19. Snow

A cloud of breath forms in front of you as sigh for umpteenth time. You’ve walked about 20 minutes away from the cabin and are now leaning against a tree staring at the leaves above your head. You finally look back down and glance over towards the cabin. You still don’t see any movement and haven’t heard any noises coming from it. You kick at the snow in front of you and the powdery top layer dusts across the top of your boot.

You can’t stay out here forever and it will be getting dark soon. Sunset finally seems to have reached a consistent setting point around 4pm. The temperature is also quickly dropping and you curse yourself for not grabbing gloves. Your hands are tucked under your armpits but are beginning to grow numb. You pull them out and blow into your clenched fists. They warm up slightly but you know you need to start heading back now.

Tucking your hands back under your arms you start walking towards the cabin. A stack of smoke is coming out of the chimney and despite your **** to return to the tense atmosphere you left you quicken your pace. The thought of the warm fire inside compels you forward. Your steps don’t slow down until you’ve reached the porch. You do your best to ascend the steps silently and gently press your ear to the door.

To your dismay you find that it’s too thick to hear through. Before you have a chance to pull away from the door it suddenly swings open. You try to catch yourself but instead find yourself falling forward until you collide with Jacks warm chest. “I’m sorry!” You exclaim quickly pulling away from him and glancing over at Dex. His expression doesn’t seem thrilled but he doesn’t say anything as he walks over to you.

Jack steps out of his way and let’s him take your hand to lead you inside. “You shouldn’t have stayed outside so long. I don’t want you to get frost bite” Dex chastise when he feels how cold your hands are. You think you catch a scowl quickly flash across Jacks face when Dex takes both of your hands in his and begins gently rubbing them. It may have just been your imagination but you feel your cheeks grow flush nonetheless.

You turn your gaze to Dex’s face and try to read his expression. His eyes are focused on your hands and his brow is slightly furrowed. He doesn’t look as annoyed as he had earlier but you know he’s not happy about this situation. You feel slightly guilty for surprising him with all of this. But you hope he understands you didn’t know what else to do. Jack may be the only other man out there and there’s safety in numbers. You hope Dex doesn’t make him leave but you know you won’t be able to stop him if he does.

You suppose the fact that Jack is still here is a good sign. The rest of the night, however, is still uncomfortable. Jack leans back against the door frame while you all silently eat dinner. After a while he grabs his jacket and says he’ll be back in a bit. The outhouse is a good 30+ ft from the cabin and you figure that’s the only place he could be going to this late. You’re just happy to finally have a moment alone with Dex. He doesn’t seem to want to talk at first. But after a little prodding you’re at least able to learn that while he’s certainly not happy he agrees they have **** but to let Jack stay at least though the winter.

“I’ve been wanting to build a shed. He agreed to help me start construction tomorrow so he’ll have somewhere more permanent to stay until we figure things out.” Dex finish saying as the door opens back up. You shiver as the cold air from outside blows inside and your eyes briefly lock with Jacks. You quickly look down and fidget with your hands again. You’d do anything for a smoke right now to calm nerves. You quit smoking a couple of years before the meteors hit but you still get the occasional craving from time to time.

Finally you get up from your chair and place a hand on Dex’s shoulder. He looks up at you but doesn’t really seem to focus. His gaze seems far off and distracted as if he’s deep in thought. You pick your book up off the mantle and go sit on the bed and pretend to read. After a while Dex comes and sits next to you and you see Jack go take your empty chair. His back faces you and you feel a ball of knots in your stomach. This is probably the most uncomfortable situation you’ve been in, even before the apocalypse happened.

Soon you’re laying down under the blankets wrapped in Dex’s warm embrace. You try your best to sleep but after sometime you can make out the sun beginning to rise. And shortly after you feel Dex stirring next to you. He always gets up right at dawn and you quickly got on the same schedule. You feel Dex’s arm slide out from under you and he gets out of bed. You reluctantly sit up and rub your bleary eyes. Your eyes quickly dart over to Jacks mat and see he’s already awake. Dark bags have begun forming under his eyes and you wonder if his night was as restless as yours.