Chapter 46

** I thought of holding this one in, but then some people really won't be here for the smut so...**

Thanksgiving was never a big holiday for me growing up. Mom and I would dress up a little, with whatever part of the nicer clothes we could find, and we ate as much mash potatoes and canned gravy as we could manage to get our hands on. She was never big on turkeys, so we made those frozen chicken nuggets and ate it with mayonnaise instead of ketchup and that was a huge treat for us. I didn't think she would even have the energy to stay sober enough to be working on a turkey for that long either.

Once I became vegetarian, we switched to making vegetarian nuggets, but those never tasted that good, so we thought of picking a new side the next year. We had settled on trying to be healthy and eating mushrooms that year, only to never get the chance to celebrate Thanksgiving together. By the time I woke up in the hospital, Christmas was nearing, and Thanksgiving had long passed since then.

Having the whole house to myself, I had decided to treat myself to some fresh garlic bread made at home, and order pizza from Pizza Palace on my birthday. It was a quiet affair, with everyone busy preparing Thanksgiving meals for the next day. Plugging in Tangled for the hundredth time, I sat down on the newly disinfected couch, warming up into the fluffy comforter. The warm caramel milk was soothing my insides, and life felt like a Christmas movie.

Outside, I could see the snow, settling on the curbs. Soon enough I wouldn't have to step out of the house for classes, and life would be great again. The winter sun was high and still rising in the sky, and the day ahead looked nice.

When the doorbell rang, I didn't even have to spare a second thought who it could be. Noah walked in looking every bit devilishly handsome with his windblown hair and the remnants of snow melting on his hair and coat.

"Hey," I reached up for a kiss, only to be met by his cheek.

"You're the worst, you know?" he grumbled, sliding his fingers between mine and intertwining them, "Why didn't you tell me it was your birthday?"

Red coloured my cheeks.

"Slipped my mind?" I offered a lame excuse, "I'm not big on birthdays anyway."

"But I am." He insisted, taking a look around the house, "You're watching a cartoon?"

"Tangled is not a cartoon," I huffed, "and I love the movie."

"Okay, we can watch it later tonight. Go get dressed, we're celebrating your birthday whether you like it or not."

My heart warmed. Over time I'd stopped expecting much from birthdays. Thanksgiving was close, and then we never could afford two sober days for mom. She'd just writhe and shake and wheeze till she had some alcohol in her system, and the sight of it scared me enough when I was 8 that I never asked her to quit again. As long as she was with me, it was okay. Between my birthday and her life, it wasn't a hard choice.

The fact that Noah wanted to celebrate it made a small sliver of excitement roll in me, but I refrained from getting my hopes up. What if he had something planned, and I didn't like it? What if it involved ice skating or something? Fuck, I wouldn't last a second on ice. My uncoordinated arse would end up breaking at least three limbs in the first ten minutes.

"It'll be fun, trust me." He settled on the couch, shooing me away to my room.

"I'm going to go take a shower real quick." I announced.

"Can I join?"

"Fuck no," I had discovered rather quickly that shower sex was not my speed, and it probably never will be.

"Call me if you need any help getting changed!" His cheeky laugh echoed around the otherwise empty house as I blushed like a new bride even as he wasn't seeing me.

I found an outfit I liked, and layered it sufficiently till I looked positively stuffed. At least I wouldn't die of cold. When I walked out, Noah rolled his eyes before picking me up and dragging me to my room again. He stripped the second sweater and the extra scarf I had worn, hands hovering under the black shirt to find if I was wearing more layers.

"We'll be indoors the whole time, don't worry." After I was stripped down to one turtleneck sweater, black paperbag pants with warmers underneath and my coat, Noah deemed me fit to go outside. I fixed my hair quickly, following after him. We drove out of the town, entering the nearby city of Richmond. The city was vibing with eager shoppers and tourists like us, and the lights and decor outside the stores made it look nothing short of a Christmas carnival.

Noah pulled over on the sides of the streets, leaning over to open the door for me like he always did. Even if I was cold outside, the fire pit in my abdomen was crackling. We'd stopped in front of a tattoo shop, and a part of me wondered what it would be like to have his name tattooed on me. Of course, the realist in me laughed the idea off. We'll see where we are in three years. Maybe then.

Taking my hand, he crossed the road and I waddled after him, taking me inside a dusty store I couldn't read the name of.

"Ah, you're here!" The owner, a pudgy little man with a red face emerged from behind the counter, giving Noah a hug. At first glance, the shop looked like it was for everything and anything- small bits and bobs hanging around everywhere in no particular order.

"Hello Ralph," I noticed the slight depth in Noah's voice that didn't exist before and it made him all the more attractive like this, "Is the order ready?"

"Oui Oui," he walked back behind the counter, producing a small paper bag out of one of the shelves, "There you go."

"Merci," Noah thanked him and we left the store, walking out on the streets to see what the other shops had to offer. We passed by a shop that had a lovely picture frame on display and I had to stop for a second to admire it.

"You like it?"

"It's pretty," I pursed my lips, "but I don't need it right now."

Frames that intricate and beautiful never cost less than a few hundred dollars, which unfortunately wasn't money I ever had.

"That wasn't my question, Bri. Do you like it?"

God, the conviction in his voice ensured me that he was going to buy it.

"No," I responded directly.

"Liar. Okay, you taught me how to shop your way, now we're shopping my way, alright?" He all but dragged me inside the store, not even taking a second to ask an employee about the price.

"In my way, we just buy whatever the fuck we like and we charge it to dad's card, cool?"

I argued, but how long can you keep questioning a fucking lawyer by blood? Fine, I'll just act like I didn't like anything then. Or at least, I'll pick things that I know are cheap.

My plan failed miserably. Noah had bought me a new pair of sneakers, boots, jacket, a new red lipstick, a cute set of hair ties, new sunglasses and a couple of other small things which when added together sure cost a lot. We had lunch at a local restaurant, and their mushroom soup was to die for. I made Noah promise me we'd visit again just for the soup.

Our next stop was at a round-ish building, and I say round-ish because it looked like a hexagon walled place, with a dome on top made entirely of glass. Noah parked the car haphazardly, almost jumping out of his seat as soon as the ignition turned off.

"You're going to love this!" His excitement was infectious, and I found myself brimming as we walked towards the gates. Noah flashed something on his phone to the security, granting access to us.

Whoa.

I was in wonderland. Everywhere I could see, as far as my eyes went, up and down, the place was lined with blooming plants. I gasped as I realised this was a conservatory, and that Noah had brought me to the one place I'd definitely love the most. How was this only one town over and I never knew of it?

"Hello, you must be Miss Winters," a young, holy smokes he's hot type of man emerged from behind a huge bushel of potted baby's breath, looking vibrant as ever in their vibrant blue color. I'd never seen blue baby's breath before, and they looked just as dreamy as I'd hoped they would be.

I shook hands with him, a little star struck at his beauty.

"I'm Mason and I'll be taking you around the place. This way." He led us deeper into the rows and rows of plants, telling us a little about their planting methods and their growth. The way he spoke of the smaller sproutlings and the obvious adoration he had for some of the weaker plants almost made me want to cry. I wanted to be like him so bad.

He showed me how they made more natural forms of fertilizers using banana peels and the wastes they produced, and how it helped in the growth of plants that had stopped blooming. With his help, Noah and I replanted some wee Calla Lilies and potted a fresh growth of herbs in the enclosed areas.

God, this is beautiful. Surrounded by the soil and the plants, it was easy to forget everything outside the world even existed. What a shame that all this beauty was no longer accessible outside, and we had to find these small holes in the wall to enjoy this sight. I touched the weak stems of a strawberry runner as we walked up the stairs, watching the rows upon rows of saplings in front of us.

Noah was right, I was thoroughly enjoying myself. So much so that when Mason said he'd be clocking out for the evening I was surprised to know that it was easily past seven.

"Are you ready for your next surprise?"

"There's another?!" The excitement in my voice made Noah laugh, as we made our way upstairs, to the highest floor of the building.

"Just wait and watch," he laughed, and I could feel hope blooming in my chest. We were not as screwed in the head as I thought we were. We were happy. 

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I have a weird stomach bug but maybe it's just anxiety of like, finishing a book? Like, I don't know what I would do with my life once I'm done with Bittersweet. ughhhhhhhh

Last update coming on 23rd Dec.