What Separates Me and You

Josephine's lashes fluttered as she looked away from the window. It was unlikely for her to see it snow at that point.

Lewis looked at her briefly, then shot to his feet while caressing the top of her head. "Wait here."

He then left the room.

Josephine watched as he exited the bedroom before shutting her eyes. She had been so bedridden recently that she no longer had a sense of time. So, she didn't know how long he had gone.

When Lewis woke her again, she could tell the temperature in the air had dropped significantly. Lewis lifted her off the bed and placed her on the couch beside the window. Following that, he helped her put on a thick winter coat.

"Look outside, Josie." He held her shoulder while motioning her to look out the window.

Josephine did so and instantly froze.

A thick blanket of snow had suddenly coated the ground. Snowflakes danced in the air while some scattered onto the trees. Josephine didn't know when it had happened, but a layer of frost had covered all the buildings outside.

This snowing scenery was more intense than anything she had ever seen. Most of the view had gotten blurred by the heavy snow. The blowing wind made more snowflakes flutter like excited children skipping around.

Josephine's gaze trembled. She couldn't believe her eyes that she had witnessed snowfall. "How did you do it?"

Lewis turned to look at her shocked expression. With a slight smile, he picked her up and said, "Come on. Let's go outside."

Although Josephine was still doubtful, she joined him in the yard. There, a snowflake landed on her cheek. It felt cold and nipped on her skin like real snow. Yet, she didn't see any machine that produced snow nearby.

Lewis put her in the car before getting inside as well. Then, he drove her out the gates. Along the way, snow fell from the sky. The trees lining both sides of the road had also been covered in thick snow, much like the road itself. No one had ever witnessed such heavy snowfall, not even in Elysium when it snowed.

Josephine looked out the window in a daze. It felt like time had gone backward by a few months during her nap. Suddenly, she had gone from being in springtime back to the cold months of winter. "Holy shit. Did I time-travel?" Avery rubbed her eyes, then raised her phone to look at the calendar. It was April like she had expected. So, why was there such heavy snowfall now?

That was when Tyler visited her with some lunch. He couldn't help chuckling upon seeing her shocked expression. "What's with the big reaction?"

Avery wasted no time in responding to him. She lifted her blanket and forgot her walking cane as she limped toward the window.

Once she opened the window, a gust of cool air blew against her face. It was so frosty that it made her sneeze. She reached out, and a snowflake landed on her palm. Still, it dissolved not long after. Tyler came over to shut the window. "Be careful. You don't want to catch a cold."

Avery turned to look at him. "What's going on, Tyler? Why is there snow in April? And why don't you seem shocked?"

Tyler tucked his hands into his pockets. "Haven't you seen artificial snowfall before?"

"No. Who did this?" Avery was in the middle of speaking when she whipped her head around. Her eyes widened as she asked, "Don't tell me it's that dumbass Lewis' doing?"

"Why must you always insult him? Josephine mentioned she wanted to see it snow the day before. Because of that, Lewis contacted all organizations known for making artificial snow overnight. He spent billions to have half of Elysium covered in snow."

Avery pursed her lips and tutted in disdain. "What's the use? It's too late for him to return her affections! Anything he does now is worthless when he could've done so long ago! Besides, won't all of this affect traffic and cause environmental pollution?"

Tyler replied, "It won't pollute the environment. Artificial weather modification occurs through physical alterations. No foreign chemicals were introduced during the snowfall process. The snow we're seeing now is no different from the one we usually see in winter. It's not harmful."

Avery rolled her eyes. "I know you're on good terms with him, so go ahead and defend him. But it's not like this one snowfall will make Josephine get better."

Tyler shook his head as he knew Avery was biased against Lewis. She refused to change her mind, no matter what he said about Lewis, so he didn't bother saying anything more. Instead, he voiced, "You should eat. Josephine might not be in Styx Mansion today, so just focus on recovering in the hospital."

The snow had happened abruptly. Although the weather reports had mentioned it earlier today, most people didn't believe that it would actually snow. When it did happen, everyone was in awe. Everyone finally realized it was snowing, but only a few knew why it happened.

Lewis drove his car down the road.

At the same time, Josephine noticed many people cheering and playing in the snow. After all, it was rare to see snow in Elysium. Even Josephine had only seen it twice in all her years of living here. She fell into a daze while watching the mesmerizing snow.

She didn't know how long they had been driving, but the car eventually slowed.

As she looked up, she realized they had arrived at a familiar spot with the view of the sea. Only then did she notice this was where Lewis had previously brought her to jump overboard.

Lewis approached the front passenger seat, opened the door, and adjusted her coat before carrying her out. With her in his arms, he sat on a massive stone slab. "Is the view to your liking?"

Josephine glanced ahead and saw the sea that stretched on for miles. Dark clouds almost touched the top of the seawater. Further behind was a field of snow, while two snow-covered trees sat on both sides of her view. It felt very similar to the photo Avery had shown her.

She nodded. "It's beautiful."

Lewis hugged her in his arms while letting the snow land on their body. Not long after, tiny snowflakes gathered on their shoulders and heads. He asked, "Are you feeling less glum now?"

Josephine's body stiffened as she took Lewis' face in. Snow had gathered on his head, but some also had landed on his lashes. Meanwhile, his head hung low as he gazed dotingly at her. She pointed at his face and softly teased, "You look like an old geezer."

"So do you." Lewis held her hand while his lips curved into a smile.

"A long time ago, I thought about how we'd look like if we ever grew old together," Josephine said.

There was a gleam in Lewis' eyes, but he held her hand tightly and kept mum.

She continued, "Do you think things would be different now if I kept refusing your grandpa's wish of having me marry you back then?"

In truth, Josephine had rejected Alan's request for her to marry Lewis back then. She knew Lewis had a girlfriend and didn't want Lewis to hate her more if she accepted the marriage.

Yet, Alan insisted on having them marry, or he would be upset even after his death. So, Josephine had no choice. She couldn't allow Alan to die in grief. Plus, Lewis had hinted at his acceptance. That left Josephine too afraid to refuse anymore.

Without waiting for Lewis' response, Josephine went on. "We probably wouldn't turn out like this. If I had refused, I would still be like a sister to you instead of whatever this messy and unclear role I'm in now." Her brain felt heavier by the second, and she didn't know what she was saying. However, she subconsciously realized she wouldn't get to say what was on her mind if she didn't voice it now.