Wind howled as Byleth took a step in the deep snow that now piled just a little up to her shins. Byleth cursed under her breath as she missed the chance to leave work early so she wouldn't be in this predicament, but decided to finish her shift instead. According to the morning news it wasn't supposed to snow until the evening but Mother Nature said fuck it and made it snow in the afternoon, much to the tealette's disappointment. Still, she marched on towards home where warm temperatures and a special someone waited for her which was about a 10-15 minute walk from work, five by quicker transportation.
Byleth did think about taking the bus when she got off work(although she would've made it home later than usual due to the weather), but she had a few bad experiences with creepers in the past until her boyfriend Terry had scared them off to make the idiots leave her alone. The dollar in her pocket would be saved for another time and place but not now. She also thought about calling Terry who would happily pick her up but didn't want to risk either him or both of them getting in an accident on the icy roads, so Byleth just toughed it out.
It was quiet out no cars or anyone else was seen moving around, Byleth assumed that they all stayed home or left work early to avoid the cold weather. She noticed that the town had a significant layer of snow on it, giving it a bleached look. The streetlights had turned on as a result of the thick layer of clouds that had obscured the sun's light, casting an eerie warm glow as the sky darkened. More snow continued to fall and all Byleth wanted was to get out this weather and not freeze to death on the way to her house.
After walking for about 45 minutes she finally made it safely to her front door and reached for her keys, fingers almost numb from the cold then fumbled with the lock. Turning the key in the keyhole, Byleth heard a satisfying click telling her that the door was now unlocked. Byleth gripped the handle and with a grunt, she opened the door before a gust of icy wind hustled her inside the house and made her close the door. A pleasant sigh escaped Byleth's lips as she was now inside the safety of her warm home and not outside in that terrible weather anymore. Just as she was about to unbutton her coat Terry's strong arms had embraced her, and Byleth melted into his embrace to absorb as much heat as she could from the blonde.
"I told myself a minute more and I'd go outside to look for you," he said as he let go, stroking his thumbs over her cold cheeks to warm them.
"I can take care of myself, Terry," Byleth smiled as she reluctantly moved away from him to start removing her coat.
Terry noticed just how wet and covered in snow she was as nearly every inch of her had a generous covering of snow, and her dark teal hair was damp from the combination of the snow and her body heat.
"Hmm, it seems that I'm mistaken. A snowman that looks just like Byleth has wandered into my house." Byleth playfully rolled her eyes at him and elbowed him in the ribs.
"Terry!" Byleth laughed as she tugged off her soaked scarf while Terry got close enough to start unbuttoning her coat.
He pulled the wet fabric off of her and hung it on the coat rack before focusing on her gloves. After removing them he rubbed each of her fingers briefly between his thumb and pointer finger, warming them. He took off her earmuffs and cupped his hands over her ears to warm them. Byleth stood back for a moment and let Terry take off her damp winter gear and warm her frozen body.
"Hang on a sec, By, I got somethin' for you," Terry said as he got up and grabbed a blanket to wrap her with.
The next moment, Byleth was completely enveloped by a comforting warmth which made the tealette let out a happy sigh as she felt the cold leave her body. She felt like she was melting. She fisted her fingers in the plush fabric of the blanket, pulling it up over her nose and ears. Byleth grinned giddily as she savored the heat emanating from her favorite blanket.
"Better?"
Peeking up at him over the soft material of the fluffy blanket Byleth nodded, amusement twinkling in her blue eyes. "Much better."
She waddled like a penguin to the couch and sat down with Terry following behind her. He kneeled down to remove her boots then replaced her wet socks with warm ones that had also been popped out of the dryer. She hummed and wiggled her toes, feeling the warmth seep into her skin.
Terry had a bad habit of spoiling Byleth recently. The blonde must've gotten his inspiration from the time Byleth came home from work and nearly dive bombed the dryer when she heard the beep and surrounded herself with freshly heated laundry to keep warm. Whenever he came home before she did, Terry made sure to throw a blanket and some socks into the dryer to warm her up once she got home.
Azure eyes lighting up with glee, she saw Terry come back from the kitchen with two cups of hot chocolate. Byleth's eager hands clasped the hot cup as Terry handed it to her. Her fingers happily squeezed the mug, warming faster as a result of it. She got a whiff of the wonderful, chocolaty aroma wafting from the mug, confirming her thoughts. The hot chocolate was topped with a generous amount of extra marshmallows just how she liked it. Byleth carefully took a sip, being careful not to burn her tongue, humming at the hint of caramel dancing on the tealette's taste buds.
Looking out the window, Byleth was glad that she was inside and away from the snow. The thought of having to go back out in that mess made her shudder. At least two or three more inches of snow had fallen on the ground since she came inside. But she wasn't outside she was warm and cozy in a blanket with Terry treating her like a queen. Speaking of the blonde, he was seated right next to her while holding a mug of his own hot chocolate. He set it down on the coffee table before speaking.
"Here, you got a little somethin' on your face, By."
Byleth expected him to reach over and swipe the corner of her mouth, what she didn't expect was him kissing her. He broke the kiss a few seconds later.
"You don't need excuses to kiss me, Terry." Byleth smiled, scooting over on the couch to curl up next to him. She rested her head on his shoulder, her fingers playing with the handle of the mug.
"I was only getting that little bit of chocolate on your lips, By, honest." Terry placed a kiss to the top of her head. She smiled coyly, formulating a proper rebuttal before a savory scent wafted past her nose that she had failed to notice before.
"Do I smell dinner?"
"Yeah it'll be ready soon. Give it about twenty more minutes."
Wrapping an arm around her he grabbed his mug off the coffee table and took a sip. Byleth didn't know what was cooking but from the way it smelled it had to be amazing. She looked out the window again and soon found herself entranced by the steady snowfall. The sky was now dark with the only light coming from the streetlights, bathing everything in their warm glow. The flakes almost seemed to glitter now like little white diamonds from the lights.
Byleth always thought that snow was prettier when viewed from the indoors with a cup of hot chocolate, a warm blanket and someone to share the experience with.