Inspired by a gorgeous fanart by Tumblr user pervertedequality!


Chiyo walked into her classroom to grab her bag she had left behind, surprised to find Wakamatsu and Mikoshiba in the room and speaking with Seo. They immediately looked up and the boys looked almost panicked at the sight of her, their conversation stopping and confusing her. "Ah? Is there something on my face?"

"No, no, everything is fine!"

"We were just talking about y-!"

Wakamatsu was cut off by a desk sliding into his gut, Seo glaring up at him with her arms crossed, her leg stretched out from kicking the desk into him. She stood up quickly and grabbed her bag, holding it over her shoulder, "We were talking about some of the shops by the train station. You know, there's a stationary store having a sale. You should check it out, it's the kind of things you like."

"Ah! Really? Thank you! I'll definitely go!"

Seo nodded, reaching over to grab Wakamatsu by his tie, dragging him out of the room with a pointed glare that got Mikoshiba to follow them out. Chiyo was suddenly alone in the classroom, shaking her head in confusion. Double-checking that she hadn't left anything behind, she looked up to see Nozaki waiting for her in the doorway, and she smiled brightly at him.

"Ready, Sakura?"

"Mm! Do you mind if we make a stop first, though? Yuzuki told me about a stationary store having a sale, I want to check it out!"

"Oh? That sounds interesting. Let's go."

"Yeah!"

They made their stops to gather up their winter gear and switch into their outdoor shoes, and soon were walking down the street towards the train station. Looking around the shops, Chiyo paused to look into a display, giggling happily and enjoying all of the holiday decorations.

"Hey, you two!" a familiar voice called out, and they turned to see Mikoshiba waving frantically to them and grinning. He pointed up over their heads and called out again, "Look there!"

Chiyo looked up, gasping with surprise and blushing as she noticed the mistletoe above them. Nozaki followed her gaze, blinking at the sight of it and simply taking a picture for later reference. "N-Nozaki-kun...," Chiyo stammered, trying not to sound like she was whining or desperate, but really, did that have to be his first thought upon seeing the mistletoe?

He looked down at her, then back across the street to their friends, noticing where they were standing. He pointed over Mikoshiba and Seo's heads, calling out to them and holding his camera at the ready, "Doesn't that mean you should kiss?"

They looked at each other, and Seo quickly sidestepped, shoving Wakamatsu under the mistletoe with Mikoshiba. Flustered by the shift in attention, Mikoshiba yelled back, "Dammit, Nozaki, just kiss her already!"

Nozaki blinked, looking back up at the mistletoe over their own heads, then down to the blushing Chiyo. Rubbing the back of his neck as shyness overcame him, his cheeks heated and showed red through even the chapping of cold air. "Ah. R-Right. Ahem. Uh. Then, if, you don't mind...?"

"Nn! I-It's tradition, r-right?"

"Yes..."

He leaned down, pausing as their noses brushed, and he met her nervous gaze with his own. Wetting suddenly dry lips, he swallowed thickly and wet his lips again before crossing the last few centimeters separating their lips, shivering from something entirely different than cold.

After what seemed like several minutes but was really only a few seconds, he straightened up, looking down at her dazed expression and the faint blush on her cheeks. He became aware of cheering, and they both turned to see their friends applauding them, and their faces became a much brighter shade of red at all of the attention turned their way. Looking back up at each other, a moment of an almost awkward silence passed between them, neither knowing how to react or what to say, until they both started laughing at the absurd situation.

Laughter subsiding into quiet giggles, Chiyo clasped her hands behind her, smiling brightly up at Nozaki. "Merry Christmas, Nozaki-kun!"

"Nn. Merry Christmas, Sakura."