Iâm Cold (Cor x Aravis)
I was going through my documents and I found this that I wrote in November of last year. Â I figured since itâs been ages since Iâve posted (sorry about that) I would go ahead and share it with you. Â It's a Modern AU. I just did a quick read through so if there are any mistakes, my apologies. Â I remember now that the reason I didnât post it right away was because I was worried I didnât get the personalities correct so let me know what you think. Â I know itâs a winter/Christmas type story and itâs currently summer but maybe thisâll help distract you from the heat? And hey, Christmas in July is a thing. Â Okay, Iâm done, enjoy the story.
 âI hate snow,â Aravis mumbled to herself while wrapped in a mound of blankets on the couch.Â
 She, Cor, and Corin had taken a trip to the mountains because Corin claimed he âneeded a break from the sweltering heat and need company for his excursionâ. After successfully convincing Cor and Aravis to go with him, he booked them a suite in a five-star lodge. Personally, Aravis didnât care how many stars this stupid place had; it did nothing to keep her from being cold.
  The worst part was this weather made her incredibly grumpy. Cor had argued that she was always grumpy, which had almost started a food fight in the dining room last night.Â
  A sudden gust of wind came in, making Aravis borrow even deeper into her cacoon, as the twins rushed in with red cheeks and covered in snow.
  âAravis!â Corin exclaimed as he ran towards the fire. âWhy are you staying cooped up in here when you could be outside skiing or snowboarding?â
  âCorin, if Iâm cold sitting here, wrapped in blankets, heat on, and near a roaring fire, there is no way in hell Iâm not going to die of pneumonia if I go outside,â Aravis snapped glaring at him.
  Corin shrugged as he finished shredding his layers. He started for the bedroom he and Cor were sharing before stopping short and turning.
  âBy the way,â he said with a glint in his eye. âI managed to snag an invitation to that party thatâs being held tonight so try not to miss me too much when Iâm gone.â
  With a wink, he disappeared into the bedroom.
  Aravis moved her glare from the closed bedroom door to Corâs figure as he sat by the fire.
  âWhat does he mean by snagged an invitation?â
  âWe ran into a few girls on the slopes and Corin captured their attention. One of them turned out to be the daughter of the man who owns the lodge. Corin did a little charming and next thing you know weâre invited to a party.â
  âWell I was standing there and it would have been rude to invite only one of us.â
  âAre you going?â Aravis inquired, suddenly wishing she had gone skiing so she could have given these girls a piece of her mind.
  Cor turned from the fire to look at her with a raised eyebrow, making Aravis want to look away. Too late she realized that the haughtiness of her tone had not completely hidden the sadness underneath.Â
  Cor opened his mouth to speak but just then a crash sounded when the door Corin had disappeared into slammed against the wall as he strutted out in dry clothes.
  âSee you two later!â he called and, with another wink, was out the door again.
  Cor let out a sigh as the door slammed shut and stood up, mumbling something about changing into dry clothes too.
  Aravis hardly heard him, but watched him out of the corner of her eye as he walked away. Why was she feeling like this today? What was she even feeling? Aravis knew the answer as soon as she asked herself the question. Jealousy. She was feeling jealous. But there was nothing she could do about that. She and Cor were friends. Friends and nothing more.
  Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Cor yell from the bedroom.
  âAravis, you stole our blankets!â
  âWell you werenât using them!â She yelled back indignantly, clutching the blankets in her arms.
  âWhy arenât you using your blanket?â Cor questioned her as he marched out of the bedroom to stand in front of her, now wearing a fresh set of clothes.
  âI am using mine. These northern idiots seem to think one blanket is enough for a person!â
  âWell Iâm cold!â
  âHow? You might as well be hiding under Mount. Everest! I can hardly see your face!â
  âI just am! Iâm not a polar bear! Iâm not cut out for this kind of weather!â
  âWell how am I supposed to get warm?â
  âI donât know! Go sit in the fire, thatâll do the trick! If youâre thinking about taking one of my blankets youâd better think again, mister! The only way youâre using one of these is if you join me under here!â
  They both froze at this.Â
  Aravis sunk into the covers until her head disappeared, leaving Cor standing there with his lips slightly parted in shock.Â
  After a long silence she heard him whisper, âMay I?â
  Aravis mind seemed to freeze and speed into oblivion at the same time.Â
 âIf you want to, Shasta.â
  Cor smiled then; a very large, very giddy smile.
  Slowly he grabbed the corner of the mound and lifted it up, making Aravis shiver as a blast of cold air hit her. He lowered himself on the sofa, turning onto his side as if to face Aravis just as she shifted to face away from him.
  âIâm about to fall off,â Cor complained. He wasnât really. He just wanted to see what Aravis would do; how far they were going to take this.Â
  There was a pause, shorter than the last few, before he heard her mumble, âWell then scooch in, idiot.â
  He smiled again as he moved closer, moving his arm to rest atop to curve of her figure to allow for more room.
  They stayed like this for a while, both slightly tense but strangely content, until Aravis decided she couldnât take it anymore.
  Cor heard her mumble something he couldnât understand before she began to wiggle her way around to face him. He was about to ask her what she was doing when she placed her lips on his own.
  His mind exploded. He found he couldnât think straight; He couldnât think of anything but the warm press of her lips against his.
  Too soon, he felt her pull away. She began to flip away from him again but he swiftly wrapped his arms around her frame and held her close. Her dark eyes glared at him but there was a glint in them that hadnât been there before. There was a pause as they starred at each other. Finally, a small smile appeared on Corâs face.
  âIf I had known the way to kiss you was to freeze you to death I would have done it sooner.â
  âShut up!â Aravis exclaimed, hitting his chest.
  Cor laughed. âWhat took you so long?â
  âMe? Youâre the man. According to society, youâre the one who should initiate this sort of thing.â
  Corâs smile faultered. âI didnât know you wanted me to.â
  Aravis laughed loudly. âAnd here I thought I was being too obvious! Havenât you noticed how territorial Iâve become of you? I want punch every girl the goes near you and when youâre even remotely civil to them it makes me mad! Every time youâd smile at them or laugh at their jokes Iâd be mad that it wasnât directed at me; then Iâd be mad at myself for being mad and-.â
  She was interrupted when Cor pressed his lips to hers again. Their mouths moved in unison until they both pulled away for air. Aravis looked down at the blankets before mumbling, âBesides, I didnât think youâd want me to do anything.â
  âNot want you to do something? Aravis, Iâve wanted to kiss you for a while now. If you even look at a guy I get mad and then Corin wonât shut up about me making a move but I was always too scared to. Youâre this-this goddess and youâre so strong and bold-beautiful-you always know what you want, and I was certain you didnât want me.â
  He stopped talking when he saw the smile that light up her face and the way she was shaking her head.
  Aravis leaned in and gave his lips a quick peck. A small smile continued to grace her lips as she snuggled closer to him and laid her head on his chest.
  She closed her eyes and mumbled, âNext time some girls invite you to a party, say you canât go unless your girlfriend can come too.â
  âOh, so youâre my girlfriend now?â
  Aravisâ eyebrow shot up as she opened her eyes. But when she saw the smile Cor was wearing she just shook her head and laughed.Â
  Closing her eyes again, she snuggled a little closer to him, felt his arms tighten around her waist, and decided that maybe this place wasnât so horrible after all.
  That is, until Corin burst in a few hours later, waking them up with screams of triumph and never letting them hear the end of it.