A Hoshi Christmas

Chapter 1: Santa's Coming to Town

A/N: This is a cute, fluffy story about Houjou and Hamaguchi. I started it because I need to give my favourite characters some romantic fluff. I also want to show that I can write fluff! I hope that you agree and enjoy! Just note that there will be a movie spoiler or two in this one.

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Christmas in Tonosho Town is always a special occasion. The town is renowned for putting up their festive lights and Christmas trees before anyone else in Japan. Visitors eager to have a taste of Angel Beach and the town's many shrines will find themselves tickled pink by the vivid colours that gleamed from the decorations. How the town's governance could afford the ornaments and trinkets, no one bothered to ask. The town's residents were too busy greeting one another as they put up the town's holiday-themed flora in their homes and shops.

Houjou's family was no exception. As busy as her parents were when they worked for the government, they were afforded a four-day week every time December rolled around. It was a nice change of pace for Houjou. She didn't get many chances to see her parents at home with their busy workweeks. But for the first two long weekends of December, her parents took her out to her favourite ramen noodle place and on a ferry trip to Okayama.

For the last Friday of December before Christmas, Houjou had other ideas. In the bedroom of her humble two-floor home, the sun shone a gleaming light that alone was enough to illuminate the room. In it, she was putting on the finishing touches to her makeup. She adorned a red dress that went down to her kneecaps. Underneath her dress were black leggings that would keep her warm against the frigid air of winter. She topped off her outfit with a red beret decorated with rhinestones that formed a flowery pattern.

Looking at herself in the mirror of her dresser, she giggled at her festive appearance. She was sure that her look would leave her new boyfriend effusive with giddiness and excitement. It was the least she could do to express her gratitude for his confession a few months ago.

And how could she forget the manner in which he confessed at summer's end? She had just gotten back from her summer camp in Toronto when she saw him donning a red T-shirt and black jeans. He was standing by at the airport's exit and greeted her with a flustered hand wave. The moment she stopped to greet him back, he extended his hand to invite her to visit Angel Road.

She had to admit, it was quite the mature gesture. It was usually she who left him flustered with her declarations of liking mature guys. But before she knew it, he had turned the tables on her and swept her off her feet. Her beating heart thumped so hard that she could feel her chest growing tighter by the second. A most eager "yes" then passed her lips without a second thought.

The rest was history. Lying on her dresser was a lone white seashell painted with black ink. A series of kanji scripts had been written on that particular shell with the ink. The words inscribed on the shell served to her a daily reminder of the words he uttered to her on Angel Road:

I'm in love with you, Hoshi. I hope we can be together dancing in the stars forever. Signed, Hamaguchi.

It wasn't just the declaration of love that stunned her to silence that day. He had used a nickname that her late grandmother bestowed upon her. The word itself meant "star", a term with which she placed great endearment. His oration that day was uncharacteristically poetic. They had represented the signs of maturity that coursed through her beating heart without fail each day.

When she began junior high, she had but one wish for the past handful of Christmases: to see her childhood friend muster up the courage to admit his feelings to her. She knew he had them. He had expended every chance to spend time with her. He never grew bored of seeing her even as they constantly saw each other throughout their childhoods. He even gave her a Meiji white chocolate bar for White Day - her favourite brand.