Felix

It was that time of year again. Once Christmas celebrations were done, they began to take down all the farm's decorations. The decor inside the house would survive a bit longer—his mother insisted on keeping everything up until the traditional twelve days of Christmas had passed, another tradition of his father's family—but the ones outside that advertised the farm's wares were usually the first to go.

Despite the amount of work and the biting chill in the air, Felix did the job alone. Usually, they waited until the day after Christmas, but he couldn't wait. He needed a break from his mother. She had been practically bouncing around the house after he told her the news, and while he was secure in the decision, her constant carol-singing as she wandered around the house had started to drive him crazy. And so he exiled himself out into the cold for a reprieve.

While he was happy that she was happy, he just couldn't bring himself to partake in the same joy. It was good news, but for him, something cast a long shadow over everything...

Georgia.

How they had left things left a pit in his stomach. As he dragged the last sign up the driveway, up towards the barn, their last moments together played over and over in his mind. He was still kicking himself. He wished there was some way for him to make it right. He had even tried to call her sister to see if she was there—and willing to talk to him—but she was already gone.

He wasn't able to bring himself to ask for her cellphone number, as her sister had seemed wary of him—he figured she wouldn't have given it to him even if he had asked. Felix just had to accept that this was the end of it. Georgia had slipped away from him. There was no way she'd come back, even to see his mother, after he'd spoken to her like that. 

Sighing he carried on dragging the sign, focusing on his menial task in hopes of putting the thought out of his mind...

As he walked, lightly scattered across the snowy ground. Headlights. Felix turned to see a car driving up the road that led to their farm. That wasn't so strange. While they weren't close, they did have neighbours.

But then the car turned up their driveway.

Felix frowned. It couldn't be some confused customer—Christmas was over. Though maybe, he thought, that it could be someone else whose holiday plans had been unfortunately delayed, wanting to throw a belated celebration. They still had a few trees left if they needed one.

But as the car got closer and the headlights weren't shining directly in his face, he realized that the car didn't belong to a stranger: it was a little red compact.

It was Georgia's car.

Georgia had come back.

Felix's heart began to thrum in his chest. He dropped the sign beside the barn door and began jogging towards the car as Georgia pulled up alongside the house. As she jumped out, she didn't seem to see him. She ran up the porch steps and began to knock on the back door. His mom was probably upstairs, singing away, unlikely to hear her.

He watched her as Georgia stood there, chewing her lip, like she was debating something. She reached for the door handle, about to let herself in...

"Georgia?"

Georgia jumped and then spun around, finding Felix at the bottom of the porch steps. His breath caught, and he wondered what she might say to him. Would she not want to talk to him? He would deserve it.

Instead, her eyes brightened. 

"Felix!" she cried, running back down the steps and right up to him. She looked like she wanted to get even closer before she stopped herself.

"I thought you were at your sister's," Felix said.

"I-I was," Georgia replied. "I was actually on my way back to the city, but..."

"What? More car troubles? Or more reindeer?" Felix teased before he could stop himself. His smile faltered. He wasn't sure how she'd react...

But Georgia laughed, her hazel eyes sparkling. 

"Funny you should say that," she said, looking away towards the road from which she came. "But, actually, I needed—wanted to come back. I wanted..." She stopped herself, turning to stare at him. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out like she couldn't find the right words. Then she swallowed and closed her eyes before forcing it out. "I didn't want to leave things like this between you and I. I'm sorry. I know I overstepped when I told you not to sell to Hugo. That wasn't my decision to make. It's just... What I was trying to say came out all wrong. What I wanted to say was that... This place is special. It needs to be protected. It's... It's..."

Felix smiled. "I get it. Besides, it should be me apologizing to you. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like I did. You were just sharing your concerns and I was blind—I have been trying to rid myself of this place for so long that I didn't stop to wonder if that was still what I really wanted. But your gift changed that."

Georgia's eyes widened. "My gift?" she said, her cheeks—already rosy from the chill—blossoming into a deeper pink.

"Yes," Felix said, smiling. "It made me see that running away wasn't the right choice. And now I know that I don't need to."

"You don't?" Georgia asked, breathless.

"No, I don't," Felix said. "I've decided that I'm going to take over the farm."

Georgia let out a scream of joy before clapping her hand over her mouth. "Sorry! I... I'm so happy... F-For you, and Sue, of course." A large smile broke across her face, and she giggled. "And for this place." She gave a big sigh of relief. "This place has certain magic and I would've hated for Hugo to bulldoze it in the name of 'elegance'—or at least his idea of it. But what about your work?"

"I can work anywhere, remember?" Felix said. "I can go back between the city and here. And for a few months a year, I can work out of this place to help keep the business running."

"Really? I guess you'll have to learn to love Christmas, then," Georgia replied.

Felix looked at Georgia, really looked at her. Rosy cheeks looked good on her. "I think I already do. I always did, in a way. I forgot how nice Christmas can be... Especially if it's spent with the right people."

Georgia laughed again, looking up into his blue eyes. "Y'know, I recently said something very similar."

"Georgia," Felix said, his voice going soft. He was leaning in close to her. "I know there's not much of the day left... but I'd like you to spend Christmas with me."

"I'd love to," Georgia said, her eyes glittering as she gave him a wide smile.

He leaned forward as Georgia reached up. Their lips came together, and the warmth between them soon chased back the cold. And for the first time in Felix's life, everything felt just right.

"Georgia?!"

Felix and Georgia leapt apart, both of them blushing.

His mother had just burst out the back door.

"Oh dear, you came back!" Sue said, rushing down the steps to pull Georgia into a hug. "I thought I heard someone knocking. Why're you back?"

"I... I forgot something," Georgia said quickly, still quite pink. "But Felix helped me, uh, find it."

His mother's gaze travelled over to him, eyeing his averted gaze and reddened cheeks. 

"I'm sure he did," she said, raising a single eyebrow with a knowing smile. "But please, come in for a cup of coffee. It's so cold out here."

"Sure, why not?" Georgia said, shooting Felix a look as his mother urged her up the porch steps. Her lips twitched, fighting a smile.

"I won't keep you long," his mother said, holding the door for her. "I know you have to get back to the city."

"Don't worry, I'm in no hurry," Georgia said.

"Is that so?" Sue said. "Good, because I wanted to talk to you about something. See, we're actually looking for something with experience in the hotel business to help us turn this into a Bed & Breakfast. Did Felix tell you that we're keeping the farm?"

"He did, and I'm glad. This place is special," Georgia said, tugging at her reindeer-patterned sweater and looking back at Felix with a sparkle in her eye. "And I'm not the only one who knows it."

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