Chai

Chapter 5

"Oh, Miracle month

Oh, Miracle month,

Why doth thou torture me so?

I do not know,

What to do first,

But I've had so much coffee I might burst...

Oh, Miracle month,

Oh, Miracle month,

Why doth my teachers hate me?"

I received this beautiful prose at approximately 3pm, the week after midterms. From whom? From Gizmo, of course. The man has a gift for prose, unfortunately he also loves to be a deviant.

Another text rung through, "I'm taking a study break to drink coffee at Bill's Café in ten minutes. Wanna join?" I quirked an eyebrow at my screen. I swished the idea around my mind like mouthwash. Was this a clever idea?

Nope.

Was I putting on my jacket and scarf, followed by my boots, then a dash of makeup?

Yes, yes I was.

I was out the door in record time, only rivaled by the time the café sold tarts for a steal of a deal when they over-ordered for an event. I rushed to the café through the chilly courtyard and into the petite café.

What greeted me makes me wrinkle up my nose to this day.

I love eggnog (sometimes too much).

I love spending time with my family.

I don't love Christmas music in early November. Wait until the middle of the month, my word people. Like, darn.

Anyways, Gizmo was sat at a little table for two. The chairs were those weird "modern chic" chairs that made a U shape and had short backs. Instead of sensible clothes, he was wearing an elf hat and a Christmas sweater.

So naturally, I strolled on over and remarked, "I didn't know that Santa let his elves drink coffee."

Gizmo glanced up from his book and quipped, "Well, I mean, if it's good enough for you mortals..." My jaw clicked shut. Well played, sir. I spun on my heel and went to order myself a drink.

*

The mocha tasted like perfume and cedar chips. So, I sat there and pretended to like it. Between pretending to be infatuated with my perfume drink, I focused on people watchi...

"How many times do I need to say it?"

In all my educated glory I uttered one bright word, "Huh?

He's staring at me from over top of the book, coffee mug delicately in his hand, "Take a picture, or stop making lovey eyes at the Frankenstein's monster on the cover." The steam has slightly fogged his glasses. He's staring at me, and put the book down after putting the bookmark in. "Do you like skating?"

I nodded and chirped, "Duh." His stare turned into a grin. He stretched with a chitter and made eye contact with me.

He states, rising to his feet, "It's time for skating. I'm full of coffee and if we don't go now, I'll fall asleep here again. Let's go, Chai." He heads for the door, and I trot after him.

Oh boy, what am I getting myself into?

*

The rink was freshly made. My heart skipped a beat. No one was there, so we had the rink to ourselves. Either it was a lucky break, or it was going to be the most awkward thing on the planet. "Earth to Chai, ready to skate?"

We skated for a few minutes, just getting back into the swing of skating. Then Gizmo did a few simple tricks, before starting to get increasingly risky. Then we decided to just skate around awkwardly for a few hours. It was fine... until he ate ice trying to do a "Sick Flip" because "it's not THAT hard." It was dark as coal outside, by the way.

Want to know what else isn't THAT hard? Needing stitches and dentures at twenty-two.

I rushed over, being careful not to get my feathers under my skates. I crouched down to where he lay face down on the ice. I put a hand on his shoulder. I yelled, heart racing, "GIZMO! Gizmo, can you hear me?" CPR training kicked in and I rolled him onto his side. I went to prop his head under his arm when something pulled me gently down onto the ice on my back.

He whispered, pointing up, "The lights..." He was laying on his back, and I was a foot or so from him, with a sprawled wing between us. He lightly grabbed my wing and gave it a quick tug. He smiled when I scooted closer. He let my wing go, then sat up. He then turned around, positioning my wing so the muscles would be above his head. He laid back down, and we stared at the stars and northern lights until we got cold.