~* Winter Wonderland *~ I turned back to stare at Nicole. She knew exactly what I was thinking, lightly placing her fingertip on the tip of my nose. “Don’t say it.” She grinned. “In a tree? Seriously?” “I said!” she giggled. “Seriously, you do not want to know.” “Oh, I really do, but I won’t ask,” I replied. She rolled her eyes at that, but smiled. “Thanks. It’s really embarrassing. Lucky for me Brandy was the only one who saw it. Want some hot chocolate?” she asked, changing the subject.

---

Author's Note:
I'm trying something different with length this time, harkening back to Book One's style to try and get more out of each scene, rather than covering multiple scenes per chapter. ^_^

~Zoe

---

I couldn’t say for certain if it was the excitement for the weekend’s events, or maybe that I took a nice long nap during the trip, but once I awoke, I couldn’t get back to sleep again. Twilight and a crisp, moonlit sky outside the hotel window only confirmed what the obnoxiously bright alarm clock on the bedside table suggested. The sun, and probably the rest of my Girl Scout troop, would be asleep for another hour or two at least.

Turning the bright 5:02-blaring face of the clock away from me, I slowly crawled out of bed. To keep from waking the others I took my suitcase into the bathroom to change, out of my pajamas. I could always put on some heavier clothing when we actually went outside, but for now I opted for the more indoor-friendly jeans and a loose white sweater.

Since there was no way I could get back to sleep, and not for a lack of trying, I decided to wander around the hotel for a little while, and maybe find an early breakfast before the others were up and around.

“You’re up early,” Moira commented idly as she stepped out of the room across the hall. I smiled sheepishly as I approached her.

“I couldn’t sleep so I figured I’d wander around, maybe find something to eat.” I held up a crisp ten dollar bill that I had snagged from my purse on the way out, offering a smile. “You want to come with? My treat?”

She smiled thoughtfully for a moment before she nodded. “Sure.”

She reached out to lightly tousle my hair, and as we walked down the long hallway together, I decided to take the initiative and break the mutual silence that had settled between us.

“So how are things with you and Regina?”

“Slow, but I’m not complaining,” she responded. She had an odd sort of half-smile across her lips that belied her words. “How’s school?”

“Hectic,” I replied simply. “There’s just so much going on between basketball, girl scouts and the school paper, plus I’m taking gym next semester, and I might run track. The drama club wants me to consider going out for a play, and then there’s Kenpo-”

“Ken-what?” she interrupted me as we turned to step into the elevator lobby.

“Kenpo — it’s a form of Karate,” I replied. She smiled a bit and nodded.

A large blueprint-like map hung from the wall between the two elevators, its color-coded blocks indicating room layout for the current floor, as well as a list of points of interest. “Sounds like you’re keeping busy,” she mused as she studied the map, adding a moment later, “Looks like there’s a restaurant down on first. Good thing too ‘cause I wasn’t too keen on ordering room service and waking everybody else.”

I nodded in agreement as she pushed the button to call the elevator. While we waited, she began to give me an odd stare, and when I looked back at her, she spoke up again, more softly this time.

“Robin, I talked to your sister last night after everyone else went to bed. She said you’re studying music now too?”

I smiled as I nodded. “Yeah! Kelly’s giving me some basic piano lessons. I’d love to get a keyboard or something eventually: maybe even for Christmas,” I added enthusiastically.

“That’s great,” she answered, though she sounded vastly less enthusiastic. Actually, she had been acting like something was bothering her from the moment we met outside our rooms this morning. I waited until after we boarded the elevator to ask, though.

“Moira? Is everything alright?”

She exhaled slowly. “Yes and no. I mean, there’s something I wanna say to you, but we hardly know each other. I don’t really feel like it’s my place.”

She lowered her gaze and turned slightly away, leaning against the wall with another slow sigh. I stepped closer, gently nudging her chin with my hand to bring her gaze back to mine.

“Moira, whatever it is, you can tell me.” I tried to give her a reassuring smile. She chewed her lip as the elevator slowly descended, finally answering.

“I’m worried about you is all. You’ve got so much going on, and speaking from experience, it really starts to wear on you after awhile.”

“Why did you come back anyway? I mean, I know things were rocky with your band-mates, but why not go back to your family?”

She laughed dryly as the doors parted, shaking her head. “When I left home I swore I’d never return. That rock can rot for all I care.” She buried her hands in her pockets as she stepped off the elevator, glancing back at me as I followed.

“What you have in Alpine Springs is … It’s something I never had. It’s not a slow existence by any means, but it’s slower than what I’m used to.” Her gaze fell again, but quickly rose, the beginnings of a cheerful smile crossing her lips.

“I told you things with Regina were slow, yeah? The thing is, she wants to take it slow, and so do I. I’m so tired of rushing about, constantly on the move. I needed to unwind, else I was about to have a nervous breakdown, and that’s the Saints’ honest truth.” She removed a hand from her pocket, taking mine and giving it a light squeeze. “Do you get what I’m saying?”

“You think I should slow down and stop trying to do so much, don’t you?” I asked, returning the squeeze. She smiled as she nodded, pulling her hand away only long enough to wrap her arm around my neck. She leaned forward and planted a chaste, sisterly kiss on my forehead.

“Listen, I don’t mean anything by it, and like I said, I don’t really feel like it’s my place to say anything, but I know what it did to me, constantly doing something, never allowing myself time to relax. I did it because I was running from something though. You’re not are you?”

I quickly shook my head. “No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just … Well, before this year I never really had any friends. I never had any drive to really do anything, but then I met Ally and Nikki, and later Jen, and things just sort of started happening.”

“You’re lucky to have them, and they’re lucky to have you. Just be careful okay? I don’t want to see you fall into the same pit I did. It’s good that you don’t want to be inactive, but believe me there’s such a thing as too much of a good thing.”

“Like wine?” I teased, as we started down the hall toward our destination again. She stared at me, sticking her tongue out.

“Oh, hush you!” She grinned, giving my shoulder a playful, light slug. “I’ve been dry since that day I swore off the stuff though. I meant what I said about givin’ it up. My Da was a sober man, but my Mum drank herself to a stupor. I don’t wanna end up like her. But c’mon now, let’s talk about something happier. This is a vacation!”

~oOo~

I am not ashamed to admit that I ate like a pig! I had been too tired to really eat much the night before, and I would probably be exerting a lot of energy using muscles I wasn’t used to using, so I let myself eat more than I normally would, just this once. I thought about my eating habits entirely too much, though the goings-on with Elaine probably didn’t help that.

Later in the morning, after everyone had come down for breakfast, Coach Greer asked the nice lady at the front desk if we could use their lobby as a base of operations. Essentially what that meant was that we commandeered the sofas and chairs, and the surrounding floor space with our backsides so we could discuss our plans for the day. I sat on one sofa between Jennifer and Nicole, with Amanda on my lap.

“So here’s the plan,” Coach Greer, the only person not sitting, began, “We’re going to split off into groups obviously, but first I need to know how many of you feel comfortable enough to pass on instruction.”

A few girls raised their hands. She nodded, continuing. “Alright, so most of you are new to this, then. That’s fine. You four will be with me for the morning — and by ‘with me’, I mean I trust you to behave yourselves and follow the rules, but if there’s a problem I’ll be either at the top of one of the trails, or at the bottom.”

“There are also ski patrols scattered across the mountain,” Jennifer added. Coach Greer nodded.

“That’s an excellent point, Jennifer. Ski patrol members are easy to identify and tend to travel in pairs or groups, though you might see a lone member on a snowmobile too. Alright, are there any questions? Then let’s get our gear and head out.”

Moira stood, waving her hand lightly. “I’ll be hanging out on the easier slopes myself.”

Nicole shot her a glance. “Hey, I didn’t know you could ski?”

She smiled sheepishly as she replied, “Well, kind of. We took a vacation in Aspen last winter. I nearly broke my leg when I ran into a tree though so I’m taking it slow this time.” She winked at me at that, and Coach Greer turned her attention to her daughter.

Amanda beamed a smile at me then hopped off my lap before Coach Greer could say anything. “Mommy’s taking me skiing!” she giggled excitedly. I had to laugh as I wrapped her in a hug.

“You have fun out there, and I’ll see you later today, okay? I still need to learn how to not fall down.” I winked, causing her to giggle again as she skipped over to Coach Greer.

Jennifer stood, motioning for the rest of us to follow her. “Let’s go get our gear and we can head out. Oh, do NOT forget to wear your helmet!” she quickly added. “I know in the movies you see people skiing or snowboarding with just a hat, but you’ll thank me when your head’s not cracked open like a ripe melon.”

As we all stood to follow her, Tracy asked, “So who’s learning to ‘board besides me?”

Jennifer grinned, glancing back at me. “Robin, Ally, and I think Margie?”

My sister nodded. “Yeah, I’ll take your grandfather up on a skiing lesson tomorrow I think.”

Kelly added a moment later, “And likewise I’ll be hitting Jen up for snowboarding lessons tomorrow.”

~oOo~

To my surprise, Jonathan actually let me rent the purple board I had been eyeing the night before. He explained that the balance would actually be better for a beginner to get used to, and that since Jennifer had vouched for my potential due to my martial arts training, that he had no problem giving me a chance on a high-end board.

As we left the hotel behind, I had my newly rented snowboard under my arm, knee, elbow, and wrist guards over my ski pants and jacket, and a helmet in my other hand. I admit I did feel a little silly with all the safety gear, but Jennifer wore similar protection, so she obviously knew what she was talking about.

“Hey ladies,” a suave male voice called from behind us shortly after we split off from the others. An older boy, I’d guess about seventeen or eighteen, dressed in a black ski jacket and pants and carrying a bright, neon green snowboard approached us. He smiled genuinely, but I still expected a corny pick-up line. Surprisingly, he simply asked, “Been up the mountain yet?”

Jennifer shook her head. “Not yet. I’m teaching my friends how to ‘board, then tomorrow we’ll tackle skiing. How’s the powder?”

“Fresh and fine,” he answered with a broad grin. “It’s choice right now. A little rough in patches, but they’ve got the trails marked. Hey, if you need any help with the lesson, I’m free for an hour or so.”

Tracy grinned as she stepped closer. “Sounds good to me! I’m Tracy by the way,” she offered her hand. He shifted his board to his other hand so he could shake hers.

“Scott. Nice to meet’cha Tracy.”

After introducing ourselves, Jennifer and Scott led us to an area with a nice, even slope. Jennifer set her black snowboard down and, after strapping her boots to it, looked back at us with a grin. “Okay, I just want to get a quick feel for the slope before I send you guys blindly careening downhill. Hang out here a second.”

She pulled her helmet into place, hopped, and took off at a gentle glide down the hill. At the bottom she stepped off her board, trudging back up again. She approached me, stepping around behind and giving me a light shove. I instinctively put my right foot forward, glancing back at her. She grinned.

“Awesome. Robin’s a goofy foot.”

“Hey!” I started to protest, but she giggled, shaking her head. Seeing as she was too busy giggling to answer, Scott, barely maintaining a straight face himself, spoke for her.

“What she means is that you’re probably more comfortable leading with your right foot than your left. You can try it both ways and do whatever feels more natural, but a little shove when you aren’t expecting it is a great way to gauge it.”

With that said, he stepped up behind Tracy, giving her the same light shove from behind. She squealed lightly, planting her left foot forward and giggled. “So what does it mean when you lead with your left foot?”

He chuckled to himself. “Left is just called ‘regular’. There’s really no difference other than comfort, especially once you start doing the crazy jumps.”

I couldn’t help wondering if Jennifer had met her match in Scott, at least in the extreme sports. He seemed like a decent enough guy, and even helped me strap into my board for my first run. After further instruction on how to steer while in motion, and more importantly how to stop, I started down the slope. For about the first five seconds, I actually wasn’t doing too badly.

After that point though, things took a turn for the worse. I could feel myself picking up more speed than I was ready for or expecting from such a gentle slope, and I panicked, turning too hard. The next thing I knew, I was lying face-first in snow with about a three to five foot trail behind me where I skidded to a stop. Jennifer suddenly appeared next to me, offering her hand as I pushed myself up. I knocked the snow from my helmet and stared at her. She giggled.

“Are you okay?”

I grabbed her hand, pulling myself to my knees and then upright again. I quickly nodded. “I panicked,” I offered sheepishly. She nodded.

“I noticed. You were actually doing pretty well for a first-timer. You have to relax though. It’s like riding a bike. If you pick up too much speed, you stop pedaling, but you don’t slam on the brake.” She gave me that Zen smile she did so well as I knelt to unstrap my boots. I picked up my board, motioning with my other hand toward the top of the hill.

“I think I’d like to try that again.”

“Sure,” she responded with a giggle.

Tracy and Allison actually fared much better all in all. I took comfort in the fact that Margie couldn’t seem to stay upright either, though her topple was vastly less dramatic. She made it all the way to the bottom before stumbling backwards as she bent down to unstrap her boots.

By mid-morning I had started to actually get the hang of it. Keeping my balance on a board really wasn’t all that far from keeping my body centered while practicing a defensive throw. Once I managed to stop panicking constantly, I also stopped upending myself into snow banks. I was vastly far from ready for anything beyond easy slopes, but I’d take victories where I could find them!

~oOo~

By around ten, we were all more than ready for a break. Besides the hotel, there was also a ski chalet closer to the base of the mountain. We found Margie and Kelly warming themselves inside, as well as Moira, Coach Greer, Amanda, and a couple of other girls from our troop. I didn’t see Nicole at first, but as we set foot further inside, I spotted her coming out of the public restroom. She grinned as she rushed over, wrapping me in a hug.

“Hey you! I saw you out there with Jen earlier. You were great!”

I giggled as I held her close, touching my nose with hers playfully for just a moment. “Oh, please. It was all I could do to keep from eating snow — again. How was the skiing?”

“Awesome. Kaleo’s a great instructor. Oh hey, I wanted to introduce you to someone.” She gently looped my arm with hers, pulling me along over to the small bar along one wall where a taller girl with messy, sandy brown hair sat sipping a cup of hot cocoa. She turned on her barstool, lifting her mug as we approached.

“So you’re Robin. Nikki’s been talking about you all morning. I’m Brandy,” she spoke warmly as she offered her free hand.

“Nice to meet you,” I replied as Nicole grinned.

“Brandy helped me out when one of my poles sort of got stuck in a tree.”

“How did-” I began, but she shook her head.

“Trust me, you do not want to know,” Nicole replied. Brandy, stifling a small chuckle, shook her head.

“You really don’t. It’s not that it was IN the tree anyway, so much as caught in a root. It could’ve been worse though.”

Nicole nodded quickly. “Yeah. I mean, that tree totally jumped out in front of me!”

Brandy’s eyes lit up as she looked toward the door. I followed her gaze, a bit surprised to see Scott again. He gave me a cordial nod, but when he reached us, Brandy hopped down off her barstool, wrapping her arms around him. They exchanged a brief kiss before she smiled back at us.

“And this is my boyfriend, Scott. Scott, this is Nikki and-”

“Robin,” he answered with a grin. “Yeah, we met this morning while you were helping your mom up on the mountain.”

She practically giggled. “Weird. I helped Nikki with a little ski pole problem earlier. Freaky coincidence. Anyway, c’mon, I’m hungry, and it’s your turn to buy.”

“It’s always my turn to buy,” he shot back with a playful smile as they walked away.

I turned back to stare at Nicole. She knew exactly what I was thinking, lightly placing her fingertip on the tip of my nose. “Don’t say it.” She grinned.

“In a tree? Seriously?”

“I said!” she giggled. “Seriously, you do not want to know.”

“Oh, I really do, but I won’t ask,” I replied. She rolled her eyes at that, but smiled.

“Thanks. It’s really embarrassing. Lucky for me Brandy was the only one who saw it. Want some hot chocolate?” she asked, changing the subject.

I had to laugh just a little bit as I nodded. After getting our beverages I followed her to a well-worn overstuffed sofa near the chalet’s hearth. We naturally settled in close to each other as we stared at the fire, and it was all I could do just to stay awake. She smiled as she wrapped an arm around me, and I settled a little closer, putting my head on her shoulder.

“This was a great idea,” she spoke softly. By now the rest of the world had begun to melt into the background. I smiled back at her as I leaned up to plant a light kiss on her cheek.

“Yeah, it’s nice and cozy here.”

“No, I mean the trip. And this is only the first day.”

“Yeah. Hey, Nikki, can I ask you something?” My talk with Moira had been replaying in my mind all morning, when I wasn’t faceplanting in various and excessive styles of failure to stop or turn properly. She glanced down at me and nodded.

“Sure. What’s on your mind?”

“I’ve been thinking. I had a long talk with Moira this morning. She thinks I’m overexerting myself.”

“How so?” she asked, tilting her head slightly.

“Well, I mean with extracurricular activities at school. First there was Girl Scouts, and Kenpo, the school paper, basketball, music, thinking about drama club, gym next semester, cheer this summer, and thinking about running track, AND I’m taking almost all advanced placement courses this semester on top of that.”

Nicole frowned as she shook her head. “Jeeze, Robin. When you put it like that, maybe you should slow down a little.”

I smiled at that. “I think I’m going to skip track next semester and maybe drama too. Writing for the school paper is no big deal right now. I’m just answering e-mails once a week, basically, and basketball season will be over in January so I’ll have more free time.”

“Free time is good, and I’m not just saying that because it means more time for us to hang out, either.” She gave me a playful smile before continuing. “Everybody needs some downtime. I mean, look at Moira. She’s this huge rock star, and yet she came all the way back here to get away from that lifestyle for awhile. Truth be told I’ve been worried about you lately. I just didn’t want to say anything because you seemed so happy.”

“I’m sorry Nikki. I didn’t mean to make you worry,” I offered, nuzzling a little closer. She leaned over to steal a quick kiss, shaking her head.

“It’s okay. I’m your friend as well as your girlfriend. It’s my job to worry about you,” she reasoned. “But I’m glad you’re ready to slow down a little bit too.” She rested her head gently against mine.

“I love that you want to help people. I just don’t want you to lose yourself in the process. C’mon, I want to hit the slopes again before lunch, plus you look sexy on a snowboard,” she teased, grinning impishly.