It's not much, but Angela gets a tree for the hotel room and sets about stringing it with popcorn in lieu of formal ornaments so that they'll have something Christmasy to brighten up the space.

It hadn't ever occurred to Angela to try it before, but the little candy cane in her hot chocolate made it taste like one of those after dinner mints her mother served to company which was somehow elegant and festive all at the same time.

Having decided to make the best of the situation she found herself in, Angela set out for the Winter Dance at Haurvatat Prep with a smile pasted on, determined to have fun, even if she had to do it alone.

The last thing Angela wanted to do was go out in the snow and get wet and cold putting together some snowman that would be destroyed by the neighborhood boys within a week, but Alice pleaded, and, as always, Angela gave in.

She wasn't sure if it would be welcome or not, but her mother had always made tons of cookies this time of year, so Angela set about doing so in their little kitchen, setting them out on plates so they'd be ready when the other three inhabitants of the room got back.

Angela curled up on the sofa in the hotel room, staring into the flames in the fireplace, her thoughts far away from the soft rise and fall of conversation around her and back in the desert where she'd left her family and friends.

It was, by far, the most undignified she ever saw him, but when Angela childishly insisted that the first proper snowfall required the making of snow angels, Adam only sighed once before complying, and she was pretty sure she fell in love then and there.

It might have been corny, but there was something magical about driving through the neighborhood on a snowy night, looking at the lights everyone had strung on their houses, and even if she rolled her eyes as she slid in the backseat, Angela couldn't hide her smile of anticipation from her parents' knowing gazes.

Angela wasn't at all sure what to make of the younger Dr. Suresh, but she appreciated the cup of cocoa he brought over to her, and, when he asked, she found herself haltingly telling him about his father while they watched the snow fall on the village outside.

But I am willing to wait. The right guy is out there somewhere.

You Have an Idealistic Heart


( Read more... )