow.

“For you.”

“What’s this?”

“A gift to exchange. I didn’t prepare anything fancy, so I danced with people and asked for cookies. The events hand out lots of stuff, and it’s all pretty nice.”

“You mean you joined the activities just to get me a gift?”

“…Embarrassing, right? I couldn’t even bring a proper present…”

“No, not at all. The gift may be small, but your heart’s huge. I got it, clear as moonlight. It’s perfect.”

“So, will you take it?”

“Of course! I’ve got a gift to swap too!”

“Really? I can’t wait!”

Without noticing, they circled back to the beginning, like a river finding the sea. The unpleasantness vanished like mist. They were laughing again, faces bright under the night.

“Hey, I’m back with gifts. Who wants to trade?”

“And me!”

Before long, Sham and Mizuki returned from shopping, hands full of bags like harvest baskets, smiles blooming like flowers.

“High schoolers these days are living the good life.”

Kouhu-senpai, a second-year in college, couldn’t help but feel a little wistful, like watching fireflies from a porch.

You’re not old yourself, senpai. Why say that?

The two “helpers,” forgotten by all, tasted loneliness first-hand, like standing in a cold draft.

Neon blazed like daylight. The street roared, joy spilling like wine. Tonight was made for revelers, sleepless till dawn.

Meanwhile, Xiao Wei, the girl everyone forgot, went to check on the two kids Maya had pounded black-and-blue.

Miaojun and Xingmeng were crying with smiles sourer than lemons when their crush appeared, soft as spring rain.

“Are you two okay, senpai?”

They knew each other already, so her calling them senpai wasn’t strange, like a note returning to its chord.

They felt they’d glimpsed holy light—the angels’ glow named hope, dawn cutting through hearts that were almost lost to dusk.

Sour faces cracked open into bright smiles, like winter clouds parting for sun.

"How could I possibly be in trouble, right, Xiao Wei!"

"My body’s tougher than most; how could this little thing trip me up, haha!"

Sure, the confession failed—but the outcome isn’t half bad, is it?

Christmas bells began to ring; the old year bowed out, and a new one stepped in.

Watching everyone find their roost and wear warm smiles, the senior didn’t linger; he headed off to share a Christmas dinner with his senpai.

Yun Shi caught sight of a woman about to leave. She set down her task and stepped in.

"Manager?"

"Hm? Oh—Yun Shi-chan. Long time no see~"

Seeing Yun Shi, she quickly recalled the past, and her smile rose like a gentle moon.

"It really is you, Manager. What are you doing here?"

"It’s Christmas—of course I came out. Even I’m busy tonight."

Her voice held a sigh, like wind through pine, but not a complaint.

"Seeing you doing well, Yun Shi-chan, I can relax."

She meant to chat a while longer, but—

"What are you doing here? Go home."

As she spoke with Yun Shi, a girl in a school uniform tugged her away, brisk as a winter gust.

"Miaomiao? Weren’t you drafting? Why are you out?"

"Not writing. Got rejected. Miaomiao’s mood is stormy!"

"And what’s that got to do with me…"

"Only you went to the signing today, so I’m upset. You have to come home and make me New Year’s Eve dinner."

"B-but I can’t cook…"

"Decided. Let’s go home, Yun Ge~"

"Hey—Senpai, help!"

"Yun Ge-chan’s New Year’s Eve dinner sounds good. I’m coming too!"

Yun Shi watched them leave. Her face stayed still, a quiet lake. Maybe she’d grown used to it. In a crowd like this, it’s hard not to learn the rhythm.

"Oh, Xiao Yun, want to trade gifts?"

Mizuki drew a small box from her coat, like a warm ember from her pocket.

"A gift?"

"Yeah. Don’t want to?"

"...I’m not interested."

"Eh? Really…"

"Right—no interest at all… but if you want, it’s not impossible."

Yun Shi feigned hesitation, the choice balancing like a scale in her hands.

"Then let’s trade. I really want to swap~"

Mizuki was used to Yun Shi’s way—she kept her words measured, soft as falling snow.

"Merry Christmas~"

Yun Shi took the gift. The smile on Mizuki’s face was catching, like a brazier thawing frost; even she felt a curve tug at her lips.

"Merry Christmas." Her words fell soft as snow.

Smiling once in a while isn’t bad, right? Like a lantern lit in a quiet lane.