All This Time | Enhypen

| 62 |

A frown gathered itself on Millie's face at the last present on her bed, Christmas morning. The small rectangular box. Quietly Millie glanced over at Kumiko, who was in the middle of admiring the knitted mittens Sunoo's grandmother had sent her. They carried a remarkable resemblance to the knitted socks Millie had recieved as well. Apparently Sunoo had spoken so fondly of his two housemates in his letters back home that his dad had arranged an owl for his mother to send Christmas gifts to Sunoo's two friends. 

"Did you get any gifts in this wrapping paper?" Millie spoke up, forcing Kumiko's eyes away from her black mittens with a tiny pattern of yellow intretwining the wrist cuffs.

"No," Kumiko shook her head quietly, "perhaps from your stepmom?"

"No... my mum can't have used the Daily Prophet as wrapping paper," Millie shook her head with a frown.

"Maybe... your mother?" Kumiko offered and Millie immediately snorted before shaking her head.

"Not a chance," Millie snickered and turned the books in her hand.

"Well... let's open it and figure out," Kumiko urged and rushed over to sit on the edge of Millie's bed, eagerly looking down at the small box with curiousity, "well, go on. Open it!"

With careful fingers Millie tore the paper open and was left with a tiny cardboard box in hand. Quietly finding the opening and sliding out a circular glass with a note attached. A wide grin immediately spreading on Kumiko's face.

"The note first," Kumiko insisited and carefully ripped the note from the cylindral glass shell. Keeping the gift itself in her hands as she anticipated Millie to read out loud, "I want to hear too!"

"I know you like going to Portishead Beach when you're home during the summer. I hope this candle can make you feel at home. Jake," Millie read, her voice going more and more quiet with each word. Turning into a mere murmur before her eyes drifted to the candle Kumiko had held onto for her, "he got me a gift..."

"Didn't get me one," Kumiko scrunched up her nose in dismay as she handed the candle back to Millie, who carefully wiggled the lid of the candle off.

"Now I feel bad. I didn't get him anything. I didn't even know we were doing gifts this year," Millie complained once the lid let go of the glass with a small 'pop'. Immediately Millie stuck her nose down to the edge of the candle and sniffed in the scent, quickly checking the label of the candle in between sniffs, "smells just like fresh ocean air. Did he enchant this or something? How is it so precise?"

"It is a wizard brand," Kumiko reminded with a small shrug, "I bet that was why he didn't join Jay and Sunghoon in Hogsmeade! He was out picking out gifts and he got help from Sunoo!"

"You think so?" Millie questioned and glanced at Kumiko, giving the candle another sniff. Almost getting homesick at such a familiar scent, "but the label doesn't say its supposed to smell like ocean air."

"What does it say then?" Kumiko questioned and turned the candle in Millie's hand carefully, "Amortentia... ah that makes sense... it smells like whatever objects you are very fond off. The ocean air must be high on your list then."

"But how did Jake know it would be? He mentioned the beach in his note," Millie pointed out and held up the note as Kumiko curiously brought over the candle into her hand, giving the candle a small sniff before nodding while a tiny smile spreadd on her face.

"My guess is Sunoo," Kumiko answered quietly before taking another sniff of the candle, "ah... fresh cucumber, I love that smell," Kumiko murmured to herself, taking a third and last whiff. Frowning slightly at the scent, "peppermint? That's a new one. I wonder what that could be?"

"Who knows?" Millie shrugged and accepted the candle back from Kumiko, taking another whiff of the candle, "fresh berries... fresh berries as well. Like... some sort of fresh fruit."

"You like everything about summers, huh?" Kumiko snickered and pushed herself up from Millie's bed, stretching her arms above her head, "we should be heading for breakfast. We can't let Jakey boy eat alone. Not this Christmas."

"Do you think one of the house elves would get me a muffin or something for Jake? I feel bad that he gave me a gift and I didn't get him one," Millie questioned and pressed the lid back on her newly aquired candle. Gently putting it down on her nightstand, beside the book her dad and mum had sent her.

"Just snatch one from the table and a bit of fruit to decorate it. The boy is so gullible, he'd believe any kind gesture you may claim," Kumiko shrugged quietly.

Millie pursed her lips as she pulled on her new socks from Sunoo's grandmother. Slipping into her indoor slippers before joining Kumiko on their way out of their dorm. Millie quietly tying her hair away from her face with a small hair tie making a tiny ponytail low by her neck. Kumiko's hair still in the same braid she had put it in last night. Only a tad bit more messy.

Up in the Great Hall Jake had denied any claim that Millie should've gotten him a gift as well. Excusing the situation with him just stumbling across the candle and saying it reminded him of her once he had smelled the salt water upon testing the various candles. Even though Sunoo had disagreed and claimed the candle to smell like a blackberry scented soap and hot chocolate. An odd combination according to Jake, but who was he to judge? 
Jake had simply smelled salt water in the candle and immediately thought about Millie, which was why he couldn't help but buy the candle. He apologized for not buying a candle for Kumiko too, but worried if any scents would show up as strong as the salt water had done for Jake, only solidifying his idea that it must be just as strong for Millie. In the end Kumiko had to stop Jake from rambling on in endless apologies and actually eat his breakfast.