A/N: It isn't too late to write a Christmas fic, right?:p This is a flashback to the Christmas before Jesse moved to Korea, so Jesse-14, Tiff-12. This update is for soshibeary! Sorry that it isn't a real update yet. I'll get to it soon enough. Anyway, I wanted to update before 2013 ends. So, this is it. Read on.

RIIIIINNNNNGGG!!!

The last bell of the day rang throughout the halls, followed suit by ecstatic cheers and shouts of the students.

It was officially the start of Christmas break.

Most had rushed out of their classrooms, eager to get home and pack for a Christmas getaway. Some hung in the classroom or at the hallways, giving out gifts or making plans with friends for the holidays. And a minority—Jesse Jung, to be specific—nonchalantly walked out the classroom, a lethargic walk with a stoic expression to boot.

“Yo, Jess!” a tanned boy jumped on Jesse’s back, an arm slinging over the other boy’s shoulder.

“You’re awfully happy, Yul,” Jesse commented indifferently.

“Of course!” Yuri chuckled, ruffling Jesse’s hair in glee—much to the blond boy’s displeasure. “It’s Christmas break, cousin! Almost 3 weeks of no classes!! Isn’t that great?”

Jesse pushed off his arm. “Sure…whatever you say.”

Yuri didn’t notice the dry tone in Jesse’s voice and continued ranting with an overly bright aura—again, much to Jesse’s displeasure. “I was thinking we could go to your family’s holiday rest house,” he was saying. “We could go skiing or skating! What do you think? Anything else you wanna do this break?”

“Sleep.”

Yuri’s smile faltered at the answer. “Tsk. Figured that’d be your answer. Freakin’ buzzkill, man.”

Jesse only smirked as he went on ahead towards the lockers, his cousin sulking as he followed behind.

“Woah…” Yuri snickered at the sight greeting them. “Looks like your fan club left you gifts again.”

Jesse sighed in annoyance as he saw the tower of gift boxes, paper bags, and even flowers and letters, in front of his locker door. “Damn it. I thought I got rid of all of them this morning…”

“—and batch #2 earlier at lunch,” Yuri quipped.

“Shut up,” Jesse glared at him and began picking up the gifts, placing them in a black plastic bag he brought. “Just help me get all of it. We’ll throw it out at the back, or donate them, maybe.”

“Hey, are you sure? Aren’t you at least gonna open them?”

“Nah,” Jesse briefly looks over at all the gifts. “Why would I bother opening them when I know I won’t like them? And why would anyone know what gift I’d like? They don’t know me. These gifts… they’re just like the rest… given without any real thought—nothing special.”

“Jesse…”

“Are you gonna help or not?”

Yuri sighed as he began shoving gift after gift into the bag. He forced himself to push away the hate brewing inside him—an overwhelming hate for the girl who pushed Jesse to be this cold and aloof.

Right at that moment, Yuri didn’t wish for anything else. He just wished for something—or someone—that could make Jesse truly happy. Even if it’s just this Christmas, Yuri would grab that bargain.

~~~+~~~

“HEY!! JESS!”

“YURI!”

The cousins, who were just about to enter their house, halted as they heard their friends’ shouts.

Leeteuk and Max jogged towards them.

“So, guys, any plans this break?” Max asked as he fixed the shoulder strap of his bag.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Yuri shrugged as he looked back pointedly at Jesse. “I had planned to ask Uncle Jung if we could go skiing, but this sleepyhead here only has plans with his beloved bed.”

Jesse rolled his eyes in a manly fashion. “Quit your whining, Yul. I’m gonna ask Mom and Dad when we get home, all right? Happy?”

“Yeah!!” Yuri instantly cheered.

“So that’s the plan. Call us for the details. Oh and before I forget,” Leeteuk paused, swinging his backpack in front and opening the zip. He took out two neatly-wrapped presents and handed it to the two—a small box for Yuri and a bigger rectangular package for Jesse. “Here.”

“Aww, you didn’t have to get us anything, pal,” Yuri patted Leeteuk’s head.

Leeteuk pushed Yuri’s hand away, laughing. “It’s not from me. I can’t wrap a present without it looking like trash. It’s from someone, I can’t tell you, because if I do, she said she’d paint all my white stuff pink.”

“What?”

“Be grateful. She didn’t even get me any,” Max sulked. “And to think that I’m the most frequent visitor at their house… I must be invisible.”

Leeteuk shook his head. “Here we go again. C’mon, Max. Gotta go, guys. See you when I see you!”

With that, the two left, leaving the other two dumbfounded with a gift in hand.

Jesse and Yuri exchanged glances before looking back at their respective gifts.

The blond boy was the first one to move. He went on to walk into the house, decidedly about to throw away the rectangular present when Yuri let out an excited yelp.

“I can’t believe it!!”

Jesse looked back at Yuri. “What?”

“She got me a genuine LA Galaxy pin!!” the soccer fanatic started jumping around in joy, a bright grin on his face.

Jesse chuckled slightly at his dorky cousin. “Good for you,” he muttered. Then, he left the boy standing at the porch.

He went to his room and plopped down onto his bed—the gift still neatly-wrapped and still in the warmth of his palm.

He peeled off the card and read it:

I heard you talking about it with your cousin. I hope you like it.

Merry Christmas, Jesse!

---from the girl with eye smiles

He cast a glance at the package. He hesitated for a second, but in the end, his curiosity won and he tore off the wrapper.

The blonde’s breath hitched for a moment.

It’s a book—a secondhand book, to be exact, with its pages already yellow and some even tattered at the edges. It looked old, but it had n