I would choose you

Snowbound 2

Later that night, long after the others had drifted back to their rooms, I stayed behind with Nicole. We sat in silence for a while, both of us half-curled on the dormitory couch, sipping what was left of the lukewarm tea. Outside the window, the wind had started again, brushing snow against the glass in soft bursts like someone trying to get in.

“You know,” Nicole said, her voice hushed, “I’ve never spent a Christmas away from home before.”

I turned to her. She was staring straight ahead, her hands wrapped around her cup like it was something fragile.

“Me neither,” I said. “Not even once.”

She smiled faintly. “My mother would be horrified if she knew I was spending it without proper linens and a nutcracker centerpiece.”

I laughed. “My mom would be more worried I’m cold. She still sends me socks in the mail.”

Nicole looked at me, her expression soft. “I’m glad I’m here with you, though. In some way, it feels like freedom”

The words settled over me like a blanket, warm and heavy and unexpected. I felt myself blush, and turned back to the window to hide it.

“I’m glad, too,” I whispered.

The hallway lights flickered once, and the heater gave its usual end-of-day rattle. For a moment, I imagined what it might have been like if everything had gone to plan - trains running, bags packed, our little friend group scattering like dandelion seeds to cities and villages and foreign slopes. But then the image faded, and I was left with this: the quiet of the dorm, the snow outside, and the girl beside me whose voice I was starting to hear even when she wasn’t speaking.