After dinner, we fell into a steady rhythm of playing cards by the fire or curling up on the couch to watch a movie. I watched a few action flicks with Cade, but most of the time he defaulted to my choice of rom-com. He really let himself get into them, too. No matter the activity, Cade was always so... present. It was one of my favorite things about him.
One night while we were watching Sandra Bullock inThe Proposal, he caught my eye.
“I’d do that for you, you know.”
“What, pretend to be married for a green card?” I laughed.
“Yeah, why not?”
“Better question is, why would you?” I looked at him incredulously.
“You’re my best friend,” he said simply, shrugging his shoulders.
And suddenly, that’s where we were again. Best friends.
Only suddenly, I wanted us to be a whole lot more.
The next day,Cade caught me staring at the photo collages on his parents’ walls.
“I want to do something nice for your parents,” I told him. “To thank them for letting us stay here.”
“You know they don’t expect it.”
“I know, but—I’d still like to.”
“What did you have in mind?” he asked.
“Well, it’ll be December next week, and I noticed the signs in town for the Christmas tree farm.”
He beamed at me. “You want to go pick out a Christmas tree for my parents?”
I bit my lip to hide the full breadth of my smile.
“Yeah, I really do.”
We bundled in the warmest clothes we’d brought, and I slipped on my most practical LL Bean duck boots. We drove Cade’s dad’s pickup truck outside of town to the Williams’s family farm. A light snowfall began as we approached the farm, and I smiled at Cade—it felt like serendipity, the skies aligning with our festive plans.
As we drove up, I saw Teddy Williams, a guy who had been a grade behind us at Birch Hollow High. I gave him a wave and he smiled back shyly under his mop of blond hair. Mrs. Williams came down her front steps as we stepped out of the car, donning a pair of winter gloves.
“Welcome!” she declared enthusiastically. “Here for a tree?”
When we nodded, she continued her prepared spiel.
“My husband will be out in just a minute. We offer a hayride out to see the selection. Would you two like some hot cocoa to keep you warm on the ride?”
“That would be wonderful,” I replied, already feeling warmed by her kindness.
We carried the warm drinks into the bed of a trailer behind Mr. Williams’s truck. The bed was filled with hay bales to sit on. The hay was itchy, even through my many layers of clothing, but I tried my best to ignore the sensation and stay present in the moment. I admired the flakes of snow falling on my deep red winter coat. Cade smiled at me from across the bed of the trailer, our knees facing each other. He looked at home in the woods in his well-worn jeans and practical black Patagonia jacket.
After a short ride Mr. Williams stopped the truck. Cade hopped out and reached back to help me down. I felt tingles across my waist where Cade’s hands had spanned while he helped me land safely on the now-slick ground.
We began our hunt for the perfect tree for the Adlers’ living room.
“That one?” He pointed to a large tree to our left.
“That’s a Fraser fir,” Mr. Williams explained. “Quite popular for the full, fluffed-up look, plus an excellent life span. Often have that bluish green color. The scent of the Balsams is usually more popular, though.”
I smiled, thinking of Cade’s unique woodsy scent. “Definitely want a Balsam,” I said as I snaked my hand through his elbow and squeezed.
