Christmas Together Again
December 25th. Christmas morning.
Maybe it was because I'd stayed out with my friends until dinner the night before, on Christmas Eve, but I'd slept in far later than usual. By the time I woke up, it was already lunchtime.
Still, at least I didn't sleep even later than this.
If I'd slept straight through until three, my parents would have woken me up. But greeting Riya without any preparation at all would have felt a little wrong. Sure, I'd never gone to any great lengths when we met before — but lately, strange feelings had been creeping in. And it was Christmas, after all. A special day.
We didn't get to spend last year's together.
Riya's family had gone on a trip, so we hadn't been able to see each other last Christmas. Of course we'd exchanged gifts beforehand and texted on the day itself, but not being able to meet in person had been genuinely hard. That was why this Christmas felt like something to look forward to all the more.
"Sihyun, when is Riya coming?"
"She said around three, I think?"
"About an hour, then… we'd better start getting ready."
Dad still hadn't been discharged from the hospital. They said he might be able to come home tomorrow or the day after, but the timing was unfortunate. So preparing for this Christmas fell to Mom and me. Not that there was much to prepare, really.
Just cooking, basically.
There were only three of us eating, so the portions wouldn't be huge, but I wanted to make a variety of things. I wasn't a great cook, but following a recipe step by step was something I could manage. Anything that needed to be hot when we ate — like noodles — I'd leave for later. Right now, I was working on the meat.
Beef, specifically.
You might wonder what beef was doing on a Christmas table, but beef was always good, and it went with just about anything. Christmas was no exception.
Sizzle—
The red slabs of beef hit the pan and began to cook with a lively crackle. How long had it been since I'd last had beef? Just the sound of it was enough to make my mouth water.
"More importantly, Sihyun — the gift?"
"I bought it yesterday. Already wrapped and everything."
"The design? You picked a good one?"
"Yeah. At least, I liked it."
I'd already bought Riya's gift the day before — and I'd blown every last bit of allowance I'd been saving up on it. I'd never spent that kind of money in this life, and I didn't regret a single won of it. It was a gift for Riya, after all.
I hope I chose well…
I'd picked it based on everything I knew about her tastes, but honestly, I still wasn't sure. The gift was already wrapped and sitting in my room — but with something like that, it really came down to personal preference. I just hoped she'd like it.
"Think this is enough?"
We'd made quite a spread. Beef, pasta, fried dishes, pizza — the table was loaded with food that looked simple but delicious. And not long after everything was set out—
Ding-dong—
Riya had arrived.
"I'll get it."
"Of course you will. You think I'm answering the door?"
"…Fair point."
Following Mom's logic, I headed straight for the front door and opened it. And there she was — Riya, standing on the other side. Beneath that pure white hair, she was wearing something different from her usual clothes. Not quite casual, not quite dressed up. The kind of outfit that made it clear she'd worked hard to find a middle ground between the two.
"Welcome."
"Mm."
"Food's ready, so let's eat."
After a brief greeting, we headed straight to the table. Everything was already set — utensils and all. All we had to do was sit down and eat.
"Riya, you're here!"
"Yes. Thank you for having me."
"Make yourself at home."
After exchanging greetings with Mom, Riya naturally took the seat beside me. She looked over the perfectly arranged table, then rubbed her fingers together and spoke.
"…I was going to help with the preparations."
She seemed uncomfortable just sitting there and being served without having done anything. It made sense — on previous visits, she'd rarely just shown up and eaten. And with a table this elaborate, it must have felt even more so.
"What are you talking about? We invited you, so of course we prepare."
"We invited you so we could put this together. Don't feel bad about it."
"…Okay."
She didn't seem entirely convinced, but she gave a small nod and left it at that.
Then came the meal. They were dishes I'd made myself, and they were surprisingly good. …The seasoning might have been a little heavy, but I decided not to dwell on that.
Riya had been eating in quiet silence until she tried something I'd cooked and finally spoke up.
"It's delicious."
"I made that one. Pretty good, right?"
"…Yeah. It's good."
There wasn't much conversation at the table. Just the soft clink of utensils against dishes. Whether Mom found the silence unpleasant or was simply asking out of genuine curiosity, I couldn't say — but midway through the meal, she dropped a bomb on Riya.
"Riya."
"Yes?"
"Try calling me Mom."
"Pff—!?"
What on earth was she saying. Mother. You couldn't just detonate a bomb of that magnitude out of nowhere — what was she thinking?
"Khh— hack!!"
I choked on my food. Catastrophic damage.
"Cough…!"
"Sihyun, here — water."
"Ah… thanks."
Riya, sitting beside me, handed me a glass. Not the one I'd been using — hers. Was it deliberate? An accident? The thought crossed my mind, but between Mom's bombshell and nearly choking to death, I completely failed to register it.
"Son, why are you reacting like that?"
"…Because you said it so suddenly."
"We've talked about this plenty of times before."
Was this another extension of those strange feelings I'd been having lately? Things that never used to bother me at all were hitting me so much harder these days.
"Anyway, Riya — go on, try calling me Mom."
"Ahh…"
Mom asked her again, clearly not planning to stop until she heard it. Riya's face flushed redder than mine as she ducked her head. She looked thoroughly embarrassed, covering her mouth with both pale hands and avoiding everyone's eyes.
"You're putting her on the spot. Stop teasing her."
I said it thinking she might not like it. But before I'd even finished speaking, Riya opened her mouth first.
"M-Mo…m?"
It was small — so small you might have missed it if you weren't listening carefully. But the house was quiet, and no one else was speaking when she said it. Both Mom and I heard her clearly.
"…"
A brief silence settled over the table. And that silence only seemed to deepen her embarrassment — she dropped her head completely, hiding her entire face.
A joke…? No. She must have meant something else.
I was just as flustered by what she'd said. The word "Mom" could mean a lot of things. You could call a friend's mother that out of closeness. It wasn't reserved exclusively for a boyfriend's mother.
But even so, my heart refused to settle.
No… it couldn't be.
She couldn't have meant it that way. I told myself that, and still my heart showed no intention of slowing down. Silence filled the table in an instant — nothing but the faint sound of a heartbeat.
Mom was the first to break it.
"I really wish I had a daughter like Riya."
She said it while gently stroking Riya's hair, clearly trying to ease the atmosphere.
"Want to leave Harin behind and come live with us?"
"Ah — no, I can't…"
"Let's trade. Sihyun for you. I'd rather have a daughter than a son."
"…What's wrong with me?"
Maybe it was thanks to her. The mood started to lighten a little compared to before. And with the tension eased, we went back to eating. But after something like that had happened, I found it hard to focus on the meal.
No… right?
I kept turning over what Riya had said.
A little while later, we finished everything. There had been plenty of variety, but not so much volume — so we managed to clear the whole table.
"I'll help too."
Afterward, despite Mom's insistence that she didn't need to, Riya declared she absolutely had to help with the dishes. Seeing her like that, I headed for the sink to pitch in as well — only for her to turn me away this time, telling me I wasn't allowed. It felt awkward standing around doing nothing, but what could I do? There genuinely wasn't anything left for me.
Once the dishes were done, Riya packed up her things to head home. It wasn't particularly late, but she had things to take care of at her house, so there was no helping it.
"I'll walk you."
I followed after her, gift in hand — the one I'd left in my room.
The residential streets, unlike downtown, were nearly empty of people. Most folks had either gone into the city or were resting at home.
"It's cold."
"Yeah."
I still hadn't found the right moment to give her the gift, so I just tossed out the occasional empty remark. We walked for a while without saying much of anything. Then I noticed how close we were to her house, and realized I no longer had the luxury of waiting for the perfect timing.
"Riya."
I held out the gift in my hand. A small package, about the size of a palm, wrapped in pretty paper.
"Merry Christmas. This is for you."
"Ah…"
Riya took it and immediately tore open the wrapping, lifting out what was inside. A bracelet. One with a real gemstone set in the center — a white stone that caught the light and held the eye. Of course, there was only so much a middle schooler's allowance could buy. The quality wasn't anything extraordinary. But it was the best I could do.
"What do you think…?"
My heart was trembling. What if she didn't like it? That anxiety kept pressing in.
"Yeah… I love it."
But all that worry proved groundless. She held the bracelet in both hands, a bright smile spreading across her face. A radiant smile — the kind of expression I never would have imagined on her, knowing the Riya I usually saw.
"I'll take good care of it."
She said it and slipped the bracelet onto her wrist. It hung a little loosely on her slender arm. But more than the bracelet itself, what caught my eye was the way she kept looking at it — as if she truly, genuinely liked it.
"…My gift is a Wish Coupon."
That was when Riya spoke up.
"A Wish Coupon?"
"Yeah. I'll grant you anything."
Anything. The moment I heard that word, countless thoughts flooded my mind — and I discarded every single one of them just as quickly. Some things weren't even fit to say out loud. Just thinking them felt irreverent.
"Do I have to use it now?"
"No. Later is fine."
"Then I'll save it. For when I think of something."
"Okay."
What was I going to use the Wish Coupon for? My head was already starting to spin with possibilities.