Mist hangs lightly in the air, and ice gently blankets the sidewalks. The snowflakes dance in the cold air, the moon hanging in the sky like an ornament strung up on a tree.
After a week of scrolling the same 7 radio stations, you know every irritating quirk of every host and the popular songs feel like swallowing nails. The suspect they had been staking out had gone into hiding, and Olivia sighed, eyes fluttering shut for a moment as she exhaled what felt like the last of the patience she had for this whole week.
Olivia's head fell back against the headrest, eyes still shut tight against the cold, taking in a breath, silently reminding herself to remain calm- but God that awful music that Amanda incessantly insisted on playing throughout the entire night.
Fucking Christmas music. Her head fell to the left, eyes slowly opening to gaze at the petite woman sitting next to her. She watched, almost too intensely, as the cheerful blonde hummed along to Frosty the Snowman. The small smile painted on her face as she hummed to the song was almost enough to make Olivia forgive her for overplaying the song. Almost enough.
Olivia huffed, probably a little too aggressively, as she leant towards the radio, switching it off, and leaning back into her seat, resisting the urge to cross her arms.
"Hey!" Amanda's voice had a little whine to it that chipped at Olivia's patience even more, and she bit the inside of her cheek.
"Amanda, you've been playing that damn song the entire night. Give it a rest."
Amanda paused, and then sunk into her seat, seeming to deflate under the snap. "Grinch."
Olivia rolled her eyes briefly before allowing her tense shoulders to relax, reaching out to gently bump Amanda's shoulder with hers. "Sorry."
Amanda nods, gently nudging back, and Olivia chuckles softly.
"Alright, well, what's gotten you into the whole Christmas spirit thing? You hate Christmas."
"Hated."
"What?"
Amanda grinned, putting up a finger, " Hated," She replied with a smirk, "Past tense."
Again, those dark brown eyes rolled with playful annoyance and Amanda couldn't help the chuckle that escaped her, "Oh come on. Don't tell me that since having Noah you haven't started to like Christmas? And the whole? Festive thing?"
Amanda gestured to the lights adorning most of the stores around them, the scuffed up midnight blue Honda Accord 2005 with a deflating back tire that sat nearby with reindeer horns, a Rudolph nose affixed to it, two pinpricks of white piercing out from the shroud of darkness beneath the vehicle, a hand with an old, ratty, baby blue glove gripping the edge of a manhole beside the car, nails ragged and dirty, a bit like Amanda's nails, to be honest, a-
"Amanda?"
Amanda jolts, turning back to Olivia and blinking. "Yea?"
Olivia raised her brows, chuckled.
"Have you even been listening?"
Amanda shook her head, grinning apologetically, "Sorry I- guess I just got distracted. What is it?"
Olivia laughed softly, eyes meeting Amanda's ever-bluer ones, "I said, yes, I have. But this-" Olivia waves her hand to the radio, "This is obsessive."
Amanda rolled her eyes, laughing, "But it's Jesse's favorite Christmas song. I have to like it."
Olivia couldn't help a smile, reaching out with a mock noise of disgust and taking Amanda's cold, approximately 12° hand into her own, much warmer, gloved, 52° hand, "And I bet she sounds just like her Mama, but that doesn't mean I wanna hear it 500 times in a row.."
Amanda snickered, muttering a shut up and flicking the back of Olivia's hand, "She does, as a matter of fact, and probably better than I do." She chuckled, softening a little at the fond thought of Jessie running around the house with Frannie nipping at her heels, giggling and pressing the button on her stuffed Frosty's foot to make him sing over and over again.
The double AA Duracell batteries would probably need to be replaced by the end of the week.
Olivia chuckled, leaning over to drag Amanda in for a quick kiss, tugged at Amanda's hand, 'I highly doubt that.'
Olivia pulls back with a reluctant sigh, a grin teasing her lips.
"And, if you want to, you can play Frosty one more time."
Amanda settled back into her seat, shrugging, "Y'know, how about we play Noah's favorite
Christmas song?"
Olivia laughed, nodding. "Sure, it'll be payback."
As she leaned over to turn the radio back on, Amanda blinked a little in sudden realization at the other woman's old, faded, baby blue glove.
