Chapter 5

"Mistle...toe...?"

Kurumi's facial expression didn't change, telling Shido that she had never heard of it. Sometimes he hated the fact that he was the only one who knew about these kinds of things.

"The thing about a mistletoe is…"

Despite how cold it was, beads of sweat began to roll down Shido's cheek.

"…if a guy and a girl are standing underneath one…"

"Yes?"

"…they're expected to…"

Shido turned his head to look at Kurumi.

"…kiss…"

Kurumi didn't say anything, as if she were still processing what Shido had said. Meanwhile snow had begun to fall again. There was a moment of silence that felt like it was lasting for an eternity.

...

Understanding soon spread across Kurumi's face, causing her face to turn red. She felt her heart beating faster, causing her to turn away instinctively. She never knew that there was something as convenient as a mistletoe to use as an excuse for kissing.

"I-If you really don't want to, you don't have to."

Shido's face was slowly turning redder. Before the situation grew any more awkward, he thought he should tell Kurumi that she didn't have to follow any kind of tradition.

Regardless, the moment Shido told Kurumi that she didn't have to kiss him made her heart sank.

There was an unbearably long pause.

"…Shido-san…did you have fun today?"

"Eh?"

Shido was surprised by the sudden question.

Despite feeling embarrassed, Kurumi turned around to look at Shido in the eyes. They told him that she was troubled by something.

"Of course I did."

"You truly didn't have any regrets?"

"…regrets?"

Something dawned on Shido the moment Kurumi mentioned his supposed regrets.

"Are you still worried about that?"

Kurumi remained silent. Shido shook his head in disbelief.

There was a short pause.

Shido continued to look at Kurumi's facial expression. There was now a look of sadness on her face. He gave an exhausted sigh. His foggy breath rising into the night sky and vanishing without a trace.

"Alright. I'll tell you."

Shido took a few steps closer to Kurumi until he stood directly in front of her. Both of them continued to make eye contact.

Suddenly, Kurumi felt an ice cold sensation on her left cheek. At first the sensation was so cold that she shivered, but the cold sensation began to quickly grow warm.

Shido was caressing Kurumi's cheek with his right hand. It was now so warm that she could have melted on the spot, but Shido's gaze prevented her from doing so.

The warmth of Shido's hand made Kurumi place her own hand on top of his, and eventually it also became warm. She was a little ashamed that the man in front of her could make her forget about her worries so easily. She couldn't even remember what she was just thinking about. At some point her thoughts were filled with him, and now he was the only person on her mind.

"Kurumi."

Shido's voice brought Kurumi back to her senses.

"You're right. I do have regrets."

Kurumi felt a stab of pain in her chest.

"I wish I could have saved you sooner."

Kurumi's eyes widened at Shido's confession.

"I wish I could have been with you sooner, and I wish I could have told you how I felt sooner."

There was a sad emotion in Shido's eyes.

"I love Tohka."

The pain in Kurumi's chest grew.

"I love Miku. I love Kaguya and Yuzuru too. And I feel the same way about Kotori, Yoshino, Yoshinon, and Natsumi."

Kurumi's heart was closer to breaking each time Shido combined the word love with the name of his friends.

"I couldn't help but think of how much pain I may have made them felt when they saw the two of us. Maybe things would have been better if I hadn't been with anyone."

Kurumi's eyes began to water.

"But…"

Shido could see Kurumi being torn apart in her eyes.

"I have to live with these regrets. I can't forget about them, because they're too painful."

By now tears had started trickling down Kurumi's cheeks.

"But most importantly, I have to live with these regrets, because I love you more than anyone else."

Kurumi's stream of tears continued to flow, but Shido's hand remained on her left cheek.

"Shido-san…"

Kurumi managed to say Shido's name but with a choked voice.

"To be honest, it really hurts."

Shido gave a sad smile that said that he truly was in pain.

"But if it's you, then I'm willing to take in all of it."

Shido brought the hand that he was caressing Kurumi's cheek with to the back of her head and pulled her closer towards him. His other hand was wrapped around Kurumi's waist.

There was a brief silence.

Feeling the warmth of his chest, Kurumi found that she couldn't keep her feelings in check any longer. And so she cried. She cried as quietly as she could, but occasionally there was a loud whimper.

Shido continued to hold her firmly.

"Shido-san…I love you…"

Kurumi tried to tell Shido how she felt, fighting her other thoughts of doing otherwise.

"I love you…so much…"

Kurumi gripped Shido's winter jacket tightly.

"Yeah...I love you too."

"Are you really okay with someone like me?"

"Would I have gone on a date with you if I wasn't?"

Kurumi continued to cry in Shido's chest. Eventually it began to fade, but both of them remained standing, embracing each other for a little longer while cherishing the silence that they currently had.

...

Moments passed until the grip on Shido's jacket began to loosen.

Shido took that as Kurumi's way of saying that she was feeling better. The two leaned back to look at each other, still holding themselves in each other's arms.

Kurumi gave Shido a reassuring smile.

Shido gave a satisfied smile of his own.

"So, how about you? Did you have fun today?"

Shido asked Kurumi the same question that she had asked him a while ago. Her smile widened.

"Yes, today was a very fun day."

"Good."

"Although…"

Kurumi tilted her head in bemusement.

"Although…?"

Shido wondered what else could be bothering Kurumi.

"…I'm still not sure what it's like to kiss under a mistletoe…"

Shido looked at Kurumi with disbelief for a brief moment. Her face was a light shade of red. She had been crying a moment ago, and now she had brought up the topic of kissing again.

Kurumi herself couldn't bring herself to make eye contact with Shido, causing him to give a hopeless smile. The truth was that he never knew what it was like to kiss under a mistletoe either. He also didn't know why one would be here, but he immediately brushed the pointless thought aside. Right now there was only thing that he could think of.

Shido gave an exhausted sigh.

"It can't be helped."

Shido began to move his face closer to Kurumi's, his embrace growing firm. Kurumi felt his hold on her tighten, and looked back at Shido nervously. Shortly after she looked, she felt a warm and soft sensation on her lips. The action was rather sudden to her, which caused her to widen her eyes in shock, but eventually her eyelids started to become half closed. Wanting to enjoy the kiss even more, Kurumi closed her eyes completely and began to return Shido's feelings. The kiss lasted under a minute, but it felt like it had lasted for much longer.

Eventually Shido and Kurumi broke from the kiss. Both of them were still holding each other close, and they were now looking at each other warmly. Neither of them felt that that kiss was enough.

After a pause, the two of them brought their faces closer a second time, and they began to kiss again.

The second kiss was much more passionate than the first one.

Shido and Kurumi wondered if this was actually considered a kiss, since they seemed to be doing it for such a long time. In the end the best term to call it was a soft make out session. Sometimes the parting of their lips made an embarrassing smacking sound, and their breath could be seen when they breathed out in the cold.

Sometimes pants escaped from Kurumi's mouth, causing her to feel embarrassed, but Shido didn't seem to care, so she continued pouring her feelings.

Moments later they broke from the kiss, their embrace loosening, but neither wanting to let go of one another. They returned to looking at each other, their cheeks a light pink.

"I guess that's how it feels to kiss under a mistletoe…"

Kurumi gave a weak giggle, still recovering from what had just happened.

"Christmas seems to be an interesting holiday..."

White particles were falling beside the arch.

Shido looked around and noticed that snow was still falling. There was an even thicker blanket covering Tenguu City now.

Shido began to realize how cold the weather truly was. He turned to look at Kurumi.

"Shall we head home?"

"Yes, let's."

Kurumi gave a slight nod. She and Shido break off from their hug but still decide to hold hands. Passing the arch, they head home, their hearts a little lighter.

Shortly after Shido and Kurumi began walking home, Shido's phone began to vibrate. The caller ID showed that Kotori was trying to contact him. He answered the phone, wondering why she was calling at this time.

"Hello? Kotori?"

"Oh, Shido, are you home?"

Kotori's question bothered Shido.

"Why are you asking if I'm home? Aren't you home?"

"Well, the truth is, I'm sleeping at a friend's place, so the house is all yours tonight."

"Hah?"

Shido exclaimed his disbelief.

"Why are you telling me this now?"

"I forgot. Anyway, that's how it is. I'll talk to you later."

Before Shido could say anymore, Kotori had hung up.

"…"

Shido was still trying to process what had just happened.

Kotori was staying at a friend's house, but she had told him at an irregular time, and it was also while he and Kurumi were heading home.

"Shido-san, is something the matter?"

"…I'm not sure…"

Shido was now worried about Kotori, thus he decided that the best course of action was to check if she really had left for her friend's place when he got home.

"It didn't seem urgent, but let's head home anyway."

Shido and Kurumi continued their walk home, neither one of them being able to completely grasp the current situation.

To Be Continued