Chapter One:
It was a slow day in Barrow, Alaska. Dahlia moved down the side of the snow-filled street, her feet leaving deep holes in the fresh blanket of white. She was glad to be back in Barrow. After being born in this very city, nineteen years ago, she had been whisked away to a hot, bustling, almost always snowless city far from Alaska.
As soon as she hit eighteen, she finished her senior year of high school, said goodbye to her parents, and then moved back to her birthplace. Contact with her parents had dropped to, and stayed at, phone calls and e-mails. The calls were short and the e-mails weren't much longer.
Dahlia got to the store and started her search for new batteries, a new set of snowshoes, and all the coffee and hot chocolate she could manage to carry. A kind smile greeted her when she dumped her items on the counter. "Morning, Dahlia. Did you find everything?" the cashier asked. Dahlia nodded, smiling back. "Morning, Molly."
Molly Watson, with her short hair and kind gray eyes, was about "as sweet as a box of your favorite chocolate". That's how Dahlia described her. She always smiled, no matter how bad something was. Whether it was something in her life or even the weather outside, Molly kept a bright smile plastered on her pale, baby doll face. Dahlia also described her as a "double-score" for any guy that saw her. Molly was not only kind, but she was pretty, too.
Molly rang up Dahlia's things and told her the price. Dahlia paid, helped Molly stuff it all into two large brown paper bags, and then thanked her. She heaved the bags into her arms and shoved the door open with her foot.
She was so deep in thought that she didn't hear the crunching of snow behind her. She had no idea that someone was there until a pair of cold lips pressed against her cheek. Dahlia pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind and smiled when her green eyes reflected in the bright blue eyes of another person.
"Hey Dante." she mumbled, keeping her eyes focused on the blue orbs that danced in front of them. "Hello there." he replied with a grin and a soft chuckle. Dante was tall, thin but muscular, and absolutely gorgeous. Dahlia was lucky to have him and almost liked the envious glares she got from most of the girls in Barrow.
Dante took her bags from her and gave her a quick smile. Dahlia smiled back and walked next to him until they got to her front porch. He waited patiently as she unlocked the door. As she turned to get the bags from him, he moved past her swiftly and went to set them on the kitchen counter. She shook her head, smiled, and followed him, closing the front door behind her.
Dante set the bags down and leaned against the counter when Dahlia walked into the kitchen. Dahlia smiled and started putting things away. She grabbed the large cans of coffee and attempted to carry all six of them at the same time by bundling them in her arms. When one tipped over and hurdled toward the floor, Dahlia sighed. 'Five bucks down the drain because the can of coffee didn't want to cooperate.' she thought to herself.
A second later, after not hearing anything hit the linoleum kitchen floor, Dahlia turned around. She set the cans on the counter closer to the cabinets and stared at the can that Dante was turning around in his hands slowly. "Is something wrong?" Dante asked, seeing the confused look in her eyes. "I thought that can fell." she answered. He nodded and held it out to her. Dahlia grabbed the can with one hand.
She checked it for any dents or cracks or anything of the sort before turning and opening the cabinet. She shoved the can onto one of the shelves and put the other ones in after it. Dante watched her quietly, pulling a box of hot chocolate packets out of one of the bags. When Dahlia turned around, he tossed it to her. She went to grab it, but it hit the tip of her index finger and bounced off. The box hit the floor with a smacking sound.
Dahlia sighed and bent down to pick it up. When she stood up with the box in her hands, Dante was standing right in front of her. She smiled and set the box on the counter. "Any plans for the rest of the day?" he asked. Dahlia shook her head, "Nope. All I got up thinking was that I needed to go to the store and I've taken care of that already, so I'm free."
Dante smiled, pressed his lips to her forehead, and muttered, "I'll call you later." Dahlia nodded and watched him walk out of the kitchen. When she heard the front door close, she put everything else away and went up to her bedroom. Her house was two-stories tall with two bathrooms and two bedrooms, not including the guest room. She changed into jeans and a black, long sleeve top.
Dahlia sat on her bed and turned on the TV. The news was on. They were talking about the upcoming month of night. Dahlia didn't like the idea too much. 'A full month of no sun, how lovely…' she thought to herself. She refused to watch the rest of it, so she hit the Off button on the remote and stood up. She walked downstairs and pulled on her winter jacket and snow boots before walking out into the snow.
She walked to the diner that was just down the street. As she pushed open the door, the little bell chimed and the only waitress working looked up. "Dahlia." the waitress, Sally, said with a glare. "Hello, Sally. How's your day going?" Dahlia hissed back. "It was fine, until you walked in." Sally growled. Dahlia rolled her eyes and sat at the counter, right in front of Sally.
Sally Evans was Dante's younger sister. She was only seventeen, but tried to act older. At Dahlia's height, she looked nineteen except for her slightly girlish face and much slimmer figure. And of all the reasons to hate someone, Sally hated Dahlia for stealing Dante's attention. Every day, the conversation between the two was the same.
After a minute of them staring at each other, the bell above the door chimed. They both looked in that direction and there stood a snow covered Dante. "Hey Dahlia, hey Sally." he said, sensing the tension between them. Dahlia turned to look at Sally, giving her a "Ha, he said my name first" smile. Sally returned her smile with a harsh glare.
