Newt's lesson went better than he expected. After a couple rounds down the hill, Minho asked Newt if he wanted to go inside and get something warm to drink and sit by the fire. Gladly, Newt accepted. He really liked Minho and also he was so cold he was imagining the beach on a hot summer day, sitting in front of a warm fire, putting his face in front of a heater, even those hot pack things that you could put in your glove, which sadly, he had failed to get. Maybe he could find some here that he could buy.

Newt ordered a hot chocolate and Minho got a coffee. They sat down and Minho said, "So, are you from here?"

The blond boy put his hands in front of the fire, incredibly glad for warmth. "No. I'm from Denver," he answered. "I'm assuming you live around here, if you work here?"

Minho grinned. "Yeah, I live here. Actually, I live in the one of the condos on the side of the hill over there." He pointed out the window.

"Really? Oh my gosh, that's so cool! What's it like getting to ski every day?" Newt asked.

"Pretty awesome," Minho admitted. "Except I only get to ski in the winter, obviously. But yeah, when there's actually snow, it's awesome. That's why I moved here, so I could become a ski instructor."

They talked for a long time. Minho lived with his parents and his two brothers, Zart and Clint, and his sister Sonya. Zart wanted to be a farmer and Clint was about to start medical school. Sonya wasn't sure what she wanted to do yet. All three of them had jobs here. Newt even got to meet Sonya when she showed up for her job as a snowboarding instructor. Newt told Minho about his little sister, Mikayla, and about how he and Thomas had met in kindergarten. Newt had wanted to play a prank on their teacher, and had locked both him and Thomas - he hadn't really known Thomas at the time - in the small closet during recess. Thomas had been getting his jacket from the closet because it was cold. He'd even helped Newt with the prank, and they pulled it off quite miraculously. They'd gotten away with it, too, but the guilt had gotten to both of them and they had confessed to their teacher. They'd been inseparable ever since.

After a while, Minho said, "That's your friend over there, right? Thomas?" Newt turned to look and saw Thomas standing in the line to get food.

"Yeah, that's him," Newt replied.

"Are you guys...just friends?" Minho seemed hesitant to ask the question, almost like he didn't want to know the answer.

"Uh, we're best friends," said Newt, though he felt that wasn't what Minho was asking.

"He's not your boyfriend?" Minho asked. "I could have sworn you-"

"No!" Newt exclaimed, blushing at the thought. "We're just friends. Best friends."

Minho held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay," he said. "It just seems like he likes you."

"You think?" Newt asked curiously. Could it be possible?

"He's been looking over here quite a bit," Minho informed him. "I don't know. I could be wrong."

"Hey, easy now," Newt said. "Don't bloody hurt my feelings. I find myself very attractive, for your information."

Minho laughed. Newt looked over his shoulder at Thomas. He was pretty cute...

Newt thought about what Minho had said during the remainder of their conversation. When Newt was warm, Minho suggested that they go back outside for another lesson, though it was getting dark. After going down the hill a few times, Minho said he had to go. They exchanged numbers and Minho left, leaving him alone by the ski lift.

"Hey," a familiar voice said, making him jump and almost fall down - again.

"Thomas!" Newt gasped. "You totally scared the crap out of me!" Newt playfully punched him on the arm.

Thomas laughed. "Want to go skiing together?" he asked.

Newt smiled. "Sure," he said. Maybe if Thomas had a crush on him, it wouldn't be so bad...

They got on the ski lift as the sky turned a dark blue color, almost black. It was even colder now and Newt looked over at Thomas, getting an idea but he suddenly found himself too shy to try it. Since when was he shy around Thomas? They were best friends. Newt held his breath and scooted closer to Thomas. "Can I...?" Newt looped his arm through Thomas' and rested his head against the brown haired boy's shoulder.

Thomas chuckled. "Why so cuddly all of a sudden?" he inquired.

Newt was surprised at how nice this felt. "Just...wanted to try it," he mumbled. He opened his eyes and looked up at his best friend. "Unless you don't like it?"

Thomas blushed in the darkness. "No, no," he assured Newt quickly. "It just took me by surprise, is all. I didn't think you were the cuddling type. I like it."

Now it was Newt's turn to blush as he closed his eyes again and buried his face in Thomas' jacket. "Better not get too comfortable," warned Thomas. "We're about to get off."

Newt sat up as the lift approached the ground, and they put their skis on the ground and moved forward. Unfortunately, Newt lost his balance as they started down the small hill and he sent both himself and Thomas tumbling down the small - but very steep - hill. Newt found himself inches from Thomas' face, his dark brown, almost black eyes gazing into Thomas' blue ones. He could feel Thomas' warm breath on his lips and he gasped, pushing himself away from Thomas. "Sorry!" he apologized, getting up and trying to help Thomas up, but they fell down yet again. Thomas was laughing and Newt couldn't help but like the sound of his laugh, even though he'd heard it many times before. But what was so different now? Newt sensed something was different but couldn't put his finger on it...

They got up and started down the hill. After going down a couple times, Newt was starting to get tired. "Hey, Tommy, I'm getting a little tired," Newt said. "I kinda want to go back to our room."

"All right," Thomas agreed.