Act 2
Helena, the Heartbreaker
Both women stared at each other in quiet fury. Helena’s long black locks streamed down her back looking as silky as ever. Elizabeth’s short brown pixie hair stood out in uneven spikes and electricity seemed to flow through them. The pixie was the angriest of the two and after a few seconds, turned around and stormed out of the room. When she was outside, she zipped up her snow jacket and stepped onto the ankle deep crunchy snow.
“Lizzie, please come back.” Helena ran after her in her thin jumper, but as soon as the cold wind hit her, she withdrew back in.
Elizabeth didn’t look back and continued trudging in the snow. When she was out of the site of the cabin, she formed snow balls and threw them at a pine tree. One after the other they hit the tree until her arm ached. The pixie then collapsed beneath the tree exhausted and less angry, but as the memories started to form in her head, she felt it rise in the form of hot tears.
***
“Here we are; the famous Aspen cabin.” Elizabeth opened the door wide and showed Helena in.
"So this is the famous Aspen cabin?" Helena walked into the small cabin and had a quick look around.
"No, actually," Elizabeth sticks her head out of the small cabin and points to one that was easily ten times bigger. "That one is." She goes back in. "This is the one for when I want some alone time. I haven't been here before with just one person. I thought it better as the other one can be quite daunting. This one is cosier. I use it when I come over to write, think.” She paused and looked at Helena. “We can go over there if you want to. Or even if you just want to have a look?
“No, this is fine.” Helena looked around the living room and the open plan kitchen. “I can’t believe I’ve never been here.” She dropped her bag by the entrance and leaned the skis against the wall.
“Neither can I, actually.” She walked in and left her bag beside Helena’s. “But it is quite nice to get away from our husbands and kids for once and finally have some girl time.”
“Yup.” Helena nodded in agreement. “It is a shame Tina couldn’t make it.”
Elizabeth had been rather pleased when Tina cancelled. Helena had always been her friend and having Tina around was not as much fun. The other girl was a bit too serious for her taste and she had not spent time alone with Helena for a long time. When it was just the two of them, the conversation flowed better and they could talk about anything without having to censor themselves.
“Yeah.” Elizabeth agreed without feeling. “Tea?”
“Do you have Earl Grey?” Helena’s favourite.
“I have Lady Grey.” She pulled the box out of one of the cabinets above the sink.
“Sure.” Helena sat down on the sofa. “Hmm, comfy.”
Elizabeth smiled at her best friend. She was happy to have her all for herself for two entire weeks. She stirred a lump of sugar into each mug of tea and placed them on the coffee table. With an exaggerated sigh she fell upon the sofa next to Helena and stretched like a cat before curling up with her feet tucked beneath her.
“That was a long journey. Sixteen hours and a long stop over.” She picked up her mug from the coffee table and cupped it with her hands. “I could sleep forever.”
“Me too. But first I think I’ll have a warm shower.” Helena sat with her legs crossed Indian style. “After the tea.”
The minutes slowly ticked by and none of the girls moved. They were even more comfortable on the sofa and were now slouching. Both complaining about their inability to move. It was almost ten at night and they struggled between trying to decide who should have a shower first and the need to partially unpack their clothing. Everything had already been seen to in advance by Elizabeth’s housekeeper, the beds were made, the cupboards stocked up. Even the heating had been turned on so that the girls arrived to a warm cabin.
“Come on Helena, stop being lazy, go have your shower so that I can have one after you.” She jokingly pretended to push her friend of the sofa, but the girl barely moved.
“No.” Helena pouted. “You go.”
“You are the guest.”
“You own the place.”
This went on for another five minutes and Elizabeth got fed up and jumped off the sofa.
“Fine, I’ll go.” She picked up her luggage by the door and picked up her suitcase. She then walked towards three closed doors and picked the one to her left. All Helena could hear was the shuffling of her friend’s feet and the middle door opened. Elizabeth then shouted from the bathroom. “Green or salmon?”
“Why? What for?” Helena turned her body on the sofa and kneeled on it. She had a clear view of the bathroom and the coloured towels Elizabeth held. “Hmmm, doesn’t matter.”
“Fine, green is yours.” The door slammed shut.
Meanwhile Helena slowly slipped on the sofa until she was lying on it. She closed her eyes for a few minutes and woke up with a start. Elizabeth was hovering over her sprinkling water on her face. “Wakey wakey, bathroom is free.”
“Go away.” The taller girl rolled over on the sofa and closed her eyes again.
“Nah nah nah. Get up lazy bones. If you want to sleep go lie in the bed. It is much more comfortable and warmer.” She tried pushing Helena off the sofa, but the girl was clinging onto the back of it and whatever she could grab onto.
“I don’t want to.” She tried not be serious, but gave a tired laugh.
“I am going to tease you until you get up.” Elizabeth crossed her arms and stood her ground.
“Alright.” Helena pushed herself up and yawned. “I hate you.”
“I know.” Elizabeth smiled broadly. She had won the battle.
Elizabeth watched as Helena dragged her feet towards the front door, picked up her suitcase and unceremoniously dropped it in the room to her right. She yawned again and a few minutes later dragged herself to the bathroom. Her shower lasted five minutes and she came out wearing a pair of burgundy coloured pyjamas. She yawned again and wished Elizabeth goodnight. The pixie then went to her bedroom and collapsed into a deep dreamless sleep.
***
Helena woke up with a pounding on the door. She turned and groaned in the bed.
“What?” She spoke into the pillow.
The pounding continued and eventually stopped with the click of the door opening. Elizabeth walked in and unceremoniously uncovered Helena. “Get up.”
“Why? Let me sleep.” She grabbed hold of her blankets and curled up in bed again. “Please.”
“Nope, I promised you a good time and you can sleep when you are dead.” She once again tried to remove the covers off Helena, but the taller girl was holding tightly onto them. “Fine. You asked for it.” She then found a gap between the covers and proceeded to tickle Helena.
“Stop. Go away.” A leg kicked out and missed Elizabeth by a few centimetres.
“Come on. You asked me to do whatever it took to not let you spend the entire two weeks in bed.” Elizabeth looked at the bunched up covers. “I am going to make tea. See you in a bit. If you are not up by the time it is ready, I am pouring cold water over you.”
The tea was ready in less than ten minutes and as Elizabeth was walking towards Helena’s room, she saw through the open crack that the girl had got up. Elizabeth gently tapped on the door and walked in as Helena was removing her top. The pixie tried not to look at her perky breasts, but Helena turned to face her. Elizabeth blushed and turned away.
“Sorry, I should have waited for you to ask me in.”
“What, after you had already been in here pulling my covers off?” Helena said in an amused tone.
“Yeah, true, but I had been hammering on that door for ages, so that was a good a warning as anything.” Elizabeth still had her back to Helena.
“I could have been playing with myself.” Helena made no effort to conceal her laughter. “You can turn. I am dressed.”
“Tea is ready. Come and see what you want to eat.” Elizabeth walked out of the room without turning to look at Helena.
When Helena got to the table, she noticed a pile of cold cuts that were still in their original packaging. She rummaged through them and found German salami, Italian salami, parma ham, and smoked salmon. There were also pates and spreads and a jar of jam. Elizabeth then reached inside the freezer and pulled out some buns and a baguette.
“I’ll quickly make these in the oven and if you want some milk and cereals, I have those as well.” She unwrapped the bread and put it on a tray in the oven.
Ten minutes later the bread was ready and the table was set. Elizabeth prepared more tea, they ate their breakfast, and talked about the day ahead. They were going to ski in the morning and have lunch at a bistro down in the village. After that they would probably just stay down there and go to a bar.
It was a sunny day on the Aspen Highlands and both girls warmed up on the beginners slope and by the end of the morning attempted the intermediate slope. Elizabeth’s objective was to move up to the expert and extreme terrain by the end of the week although Helena was more reluctant to do so.
Elizabeth and Helena were exhausted by the time they made it back to the cabin. If it had not been for hunger and the need to see other people, they would have probably have spent the remained of the day in bed. Elizabeth had a quick shower and changed into something warm and pulled a cherry coloured knit over the stripped shirt. Her tight fitting brown cords flattered her long legs and perfectly formed round bottom.
“That was good, except that I haven't exercised in such a long time my body will be punishing me tomorrow.” Helena flopped on the sofa and had no intention of moving so soon.
“Lazy. Get up. Go shower. You smell.” Elizabeth slapped Helena's leg.
Helena grunted in lady like manner and turned onto her belly. She then pushed herself up and fell off the sofa. She rolled once again and attempted to look graceful as she picked herself up. Elizabeth smiled at her clumsy friend and got a dirty look in return. Helena took less than five minutes in the shower and when she returned, she wore fitted jeans with a loose fitting turtleneck knitted pullover meshed in shades of brown, beige and blue. Her loose black hair framing her face and she had applied black mascara and a light blue eye shadow that made her eyes stand out more than ever. Elizabeth tried not to stare and instead got hold of her coat and boots and made her way out.
The day remained beautiful and the sun made the mountains blinding white. The girls made sure to put on their sunglasses and sun block in the hope of not getting a goggle shaped suntan. Elizabeth remembered how when she was a teenage her friends would come back from their ski holidays looking ridiculous in their part tans and faces looking like clowns. She had always made sure she applied the highest factor sun block. The world did not need to know she had been on a ski trip.
“Do you want me to drive?” Helena offered.
“Sure.” Elizabeth tossed the keys to her Porsche Cayenne to her friend. It was well known that Elizabeth would rather walk than drive. On the other hand, Helena would drive across the street if she knew it would not look ridiculous.
It was a quiet ride down the snowy road, the pines were covered in snow. Elizabeth looked outside the window and could not resist the urge to open the window and feel the cold fresh air caressing her face.
“Haven't you had enough of that down the slopes?” Helena closed the window.
“I like it.” Elizabeth pouted, but resisted the urge to open the window again.
It was a quick ride and they were soon sitting in the warm bistro ordering their lunch. The waitress was polite and quick. The place was full and they were lucky to find a seat, although being only two, it was easier to accommodate them. They were seated in a warm corner at the back. They had a clear view to the bar, which is what Helena liked the most. She looked at the shelves and tried to make out what was available. It was not a very wise decision placing the girls by the bar as by the end of the meal, Helena had drunk more than her fair share of cocktails. Elizabeth was still sipping her first cocktail and knew that by the end of the meal, she would be the designated driver. Helena was a lightweight when it came to drinking and by the end of her second glass, she was having giggling fits.
“I think we'd better eat something.” Elizabeth called the waitress over. “Can we have a portion of fries please?”
“Sure. Do you want any dips?” The red head asked.
“Helena?” Elizabeth looked at Helena who was staring at a man by the bar. “Helena?” She kicked the black haired girl.
“Sorry. Yes? Was distracted.” She pointed at the man. “I want him as a side dish.”
Elizabeth rolled her eyes at her friend. She then turned to the waitress. “Do you have mayo and perhaps some sweet chilli sauce?”
“Yes we do. I'll bring those for you.” She smiled and walked away.
Elizabeth forgot about the waitress and decided to pay more attention at what Helena was staring at. “He looks familiar.”
“Does he? Maybe he does. But I am sure I would have noticed him before.” Elizabeth could tell from the expression on Helena's face that she was up to no good. Her lips were twisting this was and that as if she were thinking very hard about something.
“Do you think he'll sleep with us?” Helena looked at Elizabeth. A hungry look in her eyes.
“Oh no, no no. You think?” Elizabeth had not thought her friend this perverted. “I am not sure.”
“Come on! It will be fun! Don't be such a bore Lizzie.” Helena looked clearly drunk and her gestures became bigger and looser. Elizabeth was afraid her pretty friend would end up hitting a waiter or somebody sitting at a nearby table.
Elizabeth thought it all one big drunk idea and that Helena would never do anything of the sort. However, while they were both tipsy, it would be more difficult to control each other's impulses. The tall blue eyed woman stood up and walked towards the tall athletic looking man by the bar. She slowly made her way around the tables and Elizabeth watched her every move with curiosity. Elizabeth also noticed the man looking at Helena with interest and mild amusement.
“Hi.” She extended her long elegant fingers to the man. “Helena.”
He took her hand and kissed it. “Marcus.” He looked her in the eyes and smiled. He was clearly amused at the beautiful tipsy lady.
Elizabeth was less amused as she observed the exchange from the corner. She felt her heart lurch as Helena was clearly moving quite swiftly. Nobody could resist the raven black hair and smiling bright blue eyes. Helena always appeared to be smiling and when she was serious, she looked innocent and vulnerable. It made it impossible not to love her.
“Would you like to join my friend and I?” Helena pointed at their table in the far corner.
“Sure.” He picked up his drink and followed Helena to the table. Elizabeth stared in disbelief and just smiled at the situation they were getting themselves into.
“Lizzie, this is Marcus.” Elizabeth stretched her dainty hand towards him. “Marcus, Lizzie.”
Marcus looked around for a spare chair and found one a few tables down. He picked it up as easily as one would pick up a flower and placed it in between the girls. “So, you girls here for the skiing or just hanging around for the winter scene?”
“Skiing.” Elizabeth was quick answering and was not sure she wanted to talk to Marcus. His teeth were too white, his hair was perfectly wavy and his tan was golden. It was almost as if he had stepped out of a sports magazine, the epitome of male athleticism and charm.
“Do you ski often?” Marcus asked the little pixie.
“Sure.” Elizabeth answered into her hand making no attempt at conversation.
“Lizzie here comes often.” Helena tried to make up for her friend's monosyllabic answers and took over the social niceties. “She skis very well. She is now planning on tackling the advanced and expert slopes. I am not sure I'll be as brave as she is.”
“Those can be treacherous. I am a ski instructor at the Highlands Resort. During my spare time I either come down here for some drinks, or I ski on the more challenging slopes.” He flashed a smile. “It can get dull just doing those gentle slopes.”
“I could do with some lessons before trying the harder slopes. If you have the spare time.” Helena winked at Marcus and inched her chair closer to his. Elizabeth kicked her under the chair.
“Don't mind Helena, she can get a bit flirtatious when drunk.” She gave Helena a warning look. “We do have to get going in a minute though.”
“No we don't. Well, maybe you do. I can stay.” Helena looked at both Elizabeth and Marcus.
Elizabeth's patience was wearing thin. She was not interested in befriending the ski instructor or anyone else for that matter. Her idea of a holiday was to get away from everything and everybody and stay locked up in a cabin either by herself or with a friend. For someone who appeared to share similar ideas of a holiday, Helena was rather outgoing at the moment.
“Come on Helena, we have to get up early tomorrow.” Elizabeth whispered into Helena's ear and discreetly tugged at her arm.
“Fine.” She stood up and gave Marcus her hand. “I'll see you tomorrow morning. Highlands?”
“Yes. I'll see you then.” Marcus took her hand and they shook on it.
Helena walked out and Elizabeth realised she had not paid for the bill yet. She looked around and found the red headed waitress and gestured with her hand.
“I am sorry, I forgot to pay for the bill. Do you think you could give it to me by the bar?” Elizabeth walked quickly to the bar where she was handed the bill. She settled it quickly and walked outside and joined Helena.
“Hey spoil sport.” The tall raven haired woman gave Elizabeth a smirk.
“Whatever.” Elizabeth was in no mood for exchanging banter. “You were making a fool of yourself and I just rescued you from further embarrassment.”
Helena shrugged and started to walk down the road.
“Wrong direction.” Elizabeth pointed in the opposite direction. “The car is this way.”
“I thought we had decided to hit some bars first.” Helena shouted back as she carried on walking down the road.
“Fine, go wherever you want, I am going back home.” She hoped Helena would give up on her silly pursuits and join her in the car.
“See you later.” Helena raised her arm and carried on towards a bar she had spotted across the street. Her sole intention, however, was to return to the bistro and carry on chatting up Marcus.
Elizabeth could not contain her fury and each step toward the car was filled with insults and abuses both at herself and Helena. The wheels spun quickly and she released the brakes letting the car accelerate up the icy path and onto the gritty road. Many deranged thoughts ran through her head and she hated herself for not being able to control her jealousy. She had wanted Helena for herself and now her friend was bar crawling and going after men. Elizabeth was aware that she should have been showing her friend a good time in Aspen, and that having hissy fits was not part of it. By the time she reached the cabin, she had already calmed down and decided that perhaps she should go join Helena. On the other hand, she had brought a couple of books she wanted to read and her laptop. She could also catch up on her writing or see if any of her friends were online.
The remainder of the afternoon was spent writing and chatting with her online friend, who she only knew as Ace. They were part of the same online writing community and although they had many things in common, they also had a few disparities. They talked mostly about writing and their future dreams. Unfortunately, Elizabeth now wished she had not logged on after all as she could not stop herself from telling Ace all about Helena and the misery she felt inside. Ace always listened, but never said much about herself or how she was feeling. Sometimes Elizabeth wondered if perhaps she expected too much from her friend or if perhaps she was forcing a friendship that was non existent.
On the other hand, just talking to her online friend made her feel better. At times, she almost admitted to loving Ace, but that seemed silly as they had never met. She knew Ace lived in the United States, but it was a big country. Despite all her means, she never thought of visiting Ace until this moment. This idea, however, she kept to herself.
By the time she had done as much writing as she could do and felt absolutely drained, Elizabeth prepared herself a sandwich and made some tea. She ate it standing up by the kitchen counter and once done, had a nice soak in the bath to relax her muscles. As she was drying herself, she heard the front door rattle followed by a knock.
A drunk voice shouted at the top of her voice. “Eliiiiiiiiiiiiiizabeeeesh.” A fist hammered the door. “Oh Eliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiizaaaaaaa…” The door opened and Helena, who was supported by Marcus, tumbled in. “There you are.” Helena made to pinch Elizabeth’s nose but missed.
“I am sorry. I think you friend drank a bit much.” Marcus was slightly blushed from drink, but seemed in control of his functions. “Helena mentioned that you own the house down the hill.”
“Yes, I do.” Elizabeth tried to relieve Marcus off his load and they placed Helena on the sofa.”
“I guess that makes you Mrs. Larkin.” Marcus cocked his head sideways. “One of my many bosses.”
Elizabeth smiled at Marcus innocent comment. She was in fact one of the shareholders of the Aspen Skiing Company, and therefore, to the resort he worked for, but not many people knew that, or even knew what she looked like. Most of her businesses were run by appointed directors and managers. She would attend bi-annual meetings and leave her business to be run by the executives. Her true passion was for the charities she ran and she made sure she was aware of every decision made and how the money was spent.
“I guess.” Elizabeth smiled, but did no say much. From the moment he had mentioned at the bistro that he was a ski instructor, she had recognised him and did not want anything to do with her employee.
“Anyway, I had better get going. Your friend is safely delivered.” He did a short wave and turned to leave.
“Thank you Marcus.” Elizabeth thanked him and then turned to face her drunk friend. She heard the door close gently behind Marcus.
“I think I am gonna be sick.” Helena moaned and shuffled on the sofa.
“Don’t you dare.” Elizabeth ran to the kitchen and selected a large bowl. “Here, take this.” She thrust it into Helena’s hand and lifted her by her arm. “Let’s tuck you in bed.”
Helena tried not to put most of her wait on Elizabeth and she also tried not to zigzag to the bedroom. Her attempts were in vain and because she was bigger than Elizabeth, they both ended up zigzagging across the living room floor to the bedroom. The pixie pulled back the sheets of the bed and allowed the raven haired beauty to collapse onto the bed. Even though she looked a mess, it was hard not to admire her beautiful features. Elizabeth covered her and placed a soft kiss on her cheek.
“Don’t you make me worry about you again.” She whispered.
Helena turned under her covers and let out a moan.
Elizabeth quietly closed the door behind her and went to bed. She was not looking forward to the following day.
The dainty pixie was curled up in her covers when she heard the heavy step and the slam of the bathroom door. Helena was awake and clearly did not have a headache given amount of noise she was making.
“Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.” The sonorous swearing was followed by the slamming of the bathroom cabinet. “Ouch.” The heavy footfall made its way to her bedroom door and Helena gently tapped on her bedroom door.
“I am awake. The entire village is awake.” Elizabeth said from under her covers.
Helena walked in and sat at the foot of the bed. She shook Elizabeth and pleaded. “Painkillers. I need them now. Where?”
“From the noise you were making I assumed you were fully recovered.” Elizabeth made no effort to hide the scorn in her voice.
“Funny.” She lay beside Elizabeth and gave her a hug. “I am sorry, but my head reeeeeeeeally hurts and I reeeeeeeeally need painkillers.”
Elizabeth stretched her arm and found the handle to her bedside table drawer. She got out a packet and handed the ibuprofen to Helena. Her friend gave her a hug and stumbled out of the bed. The sound of running water and popping blisters came to Elizabeth who noted that Helena had not bothered to close the door. She faced the door and willed it shut. Unfortunately, it did not work. Helena’s tall silhouette walked back into the room.
“Please close the door.” Elizabeth waved her hand at the door.
“Sure.” Helena closed it and remained in the room.
“With you out.” Elizabeth added.
“I should be the one lying in bed feeling all sick and sorry for myself. Aren’t you going to get up?” Helena crossed her arms and looked at the curled up pixie.
“Tired.” She turned and faced the other way. She felt the mattress shift as Helena lay down beside her again and hugged her. She was soon fast asleep and Elizabeth turned to face her. Before she could stop herself, she planted a light kiss upon Helena’s lips. The raven haired beauty did not even stir.
Now that Elizabeth had been woken, she found it hard to fall asleep again; yet, she did not want to leave Helena’s side, so she stayed where she was a picked a book from her bedside table. She felt Helena stir and drape her arms around her, but that was all the sign of life she gave.
Two hours later Elizabeth felt the book slip from her hand as she realised she had fallen asleep. Something had woken her, but she was not sure what it was until she felt warm hands under her sheet caressing her bare stomach. A naked body was pressed against her and she turned with a start. Helena kissed her full on the lips and Elizabeth responded as if she were still in a dream. She felt her body melt into the other woman’s arms and she soon found herself pinned down on her sheets as Helena snaked down covering her entire body in kisses and nibbles. The taller woman disappeared underneath the sheets and Elizabeth felt her panties be pulled off. She was suddenly immersed in a series of sensations and Helena’s tongue plunged inside her and teased her lips and clit.
Elizabeth then watched the other woman emerge from beneath the sheets, kneel and lift the pixie’s hips towards her. No words were exchanged, just a series of moans and rapid breath. Elizabeth’s body undulated in pleasure and she tried to break free of Helena’s grasp before she came. She kissed Helena hard on the lips and pushed her onto the bed, but being stronger, Helena grabbed hold of Elizabeth and pulled her towards her. They once again kissed fiercely and Helena was once again sucking on Elizabeth’s nub until the pixie came in one explosive orgasm.
Helena then picked herself up and left the room. All the joy of the explosion ended in a second as Elizabeth puzzled over what had just happened. She pulled her panties back on and grabbed her clothes from the floor.
“Helena?” Elizabeth jumped off the bed with the bundle in her arms and went after Helena. “Helena?”
Elizabeth found Helena in her own room packing her bags. “Helena? What are you doing?”
“That is what you wanted. That is exactly what you wanted all along. Now that I’ve given it to you, I can leave.” Helena furiously shoved her belongings into her suitcase without caring to fold them.
“What are you talking about?” Elizabeth looked at the bundle in her hand and slowly dressed herself.
“We have gone over this before Lizzie. Remember our first time in the changing room?” Helena looked at Elizabeth. She looked angry. “I cannot do this.”
“You started.” Elizabeth looked puzzled.
“No, you did. You invited me here.”
“Yes, but I thought it would be nice to get away from everything.”
“Hmm, and when we were at the bistro, and I was hitting on that instructor?” She raised an eyebrow and Elizabeth. “You were jealous.”
“Of course I was. You are…” Elizabeth did not finish the sentence as she was going to say Helena was hers.
“Lizzie, it is obvious. This was just meant to be some sort of sort lived fun. An experiment. Remember?” Helena tried reminding Elizabeth of the agreement they had made after the first time they had sex in the lingerie store. It was meant to be fun, and occasional and nothing more. Just sex.
Elizabeth could not understand how it was that Helena couldn’t feel anything.
“I don’t think about it. I have my family, you have yours.” She gave Elizabeth a hard look. “I don’t feel that way about you.”
Elizabeth felt something inside her break. The pain inside her was immense, she felt hurt and instead of breaking down and crying, she felt anger. Anger for what had happened a few moments ago in her bedroom. Anger for how she felt about Helena.
Both women stared at each other in quiet fury. Helena’s long black locks streamed down her back looking as silky as ever. Elizabeth’s short brown pixie hair stood out in uneven spikes and electricity seemed to flow through them. The pixie was the angriest of the two and after a few seconds, turned around and stormed out of the room. When she was outside, she zipped up her snow jacket and stepped onto the ankle deep crunchy snow.
“Lizzie, please come back.” Helena ran after her in her thin jumper, but as soon as the cold wind hit her, she withdrew back in.
Elizabeth didn’t look back and continued trudging in the snow. When she was out of the site of the cabin, she formed snow balls and threw them at a pine tree. One after the other they hit the tree until her arm ached. The pixie then collapsed beneath the tree exhausted and less angry, but as the memories started to form in her head, she felt it rise in the form of hot tears.
She held her head between her hands and started to talk to herself. “I hate you Helena. I hate you. Why? Why?” A great sob escaped her throat. She loved Helena more than anything and the pain inside her kept growing. Yes, she loved her husband and children, but this was different. It made her feel like a teenager, an immature teenager.
Elizabeth started to shiver and realised she had been sitting on the snow for a while. She had no tears left and no energy left. That was when she heard the sound of crunching snow. She lifted her head and saw Helena approach her. She had a thermos flask in her hand.
“I thought you might need this.” She gave Elizabeth the thermos and pointed to the ground next to the pixie. “May I?”
Elizabeth nodded, but did not look at Helena. The taller woman gingerly wrapped her left arm around Elizabeth and as she did not meet any resistance, took the pixie’s head in her other hand and pulled it towards her shoulder. Helena proceeded to kiss the top of her head and whispered that she was sorry.
Elizabeth hugged her and felt new tears well up inside her.
Helena hugged her best friend and tried to remain stoic. She did not want to admit that she loved Elizabeth, but she knew that to admit such thing would be to destroy their lives. Helena had worked too hard to build a family that she loved and did not want to throw it all away. She had seen her parents divorce and her husband’s parents divorce and when she married, both she and her husband vowed not to let their children go through the same thing. They would fight to stay together. In Elizabeth, however, she had found peace and an irreplaceable love. It was gentle and not demanding. It was not hard work. But she had to let Elizabeth go no matter how hard it was. She knew that Elizabeth loved her and that she would never take that step to break them up. Elizabeth the daydreamer. How naïve.
“I am sorry Lizzie.” Helena kissed the top of the girl’s head again. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
Elizabeth picked herself up and stood with her back to Helena. “We leave tomorrow.”
***
It was still early in the morning and Elizabeth decided to vent her sadness and anger on Highlands’ expert slopes. She returned to the cabin and gathered her equipment. She passed Helena on her way out who asked her where she was going.
“Expert slopes. I often do those on my last days.” She did not break her stride and made her way to the car.
“Hang on. Wait for me.” Helena shouted and quickly gathered her things and jumped into the car.
“Are you sure?” Elizabeth kept her eyes on the wheel and said in a straightforward tone. “You are not ready.”
“I’ll decide when I get there.” Helena shrugged her shoulders. She wanted to make sure Elizabeth was not going to do anything drastic. Her friend was in no state to be tackling the expert slopes.
Elizabeth got onto the Cloud Nine lift and made her way to Scarlett’s mogul run. It was one of her favourites. What Helena was not aware was that rather than sticking to the tree lined piste, she often did a tree run.
It was hard to distinguish between the helmeted girls in their padded ski outfits. Helena favoured the tones of beige and navy blue while Elizabeth wore tones of red, white and brown. The girls swished on the white powder and the shortest of the two stopped at the edge of the fir trees. Helena could not see the expression on Elizabeth’s face when she turned to face her, but what she said next clearly emitted a challenge.
“Catch me if you can.” Elizabeth pushed off and made her way amongst the trees. She felt the cold air on her face and felt elated. The escape felt good, but the anger in her heart was relentless. Although an expert skier, she realised too late that she should not have come to the slopes today.
Helena did not want to follow, but something inside her did not stop her arms from thrusting the ski poles into the snow as she pushed off following her impetuous friend. She followed the flash of red and white as it snaked around the trees carving the powdery snow. Elizabeth paid attention to the path ahead of her and expertly avoided the trees in her path. She saw the trees thin out as she made her way towards the open piste. She turned to see if Helena was still behind her.
The taller of the skiers managed to keep up with the pixie and was relieved to see the trees thin out. At that moment Elizabeth turned to look at her and Helena was unable to shout out in time as the pixie’s right ski hit a tree stump. The small girl yelped in pain as the ski bent at an odd angle and snapped off. She rolled over a couple of times before hitting a tree which stopped her ungainly and painful descent down the mountain.
Helena swished towards her and stopped beside her. She removed her skis and knelt beside Elizabeth.
“Are you alright?” She looked down at the leg which did not look quite right.
“Knee. My knee.” Elizabeth reached for her right knee, but pain shot through her arm and shoulder. “Fuck.”
“I will go get help. Don’t move.” Without noticing the absurdity of her statement, Helena put her skis back on and went in search of help.
The paramedics were quick to arrive and Elizabeth was taken to the Aspen Valley Hospital where she was seen to instantly. The doctors were accustomed to treating skiers and she would not be the first or last to go through their wards. Her leg was placed in a splint and that certainly marked the end of her ski trip. Helena helped her get about and was begrudgingly thanked by the little pixie.
More than anything, Elizabeth felt stupid for not knowing better and not paying attention to where she was going, she also felt stupid because it happened in front of Helena. This was her first accident in eight years and one that meant she would not be skiing for a long time.
***
It had been one week since the accident and Elizabeth was lying in bed with her leg resting on a couple of pillows. She thought back to the accident and the many insults she hurled at Helena on the way back from Colorado. She was not one to lose her patience, but instead of keeping her feelings tucked inside her, which she normally did, she exploded. The fiery pixie blamed it on the pain in her leg. Helena kept her head down during exchange taking it all in before informing Elizabeth that it was best they never talked again. That had been like throwing a bucket of cold water on the small girl.
Elizabeth was staring out the bedroom window contemplating about her life in general, the loss of her friends either through geography, or lack of common interests as they followed different paths.
