Flu
Chapter 78
Mark can barely see Holly through the crowd of well-wishers surrounding her. His fingers find the box again. Maybe what he thought would be the perfect time and place won't be so perfect. But he doesn't want to wait. Christmas will have its own complications, and on the 26th, he's going back to work. It has to be tonight. He'll just have to hang in until the mob disperses.
Holly can barely see Mark standing at the edge of the crush surrounding her, but if she ever wants to sell another ticket, she can't rush through greeting her admirers. After hugs and kisses, her family left to finish getting ready for Christmas. She'll join them tomorrow morning. Alexis, with her father and Kate, waved, mouthed "Congratulations," and departed. She'll thank the Castle clan at Alexis' next lesson or at the Pumpkin Palace. That leaves coping with strangers until she can reach the hand she wants to hold and the arms she wants around her tonight.
The tide of effusive music lovers ebbs slowly but finally melts away, leaving Mark and Holly face to face. He cups her cheek. "You've probably heard it a hundred times already, but you were fantastic. Do you want to go sit down? Are you tired?"
"More like wired. How about a walk?" she suggests. "With everything lit up, it's beautiful out there."
"It is," he agrees. "Do you have a coat somewhere?"
"The green room. You need a pass to get in, but it won't take me long to get it."
"You want to go toward the park?" Mark inquires as he and Holly leave the concert venue. Crisp air sweeps across their bare faces.
Holly nods as he holds her hand through the leather glove protecting her gifted fingers. They stroll almost in silence, crossing Central Park South and turning toward the Gapstow bridge. From atop the stone edifice, Holly gazes at the pond and the Wollman Rink. "Skaters are still out there. Even in the cold, they're not willing to retreat from what they love."
Mark turns to face her. "Neither am I." He drops to one knee, pulling the box from his pocket. "Holly, I love you. I think I have from the moment we played our first notes together. When your talent took you worlds ahead of me, I couldn't have been prouder of you. You are a walking miracle, and not just for your music. You are kind and supportive and always reaching out to help anyone you can. I can't think of anyone I'd rather spend my life with." He opens the box, revealing the delicately crafted ring and matching chain. "Will you marry me?"
"Mark, I can't think of anyone I'd rather spend my life with either. Of course, I will. Stand up and put that beautiful thing on me!" she orders as the chill breeze picks up.
"You shouldn't take your gloves off in this. I should have thought of that," Mark chides himself. "But I did think about what you could do with the ring while you play. That's what the chain is for. I can slip the ring on it and put it around your neck now."
She shakes her head. "Screw the wind! I want your promise on my finger. My glove will fit over it fine. Then we can go grab a drink at the Pub near the Hall and let the whole place see it."
Mark draws her to him for a kiss. "Sounds wonderful."
"You'd better not peek while I stuff your stocking," Rick warns Kate.
"You stuff my stocking? I thought Santa is coming to do that," Kate teases.
"I'm an official Santa's helper," Rick protests. "I've got a certificate to prove it, with gold leaf and everything."
"How much did that cost you?" Kate inquires.
"When Alexis was five and caught me around her stocking, Mother had the props department on a movie she was working on dummy it up. That satisfied my daughter for another year. But it was a great year. Anyway, for tonight don't be a detective. It will spoil the surprise."
"I wouldn't dream of it," Kate promises.
Rick takes one last glimpse at the tanzanite pendant Jacob Ketimer created for Kate, before pushing it toward the toe of her fabric stiletto. Tanzanite is rare, but Rick is sure Kate will love the rich purple gem. It almost exactly matches a painting he saw her admiring in the window of a pawn shop near the precinct. He was able to haggle a good deal from the shop owner, making the painting cheaper than the jewelry he commissioned to match it. Following the family custom of opening presents on Christmas Eve, hastily torn wrappings revealed the artwork. But the shiny gem in Kate's stocking will make a great pairing.
Most of the rest of what fills the shoe is chocolate, but Rick did include tickets to a Herbie Hancock concert. Kate can rarely get enough jazz, by any meaning of the word. Rick checks his watch. It's almost midnight; he'll just have to convince his brain to take a time out. Alexis still bounces out of bed before sunrise to check her stocking. He never tires of seeing her joy at her morning bounty. And he'll need to put his unique touch on the Christmas hot chocolate.
Late Christmas night, the National Weather Service issues an alert for New York City, Long Island, and parts of New England and New Jersey. The snow is yet to begin falling, but the call goes out to everyone in the N.Y.P.D. The party is over.
December 26, Tori emerges from a tech meeting to lay out their calculations for Captain Montgomery. He prepared for what she's telling him but wishes he didn't have to hear it. Under strong winds and heavy snow, transportation will be in a virtual lockdown. He'll be assigning his people by zone to render what aid they can to stranded New Yorkers.
Roy is convinced that things can't look much worse until he receives a call from the chief. The sanitation workers are unhappy with budget cuts and will be using the storm to illustrate their worth to the city. They haven't made any official announcements and are unlikely to, but the rumor is that they'll deliberately slow down snow removal to make their point. Roy palms his head in his hands. Once the flakes start piling up, he doubts he'll make it home by New Years, and it may take longer than that. Evelyn assured him that she has everything that she and the kids will need if they're snowbound. They even have a small generator to run the refrigerator and other necessities if the power goes out. But he hates to think of his family stuck without him. Whoever dreamed of a white Christmas season had rocks in his head.
Before going on duty, Lana checks her cross country ski group's message board. While the N.Y.P.D. is gearing up to render emergency assistance, her fellow skiers are doing the same. They're making contact with local pharmacies to deliver emergency medications. A few are E.M.T.s who will try, if necessary, to get where an ambulance can't go. She decides to take her skis to the precinct with her and stow them in the storage space in her unit. It will take some doing to make them fit, but if she's going to protect and serve, she'll do the best job she can. When the city's demands slow down a little, she may get some time on the snow with Eli, but she can't count on it.
A/N New York City actually had a blizzard at the end of December in 2010. The sanitation workers did slow down. I've been using some of the real weather details, but the rest I'm making up.