Breaking The Ice

Flooded

Harry's POV

"Oh come on, H. You're looking a little tired." Dad chuckled as I carried yet another 80lb log around the back of my uncle's house and set it down near the pile of other ones. "I thought college athletes were supposed to be in shape."

"I don't see you doing it, old man." I chuckled, shaking my head at him as I looked at the pile of them I'd just unloaded. "And I'm supposed to be on break."

It was somewhat of a tradition in my family that on Christmas Day we would have a bonfire in my backyard at home, and people from the neighborhood would wander over after their dinners and we'd all sit and spend time together. While my parents had a fire pit and kept firewood regularly stocked, my uncle wasn't exactly equipped for such a thing and I'd spent the middle of my morning unloading the logs from his car that we were now gonna have to chop into chunks to build the fire after dinner.

As much as I'd struggled with the idea of having Christmas without my sister, I had to admit that Christmas morning had been nothing short of wonderful. Lulu's infectious excitement for things had kept the mood light, and having Teej there had really helped me keep myself grounded and work through things when I did have difficult moments. We'd all sat and had breakfast after we opened our presents, and even though it was vastly different from the Christmases I had grown up having, it had been special in its own way.

I pulled the gloves off my hands that I'd used to carry the chunks of tree and grabbed one of the beers my dad had buried in the snow to keep them cold, popping the lid off and taking a long swig as I tried to take a minute before I grabbed the axe and started chopping it all up. I sat down across from my dad, looking out at the snow and breathing in the fresh air before he spoke.

"So, TJ huh?" He smiled knowingly as he brought his beer back up to his mouth.

I looked down at the beer in my hand, fiddling with the label on it as I tried to contain my own smile at the mention of her name, the very sound of it making me feel warm.

"Yeah." I answered.

"I like her, I think she's good for you."

"She's amazing, Dad." I said, looking up at him. "She's...everything."

He nodded with a tight-lipped smile, looking over at me with a look I hadn't seen from him in a long time, a sense of contentment and pride on his face.

"It's nice to see you so happy, H." He said sincerely. "I've never seen you like this with a girl before. I think it's obvious to anyone how much she means to you."

"I had a bit of a rough time when I first got here." I sighed. "We both know I wasn't in the best place...and I think I thought if I came here everything would just go away and I could forget about it."

"It's not that simple, son." He said sympathetically. "I mean we all went through it, but you...you took it the hardest, you were forced to see the things that the rest of us weren't."

"I know, and I just couldn't accept it." I said, shaking my head at myself. "I still...don't wanna believe she's really gone."

"None of us do."

"But Teej...she didn't even know what had happened, but she helped me. She just kept calling me out on my shit, expecting better of me. She didn't pity me or give me a pass because of what happened, she just put me in my place while still being there for me, and I needed that."

"Well I'm glad you got it." He said, smiling softly. "She reminds me of your sister a bit, actually."

"Yeah, me too." I said, sighing as I thought of my sister.