In the spirit of Christmas, Chaeyeon and her officemates decided to play 'Secret Santa'. Everyone will draw a name and whoever they pick, he or she is obliged to do a good deed, small acts of kindness for him or her for three times. They need to keep their identity hidden to succeed as a secret Santa. At the end of the week, they will give presents to one another as their secret Santa will be revealed. 

When it's Chaeyeon's turn, she smiled brightly as she saw who she picked. 

 

'Sakura'

 

They have been workmates for a year now. Chaeyeon has had feelings for Sakura for that long too but she has kept it to herself all this time. They had numerous interactions but it's more on work related matters. She hadn't got a chance to have long personal talks with her. 

It's Sakura's work ethic and mysterious personality that made Chaeyeon fell for her. Sakura is the serious type. She's a workaholic. Chaeyeon is the opposite. She's more on the funny side but she gets the work done. She believed that opposites attract but she doesn't have the courage to confess her feelings. Keeping her feelings for Sakura is her final decision.

After everyone picked, they returned to their respective cubicles while teasing each other on being their secret Santa. Some were just silent going back to their chairs. Just a few minutes after their secret Santa started, everyone suspects each other's gestures. Laughter filled the office throughout the day. 

Someone placed a soda in can on Chaeyeon's table. When Chaeyeon looked up, she saw Yuri smiling at her.

"Are you my secret Santa?", Chaeyeon asked.

"No", Yuri answered.

Chaeyeon grabbed the soda and waved it at Yuri.

"I gave one to everyone", Yuri said.

Chaeyeon being suspicious, stood up and looked around.

"Who did you pick?", Chaeyeon asked.

"Ahmmm... it's... secret!", Yuri answered.

"Fine! Thanks for the soda anyway."

"How about you, who did you pick?"

"It's someone you know."

"Thanks for the clue."

"I'll try my best to not get caught."

 

 

After Sakura picked, she just returned to her cubicle quietly. She got back to what she's doing and did not even bother to ask about who her officemates picked. 

 

When it's time to go home, everyone left their cubicles while they tease one another about being their secret Santa. Sakura decided to stay at the office while the rest of her colleagues left already. Well, she did that on purpose. A chance to be a secret Santa while everyone else is not around. She went to one of her officemates' cubicle and arranged the things on the table. To escape suspiscion, she did the same to another cubicle she saw that needs some tidying up.

The following day, everyone is still at each other's nose trying to catch their secret Santa. Someone called everyone's attention and talked about how the things on her table are nicely arranged when she left it messy yesterday. Another person told the same thing. 

"It's you, right?", Nako asked.

"Me?", Sakura answered.

"Yes, you. When we left yesterday, I noticed you stayed behind."

"I was just behind you."

Nako smiled. Sakura kept a straight face.

"You're so obvious", Nako said.

"It's not me", Sakura answered.

"Whatever you say."

"Go suspect somebody else."

 

During break time, Chaeyeon was about to go out to buy coffee. Yuri approached Chaeyeon and asked her to buy one for her too. Another officemate heard their conversation and requested the same. Chaeyeon ended up being the one to buy coffee for her officemates. When Chaeyeon returned, she walked around the office delivering coffee. She placed one on Sakura's table. The latter was surprised as she did not order anything. She grabbed the cup and saw her name written on it. She smiled. 

 

When Chaeyeon was done giving coffee to those who asked her to buy for them, she returned to her chair. Once she's seated, she almost stood up again as she saw Sakura in front of her. Sakura lifted the cup of coffee and said, "Thank you! Are you my secret Santa?".

 

"No!", Chaeyeon answered.

"But I did not ask you to buy me coffee", Sakura said.

"I bought one for everybody."

"Really?"

"Go, take a look around."

Sakura scanned the office and found that each one has a cup of coffee on their table.

"See?", Chaeyeon said.

"You're so generous", Sakura responded.

Chaeyeon forced a smile. Sakura walked away. After seeing Sakura leave, Chaeyeon let out a big sigh. She almost got caught. She's now being suspected as Sakura's secret Santa by Sakura herself. She doesn't know if she'll be worried or she'll be glad about it. At least she's done one thing for her, two more to go.

 

Work continues in the office as everyone is busy with their own tasks. When it's time to eat lunch, everyone gathered as it's their scheduled team lunch. They went to the BBQ place near their office. Sakura is asked if she's the one who arranged the messy cubicles but she denied it. She glanced at Chaeyeon as she remembered the coffee she did not order. Chaeyeon avoided to make eye contact with her. As they were eating, Sakura's utensils accidentally fell. Chaeyeon wanted to volunteer to get her new ones but one of their officemates saw Yuri, who was near the counter so she just asked her to get the utensils. 

 

After lunch, their team leader offered to buy them dessert. Everyone got excited except for Sakura who excused herself. Chaeyeon declined as well. The two went back to the office together. They walked without talking to one another. As they entered the building, Chaeyeon broke the silence by asking Sakura about who she picked for their secret Santa.

"It's not you", she said.

Chaeyeon did not respond after hearing Sakura's answer.

"Are you really not my secret Santa?", Sakura asked.

"What if I tell you that it's me", Chaeyeon said.

It took a few seconds before Sakura answered.

"I'll be glad."

Chaeyeon was shocked at Sakura's response.

"Well, it's... not me...", Chaeyeon answered.

The elevator door opened and the two went in. There was silence once again.

"So, it's really you", Chaeyeon said.

"What?", Sakura asked.

"The one who arranged the messy tables."

"You suspect me too?"

Chaeyeon smirked. The elevator door opened. They reached their floor already. 

"I don't suspect you. I know it's you", Chaeyeon said as she head to her cubicle.

Sakura just stared at her.

When Sakura returned to her cubicle, she saw a box of chocolates on her table. A note is attached to the box.

 

'Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get.'

(a line from the movie, Forrest Gump)

 

Sakura looked around. It's just her and Chaeyeon at the moment. She wanted to suspect Chaeyeon but they were together since lunch so it's impossible for her to place it on her table without her noticing. She took the note and opened the box of chocolates. She can't help but smile.

 

When the rest of the team returned, the office became lively again. As the days go by, the secret Santas are discovered one by one. The supposedly secret gestures are not secret anymore. There are some who pretends to be someone else's secret Santa while there are still others who are able to keep their secret. The weekend is fast approaching so they reminded one another of the gift they are supposed to give to the person they picked. Everyone got excited, especially on the secret Santa reveal.

Sakura got a bit worried that she won't complete the three good deeds for the person she picked. Being a bit obvious on her first try, she wanted to be more careful this time. While everyone is focused in front of their computers, someone stood up and asked for help because her computer is acting up. Sakura came over to her without hesitation. After just a few minutes, it's all fixed. Her colleague thanked her for her help. 

When it's time to go home, Chaeyeon is one of the first to leave. She went to her car but she stayed at the parking lot to wait for someone. She decided to complete her three good deeds today. She is still determined to succeed as Sakura's secret Santa. She mustered the courage for the woman she likes. After almost an hour, she saw Sakura exiting their building. She immediately stopped the car in front of her. She opened the car window and she smiled at her. 

"I'll give you a ride home", Chaeyeon offered.

"It's okay. I have somewhere to go to", Sakura responded.

"I'll take you there then."

"I'm fine. Besides, it's out of your way."

'How did she know that it'll be out of my way', Chaeyeon thought.

"Just get in, you'll be late. I'm not your secret Santa, remember? So don't doubt my gesture."

Sakura smirked. She accepted Chaeyeon's offer to give her a ride to where she's going. While inside the car, the two is in the middle of silence again. 

"Have you completed your three good deeds?", Sakura asked.

"Ah... yeah...", Chaeyeon answered.

"Good for you."

"You?"

"I still got one more."

"It's the last day tomorrow..."

"I know. I'm actually starting to worry that I might not be able to complete it."

"You can do it."

Sakura smiled as she looked outside. Chaeyeon smiled as she saw Sakura from the mirror in front of her. After a while, they arrived at Sakura's destination. The latter thanked Chaeyeon for the ride before they said goodbye to each other.

 

A day before the secret Santa reveal, everyone is making sure they complete the task. Sakura placed honey water inside the refrigerator of their office. She attached a note for whom it is. She happily went back to her cubicle as she finally finished her three good deeds as someone's secret Santa. 

 

Everyone was startled as they hear someone screamed. Everybody got up from their seats to see what happened. It turned out, it's Yuri. She screamed as she saw the honey water in the fridge with her name attached to it. One by one they returned to their spots when the knew what took place. A commotion also started as they try to guess who put it there. All of them made an effort to be the best secret Santa.

 

Finally, it's the big reveal. Chaeyeon and her officemates gathered around as they start to know who their secret Santa is. When it's Chaeyeon's turn, she stopped in front of Sakura and she handed her gift. Sakura gave her a confused look before accepting the gift she is giving. Chaeyeon just smirked at her. 

"You told me that you're not my secret Santa...", Sakura said.

"I wanted to succeed on keeping it a secret", Chaeyeon answered.

"So, it's really you?"

Chaeyeon laughed.

"Yes, it's me. I guess I'm good at keeping secrets."

It's Sakura's turn to reveal who she picked. She walked forward and handed her gift to Yuri. As Yuri was about to receive her gift, Nako stopped her.

"Wait!", she exclaimed.

Everyone turned their heads towards Nako.

"I picked Yuri!", Nako said.

"What?", Sakura asked.

"I'm Yuri's secret Santa."

"But I'm Yuri's secret Santa."

There was suddenly a chaos in the middle of secret Santa reveal. Apparently, Nako and Sakura both picked Yuri. It only meant one thing, one name is missed out. 

 

Yuri is confused all of a sudden. She tried to recall the good deeds her colleagues showed her. She blurted a short laugh as she realized that she ended up receiving more love from her officemates.

 

Once the situation calmed down, they decided to let everyone finish revealing who they picked to know who's name they missed out. In the end, it turned out that Chaeyeon's name was not included and Yuri's name was written twice. 

 

"I'm sorry...", Sakura uttered.

"I'm sorry too", Nako said.

"It's okay. You both didn't want it to happen, it's not your fault", Chaeyeon said. 

"It's not okay. It's unfair for you. You weren't able to receive good deeds from us", Sakura said.

"Yeah! She's right", Nako agreed.

Chaeyeon came closer to Sakura and Nako. She tapped their shoulder to assure them that everything is fine.

 

"Let's not ruin the happy mood. It's Christmas! Let's enjoy and focus on good things."

 

After the secret Santa reveal, they proceeded to their office Christmas party. Everyone is having a good time, even Chaeyeon who didn't have a secret Santa is enjoying the night. She was about to go to the washroom when she saw Sakura in the corner of the room. Without thinking twice, she approached her. 

 

"Why are you here all alone when everybody's out there having fun?", she asked.

Sakura didn't respond.

"If you're still thinking about what happened earlier, just stop already. I'm fine..."

"It's not fine, okay!", Sakura raised her voice.

Chaeyeon was shocked at Sakura's sudden change of tone.

"Sorry...", Sakura uttered as she stepped out of the room. Chaeyeon followed her. 

"Where are you going?"

Sakura went to the nearest fire exit.

"Stop! Let's talk", Chaeyeon raise her voice too.

"Why are you making it a big deal?, she asked.

Sakura faced Chaeyeon making the latter move back a little.

"It's not only you who is good at keeping secrets", Sakura said.

"What do you mean?", Chaeyeon responded.

"I knew... I knew it was you... You can hide it from everyone but not to me..."

"You mean to say..."

"Yes, I knew that you're my secret Santa... but you lied to me when I asked you about it..."

"I... how come?"

Sakura turned her back to Chaeyeon. 

"It's not only that. I also knew that...you have feelings for me."

Chaeyeon looked away. The familiar silence took over.

"Why did you not tell me?", Sakura asked.

"I don't know. I'm not that brave to confess my feelings. Maybe because I'm afraid of what you have to say...", Chaeyeon answered.

"I like you too! That's what I have to say."

Chaeyeon didn't manage to move. She can't believe what she just heard.

"You heard it right. I like you. I've been supressing my feelings for you all this time. I guess I don't have the courage to say it first that's why I waited for you. But you didn't say anything about it..."

Chaeyeon hugged Sakura tightly. After their long hug, Chaeyeon looked straight into Sakura's eyes. 

"I like you. I'm sorry for being a coward. I'm sorry to keep you waiting. I'm sorry for lying to you. I'm..."

Chaeyeon was stopped by Sakura's lips pressed on hers. As Sakura broke their kiss, Chaeyeon was about to say something but Sakura's lips stopped her from doing so. Sakura slowly stepped back and caressed Chaeyeon's face.

"I wish I was your secret Santa...but I did two good deeds for you already...", Sakura said.

Chaeyeon smiled.

"This is the third..."

Sakura kissed Chaeyeon's lips. Her lips parted as she tilt her head. Chaeyeon followed her lead. The two were passionately kissing. When they heard the voice of their colleagues looking for them, they break their kiss and smiled at each other then they kept as quiet as possible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-END-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas! 🌲

Enjoy the holidays.

 

One of my Christmas wish is IZ*ONE's comeback. 😭

I miss them so much...

 

What's your Christmas wish? ☺