Page 39 of Into the Mountains
“You’re not going to sleep outside.”
She levels me with a glare. “Why not? Don’t think I can handle myself?”
I put my hands up in surrender. “I never said that. I just think the tent is the safer place. What if it rains?”
“Suddenly worried about my well being, Eli?”
Yes. “No.”
“Give me a sleeping bag and my duffle for a pillow and I’ll be just peachy.” Her mind made up, she goes to the pile of sleeping bags a few feet away. Grabbing the purple one on top, she picks a spot relatively close to the fire pit, but far enough away that she wouldn’t get burned on the off chance a spark cracked her way. It’s also only a few feet away from our tent. My tent now, apparently.
“What if it rains?”
She glances up at the sky where there are no clouds in sight, just an endless blue sky. “I think I’ll survive with all the rain clouds looming in.”
“Don’t expect me to leave an empty space in here as precaution. I take up a lot of room if I have it.”
An eye roll is all I get as she unrolls the sleeping bag, positioning it the way she wants before laying down on top of it for a moment, her head pressed into her duffel bag.
“What are you doing?” Sky looms above her with her clipboard in hand, hanging by her side.
“Laying down,” Charlotte answers, without even bothering to open her eyes. “I don’t have a tent to build, therefore, I’m resting.”
Sky’s lips knot together and I can see the angry sparks from the jammed gears in her head. One thing she didn’t account for with all of this is her friend’s stubbornness.
“You’re going to sleep outside?”
“Well, we’re all sleeping outside technically.” She’s smirking now and I can’t help but stifle my laughter. It’s not often Sky lets anything or anyone for that matter get to her, but for some reason, she’s allowing Charlotte to do just that. A horsefly following you on a run, determined to get a bite wherever he can, making you question your life choices—a true story from my soccer training days and while my teammates would say it was a funny story, for me…not so much.
“You know what I mean.” Her tone is deadpan like she’s already over Charlotte’s antics.
“I’m not sharing a tent with Elias, okay? So I’ll sleep right here.”
“And if it rains?”
“Doesn’t look like it’s going to.” Stubborn.
“Mmmm.” Sky walks back to her tent that’s half set up and helps Jacob with the rest of the poles. Once the tents are done and everyone’s stuff is shoved inside, Hudson gathers the foldable chairs they packed and starts setting them up around the fire pit.
“What now?” he asks, looking in his sister’s direction.
She picks up her clipboard she left on the table. “We are going to go on a walk.”
“To where?” comes from Charlotte’s spot on the ground, eyes still closed.
“You’ll see. Let’s go.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHARLOTTE
It’s just one weekend. I can do this.
I think.
Elias slowly climbing the rock above me makes me think the complete opposite. The next team bonding activity on Sky’s list was rock climbing and of course we came to an indoor place where we partner up in pairs and I’m the one belaying. Elias is climbing the rock wall and I am at the bottom controlling his rope. Giving them rope or holding the line. The problem is, I lack pretty much any upper body strength and for once I donothave the confidence in myself that everyone else seems to have in this position.
However, I’m not complaining about the view from down here, that’s for sure. Part of me wants to continue shoving down my past feelings for the man on the other end of my rope, but those past feelings are starting to mix with new present feelings. My body is filled with a tornado full of confusing emotions and I don’t think I’m in Kansas anymore. The wind picks up and my thoughts are starting to swirl faster than I can keep up with them. My chest tightens and I recognize this isn’t something I’ve felt before, which makes my thoughts thrash around in the chaos that is my mind.
