***** December 23rd *****
The snow crunched under our tires, on the long, windy road. Big, heavy snowflakes had beaten down on the windshield for the last six hours. The windshield wipers ached under the heavy load, bending like twigs in the wind. A blizzard, according to the radio. If I hadn't known we were in Colorado, my best guess would have been the north pole.
We were the first ones to arrive at the cabin. It didn't really do it justice to call it a cabin, it was more of a small two bedroom house, only a stone's throw away from Lake Haviere. My dad won it in a sweepstakes in the 70's. We rent it out during the busy summer and spring months, but it's been our tradition to gather there every Christmas, and celebrate as a family.
Mom pulled into the parking lot, or at least she tried to. A thick blanket of snow covered everything, making it nearly impossible to see where the road ended.
"Damn. Looks like we got a lot of work ahead of us," she pointed out, to nobody's benefit.
And so we got started. Opening the door to the car was like stepping into a different world. Gone was the toasty warm interior, replaced by a frozen wasteland. It took the two of us thirty minutes just to clear a path to the front steps. That was just the beginning.
Both of us were covered head to foot in snow, it felt like. Mom's shoulder length hair was normally pitch black, but now it was almost white. I inherited her hair, and so did my sister. The only one in the family who didn't have black hair was Dad, who had blonde curls.
Mom went inside to start a fire in the fireplace, and I was delegated to carrying in the supplies. We had enough for four people for a week. We'd only been staying until the 27th, so there wasn't any danger of running out of anything. Dad was still busy at the office, and would join us tomorrow, and he'd pick up my big sister, Lydia, at the airport.
It felt like we had packed for an entire village. Most of it was big jugs of water, just in case we'd have another outage like last year. It hadn't been a lot of fun having to melt down buckets of snow, so we decided that this year we wouldn't leave anything up to chance.
That of course did not stop mother nature from throwing a wrench into our gears in the form of the biggest snowstorm in the history of Ashbrooke.
By the time I hauled in the last package of groceries, containing a bunch of instant noodles, chips, and other snacks, my bones were just frozen sticks of ice. Mom managed to get a nice fire going in the fireplace, and it was crackling merrily. It was not enough to actually heat the entire place in such a short amount of time, but it would soon. The fireplace was built right in the center of the house, and there were pipes inside the walls leading to every room. A very rustic, primitive form of central heating.
"What's the status?" I asked, depositing the box in the kitchen.
"Not as bad at it looks. We have power, water, and even the wifi works."
"Well I'm gonna go take a shower then."
"I wouldn't do that just yet. I just turned on the heater. Anyway, it seems our last renters seem to have forgotten to replace the firewood they used. One of us is going to have to go down into the town, and buy some more."
I let out a long sigh, but both of us knew who was going to end up doing it. The person still dressed. Me.
"Just give me the keys."
"Thanks, sweetie. I love you."
It seemed like all the hard work we did to shovel the pathway was already undone. Fortunately it was only two miles to the store, but it took me nearly twenty minutes of careful maneuvering. The tires kept slipping on the fresh snow, and it probably would have been faster to just walk. Faster, but not better.
At least there seemed to be a lull in the snowfall, and the headlights actually managed to pierce the early evening darkness.
Fortunately, Jack's Shack was still open. It was mostly a hunting store, selling all kinds of bait, shotguns, and things like that. Jack, the owner, was a middle aged, jovial man, who's been living in Ashbrooke all his life.
"Ah, if it isn't Thom Weaver. That must mean Christmas truly is right around the corner."
"Evening, Jack. Business is booming, I see."
"Can't complain," he chuckled.
I headed straight for the big stack of firewood, and picked up two bunches.
"What do you make of this storm?"
"It's gonna be real bad, according to the weather report. Worst storm in years."
"Shit. Our last tenants used up all the firewood."
"Want some help?"
Together, we loaded up the car with firewood. More than enough to last for the rest of winter. We'd have to resupply the cabin at some point anyway, to prepare it for the next renters in spring, so it might as well have been now.
"You guys all set up there?"
"Yeah. We got food for about a week. Water and power are working."
"The sheriff asked me to find out which of the cabins are occupied, just in case we need to send rescue teams. I'll let her know you guys are fine for now."
"Sounds good."
"Would you mind checking in every day? Just give the sheriff a call, or come down here to let me know in person if the phone's out."
"You think it's gonna be that bad?"
"Won't know 'till it happens. Better to be safe than sorry."
I thanked him, and paid for the firewood. On the ride back, the snow had started again, even heavier than before. The world was pitch black, save for a mass of swirling, white flakes illuminated by the headlights. Maybe ten feet of visibility at best.
After arriving back at the cabin half an hour later, we might as well not even have shovelled in the first place. Another foot of snow covered the pathway.
By the time I hauled in the last of the bundles, I was once again little more than a walking piece of ice. My clothes were soaked, and I wasn't sure if I could still feel my feet.
"Please, please tell me there's nothing wrong with the shower!"
Mom had cozied up on the couch in front of the fire with a book, and a warm blanket.
"No, go ahead. I'll go make something to eat."
"Oh thank god! You are the absolute best."
When the hot water hit my skin, it felt better than anything in the world. Like I imagined winning the lottery, or having sex felt like. Not that I knew how either of those felt like. With the warm tendrils of water snaking all over my body, I could just about imagine they were the hands of a hot chick, running her tongue over my skin.
That, of course, pretty much instantly gave me a boner. I felt that I had deserved a good wanking after my day. Quick, and easy. The nice, gentle rush of an orgasm really helped warm up my insides.
After drying off, and changing into sweatpants and sweatshirt, I felt like a human being again. In the kitchen, Mom made sandwiches, and a soup. My mouth watered the moment I smelled it. I wolfed down the sandwiches so fast I barely even tasted any of them. The soup was an instant soup, but at that moment, it was the best thing in the world.
"What time are they arriving tomorrow?" I inquired between bites.
"Around noon, if nothing goes wrong. With this weather, they'll probably be a few hours late, though."
"You want to set up the tree?"
