“So what did you ask for, Himari?” Shoma asked, blushing.
“Well…” Back then, what she wanted was a big, poofy princess dress with a glittery pale blue-layered skirt. But what she asked for was something entirely different.
“Himari?” Shoma tilted his head.
At the top of the little Christmas tree was a big yellow origami star. She already had a set of colored pencils that she took good care of, and as long as she had her pink teddy bear, she didn’t need any other plush toys.
“Himari, what’s wrong?”
Kanba offered her the gift box, wrapped in star-patterned paper with red and green ribbons. The three gifts were all different sizes, each with a card attached that had the recipient’s name clearly written on it, and the room was filled with the chilly excitement of Christmas.
“I don’t remember asking for something this big.” Himari grabbed the box with both hands, raised it to her ear, and shook it. “Is my gift really in there?”
“Of course it is! You earned it for being good!” Shoma shouted excitedly.
“Yeah, Dad said so,” Kanba chimed in.
“But…” She found it hard to believe. Had she really earned whatever magical gift was contained inside this giant box? Even then, there was no guarantee it was something she actually wanted.
“Oh, you’re all awake,” Chiemi commented as she slid the door open. Himari took one look at her mother’s beautiful smile and started to cry.
“Mom, we got presents!” Shoma exclaimed happily.
“Himari’s so shocked, she can’t even remember what she asked for,” Kanba laughed, shaking his head, as he crouched beside her.
“You can’t remember? Oh dear. Well, you’ve been a very good girl, so I’m sure it’s something nice.” Chiemi bent down and stroked Himari’s hair.
“Really? Have I really been good?” she asked, anxious from the bottom of her heart.
“What’s the matter, Himari? What are you so worried about?”
Chiemi smiled softly and stroked Himari’s tear-soaked cheek with her soft, cool fingers. Meanwhile, the tears kept falling.
“Aww, sweetheart, why are you crying? I know for a fact you’ve been a good girl, and Santa knows it, too. Come here.”
Himari sprang out of the futon and onto Chiemi’s lap, clinging to her and breathing in the smell of her sweater until the fear (and tears) went away.
“Don’t cry, Himari.”
“You don’t have to feel bad! Let’s open the gifts!”
Her brothers came over to reassure her, and by that point her feelings swelled up so much that they started leaking out of the room.
“What’s wrong?” Kenzan asked quietly, peering in through the open door. “Is Himari crying?”
“I’m afraid so. It sounds like she’s scared that she didn’t earn her Christmas present. Is that right, Himari?”
There in her mother’s arms, she shook her head slightly. Truth be told, she knew she hadn’t been a good girl. She knew about Shoma’s fears and Kanba’s suffering, but she didn’t do a thing. She was powerless.
“I didn’t, Mom. I’m not a good girl… Kan-chan left us… I was a bad girl, and now the whole family’s split apart!”
In a blink, Himari was suddenly her teenage self again, sitting on the warm blanket, surrounded by her family from days gone by.
“There’s nothing to cry about. Come on, let’s all open our gifts together. There might be something fun in there!” Chiemi insisted matter-of-factly, smiling softly as she took Himari by the hand and reached for her gift.
“So what did you ask for?” Shoma repeated.
“Let’s open ’em right now!” Kanba’s small, warm hand gently cupped her face.
Himari slowly untied the ribbons and neatly peeled off the wrapping paper. Inside was a white box with a lid. Before she opened it, she glanced around at the others. They were all smiling at her.
“I’ll try to be a good girl from now on,” she mumbled as she lifted the lid. “So please…”
Her family cheered. Inside the box was a multitude of stars, shining so bright she could scarcely keep her eyes open, blowing her hair back, making it sparkle. Chiemi’s distant voice lingered warmly in her ears: See? You were such a good girl. Enshrined in light, Himari’s tears dried up.
I’ll never call myself powerless ever again, she thought to herself. I refuse to give up, even if it kills me.
Yuri sat in a chair beside Tabuki’s hospital bed, thinking about how he must have felt when he shielded her from the attack.
As far as she knew, the two of them were never in love, but…that night at the ramen shop, when a black-clad Yuuki Tsubasa tried to stab her, Tabuki stepped in to take the blow. The knife sank deep into his gut, and when she pulled it out again, his blood chased after the blade, falling to the floor in an arc.
“How could you?!” Yuri screamed, glaring at Yuuki.
“It…it’s not my fault! I loved you, but you betrayed me! In love and sin, you’re always baroque!” Yuuki screamed, her complexion ashen.
“Then pick up that knife and stab me, too!” Yuri deeply regretted the way she had treated Yuuki’s heart like a plaything, especially now that she saw the devastating repercussions of her faux-romance. “Either way, your life as an actress is over!”
Trembling, Yuuki fled the building, leaving the bloody knife behind.
“Tabuki-kun!”
Instead of chasing after Yuuki, Yuri bent down beside Tabuki and touched his wound. As he groaned in pain, she silently vowed to save him at all costs. She needed him.
“Yuri, I finally realized something,” he said after a moment, forcing a smile, his forehead slick with sweat.
“Don’t talk! You can tell me all about it later, so for right now, just hold on!”
If he had died at that moment, she probably would have followed suit shortly afterward. Never mind beauty or ugliness—she would have thrown it all away in a heartbeat. The memories of her time with him and Momoka were the only thing keeping Tokikago Yuri sane.
“You look so relaxed,” she laughed to herself as she watched him sleep. Just then, he stirred awake. Their eyes met, and they smiled at each other.
“Did you say something?” he asked calmly.
“No, not at all. I was just thinking I wouldn’t mind taking a bath with you.”
She was wearing an oversized beige cashmere dress with black ankle-length leggings and black high-heeled ankle boots, and her hair was tied back in a tight ponytail—a modest look with no statement jewelry. She was wearing only a small amount of makeup with a gray-beige manicure. No wedding ring.