the winter i turned intelligent: chapter 11 (pt. 1)

Important Note from Dreamy Plots & Story Talks: This story contains suggestive language and sexual content and is only suitable for readers that are 18+.

Chapter 11 (part 1):

Conrad’s POV:

“Nice man!” Steven patted my back with excitement. We were playing video games, but I was zoned out. “Conrad, hey snap out of it,” he nudged me.  

I mocked, “Yeah great, everything’s great, this is so much fun.” 

He didn’t buy it, “You seriously need to chill. You’re acting like it’s the end of the world, and I hate to break it to you, but that was nothing.”

I glared at him, “tell me how you really feel, please don’t hold back...”

He caught my sarcasm, “you know you’re the closest thing I’ve had to a brother...which is why I have to be honest with you. I was really happy for you, I was, but don’t you think you went a little fast?” I turned my attention back to the game, but I could tell he was still looking at me, “I don’t think you liked Natasha as much as you think you did. She was the first person you went out with after a few years, so I think you just got all excited, and I get why, but I don’t think it was as deep as you’re making it out to be.” I didn’t respond, so he added, “even if it was, you’ll find someone better.” 

I wondered if this was true. Maybe I was excited that I finally had someone in my life again, someone to talk to at the end of day, someone to laugh with when days felt lackluster.  

I left before the evening traffic began to head back to school. Winter Break was over, and I’d be back in two weeks for Jeremiah’s graduation. After hearing what Steven had to say, I regretted how I’d spoken to Belly the other day. I hadn’t seen her since and knew I owed her an apology the next time I did.

Natasha’s POV:

I was painting my nails on my bed when I heard a knock on my bedroom door, “Come in.” I was surprised to see Nina walk in since she never knocked on my door and instead would always let herself in. “You’re back early from your date.” 

She sat on the edge of my bed, “Well the date ended a little early, I broke up with Trusky.”

My brows furrowed with confusion, “Why?”

She took the shimmery pastel lavender nail polish and began painting her nails as well, “I asked Mateo what was going on with you, you were never this quiet, at least not with me. He explained everything. Why didn’t you tell me how you were feeling?” 

I went to bring a shimmy mauve polish for my toes, “Exactly because of this. I knew you’d just worry about me like you always do. You were happy, and I didn’t want to ruin it.”

She put her hand on my left shoulder, “Family always comes first. Since Jeremiah and Trusky are best friends, I didn’t want to make it awkward for you if you had to run into Jeremiah and Belly a lot.” Then she grew quiet, “and I honestly don’t think we would have lasted for much longer. I think he also liked Jessica.”

I tried not to sound sarcastic because I genuinely felt bad about it, “I could’ve told you that.”

She threw a pillow at me playfully, “yeah, apparently there’s a lot you could’ve told me.” Then, she looked at me, and her eyes looked a little sad, “how could I not tell that you liked Jeremiah? I feel awful that I didn’t notice it even once.” 

I helped paint her nails, “Don’t feel bad about it at all. I guess I didn’t want to admit it to myself because I knew it wouldn’t work. Looking back on it, I liked him when we first met when he was technically available. But when he wasn’t anymore, I still liked him, and I felt ashamed that I liked someone who was so committed to someone else. It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you, I almost wanted to convince myself that it wasn’t anything, but the more that I did that, the more I was reminded how much I cared.”

“Liking someone who’s not available doesn’t make you a terrible person, it just makes you human, and yeah that’s messy, but we’re all a little messy. I know it might come as a shock to you, but even you can also be messy sometimes.” She squeezed my hand gently.

“I appreciate that, but I’m not going to get involved. It’s not worth it.” Then we continued painting our nails and caught up on a lot that had happened the past few months. It was comforting to bond with my sister again after so long.

That Weekend:

Belly’s POV: 

Steven, Taylor, Jeremiah, and I had gotten a small cabin near a ski resort for the weekend. The pine trees surrounding the ski slopes were covered in snow even though it was a sunny day. Steven and Taylor headed out first.

While Jeremiah was changing into his ski clothes, I sat on the couch evaluating the past few years. Three years ago felt like a decade ago and yesterday at the same time. Four years ago, I wouldn’t have imagined dating Jeremiah Fisher, and now in about six months, it would be our four-year anniversary. We grew up together and spent so much time with each other that I wondered if we hadn’t had enough time by ourselves. 

I knew how lucky we were to have had each other since we were younger, however I couldn’t deny the overwhelming feeling I was experiencing not because of him but from life itself and how fast it was flying by.

My thoughts were left on pause when he appeared through the hallway, “ready to go Bells?”

Those few words were enough to momentarily erase all my thoughts. I walked up to him, wrapped my arms around his neck, and kissed him softly, “you look so handsome.” He smiled into my lips and continued kissing me.

After thirty minutes of skiing, we had almost gone on most of the slopes. Jeremiah shouted, “last one down has to get the other a milkshake!” 

Then he disappeared into the steep trail of snow as I quickly followed, “cheater!!”

He made it to the bottom first, “well, well, I believe you owe me a milkshake of my choice...”

I threw a snowball at him playfully, “Fine, but I demand a rematch after. Whoever loses then has to treat the winner to an evening of fine dining with steak and appetizers, and drinks, and-”

“Oh you’re on, but if I were you I’d start researching the restaurants now, that way you can get us reservations in time,” he smirked at me as we walked to the lodge.

I played with his hair jokingly, and he kissed me on my cheek, “yeah, yeah, let’s get you your milkshake first.”

The lodge was as cozy inside as it looked from the outside. Taylor and Steven were finishing their lunch, while Jeremiah and I shared a chocolate and strawberry milkshake. There was something so oddly magical about having ice cream during the cold. I knew Jeremiah felt the same.

Steven and Taylor got up, and Steven reminded us, “If you’re planning on going for another round, I’d go soon. They were saying there might be a small blizzard in a few hours, and it won’t be as safe to be out on the slopes.”

After he said that, I looked out the window and noticed how the sky had turned noticeably paler and greyer, and the sun had disappeared.

Back to Natasha’s POV:

Mateo and I used to ski a lot together when we were younger. His parents owned the ski resort near the skating rink. It was one of the most beautiful resorts that I’d ever seen to this day. Now that we were older, we only really went skiing there once a year.

When he had asked me if I wanted to join him this weekend, it was the quickest that I had ever accepted the invitation.   

He liked skiing on the steepest slopes, so shortly after we got there, the second slope we went on was the steepest one that they had. Even then, Mateo, took off as fast as he usually went. I, on the other hand, proceeded with caution.

Jeremiah’s POV:

“Okay let’s maybe do the rematch another time,” this was a pretty steep slope, and even though I was excited to ski on it, it wasn’t a good idea to compete on it.  

Belly luckily agreed, “definitely, that’s way too steep.”

She took off first this time and disappeared into the slowly growing blizzard.

The slope was even steeper than it looked. As I made my way towards the bottom, I barely saw Belly cheering me on. I was impressed at how quickly she managed to finish. I wasn’t sure if I had started from a bad angle, but the further I made it down the slope, the more challenging it became to see my surroundings because of the snowfall.

A second later, I noticed a cloudy green object, and I wondered if it was a tree or something else. Before I could react, I heard a yell from my periphery.  

Back to Natasha’s POV:

Was it fate, or was it bad luck? It had to have been the latter. As I made my way down the slope, I noticed someone to my left kept skiing diagonally, and I wondered if it was because of the wind and the snow redirecting their skis.

Then I noticed Belly at the bottom of the slope and looked back at the skier again. That’s when I recognized Jeremiah’s familiar golden hair.

I shouted as loud as I could that there was a tree that he was skiing right into, but I didn’t hear any response or see any change in his direction. I panicked and skied towards him. I picked up my pace to make sure I got there in time. I was grateful that Mateo had basically taught me to ski years ago, or else I wouldn’t have had any idea what to do right now. I pushed my ski poles into the snow with as much force as I possibly could and tried my best to push him away from the tree.

Back to Jeremiah’s POV:

Before I knew it, I was covered in snow and felt a weight under me. I quickly moved aside and noticed a girl. It was Natasha. “Natasha!” Her eyes were closed, and she wasn’t responding to me. I checked her pulse, and luckily, it sounded fine.  

I heard the panic in Belly’s voice from a distance, “Jeremiah!”

I tried my best to respond loud enough for her to hear me through my shaky voice, “Belly, I’m fine! I’m fine!”

She was trying to climb up the slope, but it was too steep, “I’m fine, I promise, just get some help, Natasha’s hurt!”

Belly ran to get someone, but before she came back, a few minutes later, I noticed someone else skiing down the slope and towards us.

When the skier got closer to us, I realized it was her skating partner Mateo who looked like his whole world had just crumbled, “Natasha!”