A flashlight in the shadows.

chapter 31: Christmas Snow.

Isaac sent me a text every day of the Christmas week. I didn't reply to all of them, but I did read them all. I honestly couldn't tell if he was crazy or just extremely desperate, which with the way he looks, I seriously doubted it. Dad was called in to work, but he promised me he'd be at Christmas dinner. I usually look forward to it, but considering I had to deal with Cassandra coming over, I was dreading it. Jane was going to be gone for most of the day with Jacob at the rehab center. Dad was going to be gone too, but Cassandra texted me to let me know she'd be there at 12:30. I decided to be the hermet I am and did basically nothing for the week before christamas. I intended to do the same on the day of Christmas eve, but that changed the morning of.
I woke up on top of my blankets with my hair everywhere. The sunlight shined through my window with frost on it. I sat up and stretched out my arms. After I'd picked out my outfit and showered, I through my out fit on, a blue t-shirt with black jeans. I went down stairs to eat a bowl of cereal. My dad and Jane were already gone, so I threw my bowl on the counter and filled it with cinnamon toast crunch. I don't like milk with my cereal, so I took out a spoon and started eating. The patio windows were shut, so I went out into it and looked at the snow covered yard. As children,Jane and we loved playing in the snow drifts and making snow angles. Now, it was just a smooth blanket of white. The trees had ice cycles and snow on them. The bushes in the other side of the fence started rustling. I frowned and looked over to see Bennett outside. He was wearing a grey sweatshirt and black sweatpants. He was trimming the bushes with one of those things that look like giant scissors. After flipping some hair out of my eyes, I set down my bowl and put on my black winter boots, heading outside. I didn't bother going inside the house because I could just go around it to the back yard. The snow under my feet crunched, and Bennett could hear me coming. He turned slightly and met my eyes. They seemed almost white in contrast with the snow. His cheeks were red and his hair was in its usual sweep. I smiled and waved slightly.
"Hey."
"Hey, what's up?" I shrugged.
"Not much, you?"
"Just trimming hedges," he replied, gesturing to the scissors. I nodded and looked around their yard. It had a few footprints, but was mostly barren. I smiled and shrugged,
"Wheres cc? She should be enjoying the day, it's not that cold out." He sighed and looked back at the hedge. Reaching up, he snapped a few branches away.
"Our step dad took her to see his parents in Flaxton." I looked down.
"Oh, sorry."
"Its ok," he said. I was silent for a few seconds. Chestnut came and rubbed against my legs. I smiled and bent down to pet him.
"When will they be back?"
"Monday." He stated. This made me jump up in shock. That was three days away. I frowned and asked,
"You mean, you'll be alone on Christmas?!" He shrugged and sighed.
"I plan on visiting mom, but I'll be alone unless I visit my dad, which is unlikely." I stepped forward and shook my head.
"No, I won't allow it." He chuckled and raised an eyebrow.
"You won't allow it?"
"No, you're coming to eat Christmas dinner with me tonight." He laughed and shook his head.
"Cant, I promised mom I'd come to be with her tonight ." I smiled and nodded.
"Fine, but I'm not leaving you alone today, let's do something." He looked at me as if to say,
"Seriously?" But he sighed and set the scissors aside. He put his hands in his pockets and sighed.
"What should we do?" I bit my lip and shrugged.
"I'm not sure." He bit his lip, then, a sly smile krept on his face and he nodded,
"I know."
"What?"
"Come with me," he said, walking past me towards the driveway. We got in his car and started driving to our destination.
"Bennett, where are we going?"
"You'll see." He stated, flipping hair from his face. We pulled up to a park that was a little ways out of town. There weren't many people there, so it was a little creepy. We hopped out of the car and he went to the trunk.
"Here, help me with this." I walked behind him to see that he was pulling out an easel and a big canvas. I frowned,
"So, you just carry an easel in your car?" He looked at me and smiled.
"Yes, you never know what you might want to paint." I giggled and took the canvas. He grabbed the folded easel and a brief case. We headed up a dirt path to the top of a really big hill. Once we got there, he set down the easel and asked,
"Ok, where do you want to go?" I bit my lip and looked around. I saw a little stream cutting through the pine trees at the bottom of the other side. I smiled and pointed,
"Down there, we should paint the stream." He nodded and we started walking to it. He smiled,
"So, are you ready to tell me what happened with Isaac and you?" I ducked out of the way of branches and pinecones.
"There's really not much to say. He told me not to hangout with you, so I said we needed space. End of story." He looked at me and frowned.
"He didn't want you around me?"
"No. He didn't trust that I wouldn't cheat on him." We approached the spot that I had pointed out on the hill. A squirrel scurried past us and up a tree. As we set everything up, Bennett continued talking,
"So, what are your plans for Christmas?" I kicked the snow at the top of my boot and inhaled.
"Cassandra's coming." He looked at me for a minute. I continued looking at my boot. I heard him set the easel on the snow. He stood staring at it for a second, then said,
"You should get her a present."
"How about a nice kick in the ass? That's sounds good to me."
"I mean it, Sarah. You should get her something nice." I frowned and shook my head.
"I'm good, thank you."
"Book thief, what did I say about holding grudges?"
"That its bad?" He nodded and set the canvas on the easel.
"Yes, very bad. Now, please hand me the brief case." He pointed to it on the snow. I walked over and set it besides him. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his glasses case. After he took them out, he put the case away and set the glasses gently on his face. I smiled and giggled.
"You really should wear those more often." He shook his head and frowned.
"Do you know what the kids at school would say?" I bit my lip and nodded.
"Yes." He nodded and handed me a small brush.
"Ok, let's make the snow first."
"But the canvas is already white!" He smiled to the side.
"True, but it lacks consistency. Here," he used his brush in an up ward movement, causeing wonderful streaks on the canvas. Wen he finished, he pulled me beside him and pointed,
"Do you see the way it looks like a blanket and not just flatness?"
"Yes, but it's only a slight difference." He smiled.
"Sometimes it's the slight differences that make the piece original. Here, throw glitter at the paint while it's still wet." He handed me a handful of blue glitter. I smiled and sprinkled it on the fabric. Once I was finished, Bennett took the rest of his and threw it at me. I gasped, then calmly looked at him.
"You little bitch." He laughed and threw more at me. I picked up some snow and made it into a ball, throwing it at him. It shattered over his head and he was covered in it. He gasped and sighed.
"Great, now I get to paint in my sweatshirt." He took off his coat that was wet now and threw it aside. He went back to the painting and looked around us at the setting. He pointed to the stream and asked,
"What color do you see?" I looked at it and smiled.
"I see...light blue." He nodded and we painted the stream together. After we finished, the painting was beautiful. I stared at it and sighed.
"You really are an amazing artist." He looked up and smiled widely.
"You helped."
"What should we call it?" He stood up and looked at it. After a couple seconds, he picked it up and handed it to me.
"You should call it, cassandras present." I looked at him in horror.
"No, I won-"
"Please, do it for me if you can't do it for yourself." He started heading back towards the car. I sighed and followed him. Once inside, I sighed,
"Well, want to help me make Christmas dinner?" He shrugged.
"Sure. What are we making?"
"Turkey, mashed potatoes, carrots and cake." He nodded. Once we got home, I ran inside with the painting and set it next to the tree.
"What should we make first?"
"The ham's gonna take the longest, so let's start with it."
"Sounds good," he said. I took the ham out of the freezer and tossed it to him. Once I'd found the pan, he set it inside and we set the timer. He put the water in the potatoe pan and set it to boil. I started slicing the carrots, but he shook his head.
"You're cutting them too thick." I huffed.
"Well maybe you should show me how it's done." He smirked deviously and took the knife from me.
"With pleasure," he twirled the knife on his index finger and started chopping the carrots with crazy speed. He chopped five carrots in less than a minute. I stood with my jaw hanging open. He made a tsk noise with his mouth and set his hand under my chin, lifting it up so it would shut.
"Its rude to stare, you know."
"You should teach me how to do that!" He chuckled and sighed.
"Maybe later, let's make some cake now." I huffed and rolled my eyes,
"Fine."
"What kind are we making?" I smirked and shrugged.
"What kind do you want?" He bit his lip and thought.
"Hmm...marble seems appropriate." I nodded and started to assemble the ingredients. I was going to leave him with the responsibility of mixing the stuff, but decided otherwise when he started sprinkling sugar on me.
"Do you want to die, Bennett?" He laughed and shook his head.
"Not especially, no."
"Then you'll stop." I said, putting the stuff into the bowl. The mixer buzzed loudly when I pushed the switch upwards. It tried to spring around the bowl, but I got it under control and mixed the ingredients into a batter. When I stopped the mixer, Bennett smirked and reached into the bowl, taking some on his index finger and licking it off. I hit his chest and shook my head.
"No, I don't want your finger germs in the cake."
"Theyll be baked away in the oven!" He exclaimed, taking some more. I pushed him away and giggled. We set the batter in a pan and started the oven. After we washed our hands, I set my hands on my hips and sighed,
"Well, what now?"
"Now I need to go. Mom's expecting me in half an hour." I nodded and smiled.
"Thanks for helping out."
"You're welcome book thief, have a nice holiday." He opened the door and walked out, leaving me in the kitchen pondering on what to do. I didn't have to ponder long, because a small knock came on the door. I was expecting Cassandra, but was surprised when I opened the door and came face to face with Isaac. His hair was normal, but he wore a white button up shirt with black pants and tennis shoes. The tip of his nose was red, as were his cheeks. I sighed and leaned against the doorway, looking up at him.
"Is there something you want?"
"Uh, yeah. Sarah, I know you want space, and I respect that, but you need to know that I have feelings for you. And, I'd like for you to be my girlfriend." He held out a small chain link necklace with an ice skate on it. The word 'girlfriend' made me step back a little. I've never had a true boyfriend, and I honestly didn't think anyone would ever want to be mine. But yet, this boy asked me a question that I'd always wanted to hear. Now that I had heard it, I wasn't thinking straight. I looked up at him and smiled. The only thing I could muster up was a little nod and a small,
"Yes." He smiled with white teeth and pulled me in a hug. I dug my head in his shoulder and inhaled. I could smell the faint scent of axe. He pulled away and asked,
"Can I put this on you?" I nodded and turned around, holding my ponytail out of the way. He wrapped it around my neck and clipped the chain together. I smiled and turned around. Before anything else could happen, I heard a voice from behind Isaac say,
"Uh, excuse me?" My heart filled with hate and I scowled as Cassandra appeared on the steps as Isaac stepped back. She was holding two big boxes that were wrapped and had two giant bows on them. Isaac smiled at Cassandra.
"Hi."
"Hello Isaac, does Sarah's father know you're here?"
"No, he doesn't. I wanted to surprise Sarah." She nodded as if he just answered a very important question.
"I understand, I'll be in the kitchen, then." She walked off and disappeared around the corner. I bit my lip and turned back to Isaac.
"I guess I better get to her."
"I've got to go too, merry Christmas Sarah."
"Merry Christmas Isaac. Thank you for the necklace." He smiled and hugged me again. Before he left, he whispered in my ear,
"Thanks for being my girlfriend." The words rang in my head all night.

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Thanks for reading, enjoy the next one, bye! :D