Oh Deer, Christmas Is Here

Her phone buzzed before the sun had fully risen. Half-asleep, she reached for it. One notification glowed against the dim warm room.

You’re like snow, beautiful, but cold.

Still wrapped in the remnants of last night’s anger, she frowned, blinking as the words sank in. That was him. Of course it was him. The same boyfriend she’d fought with hours ago. The same one she’d sworn not to speak to until after Christmas. She read the words again but this time, she smiled a little, stretched and pulled herself out of bed, yawning. Maybe it was intuition, or maybe the strange quiet drifting in from outside because she was not known to be an early bird. Candace padded across the wooden floor, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and pushed aside the curtains. She froze. There he was, standing in the fresh, untouched snow, right beneath her window.

He looked like he’d walked straight out of a winter romance film. Tall, a fine figure even under layers. His jacket was thick and quilted, a deep forest-green that made his shoulders look broader. A soft grey beanie rested on his curls, dusted with snowflakes that melted slowly into damp specks. His cheeks, flushed pink from the cold, and his breath fogged the air in short clouds. He held a small Christmas tree under one arm, and a bag of ornaments dangled from the other, the red ribbon tied around it fluttering in the wind. His winter boots, sturdy, brown leather, slightly scuffed, were half buried in the snow. He’d been waiting and hoping the text message woke her up.

Her lips parted as a chill wrapped around her ankles, from the shocking surprise. She quickly unlatched the window and pushed it open. A gust of icy air swept in, lifting her hair. Their eyes met, his softened and hers did too. A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, just in time for something to move in her peripheral vision.

A deer stepped out from behind the maple tree in the yard, its coat blending perfectly into the snowy world around it. It paused, lifted its head, and stared at her with large, liquid-brown eyes. Her jaw dropped.

“Oh deer,” she whispered, then laughed at her own pun, “Christmas is here.”

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