Finding Beauty

Chapter 37

~Beauty~

Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Feliz Navidad
Prospero año y felicidad

,my alarm clock sings. Carina must have set it up from me as a surprise. I feel a smile creep onto my face and practically jump out of bed.

"It's Christmas!" I squeal. Christmas has always been my most favorite day of the year. The mere thought of it makes my heart feel lighter.

I fall into the familiar Cha Cha dance my father taught me when I was a little girl. I sway my hips to the music, shuffling my weight to different feet to the rhythm. My hair gracefully floats around me as I spin around the room. A few seconds later I hear someone loudly clear their throat.

Gale leans against the doorframe, his arms are crossed and he wears a humored expression. I had chosen to leave the door open last night so that the fire's warmth would seep into my bedroom. I guess it also led to peeping eyes seeping in too.

I tuck my hair behind my ear to hide a blush. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Oh, only long enough to see you've got some smooth moves," he teases with a chuckle. Today, he isn't wearing his usual sweatshirt and sweatpants. Today, he wears a blue checkered flannel and jeans. He actually looks - dare I say - a little cute?

I laugh and shrug. "What can I say? My father was a good dancer. What about you? Got any smooth moves?"

His eyes widen and he shakes his head with a chuckle. "More like two left feet." We linger there for a moment, just staring. It's a comfortable silence. "Anyways...Get washed up, we have Christmas to celebrate."

He flashes a smile before walking off and I hurry to get ready. I sort through my dresser for something to wear. My hands find the ripped black jeans I was wearing the night I was taken prisoner by Gale. I feel sadness crawl into me as I'm reminded I won't be spending Christmas at home. Although during these last few days -as scary as it is to admit- this place has felt like a home.

I take it out and decide to wear it so I can feel closer to home. I also grab a long, green shirt with just below knee length, brown boots. I leave my hair down and pull a beanie over it.

When I arrive downstairs, I find Carina humming Christmas jingles to herself while setting the table.

"Morning, Carina! Merry Christmas!" I greet.

She smiles in return, her eyes sparkling with joy. "Merry Christmas, dear!"

"Where's Gale?" I ask while helping her set some forks down.

"Oh, don't worry about it. He'll be here in a second," she says with a mischievous grin.

Gale walks in a minute or two later as we are serving the pancakes. "Can I help?" he offers.

"Pour us some hot chocolate, will you?" He gives a nod and soon we are all eating breakfast and chatting about Christmas movies we've watched.

I zone out from the conversation and just watch their faces. The way their eyes are lit up, the way the skin around Carina's mouth wrinkles when she smiles, the way Gale's laugh makes his Adam's apple bounce. They're happy. Carina the maid of a murderer, Gale the once depressed and grief ridden young man, they are both happy.

And the holiday's aren't the sole reason.

Gale takes the whipped cream and sprays it directly into his mouth. Carina scowls but it only last for a second before she taps the nob, making the whip cream spray all over his face.

He would have thrown a fit if she did that just a few weeks ago. But now, he laughs and wipes it off his face. He sprays it at Carina and she squeals. Something has definitely shifted in Gale. Something's changed dramatically.