To Be With You on Christmas

Pairing: Risa x Miya

Genre: Romance/Drama

Disclaimer: I do not own Sono Hanabira/A Kiss for the Petals or any of its characters

"Great," I scoff as I stare at an empty seat in the classroom one afternoon. "She skipped class again didn't she?"

I, Risa Azumi, will not allow this, especially since Christmas is around the corner. She's gonna be a very naughty girl this Christmas unless I settle things with that girl. I stomp over to where she usually hangs around, the Atelier. I knock on the door a few times and wait.

"It's open," a calm voice says.

I proceed to enter the room and see that my lover, Miya Ayase, is just having some hot chocolate with some cookies placed on the table.

"Oh, hello, Risa," she says. "Fancy seeing you here."

I put my hands on my hips. "You know you skipped class again, right?"

"I know. It's just that I don't need to take that class. I'm perfectly fine here."

"We've got a test coming up in a few days!" I shout. "And you should be studying, not sit there, eating cookies and drinking hot cocoa!"

"Speaking of which, want to try one, Risa? I made them myself."

I take a look at the cookies, which were decorated with some green icing and pictures of Santa, the elves and some other pictures that are Christmas related. To be honest, those had caught my interest since I got here. "W-well, I could at least have a bite . . ."

"Go on. Go on. Try it," Miya offers, handing me a cookie. "You may. I've at least made enough for the both of us."

I take the cookie and take a bite of it. The creamy icing melts in my mouth, making the taste so wonderful along with the cookie itself. "Oh, wow! It tastes so good!" I exclaim. "You make amazing Christmas cookies, Miya!"

My lover giggles. "Thank you. I just made these about yesterday, so I decided to bring them today to try them out and . . . to have you try them out for yourself."

"Th-thanks," I say quietly as I finish the cookie. "A-anyway, you have to come back to class. We have one final test in a few days before Christmas. So you better leave here before class starts."

Miya calmly sighs. "You just don't get it, do you, Risa?"

"I exactly get it!" I yell. "You just want to skip class because Christmas is coming, so you don't want to do anything in class during that time, is that it?"

Miya shakes her head. "No, that's not it at all. Like I said earlier, I don't need to attend that class. I already know that I need to know in there."

Oh, that's right. Miya is a genius. I totally forgot. "W-well, regardless of that, you still need to attend! Your grade is gonna drop greatly if you don't! That's the worst thing to have before Christmas starts."

"By the way, what are you gonna do for Christmas, Risa?" Miya asks suddenly.

"Oh! Um, well . . . nothing much, really," I reply. "I mean, um, my mother's out of town right now, so, um, yeah. That's how I'm spending my Christmas. What about you?" I'm hoping to spend my Christmas with Miya, but I had decided to make sure she doesn't have any plans.

Miya hesitates for a bit as her calm expression turns a bit serious for a second. "Well . . . I may or may not have some plans, but I'm not too sure."

"Oh, I see," I say.

"But if I don't have any plans, there is only one thing I want to do. And that is spending Christmas with you."

I brighten as soon as I hear her say that. "You will!?"

"Only if I don't have any plans," Miya says as she smiles at me. "After all, we're a couple, so we're supposed to spend our Christmas together."

"O-of course we do," I stutter while turning away, feeling my face getting warm. "A-anyway, you better focus on your studies for now. Christmas plans can wait, got it?"

"Yes, yes," Miya says. "Oh, and before you go, why don't we share a good-bye kiss, shall we?"

"U-uh, I think I'll pass," I say, backing away a little.

"Oh, you know you want to," Miya says, smirking. She stands up from the table and walks toward me.

"W-wait, I think I'm gonna be late for my next class if I don't hurry!"

"Don't worry. It'll a quick one." She steps closer and closer to me until I get pinned against the wall.

I turn away while feeling my face getting warm. "M-Miya, y-you're too close . . ."

"Don't you think I'm close enough?" the blue haired girl whispers. She starts leaning in. "Risa . . ."

"N-no, Miya . . . Mmph!"

Once she starts touching my lips, it's done. I soon give up resisting and return the kiss. I wrap my arms around her while still kissing her. This lasts for about a minute before pulling away and both of us stare lovingly at each other.

"I love you, Risa," she whispers.

"I love you, too, Miya."

Now I have to admit: this is a great start for the holidays. No matter how naughty Miya can be, she's still my lover and always will be.

Bong! Bong! Bong!

I jump in shock once I hear the school bell. "Oh, no! I'm gonna be so late!" I quickly push Miya away, grab my bag and head for the door. "Come to class, Miya! You're gonna be late!"

Miya waves her hand while smiling. "No, I think I'm good."

"Miya!"

"Like I said, I know what I need to know from that class. So, you can go on ahead."

I grit my teeth as I growl under my breath. That girl, I swear I'm gonna make her pay! I think to myself. "Alright, fine! But just hope that you get good grades later on! Because skipping class is NOT an option!"

"Yes, yes. You'd better get going, Risa. Class starts in a couple of minutes."

I sigh heavily as I reluctantly leave the atelier. I've got to make sure she has her not skipping class on her New Year's Resolution list once we get back from Christmas break!

By the time school ends, I immediately leave the classroom and head over to the atelier. I open the door to greet Miya when I notice her staring at the window, watching the snow flakes fall. When I come closer, her expression is even more serious than earlier. I wonder what's up.

"Miya?" I say. "Want to walk home together?"

"Sure." she says, bluntly. "Let's go."

I stare at her with a worried look before turning and leaving the atelier with Miya following me. The whole way back, Miya didn't say a word. Even if I try to bring up a conversation, Miya would just give out one word answers and then not pay any attention to me. That's when I knew something is up, so I stop in my tracks and put my hand on Miya's shoulder.

"Risa?" she says as she turns around. "What's wrong?"

"That's my line," I say. "You haven't said a word the whole way back. And I keep wondering if there's anything that's going on. Is there?"

Miya hands down her head for a bit before glancing at me. "Risa . . . I'm afraid . . . I'm not going to spend Christmas with you."

I felt as if a dagger stabbed directly at my heart. "Wh-what?"

"You see, my family wants me to attend a Christmas party downtown. To greet some guests and help them out with the decorations and stuff. It's gonna be a very busy day."

"Oh . . . I see," I say quietly.

"I'm so sorry, Risa," Miya apologizes, taking my hands in her own. "I wish I could spend it with you, but . . . sometimes, things change."

"N-no, it's okay," I reply, feeling the need to cry, which I don't want to in front of my girlfriend. "Family comes first, right?"

"I guess . . ."

Both of us look down at the ground for a minute before looking back at each other. Neither of us wanted to let go nor leave each other's sight. With Mother out of town, I have to spend Christmas alone. Without Miya. What can I do then?

"Well . . . I hope you have a good Christmas then," I say quietly.

"Same to you," Miya says.

We stare at each other for the last few minutes before parting ways. But halfway to my home, I stop and turn. Miya is not even there anymore. I could feel tears trying to force their way out as I stare at where Miya would have been. I guess there's nothing I could do about it. I have to spend Christmas alone all day. And all I've wanted was to spend it with her. To spend Christmas with the one I love. Now, that plan is spoiled. After wiping them with my sleeve, I head home to start on the Christmas decorations.

For the next few days, neither Miya or I spoke to each other. I was too focused on my studies while Miya is doing whatever she's doing. But mostly because . . . both of us are spending Christmas apart. I mean, it's not really bad once you think about it. But wanting to spend Christmas with the one you love is probably really important to both of us. And it's probably important to our friends at St. Michaels as well. But when it comes to family plans, I know that it will spoil our plans as well. I was even thinking about it while taking my test that afternoon. And though I tried to focus on the test, Miya keeps appearing on my mind. Her mentioning about attending a family party must have affected me greatly and I found it hard to concentrate on certain stuff. But I managed to finish the test with just a few minutes to spare.

As the bell rings, I immediately leave the classroom and try to head home to finish decorations when I stop and look back. Miya must be in the atelier by now, but I didn't want to go. It'll be too sad to see her, even if I wanted to. Miya . . . I wish you could still be with me and not attend that party.

"Risa-san?" a gentle voice says from behind me. "Is something the matter?"

I turn around to see a beautiful blonde girl with small red ribbons attached on both sides of her head. "Yuuna-sama? What are you doing here?"

"I was going to prepare for the Environmental Protection Committee when I suddenly noticed you standing there, looking like you're about to cry." Yuuna-sama comes over and smiles at me. "Do you want to talk about it?"

I nod as both of us walk to a nearby bench and sit on it. I look down at the floor as I try to find something proper to say to my upperclassman. And then, when it came to me, I told her everything.

"Oh, I see," Yuuna-sama says, nodding in understanding. "So, Miya-san has family plans and you're gonna spend Christmas alone because your mother's out of town. Well, that's not good."

"Yes," I reply. "And it's not fun spending Christmas alone. I want Miya to stay by my side on Christmas Day. But this whole, family thing got in the way."

Yuuna-sama smiles weakly. "Well, sometimes family always comes first, you know? And I'm sure Miya-san knows that as well."

I just nod.

"I don't know if I can be much help, but at the very least, please wish Miya-san a Merry Christmas before she goes attending that party."

I shake my head as tears fall freely from my eyes. "B-but . . . that will be too sad. I don't want to wish her a Merry Christmas and then have to spend it alone just thinking about her all day! It's just . . . awful! Why can't we spend our Christmas together!?" With that, I plunge into Yuuna-sama's chest, sobbing my heart out.

I feel her stroking my hair while whispering, "Like I said, family comes first, so there's nothing you could do about it. Now, I know it's really painful to spend your Christmas alone, but you have to sometimes realize that things don't go the way you want them to be. You just have to go with it and probably move on."

"I understand that, but Miya and I had promised each other earlier," I say to Yuuna-sama. "So, it's really hard for me to move on when things like this happen."

"I understand, too," Yuuna-sama says, gently. She gives me a calm smile. "I've . . . been through something like this before, so I know what you're talking about."

"Really? How so?"

"Well . . . it's sort of difficult to explain, but all I could say is that I was in the same situation as Miya-san did. But everything still went well for the two of us." She winks at me. "So, there's no giving up now. You might still have a chance."

I look at her confused as she stands up. "Wait, what do you mean?"

Yuuna-sama just closes her eyes while still smiling. "I think it's best if you figured it out. Like I said, I've been through this before. So . . . I wish you two a very Merry Christmas." With that, she leaves.

I'm left standing there, still confused to what she had said. What does she mean I still have a chance? Miya's attending the party, so there's no way she'll be able to spend Christmas with me. That's just not possible. Still, I want to go with what Yuuna-sama said and see if she's telling the truth. With that in mind, I walk home, still thinking about it.

At long last, Christmas Eve came. I had set up everything for Christmas, plus some Christmas cookies left for Santa when he comes tonight. However, there's still one missing from the puzzle: Miya. Maybe she's attending the party during that time since it's late afternoon, probably greeting the guests. I'm guessing she's spending Christmas there after all. As I rest my head on the table, I look at the clock, which says 5:30 pm. I've spent the whole day shopping, decorating the rest of the house and cooking that I felt completely exhausted from all the work. And now all I can think about is Miya. I hope she's enjoying her time at her home while I'm all alone here at my house. Maybe if I sleep, I can forget about all this and wake up the next morning, feeling refreshed.

But just as I'm about to close my eyes, I hear the doorbell ring. I reluctantly get up from the table and open the front door. But the person standing by the door is . . .

"M-MIya!" I exclaim.

"Hello, Risa," she greets. "Were you waiting for me?"

"B-but what about the party!? Didn't you say that you were gonna stay there!?"

"I decided to leave the party for a while," Miya replies. "Besides, it's gonna get boring once the party starts. Greeting the guests was just exhausting."

I . . . I don't believe it. Miya came to visit me . . . for my sake! Yuuna-sama was telling the truth after all!

"MIYAAAAAAA!" I sob as I plunge into her chest.

"R-Risa?" Miya is taken aback from what I'm doing. "Why are you crying?"

"I'm so glad! I'm so glad that you came!" I reply, still sobbing. "I was starting to have doubts that you'll never come but *sniff* you did! You actually came!"

It is then that Miya pulls me up and gently wipes the tears form my cheek. "Of course I did. Why wouldn't I come for my beloved Risa on Christmas? You were going to be alone spending it, so I decided to leave and vist you instead."

"Thank you, Miya," I say. "Thank you so much!"

Miya nods as she leans in and touches my lips. I immediately return the kiss and both of us continue this wonderful moment for about a minute until both of us pull away, staring lovingly at each other.

"Merry Christmas, Risa."

"Merry Christmas to you, too, Miya."

Despite everything that's going on, my lover had come to spend Christmas with me after all. It was the best gift I could have ever have.

A/N: Hey, everyone! I've decided to write a Christmas story featuring Risa x Miya. And what got me into writing this was listening to Josh Groban's "I'll Be Home For Christmas". And this is based on the Yuuna x Nanami light novel Our Christmas Together, so that's why I added Yuuna in there.

So, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and Merry Christmas to all of you! ;)