Holiday Magic
PART ONE
Addison
It was Thanksgiving Day and the first time I'd spent the holiday away from my family back in Seabrook. I missed my parents terribly. Over the last couple of months, I had tried to convince myself that defying them and following my disowned cousin up to Yale for college was worth it, but today it just didn't work.
When Bucky informed me that he was going to be spending the break with his boyfriend, I had thought about flying back home, but a ticket to Seabrook was outrageously expensive this time of year and my funds were tight since my parents cut me off. I barely had enough money saved up to fly home for the fast-approaching winter break, so I settled on a lovely, but rather stuffy, holiday meal with some gracious Yale faculty members who lived close to campus and took pity on the few students who had decided to stay. I hoped it would be better than hanging out all alone in my dorm room.
Though my dinner hosts were kind enough to invite me to join their family celebration, I quickly learned that I had nothing in common with my kind benefactors as we chatted and ate.
They appeared to be from families who ate their breakfast cereal from silver spoons. Even though I grew up with parents that were the mayor and police chief of our small town, this kind of wealth was completely foreign to me.
Not too long after our meal was finished and the dishes were cleared, I thanked my hosts for a lovely dinner and quickly scooted towards the door. They sent a couple pieces of pumpkin pie home with me, but I could feel a sense of relief from them when I left. I guess my fake smiles were not that convincing at all. That's probably why drama was my toughest class in high school. I'd never been able to be anything but myself. Whoever made up that lame motto, Fake it till you make it, was a complete idiot, at least where I'm concerned.
When I made it back to my dorm, I quickly waved my hand to acknowledge the lone security guard sitting behind the glass entrance and walked through the deserted halls. All the sound-less air was unnerving. Even though we studied nonstop, the word "quiet" was something only found in the five-inch dictionary on my desk.
Closing and locking the door to my room, I let out a long, slow breath, feeling safe within my little haven. But now I had nothing to do but stare at the stark white walls, so I decided to go to be early. I wasn't sure how I'd fall asleep without the usual bustle of activity, or the slamming of doors echoing down the hallway, but finally, I nodded off… most likely due to having just finished off both pieces of my host's delicious pie.
The next morning I woke around eight. I tried to go back to sleep, but after thirty minutes of hiding away under my warm down comforter, I finally put my feet on the cold dorm floor. I walked to the window and saw that the sun was shining brightly in a cloudless sky. It was so bright I had to squint my eyes as I looked around. It appeared deceivingly warm out until I glanced down at the sidewalk and saw people bundled up in warm jackets and wrapped up in wool scarves.
Making my way to the shower, I wondered how I should spend my day. Many of the kids on my floor would return tomorrow, so this was my last free day all to myself. Since there was nothing much to do in New Haven and I'd visited all the important sites around the campus, I thought I might try to do something more adventurous.
A few weeks ago, my roommate, Bree, had persuaded me to take the Metro North train with her into New York City and see a Saturday matinee show on Broadway. It was my first trip in to the city and I fell in love with the energy there. People scurried about the sidewalks with determined looks on their faces. The street was lined with vendors selling everything from scarves to hotdogs. I remember Bree telling me how spectacular the city was around Thanksgiving when all the stores unveiled their holiday-decorated windows.
"Addie, it's magical here during the holidays. I've got to bring you back to see it. Somehow we'll make it happen," she'd said.
She mentioned how the whole city seemed to adorn itself for Christmas. I'd always been a sucker for anything that had to do with the holidays, and who hasn't dreamed of gazing into the Macy's Christmas windows, so I decided to escape the deserted halls around me and head to New York City for the day.
I quickly googled "holiday windows in New York" and the Metro North train schedule into Grand Central Station. There was a walking tour that started at Bloomingdale's, so I would just buck up a few extra dollars and take a cab there from the station and walk the rest of the way with my trek ending at Macy's. The website said that the stroll by the six store windows would take under two hours. I knew that I would be stopping to shop and sightsee along the way, so it would take me most of the afternoon and into the early evening. But since the last train back to New Haven left at nearly one a.m., I had plenty of time to see all the sights.
Looking at my alarm clock, I realized that I had little under an hour to get to the train, and once I was on board I would be in the heart of Manhattan in ninety minutes, so in a little over two hours I'd be walking the tunnels of Grand Central Station.
Starting the day with frozen hair was not a good idea, so I hurriedly dried my locks and formed them into loose curls around my shoulders. I found my new down jacket and suede winter boots that were hiding under my bunk. I pulled them over my wool socks and hoped they'd work together to keep my toes warm. I wrapped my favorite scarf around my neck and dug my gloves out of my pockets.
Now all bundled for the day, I made my way to New Haven's Union Station via the free shuttle from the Green by Yale's campus. I grabbed a cinnamon roll and a latte from the station's coffee shop. Now that I was getting caffeinated and feeling more awake, the excitement of my little adventure was starting to set in.
After purchasing my roundtrip ticket, I headed toward the platform. Keeping my head down, I walked out the glass doors and braved the cold wind. The train would pull up at the stop any minute. I could feel the anticipation building and for some reason, I didn't even mind going by myself. I was a little surprised that I wasn't anxious about heading into the city alone. It wasn't like I was a seasoned New Yorker, but I'd be able to linger and shop as I pleased. If I wanted to drool on the glass cases at Tiffany's for a couple of hours who was going to care? Other than the poor salespeople. Also, I'd be able to indulge in one of my favorite past times… people watching.
Hearing the buzz of the train as it headed toward the platform, I turned my head and something, or should I say someone, caught my eye. A tall man was leaning against the soda machine across from me and dressed in a black wool pea coat. The jeans he wore appeared to be flannel because I could see the plaid material making up his cuff.
The New York Times he was holding in front of him hid most of his upper body, but I knew exactly who it was. I'd stared at and dreamed about him for weeks.
The hot guy standing just a few feet away from me was none other than, Zed Necrodopolus, Editor-in-Chief of the Yale Daily News, man about campus, and my cousin Bucky's, best friend and roommate. Oh, and most importantly he was majorly out of my league, even if he did just break up with his goddess of a girlfriend, Lacey.
He'd barely said a word to me since Bucky introduced us. I was pretty sure he thought I was mute or just had a permanently paralyzed shocked face, because being in his presence left me completely speechless. I'd never been so attracted to anyone in my life and at the same time felt like I wanted to run and hide when I was around him. My behavior basically added up to crazy.
Strangely, though, I'd noticed him gazing at me during the weekly board meetings we lowly freshman attended with the editors. Last week his stares were rather unnerving and a complete turn-on, leaving me squirming in my chair and at a loss of what was being said during the meeting. But I didn't flatter myself in dreaming that his heated looks my way really meant anything. After all, he was perfect and I was far from it.
My mind wandered back to the day I'd first met Zed. It was a couple of months ago during my first week at Yale.
"Hey, Addie-loo," Bucky had called to me as I entered the first-floor reporters room.
I stopped dead in my tracks because the most beautiful boy, or more like man, was examining me from where he was leaning against my desk with his long, muscular legs stretched out in front of him. My sex-starved mind imagined pushing him back against my desk and remedying my sorry, deprived state.
"You okay, cuz?" Bucky had laughed as he tried to break me out of my trance. Just thinking back on that day was mortifying.
"Uh, yeah… I'm fine. Just coming down from my morning caffeine fix… That's all." I hoped that made sense, but I remember how he just stared at me.
"This is my roommate, Zed Necrodopolus." He smiled as he turned to his hot as hell friend. "I've told her all about you, Zed."
Well, it was rather obvious he had forgotten to mention a few things… like his chiseled jawline, his sexed-up green hair, and those dangerous coffee-colored eyes. I recall breaking my stare and looking over at Bucky, pleading for his help. But I still couldn't speak. Somehow, I'd earned a perfect score on the SAT, but place a devastatingly handsome piece of hot testosterone in front of me and my brain turned to complete mush.
"Hi, Addison," the gorgeous, brown-eyed god had said to me. "I hear from Bucky that you're going to be working as a general assignment's reporter. Nice to meet you."
I remained dumbstruck after hearing him speak my name, but saw that he had extended his hand out to me. Somehow, I moved and placed a rather shaky hand in his, and as I did, I felt an odd warmth as we touched. My body moved forward seemingly without my help, as if on instinct. I think he felt it, too, because he looked down, puzzled, at our collective hands before he pulled away and ran his fingers through his glorious, emerald hair.
And it was that same green hair that gave him away today. It peeked out from the top of the newspaper. I barely saw his eyebrows as they scrunched together in concentration. Panic set in as I realized that I was about to be discovered ogling him. I wanted to run and hide or throw myself in front of the train. My choices were few and I needed to make a decision quickly.
Thankfully, I saw a copy of the local newspaper lying discarded on the bench next to me. I reached for it and brought it up to cover my face. Quickly turning it right side up as I realized it was upside down. The train finally stopped and opened its doors. No one got off the train, but about twenty people entered as the platform lights blinked. I was careful to stay hidden from Zed as he moved to the back of the second car and faced away from the front of the train.
Discreetly, I chose a seat several rows in back of him with my newspaper disguise still placed a few inches in front of my face. I wondered where he was going and why he hadn't flown back home for the holidays like my cousin had said he was. Perhaps his position at the paper had kept him in town even though the staff had pre-planned editions. I guess there could always be news to cover.
Well, there was no denying that he was here with me right now on this train bound for the city. And what should have been a relaxing ride ended up being one that was rattling my nerves. I found myself constantly shifting around in my seat hoping to steal a glimpse of him without exposing myself. What if he did see me? Would I just stand there tongue-tied as usual? Most likely.
Every time I saw him at the News building, I would turn the other way or duck into an empty office. He'd probably written me off as a complete lunatic and I seemed to transform into one when it came to him anyway. And now I'd become totally crazy about him. It was really rather sad as I couldn't seem to get him off my mind and then to see him on the train… well, I started feeling sick from all the butterflies in my stomach.
Finally, the train pulled in and stopped at Grand Central Station. I decided to hide down in the seat with my paper as a mask and wait for him to exit first. After that, all bets were off.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Last year I wrote a short holiday story called ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS. I had so much fun writing that one, that I thought I'd give it another go this year! This story will have four parts and will be updated every Thursday between now and Christmas. I hope you enjoy it! Feel free to drop me a review and let me know!