The Reason Winter is My Favorite...

Chapter 1- Life Before...

There was a breeze, a car, and a girl. She loved the environment we were in and I did too, the song wasn't lying, we were walking in a winter wonderland. There was a very small amount of snow falling and yet she smiled, holding my hand as we headed to my car from the mall. All I did was drive her home, yet, it was the time of my life. How did she make the coldest nights warm? How were the smallest things so much better with her? To have a soulmate, is this what it was at its fullest? I had so many questions, but they were questions I was saving up, for I am drawn to her right now, hugging her at her doorstep until her beautiful Mother opened the door with the smile that enlightens the world. And with that, she leaves my grasp and walks inside while we say goodbye.

You know, that's just the minimal of how chaotic our nights felt and probably got. But in order for you to get what I mean, I need to first tell you who "she" is. Of course, I need to show you how I met her as well. Simple as this is, I still think it's best we start from the beginning. Birth. Youth. I'll keep this brief, I know you wanna meet "her". It began February 23rd, 1999...

I was born in the month of love, a set of 29 days that is apparently so romantic we need a holday for it. February 23rd, 1999 being the day I, Reno (pronounced Ray-no) Warden came into existence. I grew up in New York with my family until I was 10 years old, where I then moved to Washington state to heal. Now, it's not that my family had drama or anything like that, no, everybody loved everybody. It was instead the doing of a man that is now serving his time. My brother. He had killed off the majority of the Warden household, my parents and I were lucky enough not only to be targeted last, but to be woken up by the scream of my aunts so we could barricade the door ASAP. Long story short, he's serving his time, the house no longer is a place of happiness, and we eventually went over to Washington. Now, my parents and I did eventually get over all of this, and was able to comfort other people by telling them what our experience brought us. School was okay but at the moment I'm in my Junior year of high school, 17 years old. It is soon winter, and this is where my true story starts.

The days were going on their typical schedule, go to school, work, get home, work more, sleep. But as mentioned, winter had been on its way. Now, I love the feeling of warmth, so winter wasn't really something I loved too much. I'd much prefer Autumn or Spring, where days could get a little breezy but were warm for the most part. However, this time I really didn't care that the cold was coming. I had yet another depression relapse, my chest and eyes stung from the sadness, my mind was going through that phase that says "hey, life is pointless" and yet, I couldn't have been more happy for that night. I decided to stay the night at my friend's house, Leo is his name. With my tears calmed and my breath chilled out, I walked downstairs to see my Mother, who had just finished washing dishes and had just turned to see me. She smiled with that loving, caring, heartwarming, motherly smile she always gave me, I couldn't have been any happier to see her. "Hey, Reno. How are things?" She asked in a calm manner. With a smile, I respond. "Everything is alright, Mother. But um... Leo kinda wants me over tonight so I was wondering if you'd give me a ride, if you'd much rather me stay of course that's fine, it's really nothing important."
"Oh! Reno, no, you should go! Leo's a fun guy and I can tell you're always happy to see him. I'll take you're ready!"
When the door was opened by me a little bit later, it revealed a slightly misty outdoor setting. The grass had just frozen up and a few bits of frost were starting to show up. Zipping up my jacket, I had no clue what was going to happen tonight, but there's one fact about that night that I now hold dearest to me. Winter had started.