Vocalization

Warmer Winters

(Two months later, early December)

When thinking about Florida, snow is one of the last things that would come to mind. Well, for me, it was the same, but I was soon to be proven wrong. The weather forecast predicted snow for this fateful Friday. Having learned to not trust everything you 're told, I was having none of it. It might get cold, yes, but it wouldn't get that cold. This wasn't Minnesota. Besides, Florida has a tropical climate. What could go wrong? So, I got dressed as usual, threw my coat over my shoulder, grabbed my pretty balloon cap and got on the bus to the hospital to start my shift. Nothing was wrong, it was still really warm outside and I felt silly carrying around a coat. But as the day went on, you could literally see the temperatures drop. During lunch break, I went outside again, only to find that the wind had gotten really chilly and that clouds were covering the sun. But that was nothing when compared to what was yet to come. How foolish I had been to think it'd stay like this. In the late afternoon, I stepped outside once again to get some fresh air. I couldn't believe my eyes. Or my skin. It was freezing outside and the sky was covered in heavy snow clouds. I put my hands in my pockets and breathed in the cold air. It was as if winter had sneakily come along with me when I'd left Minneapolis.

My shift ended at 6pm, just as the first snowflakes came fluttering down. When I stepped onto the street, one of them landed on the tip of my nose, startling me. Only a few seconds spent outside and the cold was already crawling in through my jacket. Perfect. Just perfect. Add on top of that that my shoes had absolutely no profile, causing me to go ice skating along the sidewalk. This slowed me down quite a bit. Not because skating would be slower, no, quite the contrary in fact. But I wasn't actually skating. More like slipping. So I had to make sure not to fall. The bus wouldn't arrive until in a while, so, as usual, I would walk. Just a little slower this time. Hopefully they wouldn't worry.

Fridays were always the days on which all six of us would meet up to talk, catch up on things and just spend time together. When I finally got to Geoff's house, I was freezing and a pile of snow had gotten caught on my cap. While I waited for him to open the door, I cleaned the white crystals off my hat, causing my fingertips to freeze even more. When Geoff opened the door, he looked a little startled. That made me realise how weird I had to look. My cheeks and nose were glowing red while I was standing in the snow, wearing a thin coat and a balloon cap. Totally not fit for this kind of weather. Before I could protest, I found myself in the living room with all the others, on the couch, with a cup of hot chocolate in my frozen hands.

"And you're sure you're not freezing, Eve?", Earl asked amusedly as he watched me sip my cocoa, curled up into a ball. Eli chuckled. "She's always freezing. Why even ask?" "We need to find a permanent solution to that", Geoff then decided. "I can't watch this." Suddenly, J's eyes lit up with a spark. He smirked and looked at Layne who nodded and bent over to Geoff, whispering something in his ear. Geoff laughed. "I'll be back in a minute." With these words, he put down his cup and walked out of the room. This all seemed very suspicious to me, so I threw Layne an interrogating look. What on earth did you tell him? I raised my eyebrow at him, causing him to laugh. "What?", he asked through the laughter of the others. What a familiar situation. "Just look at her face!", Eli grinned. "You look as if I'd just started a conspiracy against you", Layne smiled. "It definitely feels like it!", I squealed. "Why am I always oblivious to what's going on in these situations?" "Because you're sweet and innocent", J said, patting my head gently. I pulled away, rolling my eyes, trying to signal him to stop. But those things don't have quite the same effect when you're blushing, do they now? "Oh, come on...", I grumbled. "Another joke about me being short and Looking very young? For the last time: I'm. Not. Cute." The others looked at each other, trying their hardest not to laugh. They only managed it for about a second. "Yes, you are", J disagreed. But just as I was about to protest, the door opened. Geoff came back in, hiding something behind his back. On top of that, he was wearing a different sweater. As if that wasn't weird enough, all the others rushed towards me, now forming half a circle around my back. Alarmed and worried, I placed my cup on the table. "... What's going on...?" Then, suddenly, everything went by quickly. Geoff threw a bundle of fabric at Layne who was standing right behind me, in a line that was way too high for me to catch. Simultaneously, Eli and Earl grabbed my arms, holding me in place. As if I would've had time to react anyway... In one motion, Layne put the fabric over my head, Eli and Earl let go and instead pulled the fabric over my arms and body. Through all of this, J laughed his lungs out."Guys, that's bullying!", I whined as I helplessly flapped my arms, not really aware what they had just put my in. All I knew was that it had a hole for my head to go through. Then I realised the fabric was warm. This was Geoff's sweater. The one he had worn just minutes before. J walked around the couch. Now he stood right in front of me, smiling. "Awww... So cute!", he said, putting his hands on my cheeks. Reluctantly, I put my arms in the sleeves so that I could pull his hands back down.