A Year Without Snow

-14-

Friday, 22nd October 2004

The cold weather was finally reaching our small hidden town on the east coast. The sky had lost its glowing clear tones and adopted a greyer look instead. It was no surprise to Bryson and he even mourned the end of the summer. But for me, it meant one step closer within my heart to England, and that was enough for me to leave the house always with a smile on my face.

On our way to school that morning Angelina had promised us that it would start snowing any time soon. So, obviously, me and Bryson had made countless plans of building the countless fictional characters, from Gandalf to Han Solo all the way to Tim Burtons' movies.

On that afternoon when we were sitting on a little bench just outside our school, the cold hand freezing our hands and the grey sky threatening to pour down on us, and because it was Friday, which meant movie night we were discussing which movies we were going to watch when a little boy with jet back hair sat next to me.

"Why can't we go to movie night with you?" He asked, he was the tallest of all of our friend and he had really black hair, which made Bryson guess that he had turned to the dark side, which led to many arguments.

"Because you aren't our neighbor, Jack," Bryson explained while two more kids made their way towards us.

"But one of our moms could take us there." The boy suggested a look of hope on his face, making me pity him. Jack was an only child and the part of me that remembered what it was like to have to entertain yourself continuously, felt for him, so I put my small arm around his shoulder and smiled at him.

"Yes, maybe one of your parents could take you." I agreed and he smiled.

"Mine can't. She's working on the restaurant 'til late. But yours could, Gracie!" Dallas said happily.

"My mom's Korean." She curtly replied.

"So..." Jack trailed confused.

"She won't let me leave the house that late." She replied in a matter of fact voice.

"It's not fair that you get to spend so much time playing at each others house's and we don't," Jack commented while standing up and picking up his green backpack from the floor and making his way to a car that had parked in the parking lot in front of the school.

"If it snows this weekend you are going to the Snow Festival, aren't you?" Dallas asked while he and Grace too picked up their bags from the floor as the yellow school bus stopped in front of us.

"Yes, we are." I replied and leaned close to me and whispered, "After we build the Snowmen town."

"You promise?" Dallas asked again while they were entering the bus.

"Yes, Dallas," I replied.

The small boy with crazy light brown hair gave us a warm smile and he and Gracie entered the bus waving at us.

Soon after my grandmother's car appeared on the driveway and me and Bryson made our way towards it.

The drive was short and soon we were in front of Bryson's house where we would meet in a few hours for the movie night. "See you after dinner?" I asked, my stomach making noises.

"Yes, I guess so." He replied while I turned away going down the front lawn steps and making my way to my grandmother that was waiting for me in our house's doorway, already thinking of the waffles I was going to eat.

"Wait, Daisy!" I heard Bryson's voice from behind me and I turned around. "Why did you say they could come?" He asked in a small voice while making his way towards me.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You said that they could come." He repeated.

"Yes... They're our friends." I replied and waved an arm to my grandma for her to wait.