Laughing at a memory, she notices my daydreaming. “What are you thinking about?”
“I remember playing in the snow with my father all the time when I was younger. Seeing it snow now just brings back memories. It’s the small moments that stir the pot, so to speak. Like the first time you touch the snow or the first time a snowflake falls on your tongue. It’s those memories that you always treasure.”
She nods out toward the street. “I can’t remember ever eating the snow. I don’t know, maybe it’s weird, but I’m not really a fan. I don’t like anything that’s cold or wet. The heat is what I enjoy.”
My mouth drops. “You’ve never eaten a snowflake?”
She shakes her head. “I don’t think so.”
“Yeah, we’re changing that.” I roll myself down the ramp and onto the sidewalk. Looking back at the porch, I find her standing there, staring at me like I’m the crazy one.
I wave my hand at her. “Well, what are you waiting for?”
She reluctantly walks down the steps and stands next to me. “You want me to eat the snow?”
“I want you to enjoy the snow. Have fun in it. Now, stick your head up and open your mouth like this.” I tip my head backward, closing my eyes, allowing the snowflakes to fall on my face. The cool flakes freeze my face, but what the hell, it’s awesome. Opening my mouth, my tongue sticks out, begging for a flake to land on it. As the taste of the flake hits my tongue, I laugh as it melts in my mouth.
I look back at Melanie as she watches with wonder. “Now you try.”
She hesitates but then gives into my urging, tipping her head back and opening her mouth. She waits in anticipation for a flake to land and when one finally does, her face lights up with a smile. Glancing toward the ground I estimate the snow to be about two inches think, which has caused the wheelchair to get a little stuck.
Slowly reaching to the ground, I tell her to try it again and as soon as she closes her eyes, I stretch my arms to gather up a snowball. I quickly toss it at her and she yelps as it blasts her in the chest. “What the hell? Roman!”
Busting out laughing at her reaction, I reach down to grab another. Just as I bounce up to toss it at her, I’m hit in the face with a snowball. Her laughter echoes throughout the street as I just sit there, shaking the snow off my face. Her laugher is so infectious it sends chills down my spine.
Wiping the last of the snow off my face, I point dead straight at her. “You better run.”
She squeals and steps back further into the front yard. With one hand, I direct the chair to push forward while holding a snowball, ready to fire.
We continue our snowball fight, throwing snow all over each other. I’m too busy trying to dig for snow I don’t notice her approach me, and just before I can slide back, she dumps a huge pile on me. “Hey, I’m handicapped over here! Not fair.”
She laughs while doing a victory dance. “That’s no excuse.”
I have the sudden urge to bounce off my seat and tackle her into the ground. Gripping the handles of the wheelchair I breathe in, gathering my strength to launch myself. I push myself out of the chair and crash into her, knocking us both into the snow.
She shrieks as we land. “Roman are you insane? You can’t go jumping out of the wheelchair like that!”
“Hey, can’t help myself. I see something I want and I go after it.”
My body stiffens after realizing what I just said. Her dark green eyes shine as my heart pounds in my chest. That’s when I notice that I’ve fallen on top of her. Shit. Immediately rolling off of her, I scoot away, not wanting to make her uncomfortable.
She sits up and with a warm smile she pulls me closer to her. “Hey, don’t—”
The front door opens and Uncle Vinny’s voice calls out, “Hey you guys, time for cake. You know Maggie’s been dying for you to try this one. Roman, what the hell are you doing on the ground?”
Melanie and I erupt into laughter as Uncle Vinny comes down to help me back into the chair. As we head back inside, I wink at her and she winks right back at me. Best. Christmas. Ever.
Melanie
AS I RACE OUT of the shower and into my room, I hear the blaring sound of my cellphone ringing. Rushing into the kitchen, I follow the sound and grab the phone.
Glancing at the screen I see Gia’s name flash. “Hello.”
“Hey girl, Brad and I will be there in an hour. Do you need anything?”
Looking around in the kitchen, I check to see if there’s anything that I might need. Walking toward the fridge, I inspect the inside, hoping I have everything. “No, I don’t think so. Just remember to bring your own alcohol.”
“Hun, my boyfriend is a bartender. I could never forget the alcohol.”