Since arriving in Hokkaido, Erina wanted to be somewhere else for Christmas. She hated that Alice romanticized their hellish winter exams turned impromptu Regimental Food War as first-years, and demanded that the Ten and their friends go on their second annual winter trip. She hated that Alice made the worst winter advancement exam ever into a weeklong vacation this year. She hated that Hokkaido held so many mixed feelings and bittersweet memories for her— of all cities.

But most of all, Erina hated being the only single girl in the group. Though she would never admit this to a soul…Erina hated how over the moon she was to spend Christmas with him.

Presently, though, Erina hated being caught between her two best friends' feelings for the same boy. If it had been any other boy in their year but Hayama, she would have called it out to shut it down immediately. But this, Erina knew, had to be handled as delicately as sugar glass.

Since they boarded the train to Hokkaido the day before, Erina kept catching the lovestruck way Hisako stared at Akira anytime they were in the same room. Erina saw when Hisako inconspicuously switched the name card placements Alice had arranged so that she could sit beside him at breakfast that morning. She noticed how her ardent assistant was more distracted than usual all day and willingly accepted Erina's request to take a break from helping her work. She ran off without contesting to stay as usual. And she couldn't ignore the sight before her of her most trusted friend beaming like a lit Christmas tree as she ice-skated around the center square's ice rink, holding hands as the sun went down, as Hisako taught Akira how to skate.

On the other hand, Alice was being exactly Alice— basking in the double dose of attention (and subtle best friend rivalry to impress her) happening between Ryō and Akira. Erina only came to the city's center for ice skating and hot chocolate with them and most of the Polar Star dorm, the Aldini brothers, and Mito-san to keep an eye on Alice and be an emotional support to Hisako as they waited for Christmas Eve dinner to be ready. Most of the couples were holding hands and laughing around the ice rink, while others huddled around the hot chocolate cart, wondering what made it taste so good. Erina decided to walk away from the group and watch the Christmas tree lighting in the park square from a distance.

Since that useless nonentity, Yukihira, chose to run away after she won The BLUE and stay away for the past four months, she was stuck mediating the tension between her two best friends. It had become torturous the last few weeks, and she could only think of one person she wanted to discuss it with. She hated how much she missed that pinheaded boy. She hated how much it stole her appetite and her sleep. She hated how little she could think of other than how much she missed him because she had mounds of Academy paperwork to tend to back at the vacation home. Work never stopped for Christmas, but the sight of the tree, the happy couples and families smiling and standing around as it was lit, made her wish it did.

Erina knew it was a foolish thing to do, but she couldn't help herself. She began to wish upon the tree's star.

"Erina?" A timid voice called out.

Erina turned around to find Megumi, Ryoko, and Yuki huddled around a hot chocolate cart. Great.

"Hello, ladies. Enjoying your evening out?" She asked, forcing a brightness to her voice.

"You bet we are!" Yuki said. "Thanks for letting us stay at that beautiful snowy mansion!" Erina nodded sweetly in response.

"Erina-sama, how are you enjoying your evening?" The delicate Ryōko cut in.

"It's been…"

"Missing Yukihira, ain't ya?" Yuki teased. Ryōko pinched her. Megumi blushed and looked at the heiress with odd anticipation for her response.

Erina's face, on the other hand, flushed stone white. Her phone vibrated in her puffer coat's pocket, gratefully interrupting an awkward conversation about Sōma with his closest friends.

She looked and turned away from her phone and feigned the embarrassed pout she'd mastered. "I hate to end this conversation, ladies, but I need to take this call."

"Jiji?" Erina answered her beloved grandfather. "Yes, hi! What do you need me to do?" Erina was relieved that her grandfather actually needed her attention.

-8-

Alice arranged the dinner seating as follows: she and Erina were at opposite ends. (Alice tried to claim that her seat was the head of the table, but Erina was quick to shut that lie down; she was facing the dining room's entrance— she was sitting at the head. Alice pouted in resignation.)

Ryō sat to Alice's right, Akira to her left. Erina knew her cousin did that intentionally, and judging by the beet-red hue blooming across Hisako's face; it was a major power move that worked. Takumi was beside Ryō, looking like he'd just stepped off an Italian fashion house runway. He seemed to only have eyes for Tadokoro Megumi, who was meekly wedged between the fraternal twins. Isami sat very close to whisper something to Mito Ikumi, who was blushing so hard on Erina's left side, she could feel the heat rising from the girl with a usually tough exterior.

To Erina's right sat Hisako (of course), followed by Ryoko and Shun. Beside Ibusaki were Marauri Zinji, Yuki, and sitting beside her, gently cupping her hand—much to Erina's amazement—Isshiki Satoshi. Erina couldn't tell what was happening between Yuki and Isshiki, but the hyperactive girl practically begged Alice to let him come through and occupy Yukihira's empty dinner seat.

Yukihira had been invited. On the limo ride to the train station, Alice said she sent his evite weeks ago. "He was the first guy I invited after personally delivering Ryō and Akira's, of course."

"Okay, but did he RSVP?" Erina asked, nervously twisting her fingers in knots.

"Oh, stop worrying, Erina. I'm sure he'll be there. You, of all people, should know anything with Yukihira promises surprises." Alice fanned her off and continued finalizing their arrangements.

How promising, indeed. How foolish of Erina to get her hopes up in either of them…even though she told Alice in no uncertain terms that she did not care if he was dead or alive. Clearly, she was lying straight through her perfect teeth because the moment the limo driver opened her door and heard an uproar of laughter, she bolted onboard the train, fully expecting to find everyone's favorite impractical joker at the center of the hysterics. Not only was she wrong, but she was also aggravated. How dare he miss the tradition he inspired? What an ingrate!

She stared down the right side of the table to where Isshiki sat, unaware that she was burning a bitter hole through his forehead, smiling at Yuki the way she'd imagined Yukihira would've been smiling at her if he were here, laughing along with Alice's salacious sense of humor like the charming man he always was. It made her heart long for Yukihira all the more because he should've been in here. Correction: he should have been sitting in the chair flanking her right.

Looking around at the festive holiday decor in the Hokkaido Totsuki resort and at all the heart eyes and giggles exchanged across and under the dinner table right in front of her, Erina felt cheated. She truly did.

Erina pushed her chair out and stood up. "Well, this has been a lovely Christmas Eve dinner, but I must excuse myself to handle a matter for my grandfather. Sooo…"

All eyes previously glued to their paramour—or romantic rival, in Hisako's case—shifted to her. While everyone in the room looked quizzically up, Alice was the only one to speak up.

"Handle a matter for Grandfather?" Alice raised her eyebrow skeptically. "What on earth could Grandpa possibly need from you on Christmas Eve?"

"Yes, well, he's entrusted me to run an errand in his study. So I'm off to go do that now." Erina bowed. "Have a good night before Christmas, everyone."

Yuki managed to break away from gushing over Isshiki long enough to cry, "No, you can't leave, Erina-poo!"

But Erina was already halfway to the study by then.

All her grandfather told her was that the item was located on the fireplace mantle in the study and held deep sentimental value to him. When she prodded him about what it was and why it mattered so much that he needed it for Christmas, he only told her it once belonged to her grandmother. It was totally unlike him to deny Erina of anything. Whatever it was meant the world to him, and he meant the world to her, so she was determined to handle it with care.

Erina found the netsuke in no time at all. It was made of pure marble with gold fracture lines running through the sculpture. Two miniature chef knives crossed at their handles cooled in the palm of her hand as she ran the pads of her fingers along the finely hand-carved details. He'd never mentioned this small tchotchke before that morning, but Erina heard the deep attachment in his tone. It was the only one of its kind atop the ornately arranged mantle. She delicately wrapped it in a handkerchief and went to her room. If she couldn't enjoy her holiday break, she could make her grandfather happy.

Laughter, Christmas carols, protest shouts, and cheering over a holiday cooking competition filled the mansion's first floor. Erina somberly made her way down the darkened hallway on the third floor back to the main suite. She was tired. And over today.

While preparing for bed, Soma called at the stroke of midnight.

Shouting over the loud background noise emblematic of a busy kitchen. "Yo, Erina! Uhhh… I was hoping you'd pick up! Knowing you, you're probably doing your obnoxiously long Korean skincare routine, working through the night like the Grinch, or something ridiculous like that." He laughed like he hadn't just hurt her feelings with back-to-back insults. Hearing his joyful laughter made her giggle. "Anyway— oh, oops! This is audio message is getting too long. Let me send you another-"

His voice cut off. She panic-stared at her phone to see if it had died. Nope, their text thread was shining blue light brightly back at her. But there was no second audio message to listen to. No buffering text bubble to let her know he was still there. Nothing but the timestamp informing her that he'd sent her the message five minutes ago. She really missed his call by a measly five minutes, and now he was nowhere to be found for Christmas? Again.

Bah humbug.

Erina threw her phone on the bed and then flung herself onto it, kicking and screaming into her pillow. She hated feeling this way. She hated the emotional expectations of Christmas. She hated the disappointments and false promises of love and joy. She hated that she'd never experienced a truly happy holiday. Who was naive enough to believe in Christmas miracles, anyway?

But, really, she was mad at herself for the false hopes of spending it with that dumb boy Yukihira. She absentmindedly rubbed the netsuke, forgetting to put it safely away, soothed by its smooth feel.

It was then that a question started nagging at her.

Was she in love?

Her phone buzzed hard against her breastbone. She froze, then jumped up and grabbed her phone. A notification flashed across her lock screen:

Yukihira Sōma

New iMessage

Erina swiped up her lock screen and saved the audio message to her phone before pressing play faster than decorum allowed. Don't chase him, Erina. You are the prize.

Yeah, right! She was never desperate for a boy's attention, but even she had feelings. In that moment, she couldn't care any less than she did about being the famously detached ice princess, Nakiri Erina. All she cared about was hearing the voice of the boy she loved.

"Hey! Sorry about that long wait, Nakiri. Pops had to pull me away real quick. I'm manning the back kitchen and the pass for this fancy Christmas Eve party we're working. Nakiri, you'd feel right at home here! Anyway, I, uhhh…" he hesitated. Erina noted an oddly nervous texture in his voice. What did he have to be nervous about? She was the one waiting for him to finish his dang message. She was the one missing the hell out of him!

Sōma's voice came back. "I-I wanted to be the first one to wish you a Merry Christmas, Nakiri. I'd hoped you'd answer the phone. So, yeah… I wish you a Merry Christmas, Erina." Her heart twirled and skipped in her chest. She fell back into her cloud-soft duvet, screaming into her pillow. There was a crash in Sōma's background. Christmas jazz filtered in from the background.

"Shit, that sounds bad. I gotta go, Nakiri!" An older man could be heard asking where the hell the younger Yukihira was. "Yeah, I'm coming!" Then his voice lowered. "See you tomorrow."

Erina froze in bed. Did he just say...?

Erina replayed the message again. She listened to the sound of his warm and playful voice with a small smile. When it reached the man yelling in the background the second time, her heart leaped out of her chest.

"See you tomorrow."

She kept rewinding his last statement over and over. He was talking to her, right? She wasn't losing her mind or hearing things she wanted to, was she? Erina chose to believe he was talking to her. It felt better to believe that lie over Santa Claus. Maybe Christmas came early. Even though she didn't know how Sōma felt about her, it was the only logical conclusion. But as she snuggled into her down comforter with the widest smile spreading across her face, Erina felt lightheaded. Would she really be spending Christmas with Yukihira Sōma?

Maybe she would enjoy this Christmas after all.

a/n: Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!