(18+) The Punishment (Complete)

Ch. 6: A little trip

The day for my departure was closing in, and I had to admit that the thought made me sad. I loved being around these guys. The friendly teasing and witty bickering. The humor and the mutual care. I liked teaching Jack new dance moves. He was so eager, and he was a fast learner as well. We had a great time, with late evenings in the sauna. I struggled just as hard every time though, and I got the same stare down from Patrick. But it was fine, I guess. We went up to the lake to ice skate a few times more too, but I had to admit that it just wasn't my cup of tea. We even tried ice fishing, which was too goddamn cold, so it was enough with that one time.

I wrote a lot. A few songs. Lots of poems. A lot of words. A lot of feelings. I played the guitar, mostly to myself. And I danced.
I suddenly had a newfound source of passion. A source of love and sensuality. And it changed the way I moved. It changed my expression within music. I was no longer a boy. I was a man, and it was about time to show it as a musician and artist.

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"Do you wanna take a trip? We can go skiing to Dover's creek."

Leah was cleaning the table after breakfast, but busier looking at me than what she was doing. I just shrugged.

"Sure. Where's that?"

"Up to the lake, but around it and into the forest. Then we head up to the smallest mountain in between Great Rock and The Goat."

Those were two landmarks, that I'd gotten to know after the many trips to the lake. The Goat got its name because it looked like a goat from a certain angle, with horns and everything. And Great Rock? Well, because it was a rock. A giant one.

"It's a bit further in from what we can see from the lake."

"Okay. How long does it take?"

"About three or four hours. And probably half the time on our way down."

I nodded. That sounded cool.

"We need to get going pretty soon though, so we get home before it gets dark."

She put the clean plates back into the cabinet.

"Patrick? Do you wanna join us?" she asked, since he was standing in the doorway. He was eyeing me up and down, just like he'd done so many times before. I knew I should stay away from her. He'd made that perfectly clear.

"I can't. I need to pick up some new parts for the snow mobile."

I looked down to show him he'd proven his point, and he gave me a victorious smirk. He knew I wouldn't dare to do anything to his sister.

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We packed a backpack with food and headed for the lake. I knew the place quite well now, so I led the way with Leah following suit. It was especially cold today, but there was something fascinating about being able to see our breath released in small clouds that vanished within a second or two. And even though the cold stung my cheeks, it didn't matter. The sun sparkled in the snow crystals, and we could see animal tracks from rabbits, foxes, and deer. There were also tracks that Leah was sure came from a lynx.

We passed the usual shed where the bonfire was and made a set of new tracks into the forest. Huge trees made long shadows that looked like trolls and fantasy creatures. I let my mind spin while I was grinning widely. Leah was leading the way now since this was all new land to me. It almost felt like trespassing somebody's property. Something illegal. Something forbidden.

I looked at Leah. She was forbidden fruit too. I knew that way too well. But I tried not to think about it while we walked in a comfortable silence through a landscape shimmering from diamonds. Nevertheless, the biggest diamond of them all, was her. And that's when I knew. This feeling I had suppressed all this time. It wasn't just attraction or stupid hormones. I was in love. I was head over heels in love with Leah.

We started a light conversation while we were skiing through this white world. It was like the both of us felt a strange need to keep on talking. Then suddenly, we heard something barging through the forest, heading right in our direction. Branches were breaking and something big and hairy came rushing out from the trees. I almost wet myself.

"Michael! Watch...!"

I didn't hear anything more because I panicked. It was a bear. A large grizzly. We were going to die.

I crashed into a tree and fell to the ground with a spray of snow around me. Then I heard the vibrant giggling from Leah as she came closer.

"Relax, Michael. It was just a moose."

She came over to help me up and was struggling really hard to keep serious. My limbs were all over the place and my neck was filled with melting snow, and goddamn, that was cold! But thanks to her, I got back on my feet, brushed off most of the remaining snow and I gave her a grateful glance. That's when she couldn't hold back anymore. She laughed so hard that she had to hold her stomach, and I couldn't help but to join her. Between fists of laughter, I stuttered:

"That was another first timer!"

"Indeed, Michael. I think you'll remember this for a while."

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We started to climb up the steep hill to the plateau of Dover's Creek. It was hard, because the skis kept slipping, but Leah showed me a skating technique called 'duck walk' which kept me from sliding backwards. It was still a struggle, though. However, it was worth every drop of sweat, because the view was breathtaking! The lake suddenly didn't look that large anymore, and we could spot their house in the distance. It was as tiny as a little peanut.

"Wow, Leah! This is beautiful!"

She nodded and looked at me.

"It sure is."

I couldn't read her expression. Why did I get the feeling she wasn't talking about the view? But I didn't get to ponder about it, because we didn't stay there more than a few minutes. We were already close to the top, and Leah had obviously planned to reach the highest point. But after walking in silence for a while, we suddenly heard something that sounded like thunder.

"OH, MY GOD! NOOOOO!"

Leah's voice was filled with panic, and I felt a sting of fear running down my spine. I didn't know why until it was too late.

"AVALANCHE! MICHAEL!"

Darkness.