Jack Frost Is Nipping at my Nose

Chapter 1

Triplets; What Would I Do Without Them?

Frost.

That was the first thing I saw on that cold morning—frost dancing across my glass window in small, beautiful patterns. It swirled around the glass in delicate white tendrils and disappeared in a misty haze as soon as my warm breath touched its icy coils.

I sighed loudly at destroying a masterpiece made by winter, but my face brightened at the sight of the pristine snow blanketing the ground outside of my window. All of this magnificent snow meant that I didn't have to go to school today, thank goodness. I didn't feel like going, anyway. Apparently my mum knew this fact as well because I could hear her and dad's loud snoring coming from the room next door.

Drawing the quilts closer around my neck to keep in the warmth, I put some slippers on my feet and shuffled towards the kitchen before pulling a piece of bread from the pantry and stuffing it in my mouth hungrily. Don't judge me because it was 'unladylike', okay? I didn't eat dinner last night because of the dumb homework my teachers gave me. High school these days…

"Where's your homework?"

"But I'm dying!"

"I don't care! You've got detention for the next year."

They don't even care if you're on the brink of death for crying out loud!

Back to reality, I flicked the heater on while chewing the bread and nestled into the couch just as my dad entered the lounge room, still half-asleep.

Dad was strongly built with toned muscles, a broad chest and strong hands, but he looked less manly in a set of pyjamas with red old-fashioned cars spread across them. His rich brown hair was still thinking that Dad was asleep, and his green eyes were murky and had sleep gathering at the edges. All in all, my father looked like a living zombie—minus the green skin and desire to gnaw on my brain.

Dad's eyes found my bundled up figure on the couch and instantly lost their sleepiness. He walked over to me and wrapped me up in a big, yet gentle hug, lifting me off of the lounge and making me smile. Being Dad's only daughter had its perks, one of which was that I got more love from him than my three brothers did.

"You're really warm," I said softly as my father placed me back on the ground.

He smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "I just got out of bed, Jen, what did you expect?"

I shrugged at dad who put an arm around me as we descended onto the couch, its leather whooshing beneath our combined weight. We both closed our eyes—like father, like daughter—and let the wonderful silence settle into the living room. But, of course, perfect little moments like that never last more than two seconds when you live in a house with three little brothers who never care about the noise they make.

Mark, Terry and John, my seven-year-old triplet brothers, came racing out of their rooms and into the lounge, slamming the doors behind them. They stampeded onto the couch, practically crushing me beneath them, and started to crawl over dad like man-sized spiders.

"Hey, dad, it snowed last night!" the three of them chorused.

"That means we won't have to go to school today!" Terry said with a happy cheer in his voice.

Why do kids have to be so…energetic? It tires me out sometimes.

I knew what was coming next, so I braced myself for the statement Dad was going to give me and my brothers.

"I know what you guys can do today!" Dad said with a smirk directed at me, "Jen can take you to the park!"

The boys shouted triumphantly and started hugging Dad before turning to me and grinning evilly. I rolled my eyes as they ran off to their bedrooms once more and undoubtedly started getting ready to drag me over to the park whether I was dressed or not. Dad chuckled as I reluctantly stood up from the warmth of the couch and shuffled towards my room, the duvet dragging behind me like it didn't want to leave the warmth either.

I stripped off my pyjamas and shivered, hugging myself as I pulled on some blue jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt. I shrugged on a brown overcoat and some slipped some purple gloves on my freezing hands before winding a purple and green scarf around my neck. I was prepared for the snow and my kid brothers. Well, the first, anyway.

I was slow on returning to the lounge room and seeing my little siblings again. I swear that they are the devil's spawn! They act like evil little creatures that can't possibly be human! One day I'll figure out their case, but in the meantime—

My thoughts were cut short by a tap on my back, making me freeze. That's what my worst nightmare always did before its gaping mouth swallowed me… I turned to find my Mum holding a pair of black leather boots in her hand. Her mouth was twisted into a small smile as her hazel eyes looked at me expectantly. "You need boots if you're planning to walk into the park, Jen. And where are your socks?"

I smiled sheepishly and took the boots off of her while grabbing a pair of socks out of a nearby washing basket and showing them to mum.

"Here are the socks, and I'll put the boots on before I go outside. Satisfied?"

I smirked at Mum's eye roll and kissed her warm cheek, making mum push me away playfully with a slender hand. She didn't usually like kisses, but I was the only exception—apart from Dad. The boys would have to tackle her if they wanted a kiss.

I walked to the front door and sat down before pulling the long socks onto my feet and slipping into the boots with ease. I was suddenly pounced on by three little boys who were eager to get outside and into the snow. Struggling to get them off of my back, I stood up and grabbed the handle, but stopped and turned to them, a stern look in my hazel eyes. The boys straightened when they saw the look on my face.

"Now, just like any other time we are about to go out, I am giving you a warning," I said, my voice serious as I paced back and forth slowly, shifting my gaze from Terry's face to Mark's and then John's. "You won't run away from me until I give you permission to do so; you won't try to do any crazy stunts unless I'm watching; and you certainly will not go crazy under any circumstances. Are we clear?" I looked each of my brothers in the eye with a hard gaze.

"Yes," my brothers chorused while looking at the ground.

"Yes, what?"

"Yes, Miss Jennifer."

I nodded, satisfied, to them before grabbing the door handle once more and pulling it open, leading the way into a winter wonderland.

Snow was covering everything. The houses, the streets, the trees, like I said, everything! And it was cold. I could feel it through my warm clothes, despite how many layers I had on. As I stepped out onto the snow, my ears felt like they were in ecstasy. The crunch of the crisp, white, solidified water made me shiver. No pun intended. I giggled and took another step out onto the snow before taking another and another. I looked back to see my brothers in single file, trying to step in my footprints. I rolled my eyes and continued walking.

We reached the park a few minutes later. I gazed out over the snow covered statues and trees, sighing to myself, my breath showing up in front of my face.

"Alright, off you go," I said to my brothers.

They cheered and raced off, already beginning to pick up snowballs and chuck them at each other. The thing that caught my attention, though, was the fact that every so often, Terry, Mark and John would throw a snowball at thin air before laughing and going back to beating the crap out of each other with snowballs and... dirt?

"Hey! Don't throw dirt at each other!" I yelled to them. They smiled sheepishly and dropped the clumps of soil back to the ground from which it came.

I turned around to walk towards a bench, but stopped in my tracks and yelped when a cold sensation smashed against the back of my head then slowly trickled down onto my neck.

"Terry!"

Terry was the most troublesome of the three triplets. He was the one that locked me out of the house a year ago, and then, a few months afterwards, he put a fake spider on my pillow while I was sleeping. I woke up and I'm pretty sure all of Burgess could hear my scream. Ugh, I hate spiders. More than anything. But less than the tricks Terry plays on me.

I swiveled my head back towards my brother, the snow flying off of my long, black hair. I glared at the boy angrily.

"But it wasn't me!"

"Then who was it, pray tell?"

"Jack Frost," Terry answered simply.