Chapter Text
A gift for Minori…
Haruka thought back over the past year or so. Meeting Minori was one of the best things she had ever gotten to experience, probably the best thing. Because— because Minori had changed her life, and for that, Haruka would be eternally grateful and indebted. A simple Christmas gift didn’t cover everything she wanted for Minori.
Without Minori, Haruka didn’t even want to think about where she might be now. Probably trying her best to live out the life of a normal teenage girl, ignoring the pointed stares and hushed whispers. She might have been aware that there was something else she was meant to do (meant to be onstage), but too scared to chase her dream again, too scared to reach out and fall, fail.
But Haruka wasn’t scared now, she was chasing her dreams again. All because Minori had been brave enough, kind enough to reach out for Haruka and pull her back onstage again. Haruka had looked at Minori, awash in her signature blue, and her broken heart had stitched itself back together.
Haruka smiled and left the store. No gift could ever encompass the gratefulness she felt for Minori.
A gift for Minori…
Airi had a knack for selecting exactly the right gift that would make people’s eyes light up and exclaim that this was exactly what they wanted, but right now, nothing was coming to mind for Minori. She was meant to get her something that had meaning, right? How was she ever supposed to tell Minori how much she truly meant to Airi?
It hurt, a little (a lot), to see Minori so eager and full of hope. Airi remembered being that young, doe-eyed and long-lashed and oozing innocence, desperate to make an impact. Pity had motivated her to help Minori, but it was the hope that Minori held within her, ever day, that had convinced Airi to continue to pursue her dreams.
Without Minori, she might still have been stuck living a high school girl’s life, staring at the stage she belonged on through a screen, sad eyes and chewed-up lips. But Minori had found her, found Airi at her lowest, and with her inhuman strength and hope, pulled Airi out of her worst insecurities.
So even if Airi snipped and sniped at Minori, it was with a hidden and unbearably fond smile, because without Minori, she would have been in an unimaginable place.
Airi scoffed. The perfect gift for Minori? Found at this dinky little knickknacks store? Unlikely.
Nothing here could ever show Minori how much Airi truly treasured her.
A gift for Minori…
Picking out Christmas gifts, or any gifts in general, was always difficult for Shizuku. She had never had much practice, either, with Shiho never opening any of her messily wrapped presents, and this being her first Christmas with real, true friends. It was hard to find the perfect gift for any of her other friends, but Minori? How ever would Shizuku find Minori a gift that showed how eternally grateful she was?
Because—because Minori had showed her that it didn’t have to hurt, that Shizuku didn’t have to starve and bully and bruise herself to become what she needed to be, that she could just be herself, a concept Shizuku had never believed in before. Minori had pulled her aside and whispered those sweet words, big grey eyes and overflowing hope, smiled at her from behind the camera, and that single smile had allowed Shizuku to push forward.
Nobody had ever done for Shizuku what Minori had, not even Airi. How was she supposed to accurately reflect how she felt about Minori?
Shizuku spun in a circle, looking for the exit to the store. She wouldn’t be able to find anything she needed here.