Ryu wondered if Urufu and Kuri had managed to spend their Christmas together in that Swedish style Urufu spoke about. If what Urufu said was true then he spent Christmas like a Japanese New Year's celebration, well, minus visiting a shrine of course.

If the couple had, then that was two days ago, because apparently Christmas Eve was the big event in Sweden rather than Christmas Day as Ryu had been taught was the western style.

You give me a headache. Before I met you I could safely assume that 'western' was the one set of whatever was not Japanese. The thought made him smile, because Ulf had tried to smooth things over by saying that most westerners only knew about their own version of 'western'.

Well, he had spent a nice enough date with Ai-chan yesterday where they even quickly showed up at the Irishima High Christmas party. There he had been displayed like an exotic animal, and for the first time he could remember he felt uncomfortable being the centre of attention.

Ryu glanced at the reason for that discomfort. She had fallen asleep in the seat across his, but she was almost as cute sleeping as when she pulled him into her shenanigans. Almost. That laugh of hers, or her inexplicable shyness belonged to her waking world.

“Sis, when is Nao-sempai coming?” Ryu said and turned to his sister.

Aw, damn! She had fallen asleep as well.

“Mom, the girls are no fun!”

His mother turned and looked at him and Noriko. Then something nasty from many years ago glimmered in her eyes and she stuck her tongue out at him. “Suits you Ruy,” she said and returned to her conversation with his father who drove the van.

What the? He knew his mother could be surprisingly childish sometimes, but right now she had behaved like a grade schooler.

Smirking he pulled up his phone and mailed Nao-sempai a complaint.

The reply took a few minutes to come.

“They're girls, leave them be. Kuri-chan sends her greetings by the way and wants you to give them her best.”

Ryu decided against calling the junior despite feeling a little uneasy writing on his phone while the van they rode snaked its way further into the mountains. Another hour and they'd be at their destination, an onsen that carried memories for his parents.

“Something happened?” Ryu wrote and fished for some information on what had happened between Kuri and Urufu.

While he waited for an answer they passed through another tunnel, and by now they had climbed far enough inland for the greenish brown hillsides to become greenish white. From what he remembered there would be snow all over the place when they finally arrived.

“Kuri got scolded, and they scheduled a lot of shoots during winter break.”

Scolded? Good for you two, Ryu thought. The only reason people would be pissed off with her was that she had indeed managed to save the date with Urufu.

“And you got caught up in it?”

It took Ryu three attempts to send that last mail, and when it was away they had left the last of the tunnels and the entire world around him was covered in snow.

“Yes. I'll join you tomorrow. Please convey my apologies to your sister if I'm unable to reach her myself!”

Noriko would sulk, that much was for certain, but with a promise that Nao-sempai would show the day after Ryu didn't think the sulking would be all that bad.

But I don't remember why mom and dad wants to go here? Ah, of course. Staring out the window Ryu saw a small winter's resort. It was nothing compared to the major resorts in the Japan Alps, but it was definitely enough to enjoy a few days away from Tokyo.

“Send my regards to Kuri and make sure you're here by tomorrow. I'll keep sis off your back.”

The mail Ryu received in return was only filled with smiling emojis.

Well, maybe you'll get some time off for New Years. I'd like to spend hatsumode with the two of you. If he understood correctly Kuri and Urufu were used to spend the midnight of New Year’s outdoors watching fireworks. Well, there weren't any fireworks in Japan – those belonged to summer, but people spent midnight outdoors here as well.

By then they were almost at their destination. A steep slope, barely cleared enough of snow to allow their car to climb it, a strangely oversized parking place and a woman in a kimono who waved them to the entrance, that was it. Ryu slid open the door, climbed out and woke Noriko.

“Make sure Ai-chan wakes as well,” he said and grabbed two small bags.

On his way to the entrance he heard how his girlfriend made sleepy sounds of protests behind him. Then the sound of the trunk being opened reached him and he met two porters who hurried to the car. They'd handle all the heavy luggage, which as usual included a lot more than what was needed.

You're funny, he thought. His parents were exemplary in their efficiency packing for work related trips, but whenever it was time for a vacation they tried to bring the entire home with them.

As an afterthought he mailed Urufu as well and wondered about life and the universe in general. The answer arrived just about the same time as their luggage and Ai-chan came inside the hotel foyer.

“Got a break. Bogged down with work. Feels good.”

That was so very Urufu. Concise to the point of being hard to read.

Ryu sent a reply and made his way to the table where they'd receive some tea while their luggage was delivered to their rooms. His phone vibrated almost immediately.

“Don't worry. Christina works as well. Good time to make money.”

That was the constructive way to react Ryu guessed. It wasn't like Urufu could prevent his girlfriend from taking part in her shoots, and burying himself in work should make him better prepared for when they finally had some time together.

December 29, but I'm afraid they'll push it. Worst case she gets December 31 and January 1 off, but that will play merry hell with the rest of the employees. Ryu shook his head and met his father's gaze. “Sorry, was thinking about work.”

“Do you have any work to do now?”

“Sorry, not me. I was thinking of Urufu and Kuri,” Ryu said and added one name to the truth. Where's sis? he thought to banish his worries about his friends.

***

Having arrived yesterday, but without Nao, Noriko felt a little nervous when she shakily navigated the slope down to the short road that connected skiing facility with the small cluster of hotels where they lived.

Nao was arriving by bus and should be here any moment now, and Noriko didn't plan to miss out on more time with him than needed.

Suddenly her feet shook more than usual, and as they had done with depressing regularity her skies betrayed her again. She was left as an undignified heap on the ground.

Noriko suspected she spent more time getting back up on her feet than skiing and cursed whoever had decided that alpine skiing was a fun way to spend your free time.

After she managed to get back on her feet again Noriko reluctantly left her dignity behind her and punted her way to the parking place.

The bus arrived, but Nao didn't. Another arrived an hour later, but still no Nao, and he didn't even reply to her mails.

Distraught she went inside the foyer, bought a cup of tea and seated herself by the windows from where she could see the buses arrive. Three cups later and another bus without Nao she gave up and took the elevator to their room.

Worst Christmas ever, she thought as she dragged out a futon and threw herself on it. Noriko knew she behaved like a spoiled child, but it just wasn't fair that her idiot brother was out there having the time of his life with Ai-chan while she had to wait for a boyfriend who didn't even have the grace to tell her he was late.

Sucks, she sulked.

But even sulking got boring, and in the end Noriko tired of playing the lonesome orphan. She sent Nao a choice nasty mail and went down for the last few hours of humiliation on the slopes.

Well outside she couldn't stay angry for long. Despite making a habit of falling on her butt with the grace of a lame elephant the whiteness surrounding her was simply breathtaking.

With temperatures at a friendly minus two or three she was never cold, and with renewed vigour she finished her lonely skiing day and returned to the hotel. Nao or no Nao, after a day like this taking a hot bath outdoors promised to be heaven.

Noriko slipped inside the women's locker room, stripped and brought her towel into the bathing area. Ai-chan was already there rinsing off before the baths, and so was Noriko's mother.

“Hi mom,” Noriko said and sat down on a pallet.

“Where were you all day?”

“Waiting for Nao, and failing. Yeah and trying to ski, and failing.”

Both mother and brother's girlfriend displayed risen eyebrows.

“Nao didn't come, and he hasn't mailed me.”

Ai-chan dunked herself with water and moved to the exit. Noriko's mother followed her, so Noriko found herself in a sudden hurry. Outside she sank into the shallow pool and waited for the interrogation to continue.

“Does he usually do that?” her mother wanted to know.

Noriko was prepared for that question. Her mother positively despised people who didn't communicate.

“No, he only does during a shoot, because they're not allowed to have their phones on,” Noriko said. Crap! Don't tell me he got dragged into whatever problems Kuri brought onto herself! Still, that only made sense, and if so Noriko feared Nao might not show up at all.

“What's with that face?” her mother said.

Noriko pouted and slid deeper into the water to hide her sulking expression. This was her own problem, and nothing she wanted to drag her parents into. But I wanted Nao here. Stupid Kuri! First you took Urufu away, and now Nao as well.

She submerged to wash away that thought. Kuri hadn't taken anyone away, and Noriko knew she was being unfair. OK, maybe you didn't, but I'm still the only one without someone now. And that thought was a lie as well. If Nao couldn't join them then that meant Kuri and Urufu had no way of meeting as well.

When she came back up above the surface for a breath her mother was waiting, and Noriko noticed how Ai-chan just waited for an answer.

“Spill it!” That wasn't her mother's friendly voice. That was the voice of her mother the few times Noriko knew she could outmatch Kuri.

“I want to know as well. We're involved now?”

“Involved with what?” Noriko's mother said, and by now her tone had taken the quality needed to cut through stone.

“There's a lot of students at Irishima High...”

“Irishima High?”

“Yeah, and a few teachers as well...” Ai-chan continued.

A few teachers? Idiot! You got your principal salivating all over the place at the chance to sink Red Rose.

“Teachers?”

“Yes… we're kind of not friends with Red Rose Academy now,” Ai-chan said, and Noriko coughed when she heard that understatement.

“Noriko,” her mother began. “You're going to tell me exactly what you've been up to. I know some of it, but I didn't know you got Irishima High involved as well.”

Tonight will be no fun at all. Then Noriko spilled all of it, or almost all. The secret about Urufu and Kuri living their lives for a second time had to stay a secret.

As she talked she saw Ai-chan raise her eyebrows from time to time at some choice details that hadn't made their way to her yet. It wasn't as if Noriko had tried to keep them secret from her or anything, but so much had happened that some parts just got forgotten.

She began from the attempted rape, continued with Urufu's expulsion, glossed over Kuri's dangerous stunt as a hostess and the assault on her in the girls' locker room the previous spring. She told them about the revenge mission Principal Nakagawa had sent Urufu on, about the suicide and the attack on Urufu behind the gym during the cultural festival. Last of all Noriko told them about Kuri's smear campaign and the dirty war that followed.

Talking about it all made Noriko remember. Parts of it she relived, sitting there in the hot spring water, but other parts she hadn't experienced herself. It's been a long year. A long year and a half. Was it worth it? Yeah, I fell in love and broke my heart. Then I fell in love again, and I made friends with you all.

The strangest of her new friends were Yukio and Kyoko, maybe because they were so normal. I hope you had a good Christmas date.