While the snow outside kept whishing around, Jack carried Summer inside her house, holding her in his arms like she weighed the same amount as a single snowflake. She was completely frozen in shock, because somehow, it now all made sense.
But she couldn't believe it. How stupid had she been? The signs had been clear. The hair, the eyes, the bloody cane. Also, the constant chill she felt whenever he was near her. She had mistaken it for chemistry, but now she knew it was...
Actually, she had no idea what it was. What he was. And now, as Jack carefully put her down on her living room couch, there was really only one thing she could think of.
"I had sex with you."
Jack looked perplexed at her for a moment, clearly not expecting those to be her first words. After a short moment, he awkwardly cleared his throat. "Yes, you did."
Summer couldn't believe it. It was just so... wrong. "I had sex with Jack... Frost."
Jack pursed his lips. "That would be correct."
"I gave... Jack Frost... a blowjob."
"That would also be correct."
"Oh, my God..." Summer's head was spinning so fast, it felt like she was going to pass out. She just... she couldn't believe it. It just couldn't be true. "I... you... we..."
"Summer," Jack said after a moment of listening to her hopelessly trying to piece together a sentence. He crouched down in front of her and looked into her eyes. "I know it's hard to take in, it's okay, but I'm still the same. I'm still Jack."
Looking aside from the dirty pun that her mind unconsciously noted, Summer disagreed with his last statement. "The hell you are! You're... you're a Christmas spirit for God's sake!"
He sighed and looked down. "Technically I'm a spirit of winter, but that doesn't change a thing. I'm still the same man."
"The hell, you, are," Summer said again, hardly believing she was having this conversation with... Jack Frost. "You're... you're... you're... Oh God, I think I'm going to throw up."
"Just breathe, Summer," Jack told her, his voice going flat. "It's not that hard to comprehend. Stranger things has happened. Just look at Trump; how did that happen?"
"Stop it," She said and looked at him, her body beginning to shake. Was it possible to get sick from getting information you couldn't absorb? "Don't fucking joke right now. I... are you even real? I mean, really?"
"Of course I'm real," He drawled and rolled his eyes. "How the-fuck-else do you explain every time I fucked you and thrust so deep inside you, you—"
"Alright-alright, enough, stupid question," She said and held up her hand. She took a deep breath and now tried to bring everything into perspective.
Jack was Jack Frost. He was a spirit of winter. He was... here, with her. Why?
And then it hit her like a train wreck.
"It wasn't a coincidence you walked into my coffee shop that day, was it?" She whispered, and even before she had finished speaking, she saw how Jack's eyes flickered. She got her answer just then. "It wasn't."
"No... it wasn't." He silently replied, lowering his head. "I chose you."
"Why?" She whispered. She felt like she was close to crying. Had all of it been an illusion? Some scam he had made because... why?
He pressed his lips tightly together. "I... I can't say."
"What do you mean you can't say?!" Summer now raged. Fury flashed through her and made her nostrils flare. If he truly had fooled her, she wanted to know the truth. "Either you start explaining all of this right now or I'm not talking to you ever again!"
"Summer," He pleaded. "Summer, I can't. I don't have permission to tell you. I've never told anyone who I truly am. I don't know what to do here!"
"You explain yourself!" She shouted. "Explain or keep your mouth shut forever, goddamn! I'm tired of this, Jack. Give me answers or vaporize, I'm sure you can, if we go by how you just materialized below me outside. Why did you do that, anyway?"
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Frustratedly, he stood up and started pacing the floor. "I didn't want you to fall and get hurt."
She snorted loudly. "Some double standards you have there. So everyone else can fall and slip on the ice you make—even die—but I'm not allowed to do the same?"
"Damn it, Summer!" He yelled and wheeled around to her. "Don't you fucking get why this is deep shit?! It's because I tried to save you. I could save you, but I couldn't use my powers. He said it would only make things worse, he warned me—"
"Who's he?" Summer suspiciously said and stood up. "Your spirit boss or something? For Christ's sake, just spit it out!"
Jack gritted his teeth and looked hard at her. "I can't. I just can't. I took a Christmas oath."
"A Christmas oath," Summer repeated and felt the urge to laugh. This whole thing was just so ridiculous, she couldn't believe the conversation she was having. "Well God forbid you break a bloody Christmas oath. If you're not going to speak, then get out of my house before I start charging you rent. I don't want to hear another word from you. I'm sure you're busy anyway, that's why you ended things with me truly, wasn't it? You were too busy spreading lethal ice on the roads and the pavements to get some booty from the naïve, broken, easy woman who—"
"Stop," Jack snarled. He ground his molars, just as the air in the room got about ten degrees chillier. Summer could see her own breath, just as she could see Jack's leave his nostrils in hard, angry pants. "I want you to think very hard about each moment we spent together and now try and put some perspective into every little thing I ever told you. Nothing was ever random, Summer—nothing. Except for one thing." He then caught her off-guard and leaned down in one movement and pressed his lips against hers. Summer immediately froze up and couldn't breathe. His lips molded themselves passionately against hers for three seconds, but then they were gone again. Jack pulled away just as quickly as he came and looked into her eyes. "Goodnight, Summer."
And then he went around her, walked outside and shut her front door firmly behind him.
Summer was still frozen. Even though he told her to think about their entire time together, there was just one thing she could think about.
And that was how much warmth his mouth had brought to her soul in that very moment.
• • •
Just ate about 80% of the cookies from yesterday in one sitting.
I regret nothing.