Chapter 35

The sun floats high in the sky, reflecting onto the snow which in turn makes the afternoon painfully bright. The only thing shielding anyone from the harsh white are the patches of shade provided by the tall, luscious green cedar trees dusted with snow. A harsh wind whirls through the empty spaces between the trees, sending a chill down the spines of the group of teens, blowing snow particles up into their faces.

"Fuck it's cold out here. Why did we decide that the best way to escape from the gray cold city we call home, was by going to an even colder place filled with ice and snow?" Foster jokes.

Joe takes a deep breath of fresh mountain air, blowing his frosty breath at Micah. "Because the air feels so much cleaner here and because it's way cheaper to go to a mountain in the winter than it is to try and go to a beach." The other teens nod at his response. It does make sense after all.

"Has anyone here ever skied before?" A gruff voice interrupts the group. All heads but one shake no. Julia raises her hand high, proud of the special knowledge she has over the other members of her cohort. "One is better than none," the man discerns.

After calling Julia forward to help demonstrate different skills such as falling, landing, speeding up, slowing down, etc., the man leaves the group, trekking on over to the next bunch of beginners. One deep breath later, and Foster is ushering everyone towards the lift. He was hoping to ride up with Claudia to ensure her safety, fear still gnawing in the back of his mind. However, fate has other plans. Foster ends up paired with the other chaperone of their group because he was held back after the demonstration to talk and explain yesterday's incident. He finishes his conversation up quickly and then follows Joe and Micah and the final pair of Julia and Claudia over to the lifts. It sucks that he wasn't sitting with her, but he would settle for being a few feet behind her.

The trip up the mountain leaves Claudia speechless. Initially, being so high up and away from the ground terrified her. She quickly got over this terror as the scenery came into view. Seeing the world from below made her feel almost godly. Skiiers whizzing by below them, looking like trails of ants headed back to the anthill. Giant forests turn into seas of a deep emerald color. The clouds begin to feel almost as if they are in reach, tempting Claudia to reach out to them. All of her staring and dreaming off into space prevents her from hearing anything Julia has to say.

"Earth to Claudia!" Julia snaps her fingers before the dazed girl. "Is anyone in there?" She reaches out to give Claudia a poke which finally manages to draw the girl back down from whatever icy heaven she was in.

"What? Oh sorry!" Claudia almost smacks herself at how rude she has been to her seat partner during this whole trip.

"It's almost our turn to hop off and head down the mountain. Are you ready? If you don't feel prepared you can always take the lift back down to the base of the mountain where the lodge is."

"I'm ready when you are." Claudia smiles, entirely unaware of the malice that Julia holds towards her.

The invitation to be a part of their ski group last night was an opportunity she couldn't refuse, like a red velvet cupcake on a golden platter being offered to her. When her plan to get them tossed out of the trip by Mr. Rennet didn't work out she felt discouraged, but this golden opportunity before her almost felt like a gift from whatever beings above. She felt heard, and with that, she also felt a renewed sense of determination. She was not about to let this moment go to waste.

The two girls hopped off of the lift, landing on the ground below. Claudia wobbled a bit like a newborn deer trying to walk for the first time, but she eventually got the hang of it. Once they were at the top of the path and ready to head down, Claudia started to get uneasy. It was a long way down and the path wasn't as clear as she was expecting it to be. She looked over to Julia who was prepped and ready to race down the hill. In all of Claudia's focus on the breathtaking sights from earlier, she failed to pay attention to the different signs that were explaining which paths were for beginners, and which paths were meant for veterans of the slopes.

"Is this right? It seems so much scarier in person." Claudia peered over at Julia who was attempting to smile innocently.

"I think so. I mean, where else were we supposed to drop off?" She asks, feigning confusion along with Claudia.

"I guess you're right. No turning back now..." she trails off. Julia turns to face the slope again, thanking her family for all of their winter ski trips back when she was a child. This slope would be almost impossible for a beginner but would barely challenge Julia.

Claudia was the first to push off, gaining speed the further down she went. Julia trailed closely behind smiling at each struggle Claudia had. However, when Claudia had made it halfway down the slope with no issue, Julia started to get agitated. She swallowed hard and then prepared for the sabotage.

Coming up ahead was a split in the path. To the right was off-limits to skiers due to some blockages caused by fallen trees. To the left was a clear path speckled with a few obstacles along the way, but nothing too difficult for those who had made it that far. Just before the separation, Julia sped up behind Claudia, reaching her ski pole out, using it to tip the heel of Claudia's ski up just enough to make her veer to the right. As soon as Claudia was headed in the wrong direction, Julia swerved over back onto the left path to avoid being caught at the scene of whatever crime was surely about to happen. She was on her way to the base of the mountain, Claudia nowhere to be seen, but also detached from any potential harm that may come to her peer. She celebrated her victory when she hit that final stretch of snow.

Julia skids to a stop once she is all the way back to where the group started before they splintered off. She spots Micah and Joe across the way, sitting on a bench, clutching some type of steaming warm beverage, and struts over to them.

"Where's C?" Hearing Foster's question jolts her a bit. She hadn't noticed him coming up behind the benched duo, two cups of scalding liquid in his hands. Once she makes it to the bench, she grabs a cup from Foster before he can protest, raising it to her lips, letting the hot liquid cascade down her throat, warming her frozen bones.

"What do you mean? She isn't here? I swear she was ahead of me on the slopes the last time I looked." Julia bluffs, a fake look of concern shoots across her features.

"No. She is supposed to be with you. You are her partner! How could you fucking lose her?!" That fear that Foster tried to tuck away lashed out at Julia. This legitimately took Julia by surprise who was expecting a bit more kindness from the man who once wiped her tears away for her.

"I don't know Foster! Why don't you go get the fucking adults instead of just standing there!" She spits back at him. As soon as the words pass her lips, she regrets them. Yelling at him when he is obviously worried about Claudia will not get her in his good graces. Before she can apologize and blame it on the fake stress of losing her partner, Foster is already sprinting away, spilling his drink on the snow. He knew he should have listened to his gut.

He alerts the teachers and staff members at the lodge of the missing member of their party. The adults try to calm him down and reassure him that if she doesn't return in the next thirty minutes or so, they will send out a search team.

Foster decides that he will not wait thirty whole fucking minutes when he senses something is immediately wrong with the only person that has kept him grounded during these past few weeks. He hops onto the ski lift, taking it up as high as it will go, prepared to scour the entire fucking slope if he has to in order to find Claudia.