Loser II || WlW

Twelve

     It's quiet when we enter the common room. I glance over to find Donna with a sly smile glued to her face as she flashes me a thumbs up.

Grace giggles and scolds her playfully as my cheeks flush.

Brittany and I sit on the couch as Clementine turns the TV up.

"What have you guys been up to?" Donna smirks at us.

Brittany looks at the ground, but her lips perk into a smile.

I choke. "Uh. I, uh. Took a nap."

Donna leans forward. "Sounded like an eventful nap." She winks.

She and Grace erupt into a flurry of giggles.

"Will you guys shut up?" Clementine snaps. "I'm trying to hear this."

We all look at the TV to figure out what's so important.

"That's right, Dan. And we have received confirmation from the Mono County Police Department that the man who we thought had been mauled by a bear was in fact murdered. The lacerations down his torso were confirmed to be stab wounds and it appears that authorities have no leads at this time." The woman onscreen with a hot pink suit jacket and rock-solid hair smiles at the camera. "Make sure you tune in at five o clock eastern to get the scoop on their official press release."

The room is silent. Not even Donna can find it in herself to make a light-hearted joke as the news anchors switch to the weather.

Brittany slides her hand between my knees and squeezes. After reading the panic on my face she says, "It's not related, babe."

Before I can respond, the backdoors swing open and Ron scurries in, his face flushed from the cold. His few strands of hair stand up when he pulls his beanie off. "Just got off the phone with corporate. Due to the shocking nature of events, each of you is eligible to receive a partial refund if you choose to head back down the mountain."

Donna murmurs something to grace.

Clementine gasps.

Ron sighs. "You'll have to make up your minds quick. There's a storm rolling in and we just got word it's gonna be much larger than we thought. We won't be able to make the drive after snowfall tonight." He nods. "I'll give you some time to make up your minds." With that, he heads back into the snow, slamming the doors behind him.

I look at Brittany, but she isn't paying attention. Her stare is fixed on her uncle who must have made his way into the kitchen while Ron was talking.

I brush a strand of hair away from her face. "What do you want to do?"

She bites her lip, her eyes searching my face. "What are the odds anything will happen to us?

"I can't go back," Donna chimes in. "I have that show in a couple of nights." She shakes her head. "It's been a slow season. I can't miss."

Grace rubs Donna's back. "Well, you know I'm up for the adventure. Even if something happens," she shrugs, "just better content for the website."

I let a breath out through my teeth and look at Brittany.

She nods for me to follow her and takes my hand in hers as she leads me toward our cabin.

"What are you thinking?" I ask.

"Maybe we could go back to LA," she says as she opens the door. "We could still have fun for the rest of your winter break."