Serena stared out the window in her office, watching the falling snowflakes. It was only the beginning of December, but the lumiose streets were already coated with white, glistening snow. Serena smiled, thinking about how much she enjoyed the city in the wintertime.
All at once, her thoughts were interrupted by laughter coming from the hall.
There goes Dawnie again, she thought.
Sure enough, when Serena looked out her door and into the hall, she saw dawn and Lucas. The two had been together for several months now, and Serena could never seem to avoid seeing them with their arms around each other, laughing or sharing a kiss.
Serena was happy for her co-worker, but every time she saw them it reminded her that she didn't have a special someone in her life.
At that moment, Dawn drifted into Serena's office. She was a bit short and a blue haired woman with a dazzling smile, and she seemed to light up whatever room she came into. As she walked up to Serena, she held out her left hand. On her finger was a sparkling diamond ring.
"Serena darling! I have to tell you the news! Lucas and I are engaged!" she exclaimed. "He proposed to me last night."
"That's wonderful!" Serena replied, trying to match Dawn enthusiasm. "Congratulations."
"Thank you! I feel like I'm floating right now," she gushed. "He proposed at the perfect time too, just at the start of the Christmas season."
Serena smiled. "You're a very lucky woman. I wish you two the best."
Dawn smiled back. "Thanks darling. Now, I have to get back to work. Have a fabulous day!" Then she turned and left the room.
Serena turned back to the window. Dawn is so lucky, she thought. I would love for someone to propose to me during the Christmas season.
She sighed. She didn't want to be resentful of dawn, but she couldn't help it.
Serena had finished her work for the day, she put on her coat and gathered her belongings. She tucked her long, honey-blond hair into a hat just before she walked out into the cold. As she strolled down the street, light snowflakes began to fall. On her way home, Serena saw several couples walking hand in hand. She averted her eyes and quickened her pace. Seeing couples made her feel sad,
wishing that she had someone by her side.
At last Serena made her way home, and she flopped down on the couch. She turned on the TV and finally settled on a rerun of one of her favorite shows. 'The Ellen show'
After a while, some commercials came on, and one was showing a couple. They were standing in a living room full of Christmas decorations, and the man was giving a smiling woman a diamond bracelet. The woman threw her arms around the man, and they kissed. Serena sighed and stared at the floor. I would give anything to be the woman in that commercial, she thought as a tear rolled down her face.
If only I had somebody here with me at Christmas time. So She turned off the TV and crawled into her bed, hugging her pillow close to her.
From where she was laying, she could see the night sky out her window. She closed her eyes and lay still. "All I want for Christmas is love," she whispered in the darkness. "That's my only wish this year."
The next morning, Serena got ready for work and began the walk to her building. The wind was blowing and icy snowflakes stung Serena's cheeks. Another gust of wind blew, and before she knew what had happened, her feet flew out from under her and she landed hard on the ground, her hat slipping down over her eyes. Before she could move, she felt someone grab her arm and gently pull her up.
"Are you alright?" a voice asked. "I guess you didn't see that patch of ice."
Serena adjusted her hat and turned around. Standing before her was a young, raven haired guy. He was very cute, and Serena could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks.
"I'm alright," she finally managed to say. "Thank you for helping me up."
"Not a problem," the guy replied. He smiled and asked, "What's your name?"
"Serena ," she replied.
"Well Serena, how about I walk you to wherever you're going?" he offered, holding out his arm.
Although a bit taken aback, Serena put her arm in his. "Thank you again for doing this. You're very kind. But are you sure, I'm not troubling you?"
"Not at all. I would never mind escorting such a beautiful woman."
Her heart skipped a beat, and she felt herself blushing again.
The guy continued. "You have to watch out for that ice anyway. It gets covered in snow and you can't see it."
She nodded. "I'll have to watch my step more carefully from now on."
By then, they had arrived at her workplace. "I'm right here," Serena said, gesturing to the building. "Thanks for walking with me."
"My pleasure. Just be careful on your way home." He smiled and turned to leave.
"Wait!" Serena called out. "Who are you? I never got your name."
"Me? I'm your Christmas angel," he replied, a grin on his face.
Before Serena could say anything, he disappeared into the crowd.
She walked up to her office, thinking of the cute stranger. She realized it was the first time in months that someone had touched her. She heard laughing in the hallway and saw dawn and Lucas walk by. She shut her door and got to work, trying not to think about the cute stranger that had helped her.
Later that day, Serena was interrupted by a knock on her door. Dawn stuck her head in the room, flashing a bright smile. "Serena darling, there's a delivery for you!" she chirped. She stepped into the room, holding a bouquet of flowers.
"That's for me?" Serena asked, astonished.
Dawn nodded. "Looks like you've got an admirer." She handed Serena the bouquet and walked out of the room. Serena stared at the six white roses in her hand. There was a card stuck in the middle of them. She pulled it out, and the card read,
"to the one and only beautiful Serena,
I was wondering if you would care to join me at Starbucks down the block when you get off work.
– Your Christmas Angel."
As she read, her heart started to beat the drums, and she wondered, is this really from that stranger who helped me?
"That's impossible," she whispered aloud. "He doesn't even know me."
After thinking about it for a few minutes, she decided she couldn't pass up the opportunity. She was curious.
When Serena got off work, she looked at her watch. The stranger hadn't told her a specific time, but she headed to Starbucks down the street. She stepped inside and shook the snow from her hair. Looking around, she spotted the cute stranger sitting in a booth. He smiled and waved her over. Serena walked over and sat across from him.
"Thank you for the flowers. That was sweet of you," she told him.
"I'm glad you could come," he replied.
Serena nodded, and then frowned, a puzzled expression on her face. "Who are you? And what's your name? Why did you ask me to come here when you don't even know me? How come -"
"Whoa!" he laughed. "Give a guy a chance to explain."
Serena was silent.
"I caught sight of you on my way to work this morning, and I thought you were beautiful. When you slipped and fell, that gave me a chance to talk to you. After I did, I wanted to get to know you better," he explained, smiling.
Serena couldn't help but blush. Was this adorable stranger really interested in her? She looked up at him. "How did you know that I wasn't already in a relationship with someone?"
Her question seemed to catch him off guard.
"Well," he began, "I didn't see a ring on your finger, and I decided that if you were taken, you wouldn't have shown up."
Serena nodded. His explanation made sense, but she still thought it was weird that he had taken so much interest in her.
"What's your name?" she asked.
"Ash, ash ketchum." Then he grinned. "Want to go ice skating?"
Serena was surprised by his action, but she decided she might as well have fun. "Okay," she replied, smiling. She got up and put her scarf and her hat back on, and ash followed her out. He surprised her by placing his arm around her shoulders as they walked. Serena felt chills run up and down her body as she felt his touch.
Ash smiled at her. "So, what are your plans for Christmas?"
"Um, I'm not sure yet," Serena lied. She didn't want to tell him she would be by herself.
"I don't know what I'm doing either," ash said. "My brother might come to visit me if he can get off work."
"That sounds nice. What about the rest of your family?"
"My sister just got married, so she'll be with her husband. My mom and dad live all the way in kanto, so it's hard for them to come for Christmas. What about your family?"
Serena looked at the ground. "I don't really want to talk about it."
"Oh," ash replied. He was silent for a minute, and then they arrived at the pond. Serena followed ash over to the rental building to get skates. When they sat down to put them on, ash turned to her and smiled sheepishly. "I'm not too good at this," he confessed.
Serena laughed. "Then why did you bring me?"
Ash shrugged. "It's fun, even if you're falling down the whole time." He got up and took Serena's hand. They stepped onto the ice and slowly began to skate around the pond. Serena smiled, still not believing what was happening. She used to be jealous of all the other couples skating together, but now she had someone by her side.
They circled the pond a few times, and then ash skated over to the edge.
"I'm going to take a break. This is hard work for me."
Serena laughed. "Poor thing. I'm going to go for a few more laps." She turned and began to glide across the ice. She drifted toward the middle, and then picked up speed. Lifting her arms over her head, she went into a spin. It was one of her favorite things to do. Then she gracefully lifted one leg into the air, gliding with perfect form. After a few more spins and weaving some figure eights into the ice, she skated back to the edge of the pond where ash was standing, staring at her.
"I didn't know you could do that!" he exclaimed as she got closer. "That's amazing!"
Serena smiled and took his arm, pulling him back onto the ice. "It's not a big deal."
"Yes it is. You should enter a competition or something."
Serena shook her head. "I'd be too scared."
"You're crazy. I think you'd be great."
"Thanks," Serena replied, blushing. They skated for a while, and then decided that they were finished for the day. As they turned in their skates, Serena shivered.
"Cold?" Ash asked.
"Yeah, a little."
"A little? I can see you shivering." He pulled her over to him and wrapped his arms around her, trying to warm her up.
Serena smiled. It felt so good to be held. She rested her head on his chest, not wanting him to let go. Ash rubbed her back, and then slowly took his arms from around her. "Better?"
"Yes."
He smiled. "How about I take you back to Starbucks for some hot cocoa?"
"That would be great."
Serena walked back with him, and when they got there, ash opened the door for her and took her coat. They ordered some hot chocolate, and then sat in the booth where they were before.
Serena studied ash's face, still unsure of what his intentions were.
"Why are you doing all this?" she asked suddenly.
Ash smiled. "You really can't believe that I saw a cute girl and wanted to get to know her better? You certainly are suspicious."
Serena took a sip of her hot chocolate and nodded. "I guess I should believe you."
She sat with ash for another half hour. She was glad to have the company. When it was time for her to leave, ash offered to walk her home. As they approached her apartment, she thanked him for sending the flowers and taking her out.
"It's definitely the most spontaneous date I've ever been on," Serena joked, "but it was fun."
"I'm glad you thought so. Do you think you could consider going out with me again?" Ash asked.
"I think I could do that," Serena replied, smiling.
"Alright then. I'll see you soon." Before he turned to leave, ash bent down and gently kissed her hand. "Bye Serena ."
After he had gone, Serena went into her apartment and flopped down on her couch. She smiled, thinking about ash. She couldn't believe that such a gentlemen and sweet guy had taken an interest in her. And it was the most fun day she'd had in a long time. But what she loved the most was being held. She longed to be able to put her arms around someone and feel them close to her, and she had come pretty close to it today. She hadn't felt someone care for her in such a long time.
As Serena went to sleep that night, she didn't think of all the other people in love, and she didn't wonder why she didn't have anyone. For the first time in a long time, Serena went to sleep smiling.
The next day at work, Serena couldn't stop touching the soft petals on her white roses. She had left them at her desk from the day before, and now they reminded her of the time she had spent with ash .
When Serena left work to go home at the end of the day, she was surprised to see ash waiting for her outside.
"Hey you!" he said, a grin on his face. He held out his hand, and Serena gladly took it. "If you're not busy," he continued, "I'd like to take you to the park."
"I'm not busy," Serena replied, smiling up at him.
"Perfect."
They walked to the park, which was decorated for the upcoming holiday. Serena usually never set foot in the park, because there were always couples walking together. But now she wasn't alone.
After they had walked a bit, Serena was looking at the big Christmas tree that had been put up in the middle of the park. She had her back turned to ash, and all at once, a snowball hit her arm. She spun around and saw ash laughing, so she bent down and scooped up some snow. She threw the snowball and hit him square in the chest. Ash threw another snowball towards her, and she darted out of the way. "You missed!" she taunted.
"Oh yeah? Well I won't miss this time," ash said, scooping up more snow. Serena ran behind a tree to take cover, and soon she and ash were in the midst of a snowball war. Serena was laughing as she poked her head from behind the tree and threw snowballs. It was the most fun she'd had in a long time.
The snowball fight went on for a few more minutes, and then one of the snowballs ash threw hit Serena right in the face. She had barely wiped the snow from her eyes when ash came running over to her, a concerned expression on his face. "Are you alright?" he asked.
Serena laughed. "I'm fine. My face is just really cold now."
Ash breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you're okay. I didn't mean to hit you."
"That's kind of the point of a snowball fight though, isn't it?"
Ash smiled. "You're right." Then he reached up and brushed some of the snow off Serena cheek. His touch was gentle, and for a moment, they just stared into each other's eyes. Then ash took Serena's hand. "Come with me."
He led her over to one of the covered gazebos in the park, standing with her near the center. He softly touched her hair, and then whispered, "Look up."
Serena raised her eyes to the ceiling and saw that they were standing directly under a sprig of mistletoe. She looked back at ash , and then closed her eyes as he leaned in to kiss her. As he pressed his lips on hers, they felt warm and soft, and Serena moved closer to him. She felt ash gently place his hand on her back.
When Serena opened her eyes, ash gazed back at her. "Now you can say you've been kissed under the mistletoe," he said.
Serena smiled. She wanted to be close to him again, so she put her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest. In turn, ash hugged her back. "What do you want to do now?" he whispered in her ear.
"Stay just like this," Serena whispered back. As she realized what she had said, she blushed.
"I have an idea," ash said, smiling down at her. He let go of Serena , and then took her hand. She walked with him to one of the park benches. Ash sat down and motioned for Serena to join him. She did, and ash put his arm around her, pulling her close.
"I have to keep you warm if we're going to sit here for a while," he said.
Serena smiled and put her head on his shoulder. She was so happy to be in someone's arms, feeling the heat of someone else's body against her own.
She sat there with ash for a long time, talking to him and getting to know him. At one point, he switched the conversation to her.
"We've talked enough about me," he remarked. "What about you?"
"There's not much to tell."
Ash smiled. "I'm sure there is. But you never seem to want to talk about you. Why is that?"
Serena shrugged.
"You're very mysterious," he said. Then his voice got softer. "Why don't you want to talk about your family?"
Serena lifted her head from his shoulder. "I just don't."
Ash waited for her to say something else, but she didn't. She just stared off in another direction.
"Serena? I'm sorry if I upset you," he apologized.
She turned around to look at him. "It's not your fault," she sighed. "I don't tell people because it really doesn't matter."
"I'm sure it does. You can tell me," ash persisted. "I want to get to know you."
"Fine then. If you must know, my father left me when was young then my mum died of cancer. After that I was put up for adoption. living with a few foster families, but spent most of my life in group homes. I don't have a family. Happy now?"
Ash seemed uncomfortable. "I'm sorry Serena. If I had known, I wouldn't have forced you to talk about it."
"It's alright. But don't feel sorry for me. I don't want that."
He nodded. "Okay."
Serena put her head back on his shoulder. They sat on the bench until it got dark, and then ash walked her home.
When they got to her apartment, Serena hoped that ash would kiss her again, and she stepped closer than usual toward him. "Thank you for taking me to the park. Our snowball fight was a lot of fun."
"Maybe we can have another one, and you can hit me in the face for payback," ash suggested.
Serena laughed. "Sounds good."
Ash smiled, and then he put his arms around Serena. Just as she had hoped, he leaned forward and kissed her. When he released her, he stepped back onto the street. "See you around."
Serena seemed to float into her apartment. As she lay in her bed, she couldn't help but think of ash and all the affection she had received that day. She closed her eyes and fell asleep thinking about the kiss he had given her under the mistletoe.