A small abandoned farmhouse, high up on a hill beside Loch Eriboll in the Highlands of Scotland. Snow piled up two feet deep, covering this barren and desolate but undeniably beautiful part of the world. Inside the long disused farmhouse, the room is scattered with broken furniture, old books, and in the corner the most interesting feature of all; a pair of sleeping bags inside of which were two 19 year old sleeping women, cuddled together for warmth as the bitter winds blew, snow continuing to fall in the cold black night. Jane and Eleanor could have never imagined being in this situation, especially not with each other, but how did they get here? Well, we will have to go back to explain that, dear reader.
Jane and Eleanor were both students at Oxford University, studying History, but they couldn't have been more different. Jane had a modest upbringing with a path of hardship and graft, whereas Eleanor had always had everything handed to her. The best schools, the best clothes, the best connections, the best, well, everything. Eleanor had instantly identified Jane as the weakest member of her class, bullying her relentlessly along with her "bestie" Astrid. Jane had fantasized countless times about getting even with her bullies for their relentless mocking of her accent, clothes, and social background but she knew she would have to choose her moment carefully.
Our story begins during a lecture, led by the intelligent, calm, and kind Mr Bell. His class had been told that they would be expected to pair up and submit a project which would go towards their final grade. As he looked out over the tiered seats of the lecture hall he told everyone in his thick Scottish accent that the pairs would be chosen at random. Horror struck the hearts of both Jane and Eleanor when he read out their names together as he methodically went through his list. They eyed each other from across the room and, if looks could kill, there would have been two corpses where they once sat.
This was how these two young ladies found themselves at Loch Eriboll, dropped off by the friendly receptionist from their hotel in his big four by four. As he prepared to leave them to their work, he leant out of the car window. "Remember girls, there's a forecast for heavy snow, so don't stay out here too late, ok?" He advised in his heavy Scottish accent.
"Yes Tim, thanks for the lift!" Jane replied warmly as Eleanor searched through one of the three bags she had brought with her. "Are you sure you don't mind picking us up later?"
"No bother lass!" He responded, tipping his cap to her, "just send me a text when you want me to head over. Stay safe girls!" He gave them both a friendly wave before pulling the car around and heading off down the lonely road back towards civilization. As Jane took a moment to breathe in the clean country air, Eleanor continued to rummage through her bag.
"Damn it, where the hell is it?" She mumbled to herself.
"What are you looking for? A map or something, because I've brought one for us to use y'know?"
"Ah, here it is!" Eleanor announced triumphantly, pulling out a small metal cylinder.
"Lipstick?" Jane asked in an exasperated tone. "Why do you need lipstick, we're in the middle of nowhere! Did you bring anything useful in those bags of yours?"
"Don't you dare speak to me like that!" Eleanor responded with an icy tone. "Some of us care about our appearance, unlike some!"
Jane looked down at her choice of attire. Hiking boots, waterproof trousers and jacket, a thick warm hat and gloves. She was dressed perfectly for such an occasion, unlike her unwanted research partner. Eleanor looked like she had just walked off of the catwalk, in a short white skirt, pink crop top and fur jacket. Jane thought she looked ridiculous and she would probably end up freezing to death, but she had warned her. It wasn't her fault if Eleanor was too stupid and stubborn to listen. "Come on Eleanor, we agreed we'd do our best to get along, didn't we?" Jane asked, giving her a cheery smile. "Why don't we start by hiking up to the Hood Stones to get some pictures?"
"Urgh, fine!" Eleanor responded as she looked at her nails, making sure her manicure was still looking pristine. "Why couldn't you have chosen somewhere more fashionable like Notting Hill or Soho or something?" Jane rubbed her brow, already growing tired of Eleanor's attitude.
"Like I told you, the navy used Eileen Choraidh, the island in the middle of the Loch, to substitute for a German battleship during World War II. They used to drop bombs on it. My granddad was stationed here during the war and as Mr Bell is Scottish, I think he'll be more interested in the subject and maybe give us a higher mark." She turned to eye the various hills surrounding them, trying to spot her intended destination. "You said you just wanted a good grade and that it was my job to do all the work, right?" Eleanor only pouted and nodded in response. "So, I've done all the work. I researched the location, booked our travel, I've already done most of the project, so now we just need to get pictures and any other interesting stuff we can find to bulk it out, ok?"
"OK," Eleanor replied reluctantly, "But it better not take too long!" Jane sighed before pointing out their path as the two young women started on their journey. The day went by quickly with Jane leading a begrudging Eleanor up and down the hillsides, taking pictures and making notes to help with the final presentation of their project. Eleanor spent most of the day either complaining or on her phone, but Jane managed to keep her composure and focused on the work at hand, rather than the irritating companion she had been forced to spend time with.
Eleanor only perked up when they came across a long abandoned farmhouse. "Look at this, so cute!" She squealed as she pulled out her phone, starting to take pictures after picture. Snow had already started to fall by this point, covering the ground on a thin white layer, but it was gradually getting thicker and thicker. Jane sat down on an old rock wall which was slowly crumbling away, an indicator of just how long it had been here. "Come on, we need to go, before the hills get too treacherous for us to walk down." She said as she worriedly looked up to the sky.
"Oh leave me alone will you 'plain Jane,' I've been up and down these bloody hills all day with you, now there's finally something worth my time and you want to leave!" She scowled, "I don't think so! No wonder the navy men called this place 'Loch 'orrible!" Jane grumbled, checking her bag to make sure she had all her essentials. Sleeping bag, food, water, all the basics they would need if they were going to be stuck here overnight, which was looking increasingly likely as Eleanor continued to snap her pictures. After ten minutes of this, Jane had finally had enough.
"OK Eleanor, we need to leave, now!"
Eleanor spun round to face Jane, face covered in anger and disgust. "Oh alright, let's go then, it is snowing pretty hard. It's not like I can even post the photos, seeing as there's not even any internet round here!"
Eleanor wasn't wrong about the weather worsening as the snow continued to come down heavily, a few inches now laying on the ground and getting deeper seemingly by the second. As they made their way towards the edge of the hill, Jane looked down and realized how screwed they were. The entire hillside was covered in a blanket of thick snow. There was no way they would be able to get to the bottom without breaking their necks, especially Eleanor in her sparkly trainers. Jane sighed heavily before turning to her 'study buddy' raising her hand to stop her advancing forwards. "The snow is way too thick, we're going to have to stay the night." She sighed heavily.
