Christmas in the Mountains {Christmas Novelette} ✓

Chapter Four

The next morning, Noelle woke up in a shiver. The cabin had gotten cold during the night, and although she did have a blanket to keep her warm, she found her teeth chattering and goosebumps were raised up onto her skin. 

Noelle got dressed before heading into town. For the remainder of her stay, she knew that she needed to invest in a couple of heaters to keep her warm. She drove to the nearby department store and purchased two small space heaters. It felt a little frivolous to spend money on something she would have no use for in sunny San Francisco, but it would be worth it to not wake up shivering again. Besides, she could always leave them at the cabin for future use. 

She gently placed the heaters into the trunk of her car before deciding to go to the local coffee shop. When she walked into the cafe, she was immediately recognized by some of the town locals. "Miss Noelle is home for the holidays," everyone cheered as she extended her hands in hugs and handshakes.

Noelle smiled as she embraced Mrs. Williams, her middle grade math teacher who patiently helped her through her dreaded geometry unit in sixth grade. She shook hands with Pastor Moore from the church downtown where she'd attended and was baptized in her younger days. She gushed over the Harrison twins who she'd babysat in the summers for extra cash, unable to believe that they were now grown and about to go off to college. Noelle loved seeing the people who had such an impact on her life, who helped shape her into who she was today. 

She ordered herself a donut and a hot cappuccino before sitting down at a nearby table. She looked outside and really began to take in everything that she had missed about her small town. She missed her family, the town locals, the small business shops, and the snowy cold. Even though she couldn't get used to the cold and the snow since she arrived back in town, she did her best to enjoy it while it lasted before she had to go back home to the warmer winters of California.

Noelle took a selfie with her cappuccino, appreciating the beauty of the happy kitten the barista had created in the foam. Then she sipped her cup of hot liquid and took pictures from long lost friends from high school, before heading out. 

When she stepped outside, snow had begun to lightly fall from the white sky. She walked to her car before tilting her head back and attempting to catch snowflakes on her tongue, something that reminded her of her days as a child, and something she missed when she moved away.

Before heading back to the cabin, Noelle decided to go to the local tree farm to get a tree to decorate the cabin. Christmas never felt like Christmas to her unless she had decorations to gaze upon every day.

She arrived at the local tree farm and began to look through the Christmas trees. There were some too tall for the cabin and some not tall enough to her liking.

She finally came upon a five foot tall Fraser Fir tree that she felt was the perfect tree to decorate. While waiting for someone to come and help her take it to her car, she ran into an old friend. A friend that she wasn't keen to see. She blushed and cursed herself for not straightening her hair. Of course the first time she'd seen Nicholas in a decade, she looked like she'd just crawled out of bed. 

"Hey, Noelle. What are you doing back here in Silverwood Falls?" A familiar voice asked as she turned around to meet the eyes of Nicholas Richards, her high school boyfriend.

Noelle rolled her eyes at his stupid question. Why would she come back to Silverwood Falls? Wasn't the answer obvious enough to him?

"I came back to spend Christmas with my parents," she finally answered as she turned back around and waited for help to arrive.

"Do you need help with that?"

Noelle took a deep breath, trying not to show her annoyance.

"That's okay, Nicholas. I'm already waiting for someone to assist me. I'll attempt to carry it to my car myself if I have to," she finally answered.

After waiting for a few minutes with no help in sight, Noelle did exactly what she said she would do-she attempted to carry the tree to her car herself. But she found it to be much heavier than she originally anticipated.

"Okay, fine. Can you please help me carry this tree to my car?" She finally asked Nicholas while rolling her eyes.

He agreed to help her carry the tree to her car. 1-2-3 they both lifted the tree at the same time, slowly carrying it to Noelle's Honda Civic. When they arrived at the car Noelle remembered that she didn't have anything to tie the tree down with.

"Do you perhaps have something to tie the tree to the top of the car with?" Noelle found herself asking before even thinking.

"Let me look in the back of my truck," Nicholas replied before walking over to his truck and peering into the truck bed. He came back with a nylon rope. 

He even offered to ride behind Noelle on the way to the cabin to make sure the tree stayed on top of the car and to help her get the tree down and inside out of the snowy weather.

Although Noelle wanted to say no, she couldn't force the word from her lips. She just whispered a simple, "yes", before getting into the car and driving back to the cabin.

The entire drive there, Noelle's heart began to beat out of her chest. Her hands became sweaty and clammy, and she felt anxiety take ahold of her. It had been ten years since she last saw Nicholas. He was the reason she moved to San Francisco in the first place. It was her attempt at starting over. After all, Nicholas had broken her heart.

When they arrived at the cabin, Noelle stepped out into the crisp winter air as Nicholas pulled up behind her car.

When Nicholas stepped out of the truck, he walked over to Noelle's car and helped her get the tree into the cabin. Although Noelle wanted Nicholas to hurry and leave, some part of her wanted him to stay.

Seeing Nicholas again had stirred emotions in Noelle that she thought were long gone. For two years he had been her best friend, the person she shared her deepest desires and darkest secrets with. He was her first relationship and first love. No matter how much time passed, those experiences didn't just go away. Noelle realized that a part of her still loved him, that she would probably always have feelings for the man who hurt her so much. It hurt her to see him walk away, as it reminded her of when he left her all those years ago. Before she even realized what she was doing, Noelle found herself calling to him from the porch. "Can I see you again?"

She could feel tears well up in her eyes at the thought of Nicholas walking away from her again. Although her heart was still broken over their failed relationship a decade before, she would allow him back into her life with arms wide open if he would be willing to come back. She could feel herself slowly weaken just at the sight of him. She had tried to remain strong by pushing him further into the depths of her mind but she couldn't do it any longer. She was staring straight at him and there wasn't a thing she could do.

Nicholas paused for a moment, watching Noelle with bright seafoam green eyes. Though he tried to play cool, she could see the way his lips turned up at the corner at her suggestion. "Yeah," he finally said. "I"d like that. Meet me at the diner tomorrow morning at ten." Nicholas climbed into his truck and started the engine. He glanced in his side mirror, meeting Noelle's eyes, and gave her one final smile, before driving away.