Frostbite❄ [h.s short story]

9.

"The night is so still, outside it's so dark
Most trees bear no leaves so it all looks so stark
Jack Frost has been busy on this cold still night
He's covered the parked cars, they all look so white."

"I've never had it easy and you know it. So why... why did this have to happen?"

Jack ranted as he sat on a branch of a tall tree in the park, talking to the big shining moon. He wasn't really expecting The man in the moon to answer, but he was expecting some sign that he was listening to him. Jack had never felt so lonely.

"I've finally found someone who loves me and now she can't even see me? I can't even say goodbye to her and tell her how sorry I am!" He shouted, his pale blue eyes glaring at the moon. "Why is this happening? You don't understand, she makes me feel warm..."

The moon was silent. Jack sighed angrily and leant his back against the tree trunk. "Thanks for nothing."

"Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock!"

The silence was interrupted by a very familiar voice signing nearby, Jack's pale bluish lips pursing. "Ugh, great."

"Come down, frosty kitty or I'll have to call the firemen to get you down!" His jolly friend laughed at his own joke. "It took me a while to find you!"

In a matter of seconds, Jack was in front of him, lightly landing on the snow. His expression was sour and he was in no mood for talking. But a part of him was glad he wasn't completely alone. "I'm in no mood, North."

North, Saint Nicholas, Santa Claus, Father Christmas - or most recently - Niall, released a quiet laugh. "Of course you aren't, that's why I'm here, mate. When I'm done, you'll be bursting with joy."

"I hardly think so." Jack's tone was flat as he looked away, a frown on his face.

"I managed to do it with Ivy." Niall looked down at his nails, a condenscending smirk on his face.

Jack's frown deepened, his eyes instantly snapping at him. "What did you do?"

"She sat on Santa's comfy lap and I listened to her worries... oh my, your face is priceless!" He laughed out loud. "Just remember you can't kill me."

"What did you do?" Jack repeated angrily, his jaw tightening.

Niall bit back a smile. "You need to chill."

Jack glared at him. "I invented chill!"

Niall shook his head, grinning. "Relax Frosty, we went around town and visited people who needed cheering up tonight. She's a lovely girl."

Jack's anger dissipated and he even smiled a little. "That she is. So, she's happy?"

"Yes. When I found her, she was just like you. Bitter as lemon."

"I wish I could apologise to her, but she doesn't see me, North. Why can't she see me? I can control that now, so why is this happening?" Jack sounded truly desperate, pleadingly looking at his friend.

Niall hummed, scratching his chin. "I think it's because you so desperately want to protect her from getting hurt, you made yourself invisible for her without even realising it."

Jack huffed. "That makes no sense."

"Of course it does. You're the spirit of fun, Jack, so making someone feel sad is the opposite of what you do, especially someone you love. As long as you feel like you're hurting her, your defence mechanism is invisibility."

Niall's words only made him feel worse. "But... but I am hurting her."

Niall knocked on his head. "Yes, by distancing yourself!"

Jack hissed and rubbed the sore spot on his head, frowning a little. "North, I'm a spirit which means not human, alright? Eventually, I will have to leave and she stays here."

"But you will always come back to visit." He smiled. "Each year you claim you'll stay away and each year you come back. It's not an ideal situation, but being with her makes you happy."

Jack looked down sadly. "Until she grows old and dies."

Niall sighed. "It's life, Jack. I know it sounds harsh and it's painful, but deep down you always knew it would come to this. Instead of ruining everything and being miserable, you can spend the little time you have left here with her."

"You're forgetting she still can't see me."

"Well, you'll just have to try harder in that case. I have to return to the North pole now, I'm already behind schedule." He placed his hand on his shoulder, making the winter spirit look up at him. "Go and find her, Jack."

Niall stepped away and pulled out a snow globe from his thick coat, throwing it at the ground. It glowed brightly for a second before a circular portal opened. He looked at Jack one last time, nodding at him with a supportive smile on his face. "Merry Christmas, old friend." He then slowly walked through the portal until both him and the opening vanished.

And Jack was left alone, just like he was used to.

❄❄❄

"Fuck!" Jack cursed under his breath as he walked back and forth across the frozen lake, only making the ice layer thicker with his powers. His cold fingers ran through his frost covered hair, his staff firmly clenched in his other hand.

His mind was trying to come up with a way to make Ivy see him. And once that happened, he needed to have a whole speech prepared which proved to be a big problem. On top of it all, there was his departure once the Christmas day was over and the realisation he won't be able to see Ivy until the next December.

Jack angrily threw his staff on the ground, unintentionally unleashing a surge of his ice power, making the ground rapidly freeze. The ice began to spread everywhere, covering every inch of the ground, roads, pavements, and lakes. However, Jack was too absorbed into his anger to notice it, letting out a heavy sigh.

"Come on, man, help me." He looked up at the moon. "Can't you give me a single word of comfort?"

The moon was, of course, silent. Jack rolled his eyes, pointing a finger at him. "Yup, as articulate as ever."

Jack bent down to pick up his staff, his eyes widening when he realised what had he done. "Oh fuck, this is no good..."

He quickly pushed himself off the ground and floated through the air, estimating the damage. Everywhere he looked, there was ice. Fixing this was definitely going to take a while. "Bravo, dumbass," he muttered. "Shit."

Lucky for him, there were no people on the streets considering it was still early in the morning, besides, most people will stay at home considering it was Christmas. He still had time to undo this. The tricky thing with his power was that creating ice and snow was easy, but melting it was hard. The sun usually took care of that part.

Sighing, Jack descended towards the ground and began his work.

❄❄❄

a/n: I hope you're enjoying your Christmas Eve! xx
For those of you who aren't celebrating, I hope your day is amazing as well. :)