I thought for a moment and added, “It’s annoying.”
Maybe it was retirement, or maybe the climate here was just better for them, but my parents both looked much healthier. They wouldn’t have even wanted to go back if it weren’t for finalizing the sale of our old house.
“I can handle it myself,” I said, looking over some documents. “I can do it.”
My parents exchanged a look. “No, we don’t feel right about it. Besides, the Hayes family invited us for a holiday get–together. We can go to that, then fly back here for New Year’s Eve. The timing is perfect.”
It had been nearly six months since I’d last seen Frank. The person I once thought I couldn’t live without was, it turned out, not so
indispensable after all.
“Hannah, you’re here! You look more beautiful than ever!” Frank’s mom was as warm as always, grabbing my hand the moment I walked in. “Look at this confidence! It’s so wonderful to see you so radiant…”
Frank was uncharacteristically reserved. He stood behind her in a white t–shirt, a nervous smile on his face. “Hello, Uncle. Hello, Auntie… Hannah, you’ve lost weight. Have you been working too hard?”
His eyes were filled with an undisguised worry. My reflection in them was still bright and confident.
I gave him a polite but distant smile and looked down. “It’s fine. Just watching my weight.”
After a hearty meal, the emotions started to flow. Frank’s mom hugged mine, tears in her eyes. “Mary, you know I truly love Hannah. I think of her as my own daughter,” she said, her voice thick. “That Angela… she was scheming against Frank from the very beginn-
ing.”
“In college, Frank was young and foolish, had a little crush on her. So she played hard to get, moved abroad, thinking he would cha- se her. But he didn’t. He started working with Hannah right after graduation. So she got jealous and engineered a ‘reunion‘…”
“What’s that saying? The most skilled hunter often appears as the prey.” She laughed twice. “And this idiot son of mine fell for it.”
“But the good thing is, he realized his mistake. As soon as you all left, when he couldn’t see Hannah anymore, that fool drank hims-
elf into the hospital with a bleeding stomach, calling her name the whole time…”
“Really, it’s not too late. Neither of them is married. There’s still a chance.” She waved her hand, and Frank immediately stood befo- re me. “Let Frank apologize to Hannah, right here in front of us. He can kneel, he can kowtow, whatever it takes…”
Chapter 2
04:40
I looked up at Frank. He was still handsome, but he looked worn, older. His eyes were red. “Hannah, I didn’t know how to cherish
you. The one I’ve always loved is…”
“Auntie, I have a boyfriend.”
I pulled my gaze away from Frank and smiled at his mother. “He has a wonderful personality, and he’s amazing to me. I’ll be sure to bring him to meet you all next time I have the chance.”
The smile on his mother’s face froze. She looked at Frank with a pained expression.
Frank looked like he was about to crumble. “Impossible!”
“Didn’t we say we were going to get married?”
“Have you forgotten? We were childhood sweethearts! We played house as kids, you were the mommy and I was the daddy… We
said we’d get married when we grew up…”
His composure shattered. His voice was choked with emotion. “We were together, for almost a year. We were happy… We were
almost married, weren’t we?”
“You’re just saying this to hurt me, like last time, right?”
My dad slammed his hand on the table. “Are you saying my daughter is a liar? That our whole family is lying to you? Leo is a wonde- rful young man. He’s very respectful to us. And while Hannah has only just agreed to date him, we all believe they could go all the
way…”
Afraid he would get too worked up, I rushed to his side, gently rubbing his chest. “Frank, let’s not bring up the childhood betrothal anymore. It was just a joke the adults made. It doesn’t count. You said so yourself, remember?”
The evening ended on a sour note.
As we left, heavy snowflakes began to fall. Just as i got into the car, I saw Frank, a lone, thin figure in the cold, his eyes red as he
looked at me.
“It was just a fling. I lost my mind for a moment. It wasn’t until I lost you that I realized how precious the things I took for granted
really were.”
“Please, give me one more chance.” His voice was hoarse, trembling. “I’m begging you.”
Before I could speak, a figure in the distance caught my eye.
Under a streetlight, a tall man stood, his hair already covered in a blanket of white snow.
“Leo,” I whispered in disbelief.
The man’s face lit up as he turned. His nose was red from the cold. He pulled a bouquet of flowers from his coat and strode toward me. “Didn’t you say you should watch the first snow with the person you love most?”
My heart ached for him. He had been working late just last night, yet he had flown all this way just because of a casual remark I’d
made.
Leo smoothed the worry from my brow. “So, here I am.” He then bent down to my parents. “Uncle, Auntie, I haven’t been drinking. I
can drive.”
The scene was so warm, so perfect, that we all forgot Frank was still standing there. He watched, numb, as Leo and I embraced.
Finally, he whispered, “I’m sorry.”
His voice was very quiet. Maybe he thought I didn’t hear.
But in my heart, I silently said, it’s okay.
Not for myself, but for the Frank who once was–the warm, wonderful boy who had put me first.
“Thank you, Mr. Driver,” I said, preparing to walk with Leo to our hotel. I looked at Frank, who looked so broken he might shatter.” Well then, Frank. Goodbye.”
I turned and buried myself in Leo’s arms. As we walked away, I saw out of the corner of my eye Frank collapse to his knees in the
snow.
But that had nothing to do with us anymore.
Leo held me tight, his chin resting on the top of my head. He murmured, his voice deep and full of emotion, “To share the first snow of a lifetime is to be together until our hair turns white.”
He leaned down and gently kissed my forehead.
Standing there, wrapped in happiness, I thought to myself that the first step is learning to cherish what you have.
