A/n: No copyright infringement intended.

Michael didn't realize he loved Amanda so much. He discovered it when he found her crying on the tennis court, early Monday morning. Sure they had arguments before and he heard her wail – but this time the tears from her cries had weight, therefore making them more genuine. He wasn't sure what transpired to make her break into such sorrowful sobs, but he knew that if need be, he would kill the person who caused those tears.

"What's wrong?" He asked. He held her and she cried into his chest. Yes he had just got that suit and shirt dry cleaned, and yes he had a meeting with Solomon in about an hour, and yes her snot and mucus were rather disgusting, but he just couldn't bear the thought that Amanda was in any sort of pain.

"I – I…" She was unable to form words and she mumbled incoherent things into his shirt.

"It's okay. I'll take care of whatever it is."

"No…you don't understand."

"Should I kill whoever it was –"

"Michael, please." She sniffled and pushed him away a bit. "You promised no more of that."

"Well what is it?" He asked impatiently. His eyes were sincere and honest. Amanda rubbed away tears and smiled weakly. "Well?" He asked again.

"I – I miss Yankton." She admitted. When she said that, her face was colored a bright red and Michael was simply taken aback by her beauty then, and also his utter confusion.

"You miss…a place – we hated?" He asked matter of factly.

"Well – it's just visiting with the kids and the holidays...it just reminded me of how we use to be." Amanda looked to the ground and twiddled her thumbs. Was this women even his wife?

"Amanda we use to fight about money all the time."

"Yes, but that was it. We were other people besides the money. I'm not saying I'm unhappy with the money, that's not what I'm getting at, but I miss how we use to be!" Tears welled in her eyes again. "How you and I use to be."

Michael sighed deeply and looked at this watch. "Can this wait until this evening? I have to meet –"

"Its fine, Michael. I shouldn't have said anything." Amanda stomped off the tennis court and Michael watched as she headed back towards the house. He sighed again and kicked off to the side, a tennis ball that was near his feet. He watched it as it rolled away, bringing to him faint memories of his days of young. A time when he bloomed on every crime scene, but also a time when his heart had been warmed by one woman. The ball rolled and rolled and –

The snowball hit her ankle. She bent down, picking it up. She perfected the shape of the ball of snow and threw it as hard as possible, knocking off the head of his snowman. Michael Townley was shocked that his latest girlfriend had such an arm on her.

"I'm gonna get you for that!" He shouted and took heavy crunches of the snow in his boots as he ran to her. Amanda squealed and tried her best to flee from him, but the snow was simply too much. He grabbed her around the waist and spun her around. His arms were firm and strong and she couldn't help but to laugh. The two fell into the snow and laid side by side.

"You got me." She told him with a smile.

"I told you I would." Michael smiled back to her and the two held each other's gloved hands. It always snowed heavily in that place, North Yankton. However, despite the cold and despite the snow, the heart of Michael Townley always burned an incredible heat when beside the woman of his dreams. He couldn't feel the cold. He couldn't feel anything but joy.

"I want to leave here someday Michael." She said to him.

"Yeah? Why's that?"

"I want to go somewhere where you and the snow don't blend for a change. You're so pale!" Amanda giggled and Michael crossed his arms.

"I'm not that pale…"

"Honey you've been looking very pale lately…are you eating enough?"

"Of course." His eyes looked away from hers. He could never admit that he had lost his appetite with the more crimes he committed. Though he was a muscular guy, he was a little on the thinner side for that scale. At the rate he was going he'd be as slender as Trevor, which wasn't a compliment.

"Michael…" Amanda began. She moved closer to him, sitting in the snow with no regard for the cold. Her nose and ears were bright red and even though he knew she would probably catch a bad cold from being out there with him, he wanted to be selfish and keep her by his side always. "Please, take care of yourself." She asked.

"I am." He told her.

"Okay. Good. If anything was to happen to you I don't know what I would do."

"Why do you say that?"

"Michael…I worry about you. Especially when you vanish with Trevor. I wonder if you'll come back a lot of the times."

"Hey. Don't ever worry about that. I'll always come back to you."

"You mean it?" She asked.

"Yeah. I mean it." Michael sat up and faced Amanda. The two sat face to face and he took her gloved hands in his own. "Let's get married Amanda. This way I can come back to you, every time. Forever."

Amanda's eyes welled with tears of joy and she threw herself into Michael's arms, embracing him. They fell back into the white blanket of snow and she laid on top of him, staring into his warm eyes. "Every time?" She asked.

"Every time."

"Forever?"

"Forever and a day."

"I love you Michael." Amanda smiled as tears from her eyes fell on to the face of her love. She kissed Michael ever so carefully and in snow they agreed to be together for the rest of their lives.

Michael followed Amanda into the house and stood behind her as she poured orange juice from the refrigerator. When she turned around, she nearly jumped, shocked, that he was there. "Michael." She held her free hand over her heart and placed the glass of orange juice down on the counter. "Yes?" She asked, her voice still a bit shaken.

Michael looked at her, carefully. Her dark hair and those same warm eyes that were always filled with joy. Her cheeks, rosy, like that day he asked her to be his. His heart skipped a beat for a moment. Something it hadn't done for a long time. He walked up to Amanda and pulled her into a deep and loving embrace. "I miss how we use to be too. But it's okay, because I love you now more than I thought I ever could."

"Michael." She looked into his eyes, confused but a little happy.

"Wait for me. Always."

"Of course."

"You believe I'll come back, right?"

"Yes. Every single time. Forever." The De Santa couple kissed each other sweetly in the kitchen of their overpriced home. They had come from snow balls and blizzards to a place warm and beautiful; where Michael didn't blend into the snow and where their hearts and love was again, warmer than the weather.

A/n: Hope this warmed your hearts. Happy New Year.