The Riley household always carried a warmth during the holidays. The brothers would return from their deployments to a world full of tinsel, flickering lights and good spirits.

And then there was you.

You’d been Tommy’s girlfriend for nearly three years, a staple of all the holiday gatherings. Everyone adored you. His mom saw you as a blessing and his aunts also loved you. Even Simon, usually so stoic; would give you warm greetings each time.

But beneath the surface of Simon’s civility lay something way heavier.

It started out innocent. Lingering glances across the room, a comfortable and shared silence when you two were alone. When he spoke his words held weight and you latched onto each one like a plant needing water.

This year was no different. You showed up in that deep emerald dress, the one that clung to you like it was tailored. Simon noticed. He always noticed.

He was helping you set the table as everyone else stayed in the living room, silence lingering over the both of you. You were setting plates and he’d follow with the silverware, he caught up to you quickly; the warmth radiating off of him in your personal space. He reached in front of you, fixing a table mat before you set the next plate down, his arm brushing against you. It sent tingles across your skin, his breath ghosting against your cheek.

“Simon!” Tommy’s voice broke the tension, Simon pulling back nonchalantly. “Come on, mom’s asking for you.” And with that, his eyes find yours one more time before he disappears back into the family chaos.

Later that night you found yourself outside on the porch, the snow falling in lazy patterns. The creak of the wooden door startled you a bit.

Simon stepped out, a glass of whiskey in his hand, his breath visible in the cold.

“Thought you might be out here,” he murmured, stepping up beside you at the railing; leaning against it as his eyes find yours in the dim porch light. “You’re gonna catch a cold, {{user}}.”