New York winters are almost always as brutal as they could ever get. It was usually slushy, wet, brisk, grey, and cold. And Riley Matthews wasn’t one to hate a season, especially the one that brought on her favourite holiday, but, man, she really disliked winter. But don’t get her wrong, her fondest memories were made in winter: snowball fights with her family and friends, snow angels with her baby brother, hot chocolate during a snowstorm, movies under a warm blanket while it’s snowing out, and all the fuzzy socks!! She really wishes winter didn’t leave such an eerie, melancholy feeling inside of her, but it did; every year. She often stayed home more often and locked her bay window to keep the cold out. It was even difficult to keep the drapes open because of how dreary it was 83% of the time. She always found herself missing colour in the trees and the grass and having to be way more cheerful than usual because of the dark environment. She tried to keep herself warm and happy the whole season just to make up for the glum feeling. This time of the year drained all of her energy and it just was not Riley’s best three months of the year. She doesn’t even wanna talk about it, okay?
She felt even worse about her disdain about the season this year because of how many times she had to keep her and Lucas’ dates strictly indoors. She didn’t like the feeling of the numbness of any exposed part of her body and the almost painful wind pass through her. She shudders just thinking about it. So since the first day of snowfall, most of their dates have just been babysitting Auggie and Ava; also known as, an excuse to cram themselves into the couch and watch all of the children’s movies together. And Lucas didn’t really mind that because usually, Riley would be cuddled up on his side and his arm would be around her and everything is steady and right in the world. But if he was being honest any time he spends with his girlfriend had been time well spent in his eyes.
As much Lucas didn’t want to admit it to Riley, winters in the city were more beautiful than he imagined. Everyone around him is wrapped up and warm in scarves, mittens, hats, and coats and it made him feel warmer. Sometimes he’d see cars driving with layers of snow on their roofs and he smiles at how that person probably slept in and didn’t have enough time to clean their car. He loves seeing the little kids waddling around to get to their destination, and their parents trying to catch up to them. He loved snowball fights because as violent as the gesture of throwing a snowball was, it never really hurt anyone. And the whiteness of the sky and ground was like a blank slate. He loved the occasional snow days because as much as he loved his education, sometimes a guy just needs a break from the corrupt educational system, okay? And the cold wind never bothered him because his body temperature was almost unbelievably high all the time. He didn’t know why, it just was.
But the days when Riley was in the mood to take a short walk outside were some of Lucas’ favourites. The two would take the subway to Central Park and watch kids have a snowball fight on their bench while they sat very closely, just talking and laughing; or they would just simply go to Topanga’s and buy a hot chocolate and feel it warm their hands and throats before walking back home. And something that never goes unnoticed in their winter walks is how cold Riley’s hands always are. No, seriously, they were always freezing. Lucas wishes she’d remember her mitts from time to time because he hates when she gets so cold that her teeth start to lightly chatter. It didn’t matter to him how much he loved the feeling of her smaller hands holding his, he just really wanted her to stay warm. But he just assumes that the saying is right because Riley has the warmest heart in the world, so it could only mean her hands would have to be cold. He questions if that means he has a cold heart because of how warm he always is.
Riley will deny it when you ask her, but she got so used to Lucas’ warm hands that she almost always purposely forgets her mittens because she knows that his hands will be warmer than any mitten she wears. She can’t really help it because Lucas does this thing when he notices her hands start to get cold where he stops both of them from walking, takes off his gloves, and holds both of her hands between his. Sometimes when it’s extra cold that day, he blows on them and rubs them together to speed up the process. And immediately after, he just intertwines their fingers and hides their hands in his pocket as they continued to walk along. Sometimes her face would get cold and it was an excuse for him to kiss her so that his hands on her cheeks and his lips on hers would warm her up. It worked every time so, really, it was a win-win. Riley doesn’t know why Lucas is always so warm, but she uses him as his own personal heater anyway. And every time she does so, it’s like all of the winter blues eases out of her; her energy is restored, she sees colour again, she feels all warm inside. Whether they were indoors or outdoors, Riley never fails to keep close to her warm bear and he never minds the proximity. Never. She thanks her lucky stars that she can finally enjoy winter because with Lucas, nothing ever seemed so bad.
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Happy holidays everyone! I hope you're safe and happy, no matter if you're celebrating anything or not :)
This is my present for you and I hope you like it!
