The Cabin

It was a spur of the moment decision to rent a cabin for the weekend. He knew when he broke the news to her it would put a smile on her face, but it was at the expense of his pride. She was a country, him a city boy, and he knew that he was not well versed in being an outdoorsman. The last thing he wanted for her to think was that he was less of a man because he didn’t do something as simple as starting a campfire. Despite the uneasy feeling, he smiled along with her as they pulled into the mini-mart to grab snacks before occupying the cabin for a week.

She waited in the truck with the air conditioning blasting, pointing the output from the fan downwards to cool her legs off. The Navigator was black and thus pulled the heat towards it. She watched as he walked through the automated doors, his khaki shorts hanging low, almost touching his ankles. She giggled at the light gust of wind rippled through his white Polo shirt.

As he disappeared into the store, she took in the scenery around her. The rusted sign advertising slushies for a buck creaked in the wind and casted a shadow that swung back and forth on the pavement next to the vehicle. All things considered it turned out to be a nice day. Few clouds in the sky let the sunshine show its worth whilst being bested by occasional bursts of wind.

Before her blue eyes could soak up more of the world around her, she noticed her man stepped out of the store, plastic bags in hand. He lumbered over to the driver’s side and swung open the back door to toss the bags inside. He told her to roll the window down instead of using up the gas on the air conditioner. “There’s a nice breeze out today, no need for the AC.”

Revving up the engine, he pulled out of the mini-mart and back onto the highway for a few more miles before reaching the log cabin resort. Not a word was spoke nor was music played as they drove on, she with her gaze fixed on the depths of the trees that they passed by. He hooked left and directed the Navigator through the gravel road and into their vacation spot. He braked and turned the car off after approaching the welcome lodge. She was ready to step out with him, but he told her to wait in the car which was met with an understandable refusal.

“I already waited while you went in the store, now you want me to miss out on checking in too? Not gonna happen,” she said while looking him anger, “let’s go.”

Both doors slammed and they approached the door in which he opened, but didn’t hold for her. She scurried her way in before it closed and followed him to the desk. He already had his credit card in hand to confirm the order. As the young cashier approached them both, he remarked on her brunette hair that hung down to her shoulders. She blushed and thanked him for his compliment.

“So what can I do ya for?”

“Yeah, we’re here to claim our cabin for the week. We paid extra for the cabin suite in the back of the resort.” Laying his card on the black granite counter top, he stepped backwards and talked to her about the perceived flirting with the boy.

“Ah yes, Mr. and Mrs. Wallace, we’ve been waiting for you since you booked it. Here are the keys to the castle,” he said with a chuckle.

Mr. Wallace snatched the keys from him with attitude and made his way out of the door. This time he held the door open and she led the way back to the truck. Once they were both back inside, they followed the paved path to take them to their cabin. As they crept up on it, she was in her glory. It was exactly how she imagined, and even prettier than the pictures in the brochure.

Mrs. Wallace jolted out of the truck and into the cabin that she had dreamed of for weeks. She’d been secretly planning this trip behind her husband’s back and grabbed the opportunity by the throat once it presented itself. While he unpacked the camping gear from the back of the vehicle, she pocketed the key from the front center console and made a tour of the quarters.

The kitchen was small but tolerable, fully equipped with a stove and working refrigerator. From there she stepped into what could be considered the living room, with a 53 inch HD television set resting in the wall and a sofa against the back wall. As she gazed out the back door overlooking the deck and the lake, she heard her partner’s voice behind her.

“It’s getting dark, I’m gonna start a fire. Come outside with me.”

Hours passed from the time between watching him break apart firewood to now, when he sat next to her on the porch swing, both sets of feet slightly touching the wood beneath. He reeked of alcohol and decided it would be best to call it a night after a day of long driving and setting up camp. She agreed and hopped into the bed after he did. As she snuggled up to him, she spoke his name as she fell asleep.

“I love you, Matthew.” She kissed his head and dozed off while holding him tight.

She woke up the next morning in the same position and crawled out of bed to make her morning coffee. She yawned and rubbed her eyes to wake herself up some more after pressing the button to start the brewing process. Mrs. Wallace thought she was seeing things when she looked out the window and noticed a considerable amount of snow on the ground. This didn’t add up. New York in mid-July didn’t equate snowfall.

She stepped to the door and the touch of the doorknob chilled her to the bone. As her hand twisted it open, she could feel the blistering wind enter the cabin. Struggling to open the door, using all of her strength to do so, she stood and peered off into the distance.

There was nothing but white, heavy snow spanning for miles and miles. The once sprouting, magnificent spot of nature they chose to rest in was now nothing more than desolate, frozen tundra.