Chapter 13 - The First Snow
November in Chicago brought a biting, crystalline frost that turned the city streets into a glittering winter wonderland before December even arrived.
Inside the brownstone on the North Side, the air smelled of cinnamon, pine needles, and baking gingerbread.
Noah sat cross-legged on the plush living room rug, meticulously decorating a gingerbread house with colorful gumdrops and thick white icing, while a crackling fire danced in the hearth. The television played old holiday cartoons softly in the background, casting a cheerful glow across the room.
Maya stood at the kitchen counter, dusting flour off her hands as she finished wrapping a series of small holiday packages.
From the front hallway came the heavy thud of boots stamping off melting snow, followed by the familiar sound of a deep, baritone laugh.
Vincent walked into the living room, carrying a massive, freshly cut Balsam fir tree over his broad shoulder like it weighed nothing at all. Snowflakes glistened in his dark hair, melting against his forehead.
"Dad! You got the big one!" Noah cheered, jumping up from his gingerbread house and running over.
"The biggest one I could find on the lot," Vincent smiled, dropping the tree smoothly onto a heavy canvas mat in the corner of the room. He wiped his hands on his jeans and looked across the room at Maya, his dark eyes softening with a warmth that completely defied the winter weather outside.
Maya walked over, handing him a clean kitchen towel to dry his face. "You didn't have to haul a giant tree all by yourself, you know. Delivery was an option."
"Delivery lacks character," Vincent replied, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her gently against his side. "Besides, chopping down—or in this case, arguing with the vendor over—a proper tree is a family tradition we need to establish."
Maya laughed, leaning her head against his shoulder. "A family tradition. I like the sound of that."
"Hey! Stop talking and help us stand it up!" Noah protested playfully, tugging on Vincent’s sweater. "It's leaning like the Tower of Pisa!"
Vincent chuckled, stepping away from Maya with a wink. "All right, Captain. Let's save the tree before it crushes your gingerbread masterpiece."
As Vincent and Noah worked together—lifting, steadying, and securing the massive pine tree into its heavy iron stand—Maya stood back, watching them with a profound sense of peace settling deep into her bones.
May you like
The hunger, the cold, the terrifying SUVs roaring into a rainy parking lot, the dark syndicate in the Zenith Tower—all of it felt like a lifetime away, belonging to another person in another world.
Here, in the warmth of the holiday lights, there was only now.
