Chapter 1
“And they all lived happily ever after,” finished Jessica.
“Why do all stories end in ‘and they all lived happily ever after?’” asked Zoe, as the sisters tramped through the forest, on their favorite hiking trail.
The cool breeze ruffled their light brown hair. Zoes was up in a ponytail while Jessica wore hers in soft curls down to her mid back.
“Well, would you rather I said, ‘And then the zombies came out of nowhere, feasting on the brains of the innocent, beginning the zombie apocalypse?” retorted Jessica.
Zoe stopped and looked at her sister, a smile playing at the corner of her mouth.
“Yes!” shouted Zoe.
There was a pause, and then both sisters doubled over laughing. This was what they loved about being with their sister. They both knew each other so well! They wouldn't know what they would do without the other.
“Okay, next time we are hiking, and we end up telling stories, we will go with that one!” Laughed Jessica.
Of course that is what Zoe would say, she thought. She has always been a little darker than herself.
Hiking through the forest was the girl's favorite pastime. They loved the colors of the fall leaves on Cougar Mountain. They had made it up to the falls to take pictures and have lunch. Nothing better to do on a late September afternoon in Washington!
They spent the whole afternoon checking out a new trail they had never seen before. The veiw was fantastic. They were able to take pictures of the deer, birds, and even a porcupine. They loved bonding with each other in nature.
The girls felt rejuvenated and happy. It had been the perfect setting to get away from all the stress of the real world. They could relax and just enjoy each other's company while getting the sun they both knew would go into hibernation soon.
The girls hadn’t realized it was getting late until they felt the cold chill and looked at the horizon and saw how low the sun was. It was almost completely gone. On the mountains, under the thick canopy of leaves, it gets chilly fast. Not to mention dark. And there was a reason the Mountain was named after cougars.
“I think it’s time we headed back,” suggested Jessica. She was nervous. They were in a new part of the mountain, and she wasn't sure she could remember how to get down in the dark.
Zoe looked around and pulled her jacket closer to her body to keep out the sudden chill in the air. She nodded at her sister. She was also nervous but didn't want to admit it to her sister. She was two years younger but still wanted to prove she was grown up too.
“For once, I agree with you Jess. I really don’t wanna be out here when the sun goes down,” agreed Zoe.
The girls packed up their packs and started heading down the mountain. The noise of the birds in the background gave them a false sense of security. As long as the birds were out, everything was okay.
Jessica decided they needed a distraction. And what would they be most distracted by? Well, boys of course!
The girls laughed and chatted about boys they liked. Jess listened to Zoe talk about her new crush. He was on the he football team.
Jessica was complaining about the boys at UW, saying they were all stupid. Or at least, they were acting like toddlers instead of adults.
"Why can't they just grow up? I don't wanna date a boy. I want a man!" She complained.
Zoe laughed. “Yeah, I think that is a universal problem!” She joked. “Boys never get more mature than the age of five, they just have bigger toys!”
“I completely agree!” chuckled Jess.
All of a sudden Zoe tripped on a rock and her body landed sprawled out across the dirt path. Pain shot through her body. Her hands and knees were scraped and her ankle was twisted. But she tried not to let the tears leak out. After all, she was seventeen! She wasn’t a baby.
“Oh! Zee, are you okay?” Jessica asked, taking off her pack and searching for her first aid kit. It took her longer than she expected, because it was getting dark. She was getting frustrated and let out a growl. Finally, she found what she was looking for and pulled it out.
“I couldn’t see the stupid rock,” Zoe grumbled. She sucked in air through her teeth as she stretched out her leg.
Zoe pulled off her pack in search of a flashlight. She shoved her hand in the bag and groped around for the heavy cylinder.
“Gotcha!” She announced triumphantly, as she pulled it out and turned it on to help her sister. At least she was good for something!
Much to the girl's dismay, it looked like the batteries needed changing soon, as the blasted light kept flickering on and off.
This was not good!
“When was the last time you switched out the batteries, Zee?” Jess sounded worried. She tried to hide her nerves from her sister, but this situation was just getting worse by the minute.
“Uh, it may have been awhile ago,” admitted Zoe. She felt guilty because that was one of her main jobs! Now they were stuck out here with an iffy light that may or may not get them back to their car!
Sighing and shaking her head, Jessica looks at Zoe’s now swollen ankle. “It doesn’t look good, girl,” whispered Jessica.
“I can tell,” Zoe winced as Jessica tightly wrapped a bandage around her foot and ankle for support.
“It’s gonna take us forever to get out of here now,” Jess complained.
“I’m sorry,” Zoe whispered.
“Oh, honey! I don’t blame you! No… I’m just worried because it is gonna be really dark soon and mom and dad are gonna totally freak and probably ground us for the rest of our lives,” Jess tried to joke. She didn't want Zoe to feel worse than she already did! The best she could do was lighten the mood.
“But you're nineteen! They can’t ground you!” Zoe chuckled as she tried to stand up.
Still wincing from pain, she leaned on her sister for support, as Jess handed her, her backpack. Zoe knew they didn't have any time to waste. She could suck it up and bare it.
With one arm around Zoe, and the other holding onto their little flickering light Jessica took the lead and headed down the ever-darkening path.
“Wanna bet?” Jess laughed. “I still live under their roof, and as long as they are paying for my college, they can boss me around!” she insisted.
“I thought you were a grown up and could do whatever you wanted,” teased her sister, as she hobbled down the rocky path.
“I don’t think mom and dad with think I’m grown up until I’m forty and have three kids!” Jessica joked.
“Huh… So, do you want three kids?” asked Zoe, genuinely curious. This was a subject they never brought up before. Talking about future families was kinda like a fantasy that she wasn’t sure was ever going to happen.
There was a twinkle in her sister's eye that she barely caught, due the quickly disappearing sun.
“Yeah, I think I would… Of course, that is after I find the right guy. But I want to finish college first, ya know,” Jessica admitted.
She heaved as her sister’s weight had suddenly increased.
“You okay?” Jess asked.
“I don’t know… All of a sudden, I feel so tired,” she moaned.
And then the flashlight went out.
The sounds of night animals surrounded them. There was no light to be had.
Jess’s breathing picked up as she and her sister dropped to the ground. Neither one wanted to admit it, but they were both scared of being stuck in the dark.
“What do we do?” asked Zoe.
