Page 52 of Stuck on the Slopes

I couldn’t help my smile as I looked up at her, finally feeling confident enough to meet her gaze now that I wasn’t crying. Her eyes held such a warmth that I thought it would make me combust. “Don’t push your luck, Rach.” As I said it, I realized then she’d asked me about the lodge to help distract me from my anxiety, and it had worked.

She grinned at the nickname. “You’re not wrong, though. I busted my ass there and for nothing. The day I applied for this gig, I had my annual performance review. I spearheaded this massive marketing campaign that looped in a bunch of different departments, and it made the company a stupid amount of money. But I only ‘met expectations,’” she said, using her free hand to make air quotes, “which meant, I wouldn’t get a proper raise. Then, I had a mental breakdown as I asked myself what the hell I was doing with my life.”

“Well, I’m glad this place can give both of us a sense of direction.”

“Me too. I will say, being out in the mountains like this has done wonders for my mental health.”

“Even though I’m kind of an asshole?”

“You’re not an asshole, Juni. I can see right through that icy exterior of yours. Maybe it’s because we both care a lot.”

“Watch it. I have a reputation to uphold.”

Her laughter was contagious. The air between us was thick as my heart continued racing, even as my anxiety subsided. Before things could feel too tense, she reached for a small box in her front pack.

“This is what you take, right?”

I turned it over in my hand. “This is it.” As I removed the bottle from the box, I said, “You’re the most thoughtful person I know, you know that?”

She blushed and looked at her shoes as I filled the dropper a quarter of the way and squeezed its contents under my tongue.

“Sorry if you hate the smell.”

“Oh, it’s fine. Barely noticed it.”

We did manage to get the television to work, so we kept the news on to monitor the storm. A few hours later, Rachel got a spot of service in a random spot in the hallway when she went to use the restroom, so she used it to call Edgar.

“Hey, listen, I gotta be quick. Service is spotty out here. But can you make sure Sasquatch is okay? Juniper and I got snowed in at one of the cabins. With the avalanche warning, we’re gonna stay put until the plow comes tomorrow.” She turned to me. “Do you have a spare key?”

“Behind the front desk. There’s a box with a keypad. Tell him the code is 1990.”

Rachel filled in Edgar and then once she gave him the code, her phone beeped. “And the call dropped. Well, at least we don’t have to worry about Sasquatch now.”

“That does make me feel better.”

She smiled as she returned to me. “Good. You seem yourself again.”

“Thanks to you. I’d probably still be panicking if you didn’t talk me down and also be some sort of weed fairy.”

“Is that my official job title now?”

“Yeah, actually.” I yawned. When I looked outside, it had already gotten dark. “We should get ready for bed. I reckon they didn’t leave behind toothpaste or anything in here.”

“I didn’t see any spare toothbrushes, but the bathroom does have some mouthwash that hasn’t expired yet.”

“That’ll do for the night.”

We shared the mouthwash side-by-side, spitting it into the sink at the same time. The mundane made me feel closer to her, even as we shed our clothes to sleep in our thermal long johns.

“You’re okay with sharing a bed, right?” I asked.

“Not that we have a choice. Besides, with the weather, it’ll be better for us to cozy up.”

I nodded as I took my side, feeling a lump in my throat. “Right.”

As she slid into bed, the mattress dipping beneath her weight before adjusting, an awkward silence fell between us. After baring my soul to her tonight, I wasn’t sure where things stood. Given how vulnerable we both were, this shouldn’t feel as strange as it did, but the intimacy wasn’t lost on me.

Rachel broke the silence. “Well, good night, Juni.”

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