I woke up slowly, the pressure of blankets and sheets pressing against my chest. I could barely see without my glasses, but I could faintly make out rays of morning light.

I slowly sat up, the air cold on my arms. I fumbled around my nightstand a bit before finding my glasses and putting them on. After sitting in bed for a few moments, slowly waking up, I got out of bed. I shivered when my bare feet hit the cold floor.

I walked across the cold, hard floor, and over to the window. It wasn't snowing anymore, and the soft blues and oranges of the morning sun complimented the bright, blatant witness of the blanket of snow that covered the city.

"Peri?" I heard someone say.

I spun around, nearly falling. It was Amethyst. Somehow, whenever I saw her, she became more stunning, taking my breath away.

Amethyst got out of bed and walked past me, touching me on the shoulder. When our faces came the closest, she whispered, "thanks for holding me last night."

Without further elaboration, she moved passed me, gathering whatever clothes she was planning on wearing today. I was soon left alone in my room.

After both of us were changed, I led Amethyst out of the house. "I don't wanna eat breakfast with my mother."

"Ok." Amethyst said as we passed the gate and got onto the open street. "We're not gonna get Lapis?"

"ARGH I FORGOT!" I said. "I'll text her." I said, pulling out my phone, sending Lapis a message detailing our absence, then sent Pearl a text telling her we would be at the coffee shop on the corner of Briar Street and Duke Avenue. After pocketing my phone, we walked off.

The air was still and cold, silent yet full of noise. As we traveled closer to the center of the city, the number of people on the street increased, as did the amount of light in the sky. Winter in Toronto, when it wasn't snowing, was a bright, cold world of light. There was really something unique about a world so bright, yet so, so cold.

We reached the coffee shop- it was a small, corner side bakery, called Blue's Cafe.

When we walked into the cafe, a bell sounded, reminding me of our own Crystal Gem Teahouse back in Delmarva. Unlike our shop, though, Blue's Cafe was crowded with patrons and tourists alike. I scanned the room quickly for Pearl. I found her, along with Steven, Connie, and Greg, sitting at a table near the window.

As Amethyst and I made our way to the group, Pearl started a conversation. Questions like, "where were you?", "did you sleep well?", And "where's Lapis"

I quickly answered the questions with various forms of 'yes', 'no', and 'we got lost'. Pearl, surprisingly, accepted all these responses and invited us to sit down.

Everyone shuffled a bit down the wooden bench to make room for Amethyst and I to sit down. Even though there was only a fraction of our entire group here, we were still cramped around the tiny table the cafe had provided for us.

Pearl stood up. "So, I'll go get everyone's orders?"

As the majority of everyone nodded and agreed, Connie stood up and walked past the table. "I'll help you, Ms. Pearl!"

"Oh, you don't have to call me that!" Pearl said as they walked to join the line.

"Does she even know our offers?" Amethyst laughed, her shoulder bumping into mine.

"I don't think she does." I glanced over at Pearl and Connie, who were chatting.

In a few minutes, Connie and Pearl came back, each with their hands full of drink cups. Pearl started to distribute the drinks.

"We didn't get your orders, so I just guessed what you wanted." Pearl explained, handing Amethyst and I warm cups. Based on the aroma it gave off, the drink was warm lavender tea.

I took a sip of the bittersweet, warm, drink and sighed. The group grew nearly silent as we enjoyed our various beverages.

I was almost halfway done with my tea when Amethyst took me by the hand and led me out of the coffee shop.

It was still cold outside, the only thing warm was the cup I was still holding, my hand, which was wrapped in Amethyst's, and my face.

Amethyst led me to the side of the sidewalk and put her hands on my shoulders, pulling me down. I dropped the tea as the pullled me in for a kiss.

As soon as our lips met, everything around me melted away. Somehow, everything in the world was right in that moment.

It was my first kiss.