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Barry loved the holidays.
He loved them. His favorite part was the snow. It was so rare in Missouri to have snow. So when he heard that a big snow band was coming their way, he couldn’t have been more excited.
Caitlin, however, didn’t share his enthusiasm. She didn’t dislike the holidays, but she didn’t like them either. She was just indifferent to them.
So when Caitlin heard a thud against the wall of her apartment that faced outside, she didn’t really want to know what it was. It was probably just some kids playing in the snow downstairs, she thought.
But then she heard it again. And again. It kept hitting her apartment. This can’t be a coincidence. She finally rose from her couch and, wearing her t-shirt and flannel pajama bottoms with a blanket wrapped around her, went over to the window. The window was frosted over though; she could barely see outside. She could only make out a figure wearing a black jacket and beanie hat downstairs. Wrapping the blanket tighter around her, she opened the window.
“Dr. Snow!”
Barry was holding a snowball in hand. Of course it was him. He was wearing a big grin on his face and waving to her from below.
“Barry! What are you doing here?” She looked down are herself, slightly embarrassed and clutching the blanket even closer. Oh my god, I’m wearing my pajamas. She didn’t really know why she was embarrassed. Maybe it was because she didn’t really see Barry outside of the lab or the bar. And here she was, wearing more than casual clothes. She didn’t even know that Barry knew where she lived.
“Come outside and build a snowman with me!”
She didn’t even know what to say. Barry went back to building, knowing her response before she did. She would come out when she was ready. She closed the window and weighed the pros and cons. It was the practical thing to do.
Pro: Spend some time with a friend.
Cons: It was really, really cold. And there was a weather advisory. And she didn’t even want to build a snowman. She hadn’t done that since she was six years old.
But it was Barry. And for some reason, that outweighed everything else. Maybe she was entitled to a little fun, not everything needed to have a purpose.
Barry looked up every time the side door to her apartment building opened, hoping each time that it would finally be Caitlin. After three tries, he was starting to lose hope. Finally, he looked up to see Caitlin standing in front of him. She had put on a big winter coat and knee-high boots, but she was still wearing her flannel pajama bottoms.
“I wasn’t sure you were coming.” He said, with a glimmer in his eye. Barry’s smile could power a thousand suns.
“Neither was I.” She smiled back at him. She couldn’t help it. He had that effect on people. On her.
And so they built a snowman. Well, two snowmen. Of course, Barry decided to make it a competition. Whoever could build one the fastest was the victor. Caitlin argued, but he solemnly swore not to use superpowers.
But he did.
Within minutes his snowman was built, while Caitlin only had the base done. She scowled at him. “You cheated!” He shrugged innocently. She expected this, yet she still accepted the challenge.
“Well, if you want to make it up to me, help me finish.”
And so he did. They told embarrassing Christmas stories to pass the time. One about how Barry had gotten a bike and tried to ride it through the snow. One about how Cailtin got her first lab kit and accidentally set fire to the rug. Everything was so natural. Caitlin normally didn’t share this much, but it just felt right. After 20 minutes of laughing and grueling work, their combined forces built a much better snowman. Barry’s was lopsided and it didn’t have anything a snowman should have: sticks for arms, coal for the eyes, and a classic carrot nose.
Caitlin’s snowman had a solid foundation, and each section was round and well defined. She had found good sticks, pebbles for eyes (they had to improvise), and a carrot nose that she ran inside quickly to get.
“It’s missing something…” Caitlin wondered what she had forgot. Ah, yes. She pulled off her purple scarf and handed it to Barry. Barry leaned down to wrap it around the snowman. He got a whiff of her perfume while he was putting it on. It smelled really good. It was a familiar smell; he had been close to her before, especially in the lab. Why did it smell even better now? He got back up and looked over to her for approval.
“It’s perfect.”
She hadn’t felt this way in a really long time. She had butterflies in her stomach. She didn’t know if it was from the cold or the exercise or even the company. But it felt good. She was enjoying the holidays for the first time in a long time.
Barry noticed her legs were starting to shake. Caitlin didn’t have a super metabolism to keep her warm. After some convincing (Caitlin denying she was cold and Barry stating that he was in fact, cold), they decided to go inside and warm up.
Barry noticed that her apartment was rather ordinary; he didn’t know what to expect, really, but it was just so… ordinary. She had the basic couch and tv and a few things on the wall. But no holiday decorations, no pictures, no signs that it was hers. And then he realized: she moved here after Ronnie died. He had died, maybe not his body, but his life together with Caitlin had.
She came back into the living room to find him still standing near the doorway.
“You can make yourself comfortable! Here.” She handed him one of the two cups of hot chocolate that she held in her hands. She walked over to the couch and sat down in front of it, next to the fireplace. She started it up with a click of a button.
“Gotta love electric, right?”
He followed her over, a few steps behind.
“I do love the smell of a classic wood burning fireplace though.”
Caitlin nodded in agreement. “Yeah, I had one when I was a kid. When I get a house, I’d love to have a real one again.” She paused before the next sentence. “I kinda chose this apartment in a hurry.”
Barry’s realization was right. He wasn’t going to push the issue. He tried to change the topic to lighten the mood.
“You must be freezing.” He looked at her hands which surrounded her hot chocolate. His was so hot he could only touch the handle of the mug, and she had her hands wrapped around the entire thing.
“A bit.” She tried to shrug it off, but he could see through her. She always tried to hide things. It wasn’t intentional though, he knew that. She just couldn’t help it. She was hurt before, and it takes time before you can let anyone, even a friend, back in to your circle of trust.
“Here, let me.” He took the hot chocolate from her and set both mugs down on the ground. He took her hands in his and rubbed them together at super speed.
“Better?” He searched her face for clues.
“Much.” She looked down as a small smile crept onto her face.
He had made the right choice. Relieved, he studied her for a few moments longer. He noticed something that he had never seen her do before. She was blushing. And not from the cold.
He looked down at their hands. They were still together. Neither of them were letting go though.
Still looking down, she began to speak softly. “Barry, I just want to say thank you. The holidays and I might not get along so well, but today, today was really good. So thank—“
Before she could finish, his lips were on hers. She felt those same butterflies she had earlier and realized now what they were. She liked him. A lot more than she realized.
She pulled away though. She hadn’t had time to process these feelings; what was going to happen to them now? The fear started to overwhelm her.
He knew what she was thinking. He always did. “I could’ve swore there was mistletoe above us. Huh.”
She playfully hit him in the chest and laughed at his terrible attempt of a joke.
Screw it.
She grabbed his sweater with both hands and pulled him in.
This was right.