At least twelve. [comes Akira's quick answer, accompanied by the slightest quirk of a smile] I stopped counting after that.

[but he was counting. and the more Ryuji talks about Christmas Eve and the aftermath of same, the more Akira finds himself settling. there was something a bit. . . comforting, to know that the two of them were on the same page. it had taken him nearly two months to find out that he and Ann weren't, even though they had been able to quickly rectify that afterwards]

[huh. speaking of Ann. . .]

Hey. . . Ryuji. This is going to sound like a really weird question, but what month was it back home before you arrived here?