Climbing for Love, Watching Her Stray

Climbing a snow mountain is the engagement trip Amber Garcia and I planned together. The night before we set out, our guide, Mike Marlowe, found an extra set of thermal gear while taking inventory. "Captain Garcia, who's this for?" Everyone's eyes turned to me. After all, the whole team knew this climb is supposed to be a special trip for the two of us. Amber glanced at our junior teammate, Theo Yorkson, who was crouched in the corner, shivering from the cold. Her voice was gentle and casual. "Give it to him. It's his first time at high altitude. The gear will come in handy for him." Theo awkwardly took the gear with both hands. "Thank you so much, Amber." Mike paused, then said nothing more. When my friend, Charlie Jameson, called on the satellite phone, he sounded so furious that it was as if he could crush the phone in his hand. "Aren't you two supposed to propose to each other at the summit? Why is she bringing Theo along again?" I smiled and swallowed the bitterness in my throat. "Don't worry. The plan hasn't changed." I'll make it to the summit, and I'll wait for her to propose. If Amber doesn't want to give me that moment, then so be it. Chapter 1 Skyler's POV The moment Theo Yorkson took the thermal gear, his eyes reddened slightly. He looked up at my girlfriend, Amber Garcia, sounding rather embarrassed. "Amber, you really want me to have this? But, Skyler… He—" As he spoke, he glanced at me awkwardly. Amber waved a hand, clearly unconcerned. "He's climbed three mountains over 13 thousand feet. His stamina is much better than yours. It's your first time at high altitude, so you need to be looked after." Theo pressed his lips together and hugged the gear to his chest. He lowered his head and murmured, "Thanks, Amber." A note of delight peeked through his voice. One of our guides, Mike Marlowe, glanced at me from the side. He wanted to say something but couldn't bring himself to. I rummaged through my duffel bag and pulled out a spare heat patch. I tore it open and stuck it to my stomach. It wasn't enough to keep me warm, but it would have to do. Amber and Theo stood outside Theo's tent for a long time. She bent down to help him put on his gear, then patiently taught him how to adjust each strap and buckle. He listened with his head tilted up, nodding eagerly now and then. The admiration and dependence in his eyes were impossible to miss. From a distance, they looked like a picture-perfect couple. Except I wasn't in the picture. The satellite phone rang. My friend, Charlie Jameson, was practically screaming into the phone. "Skyler, you asked me to get that gear for you from Ritzland! You wouldn't even use it yourself! How could she just hand it to someone else?" "Charlie, calm down." "Calm down? I'm pissed!" He lowered his voice, exasperated. "Didn't you two have a plan? You two were supposed to propose to each other at the summit. If it works out, you two would hold the engagement party when you come back. "Now look at this! One junior teammate comes clinging to her, and she's handing him your gear like it's nothing! Is she proposing to you at the summit, or to Theo?" I leaned against the tent frame and gazed at the snow peaks in the distance. The night was dark, the wind bitterly cold, but the moonlight made the peaks gleam against the sky. "Charlie," I said softly. "Yeah?" "She knows what she's doing. She's just soft-hearted. You know that." He fell silent for two seconds, but his anger didn't subside. "Skyler, stop making excuses for her. Let me ask you this—whose idea was it for Theo to come on this climb?" I said nothing. Of course, it had been Amber's idea. Two months ago, when she and I first planned the climb, everything had been perfect. We picked the route and ordered our gear. She had even secretly written out what she would say when she proposed. She had drafted it three times, filling page after page with words, crossing each version out and starting over. That night, I stared at the piece of paper until my eyes grew hot. She rushed in, flustered, asking what was wrong. I hid the paper behind my back and told her the wind stung my eyes. She believed me. Things changed a month ago. Theo was transferred from another city to Amber's research institute. His advisor said he needed her guidance for a research project and sent him over without giving her much choice. Theo was 23, fresh out of university, soft-spoken and bookish, with a pair of glasses perched on his nose. Whenever he ran into trouble, he would call out to Amber for help, as if it were natural. To be fair, Amber also went to extra lengths for him. She stayed up late helping him revise his papers, took him out to collect data, and even brought an extra serving back from the cafeteria at lunch. I once asked, "Don't you think you're a little too nice to Theo?" She laughed and playfully punched my shoulder. "He's just a rookie. Are you seriously jealous?" Later, she told me Theo had always wanted to see a snow mountain and asked if he could tag along. "Well, think of it as having one more companion. He just had a falling-out with his family and could use a little time to get away and recharge." I agreed. I thought I was being generous. I thought this trip would still, in the end, belong to the two of us. My tent zipper was pulled open from outside, and Amber poked her head in. Her face was flushed from the wind, the tip of her nose just as red. Each breath came out as a cloud of white vapor in the darkness. "Why aren't you asleep yet?" She ducked inside and sat beside me. I slipped the satellite phone into my sleeping bag. "I'm too excited to sleep." She smiled and rested her head lightly against my shoulder. "Tomorrow, we push for Camp Three. If the weather holds, we'll go for the summit the day after. When we reach the summit…" Her voice turned gentle. "There's something I want to tell you." My heart skipped a beat. "What?" "You'll find out when we get there." Outside the tent, the wind howled like the entire mountain was crying out into the night. I slipped an arm around Amber's shoulders. At that moment, the whole world felt warm. Chapter 2 Skyler's POV The next morning, the team broke camp and started climbing higher. At 19 thousand feet, the air was painfully thin. Every step felt like I was dragging a mountain behind me. We split into three groups. I was in the second group, and Amber was originally supposed to be with us. But right before we set out, she switched groups. "Theo's not doing well. I'm going to the third group to keep an eye on him," she told me. "Stay close to Mike. Don't fall behind." I nodded. All morning, all I could see of her was a distant figure behind us. She stayed beside Theo, steadying him now and then. When we crossed a stretch of loose scree, Theo suddenly slipped and stumbled sideways. Amber grabbed his arm and pulled him back to safety. Shaken, he breathed heavily and turned to her with a nervous smile. "If you hadn't been here, I would've gone straight down, Amber." She smiled back, her voice patient and gentle. "Shorter steps. Make sure your footing is solid before you move. There's no need to rush." Mike glanced back and frowned when he saw me. "Your girlfriend sure is something. Always looking out for everyone, huh?" I didn't answer. At noon, we stopped to rest beneath a rocky outcrop sheltered from the wind. I sat on a rock, chewing on a rock-hard ration bar. Amber came over and handed me a cup of hot water. I took it and wrapped my hands around it. "Theo was feeling the altitude a little earlier. He threw up twice." She sat down beside me, frowning. "At this rate, going for the summit tomorrow could be dangerous for him." "Then tell him to stay at camp and wait for us," I said. She hesitated. "He came all this way just to reach the summit. It wouldn't be safe to leave him alone at camp, either." "We can have a guide stay with him." "We don't have enough guides," she said, then paused and looked at me tentatively. "How about… You wait for me at Camp Three? I'll take Theo back down to Camp Two, then come back up and summit with you." I stopped chewing. "You want me to wait at Camp Three by myself?" "It'll only be half a day," she said, patting the back of my hand. "There are tents and supplies at Camp Three. You'll be fine." After a few seconds, I folded the wrapper from my ration bar and tucked it into my pocket. "No. I don't want to propose at camp. I want to do it at the summit." Amber froze, then smiled. "Okay. We'll do it your way." We kept climbing that afternoon. The sky grew darker by the minute. Clouds rolled in from the west. Heavy, gray clouds clamped over the mountain like a devouring monster. Mike looked up for a long time, his expression grim. "Captain Garcia, the clouds don't look right today. Based on what we've seen in previous years, there's a high chance a blizzard will follow. I suggest we make camp here and reassess tomorrow." Amber nodded and was ready to order the team to set up camp. Out of nowhere, Theo ran up from behind, panting. "Amber!" His face was pale, and his lips had turned blue, but his eyes gleamed with excitement. "I just checked the weather forecast. It's supposed to be overcast the day after tomorrow and the day after that. "Tomorrow morning is the only window we have, and it's only six hours! If we stop climbing today, we might miss it!" Mike frowned. Amber hesitated. "Amber." I tugged at her sleeve and reminded her, "Mike said the weather is unstable today." "It's fine, Skyler!" Theo suddenly turned to me, looking so earnestly hopeful yet desperate. "I've been reading a lot of climbing forums. Clouds like these don't always mean snow. And we're already at 19 thousand feet. "Camp Three is only another 1300 feet up. It'll take two hours at most. If we miss this window, the whole trip could be for nothing!" His words hit directly at Amber's hesitation. She looked at Theo, then up at the clouds overhead. "Keep going. We push on to Camp Three today." Mike gave her a long look, but said nothing. I stayed in the middle of the group as we continued upward. Those gray clouds slowly swallowed the last traces of sunlight. Chapter 3 Skyler's POV We never made it to Camp Three. The blizzard hit far sooner than anyone had expected. A deep rumble came from somewhere inside the mountain, like the growl of some enormous beast. Mike's face went pale. "Avalanche! Everyone, down!" The world seemed to turn upside down. A massive wall of snow crashed down from the ridge, roaring as it swept everything in its path away. The blast knocked me off my feet. My ears rang violently as chunks of snow slammed into me, ice pouring down the collar of my jacket. My whole body convulsed from the cold. It went on for some time before the first wave finally passed. I lay face-down in the snow, too stunned to move. It took me a few seconds to register that I was still alive. "Amber!" I screamed. Through the blowing snow, a figure staggered to her feet. It was her. She was covered in snow, a thin streak of blood running down her face. She didn't run toward me. She ran toward Theo. He was sprawled on the slope about 50 feet away, shivering violently. "Amber… Amber, my leg is cramping… I can't stand up…" Amber ran to his side and dragged him into a sheltered spot out of the wind. "You're okay. You're okay." She quickly examined him. "Are you hurt anywhere?" "I can't feel anything…" he stuttered, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. "I'm freezing, Amber…" Amber looked up and swept her gaze across the area. Then she spotted me—more precisely, the emergency bivy blanket wrapped around my body. It was the last one the team had. All the others had been buried by the avalanche. She strode toward me. I thought she was coming to pull me to safety, but she reached out and yanked the blanket from my shoulders. My fingers tightened around it instinctively. "Skyler, let go," she urged me, leaving no room for argument. "Theo's going hypothermic. He won't make it without it." "What about me?" My voice sounded hoarse and unfamiliar, even to my ears. She paused. "You're in better shape. You can handle the cold better than he can." She tore the blanket away from me, and a bone-deep cold immediately rushed in from every direction, as if I had been thrown alive into a freezer. Amber wrapped the blanket around Theo, then crouched down and began unclipping the climbing rope from around my waist. "What are you doing?" I questioned, actually panicking this time. "I can only get one person out at a time." She didn't even look at me as she swiftly unfastened the buckle. "This is the only rope we have left. Mike says there are crevasses below, and we have to stay roped up to cross them. "Theo isn't strong enough. He won't make it across without the rope." "And what about me?" I seized her arm, my nails digging into the fabric of her jacket. Amber finally looked at me. In it, I saw hesitation, guilt, and an unquestioning trust—the kind that said, "You're so capable. You'll be fine." "Wait for rescue, Skyler." She stood up and secured the climbing rope around Theo's waist. "Mike has already sent out a distress signal. The rescue team will be here within two hours, tops. You can make it. You always have." She took hold of Theo's arm and turned toward the route down. The blowing snow soon swallowed her figure. I parted my lips, wanting to call her name, but the wind tore my voice to pieces. Amber never looked back. When the second avalanche hit, the snow beneath my feet collapsed with a deafening roar. Darkness swallowed me whole. In the last moments I was conscious, I heard the dull thud of my body slamming into the ice wall. Once, twice, and thrice. Then, silence. It was 22 degrees Fahrenheit below zero down there. Amber said help would arrive in two hours. She said I could make it. Perhaps she had forgotten that I was an ordinary human capable of experiencing fear, cold, and death.