Author: Alicia
Feedback: PrincessFreak77@hotmail.com
Rating: R
Summary: A journey through the lives of Amy, Matt, and Jeff.
Notes: I made everything up. I wasn't trying to be historically accurate. This is all my own little world.
Disclaimer: Go away. They're not mine.
+ ~~ +
North Carolina was beautiful in the winter. The snow was topping every tree and covering every walkway. And someone coming from as far down as Fort Lauderdale, Florida saw everything as beautiful. Nine year old Amy Dumas strained in her seat to see exactly where her father was taking her. Moving had been a big adjustment for her, but seeing all the snow had taken her mind away from everything she had been through back at her other home.
"Daddy, how long do I get to stay here?" she asked suddenly, taking her eyes from the window and turning them to her father, who looked at her distractedly.
He looked out his rearview mirror before turning his gaze back on Amy. "Until the New Year, baby. Remember? Then you get to go back to Mommy in Florida."
She chewed on her lower lip. "Why aren't we all living together? Like we used to?"
"Honey, we've been over this before. Your Mom and I aren't going to live together anymore. It's not your fault, Amy, but we don't love each other anymore. But we will always love you, which is why we're going to share you. You'll live with your mother most of the year, and then on special times of the year, you'll come live with me."
"Like Christmas and summer vacation?" she asked.
He nodded. "And spring break."
She sat in silence, looking out the window again, without really seeing anything. She heard her father's words, and she knew basically what was going on. She was still confused, however, about why this was all happening. Sitting back against her seat, Amy slept until her father leaned over and told her they were home.
+ ~~ +
It was too hot in the house, so nine year old Matt Hardy grabbed his thinnest jacket from the chair and ran outside. Is was a little cold outside, but nothing really major. He slipped the jacket on and sat down on the steps, looking out at the trampoline with longing. He wasn't allowed on it those close to Christmas, because his mom was convinced that the metal would be too slick from the snow and he'd fall off and hurt himself.
The door opened and closed behind him and his six year old brother Jeff came out and sat beside him. "Dad wants you to come in for a minute."
Matt shrugged. "So?"
"Matt, please! I'll get in trouble if I don't bring you in!" Jeff's eyes glazed over with tears and Matt stood up quickly.
"Don't cry, Jeff," Matt said, hugging his little brother. "I'll come in."
Inside, they were greeted instantly by their mother. "Come in, come in. We have new neighbors," she said, ushering her sons into the living room. Matt poked his head around the entrance to the room, looking nervously at the two new people in his house. There was a man about as big as his dad sitting on the chair by the window. And in his favorite chair was a girl about his age. In his chair!
He walked into the room a few steps behind Jeff and his mother, then stopped in front of the girl. "You're in my chair," he said, not even bothering to say hello.
Her eyes went wide and she scrambled immediately from the chair, dropping to the floor.
"Matthew Moore!" his mother chastised. "That's not very nice! Get up and let her have that chair back!"
Matt got up and looked apologetically at the girl. "I'm sorry," he said, gesturing to the chair. "Go on."
She smiled shyly and sat back down, sliding closer to the side. "There's room for you, too," she said. Matt smiled at her and sat down, nervously fiddling his hands in his lap.
"Thanks," he muttered.
Matt's mother cleared her throat and tried to hide her smile. "Matt, Jeff, this is Mr. Dumas and his daughter Amy. They moved in next door."
Jeff looked up curiously from the floor. "Where's her Mommy?" he asked.
Mr. Dumas looked uncomfortable, but Amy came to his rescue. "She's in Florida. They got a divorce."
"Oh." Jeff said. He didn't know what a divorce was, but he was sure it was something bad.
"I met her mother in North Carolina when I used to live here," Mr. Dumas began. "So when we split, I decided to come back up here. This is Amy's first time ever seeing snow."
Mrs. Hardy nodded her head and a slow smile spread across her pretty face. "Matt, why don't you and Jeff take Amy outside and build a snowman?"
+ ~~ +
Matt looked over at the new girl, not completely sure what to make of her. She was...a girl. "How old are you?" he asked her.
"Nine."
"Me, too!" Matt said, deciding maybe she wasn't that bad.
With great attention to detail, Matt showed his new friend how to build a snowman. They rolled the snow into balls and stacked them on top of each other. After adding the eyes, nose, and mouth, they stepped back to admire their handiwork. Jeff was sitting on the front steps, shivering, when Matt looked up to him for his approval. When he saw Jeff's body shaking with the cold, Matt left his snowman and dashed to his brother's side.
"Come on, Jeff. I'll take you inside," he said. "I'll be back in a minute, Amy," he told her, and she nodded. Good to his word, he came back out a few minutes later.
"You really like your brother, don't you?" she asked.
Matt shrugged and looked at the ground, jamming his hands in his pockets. "He's just a baby. I gotta take care of him." When he looked up again, Amy was right in front of him, looking him in the eyes with a weird smile on her face.
And then she kissed him. It was very soft and quick, and felt a lot like a snowflake falling on his lips. He stepped back, his cheeks turning an even darker shade of pink. "What did you do that for?" he asked, tempted to wipe off his mouth, just for show.
Amy shrugged, her own cheeks darker than they had been a few minutes ago. "I wanted to."
He nodded, then said very quietly, "Okay."