When she found out that Nao spent hatsumode in Kyoto, Noriko gave up on having him for herself during winter break. While she still thought it grossly unfair, she also accepted there were times when life just played dirty.

A full two days later than she originally planned she dressed up to visit a smaller shrine close to their home. Ryu had gone with Ai-chan a day earlier, and if it hadn't been for their parents being adamant about going with old friends, Noriko would have tagged along as well.

Now she stood waiting for Kyoko and Yukio, who missed out on their chance two days earlier. Apparently they arrived too late to one of the most important of the shrines in Tokyo, and had to leave before they even managed to get inside the compound.

By Noriko's side Urufu weighed from foot to foot. She forced him to tag along when Nao mailed her the reason why he was in Kyoto.

Because you're not spending a week in Kyoto with Kuri and leaving me alone in Tokyo! So Urufu had to do. Which would have been a lot more fun just a few months earlier.

While she still was fond of him almost all remnants of romantic interest had vanished long ago. Almost, but Noriko suspected that a small part of a first love stayed for life.

“You haven't said anything,” Noriko muttered.

“About what?”

He really is dense. “About me.”

An expression of incomprehension spread over Urufu's face, but he must have spent enough time together with Kuri to at least get the basics. “Sorry,” he said. “You look fantastic. That kimono really suits you.”

To make up for his clumsiness at least he almost never lied about things like that. If he said she looked fantastic, then he meant it. That made Noriko smile a little.

“Really think so?” she asked to prolong the sweet feeling a little more.

“Yeah, really think so. I just feel uncomfortable giving you a compliment like that. With boyfriend and girlfriend and all that, you know.”

You really are sweet aren't you? Noriko looked at Urufu. I guess you were never the player after all, she thought. But she didn't know. He'd been married for longer than she had lived. There was nothing saying he hadn't been a player before that.

“Noriko, over there!”

She looked up and in the direction Urufu pointed.

“Yukio, Kyoko!” Noriko called when she saw the friends Urufu had spotted first.

Kyoko waved back, and after she elbowed her boyfriend, so did he.

Urufu fidgeted, and Noriko couldn't help giggling in anticipation of what was coming.

“Kyoko, you look great,” he said when they were within earshot.

She did, but that didn't prevent Noriko from bursting into laughter.

“Man, what's with that? Stick to your own girl!” Yukio said. “And what's with her,” he continued and pointed at Noriko, who by now laughed so hard her stomach hurt.

“That's hilarious!” Noriko said between attacks. “Kyoko, he's just the best!”

Kyoko only returned a nonplussed look. “Yukio, should we go ahead. It might be contagious.”

He grinned back at her. “Honestly, you two, what's going on?”

“Nothing,” Urufu muttered. “She,” and Noriko felt his hand patting her head, “told me I had to tell the girls when they look good, and now she's laughing at me because I did just that.”

Kyoko met Noriko's stare and gave her a look that said: 'Give him a break will you?' Noriko pouted back, but the mirth never left her.

“Man, you need to have a talk with Ryu. Dammit, even I could help you.”

“What did I do now?”

“Kyoko, meet Urufu, our resident moron. He spent fifty years learning nothing.”

That was enough to have Kyoko join Noriko in her giggling, and Noriko grinned when she high fived her friend. Yeah, this could be a good hatsumode after all.

Urufu shook his head, but then he offered her his arm. Noriko gratefully accepted it, and together the four of them walked for the stairs to the shrine.

He's funny, Noriko thought. So socially inept, and then suddenly the perfect gentleman.

She had to lean on him more than once during the climb. The stairs were wet with the occasional patch of what tried to be snow.

For this occasion Urufu was of more use than Nao, she guessed. Where Nao was a tall, gorgeous boyfriend, Urufu was strangely muscular with perfect control of his body. And he oozed with friendship.

Noriko slipped several times, and every time Urufu just happened to move just enough that he didn't have to grab her to prevent her from falling. He was just there to stabilise her. Moron-sama, just how many years did you train that martial arts of yours?

Ahead of them Yukio helped Kyoko, who was just as insensibly clad in a kimono with the associated idiotic slippers. Looks good, but it's really useless clothing. Then Noriko thought about some of the dresses Kuri had worn during her shoots. High heels here, yes that would be a sight. But you'd probably just hover up the stairs anyway. Sometimes I envy you.

A few minutes later they found themselves between stalls, and ahead of them Noriko saw the shrine. It was strangely desolated considering it being New Year's and all, but she was grateful not having to be pushed around in a crowd. She'd never be tall enough to enjoy crowded places.

“So, what now?”

Noriko had to tilt her head to look at Urufu. “What do you mean?”

“Do we start with the funny clapping thing, or is there something else to do first?”

Noriko rolled her eyes. Funny clapping thing! Then she burst out laughing again. “Guys, Urufu wants to know if we should clap our hands first.”

“Urufu, man!”

“What? Yukio, what did she mean with… ah, yes, I guess we could start with the shrine. And, and, yeah, and clap our hands,” Kyoko finished. Then she joined Noriko in her laughter.

***

Yukio shook his head in exasperation. Urufu, I've already told you about hatsumode. With a smile on his lips Yukio tapped Urufu's shoulder. “Thank you, man.” Noriko needed that. You're a good friend.

Urufu turned at the touch, and Yukio saw how he pretended to be just as clueless as before.

Clenching his fingers around Urufu's shoulders Yukio made him to stay, and both girls slowly got ahead of them by a few steps.

“You knew Nao never showed?” Yukio asked.

Urufu smirked. “Yeah, Ryu told me, and I got a text from Christina that she and Nao were tied up in Kyoto.”

Two slaps on Urufu's back later, the way Urufu usually expressed sympathy in that strange Swedish way of his, Yukio cleaned away the grimace from his face. “They're trying to break you up?”

He got a nod in return. “But not Nao and Noriko,” Urufu hurried to add. “That's just Nao jumping at the opportunity. Christina told me.”

Yukio couldn't understand why anyone would chose a job before love, but then that maybe was another of those grown up things. “Would you?” he asked, more for confirmation than anything else.

Urufu took a few steps to get closer to the girls ahead of them. “Would I what?”

Yukio caught up with him, but he wanted to know before they joined the girls in the queue. He tugged his cloak tighter around him and gave some time to his line of thought.

“Would you prioritise work before Kuri?”

A cough told Yukio the question had been unexpected. “It's not that easy. At least if you're after a right or wrong kind of answer.” Urufu kicked at a stone, and Yukio saw how his lips had become a thin line. “No, I wouldn't, but at the same time I guess I'm forcing Christina to.”

That made no sense, and it stank of misogyny. “Because she's a girl?”

A sudden laugh made him turn and glance at Urufu.

“Now what made you think that way? No, don't worry. Never that. It's just that she gambled everything on an opportunity last August. I don't want to make her lose it all.”

I wonder if you're not making her lose more if you push her away, Yukio thought. That thought, he realised, ironically enough was the result of spending a lot of time with Urufu and Kuri. Without their perspectives from being adults caught in teen-aged bodies he'd never have grown as fast as he did.

But I guess being an adult isn't the same as being right, or knowing everything for that matter. After all, his parents had been adults when they married, and that didn't work out in the end.

Suddenly feeling depressed he hurried away and joined the girls. Feeling Kyoko near him helped loads, and for once he wished Urufu and Kuri could just be as childishly naive as him and Kyoko.

“What is it?” Kyoko asked.

“Sorry,” Yukio said. “Just thinking about Urufu,” he continued and looked over his shoulder to see if his friend was joining them as well.

Urufu did walk, but he kept his distance, and his tall figure spelled out loneliness contrasted against the colourful stalls behind him.

“Him and Kuri-chan, you mean?”

Yukio turned his attention back to his girlfriend. “Yeah. I just feel bad for them.”

By his other side Noriko tugged at his sleeve. “Could we please not, not today, please,” she said.

“Sorry.” Then the absurdity of his situation caught up with him, and he grinned. A girl at each side of him. Unthinkable only a year earlier, and he couldn't help but feel a little flattered.

Shortly before they came up to the shrine Urufu had joined them, and Yukio left Noriko in his care. Even is she no longer had a crush on him she probably still didn't want do her prayers alone.

OK, time for the funny clapping. Yukio stole a glance at Kyoko to see if she also remembered Urufu's verbal blunder. When she dropped a coin into the offerings box she turned her face to him. It was split in a grin that reached from ear to ear.

They barely managed to keep from giggling when they pulled the rope and clapped twice.

After that Kyoko led him to where they could buy fortune slips, and when Yukio paid they were joined by Urufu and Noriko. Her face was twisted into a grin as well, and it was only Urufu who managed to keep a deadpan expression while he paid for his own fortune slip.

“Enjoying yourself?” Yukio asked.

“Yeah, kind of. By the way, what do you do when it says your life will suck the coming year?”

Yukio leaned over and looked at Urufu's slip. “Man, that's bad! Kyoko, seems we have to get over to the trees over there.”

She pouted and waved with her slip as well. “That makes two of us,” she said.

You both got bad luck? Isn't that kind of rare?

He led Kyoko to the trees and helped her tie her bad luck charm to one of he branches. On the other side Urufu did the same after he watched what Kyoko was doing.

Feeling a little down Yukio dragged his friends and girlfriend to a stall serving amazake to make up for the unlikely outcome of their fortune telling. He even made it his treat, for which Noriko complained at first. Then she shrugged it off and led the four of them to yet another stall.

With the hot and sweet drink working its way in his stomach Yukio listened absent-mindedly to Urufu's wordy comparison with some kind of mulled wine specific to Sweden that they traditionally drank during the first half of December.

Urufu might be his best friend, but sometimes his tendencies to compare everything with Sweden honestly got tiring, and Yukio had long since gotten used to turn his ears off when yet another litany was incoming.

They ate some more hot food, listened to Urufu's incessant chatter about the absence of fireworks during the shift of years, laughed at a few bad jokes, and eventually they left the shrine, said their goodbyes and left for their homes. In Yukio's case that meant escorting Kyoko to her home before riding his bike from there.