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Our cheeks are nice and rosy,
As much fun as the Holidays were, Bethany always knew that they came with their own little stresses. Nothing so magical came without some stress, and her stress around the holidays had everything to do with her presentation on the last day of school for the semester.
It wasn't that she wasn't prepared (she had no choice but to be -- her anxiety made her prepare morning, noon and night), but she did not want to do it. Being in front of all those people who were doing nothing but watching her was a recipe for disaster in her mind.
No matter how many times her mother, her friends, or her boyfriend Whit tried to ease her tension -- it only came back tenfold.
There she sat, on the night before the big day, perched on her window seat and watched big, fluffy flakes cover Kansas City. When she was younger, she'd always dream of snow days spent in pajamas while watching TV. Bethany knew better than to wish for a snow day in college, so she didn't want to hold her breath.
"Hey, Bethany." Whit greeted as he walked in the house, taking off his coat and boots after shutting the door behind him.
Their furry little gray cat meowed happily at his arrival, but his girlfriend seemed to be in a trance while looking out the window.
He walked towards her and sat beside her, reaching out to take her hand in his. "It's coming down, isn't it?"
"It never goes up." Bethany replied without skipping a beat.
Even though she was feeling low, there was always that wit that she had and it had a habit of always shining through. Whit laughed and leaned against the window. He'd seen snow countless times before, but he always loved looking at Bethany; it always felt like he was seeing her for the first time.
Whit was a bit of a romantic around the holidays (well, he fancied himself a romantic all of the time, but there was something about the chill in the air around December that heightened it).
"Cute."
"The truth isn't cute. It's the truth."
Alright, Whit decided, she really was in a funk. "Have you eaten today?"
Bethany shrugged.
"I haven't been hungry."
Whit got up off of the seat and started walking towards the kitchen. "You shouldn't starve yourself. I know you're scared and you're stressed, but not eating will only hurt you."
