Hi everyone. Really, really sorry for the long wait. But now, I'm back! There was a reason why it took me longer to update this chapter, and no, it wasn't just writer's block. When it comes to a chapter that deals with the romantic parts is when I'm stuck. I can do with action, but the more less adventurous chapters is what I have more trouble with. However, next chapter won't be like that. Anyway, enjoy.


Chapter 42: Christmas Joy

-Pearl Waters-

The day before Christmas Eve, Lucia, Hanon, Rina, Seira, and Sakura went to school. Julie stayed home today for she still felt pain on her back thanks to the wounds Shika gave her a couple of days ago. Because it being so painful, she felt the briars are urging her to let them protect her.

'No, it's okay. I'm in no harm.' Julie mentally told the vines. Despite she has calmed them, she can still felt the vines are not retreating.

She was about to walk to the bath house when she saw Akari.

"Hi Julie." Akari replied. Julie just gave her a small smile. "Are you entering the bath, can I joined you?"

Julie simply nodded and enters the bath with the White Mermaid Princess. Upon making contact with the hot water, they reverted back into mermaid form. It was very quiet and there were only sounds of water splashing.

"I'm guessing something is in your mind, right?" Julie suddenly spoke.

"Yeah, I missed my little sister. I wonder if Yuki is okay." Akari admit.

"She's doing fine. After all, she will visit Seira for her birthday. She will come, one way or another." Julie smiled.

"What about you?" Akari asked.

"Eh?"

"Something also is bothering you, too. Am I right?" Akari questioned.

"I guess I can't fooled you. Yes, something is bothering me." Julie replied.

"Is it about Satoru?" Akari guessed.

"Partially, yes." Julie answered. She looked down at to stare at the water, "Since we are the 'Original Mermaid Princesses', our elements are a part of us. Yours is Light, Yuki's Dark, and mine is Fire. However, I lost my fire now that I've been reborn as the Red Mermaid Princess."

"Yet, you are given the power of roses by Terra Elena." Akari reminded her.

"Yes, and because of it, my life force is linked to all roses. I protect them by being like the essence of them, while the flowers in return, protect me whenever I'm under a threat." Julie explained.

"You look at it as if it was a bad thing." Akari noted.

"Not bad, more a bit troublesome." Julie corrected. "When I'm not in control, they can be a bit... Overprotected of me."

"It can't be helped." Akari replied.

"Yes..." Julie trailed off as she dried herself with her towel. Returning to human form, she told her childhood friend, "I'm going for a little walk, you want to join me?"

"Sure." Akari answered as she also reverted back into human form.

Once they both changed to more suitable outfits, the two ventured outside.

-Shore-

The girls walked on the shoreline of the beach as the air became more chiller than usual.

"Looks like Yuki's powers are growing stronger." Akari comment on the cold.

"Hopefully, she can make it cold enough for it to snow. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve." Julie joked.

'And also the day when Satoru is suppose to come.' she added in thought.

"Julie!" a voice called out to her.

The Red Mermaid Princess looked up to see her selkie friend, Taiyo. However, because he is in human form, he doesn't have his selkie fur.

"Taiyo!" Julie exclaimed as she ran to hug her dear friend.

"It's been a while, how are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm doing well." she answered.

"I see. Hello, Akari." he took notice of the White Mermaid Princess.

"It's great to meet you, Taiyo. Julie has told me a lot about you." Akari replied.

"Taiyo, can you..." Julie started to whisper something into Taiyo's ears.

"Sure, I can take you to that place." he answered. "If you're sure he'll come."

"I'm sure that he'll know where I'll be." Julie confirms.

"Oh, is this about Satoru? Are you planning for someplace romantic?" Akari teased.

"Stop teasing me." the Red Princess quietly spoke as her cheeks turned pink.

The two spent the rest of the day going christmas shopping, buying christmas presents and birthday gifts for their lucky friend. On their way home, Akari kept teasing her friend while Julie would just ignore her, though it was hard to do so. She had bought her present for both Satoru and Seira. Now, all she had to do is wait.

The next day...

"Hurry, today is Christmas Eve!" Lucia exclaimed as she practically slipped on the carpet because of her excitement.

"It's also getting close to Seira's Birthday." Rina reminded her.

"I can't wait to see Karen's date with Subaru." Hanon squealed.

'Today is the day...' Julie thought anxiously as she came down stairs. She was wearing a red dress that reached to her knees and a denim jacket that had some jewels embedded in them. She had her hair tied in a simple side ponytail. She didn't join the other girls and immediately sneaked outside to meet up with Taiyo.

Taiyo took her to the town, where there was a large christmas tree. As she played around with her heart key necklace Satoru gave to her, she looked back at her memories of the time that he once showed her. He had taken her to many places back when they were children, but one of her favorite places was the town square where the people would have the large green tree that was decorated with many cute things.

'If I didn't left that time, I would have waited for him here...' she thought.

The Red Princess waited until it was getting dark. She would watched the clock tower in anxiousness, worried if he won't be able to make it this time either.

-Satoru's House-

The fifteen year old was getting ready. He remembered his promise to his Red Mermaid Princess and he wasn't planing on breaking it again. It had been constantly reminding him in his mind. As he dressed up for the night, he started to ran out the door.

'Julie, I will come to you.' he thought as he ran.

He doesn't know where he was to meet up with Julie, but he had a pretty good idea where she would go. Halfway towards the town, he receive a phone call from Chisaki.

"Hello, Chisaki." he answered the phone.

"Satoru, do you remember?" she asked through the phone.

"What?" he questioned.

"You and I will have to leave soon. Remember? We were going to move to America for a better school." she reminded him.

"Oh..." he trailed off.

"Don't tell me you have forgotten?" she asked.

"No, it's just that... I don't want to leave." he answered.

"I figured you said that. I was going to wait to asked for a later time, but I guess I'll tell you now. Tomorrow, I'll be leaving the country for America. I'm giving you two choices: you can come to America with me or stay here and be with... Julie." she gave him her ultimatum.

"As much as it was my dream to go to America, I think I'll stay here." he answered.

"You're staying here? So... You decided to choose Julie..." Chisaki trailed off in slight disappointment.

"I'm sorry." he apologized.

"If... If Julie never did came, would you pick me?" she asked.

"It was Julie who changed my life. If she never came to my life, I would have not survived back then. She was the one who saved my life and changed my views on the many things she had experienced." he explained.

"I see... Farewell, Satoru." she said her goodbye as she hung up on the phone.

In her backyard, Chisaki leaned behind a wall and stared at the sky.

"Your lucky, Julie. To have Satoru's love and loyalty." she comment.

The fourteen year old decided to let go of her childhood friend and find someone else to love. After all, ever since Julie had left Satoru as children, he would missed and yearned for her. Chisaki went back inside to pack her stuff for she will be leaving tonight. Why wait for tomorrow when she should just leave tonight?

Meanwhile, Satoru continued running towards the large christmas tree that came into his view. However, he noticed the clock tower, it's large hand reach 55. He only has five minutes before it strikes midnight, before it becomes Christmas Day!

'Wait for me Julie, please!' he hoped as he started running again.

Julie waited and would looked at the clock eventually. The large hand is slowly moving that it was like torture as she waits in worry. She decided to distracted herself with her key necklace when the sound of the bell caught her attention. She stands up to see the clock has stuck midnight. Looking around, she tried to find her love, but he was no where in sight.

'He didn't came again...' Julie thought in disappointment.

She turned sadly to take her present, clutching it in her hands firmly. She was about to leave when she head someone call out to her.

"Julie!"

The Red Mermaid Princess turned to see Satoru running towards her. As he is getting closer to her, she hid her present in her jacket.

She gasped, not thinking that he'd come, "Satoru..."

"I'm sorry I'm late." he told her. "What's this?" he asked as he noticed that something is wrong. His Red Princess was crying.

"I'm sorry." she spoke quietly. "I thought that you'd not going to come again... Just like that time."

"You don't have to apologize, I'm the one who is sorry. I was the one who made you worried." he assures her. "Come on, let's go." he took her hand and took her away from the town so they can be somewhere quiet.

"Where are you taking me?" Julie questioned in slight curiosity.

"You'll see." Satoru replied. Along the way, he had Julie covered her eyes. "You can opened your eyes now."

Julie opened her eyes to see an amazing sight. It was a grassy field, where the moonlight shines brightly in the sky. The stars twinkling beautifully as they sit on the grass. However, what really astonished Julie is the many flowers blooming in the fields. Her favorites: roses.

"It's just like back then." she comments.

"I would have taken you to a place similar to this if I had come to you on time." Satoru admitted. He picked a red rose and placed it in Julie's hair. The Red Mermaid Princess blushed as she stared at her childhood friend. "You know... Chisaki called. She wanted me to go with her to America."

"What happen?"

"I didn't go with her." he answered. "I had somewhere else to go and do."

"And you choose me." she whispered as she continue to gaze into his eyes.

"Yes." he whispered back, returning her gaze.

Smiling, Julie took her present from her pocket. "Here, I wanted to give you this. It's your Christmas present and since it's now Christmas Day, Merry Christmas."

"Can I opened it?" he asked as she nodded. He opened his present to reveal a rose on a golden chain.

"I know it's not much, but since you gave me my heart necklace, I thought of giving you a necklace also."

"I love it." he answered in delight.

"Really?" Julie was shocked.

"Yes." he smiled as he returned to gaze into her eyes again as she does the same.

They slowly closed their eyes and leaned forward, kissing gently with their lips. Other flowers started to blossom as fireflies started to fly around them with their lights glowing. They broke up the kiss to look at each others eyes again.

"I love you, Satoru." Julie confessed her love.

"And I love you too, Julie. My Red Mermaid Princess." Satoru confessed his love as the two started to kiss again in the light of the full moon.

-Pearl Waters-

Back in the bath house in the kitchen...

"Hanon, do you know where Julie has been?" Lucia questioned the Aqua Mermaid Princess as she was washing the dishes.

"No, I haven't seen her all day." Hanon answered. "But I wished I could have caught where Karen went off to with her date."

Coco walked into the kitchen, where she told Lucia and Hanon her little news.

"Really, Coco!" Lucia exclaimed.

"Are you really going to stay?" Hanon also had the same excitement.

"Yes. We never really did have a chance to spent the holidays without someone to ruin it, so why not celebrate it this year?" she suggested. "Plus, I want to be here for Seira's birthday." Coco whispered.

"Yay, the more the merrier!" Hanon yelled.

And so the Winter Break has begun...


I hope you enjoy this chapter. Next on Undeniable Love...

Lucia: Merry Christmas!

Hanon: Happy Birthday, Seira!

Next time on Undeniable Love chapter 43: Birthday Wishes.