All bundled up for winter, Crystal looked around the snow-filled area before her as she experienced America’s winter having experienced only Australia's previously.   Feeling a gentle nudge she looked up behind them to see her smiling babysitter, and she knew that Amp was also there, hiding in her outfit to stay warm.  

Crystal proceeded forward listening as her boots made the crunching sound as she walked through the snow towards the play structure. She hoped she could make some friends here, more her own age something that was a little limited back at the mansion.

Wollman Rink in Central Park was in full winter wonderland mode, happily welcoming the fresh snow that had fallen the night before. Winter had started early this year, even though it was the first weekend in December this wasn’t the first snow of the season. Which meant the residents of New York were already accustomed to it, so this latest layer of white was just an excuse to wear their new winter hats, gloves, scarves and coats. The pavilion around the large skate rink was decorated for the holiday season. Vendors had stands and kiosks set-up, with a wide variety of offerings to sell.

Booker stood underneath one of the warming lamps near the ice rink. Shalimar had convinced him to spend the night in her guest room, but once the sun was up he snuck out the bedroom window and down the fire escape. He liked how friendly the woman with the pretty eyes was, but he was just too scared to stay. He didn’t want to risk her getting in trouble for sheltering him if the hospital found out. Once he was warmed up, in his oversized flannel, he turned back towards the ice rink. He watched with amazement and wonder as the people on ice skated danced across the frozen surface.

Movement around the ice rink brought the young girl’s attention to the rink and the people skating. A smile formed on her lips as she saw how fun it seemed to be. She turned her head to look at the other people watching and made her way towards the entrance, where she could see what people were using to skate. She’d never been skating before, though she knew the sport existed back in Australia though artificially created.

She looked at Booker” hey, have you done that before?’ she asked, wanting to know about the experience of the other.

Daphne was overly bundled up. Even though she was a seasoned traveler, and used to years of London weather, she was still a Cali girl at heart. She had her doubts about ever becoming accustomed to New York’s winters. The plus side of being someone who gets cold easily though is the amazing cozy winter clothes she got to buy and wear. Her coffee colored skin and curly dark hair were a beautiful contrast to her cream colored outfit. The fur lined coat, scarf, gloves, hat and boots screamed cozy luxury. Without coming across as stuck-up and snobby. Her friendly smile and her knack for talking to strangers had a habit of helping those around her feel more comfortable.

Her plan was to take a lap around the pavilion before deciding what to do first, but that plan went out the window when she saw a chai tea cart run by a friendly Hawaiian couple. While they made her drink she couldn’t help but ask about why they had relocated to the east coast. Personally she couldn’t bring herself to understand why anyone would leave a tropical paradise like Hawaii.

Booker had his arms resting on the rink’s wall, folded across each other; it gave him a warm spot to rest his chin as he continued to watch the skaters enjoy themselves. Hearing a nearby voice he glanced over his shoulder. He was genuinely surprised to discover he was the one being talked to. It actually took him half a beat to find his voice. “I have,” he replied with a friendly smile. “I mean, I haven’t skated here,” he added pointing to the ice in front of him. “But there were some skating rinks in Seattle…when I lived there,” he clarified. “Have you skated before?” Booker asked with a curious smile.

Crystal thought about what he was saying. She couldn’t help but think of Seattle, and thought it was one of those famous cities like New York but she hadn’t been able to visit. The only American City she had been able to visit was Minneapolis and that was only because it was the airport for international flights which her and her grandmothers had been. “Yeah, mum took me once to where we could skate back home!” She replied to him. “I remember falling down a lot but I got the hang of it,” she said with an Australian accent.

A skater zoomed by on the ice, which caused Booker to pull his arm back from where he had it lazily hanging over the wall, not quite pulling it back from when he gestured to the ice earlier. Along with the being slightly started, the speedy skater was trailed by a chilled breeze. It sent a chill up Booker’s back. Curling his arms closer, he took a step away from the rink wall which brought him closer to the heat lamp. “Did you and your mom move here or are you just visiting for a holiday?” he asked. Looking over to Crystal with another friendly smile.

Living in New York he was used to a wide variety of accents, heck the city itself had its own handful of accents depending on what neighborhood you lived in. Tourists were a very common sight too, they arrived for a new adventure, as a stopping point to somewhere further east, or just here on holiday. With all that activity it was easy to see why it was one of the city’s that never slept.   

While his wife moved with skilled hands preparing the tea, Daphne and Charlie (the husband) happily chatted out of the way. “So what started out as our daughter’s senior year at NYU has turned into a graduation, followed by a baby shower and her engagement at said baby shower,” he summarized if brief.

“That’s one hell of a senior year,” Daphne replied. Her voice carried the joy for their news, but her face was unable to hide the shock at the enormous weight all these life changes carried.

Kanoa chuckled, “Our girl is strong enough for whatever life throws her way.” Chiming in with her own reassurance.

Charlie bobbed his head in agreement with his wife, “We were already planning to come for her graduation so we just had to adjust our plans slightly.”
“Slightly?” Kanoa questioned in a tone that caused Daphne to laugh.

“Two weeks…two years…same thing,” he replied with a dismissing wave of the hand. “It’s not like we were about to miss out on seeing our grand-baby or being their for our daughter,” he added as if pointing out the obvious.

“‘Ohana,” Daphne pipped in. With a peaceful smile as the single word summed up all that needed to be said.

Kanoa and Charlie both paused what they were doing and looked towards Daphne. They both smiled in return. “‘Ohana,” Kanoa answered back.

“Some people spend their whole life never figuring out the secret of life - your daughter is lucky,” Daphne assured them both.

Crystal glanced over to him, her red hair shifted to the right as her head tilted somewhat. “Well, Mum, and my uncle came cause they were looking for a private school, that they’d heard of,  I came over later  with my grandmum. I guess you can say we moved here.  As for me, I get a good education, and can make new friends, especially American friends. Well, more American ones anyways since I already had some online friends that were  here” She told him as she looked at the skaters again.

Crystal turned and moved to follow him to the heatlamp.