Ghosts of Christmas Past
@holywitchkid
Marcus was nice. This second date had originally been planned for the weekend, but his work schedule had him traveling and when he’d asked to switch it to Christmas instead he’d asked so sweetly that Hannah couldn’t say no. Yes, yes Marcus was nice, he was kind and sensitive, proactive and verbose, but the real reason Hannah liked him was because his job was his real passion. This second date had taken two months to occur, his life a constant up and down of sudden travels overseas. Marcus was only half available, and that made him perfect, because she was only half available too.
It was Christmas Eve, so of course most establishments were closed. They were eating dumplings and sweet and sour chicken at a little place in Chinatown and Marcus was making it very clear that he wanted to hold her hand. Hannah finally gave in, slipped her palm against the warm skin of his own, and prayed to feel something, some sizzling spark. She wanted to want to hold his hand, she wanted to want this to grow into something more than. But she was just passing the time, and she knew it. She thought maybe part of Marcus did too. Her heart was a garden that could only grow love for one person, and any other seeds planted just withered and died no matter how well she tended them.
Still...it was nice to not be alone. She was good at this part, the initial flirting. She let her fingers twine with his, let him push a strand of hair behind her ear. “You’re about to dip your tie in the sweat and sour sauce,” she warned teasingly as he leaned across the table a bit too far and her heart panicked and seized secretly inside her chest. “Why don’t you tell me what your fortune says?” They had been the only two in the restaurant, but she heard the bell above the door ding with the arrival of another Christmas night misfit. Hannah kept her eyes on Marcus, focus on exploring this as much as she could before her willpower fizzled out. Marcus grinned. “I don’t need a fortune cookie to tell me I’m a lucky man right now.”











