Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 94155 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 471(@200wpm)___ 377(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94155 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 471(@200wpm)___ 377(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to breathe in New York. I’ve never noticed the pollution before, but now that I know what good air feels like, I may never be able to go back.”
John laughs. “I know how you feel. Don’t worry, your body will readjust to New York.”
That’s what I’m afraid of. Will this trip become a distant memory too soon? I don’t want to lose the happiness and clarity I’ve gotten while here.
A squirrel scurries across our path. At least we have those in New York. So much is different, but there are a few things that are the same. I’ll have to reminisce on those similarities until I can visit a place like Alaska again.
Our hike is mostly silent. We’ve spent the entire week getting to know each other and talking. I like that we’ve learned how to be happily quiet together, too.
The familiar bubbling of the stream gets louder with each step.
“Shall we check it out again?” Mark asks. “See if our bear friend is there?”
“Yes!” I respond.
We veer off the trail toward the water. When we arrive at the stream, there’s no bear in sight. I’m disappointed.
John gets close to the water’s edge. “Hey, there’s a rock bridge over here. Want to cross it?”
I glance behind us. “Should we? We don’t have a lot of time, and I don’t want to get too far from the trail.”
“Don’t worry about it. We’ll get back in time.”
If John is sure, then I’m sure. I follow him across the stream with Mark behind me. We venture deeper into the forest than we’ve ever been. The stream’s gurgle softens and then disappears completely.
The walk is beautiful. Being off the trail makes me feel like a true part of nature. Unfortunately, it’s short-lived. Mark checks the time on his watch and announces that we need to start heading back.
We walk in what we think is the direction we came, but nothing looks familiar to me.
“Are we going the right way?”
“Of course,” John assures me. But the longer we walk, the less sure he is. We didn’t walk for this long before, and the stream is nowhere to be seen or heard.
The sun is getting lower in the sky, and we still haven’t found the trail.
“Guys,” John says, stopping to look around. “I think we’re going to miss our flight.”
That’s when I know we’re lost.
16
John
Mari is practically shaking with nerves.
“Are you sure we’re going the right way?” she asks for the hundredth time. “We should be at the stream by now.”
She’s right, of course. I’m not sure why we haven’t hit the stream yet. It should’ve been simple. We walked in a straight line after we crossed the stream, so walking straight should’ve gotten us back.
Why are we so lost?
We must’ve turned at some point. I don’t know when, though, so I don’t know how to get us back on track.
“We’ll be fine,” I assure Mari. “We’ll get back to the hotel soon.”
“You said we’d miss our flight.”
I check my watch. The plane leaves in two hours, and the airport is over an hour away. There’s no way we’re making it in time at this point.
“Don’t worry about that. We can book a new flight for tomorrow. We’ll have to stay at the hotel an extra night, but they don’t seem to be full.”
“But a last-minute flight change will be expensive, and you’ve already spent so much on this trip…”
“Most of it was paid for by the university,” I remind her. “All we paid for were conference passes for you and Mark and your flights. It hasn’t been that expensive. A lot of the meals were paid for by the University, too.”
Mari bites her lip and nods. “Okay. But still…”
“Don’t worry about the money or the flight. Everything is going to be fine.”
I’m mostly telling the truth. I’m not concerned about the cost of changing our flight or staying at the hotel another night. I’m more concerned about getting us out of the woods. Literally.
On the outside, I’m collected. That’s who I am. I don’t show my nerves.
Inside, though, I’m concerned. We’re lost. There’s no way around that.
I’m supposed to be the leader here. I’m the oldest, and I feel like I’m in charge.
What if I fail them?
I pull out my phone to see if I can use GPS to get us out, but I have no service here. I’m not surprised. I’ve only been able to use my phone on Wi-Fi since we arrived in Alaska. Cellular signal isn’t strong around here.
“Does anyone else have service?”
Mark checks his phone and shakes his head.
“I didn’t bring my phone,” Mari says. “I didn’t think I’d need it, and I wanted to make sure it was fully charged for the flight.”
Dammit. It doesn’t matter, anyway. I highly doubt Mari would have had service when Mark and I don’t. We’re on similar phone plans.