Chapter 38: A Mouse, a Flask, and a Decision, Part 4

Shoving the empty flask back into his pocket, Corey picked up the tray and walked into the great room. Serendipity looked as if she had dozed off perhaps. Her eyes flew open at the sound of the door, but she smiled at him, a sheepish expression on her face, and he sat the tray down next to her, taking one of the teacups in his hand as he did so. "Mr. Waddlebug wanted everything to be perfect. Sorry for the delay," he explained taking his seat across from her.
"Gingerbread!" Serendipity exclaimed, breathing in deeply. "How delightful!" She picked up the remaining teacup and set it aside. "Aren't you going to have one?" she asked, gesturing at the tray of neatly dressed gents.
"None for me," Corey replied, sipping his tea slowly.?"I've never been much of a gingerbread fanatic."
"No?" Serendipity questioned, choosing a nice fat fellow from amongst the group and breaking off his leg. "I haven't had any in years. Not since before my father passed away. My mother forbade me from having sweets."
"Really?" Corey asked, sitting his cup aside and watching her as she continued to speak, the severed leg bouncing around in her hand as she did so.
"Well, my father spoilt me a bit. He always brought me the best sweets from his trips--candies from Germany, chocolates from France. So, when he died, my mother decided I should no longer have such sugary treats. Although, I was allowed, as she would say, to bake them for my sisters." Her face grew a bit solemn. "That's why they were eating the cake that day, and I I wasn't."
"I see," Corey replied, an equally somber expression on his face. "I'm sorry to bring back such horrible memories."
"No," Serendipity corrected, still gesturing with the gingerbread man's leg. "Don't be sorry. It it helps a bit to talk about it, I think."
"Well, talk about it as much as you'd like," Corey said, smiling. "I'll do what I can to help you move on, Serendipity."
"Thank you," she said returning his smile. She raised the broken piece of gingerbread to her lips and took a bite at last. "Oh, my goodness! This is this is delicious! Your Mr. Waddlebug is a superb baker," she continued while chewing. "I shall have to meet him."
"Perhaps in a bit," Corey replied, his hands folded on his lap. "He's just stepped out."
"Oh, well, he's a master in the kitchen, that is for certain," Serendipity said, continuing to munch down the rest of the leg, followed by another of the gingerbread man's limbs.
"Do drink your tea," Corey insisted, gesturing toward her teacup.
"Yes, of course," Serendipity replied, raising the cup in her hand. "It smells divine."
Corey watched as she slowly raised the cup to her lips, those perfect, soft lips he had been kissing only a few moments ago, and watched her swallow the warm liquid. He sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead with his hand, his elbow leaning on the armrest.
"Is everything all right?" Serendipity asked, concern in her voice. She sat the teacup and the rest of the gingerbread man back on the platter and leaned forward in her chair.
"Yes, everything is fine," Corey assured her. "I'm just suddenly very tired."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Serendipity said, brushing cookie crumbs off of her hands. "Perhaps it would be better if I did stay until tomorrow then. I'd hate to trouble you to take me home when you're not feeling up to it."
Corey considered her statement for a moment. "I know how badly you'd like to get back."
"Well, I am in a bit of a rush. I do have several dolls that need finishing," Serendipity admitted. "But if I could just find Pozzletot, I should think I'd be all right to spend the night. That is, if you think your parents wouldn't mind so much."
"I don't think they would mind at all," Corey said. "However, I do have a guest room myself, if you think you should like to stay here instead. Mr. Waddlebug will be present the whole time, so you wouldn't have to worry about anything inappropriate."
Serendipity giggled. "I wouldn't be worried about anything like that, what with you dozing off in the armchair."
Corey laughed, though he wasn't sure why he was suddenly feeling quite so tired. Perhaps it was the stress of the day. "Shall we go into the kitchen and see if you can find your mouse friend there?"
"Oh, yes!" Serendipity exclaimed, practically leaping from the chair.?Laughing at her exuberance, Corey followed her, standing clear of the mistletoe as he pushed the door open for her to make her way into the kitchen. "What a lovely flower!" Serendipity cried, eyeing the frozen poinsettia on the counter. "What is it?"
"It is a frozen poinsettia," he replied, "a rare flower that blooms only in the North Pole."
"Is it magical?" she asked reaching out to delicately touch the smooth surface of the bloom.
"Honestly, I'm not sure," Corey admitted. "Though I wouldn't be too surprised. It was a gift from the Snow Queen."
"The Snow Queen?" Serendipity asked, turning to face him.?"Like in the book by Hans Christian Anderson?"
Corey leaned against the counter next to her, a consternated look upon his handsome face. "I'm not sure of that either," he replied. "I'm not familiar with that story."
"Really?" Serendipity gasped in surprise. "Oh, you simply must read it. My father used to read it to me all the time. It's all about how the Snow Queen lived way up in the Alps. Many suitors came to call, but each time she let the goblins devour them, until one handsome hunter comes a calling and"
"He melts her frozen heart?"
"Yes, but then the goblins get him, too, and he dies."
"Lovely story," Corey said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh, but it is; it really is. Especially at the end when the Snow Queen becomes a woman and realizes that there is nothing more important in the world than true love--nothing."
Corey looked into her icy blue eyes just then and realized what she was saying was true. "Serendipity," he said quietly. "There's something you need to know."
"What's that?" she asked releasing the flower to give him her full attention.
"You can't leave," Corey replied, touching her lightly on the arm.
Serendipity held his gaze for a long moment before looking away. "I have to" she whispered.
"No, you can't," he said again, reaching up to touch the soft skin of her cheek. "I can't be without you."
"Oh, Corey," Serendipity sighed, placing her hand over his. "Let's not think on it just now, all right? We can talk about it again tomorrow. For now, let us just find Pozzletot and get some rest."
Stroking her cheek one last time, Corey nodded his head, releasing her.
Serendipity smiled fondly and then said, "Now, wherever is that silly little mouse?"
As she began to scour the baseboards, Corey sighed deeply again. At least, for now, she had agreed to stay. If he could continue to prolong her willingness to stay just one day at a time, soon she would forget that she ever wanted to leave in the first place.
And then, the Snow Queen's potion wouldn't make any difference at all. She'd be staying with him because she wanted to, not because she was forced to.