Sparkler Snapshots

XXXVI | The Soup Kitchen

"It is the life of the crystal, the architect of the flake, the fire of the frost, the soul of the sunbeam. This crisp winter air is full of it." – John Burroughs

Date:
December 21st, 2017 (Northern Hemisphere)
June 21st, 2017 (Southern Hemisphere)

Occasion: Winter Solstice

Country: Worldwide

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XXXVI | The Soup Kitchen

The whole point of a cold winter morning was to be able to snuggle into your blankets and listen to flurries of snow passing by your window, while thanking your lucky stars that you weren't the poor soul struggling through the blizzard. At least, that was the mindset of Mason Lawley, who was doing exactly that and also feeling an urge to hug the person who invented winter break.

A snowflake drifted past his bedroom window as Mason snored his way through the early hours of the morning. A creak of the door opening and the snap of it closing went through one ear and out the other. He was too busy trying to sleep than to focus on disturbances.

What he didn't account for, however, was how persistent some disturbances can be. A sudden thud jerked him out of his slumber and he instinctively pulled his blankets over his head. As a kid, he learned to assume that any sound was the monster under his bed, crawling out to attack him, so he would always hide and hope his blankets were enough camouflage.

"Marzipan!" a familiar voice chirped from the foot of his bed. "Wake up!"

Mason peeked over his bedsheets. He squeezed his eyes shut, and when he opened them again, Stella Bennett came into focus. Her whitish blonde hair reflected the light streaming in through the window, creating a halo above her head, but Mason knew her personality was far from angelic. A cheerful grin was perched on her lips, and she was looking far too awake for – Mason checked his phone – eight in the morning.

"Oh, it's just you," he mumbled, slumping back onto his pillows. "Why are you here?"

It wasn't like he was particularly surprised to see her. Stella was one of those people who always barged into the business she was supposed to stay away from. There were certainly people who hated her for it, along with her juxtaposed do-gooder and rebel attitude, though Mason found it endearing. No doubt she had some crazy adventure planned for them again.

The reason Mason put up with her was that she was his closest friend. Ever since she dumped a bowl of candy canes over his head in kindergarten, and he retaliated by stealing the teddy bear she carried everywhere, they'd been inseparable.

"Not so much as a hello?" Stella scoffed. "I had to battle a blizzard to get here. The least you could do was give me a warm welcome."

Her cheeks were flushed, eyes bright with excitement, but as much as she tried to hide it, Mason noticed she was shivering slightly.

"Are you cold?" he asked in concern, and though she shook her head, he knew she was faking toughness for the sake of her pride. Mason rolled his eyes and grasped around for the nearest blanket. His fingers closed around soft material and he tossed it at her.

Stella caught it, unfolding it to reveal a blue jacket with an emblem stitched on the side. She raised an eyebrow. "Since when did you play on the varsity football team?"

"Jason gave that to me as a hand-me-down," Mason sighed. Jason was his older brother who'd moved to Boston three years prior, to pursue chemical engineering and live with his fiancé. Stella knew this, of course, since she and Mason spent their whole childhood attached at the hip. Jason was as much of an older brother to her as he was to Mason.