Prologue - Faith
“Ain’t no party like a Snowflake party!” Bobby tries to grab me but I manage to dodge out of the way in time.
I love Christmas, and parties can be fun, but I’m not enjoying this one.
Bobby’s taken the holiday atmosphere to mean he needs to get as drunk as possible, as quickly as possible.
So he’s crammed in the kitchen with a bunch of other jocks, competing to see who can win Christmas beer pong.
As far as I can tell, Christmas beer pong is exactly the same as normal beer pong, except you use a ball with a Santa showing his butt painted on it.
It’s so hot in here that the red dress I’m wearing is making me sweat. I thought it would be a good idea to dress up, since it’s two days before Christmas, but I didn’t expect this party to be so crowded. And rowdy.
I slip outside to breathe some fresh air and to get away from everyone, wrapping my arms around my body at the sudden drop in temperature.
It’s snowing outside and from my vantage point up here on the porch, Snowflake Falls looks like it’s dusted in icing sugar.
My stomach grumbles involuntarily. Bobby said there’d be food here and there’s nothing to eat, unless stale pretzels count.
I should be inside, joining in, but I feel like an outsider here.
They’re all seniors and I’m a junior, so I don’t know anyone to talk to beyond a brief ‘hey’.
I’m also more of a book or a computer game kind of person, not a beer pong and drinking party girl.
Bobby’s doing a one-armed pushup competition against another guy and one of the girls watching is eyeing him up like he’s a snack.
Bobby’s been putting a lot of pressure on me to sleep with him, but I’m not ready. I wonder if he’d even notice if I went home? It’s a long walk but it seems more appealing than standing here watching him get drunker and drunker through the window.
The door opens and a tall, broad-shouldered figure is silhouetted against the light of the hallway.
“Faith. What are you doing outside? You must be turning into an icicle.” Alfie’s voice is concerned as he walks over to me.
“ I guess I’m just not in the mood for a Christmas party.
Except I didn’t realize until I got here, of course.
” I shrug. Alfie’s family’s property adjoins ours and I’ve known him for a couple of years since my family moved here.
I tutored him in math despite him being a senior, although we’ve ended up playing Mario Kart quite a few times when we were meant to be studying.
“So the best alternative is to freeze to death outside?” He raises an eyebrow, brushing a lock of his dark hair off his forehead. His steady blue eyes are disarming somehow, even though I know he’s just a friend.
“Well, yeah. I’d rather freeze than watch my boyfriend and his buddies try to drink their own body weight in beer. I was told that this party would be Christmas carols and eggnog, twinkle lights and burning fires, but it’s not like that at all.” I wrap my arms tighter around my body.
Alfie takes off his coat and puts it around my shoulders. It smells of outdoor pines and a woody aftershave. I resist the urge to bury my nose in the collar. Why have I never noticed how good he smells before?
“How’re you doing with the math stuff?” I turn to look up at him, since he’s at least a foot taller than me.
He smiles. “I’ve cracked it now. Thank you for all your help. Us Bells aren’t known for our prowess in the numbers department. Although Bette might give you a run for your money calculating the percentage increase of her YouTube followers month on month.”
“Your sister is making a real splash, huh? She looked so pretty in her last makeup tutorial.” Bette Bells is the nearest thing Snowflake Falls has to a celebrity.
“She might be good looking but she’s annoying as hell.
My Dad and I are so outnumbered in the house with all my sisters that I can’t wait to have my own place.
At least Dad gets to escape to the station most of the day.
I’m thinking of doing my academy training in the city.
At least I’ll get ten minutes to have a shower and brush my teeth without someone banging on the door because they need to use their straighteners or something.
” He blows his breath out in a cloud of cold air.
“Yeah, your house is busy! I guess I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have a big family.
You Bells make it look like fun. It’s lonely being an only child sometimes.
” I glance away across the snow-covered houses.
For some reason I can’t look directly at him.
Something about the way he holds my gaze makes me say more than I intended to.
“You know you can come over whenever you like, Faith. One extra is never a big deal for the Bells family. Taylor and my Mom are constantly cooking. It’s like it’s their job to keep us all at bursting point, especially over the holidays.”
I laugh, and start to speak when my attention is caught by screaming from inside. Alfie’s head whips round as an orange-yellow flash of fire flares up around the table where Bobby and his friends are playing their drinking games.
He’s inside in a second, much faster than I can move as I stand there in shock. Bobby’s head is enveloped in flames and his friends are standing open-mouthed as the girl next to him screams and he starts shouting.
Suddenly Alfie is there beside him with a wet towel in his hands, which he throws over Bobby’s face. My body starts to move again and I run inside. There’s a charred, smoky smell and Bobby is writhing on the floor, groaning in pain.
Alfie looks up. “Faith, call an ambulance right now.” He puts his hands on Bobby’s shoulders and starts talking to him in a low, calm voice.
Ten minutes later, I’m sitting in the back of the ambulance after Bobby’s been carried out in a stretcher.
I’m numb with shock as I try to piece together what happened.
Bobby thought it would be a good idea to light the ball they were using on fire and then it bounced into a cup he was holding filled with straight vodka, and lit his sweater and hair on fire.
Alfie’s on the grass outside the house, talking to his Dad. As the EMT inspects Bobby’s injuries, the ambulance driver closes the doors and gets in the front. As we drive away Alfie raises his hand and I raise mine in return.
This is not how I expected my Christmas to pan out.