The Cabin || Billie Eilish

I'll Show You

Arabella woke up before Claudia, before even the sun was fully out. She put on the coffee pot and went onto the balcony to meditate.

All her nerves from her audition faded in time with her breathing, in time with the cool breeze and rising sun. She finished with some wake-up yoga stretches before grabbing her coffee. She was finishing her cup when Claudia at last woke up, who quickly changed and showered while Arabella called their Uber.

The airport was busy and Arabella resisted the urge to reach for Claudia's hand to make sure she didn't get lost. They boarded the plane and Arabella sent an update text to her parents and checked her messages from Matthew one last time before turning her phone off.

Claudia fell back asleep on the plane, slumped against Arabella's shoulder. Arabella didn't mind too much and looked out to the window, where the height began to make her feel dizzy, so soon she shut the blind.

It was so much colder even in the airport where the two had just landed. As soon as they got their luggage, Arabella and Claudia rushed to the airport bathroom and swapped their sneakers for boots, and grabbed their coats and scarves.

"Whoa..."

Arabella followed her outside, blinking rapidly at the sudden brightness of the Canadian snow. The cold wind bit at her cheeks and nose as she shivered, digging into her pockets for her gloves.

"Oh my God, it's freezing!" Arabella jumped in place before pulling her knit hat further down over her ears. "Who's picking us up?"

"There's supposed to be a car from the lodge coming," Claudia replied, rubbing her hands together and rewinding her scarf twice around her neck.

They both scrambled desperately into the van when it arrived, shoving their bags into the back before clambering in. The driver chuckled and cranked the heat up for their sake.

"Not used to this mountain air, huh?"

"I can barely breathe," Claudia gasped.

"You'll get used to it," he said. "You should definitely get a nice, warm drink at the cabin, and then spend some time in the fresh air. You need to get used to it before we get out onto the slopes tomorrow. I'm Connor, by the way, and I'll be your ski instructor."

"I'm Arabella," Arabella was suddenly self conscious and gave a quick brush over her hair with her fingers. "And this is my best friend Claudia."

"So, Arabella, the slopes- ready to go?" He chuckled.

"I-I don't know," she replied. "This trip is really for Claudia and her boyfriend. I'm just the plus one. I'm not sure how coordinated I'll be out on the snow."

"No harm in trying. I'll go really slow for you."

Connor smiled at her in the rearview mirror and suddenly Arabella felt far too warm. She tugged on her scarf, staring out the window and watching the snow-covered trees pass by.

They drove up a long road through the snowy woods, the sound of traffic fading far behind them. Arabella tried to stare at Connor when he wasn't looking. His gaze was icy blue, almost too blue, but perhaps that made him more attractive. He had blonde, practically platinum hair that appeared to be drowning in product, tousled in a purposefully messy way. She didn't know why anyone would bother with all of that if their hair would be squashed down with a hat or ruined by the wind anyway.

She checked her phone once more, noting that the service was slowly returning as they neared the lodge, but still, there was nothing from Matthew. She reminded herself that it was still early back home, and repeated it in her head like a mantra.