5. Under The Weather

FIVE

UNDER THE WEATHER

We had only opened the doors of my car for five seconds, but that was enough to make the dashboard look like we had tried to build a winter wonderland on it. The walk from Mrs. Candice’s apartment to my Corolla was only fifteen feet, but we were both panting as if we had just run ten miles.

I turned on the engine, and the warm air blowing out of the vents filled the interior with white noise, almost completely drowning out the deep male voice on the radio singing about dreaming of a white Christmas. I took off my beanie, and the snow that had accumulated on it fell into my lap—enough to form at least one snowball. As much as I wanted to complain, this wasn’t the time. I checked the road, and while it was still visible, it was easy to tell that this would change in a matter of minutes.

“Give me your address,” I said, turning to Jack.

He looked like a Yeti. His eyes were the only part of him not covered in snow. He shoveled some off his cheeks, revealing his red skin. He looked at the snow in his hands and then around the car, searching for a place to put it.

“Throw it on the mat. It doesn’t matter,” I said, but he had already opened his door. The wind blew the snow back in as he let go of it.

Jack snorted and pulled the door back shut. “Sorry. That was a terrible idea.” He leaned forward, now listening to me, and brushed more snow out of his hair onto the floor. “Today would have been a good day to wear a hat.” He shook his head to get the rest off, and somehow, he reminded me of a dog shaking its fur dry. It was damn cute.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Other than the fact that we forgot the cookies, yes. But we should go. I live at 124 Market Street.”

I entered it into the navigation system, buckled my seat belt, and as soon as Jack followed my lead, I took my foot off the brake.

For two whole Christmas carols, Jack watched the road as carefully as if he were driving. We just listened to the music and tried to concentrate so I wouldn’t make any mistakes because we had to make sure we didn’t get stuck in this weather.

“Is it always this bad here?”

“We get a lot of snow,” Jack replied, not taking his eyes off the road, “but not usually like this.” He glanced at me. “I’m sorry I persuaded you to drive me. You should’ve stayed put.”

“First, I offered it. Second, it’s good that we went together. Nobody should be alone in this. Besides, Mrs. Candice was a real hoot. I’m glad I met her.”

“Yeah, she’s fun. I didn’t expect her to out me like that, though. I hope that didn’t make you uncomfortable.”

“Why would it?”

Jack shrugged. His breathing got louder. “Not many people take that kind of information well. And it must have made you uncomfortable that she just assumed you were—how did she put it—playing for my team?” He laughed uncomfortably.

Could it be that he doesn’t know? Or was he trying not to assume anything?

“I’m surprised you told her about it.”

“I didn’t. She’s good at reading books and people.”

“She definitely is.”

Jack eyed me.

I smiled at him.

He stared at my lips for a moment before his eyes moved up to meet mine as he also gifted me a smile.

“Well, she got my taste in books right,” I said to show him where I stood on all of this. That must have been obvious enough for him to get the hint.

Jack gulped and looked back at the street. “That’s... good.”

The moment could have been sweet, romantic, and right out of one of Mrs. Candice’s books, had we not been reminded a few seconds later how stupid it is to not look at the road in a situation like ours.

With a loud rumble, the car lost its grip and juddered.

I tightened my grip on the wheel and tried to steer us back onto the pavement, but it was too late. We both held our breath as the car slid into the ditch. Fortunately, I was only going fifteen miles per hour, so we came to a stop after five seconds. My heart was pounding like crazy. “Fuck,” I yelled. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, but this is bad.”

The car was now leaning to the right. Luckily, it was the back wheels that had slid into the ditch, which should make it easier to get out somehow.

“What do we do now?” I asked.

“I don’t suppose you have any chains we can put around the tires?”

“Do I even need to answer this question?” My vision became blurry as I looked at the navigation system. It took me two tries to see that we were about a mile from Jack’s house. “Fuck, sorry. I should have been more careful.”

“Don’t beat yourself up. We can make it. What happens if you give it a little gas?”

I put my foot on the pedal and pushed, but it only made the car slide further into the ditch. I slammed on the brakes, and ten seconds later, we came to a stop.

Jack pulled out his phone. “Let me call Dany.”

“He didn’t come an hour ago when things were much better. Do you really think he can do anything for us now?”

“True.” He turned his head as if help would magically appear out of nowhere. “What if I go outside and push?”

The itch at the back of my neck flared up again. I didn’t want to admit it, but his suggestion was our best chance. “It’s probably better if we both push. I saw a video online where they suggest putting the seat belt around your chest?—”

Jack’s hand rushed to my shoulder as if he had just had a brainwave. “I saw that too! That’s not a bad idea. Good thinking.” He unbuckled and grabbed the door handle.

The itch on my neck got worse, and I had to blink twice to clear my blurry eyes, but I had to pull myself together. I reached for the handle as well.

We took a deep breath, nodded at each other to show that we were ready, and then opened the doors.

My door hardly moved even though I was leaning on it with all my weight. The wind was so strong that I could barely get it open enough to squeeze through. The snow was now like tiny, icy needles trying to pierce the small part of my cheeks not protected by my scarf. I squinted my eyes. The ground crunched under my boots, and all I could hear was the howling of the blizzard.

I rolled down the window to reach the steering wheel from the outside, just as I remembered from the video. I pulled on the seatbelt until it was long enough to wrap around my shoulder. “Please, let this work,” I muttered to myself as I buckled the belt into the door. I searched for Jack, who was doing the same on the other side. “Ready?” I called to him.

Even though his voice was faint, I could hear him yell, “Yes!”

“One, two, three,” I shouted, forcing my feet into the ground. The car lurched forward for a moment, but then the snow gave way. I slid to my knees, and if it hadn’t been for the seat belt, I would have hit the ground head-first.

My hands automatically gripped the door and pulled me back to my feet with all their might. Jack’s head was no longer sticking out from behind the car. “Jack?” I yelled. “Jack!”

His head popped back up. “I slipped. But let’s try it again.”

We made three more attempts, each of which ended with both of us slipping. Jack pointed into the car to signal that we should regroup for a moment.

I sat back in my seat, now covered in snow, pulled the door shut behind me, and rolled up the window.

My heart was racing. “This isn’t working.” My voice broke as I spoke. “What are we supposed to do now?” My eyes didn’t know where to focus. My vision was so blurred that I had to brace myself against the steering wheel. I tried to take a deep breath, but the air was so cold I couldn’t breathe. My gasp was futile. I was suffocating.

Jack’s hand on my cheek pulled me out of it. Even though it was red from the cold, it felt warm. “Noah,” he said softly, making me focus my eyes on him. “Breathe like this for a moment.” He cupped his hands over his mouth and nose.

I gasped again but followed his example. With my hands over my mouth and nose, I tried to breathe, and finally, some air found its way into my lungs.

“Keep breathing,” Jack said, doing it with me, his eyes locked on mine. “I’m here with you.”

I took another breath, deeper and easier than the last.

“You’re doing great.”

“Sorry,” I whispered.

“It’s okay.” Jack put his hand on my shoulder. “This is scary, but we will survive. I promise. I got you into this, and I will get you home.”

How could he be so calm at a time like this?

He looked through the windshield and pointed to the end of the road. I squinted my eyes to see through the big white wall in front of us, and after a second, I could make out the faint shape of a house.

“We’re not that far. Once we get there, the buildings should protect us a little more from the blizzard, and we should be able to make it to the McCormac’s house. It’s closer than mine, and we’ll be safe there.”

“You’re suggesting we walk ?” My head shook on its own as my whole body tried to fight the idea of going back out there.

“The blizzard will continue for at least another twenty-four hours if not more. We have no food, water, or blankets, and the engine will eventually die. As hard as it is, I don’t want to freeze to death. Let’s take our chances before conditions get even worse.”

I pulled my eyebrows together so hard that they cramped.

“And we can’t leave Maggie alone,” he added. “I know Seastone like the back of my hand. We can shorten our route if we ignore everything and walk through some backyards.”

I took a deep breath. I didn’t feel good about leaving the car, but I didn’t see any other solution. And he was right about Maggie. “Okay. I’m with you.” My voice was a little more stable when I said it, even though my whole body was shaking.

The Christmas music faded as I turned off the engine.

“We got this,” Jack said. It didn’t feel easy to believe him, but I didn’t have another choice.

I pushed the door against the wind and squeezed myself through the narrow gap. While Jack made his way to the front of the car, slipping again as he climbed out of the ditch, I locked it up.

The cold had enough practice now to find its way under my jacket, under my sweater, under my skin in seconds. I covered my mouth and nose with my scarf and pulled my beanie down over my eyes as far as I could without blocking my vision. The visibility shortened. Whereas a minute ago, I could see the faint outlines of buildings in the distance, now I couldn’t even see beyond Jack’s back.

“Let’s go,” he shouted so loudly that the muscles in his neck tightened, but the howling drowned it out so that all I could hear was a faint whisper.

I took six steps for what should have taken two to get to him. “I can’t see,” I yelled back.

“Take it.” He held out his hand toward me. “So we don’t lose each other.”

Without questioning his guidance, I did as he said. He wasn’t wearing gloves, unlike me, but his grip was firm and reassuring.

Things got easier from there. Even though the conditions seemed to get worse, the feeling that I wasn’t alone in this gave me the strength to push through.

We made our way down the road, slowly but steadily. Jack walked ahead of me, holding his free arm up to shield his face. I wrapped my fingers around his hand as tightly as I could, hoping to give him at least some of the protection the gloves provided. I don’t know how long it took us to reach the houses we had seen from afar. It felt like an eternity, though it was probably only fifteen minutes.

Once we were surrounded by buildings, it was easier to see. And it was reassuring that Jack hadn’t lied about taking the shortest route. We trudged through backyards. Some windows we passed were dark, while others had a warm, inviting orange glow behind them. We walked through doors in fences that looked locked, but Jack knew they were open. We made our way through a small grove behind someone’s house, eventually reaching a familiar-looking porch at the end of the relentless white void. The refuge we had longed for. We were there at last.

Maggie jumped up as I unlocked the door, squealing and wagging her tail. She had been right behind it, forcing me to stop to keep from falling over her until she moved to the side.

I stomped into the living room, snow falling from my clothes everywhere. The warm air inside felt like a sauna, probably because my bones were frozen. I shivered.

Jack closed the door behind him. His face and hands were as red as a traffic light, but he had a big smile on his face. It took me a second to figure out what exactly it was about almost freezing to death that made him smile, but then it hit me, too.

“We made it,” I said. “Like you promised.”

Jack’s smile grew brighter as he opened his arms wide and wrapped them around me. The fabrics of our jackets rustled against each other. I couldn’t get my arms around him as quickly as the embrace had ended, but that was okay. We were alive. That was all that mattered.

Maggie squeezed between us, whimpering as if to say she thought we had died in the blizzard.

I unzipped my jacket, took out Mrs Candice’s book, which was still tucked inside, and put it next to the landline. I took off my beanie and threw it on the rack to my left, and more snow fell on the floor. Only then did it occur to me that Jack had cleaned all this up this morning. “Oh, damn.” I looked at him, ready to be scolded, but was surprised to see him just standing there, not taking off anything.

“Get out of those clothes, or you’ll get sick,” I said.

His lips curled into a thin line. He glanced at Maggie to avoid my gaze.

“You’re not thinking about going back out there, are you?” That was the only way I could interpret his behavior. “No. Nu-uh. Not happening.” I shook my head from side to side. It was a miracle that we had even made it back. I couldn’t in good conscience let him leave. “You’re going to stay here until the storm passes. You’re going to change into fresh clothes, which I’m going to give you right now, and you’re going to eat whatever I cook as a thank you for bringing me home safely.”

Maggie put her head between his legs.

“See, she agrees with me,” I pointed at her, trying to keep my red fingers from shaking.

Jack raised his hands, palms facing me as he took half a step back as if he was afraid I was going to lunge at him. “Okay, okay. You convinced me.” He looked out through the window in the front door. “It’s probably not safe to go back out there.”

“It definitely isn’t. You don’t have a choice. Don’t even think about it. I’ll tie you to a chair for your own good if I have to.”

Jack bit his lip, and only then did I hear that my last sentence could be misinterpreted if one wanted to.

“It’s been a while since anyone’s done that,” Jack replied, unzipping his jacket.

“I didn’t mean it like that .”

“Neither did I.” He slipped his jacket off, hung it over the rack, and shook his head. “Sorry. Forget what I said. It’s a bizarre story.”

Seeing that my tirade had gotten through to him, I squatted down to untie my boots when he gave me a sideways glance. I chuckled and shook my head slightly. Of course, I was intrigued now.

“It’s not what you think,” he defended himself.

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You didn’t have to.” He squatted down as well, his head now at my level and only six inches away. As he untied his sneakers, his eyes kept meeting mine. “Okay, I’ll tell you so you don’t get the wrong idea.”

“Just for the record, I didn’t ask, but I’m willing to listen,” I defended myself with a chuckle. With the laces now undone, I let myself fall to the ground to pull the boots off my feet.

Jack stood up, kicked his right sneaker against the heel of his left, and leveraged his foot out to reveal socks with a corgi printed on them. “It was at a bachelor party. There was a stripper, and I don’t know why, but the guy decided I was his designated victim for the night.”

“A male stripper?” I liked where this was going.

“It was a gay wedding, so of course. Anyway, he sits me down on a chair in the center of attention and starts doing his little dance around me. Besides a jockstrap, he was only wearing a tie, which he eventually took off to cuff my hands behind my back to the chair before blindfolding me. I didn’t want to be a party pooper, so I went along with it. End of story.”

“Wait. He blindfolded you, and that’s the end of the story?”

“The end of what I’m willing to say, but before you ask, no, I didn’t sleep with him.” Jack blushed. He glanced at me, bit his lower lip, and faced the wall. “Maybe he just made me believe that the things he put in my mouth were something other than they were.”

My jaw dropped. I had thought Jack was the shy and sweet country boy, only to be confronted with this reality. Not that I minded. Not at all.

“I’m sorry to say, but that was even worse than what I had imagined,” I laughed, pulling off the second boot. “Or, well, not worse, but much more... sexual.”

Jack’s chin dropped to his chest. If he wasn’t already so red from the cold, his cheeks would probably be burning right now.

“Let’s just leave it at that, shall we?” I chuckled and pushed myself to my feet. “How about some fresh clothes?” I asked, nodding toward the stairs. I wanted to relieve him of the burden of his unplanned revelation, but I also couldn’t wait to change into some dry pants. Everything I was wearing was quite wet, thanks to all the snow that had melted in my car, soaked my clothes, refroze as we walked through the blizzard, and was now melting again.

I led him upstairs, and he followed me quietly, sucking on his lips. Out of the corners of my eyes, I saw him make several faces as if he was debating something in his head, but then he shook it one last time with a deep sigh, settling whatever was on his mind.

“Do you want to take a shower?” I asked as I searched my closet for sweatpants that were loose enough to fit him.

“Maybe in half an hour. We should get used to the temperature first, or we’d probably burn ourselves.”

I found the gray pants I was looking for and handed them to him. “Here you go.”

“Thank you.” He slipped out of his jeans without hesitation. My eyes were drawn to his dark blue designer boxers. They highlighted his butt and his package.

Heat rushed to my cheeks. I probably should’ve looked away, but this was like the continuation of his story. As if all the dirty things I had imagined yesterday were about to become reality. “You’re not shy, are you?”

“What?” He looked up, knitting his brows as he followed my gaze down to his bulge. “Oh God. Sorry. I didn’t think… yeah. I wasn’t thinking .” He quickly pulled up his sweatpants, but his bulge got caught in the waistband for a moment, revealing even more of what was hidden underneath. “I, uh?—”

“We’re just men here. Don’t worry.” I pulled off my shirt, revealing my snow-white chest. “See, nothing to be ashamed of.” I unbuttoned my pants and pushed them down. His eyes moved slowly with them and settled on my crotch.

Jack chuckled. “You’re not a shy one either, huh?”

“Let’s consider this a cosmic payment for what we’ve been through.” I turned to the recliner and picked up the black jogging pants I had worn this morning. I bent down and stepped into them.

His eyes still lingered on me, but when I turned my head toward him, they darted to the ceiling.

I guess I wasn’t the only one who was wondering where this was going.