Winter Camp

Chapter 19 - Liana

My feet made sluggish movements towards the lights that flickered in my line of sight. I pulled Olly’s jacket tighter around me, shivering violently in the cold.

 “Shit!” I yelled out, slipping on an icy patch that sent me sprawling down the hill. Cold and wet clung to my clothes, making me numb, as if I hadn't already been cold.

I lay for a moment, looking up at the bright stars above that blazed, as if encouraging me to keep moving. I was in the shelter of the trees here, it was no good dying where no one would ever find me.

I regretfully forced myself up, groaning in pain as I felt a painful pull on my ankle, warning me that I now probably had to struggle through with a sprained limb. I felt a horrible aching sensation in my bones as I pulled myself forward, my feet dragging through the snow as if they weighed a ton. I felt disorientated and confused as I narrowed my eyes at the lights in my line of vision. Were they getting further away?

I had to get back to my mom, I knew she'd already be panicking and angry that I was late, Friday was too far away, and now what did I even have to stay for? It wasn't like I'd be seeing Olly after this anyway.

I stopped to take a sip of water, but found the bottle empty. My throat burned and my breathing faltered as I threw the bottle to the floor in frustration.

I took another hesitant step, but before I knew what was happening my ankle had collapsed underneath me, and I was sprawled onto the floor again. I couldn’t feel any pain anymore, and the cold was numbly refreshing. Black dots clouded my vision as I lay on my back, staring up at the stars. I turned my head slowly towards the town, blinked several times before it came into focus.

“So close, yet so far,” I whispered to myself, my teeth chattering furiously as I blinked once more. A slow, steady blink, before my eyes shut, and I felt into a groggy sleep, knowing I’d never make it to the town.