My neck stung where Miyagi had bitten me.

         I was pretty sure she’d left a mark.

         But that wasn’t what was on my mind. Instead, the sweetness of her tongue and the beauty of her bare chest stayed with me, vivid and persistent.

         I wanted to kiss her more. I wanted to touch her more. But I knew that if I voiced those thoughts, she’d do more than just bite me next time.

         「I’ll keep my end of the deal. Feel free to ask me over anytime during the break. I still have prep school, so I might not always be free, but I’ll help you study whenever I can. So, uh… can I turn around now?」

         I made sure to keep my words safe and careful. For now, I followed Miyagi’s orders and stayed facing away from her.

         「No, absolutely not. Stay that way forever and don’t speak again for the rest of your life.」

         Miyagi’s voice had a childish tone, perfectly matching the childish words she was saying.

         「But there’s something I need to check.」

         「No, you don’t.」

         I heard her sharp voice from behind me.

         From her tone, it was clear she wasn’t in the mood to hear me out. Still, I couldn’t keep my back to her forever, so I had to come up with a reason she’d easily accept.

         「Miyagi, you bit me really hard. I think you left a mark. Can you check for me?」

         「No.」

         「If you don’t, I’ll tell everyone at school that you bit me.」

         「… Where is it?」

         The mention of “school” seemed to strike a nerve, and she asked reluctantly.

         「Here.」

         I turned to face Miyagi quietly and pointed to the spot where she’d bitten me. She leaned in a little closer, then let out a soft, “Ah.”

         「What do you mean, ah?」

         「There really is a mark.」

         She admitted, her tone slightly gloomy, though she didn’t look particularly apologetic.

         「Yeah, I figured.」

         「It’ll probably fade quickly, and even if it doesn’t, it won’t show as long as you keep yourself buttoned up.」

         Miyagi muttered as she hastily buttoned my blouse all the way up.

         「Uh, I feel like it’s still visible.」

         The spot she’d bitten wasn’t exactly hidden, even with my blouse fully buttoned.

         「It’ll be gone by tomorrow morning.」

         She said with a sigh, clearly trying to dismiss the issue.

         I unbuttoned the top two buttons she’d just fastened for me. Her room wasn’t particularly warm, but being buttoned up to the neck made me feel oddly uneasy. Besides, it wasn’t like being buttoned up would actually help, and I didn’t mind if the mark was visible to Miyagi.

         「I’m okay with you biting me, but try not to leave any marks next time.」

         「Well, it was your fault, Sendai-san.」

         She replied, still refusing to meet my eyes.

         「Yeah, I guess you’re right about that.」

         No matter how I looked at it, the fault was entirely mine.

         I didn’t think it was unfair for Miyagi to blame me, and I could understand why she didn’t want to face me right now.

         But trying to study under this heavy, awkward atmosphere felt unsettling. It was even more uncomfortable than the tension we’d had after summer break. My own impure feelings made it worse, thickening the air around us.

         「Oh, right. There’s something I wanted to give you, Miyagi.」

         Unable to bear the stagnant silence any longer, I stood up.

         I wasn’t making it up—I really did have something for her.

         Reaching into my bag, I pulled out a package that was too large for one hand but manageable with both and handed it to Miyagi, who was still sitting on her bed.

         「It’s a bit early, but… here. Take this.」

         「… What is this supposed to be?」

         「I think you can figure it out just by looking at it.」

         The bag was wrapped in red and green with a red ribbon tied neatly on top. Considering the time of year, it wasn’t hard to guess its purpose. Even Miyagi should be able to tell.

         「Is this supposed to be a Christmas present?」

         「Yep. You can also think of it as a return gift.」

         I said while showing her the chain of the pendant I wore.

         「I thought I told you I didn’t need a return gift from you.」

         「Yeah, you did. But you know, I already bought it, so why not just open it? And if you don’t want it, you can throw it away.」

         Miyagi stared at the bag in my hands so intensely that it felt like she might burn a hole through it. After a brief moment, she untied the ribbon and pulled out its contents, her expression shifting into a frown.

         It was a stuffed black cat that bore a slight resemblance to Miyagi.

         I hadn’t chosen it because I thought she’d like it or because I wanted to make her happy. My reasoning was less optimistic. Despite how long we’d known each other, I couldn’t think of anything that seemed like a suitable gift for her. And since I knew she wouldn’t accept anything too extravagant, I settled on something small and simple—something I wouldn’t mind as much if she decided to reject it.

         The possibility of her throwing it away had also crossed my mind.

         Although Miyagi didn’t seem like the type to discard gifts, I couldn’t be sure if she’d treat something from me the same way she treated gifts from others. I didn’t think she’d toss it, but I couldn’t say for certain either.

         「Why a stuffed animal?」

         Miyagi asked, holding the black cat in her hands and inspecting it with a lack of enthusiasm.

         「I thought the crocodile could use a friend.」

         I said, gesturing toward the tissue box on the floor with its crocodile-shaped cover.

         「Oh, really? Are you sure it’s not meant to be food for it?」

         「No, it’s supposed to be a friend. Don’t feed it to the crocodile.」

         「I didn’t prepare a Christmas present for you, though.」

         Miyagi moved to sit on the floor, gently placing the black cat plush on the crocodile’s back. The white tissues sprouting from the crocodile now served as a soft cushion for the cat.

         I felt a small sense of relief—it seemed the cat had found a safe place and avoided a tragic fate.

         「I told you, it’s meant to be a return gift, so it’d only get awkward if you gave me something in return again.」

         「That wasn’t meant to be a present for you.」

         Miyagi replied, her gaze flickering toward the pendant I was wearing.

         「Yeah, yeah.」

         I muttered dismissively, shifting my attention back to the crocodile and its new companion.

         Despite staring for a while, I couldn’t tell if the crocodile was pleased about its new “friend.” More importantly, I couldn’t tell if Miyagi liked it either.

         Well, at least she didn’t reject it. That’s good enough.

         Christmas presents didn’t need to be overly complicated, and giving her something felt better than giving her nothing at all.

         Wanting to change gears, I sat down beside her.

         As I did so, Miyagi’s quiet voice broke the silence.

         「Well… thank you.」

         I glanced over at Miyagi, not used to her showing gratitude.

         Without looking over at me, she turned her focus to the table, spreading out her textbooks.

         「I’m going to study now.」

         It wasn’t like we could pretend nothing had happened between us on the bed. The strange tension lingered, even if the awkwardness had mostly faded. Still, it seemed safer to focus on studying than risk saying something that might make things uncomfortable again.

         I lowered my gaze to my textbook, but I couldn’t help being conscious of Miyagi sitting beside me. When I thought about reaching out, the atmosphere around her felt colder, and I stopped myself.

         I knew better than to expect anything more today. I should just stay quiet, but somehow, the connection between my brain and mouth had short-circuited.

         I poked her arm lightly with my pencil, though she didn’t look at me.

         「Hey, Miyagi. Can I add one more condition to our deal?」

         「After all you did just now? Absolutely not. Wasn’t that enough for you? And didn’t you say you wouldn’t have much free time over winter break? You’re really pushing it.」

         Miyagi glanced up from her textbook, her tone as thorny as ever, as she threw an eraser at me.

         「Let me kiss you during winter break.」

         「I don’t recall saying you could add more conditions.」

         「Can’t I at least ask?」

         I placed the eraser back on her notebook, and she sighed, replying quietly with,

         「Really? Is that all?」

         「Yep.」

         「… I know if I say no, you’re not going to come over and help me study.」

         「So, does that mean you’ll let me?」

         「I don’t want to, but… you’ll keep your promise and help me, right?」

         Miyagi answered, her tone thornier than before, as she turned a page of her textbook.

         Her reply wasn’t exactly clear, but it felt like my condition had been accepted. I couldn’t help but feel a little surprised— I hadn’t expected Miyagi to be this eager to get me to come over for winter break. For a moment, I even doubted my ears.

         Still, I didn’t dare ask for confirmation. Before Miyagi could reconsider and reject the idea of a condition entirely, I quickly answered, “Of course,” hoping to end the conversation there.

         「I’ll let you know when I need help.」

         Miyagi spoke without glancing away from her textbook.

         「Sure, but could you let me know a day in advance?」

         「Okay.」

         Her eyes stayed fixed on the page as I took a sip of my black tea, now completely cold.

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