Tied Together [Book 2]

Chapter 70: Invisible Ties

Nagisa's POV

I suddenly saw orange afterimages, and it made me shut my closed eyes even more.

The wind blew, making the leaves rustle. The splotches of sunlight passing through hit my eyes. I moved my head away, slightly opening my eyes.

"You awake?" A calm voice greeted my awakening.

A charming boy made way into my vision, smiling as he looked down at me. I suddenly remembered I was napping, and I moved my hands to see that I'm still clutching my small notebook.

A grunt escaped me, feeling his warmth shifting. "Five more minutes..." I slightly moved positions.

The red haired boy chuckled. "Does my sleeping beauty need more sleep? We've been here long enough, milady. Your nose is getting cold."

Karma leaned closer, caressing my hair near my forehead.

"But... your lap is so comfy," I argued.

"Well, we can go inside now where it's warmer and continue your sleep there. How's that sound?" He adjusted his scarf. The very same scarf I gave him for his brithday in middle school, the one where I went through several sleepless nights to make it. The fact that he still uses it and it's still in good condition makes me happy...

"Hmm..." I closed my eyes and gave it a hard thought. Surely, it would be more comfortable in his house. Plus, there's a kotatsu, and Mitsuru-san is making her famous salted caramel cookies.

"Okay," I agreed with him. I sat myself up. Huh, my nose was getting cold. Even though the sun was out, it didn't help that the layer of snow was getting deeper by the day. Then again, maybe it wasn't such a smart idea taking a nap outside when it's winter...

Anyway, Karma and I moved towards his house, and from where I'm standing, I can already smell the baked goods in the air which perked up my cravings. Maybe Karma would let me have a sip of his home-made hot chocolate too...

"Oh, Nagisa-chan!" The maroon haired woman greeted me just as we entered. "The cookies are just out of the oven. Don't take one yet, okay?"

I smiled at her. "I think that will be very difficult for me, Mitsuru-san."

"Still," Isaac-san looked up from the newspaper he's reading. "It's nice of you to visit us, Nagisa-chan. We don't get much visitors around Christmas."

"Oh, the pleasure is all mine," I quickly waved my hands at him. "But as much as I'd like to stay, I think I should go home soon." I sat beside the red head.

"Already?" Karma asked me as he played his DS.

Mitsuru-san came from the kitchen. "Already? But it's almost time!"

Her words made both Karma and I turn to her direction. "...Time for what?" I asked.

*Ding dong*

"Oh, speaking of." Mitsuru-san had an excited smile plastered on her face as she walked towards the big door. Me and Karma exchanged looks, and I peered curiously from the sofa.

Mitsuru-san opened the door, and we could instantly hear familiar chattering.

"Sorry for the intrusion!" I immediately recognize Arisa-chan's voice.

A group of people walked in the house, and my eyes widened. "What the— What are you guys doing here!?" I sweat dropped.

Arisa-chan was wearing a cute outfit topped with a Santa hat, Chiyuki following behind. Hitomi-san along with Nakano-san were holding paper bags. Sasahara-kun was chatting with Shougo-kun and his gang, while Iyo-chan was pestering Yamaguchi-kun to hold a giant cake in her stead.