Cold Days with Stars & Diamonds

by SteelyThePally

Snowboards and Skis

One day later...

I groggily sit on my chair, looking without interest at my breakfast. Fucking Andy... why the hell do we need to get off so early? It's 5:15 AM, and the resort isn't that far from our houses. Whatever, he's an energetic motherfucker after all...

I look down at my fried egg. After lifting the fork to my mouth, I notice both Twilight and Rarity coming down the stairs. Well, stumbling down the stairs, in reality. As their eyes met with mine, their expressions went from tired to sad. This is beginning to annoy me. Since I told the story of my life, the sparkle of happiness inside them simply died. They were clad in their clothes, like me. We were waiting for Andy's inevitable knock, considering that he was being a pain in the ass insisting that we should get out early.

Well, our trip to the resort was ready. Andy bought Twilight a purple snowboard and dark blue skis to Rarity (Including the ski poles, helmets and knee pads. Still, I had to buy the clothing.) Since he comes from a rich family, money isn't a problem for him. Sometimes I question myself if he shouldn't be living in a luxury mansion with his family. Whatever, what matters is that I didn't need to spend a dollar with rental or equipment. So, no worries.

After slowly approaching the table, both girls sat on the chairs, not even raising their heads. The air between us is of both awkwardness and a bit of sadness. Crap, why they are like this? What happened to me was part of my past, not theirs!

"Okay, firstly good morning to you two. I think it's best to hurry with the breakfast because... you two know Andy's behavior." My sentence lightened the situation a little, but only for a second. Their expressions dropped again. Oh God...

"Hey, you two don't need to feel bad about me. My parents died years ago. What you two need to know is that life goes on. Time won't stop just because you're depressed. You have to deal with loss. See, both my mom and dad, including my uncle, died tragically, and I ain't sitting and mourning them forever. Don't worry about my past. Don't let my problems get on your way, girls." They remained silent, and ate their breakfast without even making eye contact with me. Considering their saddened moods yesterday, and their reaction to my 'Don't worry about me, I'm okay' lecture was a complete show of 'We are sad'. Well, I'll let them to their thoughts.

As silence reigns again between us, a thought suddenly passes through my mind: 'How long will them be with me?' Shit, I haven't thought about this before. Just... I can't leave them on the street. Their hair is weird, their way of talking is weird... They would probably be taken by some group involved with slavery and... No, stop! What matters now is that they are here with me, that they are awesome, cute and extremely friendly. And, that I'm befriending them quickly.

I was so deep in my thoughts that I haven't noticed Rarity's waving hand in front of me. I shake my head lightly, looking into her blue eyes.

"Hey, John! Wake up! Someone's knocking at the door!" She said, pointing one of her fingers at it. Someone was knocking quickly at the door, not to mention anxiously. I got up from my chair, and after opening the door, the figure of Andy beamed a ear-to-ear smile at me. I furrowed my eyebrows at him, but failed to kill his enthusiasm.

'Hello there, homie! Ready already?" He was dressed in his snowboarding clothes, and I thanked God that no one was at the street at the moment.

"Yeaaah. Lemme just pick the equipment. And the luggage." I yawned and returned back home, leaving Andy alone at the door. He tucked his head inside my head, and waved at Twilight and Rarity as if they were old friends. The duo, however, only lifted their hands for a second.

I went upstairs, and picked up my snowboard, Twilight's, Rarity's skis, and our luggage. Making my way carefully downstairs, I notice that someone's bag is weighing too much. My arms finally give up, and the bag rolled down the stairs.

"Let me help ya there, buddy!" Andy rescued the luggage before anymore damage could be sustained. It was a weird situation: two girls watching as a fool carries two tons of luggage and equipment while another fool ran in and out with his goggles on. Not to mention the vibrant yellow cargo pants that he was wearing proudly. Damn me if he wins the local snowboard championship wearing them.

After putting all the equipment and the bags on Andy's trunk, we entered his Chevo Spin. Lucky bastard. The poor Sullivan here still drives a rusty Victoria. Andy turns on the car, the digital speedometer lighting up with a cyan blue light. Twilight and Rarity let out a gasp of amusement. I chuckle slightly as they literally drool while staring at it.

"Fasten the seat belts. Andy's not the best driver around." He glares at me furiously while both girls try to hide their laughs. While waiting for Andy to put the car on the road, I look at the duo: after recovering from their laughs, I notice that they looked confused. That's obvious. They met Andy yesterday and are going to stay in the same lodge with him for two days. I can't say that I'm not a little confused too.

"So, how how long till' we get there, dude?" I ask Andy, whose attention was on the road.

"Dunno. How long did it took for us to get there last time?"

I shake my head, signing that I couldn't remember our last snowboarding day. Andy diverts his attention from me, and focuses his eyes on the streets of Anchorage.

2 hours later...

Crap, this is taking longer than I expected. It's been two hours since we left home, and no sign of the resort so far. Just snow-covered fields. With the occasional leafless trees, of course.

"Are we there yet, darling?" Rarity asked, fatigue clear in her voice. She wasn't sleeping, unlike Twilight, who fell into deep slumber for some minutes now.

"Uhn, does it look that we are there? We're in the middle of nothing!" I reply, pointing to the outside. More and more snow, prematurely stopping at a mountain range.

"But there's nothing that I can do, John!" Her voice showed again how much she needed sleep. Waking up 5 AM and taking a car trip to somewhere unknown can be tiring. Car trips are tiring, to be honest.

"Look: ya can just shut your eyes, sleep and drool, like Twi over there." I point to the sleepy girl, a line of drool coming down her neck. I glanced at Rarity, who shot a look of disgust at her friend's slumber. She moved her body impatiently, trying to find a comfortable position. When she finally found one, Rarity closed her eyes, and slowly fell asleep.

I turned my head to the freezing windshield. The road seemed infinite, stretching it's way into the horizon. The sun was already on it's climb to the top of the sky, beaming a greeting weak yellow light upon the asphalt.

Some minutes passed, and I just kept staring at the scenery. But my nature contemplation was rudely halted with a firm poke on my shoulder.

"Hey, Johnny. Aren't you their boyfriend or something?" Andy's question makes my cheeks blush furiously.

"No, you idiot! They just knocked at my door during Sunday's blizzard. Just because they live with me, it means that I'm their lover?"

"Of course not, homie! It's just... I dunno. You could easily stay with one of them." Yeah. He was right on that one. They were living inside my house, and didn't leave it for anything in this world. But I don't think that I'm romantically attracted to them.

"I can't see what you see, Andy. Now, let's just keep quiet." He nodded, and smiled ridiculously at the windshield, happily whistling as I quietly groaned in annoyance. Resting my head over the seat's headrest, I slowly close my eyes, seeing the image of the road's vastness dissipating in a blur...

1 hour later...

I open my eyes, being quickly met with the now brighter sunlight. Yawning, I notice that we where still on the road. Sweet Jesus Christ...

"Oh, you're finally awake, Johnny! Slept well?" Andy enthusiastically asked me, like if my return from the pitch-black world that slumber is was the most interesting thing to him.

"Yeah, Andrew. So, how long till' we arrive?"

"I think that in some minutes. Don't worry,pal! We should arrive there in no time!" He smiled happily at me, while I diverted my gaze to the window, noticing that the mountain range that I spotted before I fell asleep came closer. It was quite the familiar sight, memories of my past trips with Andy playing in my mind.

As the minutes passed like ages, I stared at the window, admiring mother nature's beauty. I watched every single tree that we passed. And watched. And watched. And watched...

---

"Here we are, people!" Andy announced, waking Rarity and receiving a relieved sigh from Twilight, whose patience was drained during the trip. Parking the car, we left it, seeing snowflakes falling from the partially clouded skies. The Sun's majestic light created the illusion that they were glistening. It was quite the sight.

Removing our luggage, we head to where the cabin village was. Andy took care of nearly everything on the way, including our check-in. What amazes me is how he managed to reserve a cabin in such a busy resort. While Andy was checking us in, I took some minutes to scan the area: Snowboarders and Skiers were resting from rides, kids were learning how to ride, families happily walked around on the small village

Minutes passed quickly after Andy checked us in, and we finally arrived at the cabin. I've stayed in those cabins many times, and their designs weren't that interesting nor new. From the village, we could see the mountain, little dots coming down from it. The mere sight of snowboarders and skiers at the distance teased me, like if it was calling me to take the lift, and ride my way down.

Opening the door, I examined the interior: it was not very different from the cabins that I stayed during vacations. A small living room with a simple fireplace, an even smaller kitchen, the bathroom, and two king beds. Wait, if there's only two king beds, it means that...

"No problem if we sleep on the same bed, homie?" Andrew stopped my train of thought, throwing his bag over the bed. I mentally groaned and only gave him a thumbs-up. While I don't think that sleeping in the same bed with your friend will make me less manly, he's quite energetic person during sleep. So, keeping my distance will probably spare my legs and stomach from his kicks.

I turned over to the girls: their expression was of both amusement and confusion. Of course that they were confused. It was a fast change of scenery, even for me. They left their bags at their beds, and continued to examine the new environment with interest.

"Okay, girls. So, where going to stay here for 2 days, and then we're back home." I saw Rarity's mouth opening, probably to ask what we're going to do in between. I cut her off, continuing my speech:

"There's the mountain, of course, and a small village nearby. Plenty of things to do." They sat at their beds, resting after the long trip.

I laid on the bed's edge, giving space to Andy if he wanted. The red-panted blonde walked in and out of the bedrooms, carrying our snowboards and ski. I only watched the scene from the corner of my eye, his angst clearly showing that he was dying to get out and ride the snow-covered slopes. I glared at him, finally quieting him down. He sat defeated at the living room's reclining chair, trying to relax from his anxiety. We needed a rest after all.

"Hey, John. How do you exactly use this 'snowboard' thing?" Twilight's question caught me off-guard. Twilight doesn't know how to snowboard, nor Rarity how to ski.

"Ummm... there are some teachers that can teach you the basics. I could try to help you too, if you want." Great one, you idiot. They smiled at me, accepting my offer to teach them. You idiot, John... you fucking idiot.

Some minutes later...

"Can we go now?"

"Yes, Andrew, they're nearly getting ready. Wait just a second..."

I stood up in the cabin's living room, snowboard in hand. Andy was doing a horrible job trying to stay calm, his leg threatening to kick the door off. I was already in my snowboarding clothes: a grey loose coat with dark blue stripes running on the sides. On the head, my hoodie covered the helmet, my goggles kept my eyes clear from the snow and a bandana covered my mouth from the cold wind. My matching black cargo pants (Also loose) matched with my grey boots, and the gloves matched with the coat. I was ready for a ride on the mountain.

Hearing creaking sounds, we both look back, seeing something that I thought that I would never see in my life. Twilight was the first to emerge from the bedroom, clad in a purple coat, matching her hair, black pants, and the goggles... God the goggles! Her eyes looked so cute behind them!

Then, behind her, came Rarity. She stood up in a elegant position. She was wearing a beige coat and some black pants. A perfect match, I suppose. Considering her fashion preference, she put something like a hat on the helmet to hide it, adding more to her beautiful looks. Well, the way the looked at me wasn't that beautiful.

"ANDREW!!! There's a thief inside here!!!" Rarity shouted, while I looked around looking for the burglar.

Suddenly, she assumed an attack pose, and rushed at me. Leaping, she delivered a delicate flying kick on my stomach. After I brutally landed on my back, she crouched on top of me, and ripped both my goggles and bandana off. I shot a frightened look at her, and Rarity's expression dropped to immediate apology.

"Oh, John! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't recognized you in those... awful clothes." Her worried face turned to a look of disgust. She then got back on her feet, examining my clothing. Here we go again...

"Okay, okay, Rares. I might look like a thief or something, but you can't judge a book by it's cover. And, we're going to ski n' snowboarding slopes, not exactly a fashion show." My reply somewhat of killed her pose. I stood up slowly, one hand on my belly. Shit, that was a powerful kick...

Rarity then sheepishly rubbed her hands together, the cold weather already enveloping us. We exit the cabin, and Andy immediately asks me:

"Hey, homie. Would you mind if I went to the mountain's top first? You'll need to find them a teacher and all that. Can I?"

"Of course, dude. I'm not your father. You can go." As soon as I finished the phrase, Andy ran like an athlete, quickly disappearing.

"He's very... peculiar." Twilight said, shooting a raised eyebrow at me.

"I would say over-energetic. But don't get on the bad side. He wants to compete in the national championship." They giggle softly at my statement, and we walk to the resort's main area with a slow pace. It's very relaxing. And quiet, too. Just the quiet sound of the cold breeze echoing on my ears.

"Hey, John. I'm sorry for earlier. I wasn't thinking straight." Rarity broke the peaceful silence, her voice begging for forgiveness.

"No problem, Rares. Just don't do that everyday, okay?" She chuckled lightly at me, relieved that I was cool with her.

It takes some time for us to reach the lodge. Stepping forward, we're greeted by the numerous yells coming from kids and tricksters. Before my eyes stand nearly infinite quantity of riders, skiers, families, couples, and even a elderly skier.

'So, here we are girls!" I say to them, both girls staring with amusement at the resort. I lead them throughout the madness of people riding and fighting with snow balls, and we stop at a bench. Their expressions remain the same, Twilight's looking way more amused than Rarity's.

"This place must have lots of things to do... What will we do first?" She asked enthusiastically clapping her hands.

"Ummm... firstly, you need to know how to ride a snowboard. It's easy. Get on top of it." She stood up and put both feet on the step-in pads. "Now, attach them to your boots." Incredibly, she did it perfectly, even though I haven't taught them.

"Okay, that was easy! What now?" She asked, beaming a smile at me.

"Now, you ride!" I shoved her a little, putting the snowboard on motion. Twilight desperately moved her arms around, threatening to fall flat on her face. I ran and caught her right on time, putting her back on her feet.

"Yeah, you better take some lessons from those..."

"No! You can easily teach me, can't you?" She cut me off before I could complete my sentence. Of course that I wouldn't argue. There are some crazy instructors here, but I wouldn't refuse their lessons. It's Twilight, John, stay calm. Still, I doubt of my teaching skills...

"Okay, let's try again. Now, I see that you use the regular stance. So, simply apply some pressure on your left foot. To turn, simply lean your body back or forth, and do the same, but way longer, to stop. Now, try everything that I told ya." She gave an acknowledge nod, and tried to ride once again, hopping shortly to gain speed. She glided on the snow for seconds, trying to maintain balance. Incredibly, she managed to stand up with ease, and waved at us. Me and Rarity, now sitting on the nearby benches, signaled back, moments before Twilight lost her balance and fell flat on her face.

Rarity let out a yelp, while I tried to silence the killing wish of laughing. Getting up from our seats, we both rush to the face-buried girl.

"Twilight!! Are you alright?" I asked, now assuming a serious face. Her arms moved to get her up, and as soon as Twilight eye's met with mine, she nearly gave me a cuteness attack:

"I did it!" She exclaimed, quickly getting back on her feet. How the hell she knew how to get up so fast?

"You nearly did it. What about practicing near that cafeteria over there? I'm going to get some coffee to.. you know. Get some energy for the day. Wanna ride there by my side? You'll get better the more you try." She nodded frenetically, and Rarity only collected her skis and ski poles from the bench. The cafeteria had some inclination on it's location, what somewhat helped anyone who would reach the small restaurant/cafeteria/bar to build some speed.

I grabbed my snowboard, dropped it near Twilight, and stepped in. Attaching my feet to the board's step-ins, I hopped to get on with my stance.

"Ready?" I asked Twilight, whose face was focused on the not-so step hill that we were going to descend.

"Wait, how are we going to get speed?" She asked, pointing to the ground.

"Easy: Lean your body left." I said while applying some weight to my left foot, my board sending snow up as I slowly glided down, doing turns to brake. Finally halting my descend, I looked back at the duo, who were launching stares of awe at me. "Hey! Just do what I told ya, and control your speed! I'll help you! Rarity! Why don't you use your skis?"

"Because I don't know how to use those things! Whatever, darling. I'll catch you two at the restaurant!" Wow, that's very sporty of her. Running all the way down to the multi-use restaurant. As Rarity trails off running, I sign to Twilight to come down.

Twilight body slowly catches up some speed, and I only watch as she averagely perform small turns, keeping her speed low. I smile at the riding figure before me. But I couldn't hide that I was a little bit jealous. It took me 3 days to ride a snowboard properly, and this girl who says that she came from a different dimension is already performing good turns. What a shame...

Well, she neared me as seconds passed, her purple figure swiftly passing through the falling snowflakes. The somewhat of beautiful scene was broken as Twilight tried to brake her descent mimicking the move that I taught her. She managed to efficiently break her speed, but at the moment her body halted, she fell on her buttocks, sending a wave of snow through the air. Before I could break into laughter, I saw that Twilight furrowed her brows in pain, and I hop to her, sticking a hand to bring her back to her feet.

After she got her balance back, I noticed that she was fatiguing.

"Hey, are you alright? Did the fall hurt you?" I asked her, full of worries. Those snowboard falls are getting dangerous these days.

"N-no, I'm alright. Kinda of a bad fall, John. No need to worry." Stared at her purple eyes, no sign of tears. She's strong, in some way.

"Huh, I have to admit that you showed some good skills there. I took nearly a week to ride properly." My comment made her blush. She looks cute when blushing. "So, let's catch up with Rarity?" She nodded, frenetically, her fall not even killing her excitement. She's showing a big interest in this sport, even for a geek. And bookworm. She had been assaulting my book collection too.

"Okay then. Now that you're calm, let's go. One, two, three... GO!" We leaned her bodies to the left, getting the slow pace that this 5 degree hill could give. We calmly glided over the snow-covered ground. Twilight took light turns too maintain balance, while I followed the trail to an idle Rarity in a straight line. Ah, the sensation of snowboarding...

Me and Twilight kept sliding the slope with ease, Twilight's eyes trying to photograph my moves. Finally arriving at our fashionist friend, Twilight began to take longer curves to slow down. Wanting to know if my trick memory was good, I pressed my left foot, bringing the board's nose up. I struggled a little to stay up, and after I lost the needed speed to keep with the backside manual, I weighed my left foot to return to normal riding. Taking a turn to near Rarity, I was met with impressed stares, coming from all sides. 'C'mon people, what's so special in a manual?' I thought, trying to divert the viewers eyes somewhere else.

I turned to the girls, whose eyes were literally exhaling awe.

"What now?" I asked, taking my feet off from the snowboard.

"I never thought that I would say this, but... you were awesome there!" Twilight smiled with her eyes closed, clapping her hands together, a muffled sound of her palms meeting with each other echoing around.

"Indeed. I have to say that what you did was some kind of.. professional move?" Rarity completed, taking a look around at the nearby idle snowboarders and skiers. Twilight removed her feet from her snowboard, and we headed to the cafeteria.

"Professional move? Rares, I've seen kids doing those. It's not a 1080 degree corkscrew." She dove in thought, trying to figure out what a corkscrew was. Giving up from her mental guesses, she sighed and kept silent.

After a few steps, we arrived at the multi-function cafeteria. Parents happily chatted while their sons and daughters pushed them to the slopes. Couples sat down quietly, holding their hands together. It always feels weird to pass by couples. I get the feeling that I'm invading their personal space. We take a seat at a random table, and a waitress immediately came to our vicinity. Twilight refused to drink anything, leaving her eyes to wander through the vast space that the mountain's base was. I removed my goggle and lowered my bandana to expose my face, and obviously be able to drink or eat something.

Twilight asked if she could ride around the area, a request that I calmly accepted. She needs to learn a little bit more about riding, and no one will assault her around here. As the enthusiastic newbie to snowboarding trailed off with her board on hands, me and Rarity noticed that the waitress left the coffee cups over the table. The sight of a hot drink really pleased myself, the cold breeze already freezing my mouth and nose. I lift the cup to take a sip, enjoying the black liquid's taste.

"D-darling, have you noticed that this feels and looks like... a d-date?" I choke on my coffee as Rarity said that. I swallowed the coffee before I could spit it over the table, and coughed violently. Tapping my hand on my back, I recover from the unexpected choke, and stare at Rarity, whose face flowered a vivid blush.

"I-I don't think so, Rares. We're just having fun. I'm getting used to it, since people used to stare at me and Betty while we ate lunch together." Her face shows that she haven't bought my excuse. While the fact of being stared at while hanging out with your friend was true, I'm not getting used to it. Mostly because I'm now sitting with a pretty girl and drinking coffee with her. I push that thought aside, and keep drinking my coffee.

We spend some moments in total silence, eyes fixed on Twilight, who was practicing around the outdoor area of the cafeteria. Calling the waitress, I payed the bill, and we remained still on our chairs, watching snowflakes descend from the skies, and blending with the rest of the snow-covered terrain. Again, a need of riding forces me to the slopes, but I remembered that Rarity didn't know how to ski. Maybe a little teaching will fix this. Skiing is way more easier than snowboarding, I think.

"Let's go, Rares. To the slopes!" I pointed to the mountain, assuming a rather childish pose. Rarity only looks at me, assuming an annoyed face.

"Darling, I understand your excitement, but have you forgotten that I don't know how to use those things?"

"Yeah, but you're anxious to use them, aren't you?" I teased her, getting her off-guard. She looked up for a second, and sighed defeated. I find it strange, still. Twilight and Rarity looked the type of sitting at the lodge all day long. Looks can be pretty deceiving, John. Learn with that. "It's okay, Rarity. I'll teach you."

1 hour later...

"Are you sure that this is safe?"

"Of course, Twi. This is a beginner's course. It's not Mount Everest, you know." I stated to a panting Twilight, drips of cold sweat coming down from her face.

We stood at the top of the beginner's course, kids and first-time skiers and riders training peacefully. I sighed happy. I rode in this course for years, before moving to the intermediate course. Even though I'm experienced enough to ride from the peak, riding the 'beginner grounds' is overwhelmingly nostalgic.

"Hey, Rarity. Everything good?" She nodded, and prepared herself for the imminent descent. Let's just hope that my one-hour class was sufficient... "Remember: this isn't a race. So, for the love of sweet Jesus, don't crouch, or you'll go as fast as a bullet."

I don't know why, but I can somewhat of see us rolling this down as giant snowballs. I put my bandana and goggles on, covering my face once again from Alaska's cold breeze.

"Okay then. Ready? Set? Go!" I leaped for the descent, landing softly on the snow. I kept my speed low, remembering that I wasn't in a race. Now that was a real ride. Riding on a flat surface isn't interesting.

While I listen to the sound of snow being blow by my board's tail, I take a look back to check on the girls: Twilight took curves to maintain the speed, while Rarity looked way more relaxed, making turns with grace and agility. Shit, they learn fast...

Turning my head, I continue the ride. Noticing the ramps nearing me, I adjust the board to leap from them. Reaching the ramp's edge, I'm plummeted to the air, the wind soaring through my ears. I crouch to reach the board's tail, and turn my body to perform a 360 spin. I saw the world around me get dizzy, and right after my vision got back to normal, I release the grip from the tail, and my board finally landed, the tension held in my legs leaving them. I could hear some people cheering. Huh, people like tricksters here. And I'm no pro trickster.

My train of thought is interrupted as a purple figure passes as a blur from my side. I slow down a little, struggling to maintain balance. Taking a closer look, I notice that the figure was in reality Twilight. Wait, how the fuck did she get so fast?

I crouch to gain velocity, the wind failing to penetrate my masked face. My goggles slowly begin to white as the snowflakes that fell from the skies literally exploded on it, prejudicing my vision greatly. Finally reaching Twilight, I notice that she's threatening to fall.

"TWI!!, YOU NEED TO BRAKE!!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, Twilight's head turning slightly. My attempt to warn her failed completely after she performed a sharp turn to the left, getting on my way. I put both arms forward, but the purple figure already crashed against my body.

Somehow, I wrapped my arms around her moments before we fell, and rolled down the rest of the course. A mess of snow, legs, arms and boards was the only thing that I saw while my body was being crushed by the body of another certain rider. My back and legs were being tortured by the cruel rolls, my vision getting blurred.

We finally came to an stop, my face sliding rudely through the snow. My entire body ached, with the exception of my knees, elbows and head, thank God. I groaned annoyed at the snow, and heard a girlish yell getting closer and closer. Suddenly, two pointy things hit my legs, a beige figure being throw briefly through the air.

"Ow, ow, ow..." I mumble, pulling my arms down to get up. I could only sit, considering the pains and aches around my body. I stare briefly at the snow, taking deep breaths.

"Holy crap, dude. That was a nasty fall! Are you and your friends hurt?" A feminine voice asks me, a hand resting over my shoulder shortly. Strange, this voice was familiar...

I stand up with difficulty, taking long and deep breaths to calm my heart. After regain my posture, I turn back to see the voice and hand's owner.

To my surprise, who came to my 'rescue' was Lilly, a blonde girl that I met during high school, and well, had a crush on her. My cheeks burn with embarrassment, and I thank Jesus once again by the fact of wearing a bandana.

"Hah, John? Good to see you!" She hugged me tightly, and I returned the gesture weakly. Pulling away from the hug, she lays both hands on my shoulders, scanning my body with a happy smile spread across her face. Noticing that my cheeks were cooler, I pull both the bandana and goggles out. "So, the masked snowboarder is back?"

"Lilly, long time no... see! Yeah, I'm back to the slopes, Lils. Don't worry, I'm okay. I've had worse. So, how's things?" I ask her, trying to mask the pain, who was already fading away.

"Pretty good. I'm here to train for the national snowboarding championship. And those are your new friends?" She turned to Twilight and Rarity, and greeted them with quick handshakes. She was the one who liked to meet new people.

"Yeah, Twilight and Rarity. Don't ask how we met. It's very awkward. So, good luck with the championship. Andy's going to compete on it, too. He's on the advanced course, if I'm not wrong." Lilly made a face of awkwardness, then trailed off with her snowboard, waving shortly. She must have something to do, to leave so abruptly. Recovering from the fall completely, I turn my stare to the duo of girls who watched the scene. Twilight detached her feet from the board, and immediately jumped on me.

"I'm sorry, John! I'm sorry! Are you hurt? Did I hurt you? Shou--" I place my hand at her mouth, her voice being reduced to nothing more than muffled words.

"Calm down, Twi. It wasn't that bad. I've had worse. Seriously, you can get off me now." She pulled away, guilty written across her snow-covered face. "Hey, I'm not hurt. This is nothing compared to a broken leg, or a bad hit on the head. Still, did you like it?"

"Yeah! It was pretty awesome! You even did a.. trick on the air!" She commented about my earlier air. I don't get it. I think that performing trick in beginner courses can get you some fans.

"I liked to.. ski, John. It was very interesting. Except for the fall. And who was that mar... I mean, woman there?" She locked her eyes with mine, her tone teasing me. Am I that obvious?

"She's Lilly. Met her during high school. I kinda... liked her." I blush furiously, covering my face with the bandana again, I hide my cheeks from them, their faces obviously teasing me. "Whatever. So, anyone up for another ride?" I stated, cracking my knuckles.

Twilight nodded slightly, but Rarity refused to come along, telling us that she'll would be resting by the lodge. As she skied off, me and Twilight, carrying our boards, ran and boarded the ski lift. Being slowly pulled up, I enjoyed the beautiful view from the mountain.

"Okay, now let's try to control our speed. I don't want to be lying face-down on the snow again." I comment, obviously referring to our earlier crash.

"No problem, John. I accidentally crouched there. Sorry." She blushed slightly, her face signaling a train of thought.

"No need to worry, Twi. You're a beginner after all. Still, a good rider..." I rested my arm over her shoulders, pulling her a little bit closer. While most see this as an overly-fond act, I consider it totally normal. I could feel her cheeks burning, but suddenly, she rested her head on my arm. My heart skips a beat as she returns the gesture, laying her left arm over my shoulder. I could feel my chest getting warmer, even with Alaska's cold winter. And there we sit, waiting for the lift to drop us. 'What's this weird sensation?'

Author's Note:

Hey there. 20 day delay FTW. Sorry. I would like to hear some feedback about what you people are thinking of this so far.

Leave a comment, and point out any errors.

SteelxPaladin

Comments

[TXIPrimomocha]

This story is F8BULOUS ple8se continue to write this.

[SteelyThePally]

3905124 I know you from somewhere...

[Soul Reaper]

3905654 Your stalker maybe?

[TXIPrimomocha]

3905654 Um... QUICKLY ESCAPE VIA THE DERP MOBLIE 'poofs out of existence'

[ThatBatJess]

Good chapter sir!