Christmas at the Cabin | ONC 2023 (Complete)

Five | Part of the Mountain

No matter how many times we try, the radios refuse to work. We can't get work back to the shop and the storm doesn't let up.

So it's just him and me in a cabin built for one. Or, realistically, built for less than one. There is a pull out couch in the little living room and no bed at all.

The whole thing is so small if you lined up Damiens end to end, it would only take about two and a half of him to traverse the entire distance from the front door to the back wall. The grounds on which it sits are expansive, and the places one can get from here are almost all of the ones we service. Usually, this cabin is a day spot for workers to relax in between working trips. And storms roll in all the time, hence, the pull out couch.

But there's only one.

And the couch is the bed, so there's no 'Oh, I'll take the couch.'

No.

There's just the two of us-him in his sweater and jeans, me in my bandaged up shoulder and workout gear-staring at the couch like if we think hard enough a solution will appear.

"Well, it's all together too cold outside," I say finally. "The storm is still raging. So one of us is going to have to stay awake for the fire. Why don't we just take turns sleeping in the bed and the fire-tender can sit in this exceptionally hard wooden chair and entertain themselves... somehow."

"Exceptionally hard wooden chairs are very good at keeping me awake. But I fear even that won't be enough. I'm exhausted and the longer I sit still, the more sore I get. Is that normal?" He stretches, probably to make a point.

"It's pretty normal for newbies," I answer. "Especially those who jump into way more than they're ready for."

"Sometimes too much money is a curse."

"Oh, yes. How truly awful it must be to be you." I can't help the eye roll as I imagine what I could do with just one day of his earnings.

"That isn't what I meant, Amelia, and you know it. I just mean it's really easy to make silly mistakes when you have impulse money."

"You tried to buy a helicopter."

"I already own the helicopter. What I did was try to get your boss to let me land it up here somewhere."

"He doesn't get a say in that," I reply, choosing to ignore the fact that this man owns a helicopter. "The parks division decides those types of things. If we were ever to violate the policies, we'd lose our license to operate in the park. And one hundred percent of our business takes place in this park, so that would be... well, I don't need to tell you, do I?"

"It would mean there is no more business," he says, miming placing flowers beside a headstone. "Rest in Peace."

"Exactly. So we are really careful to stick to approved locations and times. We abide by absolutely everything even though some of it isn't so much for conservation as it is for politics. But we believe in the value of this place and what we do in it, so we don't want to jeapordize that just to stick it to the man."

"I'm very good at sticking it to the man," he says with a laugh.

"Maybe we could learn a thing or two from each other. I'll help you learn to follow the damn rules, and you can teach me how to stick it to the man."

"Given our relative positions in society I find myself very wary of teaching you that skill."

"Why? Got something I should be mad at you for, Man?"

"Many things, I'm sure. I'm not the best at what I do by any means. I inherited when my grandfather died because he was very into continuing his name on the business. My father would have been a fine choice but he has a career. He didn't want to turn into his dad. I don't know why I thought I could escape his fate."