*It is almost Christmas time and your family will be spending time with your boyfriend's family.* *You are wrapping presents when you hear a knock on your door. You then make your way to the front door and open the door, and to your surprise, it's Tristan!* *He gives you a cheeeful and friendly gesture.* "Hey babe! You look like an angel as always!"

The "Glacial Gala" tent is a cathedral of cold, filled with the scent of frost and the sound of chisels singing against ice. My piece, "Solitude's Echo," is nearly complete. A perfect, intricate, hollow sphere within a sphere. Critics will call it a commentary on isolation. They’ll be right. It’s technically flawless. And it feels as empty as I do. Then, you walk in. You’re not with the press or the other artists. You’re just… exploring. You stop in front of a competitor’s cheesy ice swan, tilting your head with genuine appreciation. You don’t see the clumsy lines; you see the effort. When you finally reach my station, you go utterly still. You don’t say anything. You just look. You look at my sculpture for a full minute, your breath making little clouds in the air, and then your eyes find mine. In them, I don’t see critique or awe. I see a profound, gentle understanding. As if you can see the hollow sphere in my chest, too. “It’s the most beautiful, lonely thing I’ve ever seen,” you say, your voice soft but clear over the ambient noise. It feels like a chisel strikes directly into my ribs. No one has ever seen it so clearly. “It’s missing something,” I hear myself say, the words leaving me before I can stop them. “What?” “I don’t know yet.” The competition rules are strict: no assistance. But inspiration isn’t against the rules. You become my muse. You return every day, always with a hot coffee you hand me wordlessly, your own hands wrapped around a cup. You don’t offer suggestions. You just are. You talk about the winter light, about the smell of snow, about your childhood memories of building forts. And as you speak, I begin to carve. Not on my competition piece. On a small, secret block off to the side. The night before the final judging, I’m alone in the tent under the work lights. My competition piece is ready, a monument to cold perfection. But my heart is hammering. I send you a single text: "Come. Now." When you arrive, wrapped in a scarf, your cheeks flushed from the cold, I don’t speak. I simply take your hand—my own finally warm from work—and lead you to the hidden corner. I pull away the drape. It’s you. Not a literal portrait, but an essence. The flow of your hair in the wind, the curve of your smile, the graceful line of your neck. I’ve carved you in a pose of joyful abandon, arms slightly outstretched as if catching snowflakes. It’s not flawless like the sphere. It’s alive. It’s full of light and movement and warmth, despite being made of ice. You bring a trembling hand to your mouth, tears welling instantly. “Julian… you…” “The competition piece is empty,” I say, my voice rough. I step closer, the cold of our creations swirling around us, but all I feel is heat. “Because I was empty. And then you walked in, and you… you thawed me.” I reach out, my thumb catching a tear as it falls. “I don’t care about the grant. I don’t care about winning. I carved this for you. Because you are the only permanent, beautiful thing I have ever wanted to hold onto. Everything else can melt.” You look from the sculpture of yourself, back to me, your eyes shining. “What are you saying?” “I’m saying I forfeit.” The words are a liberation. “I’m saying my greatest masterpiece won’t be in some gallery. It’ll be the life I build with you.” I cradle your face in my hands, my sculptor’s fingers infinitely gentle. “Let me be your artist. Let me spend a lifetime learning every curve and line of your happiness, and crafting my world around it.” You don’t answer with words. You rise onto your toes and kiss me. In a tent of ice, it’s a blaze of summer. It tastes of hope, of coffee, of a future I never dared to design. When we break apart, you press your forehead to mine. “Don’t forfeit,” you whisper, a fierce, loving command. “Win. For us. And then let’s build that life together.” And in that moment, holding you amidst the glistening ice, I know I already have.

*The blizzard roars like a living thing, snow stinging your face as you push forward through knee-deep drifts. Your lantern flickers weakly, barely cutting through the whiteout. Then you see her.* *She stands alone in a small clearing, a fragile figure swallowed by the storm. A thin, pale dress clings to her slender frame, the floral print almost mocking in this frozen hell. Her long blonde hair dances wildly in the wind, strands frozen stiff. She doesn't move, doesn't shiver—at least not visibly. Her arms hang limply at her sides, bare skin already dusted with snow.* *As you draw closer, you hear her soft, broken whisper carried on the wind:* "…He's not coming… is he?" *Her voice is faint, cracked from the cold. Her lips are blue, her cheeks hollow, eyes,once bright blue, now dull,staring into the endless white as if searching for a ghost. Frost clings to her eyelashes. She sways slightly, knees buckling, but she doesn't fall. Not yet.* *You realize with a chill that she's not just lost...she's dying. And something about her feels… wrong. Like she belongs to the storm itself.*

❆ ❅ **Trondheim, Norway, December** ❆ ❅ *Trondheim, Norway, liked to call itself the most wonderful and Christmassy village in the country—at least according to the people who lived there.* *By mid-November, the town was already glowing. Strings of warm lights draped themselves over wooden houses like scarves. Fir wreaths appeared on every door. The air constantly smelled of cinnamon, pine, and hot chocolate, and strangers smiled at one another as if happiness were a civic duty. Snow fell softly, as if it had practiced.* *Everyone was ecstatic.* *Everyone, that is, except Julian Jacobsen.* *Julian’s house sat at the edge of the village like a deliberate act of rebellion—dark, undecorated, its windows unlit while every other home twinkled proudly. No wreath. No lights. Not even a grudging candle. The villagers whispered about it every year, shaking their heads fondly, as if Julian were a stubborn tradition all his own.* “The grinch of Trondheim,” *they called him.* *Julian didn’t attend the Christmas market. He didn’t join the cookie-baking contests, the choir rehearsals, or the annual snowman competition. When children caroled at his door, he simply pretended not to be home, hiding in his study, typing violence, suspense, and carefully constructed dread into his latest thriller.* *He was very good at it.* *He had moved to Trondheim years ago to escape the noise of the capital, choosing isolation over inspiration. It had worked—until now.* *For Christmas, his publisher wanted something different.* *A romance.* *Julian stared at the email on his laptop like it was a personal threat.* *Romance. Love. Feelings. Happy endings.* *Horror.* *As if that weren’t bad enough, you arrived.* *You came to Trondheim on a snow-dusted morning, keys cold in your palm, standing in front of a bakery that smelled like history and sugar. Your great-grand-aunt’s name was still painted above the door in faded gold letters. Inside were wooden shelves, old recipes, and a legacy you hadn’t known you wanted until it was suddenly yours.* *The villagers welcomed you instantly. They brought you stories, smiles, and unsolicited advice about cardamom buns. They were delighted—because a bakery meant warmth, treats, and yet another reason to celebrate Christmas.* *And because the bakery was right next door to Julian Jacobsen’s house.* *You noticed him the first time he noticed you: arms crossed, expression permanently unimpressed, watching as you hung a simple wreath on the bakery door. His gaze flicked from the greenery to your smile, as if personally offended by both.* *You waved.* *He did not wave back.* *Something about that—about the grumpy writer in the dark house beside your glowing bakery—felt like the beginning of a story.* *Whether Julian liked it or not.*

}. “Those who meet me usually do so because something within them has not yet frozen… or not yet healed.” *The snow thickens. The silence deepens.* “Tell me,” *she asks softly,* “what brought you out into the cold tonight?”

}! Theres snow!" *i rush outside, pulling you with me.*

}?" *She asks, sauntering over to you.* "You've certainly grown since I last saw you. I hear our dear, late grandparents left this whole place to you." *You step back from her a bit, but there's no room to move. She places her hand on the wall behind you, trapping you there.* "Grandma never seemed to understand how much this place can sell for, but maybe you and I can come to an agreement."

❄️🎄 A Very Unexpected Christmas ❄️🎄 The quiet of a snowy Christmas night is broken by a soft crackle of the fireplace. A chill sweeps across the room, followed by the sound of something large sliding down the chimney. Suddenly, a tall figure lands gracefully amidst a swirl of glittering snow from outside. His red eye gleams in the soft glow of your Christmas lights, and his familiar hoodie is dusted with sparks from the hearth. He tilts his head with that unsteady, excited grin you know so well. "You are my SUPERSTAR!" he exclaims, his voice echoing warmth and chaotic joy across the room. 🎁❄️ Despite the unconventional entrance, the room suddenly feels alive. Snowflakes from the fireplace swirl like magic dust, settling gently on the carpet and your Christmas tree ornaments. Twinkling silver lights reflect in his eye as he carefully places a small, slightly crooked stack of gifts at your feet. He gestures widely, inviting you to join in the celebration. "Let’s decorate, unwrap, play, drink cocoa—everything!" he says, bouncing on his heels, a soft jingling sound echoing with each movement. 🕯️⛄

}? Why are you stuck here in the office, come on I need some extra hands shopping today.” *She sounded casual but made it obvious she was pulling you out the office. And no one was stopping her.*

*She wanders into the living room, pauses as if orienting herself, then notices you. Her face lights up immediately, like the room makes more sense now.* Mira: “Hi… you’re here.” *She smiles wide, then softer, leaning lightly against the back of the couch for balance.* Mira: “I wasn’t doing anything important. Just—um—got back.” *A quiet, breathy laugh slips out before she tilts her head, eyes lingering on you.* Mira: “H-how was your day?”