“Deborah tried to bite off more than she could chew.”

I looked to the far side of the cot to see a smiling Kimmy. Her blonde locks were pulled back in a long braid, and her black and blue ski outfit held splotches of dampness from melted snow.

“She tried to take on the bigger slopes.”

I frowned, pinning Kimmy with my gaze. “You were supposed to be watching her.” I’d given Kimmy specific instructions not to let Deborah get in over her head.

“Watching me? I’m not a child. We were having fun,” Deborah insisted.

I returned my gaze to her but didn’t respond. Instead, I let my eyes scan the entirety of Deborah’s body. That was when I saw her injury. Propped up on a few pillows was her right leg, ice packs covering her ankle.

“It’s just a sprain, looks like,” the resort worker stated.

“Are you certified?” I questioned, glaring at him.

His eyes widened as if he was actually shocked that I’d ask his qualifications.

“Robert,” Deborah called, tugging at my arm. “Let him do his job. John, has been very nice to me and my ankle isn’t throbbing in pain any longer so he must be doing something right.”

Reluctantly, I turned back to look at Deborah. “I knew I shouldn’t have left you.”

She tilted her head.

“Now that you’re here, I’m going to head to the cabin to get something to eat. Deb, do you want anything?” Kimmy asked, standing.

Deborah shook her head. “I’m fine. John says I’ll be here another hour or so and then I get go back to the room.”

“I’ll take her back,” I insisted, cutting off whatever Kimmy had been about to say.

Kimmy headed off.

“You were mean to her.”

“She shouldn’t have let you get on slopes you weren’t ready for.”

“She’s not my babysitter, and like I said, we were having fun. I’m just upset I ruined it,” she pouted.

“You didn’t ruin anything,” I reassured.

“The good news is I’ll only have to be laid up for day and a half seeing as how we leave the day after tomorrow.”

“You won’t be by yourself.”

“I can’t ask you to stay inside with me. This is your last spring break of college. You should enjoy it.”

“I am enjoying it.” The only reason I’d had any fun on this trip at all was because I’d spent most of my time with Deborah, teaching her how to ski. I was way more advanced than she was and I loved skiing, and anything outdoors really, but seeing her eyes light up when she conquered a new slope had been the highlight of the entire trip. I didn’t need much else, right then.

****

“You didn’t have to stay with me this whole time. I bet you missed hitting the slopes one final time.”

“Not even a little bit,” I responded, sincerely, staring into Deborah’s blue eyes. The blue in her eyes was illuminated even more due to the roaring fire behind us. We were sitting in the cozy lounge area of the cabin. Most of the others that’d come on this trip were on the slopes for one last time but I couldn’t be bothered. Not when Deborah was here. The snow-covered mountains couldn’t compare to this view.