Where the Hurricane Meets a Blizzard

Chapter 14

dedicated to stephanie because she has left so many adorable comments on this story and they make my day and she's a pretty cool chick

* * * *

         I think it’s safe to say that after days upon days of enduring the numbing cold, my very first hot shower that I take once I get released from the hospital the following day is the most blissful experience I’ve had in a long, long time.

         The steamy water slides down my back while I stand under the running faucet, soaking up each droplet that pelts down on my skin, warming my body and soothing my mind. I’ve been standing in here for almost ten minutes but I don’t want to leave the sultry atmosphere that clings to my body.

         I’m rooming with Lizzy for the night because Kristen is taking my place in Ellie’s room, a direct result of her conversation with my dad last night which apparently did not go over well. When I finally checked out of the hospital earlier this afternoon, my dad confirmed the piece of news that I’ve been waiting to hear for months now: Kirsten and Ellie are soon going to be out of the picture from this family completely.

         Finally succumbing to the fact that I can’t stand in the shower forever, I shut the nozzle off and push the shower curtain back, ready to brave the significantly less warm air that has a slight draft to it in the bathroom. I quickly towel dry myself and slip into warm pajamas, already dreaming about sleeping in an actual bed and not the lumpy thing I’ve been resting on at the hospital. My towel becomes a makeshift turban to ensconce my dripping hair, and I quickly brush my teeth, already running out of steam (both literally and figuratively).

         Once I’ve finished brushing my teeth and my mouth tastes minty and fresh (a glorious sensation that I will never again take for granted), I take the towel off my head and let my dampened hair fall past my shoulders in tangled clumps that stick to my oversized T-shirt. The light flips off at the flick of a switch and I open the door, padding over to my bed, closest to the window. Lizzy is propped upright in her own bed beside mine, texting someone. As soon as she hears me come in, she puts her phone down and looks up, offering me a shy but sincere smile.

         It occurs to me that this is the girl who Ryan might possibly be falling in love with and I know absolutely nothing about her other than the few things Ryan has told me like the fact that she lives in Alaska nearby and is staying at the ski lodge for the week with some friends, mostly because there’s nothing else to do in town while they’re on spring break at college.

         “Hey,” she says when I sit down on my own bed, staring off into space as my brain takes me to faraway places other than here.

         “Hi,” I say quietly, voice barely above a whisper. “Thanks again for letting me crash in here.”

         “It’s no problem,” she responds, tucking a strand of her dirty blonde hair behind her ear. Upon closer inspection, I notice that her hair is cut into a bob and she has one of those sweet heart-shaped faces. Her eyes are large and almond-shaped, and they have this soft, satiny-brown color to them that makes them look warm and inviting. Her nose is dotted with a light smattering of freckles that have most likely faded over the years, and a tiny diamond stud pokes out of the left side of her nose.

         In simplest terms, she’s pretty. I can see why Ryan likes her so much.

         A comfortable silence fills the room and I hug my knees to my chest as I begin zoning out once again, my mind steadily consumed by one important person in particular.

         “I know that this is probably kinda weird for you since you don’t know me or anything, but just know that I’m here if you wanna talk about anything,” Lizzy says after a while. “I mean, you don’t have to, but I’m here if there’s anything you wanna get off your chest. I can imagine these past several days have not been a walk in the park for you.”