This is Better (human!Winterwatcher)

three (april sophomore year): in which moon is cold

It's freezing. Moon is royally pissed, because it's April and she shouldn't be able to see her breath and she's been waiting here for ten minutes already. She can't go inside, because she doesn't want to be gone when her friends arrive. Kinkajou won't be coming, but the others should be here already.

Moon shivers, drawing her inadequate jacket tighter around herself. She sits up straighter at the crunch of frost (frost!) around the corner of the building to her left.

It's Winter, who leans against the wall. He rubs his eyes and rakes his hand through his hair in a way Moon finds far too distracting. Which is distinctly unfair.

"So no one else is here yet." Winter rolls his eyes, and Moon can almost feel the annoyance dripping from his voice. He's been miserable and prickly ever since the holiday break. She has a few guesses why.

"Nope. Kinkajou isn't coming." 

"Of course. And now we have to wait in the cold."

"Yeah." Moon tucks her knees to her chest, wishing she'd brought her scarf.

"Wait." Winter pulls out his phone, then scowls. "Qibli won't be here for ten more minutes." He looks up. "Do you want to get something hot to drink?"

Moon does very much want to get something hot to drink. "Umber might come before that. We should wait for him."

"I doubt that." He shrugs. "But I guess we can stay here."

"What were you doing?"

"What?"

"What kept you?"

"Oh. I was finishing a drawing. I couldn't get it right." Winter takes a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and tosses it to Moon. She opens it, and Winter is right- the drawing is a bit of a smudged mess, cupped hands filled with a lake of stars.

"Are you going to re-do it?"

"No."

"But it's such a cool concept."

"It didn't work."

Moon chews on her lip and refolds the paper, tucking it into her pocket. She likes the design. Maybe she'll do something with it. If she could get her hands on a scanner, she could edit the sketch digitally.

But who is she fooling? Moon has five of these buried in the papers on her desk now, a product of Winter's inability to appreciate his own work and her inability to stop thinking about him. It isn't that there's anything bad about Winter- Moon figured out his morals a long time ago. It's that she's pretty sure he doesn't think much of her, that his parents disapprove of outsiders and that means they would never let their only son date her. She sighs, a long rattling sigh.

"Are you alright?" Winter asks, and she realizes she's gotten lost in her thoughts. Which happens a lot. 

"It's just cold."

"Oh."

And before she realizes what's happening, Winter levers himself off the wall and settles next to her. He waits a few seconds, and Moon holds her breath until he rests his head on her shoulder and drapes an arm around her.

"Better?" Moon isn't used to anyone speaking so close to her ear, and she almost jumps before leaning back against Winter's side.

She does feel warmer, but she isn't really sure what Winter's doing.

"Are...are you drunk?" As far as Moon knows, Winter doesn't drink, but she spent sixth period today overhearing her classmates' loud conversation about the benefits of various types of alcohol, and Winter is certainly acting out of character.

"Of course not. I'm just tired." Winter starts to sit up, and Moon is surprised by how much she hopes he stays. Perhaps, she thinks, she has been falling in love with this mess of a boy for months now. "Why?"

"Nothing. Sorry. But. Yes, better. Thank you." It's a mess of a response, but Winter doesn't seem to care. Instead, he sighs, an unmistakable sigh of contentment.

Moon can feel him relax, and it makes her smile, so she takes his hand and lets her shoulders drop.

"Your hand is freezing," Winter says.

And they wait in silence, not moving. Moon can still see her breath, but she isn't cold anymore. After a few minutes, she sets her head against Winter's.

She tucks her feet up beside her, then sets them back to the ground a few seconds later. The trees rustle above them, and Winter mutters something inaudible. Moon doesn't let herself look at him.