A/N: Well, I started the 30 day write about winter challenge in an attempt to practice writing faster and not over-analyze everything. Not sure how long I can keep up, especially because I got sidetracked for hours while writing this. So much for good intentions…
Every chapter will be a one-shot.
But, here's day 1: Write about a character seeing snow for the first time.
She had been around nine years old the first time she saw snow. She had run outside in the middle of breakfast, dragging her little sister with her. Even their mother, who had grown up in Be'er Sheva, had walked outside with a smile and marveled at the white flakes falling from the sky.
Fantasies of snowball fights and snowmen, of sledding down the street, had run through her head as she tried to catch the flakes on her tongue, little Tali copying her every move.
The fun hadn't lasted long, but the magic had. Almost as soon as the snow had touched the ground it turned to slush. And after what had felt like mere seconds, her mother had herded them back inside to finish breakfast and get ready for school.
She had called her father that evening, begging him to take them to Jerusalem that weekend where, according to the news, the snow was piled up high. He had laughed and promised he would, and she had dreamt about pulling her little sister through the winding streets of Jerusalem on a sled.
Friday had come and gone in a blur, and then it was Saturday morning and her father had looked at her apologetically; he had to go to Tel Aviv for work. She had burst out in anger, he had promised, after all, and when she had tried to hit him, he had grabbed her arm roughly.
With a stern expression he had told her, in his loud, booming voice, that you cannot always get what you want. That there are more important things in life than what you want or need.
Tali had started crying at the commotion, and he had blamed her for her sister's tears. "Learn to control emotions," he had shouted at her angrily. And she had. Well, mostly.
A heavy groan brought her back to the present.
"I hate snow," her partner said as he walked up to her. She kept her eyes on the snowfall outside, unsure of how she felt about the tiny ice crystals covering everything in a white blanket.
What she had seen all those years ago in her home country paled in comparison to the blizzard that had swept over the Navy Yard hours earlier. Everything seemed softer, brighter, quieter. Somehow…more welcoming.
"I'm starting an office pool on your survival chances of driving in this weather."
Perhaps not everything was more welcoming.
He narrowed his eyes at her non-reaction. "Why aren't you hating on snow? You're from the desert, this is probably your version of hell."
She pressed her lips together, considering how much she should share.
"I have never been in a snowball fight," she said looking him in the eye.
His face split into the wide grin she had gotten used to these past few months.
"Technically, we're still on our lunch break. Come on," he said, and headed for the elevator while whipping out his phone and sending a text.
They stepped into the elevator just as his phone alerted a new message.
"Abby and McGee will meet us at the back." He tilted his chin and looked down at her. "Should I explain the rules of snowball warfare to you?"
She rolled her eyes and huffed. "Snow only, yes? No touching?"
"Well, if you wanna grope a little-"
She dug her elbow in his side and he grunted dramatically.
"Just so we're clear, you're on my team," he said with a glare.
At the ding of the elevator, she cracked her knuckles and walked out into the cold white landscape, feeling nine years old again.
A/N: I think I messed up some tenses (I tried not to, I really did, it's one of the reasons I got sidetracked for hours looking at grammar while writing this, also, I now know everything there is to know about the weather in Israel from the past century...), so apologies.
Thanks for reading and thanks to all who have left feedback in the past. It means a lot to me.