Chapter Text
“This kind of thing can only happen in America,” Naveen laughed giving Tiana a conspiratorial look from across the room.
“The plot of this movie, or the fact that there are hundreds more that are almost exactly the same?” Tiana asked, taking a careful sip of her hot chocolate.
“Both!” Naveen laughed again. They were lounging in his apartment, a streaming app playing made for TV Christmas movies in the background. Miraculously (though perhaps it was for the better) Maldonia didn’t have the abundance of ridiculous Christmas movies that America did, so when Tiana mentioned them, Naveen insisted they binge watch the worst ones.
“I have to get these candy canes to the orphanage,” Naveen mocked the latest movie they had watched.
Tiana almost spit out her drink, then joined in. “He’s not like other guys,” she laughed. “He loves Christmas.”
They both clutched their sides as they fell into another fit of laughter. Tiana wiped her eyes once she calmed down, though just one glance at Naveen started them both back up again.
She couldn’t help it! These movies were so cheesy, it was easy to laugh at them, never mind that there were a few she actually enjoyed watching. Plus, Naveen was the exact right person to watch these movies with. He had a great sense of humor, and even though these movies were easy to make fun of, he never went too far.
All things said, it was nice spending time with him like this. Though she did wonder if he would come sit down next to her on the couch at some point in their marathon, instead of staying in the easy chair he had been sitting in all afternoon. It must have been all the cheesy romance they had been watching that put it in her head, but just for a moment Tiana let the fantasy play out.
He would put his arm around her, and hold her close, then say something charming and witty before bringing her in for a kiss.
Tiana blushed, and took a long drink of her hot chocolate to try and hide it from him. What was she even thinking? Naveen couldn’t possibly be interested in her that way.
Then again?
No.
But maybe?
Certainly not.
Ugh. She needed to stop this foolishness. She either needed to tell him that she liked him or move on, simple as that. Easier said than done, though.
“So what’s next?” Naveen asked, grinning in that carefree way of his.
“Huh?” Tiana blinked, hoping her blush from earlier had subsided.
“What movie should we watch next?”
“Oh um... You pick. I chose the last one.” Tiana stretched, then headed into Naveen’s kitchen. All the better to get her blushes under control. “I’ll make some more popcorn.”
“The kind with all those spices?” Naveen asked eagerly.
“Of course. Nothing but the best for us.” Not so surprisingly Naveen had never had cajun style popcorn before. After trying it, quickly declared it as his favorite kind.
“Hmm let’s see.” Naveen scrolled through the listings. “Dr. Christmas…. Mittens for a Prince…” Then he gasped in delight. “A Very Puppy Christmas! We are absolutely watching that one next.”
“Sounds perfect!” Tiana laughed as she put the popcorn kernels on the stove. No microwave popcorn for her. She smiled remembering the first time she had made popcorn for Naveen, who had never even realized popcorn could be made without a microwave. He had certainly come a long way since then, though there was still a lot she could teach him about working in a kitchen.
“So are you ready for the snow storm tomorrow?” Naveen asked.
Tiana felt another jolt in her stomach, this time from nerves. Not only was it going to be the first snow of the year, but it would be Tiana’s first snow ever. So of course it was going to be snowmagedden out there. Forecasters were predicting up to 18 inches of snow, while some even going as far as 24 inches. Whatever the total would bring, it was going to be bad.
Even after going through countless hurricanes in New Orleans, Tiana felt woefully unprepared. Snow seemed like a whole other beast, and she didn’t know what to expect.
“I think so,” Tiana said, trying to be optimistic. “I went to the grocery store and got all my supplies, so I think I’ll be okay for however long we’ll be stuck inside.”
Naveen took the opportunity to stretch as well, and soon he was in the kitchen as well. “You can always call me, you know,” he said and smiled warmly at her. “If… you know. Something…. I mean, I’ve been through many snow storms so…”
Smooth. Really smooth, Naveen. He mentally slapped himself. Tiana was a very capable woman, so of course she could take care of herself, but he just wanted to say that if she was nervous about snow, or maybe even if she wanted company she could call him and he would be there. So why was it whenever he tried to tell her things like that he got nervous and tongue tied?
She smiled up at him, making her dimples show. More than anything Naveen wanted to kiss them one by one, and then move onto the rest of her cheeks, her nose, her lips. He almost shivered thinking about how her lips would feel pressed against his.
No. He needed to stop. Now wasn’t a good time for this.
But then again… maybe it was? They were alone and had spent the afternoon watching holiday romcoms, and had been enjoying each others company. He could say it right now. He could say, ‘Tiana, I like you’, couldn’t he? Yes. He could. And then they could eat popcorn and kiss, and anytime they had popcorn after they would remember this moment and share a secret smile and more kisses and they could even make it a tradition to watch holiday movies and eat popcorn on their anniversary and even the thought of having an anniversary with Tiana made his heart beat faster and -
“I know,” Tiana said.
Naveen almost jumped. She knew he liked her? He smiled tentatively. “You do?”
“If something happens tomorrow, I promise I’ll give you a call.”
Right. They’d been talking about the snow.
The popcorn started to pop, and Tiana turned her attention to the stove lest it started to burn. Inwardly, Naveen sighed. He would have to try again later.
He refilled their drinks, and settled himself on the couch this time. Earlier he had felt too nervous to try and put his arm around her while they watched the movies, but now he was feeling a little more confidant.
That confidence rose when she sat right next to him when she returned with the popcorn. But still he couldn’t say it. Not even when they both were laughing again at the movie and his arm slipped around her, and still not even when Tiana leaned into him and he held her tighter.
What was wrong with him? ‘Tiana, I like you.’ Was that really so difficult to say?
They watched a few more movies, but then at last Tiana looked at the clock.
“Oh gosh, is that really the time? I’d better go if I’m gonna catch the bus.”
“Do you really have to go?” Naveen said with a frown. But she was already moving out of his warm embrace and moving towards her coat. He missed holding her already.
“Yeah I’ve got to get up early for work before the snow comes,” Tiana explained, putting on her boots and coat. “Besides, I’ve overstayed my welcome. I’m sure you’re sick of all these Christmas movies by now.”
Naveen took Tiana’s scarf from where it was hanging and wrapped it around her. “You can stay as long as you like,” he said softly.
Their eyes locked and Tiana felt that heat from inside coming again. Was it her imagination or was he really asking her to stay longer? “Naveen…”
“Let me drive you home,” he offered, but Tiana shook her head.
“Really, it’s okay. I’ll just take the bus.” She didn’t want to be tempted into kissing him in his car. It had been bad enough settling into his side when they were watching the movies (oh but it had been so nice to have his arm around her!).
“Then I’ll walk you to the bus stop,” Naveen said, and was already putting on his own coat before she could stop him.
That wouldn’t be so bad, she thought. Surely she couldn’t be tempted by walking a few blocks, could she? But then her mind started thinking of holding his hand while they walked and….
Stop it Tiana! She exhaled in frustration. Determined to get her mind out of the gutter, she opened Naveen’s front door, only to be met with snow falling heavily from the sky, and a blanket of snow covering everything on the ground.
Well, that was one way to distract her thinking from Naveen.
“What the…?” Tiana whispered, and stepped outside carefully. The snow crunched under her feet, already it was halfway up her boot.
“ Achidanza would you look at that!” Naveen cried out. He bounded outside, laughing of course. “Looks like the snow has come early!” He turned to look at Tiana. “The snow, it is beautiful, no?”
Beautiful. With the snow falling around him that way, and Naveen all bundled up with his own scarf and hat, and the way his cheeks were glowing from the cold, and the way his breath showed when he laughed, and his eyes twinkled in delight. Yes, beautiful was one way to put it.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Tiana said, then laughed at herself. Here she was, experiencing her first ever snowfall and she was ogling over a boy! She tore herself away from the spectacle that was Naveen and looked around properly. It really was beautiful. And quiet! She’d had no idea snow could muffle all the sound in the streets like this.
“Try to catch snowflakes on your tongue,” Naveen said, and opened his mouth wide to the sky.
Tiana followed suit, and cringed immediately. “It’s cold and wet.”
Naveen laughed, not unkindly. “Well what did you think it would be like? Snow is just frozen water droplets.”
“Well I don’t know!” Tiana laughed at herself. She knew that of course but… “It looks so soft and fluffy on TV!”
She held out her gloved hands and laughed, watching how quickly the snow was piling up. If she looked closely she could even see the individual patterns on all the snowflakes. To think all the ones in her hands were different… all the ones piled up around her were too.
“You know, Tiana,” Naveen said, bringing her out of her thoughts, “it won’t really be your first snowfall unless ….”
Tiana flushed, and was grateful she could blame it on the cold. Was he going to kiss her in the snow? Was that what made it a first snowfall? But when she looked over at him, he was giving her an evil grin and bunching up some snow in his hands.
She gasped, but smiled. “You wouldn’t dare.”
He threw the snowball at her, and she shrieked in delight, but wasn’t fast enough to get out of the way.
“You jerk!” She laughed, and gathered up her own snowball, but she didn’t have the knack for it, and it disintegrated as soon as it left her hands.
“You’re going to have to do better than that!” he taunted, and threw another snowball at her.
Determined, Tiana scrunched up the snow in her hands and threw it at him, whooping once landed on his coat. But Naveen was too fast, and soon another snowball was launched at Tiana.
Then they were laughing and throwing as many snowballs as they could. Naveen was a much better shot than Tiana, but she was a fast learner, and was soon able to keep up with whatever he threw at her, literally.
She was getting better at packing the snowballs, too. This was going to be a good one, she could tell, as she quickly packed it tight in her hands. She threw it before she could think twice and laughed in triumph as it hit Naveen right in the head.
“Take that!” she shouted, and started to scoop up another snowball. But when she looked up, Naveen was lying on his back in the snow. Tiana felt the blood drain from her face, and she ran to his side.
“Oh god, oh god. Naveen!” She fell beside him and brushed as much snow away from his lovely face as she could. His eyes were closed but he was still breathing, so that was good. What had happened? Had there been a rock in her snowball? She didn’t see any blood, but what did that mean? Should she call an ambulance? What if he froze to death before they could get here?
“Please be okay,” she whispered and smoothed back his hair. Before she could start crying, Naveen opened his eyes.
“Tiana…” he whispered.
“Yes, yes, I’m here,” Tiana whispered back. She hurriedly brushed off more snow.
“Come closer.”
“What is it?” she asked, doing as he said.
He grinned wickedly and before she could move out of the way, he smushed more snow in her face.
Tiana shrieked and fell on her back. Naveen laughed and rolled over on top of her.
“You are such a jerk!” Tiana spat, but she was still laughing.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I saw the opportunity and took it,” Naveen chuckled. “All is fair in love and war, as they say.”
They locked eyes again, and Naveen felt his cheeks flush. She looked so beautiful spread out before him. Her hair had come loose and was spilling out into the snow. She looked like a princess.
He could do it. He could say it. ‘Tiana, I like you.’ He could say it while they were here lying in the snow, close enough to kiss.
“Tiana…”
Then a pile of snow that was resting on a nearby tree branch fell right on top of Naveen, and he cried out in laughter.
“Serves you right,” Tiana mock scolded him.
“Alright, alright,” Naveen grinned. He held out his hand to Tiana. “Truce?”
“Truce.” She took his hand and he helped her stand, then she shivered. Once you stopped moving, it really became apparent how cold it was out here. It didn’t help at all that she was completely soaked from the snow.
“Oh no, the bus!” Tiana cried out, suddenly remembering why they were out here in the first place. How long had they been playing in the snow? She shivered again, not looking forward to waiting for the bus, not to mention the long bus ride home. She’d be an icicle by the time she got there.
“I don’t think the buses are running in this weather,” Naveen said brushing off the snow from his coat. “And I would still give you a ride, but ah… it looks like my car is out of commission until the streets are plowed.”
Tiana looked down the street and found Naveen’s car. It, like all the other cars parked nearby, looked like they would be trapped for awhile.
“So…. I guess I’d better get walking.” The idea was a horrible one, she knew that, but what else could she do? She just hoped she’d survive the long journey-
“Tiana.” Naveen just shook his head. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’ll stay here, with me.”
Her stomach jumped. Stay with Naveen? Overnight? “Oh.” She blushed again. “I don’t-”
“It’s no trouble,” Naveen interrupted. “Come on. Let’s get inside, and I’ll find you some dry clothes.”