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Everyone thinks Christmas is a fun time for everyone. I mean, who wouldn’t? Most people also think Christmas is the most magical during your childhood, when you still believed in Santa and would receive many more presents than everyone else in your family since you were that young. Of course, there were those less fortunate who only got a present or two, or out on the streets, but most people would still find a way to make the holiday magical.
–
Mafuyu’s Christmases as a child were usually as expected. Though, it was strange all the same. A weird mix of regular and irregular, so whenever Mafuyu looked back on them there weren't many things that came to mind.
Mafuyu woke up at a regular time, she was around nine years old. She would silently creep into her parents room, shake her father lightly, and smile when he woke up. He’d pat her head, but turn around to wake up her mother right after, and while she was grumpy, she still had a small smile on her face. Mafuyu wouldn’t say a word, just smiling and humming to herself as she moved down to the living room and the presents under the tree. Her stocking was filled with more fruit than chocolate, though she’d noticed that Santa had barely touched what she’d left out.
She opened her presents one by one, making sure to say thank you and read every single card thoroughly. Then she’d carefully unwrap the presents, making sure not to make so much noise or mess. She’d smile, give her thanks and appreciation, then neatly stack the gifts next to her to take upstairs later. It was all so monotone and quiet, as her mother would only occasionally comment.
But that was really it. After she’d finished all of that, her parents wouldn’t say much else. She’d take her gifts up to her room, store them away and not much else. No big dinner or watching movies, no crackers or paper hats. But she was still happy. She’d gotten some nice things, she’d gotten a lot of nice things that she appreciated. But it was all so samey and monotone. It never changed. It's why, after all of that, she didn’t really like the holidays much after all.
Mafuyu stared into the starry sky, not smiling at all. These were her circumstances
–
Saki, on the other hand, wished she had that when she was young. Half of hers were spent in the hospital.
One particular Christmas she noted was when she was about eight. She’d been rushed into the hospital on Christmas eve, and was held there until just before new years eve. Her brother had managed to plead with the nurses enough to stay the night, and her parents had left a stack of presents in the corner of her room.
On Christmas morning, she woke up with her brother sharing her bed with her. He’d probably snuck in when everyone was asleep and nobody had bothered to move him. The two of them giggled away to each other, before Tsukasa got down to grab her present from him, a weirdly stitched doll. But she refused to open any presents until their parents were here. Tsukasa would put on a little show in the meantime, entertaining themselves whilst Saki was served breakfast. Their parents arrived shortly after with a few more bags, which were more presents from the family. Saki was happy then. She got to open her presents first, frantically tearing at the paper and cheering at everything she got. She couldn’t keep everything in the hospital room unfortunately, but she could choose a handful of items.
After Tsukasa opened his, it had soon turned to lunch and she was served a christmas lunch with warm vegetable broth. Hospital food wasn’t that great all things considered, but there had clearly been a little extra effort put into this. She’d also gotten a few sweets snuck through by her brother.
Obviously, she couldn’t be there all day, as the nurse had to come in and do some routine check ups, and since Saki was still coughing a lot she needed to be taken out for a little for extra things. But that day she was in good health.
But of course everyone had to leave at some point. After her dinner, Tsukasa had to be taken home and Saki had to stay another night just to be clear of things. She was left on her own again. She wished she wasn’t.
Saki stared through the window at the night sky. These were her circumstances.
–
The two of them were 16 now. Christmas was fast approaching. Saki had gotten so much better and was in a band now! She had picked out gifts for all of her friends, and was walking home in the dark, the sun already having set an hour earlier. She had nothing but a smile on her face and red on her cheeks, as snow was gently falling.
Mafuyu was also walking home alone in the dark. She’d also been to the shops, where she was trying to get something for the extra special person she lived with that wasn’t her mother or father. She wasn’t sure if she’d even like it, but Mafuyu has since carried on. Mafuyu had also matured a lot since she was young. She lived with her musical partner and had since ran away from her mother. And bit by bit she was slowly recovering herself. She didn’t smile, though that was just her usual face without her mask. She liked the snow too, though she didn’t like walking home in it.
The two girls walked past each other. They knew each other briefly through Honami and Ichika, but not enough to be friends. Though Saki stopped and looked back at Mafuyu, having the faintest idea of who she was. She smiled sweetly at her, despite Mafuyu ignoring her. Saki watched her disappear into the snow, and she watched the Christmas lights start to blind her. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath for a second before carrying on in the direction she was headed.
Both girls had changed. For better or worse, who knew. Their Christmases were shining brighter, and arguably, they’d both recovered some magic that they couldn’t have when they were young children. If they had met under the right circumstances, they probably would’ve been good friends. But even so, one thing was true
Their circumstances had changed, and they had certainly changed for the better.