"Did you see the news? They're talking another foot."
Ned glanced up from his desk. Howie Little was standing in the doorway of his room—or, more accurately, leaning in, gripping the doorframe. He was grinning.
"You really think they'll cancel classes?"
Howie raised his eyebrows. "With a foot? No one will go to class; they won't even have to cancel."
Ned snorted. Someone called Howie's name from down the hall, and he gave Ned a little wave before heading that way.
The cursor blinked on the screen. Ned had been working on an essay, but with Howie's interruption, his flow had evaporated. A foot of snow would screw up everything.
With a sigh, Ned reached for the remote and turned on the small television set on top of his dresser. He thumbed through the channels, but the weather station was on commercial.
The cursor was still blinking. Ned saved his document with a swift keyboard command, then glanced over at his bedside table.
The framed photo there was the first thing he unpacked every school year, and the last thing he slipped into his duffel bag, cushioned by socks and t-shirts, along with the framed photo of his parents. His girlfriend smiled from the window of the ornate silver frame. Her reddish-gold hair fell in soft loose curls down to her shoulders, and the teal silk she wore brought out the sapphire blue of her eyes. She looked utterly beautiful, but to Ned she always did, whether completely put together and immaculately made up for one of their dates, or bedraggled and dirty after being temporarily bested by some criminal she was chasing.
She was, by far, the most fascinating woman he had ever met. And that was why this visit was so, so very important.
"We have an update on the massive storm approaching the state..."
It was curious. When Ned thought of her, he felt an incredible, visceral longing for her. His skin craved the touch of hers, the way her smooth pale forearm felt under his fingertips, the baby-curls at the nape of her neck that he felt when he kissed her and held her. Even as he turned back toward the television, he was still adrift in that quiet hunger.
If the snow kept her from visiting... no. He wouldn't even think about it. What he needed was for the storm to hit the day before she was planning to leave, to keep her at Emerson even longer. That would be absolutely perfect.
If everything went the way he wanted, it would.
To Ned's infinite relief, Nancy made it to Emerson that Friday afternoon without any trouble. Bess and George were with her, but they headed into the Omega house without a comment as Nancy was swept into her boyfriend's arms.
"Hey beautiful," he murmured, hardly able to believe that she was finally back in his arms again, where she belonged.
"Hey handsome," she whispered just before their lips met, in a long sweet kiss. The sky overhead was a pale sullen gray-white, and when the first snowflakes began to fall onto the windswept drifts, he couldn't have cared less. She was with him. She was here.
Nancy, Bess, and George were visiting for the Sweetheart Ball, the last that Ned would be attending as an Emerson student. The day was full of preparations and smaller events, at Ned's fraternity, at their sister sorority, on campus. As that year's president of the fraternity, Ned had been involved in a lot of the planning. He had wanted absolutely everything to be perfect, for Nancy.
The night of the dance, when Ned went over to the Theta house to pick her up, the snow was piled in massive drifts on each side of the path, and the world was eerily quiet. A crust of glittering blue-white ice crunched under Ned's feet. The stars were a cold white overhead.
Ned's heart skipped a beat when he saw her. She wore a deep-red satin dress, floor-length, with a pearl and rhinestone cluster on the bodice. Her hair was piled up on her head, and reddish-gold tendrils brushed her temples. She looked incredibly beautiful.
And she gave him a genuine happy grin when he handed her a bouquet of perfect blood-red roses. "Oh, sweetheart, they're beautiful," she murmured. "Thank you."
The dance was crowded when they arrived, and many of the guests and couples greeted Nancy and Ned when they walked in. Ned swept his girlfriend into his arms for the next song, and for the rest of the night, they didn't part. She kept her fingers interlaced behind his neck, and Ned's arms stayed wrapped around her waist, and they just kept gazing into each other's eyes. She was just so luminous, so sweetly happy, and he couldn't let her go, not without feeling like he had lost a part of himself.
No one even tried to cut in. Nancy and Ned were the golden couple, and since his sophomore year, they had been completely committed to each other. Those generally-sweet flirtations with other guys had stopped.
He felt that the time was right. He hoped it was.
When the music stopped so the king and queen of the dance could be announced, Nancy's hand stayed in his until her name was called. Ned was named king, and when he saw her with the miniature rhinestone crown perched on her head, he couldn't help giving her a grin. She looked so beautiful. Bess had brought her camera, and she snapped a shot of Nancy and Ned just after they had been crowned, glowing with delight.
Ned escorted Nancy back to the Theta house after the dance; her arm was tucked through his, and they huddled together against the brisk, icy wind. She had taken off her crown after they had shared a victory dance; she had glowed with self-consciousness when the other students had congratulated her. And he loved her for it.
"I can't believe it was the last," she murmured. "The last Valentine dance here."
Ned shrugged. "Next year we'll just have to find another," he told her. "Though I doubt we'll be crowned again."
She chuckled. "That part, I won't miss," she admitted, as they reached the front porch. "But I'll miss being in your arms."
"And my arms will miss you," he told her. "Along with the rest of me."
He pulled her close, and for a while the two of them forgot everything, forgot the cold and the wind, the snow and ice, everything but each other. Her kisses were sweet, and her heart was in her eyes when he finally pulled back.
"If I don't let you go, I won't," he murmured.
She cupped his cheek and gave him a smile. "Maybe next Valentine's Day," she whispered.
He was still gazing after her as the Theta house's door closed behind her.
On Valentine's Day, Ned realized that his fervent wishes should have been a little more specific.
He had made reservations at a beautiful restaurant about an hour's drive away, but the snow and ice had made the roads treacherous. Nancy's departure for home would likely be delayed, but they wouldn't make their reservations either. And the day was supposed to be perfect.
Howie came up with the idea, and once Ned had thought about it for a few minutes, he fell in love with it. It wasn't what he had imagined, but he hoped that it would work.
Nancy wore a pair of jeans and a soft ivory sweater, and a pair of dark brown boots. She wore a locket Ned had given her, and her hair was sleek and straight. Ned wore a charcoal-gray sweater and dark jeans, boots and a heavy warm jacket. He helped Nancy into her own leather jacket in the front hall of the Theta house, and it felt smooth and supple under his fingers.
"So where are we going?"
"On a picnic," he told her, with a small smile.
Her eyebrows rose in surprise. Then she smiled, too. "A picnic in February. I'm intrigued," she said lightly.
After they were bundled up against the cold, Ned guided her across campus, to one of the few areas he was pretty sure she had never seen before. He had considered covering her eyes as he guided her there, but had decided against it.
Her surprised gasp warmed Ned down to his toes. "Oh, it's so beautiful," she said, turning to him, her eyes bright. "It feels like a miracle."
The greenhouse was a riot of blooms, bright petals and lush greenery against the blinding white of the snow outside. After the harsh weather, it really did seem like a wonderful dream.
Ned had brought a quilt from his own room, one that his mother had passed down to him. The picnic basket was packed with treats from an upscale grocery store in Emersonville, and that trip itself had taken an hour when it was normally fifteen minutes: handmade crackers, chicken salad, crisp pickles, bunches of sweet grapes, sharp cheddar, kettle chips. For dessert he had bought large walnut-studded brownies spread with thick, decadent frosting, topped with red-icing hearts.
No one disturbed them during their picnic, and they laughed together, feeding each other grapes and crackers. Ned was doing everything he could to contain his growing anxiety, telling himself that it didn't have to be now, he could wait. She would never know. Their romantic celebration could be just that.
After one last bite of brownie, Nancy licked a trace of chocolate off her thumb and turned to him. She had gathered her shining hair into a ponytail, and she let it down, tossing her head. Ned swallowed his own bite of brownie; his mouth was suddenly dry.
"This... I love this," she said, gesturing to the lush beauty around them. "I was expecting..."
"What? Dinner at a nice restaurant?"
She nodded. "Like always," she said, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear before she met his eyes again. "And I would have loved it, because it was with you. But this is wonderful. I love you."
He nodded. "I love you too," he told her. "And I'd give you all the flowers here; I'd find a helicopter somehow and take you out to dinner..."
She laughed, her eyes crinkling, then cupped his cheek. Her gaze was earnest when it met his. "You are all I need," she murmured. "You kind, thoughtful, incredibly handsome man. All the roses in the world couldn't make you sweeter. All the gifts in the world couldn't make me love you more."
Wordlessly, Ned drew her to him for a long, sweet kiss, and she was so warm against him, so lovely. He felt her breath against his cheek and kissed her again, holding her, his heart beating so hard.
"Mmm," Ned murmured, as she stroked her fingers through his hair. When she was so close to him, the anxiety usually just melted away—but now, she was the cause of it. And he just didn't know what to do. To let it go, or...
She smiled at him. "Are you all right?"
He nodded. "Just trying to decide if I want to give you your present now or later."
Her fingertips drifted down his cheek. He could remember a time when she hadn't been so physical, when her kisses hadn't lingered quite as long, when she would sometimes move out of his embrace as though afraid of what might happen. Now, though, she seemed relaxed and happy to be in his arms. "If I say later, does it mean we can spend more time together?"
He smiled. "I have no intention of letting you go, sweetheart," he told her. "We have that film at the student center, and the party at the Theta house..."
"Mmm-hmm." She leaned forward and gave him another long, sweet kiss. "And so much ice and snow on the road that maybe, just maybe, I'll have to stay here a few more days..."
A few more days that would kill him a thousand times, if he was wrong. He stroked his palm down her back. "Nan," he whispered.
"Ned," she replied, with a soft smile.
He reached into the pocket of his discarded coat and pulled out a small, flat velvet box. Nancy raised an eyebrow when she saw it, then looked into his eyes.
"You can say no," he said quietly, then cleared his throat. "Um... I wanted to give you this."
She reached for the box and opened it, then glanced from the box to Ned's eyes. "This is..."
"My fraternity pin," he confirmed quietly.
She nodded once, as though to herself. "And if I wear it," she said, and trailed off.
"To some people, it might mean that we're... intending on... getting married one day." He was watching her so intently, his heart in his throat. "If you wear it, then the next time I'm home, I'll take you out to dinner, and I... I'll do it right this time..."
Her eyes were gleaming faintly. "You did it right the first time," she told him softly. "And you're doing it right, right now."
She was so warm, under his palm. She was so warm against him, and he could swear, oh, what he saw in her eyes... "I love you," he said. "There are no words for the joy I feel when we're together. I... Marry me."
Her lips parted. "Yes," she cried, and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. He held her tight in return, releasing his own delighted cry. "Yes..."
Some time later, Nancy and Ned emerged from the greenhouse, arm in arm, glowing with happiness. Condensation on the windows had shielded them from view. The picnic basket over Ned's arm was significantly lighter, and Nancy couldn't stop smiling. Ned couldn't stop smiling, either. The world around them, so bleak and dead when they had walked to the greenhouse, seemed alight, sparkling, wonderful.
When Ned glanced over at her again, her beautiful face was already turned up so she could gaze at him. She shivered against him, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I'll warm you up again as soon as we get back to the Omega house," he told her, and she laughed, her eyes sparkling.
His fraternity pin glittered at the collar of her sweater. Soon his diamond would wink from her left ring finger. And then, and then...
"Mrs. Ned Nickerson," she whispered, and the giggle that followed was nothing but pure, sweet joy.
"Mrs. Ned Nickerson," he murmured, and he couldn't help it. He dropped the picnic basket and swept her up into his arms, and they both laughed at the sheer delight of it.
"Just make it soon," she told him, after she brushed the tip of her nose against his. "Please, sweetheart. I've wanted this for so long..."
"You have?"
She nodded. "For you to come home," she said. "For us to make a home together."
He gave her a soft kiss. "I am home," he told her. "Because I'm with you."