Winter Tales

Chapter 12 - Whiteout

"You know I am sorry about that," Luke says, sounding very regretful.

And I believe that he means it, too. But that does not make it any better – or get us off this mountain any quicker.

"I do. – Hey, Jordan, how's it looking? Are we good to keep going? I'd really like to..."

"Just give us a minute," he orders, looking back at me over his shoulder, conveying the message that Lily's little meltdown is not yet over.

I sigh.

"Are we even going to get down there with her? I mean, the state she's in...," Luke muses.

"We have to, somehow. It'll be fine." I wonder where I take my confidence from.

But what other option do we have?

"Maybe we can kinda figure out a way to carry her? That might speed up the process?"

"And how exactly do you think that would work, genius?"

"Either you or Jordan put her on your backs, piggy back style, while I take her board. I mean, you guys are pros at this. Surely that should be doable," he says slowly.

I laugh at this, despite not exactly feeling very amused at the moment.

"You're kidding, right?"

Luke just stares at me, obviously waiting for an explanation.

"It's difficult enough to make it downhill in these conditions – visibility wise, I mean – without any further obstacles. How do you expect me to keep my balance if I need my hands to hold Lily on my back? That would be taking an insane risk. We're definitely better off if we just keep pushing her to continue."

Luke thinks about his for a moment and then nods.

"You're right. I thought, maybe she could just hang onto you, like, koala-style, as she tends to do. But that's kinda unrealistic, in this scenario, when you're not stationary, I guess. Sorry I asked, that was pretty dumb. I am just trying to...," he trails off.

I put a hand on Luke's shoulder, suddenly feeling sympathetic towards him. It is pretty clear that they didn't think this whole thing through when they decided to "escape" up the mountain in that lift.

"Let's go," Jordan announces.

He has pulled Lily back onto her feet and they are standing near us. I take a closer look at my sister and she graces me with a shaky smile. I grin down at her.

She is a tough cookie, all right.

"Will? Ready to go?" I call over towards my teenage brother, who has kept his distance.

At least he has not decided to just go off on his own. I guess we have to count our blessings.

"Actually, can we switch up the order for that next bit? I'll take Luke's place and he brings up the rear. Is that okay with you guys?" Jordan suggest.

He probably promised Lily to stick by her side.

"Sure thing," Luke agrees.

"All righty, let's get this show on the road. We should arrive at the valley station in about ten minutes," I predict.

Readjusting my goggles, I continue to lead my siblings down the mountain.

*******

Shouting reaches my ear and I immediately come to a stop. I twist my body around and try to see what is happening behind me. The fog has yet again intensified and visibility has gotten worse, if that is even still possible. I cannot make out many details, but I see a couple of dark shapes stationary further up the slope. After focusing a bit more, I see another figure approaching me. It turns out that it is Will. He stops a few feet away from me.