Page 11 of Once Upon A Snowfall
I lean over and give him a hug. “And I’d like to thank you as well. You helped turn a bad situation into something enjoyable.”
“I should probably see if I can keep my room for another night,” he says.
“Yeah, I need to check on that too. They mentioned it wouldn’t be a problem, I just needed to let them know. Hey, look over there.” I chuckle and point to a man with a long white beard and grayish-white hair. “He looks like a real-life Santa.”
“You know, I think that’s the same gentleman that was on the bus yesterday. If it’s not him, he’s definitely got a twin.”
I don’t want him to catch us staring so I turn around and face Brent. “If you do end up staying and you need someone to keep you company, you know my room number. Call me.”
I walk to the window and stare out for the longest time. There’s just so much to see and take in. The parking garage sits off to the left and I’m blown away that the top level is completely filled with snow. It’s crazy to think that much has fallen, preventing anyone from being able to park their cars there. Over by the stairway, someone has crunched around in the snow, leaving a set of tracks similar to that of a bird prancing around on a sandy beach. It’s no wonder so many people come here.
After a nice long soak in the tub, I feel much warmer than I did earlier. There was one point, my fingers and toes were so cold, I could hardly feel them. It’s mind boggling people are able to get out in this and not freeze to death.
I curl up on the sofa, while a fresh cup of coffee is brewing over on the counter. In the meantime, I send several photos to Madi, promising to take more over the coming days.“I simply can’t put into words how beautiful and white everything is. Love you.”
My eyes become heavy and I slip into a nap, forgetting all about the cup of coffee I just made.
Two hours later, I sit up and stretch my arms over my head. I suppose the excitement and nervousness from yesterday’s events finally caught up with me. I feel quite refreshed now, not to mention a bit toasty from having the heat cranked up. In fact, it’s almost stifling.
I walk over to the phone and punch in the number to connect me to Brent’s room. His voice is almost groggy, as though he’s been asleep too.
“Hi, I hope I didn’t wake you.” I pray he doesn’t detect the hint of nervousness in my tone.
“Not at all. I’m kicked back, watching a little television,” he says.
“You mentioned earlier about there being some retail shops close by. Could you give me an idea which way I need to go.”
Brent pauses for a moment. “I could go with you,” he suggests. “If you’d like some company.”
It was exactly the reply I was hoping for.
Chapter Twelve
Brent
“I’m going to have to buy a new suitcase to get all this stuff home with me.” I notice the frown on Annie’s face as she looks down at the bags surrounding her feet.
“If I were able to get home, I would let you borrow something of mine. I have a closet full of winter apparel. I hate having to buy new things, when I have the exact thing at home.” I lift my shirt away from my chest. “I guess my situation is a little different though. As soon as I get home, I’m returning my dad’s shirt to him. I still can’t get over that it was in my bag.”
“I kind of like it,” she laughs. “It takes a real man to wear a shirt like that out in public. But your new one is nice too. The color looks good on you.”
I really love how carefree and laid back Annie is. Some women would’ve turned their noses up, but not Annie.
“Hey, do you want to grab a hot chocolate or something? There’s a new coffee shop that opened up not long ago. It’s over by the ice skating rink.”
“There’s ice skating nearby?” Annie exclaims, her eyes opening wide with excitement.
“Do you know how to skate?” I ask, surprised by her reaction.
She shakes her head. “Oh, no. You won’t catch me in a pair of skates. I’d fall and break my neck. We had a rink at one of the malls back home, and my sister and I would spend hours watching the skaters breeze right past us while we ate our pretzels with beer cheese. It was so cool how graceful and elegant some of them moved.”
“Come on,” I give her arm a slight nudge. “It might be fun to try.”
“Ifyouwant to, I’ll gladly watch. Remember, I’ve already fallen one time on this trip and that was one time too many for me.”
“Speaking of that, how are you feeling? Are you sore or anything?” I regret not asking her earlier when we met up for breakfast.
“I suppose I had on enough layers that it cushioned my fall. I was a little stiff last night, but I honestly don’t feel anything today. Now which way’s that coffee shop you were talking about?”
