A Thankful Blizzard Pt. 01

"Would you believe this is my first time seeing snow?" Katherine asked me, her eyes glued out the window at the picturesque view. "Well, I've seen pictures, videos, things like that, but not like this, being right here in front of it."

"Frozen water, each molecule arranged in an almost precise manner, to form the structure we know as a snowflake." I told her a bit more about the properties of water when it entered its solid state.

"Wow, you know so much!" Katherine exclaimed. Her eyes were wide with what looked like wonder. For all I know, she could have been wide-eyed in astonishment at how geeky I was truly being. But, she seemed earnest enough, asking me more questions. Before we knew it, Helen was back with some coffee and was ready to take our orders.

"What'll it be, Miss Polar Bear?" she asked, a grin on her mouth. Katherine looked over at me. I shrugged and told her to get what she wanted.

"Well, Paul here tells me you guys have the best omelets I've ever tasted, so I'd like one of those." She finally said after a few moments of thought.

I ordered the same, and our jolly waitress Helen was off. We sat there talking some more, off the subject of water and snow, it would seem, when Katherine announced she had to use the restroom.

She got up, and as she turned to walk away, her red curls bouncing with each step, my eyes were glued to her legs, the way they traveled so smooth up to where they vanished under her skirt. I doubted I had ever seen anything quite so wonderful before. So transfixed was I that I hadn't noticed Helen appear at my side.

"Quite an asset on that lady, huh my boy?" she jabbed with a small chuckle. I turned several shades of red, casting my gaze on my coffee mug. "Hey, don't be so ashamed, she's quite the keeper. You keep track of that one, huh?" And with that, she was off again, having laid two plates of steaming pancakes and the syrup rack on our table.

With the sweet aroma of the pancakes teasing me, I sat back, casting my gaze across the small diner. I saw two other tables occupied, noticing the other patrons all had on heavy winter clothing. I continued my scan and my eyes fell to the TV playing quietly above the bar-counter. That was when I saw the winter weather warning, showing a massive snow storm moving in rapidly. The text at the bottom claimed to expect anywhere from 18" - 24" of snow before the end of the day, with another 2' - 4' expected tomorrow. An anchorman was speaking, and with my eyes glued to the screen and my mouth gaping, someone must have turned up the volume a little.

"... with road closures already going up for most major passes in the Western Rocky Mountains. Again, if you're looking to travel this week, you probably won't be getting very far with this much snow coming. Stay safe and stay warm. Jane?"

The waitress must have seen my reaction of shock and worry, for she came over right away.

"You kids were planning on travelling somewhere?" she asked me. I nodded.

"I'm supposed to make it home for Thanksgiving in Phoenix." I glanced at the bathroom door.

"Honey, westbound Highway 50 has been closed," she said, "Guess you're stuck here unless you head right back the way you came before the storm hits. But, uh, judging by that," she nodded to the windows outside, "you probably won't be doing that either." I turned to glance out the window. The few flakes that were dancing around outside less than fifteen minutes ago had turned to a relentless army of frozen ice pellets. The valley below was no longer visible, and the small pines that must have been less than twenty feet from the diner were almost lost to the swirling mass of white.

"You might want to try Aspen View Cabins, just up Jefferson road here," she pointed out the window. "He'll have good rates this time of year, being off-season and all." She turned to go, pausing to look over her shoulder as she spotted Katherine exiting the restrooms. "And I think they only have single King beds," she whispered with a huge wink.

I'd lost track of how many times I had blushed since this morning. My face suddenly felt hot as I had a mental image of sharing a bed with the beautiful woman walking towards the table. I shook my head, trying to push those thoughts away, staring intently at my coffee as she sat down.

"Are you ok, Paul?" Katherine asked. "You look worried." I sighed, relieved that she didn't mention my blushing and noticed my worry of the coming storm instead.

I looked up at her. She had her brows knitted together in clear concern. I hesitated, wondering how I was going to tell her about the onrushing snow storm.

I had just opened my mouth to tell her when she gasped and looked out the window.

"My God! Paul! You can barely see outside!" Her eyes were wide and she began to look as worried as I felt.

"Katherine." I began, getting her attention again. "Our road out of town has been closed. They're expecting anywhere from 3' - 6' of snow in the next two days. We're probably going to have to find a place to stay and ride the storm out."