Chance Encounters of the Canuck Kind

Jacob inhaled the subtle scent of rose and sandalwood from Juliette’s hair as his eyes fluttered open. It was close to 6am and Juliette was still in the throes of sleep, he watched the duvet rise and fall with her deep, steady breathing and drew circles on her bare shoulder with a feather-light touch as he continued to breathe in her scent, eyes still heavy with the remnants of his slumber. She shifted ever so slightly, pushing back into him as if making sure that he was still there. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her back so that she was flush against his chest and kissed the back of her head lightly earning him the faintest of hums.
“God Jul” he whispered. “I’m sorry if I woke you.”
“S’okay” she mumbled in return, voice still thick with sleep. “Merry Christmas, babe.” She could feel him smiling into her hair. “What is it?”
“Nothing, babe. It’s just… this might be the best Christmas present I’ve ever had…” He ran has hands down Juliette's side earning him a sleepy smile. “So what’s the plan?” Jacob asked.
“Well, we get up, have coffee, wait for the others, open presents and then eat so much food we can’t move.”
“Sounds like a solid plan” he replied. “When do you want to get up?”
Juliette groaned slightly at the mention of having to leave their bed.
“10 more minutes. Please?”
Jacob nodded and pulled her in tightly, burying his face into her hair.
“Absolutely, min skatt.”

The pair came downstairs to the sight of Ralof and Suzanne already sat together on the couch. Suzanne was snuggled into the side of Ray and went as if to move upon seeing Juliette and Jacob enter the room.
“Don’t move on my account” Juliette said. “I’m happy for you both if this is what you want.” She smiled at her friend and sat herself on the opposite couch, leaving space for Jake to sit next to her once he’d returned from getting coffee from the kitchen.
“You sleep okay?” Ralof asked from behind his mug.
“Yeah, you guys? How long have you been awake for? I hope you weren’t waiting for us” said Jacob as he handed the steaming cup of coffee to Juliette and sat beside her.
“Only woke up about half hour ago. Was dead to the world.” Ralof replied, although Suze managed to catch Juliette’s eyes and gave her a knowing look causing heat to build in Juliette’s cheeks.
“Well” Suze began. “Now we’re all here, I’d say it’s the perfect opportunity to exchange gifts, right?” She pressed play on the iPod dock, Nat King Cole suddenly filling the room.
“Gleồileg jól!“ Ralof announced as he began to distribute the presents.
The foursome chatted animatedly as gifts were passed between them. A medley of “thank yous” and “you shouldn’t haves”. Suzanne was already wearing the charm bracelet Juliette had bought for her and was admiring her new bottle of Yves Saint Laurant perfume from Ralof (this particular gift eliciting a “how did you know?” from Suze). Ralof had bought Juliette a brand new free standing mixer and a new pair of Timberland boots which thrilled Juliette to no end. Juliette watched anxiously as Jacob unwrapped his presents, unsure of how he would react. He opened the box and was stunned to see a small leather bound book inside.
“Open it” Juliette prompted gently.
Jacob opened the book onto the first page where he found a photograph of the two of them glued in with Juliette’s unmistakably neat handwriting underneath:
Out of all of the love stories in the world,
Ours is my favourite.
He gingerly turned the pages to find more photos and handwritten notes, fingers trembling slightly and breath catching in his throat.
“You made me a scrapbook?”
“Yeah… That’s not your only present by th- umph!”
Juliette was cut off mid-sentence by Jacob’s lips on hers. He pulled away to look her in the eyes
“I love it. I absolutely love it. Thank you.”
Her mouth pulled up at the corners into a bashful smile and she watched as Jacob gently turned each page, studying it with the same fervour as the last. Finally, he carefully set the book down and turned to Juliette.
“Thank you, älskling. That’s the nicest gift anyone’s ever given me.” He cupped her face with his hand, gently petting her cheek with his thumb. “Now, your turn. Here…” He handed Juliette a giant gift bag filled to the brim with presents.
“Jake!” she exclaimed. “This is too much!”
“No it’s not. You deserve it, babe. Go ahead, open them.”
There was seemingly no end to the gifts and Juliette was sure she wouldn’t need to buy clothes for the next 5 years as she tackled the mountain sized pile of gifts, unwrapping each one carefully. It was obvious that each gift had been carefully selected.
“How did you know I was looking at all this stuff?”
“I’m very observant.” Said Jacob with a wink. “I take notice of these kinds of things.”
“Honestly, Jake it’s too much. You shouldn’t have.”
“I absolutely should have and there’s one more thing I have for you.” He reached inside his sweatpants’ pocket and pulled out a small velvet jewellery box bringing the room into stunned silence. Ralof and Suze stared at the box in Jacob’s hands with bated breath.
He handed it to Juliette who took it from him with trembling hands.
“Jacob?” Juliette whispered.
“I wanted to get you something really special. Something that would mean something to you and that could remind you of me when I’m on the road. I want you to know how much I love you and how much you mean to me and it just seemed fitting that I got you something that’s as beautiful as you are.”
Juliette looked at him completely stunned. She didn’t trust her fingers to be able to navigate opening the box. Could this be what Juliette thought it was?
“Go on babe, open it.” Jake prompted gently.
She prised the box open slowly, holding her breath.
Sparkling within the box was a pair of the most exquisite diamond and blue sapphire earrings she’d ever seen.
The room collectively exhaled upon seeing the contents of the box and watched as Jacob, with uncertainty, asked “Do you like them? I know Sapphires are your birthstone…”
“I love them, babe. Thank you so much, they’re gorgeous!”
“Gorgeous earrings for a gorgeous lady.” He smiled.
Juliette put the earrings on in the mirror, admiring the way they sparkled under the Christmas lights.
“Jeez, Marky” Ralof chuckled. “You really had us going there! I thought you were about to pop the question.”
“Soon…” replied Jacob, watching Juliette look at her earrings in the mirror and feeling his heart swell. “But not yet.”
***

Notes