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Chapter Fifteen

Christmas was rolling by quickly. Even in the middle of November, Sayuri's roommate was given presents that were piled up in her closet. By the first week of December, the presents, having nowhere else to go, were crammed under Sakura's bed and in any other open space.

By Christmas, Sayuri held a small package in her hands and Sakura had earned another pile of gifts.

Back when Sayuri was in high school, she earned more gifts than the small package she held in her hand. But it wasn't a good thing. Many classmates went up to her--a deceiving smile on thier face as they presented the gift to her. She gladly took it, thinking they finally accepted her.

They did not.

The first gift blew up in her face. She was lucky she opened it at home, since it blew chunks of slime all over her clothes and skin.

The second gift was a poster of her. Many people had drawn embarrassing symbols around her--a mustache, unibrow, pimples, double-chin, warts, and crooked teeth. Around the photo were arrows pointing at her, saying "touching, generous, heart-warming things" about her.

Ugly brat.

Dork. Idiot.

Stupid.

Gross!

Disgusting!

When she got the third gift, a popular girl--clad in a short skirt riding up her thighs with ever step she took, a tight sweater--went up to her. She held a pill bottle in her hand and didn't have the decency to even wrap it. All she did was shove the present in her hands before run to the bathroom, complaining about having to wash her hands.

Sayuri just walked through the hallways and examined the pill bottle. A note was on it.

Hey, since we're such great friends, I decided to help you out with your weight problem! Here's a bunch of pills for your fat, stupid body! You don't have to thank me, I already know!

Sayuri scoffed and threw it in the nearest trash can, but deep inside, she knew those words hit her hard.

But all that happened in highschool. She was halfway through college, so what could go wrong?

She shook her head free off her memories before she sat on her bed. Sakura left a long time ago to spend her time with her friends, probably finishing her game of "Secret Santa" she had with her 'girlfriends.'

When she unwrapped the gift--which was stuffed inside a folder--she figured out that it was sent from Kakashi. She let out a defeated sigh before examining the gift. It was merely a report card of her grades. Many of her printed out reports and hand-written projects were stuffed inside there as well.

A note as attached to the side. It read:

Here are your grades. I took the time to grade them for you instead of your teachers--you know how harsh they are with their grading! But after grading these papers, I only wish I just let those teachers grade them instead. Your work is a complete waste. Trash, I tell you. No wonder why they didn't spend any time to grade it.

Get your grade up. Maybe then you can finally get away from me. It'll be a big relief to me, and maybe everyone else here. Especially that roommate of yours. She must be--

"Sayuri! Hey, how are you?" She immediately hid the present under the folds of her blanket before turning to the pinkette that suddenly barged inside the room. She felt the corners of her lips lift into a ghost of a smile as her eyes caught sight of Sakura's green coat--so thick that made her look like she was being suffocated.

"I'm good," She signed in response. "How about you?"

Sakura beamed into happiness. "I'm great! I got so many presents from my friends! What about you?"

Sayuri paused before signing back, "I got so much chocolate, but I ate them all." She felt her heart ache as she lied, but kept her smile on. Sakura's eyes glinted, but she didn't push any further.

"Well, here's another present!" Sakura reached inside her bag of the gifts she got, and suddenly Sayuri thought of her as a pink-haired Santa, delivering a gift. She inwardly laughed as Sakura handed the gift over.

Sayuri stared at the gift--it was wrapped neatly in festive wrapping paper, so pristine that the tape was hidden. She looked at her hands and suddenly feared that the invisible dirt on her hands would tarnish the paper. I always ruin things, she thought. It won't be any different this time.

But Sakura pressed on. "Come on, open it!" Sayuri caught sight of a note in the corner and noticed that it was from Sakura. And the person it was supposed to be given to? Sayuri. Her. Sayuri let her smile break through and carefully ripped the paper open.

Sayuri immediately forgot about everything--Kakashi's gift, Sakura's question--and replaced everything with the sight of emerald eyes and rosy hair.