Stella leaned against the wall. Luca had told her to find Yukiya, but the boy had vanished. She furrowed her brow as she thought of where he might've gone. As she scanned the crowd of students, it hit her.

She ran off to get her fur cloak from the coat check. She put it on as she walked outside. It seemed to be growing colder, so many students began making their way inside. Stella had a hard time going against the flow of the students. As she approached the forest, she saw a familiar figure up ahead.

"Yukiya!" she called, "Wait!"

He stopped at the sound of her voice and turned around. The girl hurried up to him and took his hand.

"Come on, Yukiya. Let's head inside and drink something warm," she urged, gently pulling on his arm.

"It's loud in there," the boy replied.

"But you'll catch a cold. We can hang out somewhere quiet, if you'd like."

He thought for a moment, then gave a short nod. Stella smiled as she led him inside by the hand. Just as they had expected, it was even louder inside than it had been before. Yukiya was already looking uncomfortable. Stella looked around until she saw an empty area behind some of the columns. It was quieter there and far less crowded. The boy seemed to relax as he leaned back against the wall.

"See? It's not so bad here." Stella smiled up at him.

"Yeah." He nodded.

Yukiya looked out at the people. At first glance, he looked expressionless, but Stella could see a content gleam in his eyes. Leaning her head against the column across from him, Stella looked up.

"Oh!" she cried, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"What is it?" Yukiya asked.

Pointing up, she gave him an awkward smile.

"Mistletoe..." she murmured.

Some time has passed since then and I made a contract to help with his. But still... he rejected me the first time I confessed.

She would like to kiss him, Stella had to admit, but she didn't want to make Yukiya uncomfortable.

"Haha! Don't panic. No one saw us. We don't have to k-kiss if you don't want to! I mean, if yo-" As she grew flustered, she looked for a distraction, "Oh, hey! There's Luca! Maybe I should go say hi again. You know, he is here by himself! Haha!"

I am a fool. I sound like a moron... I... I need to go hide somewhere.

Stella straightened her back and started moving stiffly. Just as she'd stepped out of the shadows, a hand grabbed her arm. Turning around, she found Yukiya staring at the ground with red cheeks.

"Don't go... please..."

Stella blushed as she turned to face him.

"O-Okay. No problem."

She walked back behind the column and leaned back. Yukiya returned to his spot, too.

"Sorry," he apologized after a moment, "I don't want to make you uncomfortable. If you want to go, it's fine."

"No, no! I thought I was making you uncomfortable! I'm happy to spend time with you!"

She smiled brightly at him and his face softened. Reaching out, she took hold of one of his hands. She leaned in with a grin.

"Do you want to try dancing? I'm not sure how to ballroom dance, but I can show you other ones I've learned."

"Alright."

Yukiya stepped forward, moving as though he were about to go to the dance floor, then stopped. He tightened his grip on her hand and looked at her.

"Can I kiss you?"

"W-What?" Stella stared at him. "Why?"

Yukiya nodded his head towards the space above them.

"Oh, the mistletoe?" Stella stopped and thought.

Well... This is a good excuse. And he's the one who asked!

Her cheeks turned red as she nodded. Fluttering her eyes shut, Stella leaned in. She felt him slowly move closer. Very, very slowly. Her racing heart picked up speed when she felt his breath on her lips.
And then his lips touched hers.

It was a light kiss, just quick contact. They drew back and opened their eyes. They smiled shyly at one another for a few moments.

"Alright," Stella said after quietly clearing her throat, "that was... nice."

"Yeah..."

She scratched her cheek.

"Shall we dance?" she asked.

"Yes." Yukiya nodded.

He offered his hand and Stella smiled as she took it. They walked to the dance floor and stopped. Stella reached out and took his hands.

"Let's just have fun," she said.

"I have fun just being around you," Yukiya replied with warm eyes.

"Yukiya!" she mockingly gasped, "I didn't know you were such a flirt!"

"I only said the truth."

Giggling, she started to sway. Yukiya mimicked her movements, though somewhat clumsy about it. The longer they danced, the smoother his movements became. Soon enough, he was keeping pace with her.

"Alright, Yukiya! I'm gonna make it more complicated!"

She began twirling, and the boy repositioned his hands to help her maintain her balance. She made him turn a few times, as well. Dancing and turning, they paid no mind to their surroundings.

"Hey, careful!" cried one of the students.

Snapped out of their reverie, the pair realized they had somehow made their way to the middle of the dance floor. They looked around in surprise. Stella began laughing.

"Wow! I didn't realize we were so into it!"

"Neither did I," Yukiya smiled back.

"Shall we dance some more and see where we end up next?" Stella asked with a giggle.

He offered his hands.

"Yes, that sounds fun," he chuckled back.

With a smile lighting up her face, she took his hands. They continued their dance, the world around them practically fading away.
That is, until they knocked into some students carrying food. The drinks didn't stain anyone's clothes, as they'd used magic to clean them.

"Maybe we should go take a break," Yukiya suggested.

"Alright!"

He took her hand and began walking back to the couches, where some students had begun to fall asleep. As soon as they sat down, Yukiya faced sideways and dropped his head onto Stella's lap. Though she was caught off guard at first, she began smiling as she ran her fingers through his blue hair.

"I had fun today," she whispered.

"...Me, too..."

Then, he began snoring. As he curled up his body, Stella couldn't help giggling.

Maybe I still have a chance.