Deer in the Headlights

Part 57 - Peppermint Winter

[Brielle's POV - Christmas Day, night time at Adam's parent's house]

Snowflakes fell softly in the cool air around us, the whole garden beginning to cover in a thick blanket of snow as we stood together watching the world go by in blissful silence.

The break from the excitement of the Christmas party inside felt much needed, it seemed like we both required a little bit of peace and quiet away from the merry excitement and Christmas spirit that was bubbling inside. Even though the gathering was mostly Adam’s family we’d still gotten a little overwhelmed with all the interaction that we weren’t really used to, especially now they all knew I was Adam’s girlfriend.

Almost as if he had heard my thoughts Adam shuffled lightly beside me, gently adjusting his hold on my waist as he let out a deep contented sigh; a plume of hazy fog spiralling out from his mouth as he did so. The vaporous tendrils trailing out into the atmosphere for a moment before they disappeared out of sight.

“You fancy going for a walk Bri?” He whispered.

Looking up, I meet his gaze with a smile as I see the happiness clear in his dark eyes, writhing dancing sparks glittering brightly despite the heavy darkness that surrounded us.

“Shouldn’t we be getting back?” I query. Because as much as I wanted to go for a walk with Adam we’d only come outside for a short break, the serious part of my brain was reasoning more strongly than my impulses were right now.

Chuckling softly Adam takes his arm from my waist and delicately slips his right hand into my left; despite the gloves we wore I still felt my heart leap in my chest at the warm contact.

Flashing me a smile Adam began to lead me down the garden of his parent’s house without a word. The only sound audible between us was the delicate rustle of our thick winter coats and the pleasing crunch of compacting snow underfoot. It was a magical experience.

After a couple of minutes we reached the bottom of the garden where, despite the funny look I threw him, Adam helped me over the wooden slat fence. I knew where he was taking me.

Not too far away in a field just behind the house stood a single lone chestnut tree, it must have been over 200 years old, and like most of the areas round where we lived it held sweet childhood memories, a wonderful reminder of years gone by. It almost felt like every step we took added more mystique to the night, I couldn’t be too sure if it was the effects of Christmas hanging over my conscience but it certainly felt like the magic and festive air was dripping all around us.

Reaching the familiar gnarled trunk that was now sweetly adorned with a light frosting of snow, Adam quickly climbed up, his long limbs expertly moving to get him up the tree in the most efficient way possible; it was funny to think he often looked quite dorky and uncoordinated but in reality he was actually quite sure of the situation he was in.

Setting himself down on one of the thick low branches that was sheltered entirely by a dense canopy of foliage above he carefully leant down and offered out a hand to me as I made my way up beside him. Quickly settling next to him I snuggled close to the warmth of his body, getting myself in a comfortable position where we had our arms round one another, heads softly beside each other as we quietly observed the sleepy world around us. Even though we weren’t high up the view was still fantastic, from here we could see a good few fields away despite the snow storm that was whipping up around us, in a way isolating us off from the outside world and contact of others; it was just me and Adam.

Smiling to myself at the thought I turn my head to look at him, my heart fluttering weakly as I take in all his familiar features, he looked stunning tonight, dark and handsome; completely unlike anything I’d ever seen him like before.