The Winter People

by Bret Tallent

  "Listen, Debbie. I didn't invite you because you don't ski, and we're limited on space," he added, "before we decided to take two vehicles, that is." He continued, "I just didn't think that you would have much fun sitting around the cabin alone." He had walked over to her now, his head low, and touched her leg lightly with his hand.

  She looked up at him with moist eyes, "I told you, I don't mind! I could read." She paused for a moment then added aggrieved, "Besides, your aunt and uncle are going to be there."

  "I didn't know that until yesterday!" Nick snapped. "Up until then it was just going to be my cousin, Bryan." His face flushed a quick red then returned to normal. He sighed heavily, then moderated his tone, "Anyway, part of it is that I wanted to be alone." He considered for a moment then continued.

  "Debbie, we're getting married in a few months and this looks like the last big fling with the guys for me. You have to understand that," his eyes and his tone pleading now, "this will probably be the last time that I'll get to do this sort of thing with my buddies. I need it." He looked at her and could see that what he was saying was registering, but that didn't ease much.

  Nick continued, "Sarah's going because she set the whole trip up with Bryan, she's on better terms with him than I am. Then Uncle Bud and Aunt Ruth decided to come too, I couldn't predict that." Still, there was hurt in Debbie's face, but much of its hardness was gone. "By the time all of this had taken place it was too late for you to get time off from the Day Care Center, so I just didn't invite you altogether. I'm sorry." It was heartfelt and Debbie could read it in Nick's face.

  Debbie thought for a moment then placed her hand over his on her leg. "I understand," she sighed, then squeezed his hand.

  Nick sat down beside her and brushed her long black hair away from her cheek and shoulder. "I'm sorry," he said again, then kissed her lightly on the cheek. "I love you."

  "I love you too," she replied, then turned to regard him. She loved looking at him; everything about Nick was sensual to her. His long face and square jaw reminded her of someone she couldn’t quite place. He even had the same cute cleft in his chin. Dudley Dooright! That's who he reminded her of and she smiled at the image. His hair was a dishwater blonde color with nearly platinum blonde tufts at the temples. His eyebrows were soft and well-formed arches above hazel eyes and she gently traced them with her fingers.

  Nick looked long and hard at Debbie. "I love you," he said again, softly. He then climbed off the bed and made his way to the shower. Debbie followed close behind. They washed each other in the warm pelting spray and kissed. As they were toweling, they heard Marty and Taylor in the other room. Nick and Debbie dressed quickly and walked out to join them.

  Marty had continued on into the kitchen but Taylor remained in the living room to meet them. Taylor looked at the couple; hair still wet, and gave them a devious smile and a wink. "Looks like you two have been doin' the nasty," he said to Nick. Debbie blushed then looked away. Nick only gave him a sly smile. Then Taylor turned and started toward his bedroom at the back of the house that he, Marty, and Nick all shared.

  "What's the plan tonight?" Nick called after him.

  "Mike's getting his sister to drop him off here and then we were going to meet Amy and a couple of Mo's friends at the Cooperage to go dancing!" Taylor replied from the back of the house.

  Marty walked out of the kitchen then into the hallway that lay between Nick's and Taylor's rooms. "Yeah, Caroline and Jennifer are going to be there. The Mutz are playin'." As if that was all the explanation necessary. Actually, it was. The Mutz were a local group that always drew a great female crowd and they were a lot of fun to dance to.

  Marty had come up to where Nick and Debbie stood and stopped. He was as tall as Nick, but huskier. Both were six foot four with very broad shoulders, but Marty was more athletic than Nick and it showed. His hair was brown tangled curls that covered his ears and forehead, and forever looked to be in need of combing. He wore thick rectangular glasses with rounded corners that really didn't compliment his face very well. But, Nick had never seen him any other way.

  Nick had known Marty on and off for about four years. He met him through Taylor and Mike, and they all got along well. Then, when Mike took the job at Google, he had asked Marty to take over Mike's portion of the lease they had all signed on the house. Marty looked like the typical little boy lost. Which explained all the girls, Nick thought. He certainly wasn't mister handsome, but he was funny. In fact, all of Nick’s friends were funny. That was what held them together, their combined senses of humor.

  "The Mutz, huh? Sounds like a blast dude. I'm hangin' for it man." Nick did his best California Surfer imitation, complete with facial expressions and tonal inflections. This routine was something he had done with Mike, but Mike’s role had mysteriously been taken over by Marty.

  Marty replied, "Awright! It'll be a totally bitchin' time dude! Mega babes, tasty tunes, and some jammin' drinkin'!" His California was somewhat better than Nick's but neither one cared. They just did a high five and walked fully into the living room to join Debbie. She only shook her head in mock disgust.

  From the back of the house they heard Taylor, "Man! You guys need a new routine, that one’s old!" Then he too emerged from the hallway and stood in the doorway to the living room. Taylor was about five foot eight with a real blocky build and broad shoulders. His hair was jet black and curly, and he reminded you of a young Adam Sandler. Taylor was Jewish and very much looked it, with the classic nose and facial features.

  He stood there with no shirt on, drinking a protein shake. He pulled it away and was left with a white mustache above his five o’clock shadow. Taylor was very hirsute and had a difficult time keeping up with it. His face seemed to break out daily, his skin sensitive to the razor. Debbie only glanced at him then looked away. She thought that all of that hair was a little repulsive. She looked back at Nick and smiled, although he didn't see it.

  Marty and Nick had plugged in the X–Box and were blasting monsters in a sewer somewhere. Taylor returned to his room and dressed while Debbie picked up the Dean R. Koontz book she'd been reading and opened it. In the background were the distinct sound of electronic gunfire and the death snarls of evil creatures. From further back in the house she could hear bass and drums but didn’t really recognize the song. That was another thing she found interesting about Nick, when he was with the guys he listened to the flavor of the day. But when it was just him and her, he preferred older pop and soft rock tunes. She smiled inwardly and began reading as they waited for Mike.

  They were busy fighting the anticipation, trying to make the time pass as quickly and wordlessly as they could. Debbie had been around them long enough to recognize the fight. She'd seen it a hundred times before. It was part of Nick's charm she supposed and she smiled inwardly again.

  A half an hour later there was a knock at the door and an instance of tenseness rifled throughout the house. The waiting was over. Nick, awaiting his turn at level eight, moved to the front door and peered out the peephole. A bespectacled eye peered back, distorted by the convex of the glass. Nick had to laugh. He yanked the door open. "Mister Google!" he exclaimed with genuine affection. He took Mike's hand and pulled him in and hugged him.

  "Hey Nick," Mike replied, his smile broad and toothy. His black hair hung down across his brow and round glasses sat askew on his long face. "Dude, the old hitch-a-rama, huh?!" The words were coated with disbelief and Mike looked at him hard trying to decide if it was for real. "Nick, Nick, Nick, Nick, Nick," he shook his head. They smiled at each other for an awkward moment then moved into the living room as Taylor came up the hall.

  "So, how'd it happen? Did you like, get down on one knee or something?" Mike asked.

  "I'm not quite sure man,” Nick replied, “Here she was, slapping me for no good reason, and the next thing I know, I'm proposing," he regarded Debbie. "I think I was drugged."

  Debbie elbowed him in the ribs in response. As Nick and Mike and the others talked, she sudden
ly felt like a fifth wheel. Nick did his best to include her in the little reunion, but it wasn't her party. They weren't her friends, or their friends, they were his friends. But, that was okay. She knew he would have his friends, as she fully expected to have hers. She was content to sit off in the corner and listen, and smile at them. A very short time later, they left for the Cooperage.

  They celebrated like they did in years past. It was male bonding and dripping with testosterone, but more than that Debbie decided. They were best friends, the four Musketeers. And Debbie didn't realize it until she'd seen them all together and listened to them talking. There was something between them that she could never have with Nick and it made her a little jealous. She realized then why Nick needed to be alone with them for this trip too. In a few months his life was going to change drastically. And boyhood friendships, friendships deeper and longer than she had even known Nick, were going to end.

  Not end entirely. Just change so much that the original bond would be lost. She saw that Nick saw his tried and true way of living coming to an end, and this was his last goodbye. It made her a little sad too. She had told him time and again that things wouldn't change, but somewhere deep down she knew that they would. They had to. She had seen it with other couples and knew that it would be the same with them. So, she would let him have his farewell.

  The group arrived back home around one a.m., happy, very drunk, and exhausted. Mike crashed out on the couch while the others made it to their bedrooms. Debbie helped Nick to bed and curled up beside him, his warmth penetrating her, encompassing her. They made love and fell asleep holding each other. Nick's long arms wrapped around her solidly and pulled her close.

  ***

  Nick's left brain kicked him in the temple to get his attention just before he passed the turn off to the cabin. Just past the Ranger Station was the dirt road he would need to take, although now it was covered in packed snow. Before he made the left turn, Nick glanced once more in the rear-view mirror. He saw nothing. Though there was some light from the station to break the dark, it was still impossible to see very far. He had been keeping track of the others by watching the two dots of light that seemed to float through space in the blackness, following a strange course that was the winding path of the road.

  Nick sighed then made the turn. He knew that he was going to have to come back out and find them. He had the feeling that they were stuck again. "Damn," he mumbled to himself.

  He continued on, following the curves and grades of the now one lane road for the next three miles to the cabin. Uncle Bud had left the deck light on for them. His real name was Harlan and Nick didn't know how he had come to be called "Bud", he only knew that no one had ever called him Harlan. It was a good thing the porch light was on, it was pitch black out here and without that light Nick could easily have missed it.

  There was no way to actually drive up to the cabin. They had to park on the road and hike up. Fortunately the plow had made a wide spot in the road in front of the place. Probably at his uncle's request, Nick guessed. Nick went ahead and turned the car around so that it would be facing the direction he figured he would need to go in a few minutes.

  "Okay guys, we're here." The others slowly began to stir.

  "Wake up you bums! C'mon," Nick urged and Mike and Sarah came around groggily.

  Mike rubbed his eyes beneath his glasses and stretched his face muscles which worked itself into a yawn, then looked around. "Where are Mo and The Tails?" he asked. Mo was their universal abbreviation for Marty and The Tails for Taylor. Not that The Tails was any shorter, just more fun. Mike then began searching for his left glove.

  "They’re probably stuck in a snow bank somewhere." In Sarah's voice was mock sarcasm but it was all just good natured kidding. She and Mike laughed but Nick only smiled.

  "Go ahead and laugh, butt brains. I'm the one that's got to go find them." Nick was obviously not pleased with the prospect.

  "Oh, they'll be along in a minute. You know how slow he drives," Sarah said. She had gathered her things and was climbing out the driver side door to stand next to Nick. Mike was still looking for his glove.

  "Brrrrrr! It's cold out here!" she chattered out. She knew she should be able to see her breath but the wind was carrying it away. It was literally ripping it out of her lungs.

  Mike finally found his glove and climbed out his door. "Want me to lock it Nick?"

  "Nah. No one's out here to bother it. Besides, I have the feeling that I'll be back down here in a minute anyway." He was showing signs of being disgusted. Then Nick looked to his left and right, "I guess Bryan and Aunt Ruth haven't made it yet?"

  Sarah replied, "No, they're not coming until tomorrow." Almost as an afterthought she added, "If the weather holds, that is."

  "Oh, I thought it was tonight."

  "That's what you get for thinking'," Sarah ribbed.

  Mike closed his door and when the dome light went out they were encased in total darkness. They could barely make out each other's shapes. If you asked them if someone was standing near them they would have said yes only because they knew that someone had been there. Without the light, each of them felt completely alone with nondescript shadows as companions.

  "Shit! I can't see a damned thing!" Sarah remarked, squinting in the darkness. The trees had blocked nearly all of the light from the cabin to their position on the roadside. After a few moments their eyes adjusted and they could make out indentations of a path in the snow. Sarah started up the hill and the others followed her, with Nick taking up the rear. He glanced one final time down the road and saw no tiny points of light.

  "Shit," Nick mumbled to himself. He shook his head then continued up the path.

  The cabin was warm and what had once been a roaring fire was now just glowing embers in the 1889 cast iron stove. Kicking the snow from their boots, they each in turn came in the front door that had apparently been left unlocked for them. The big main room was empty and Nick figured that his uncle had gone to bed.

  He looked around the room and embraced its warmth and charm. His uncle had designed and built it. The main room contained the kitchen and living room. The kitchen was immediately to the left as you entered the doorway. It was separated from the living room by a large butcher block table with barstools along the side that faced the living room. It was a nice kitchen with a lot of counter space and cabinets. It also had a microwave and dishwasher---some cabin.

  In the living room, along the wall that was the stairway to the loft, sat the antique stove with its chimney disappearing out the high, angular room. A couch sat along the far wall next to the T.V. (satellite dish of course) and another one against the wall directly to your right as you stood in the doorway. This wall was in fact a pair of giant sliding glass doors that led out onto a deck that faced the road. Snow on the deck stood five feet deep with a little path cut through it to get to the firewood stacked out there.

  The loft was a big room half the length of the cabin with only a railing separating it from the rest of the room. It contained three beds, two twins and one king size that Nick and Marty shared since they were the tallest ones there. Behind the stairwell sat a washer and dryer. Past them was the bathroom. In the very back of the cabin sat two bedrooms next to each other, across from the washer and dryer.

  The entire interior of the cabin had been done with smooth interlocking strips of cedar in different widths. Some were six inches wide. Some were two or three. They went in one direction for a while, then changed and went in another. Some were diagonal. Some went straight up and down, then diagonally the opposite direction. The lines were all very pleasing to the eye. The wood was broken up by a white ceiling under the loft, and wallpaper in the kitchen. Nick thought it had taken his uncle an incredible amount of patience to put up this interior.

  The cabin was heated with electric baseboard heat in addition to the stove. Not very efficient, Nick thought. But, it had been built over twelve years ago. This however, was the first time that Nick had ever been t
here. His sister had come up several times before with their family but Nick had never managed it. He never thought he would have fun up here. And the thought of spending that much time around his mother was repugnant. He had declined by making excuses. Nick didn't get along very well with his mother. She was an acrimonious woman. He often times wondered if she hated all men the way it seemed she hated Nick and his father. She was the main reason he had moved to Memphis four years earlier.

  He had managed to move back to Albuquerque this past summer and was very happy about it. He was getting along so much better with his mother. She still tended to harp on his life, but Nick didn't mind so much anymore. Nick had done a lot of growing up in Memphis and his mother had changed as well since he'd been gone. Of course, she said that she hadn't, that she'd always been this way. But Nick knew better. Nick looked around the cabin and was truly glad to be there. He told himself how stupid he had been for not coming up here sooner.

  Nick considered his sister. He and Sarah had always been close, more so than either of them had been with their older sister. He and Sarah were only a year apart and had a great deal in common. He was closer to her than anyone in his family. Nick looked at Sarah with affection and tenderness. He really loved her and knew deep down that he would do anything for her.

  Sarah caught his look and smiled. She walked up to him and hugged him without saying a word. She knew what he was thinking. She always did. It was strange. It almost seemed as if they communicated on some higher level. Sarah always knew when he was down and needed some cheering up, or when he had hurt himself (he was a real klutz). Likewise, Nick could always tell when Sarah was feeling low or just needed to talk. It felt good being this way with someone.