Christmas Shopping For Friends
whammy3 Guest
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Post by whammy3 on Dec 21, 2009 13:34:09 GMT -6
”Achoo,” Nagisa sneezed.
It was wintertime again, and the part of the year that her sickness always was at it’s worse. She had been much more protective of her health this year though. Ever since the weather began to get colder, Nagisa had been taking vitamins, drinking orange juice for Vitamin C, and doing whatever she could to keep healthy. Right now, for instance, she was doing her best to keep warm by wearing a heavy, brown coat with a pink scarf, brown gloves, and brown boots. Though of course, there was a little dango family on the end of the scarf. This was a good time of the year to have them around though. Most people found winter to be cold and unbearable, so having the Dango Daikazoku around would hopefully brighten some people’s spirits.
Right now, however, a cup of hot chocolate would help her out more. In preparation for Christmas, Nagisa had been out shopping. For most people Christmas was spent with close friends or significant others, but as Nagisa didn’t really have either of those she spent it with her family. It wasn’t that they needed a holiday to give each other gifts, but Christmas provided a pretty good excuse. Besides, the entire process of buying gifts was rather fun. Sometimes it was hard to figure out what to get someone, but then seeing the look on their faces when they received their presents, well, it was hard to beat that out.
At the moment, however, Nagisa really hadn’t really bought anything. Sure, there was plenty of stuff she had seen that she knew her parents would like. A set of baseball equipment for her dad, and a 101 Bread Recipes book for her mother. Indecision, however, tended to be a natural state of mind for Nagisa. She wanted to make sure that she got the perfect thing for them, and while those sounded close, she just wasn’t sure. Besides, if she held off on buying stuff for a little bit, she might get lucky and find the same items for a cheaper price. Then, with the money she saved, she might be able to buy something for Okazaki-san, Sunohara-san, or Ayumu-san. They were the closest thing she had to friends at the moment after all.
Shivering in the cold (even with the jacket and scarf), Nagisa knew she needed to find a place and thaw out. Up ahead was a small café, with a sign advertising fresh, hot cocoa. That sounded rather good right now with this weather, so she hurriedly headed inside and took a seat. One quick order later, and she was getting ready to sit down with a nice hot cup of cocoa. Of course, not wanting to burn herself, Nagisa decided to wait a minute and let it cool. Looking out the window, she noticed a small flurry of snow falling down. It was rather pretty, especially since there was just enough sun to make the ground sparkle. While some people despaired when winter came around, Nagisa didn’t mind it at all. Every season had it’s highs and lows, and right now she was experiencing one of the highs of winter; the chance to sit by a warm fire and watch the snow fall.
Her mind, however, eventually drifted back to the thought of gifts. Just what exactly could she get her ‘friends?’ She hadn’t known them that long, and so she wasn’t sure what it was that she could get them. Knowing Sunohara, he’d probably be happy with anything she got him, but she didn’t want to just get him something cheap and be done with it. There had to be some thought into it. But the other two, well, she had no clue where to begin. There, that was it! She had a goal today; to figure out what to get her friends for Christmas. Now if only she had a clue where to begin.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Dec 24, 2009 8:24:20 GMT -6
defrost. The shopping district was bustling with activity. It seemed that people simply did not learn to buy stuff for Christmas early on, rather than rush it all a little into the season. The hustle of strangers of all sorts was nothing new to Mizukami Ayumu; any place where stuff was to be sold and to be bought, he wagered, would probably in this hasty, huffing state at this time of the year. Carefully making his way from crowd to crowd, retracting his elbows and shifting his body to avoid the inevitable brushings, the boy questioned himself why he was here.
It was definitely not much in his nature to buy gifts. He didn't have much money, and he wanted to be perfectly sure... first... before he bought something for someone, and there were very few people of which he knew what they would like. He had resolved, Christmas after Christmas, to give somebody something, but he never did get around to doing it, and he often paid it up to his little circle of friends with favors and company, not that they minded his not-so-holiday nature. Mizukami Ayumu simply wasn't the type who gave stuff to everyone. If he gave something to somebody, there must be a reason, one enough to outdo his procrastination.
What was new to Ayumu, that which he could not get used to, yet, was the cold. It was cold where he was from, but not this cold. His eyes blinked a bit as he extricated himself from a bunch of people, making himself momentarily alone in a small patch of the populated clearing. The whiteness that pervaded was also something new, the black sky standing stark from the starched landscape. Snow. He had only known snow for a little more than three years, and with it the inexorable chill that gnawed and bit at you so lazily, and yet so persistently. He still felt it pierce, even as he was wrapped in two jackets and a thick shirt, and something similar with the pants. His father laughed off his opinion of the temperature. Well, the old man was used to it.
So, why was he here? There were heaters aplenty at home, but he sought to combat, though this endeavor was being met with increasing resistance, his two recurring patterns, his giftless nature and his freezing nature. Or... perhaps he simply wanted to wander, and after this, he'll probably skulk at home, a cocoon of blankets under the kotatsu (a Japanese invention that Ayumu reveled at and positively loved), like all them hibernating creatures of autumn and summer and spring. Winter was romantic and all that, but with it was harshness, a weariness that Ayumu doubted he would overcome soon.
His eyes darted, as he surveyed the area. He had gotten out of the multitude, and had a bit of an idea what to get Juana... well, she was easily delighted with stuff, and perhaps just the fact that her lazy brother was getting her something would send her ecstatic already. That is, if he could summon up enough fortitude and heat again to make a trip like this another time. Here, the crowd was a little more sparse, the spaces a little wider.
Ayumu fixed his wooly cap with his gloved hand. He spotted a store selling hot drinks nearby. It, surprisingly, didn't have as much customers; perhaps because immediately edible things weren't much of a gift to giftwrap. And perhaps people were already more adjusted to the cold here. He allowed himself a little luxury, a little chattering of teeth. Father was the tricky one.
Perhaps a little hot drink would clear his mind. He entered, the chimes a-tingling, and ordered one drink. He burnt his tongue in a little haste, having drunk a bit even before finding a table. Stung, he slumped a bit onto the counter, placing his cup in a stable place. That sip was invigorating.
He took some time to recover, unconscious of the fact that Furukawa-senpai was in the same cafe as he.
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