The Cabin

Bridget pulled her car over to the side of the road, she couldn't hold back the tears anymore. As soon as the car was turned off, tears streamed down her cheeks; Bridget felt as thought she were gasping for air as she tightly squeezed her eyes shut. The past few months were finally catching up with her, she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so overwhelmed with panic at what she was about to do. 'I assured my family I would be alright,” sobbed Bridget furiously wiping the salty tears from her eyes, 'I need to do this...I have to get away from everything and especially him for a while!'

Bridget had decided after her split from her husband that she needed time to herself to reset and rediscover herself; she decided to rent a cabin for a month far away from civilization. A few weeks into her search, Bridget found the perfect place to stay: a cabin in the middle of the mountains with no internet, phone service or electricity. The thought of being completely disconnected from the world for a month sounded heavenly. Her mind replayed the conversation with her family when she told them what her plans were:

' “Bridget, this is ridiculous!” sighed her mother rubbing her forehead, “Thomas has said that he was sorry and has been begging for weeks now for you to give him a second chance...”

“He cheated on me!” snapped Bridget angrily, “I am not giving him a second chance...he'd been lying to me for ten months!”

“Well, you're technically still married because he hasn't signed the divorce papers yet,” reminded her sister Joan, “how can he get the papers to you if you run and hide in the mountains?”

“Joan, I'm not running away and I am not going to gone forever,” groaned Bridget closing her eyes in frustration, “I'm going away to a cabin for a month, to just getaway from the noise of my husband betraying me and now apparently my unsupportive family.”

Her father finally weighed in on the conversation, he picked up her hand and his kind , soft voice began to speak, “Bridget, we're just concerned that you're...shutting yourself off from the world.”

Before she could object, he continued, “I support your decision to divorce Thomas...I don't want any of my daughters to stay in such a marriage. If you want to go stay in the mountains for a month, that's fine but before you go, leave your exact location just in case and make sure you call us before you lose phone service.”

Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude as she wrapped her arms around her fathers neck; he had never approved of Thomas but had kept his opinions back because at the time, she'd been in love. Her mother had huffed a little because she introduced them at a church picnic and believed that they could fix their marriage.'

Bridget took a deep breath as she dialed her parents phone number and waited to hear her parents voices. It wasn't long until she heard her father's deep voice:

“Bridget, it's good to hear your voice,” greeted her father, she could hear the smile in his voice, “You've arrived at the edges of civilization?”

“Yes dad,” laughed Bridget feeling calmer knowing that her father supported her decision to disappear, “I'm fifteen miles away from the cabin, so I guess this is it for a little bit.”

“What's your plan sweetheart?”

“Well, I've got a month's worth of food in the back of my car,” replied Bridget looking at the bags of food, “so while I'm eating Twinkies, I will be thinking about what I want to do once the divorce is final...I've been thinking about going back to school, getting my place. Dad, is mom still mad about me divorcing Thomas?”

“She'll come around darling,” sighed her father kindly, “her pride is hurt because she set you and Thomas up... she is upset that you weren't able to have your happily ever after...but don't you worry because I just know that you will one day meet that special someone.”

“Thank dad!” smiled Bridget gratefully, “I really appreciate all your help.”

“I just want you to be happy Bridget,” replied her father softly yet full of raw emotion, “now you be safe and if for any reason, you don't feel safe you drive to this point and call me. I will come and get you...it doesn't matter what time it is either.”

“I promise,” assured Bridget taking another deep breath, “I will be safe . I probably won't wander too far from the cabin. I love you dad...please tell mom that I love her as well.”

“I will,” promised her father, “we love you and will see you in one month exactly.”

After hanging up, she stood and gazed at the scenery before her; a wide smile turned her lips up, the cool winter air seemed to caress her skin like a warm embrace.

Bridget admired the scenery as she drove to the cabin, the snow was completely unmarred by the smog of the city; she loved winter and everything that came with the season. Yet as she glanced at the time and bit her bottom lip, worrying that she wouldn't reach the cabin before nightfall. Bridget recited the directions as she continued to drive

Ten minutes later, she drove her car around the corner and sighed with relief when the cabin stood only ten yards from her car, coming closer until she parked in front of the porch. Excitement coursed through veins as her footprints crunched through the crisp snow to unlock the door; it took her a few minutes to bring her groceries and suitcases inside the cabin. 'I'm so glad dad suggested I bring firewood!' Bridget thought as she lugged the wood over to the fireplace, 'I'll have to look to see if the owner left a supply of wood like he said would...but in the morning.'

The rest of the evening passed slowly, Bridget happily cooked and ate supper before unpacking, now she sat curled up on the couch in front of a roaring fire. Her eyes fluttered closed as the heat from both blanket and the fire enveloped her; she had just fallen asleep when a knock on the door startled her awake!

Bridget blinked rapidly as she bolted upright; the knock sounded again, she wrapped the blanket tighter around her shoulders as she went to answer the door. Sliding the bolt out of place, she opened the door to reveal a tall, man who immediately pulled down the scarf to reveal a dimpled smile.

“Hi, I'm Scott,” greeted Scott smiling at the brunette, “I live down the lane from here, about a mile and well...I really hate to ask this but...could I please use your restroom? I didn't plan very well.”

Bridget smiled and opened her door wider, “Yeah, sure...it's the second door around that corner.”

Scott stomped the snow off of his boots, nodding his thanks before rushing past her. She shook her head, smiling as she made her way to the kitchen and filled the kettle. A few moments later, she heard footsteps behind her.

“Thanks again for the use of your restroom,” said Scott zipping up his coat, “Miss, I'm not sure if you know this or not but that bucket of dirt is to put the fire out when your done.”

Bridge chuckled, “I was wondering what that was for...before you go, can I interest you in a mug of hot chocolate? It's cold out, so something hot will probably feel nice...I'm Bridget by the way.”

“I'd love some, thank you!” replied Scott accepting the mug of hot chocolate, “It's nice to meet you.”

They sat silently in front of the fireplace for a few moments, each enjoying the silence and the warmth. Scott broke the silence, placing his mug on the coffee table. She could feel him observing her, Bridget glanced over at him and felt a blush creep into her cheeks.

“So, what brings you out to the middle of nowhere?”

Bridget contemplated silently for a few moments, trying to decide how much she wanted to tell a complete stranger. The kind look in his eyes told her that she was willing to listen to her story; this prompted her to confide in Scott.

“I needed some time away from the noise of the city,” began Bridget quietly, “I'm going through divorce but he's been refusing to sign the papers, I'm sure it's just to drive me crazy...Thomas, my soon to be ex, has been trying to convince me that we can salvage our marriage but I...”

Bridget suddenly felt tongue tied that she was telling a stranger about her failure of a marriage; he offered her kind smile and subtly gestured for her to continue. She took a deep breath and continued:

“We've been married for two years and just a month ago, I found out he was cheating on me with his secretary...very cliche I know.” sighed Bridget sadly, “I just can't be married to a man who lied to me for months and was willing to risk our marriage for a fling with an nineteen year old...so, he's been trying to tell me that he's changed and won't hurt me again but I mean...if he cheated once, he'll probably do it again, right?”

Scott absorbed the details of her story, he knew exactly how she felt more than he cared to admit. He went to the kitchen and refilled their mugs, trying to figure out what he should say without giving her the pity that he had experienced during his own divorce.

“I know how you feel Bridget,” said Scott handing her the mug of hot chocolate, “I went through divorce a couple of years ago for the same reason. I know that the last thing you want is pity but rather someone to just talk to...so, if you ever need to rant or a shoulder to cry on, just come on down the lane and I'll be there for you.”

Tears immediately sprung to her eyes and spilled onto her cheeks, she didn't expect anything like this to happen. It felt like someone from above was looking out for her, for the first time since discovering her husband's cheating, she didn't feel alone.

“Thank you Scott,” whispered Bridget tearfully, “I appreciate this more than you know...I'm sorry you know how this feels...it's just nice to talk to somebody who actually understands how much this hurts.”

Over the next few weeks, Bridget and Scot found themselves spending more and more time together; they found the companionship they had both desperately lacked since their marriages ended. Bridget found that when Scot was around, she was laughing and smiling more than she ever had with Thomas. Her month long stay at the cabin was coming to an end, Bridget found that she didn't want to leave the cabin but more suddenly that she didn't want to leave Scott. 'Could Scott be the one?' was a thought she was having daily since meeting him; she was grateful to have met him because she knew that without anyone to there to talk to she would've ended up on the couch eating Twinkies and the other junk food she'd packed for the trip.

As they walked down the path from Scott's cabin to hers, he took her hand in his and continued to regale her with wild stories from his childhood, his exaggeration caused her to snort as she laughed. Her hand flew to her mouth, embarrassed at the loud snort; when Bridget looked at him, she saw the amusement in his eyes as he removed her hand from her mouth.

“You don't need to hide any quirks,” smiled Scott trying to hold in his own laughter, “heaven knows I've got enough quirks of my own...it's taken awhile but I've decided there's no use in feeling embarrassed over something that comes naturally.”

With that being said, Bridget relaxed knowing that he wasn't going to judge her for snorting when she laughed; when her cabin came into view, she sobered quickly. She wanted to tell Scott exactly how she felt but worried that she would scare him away.

“Everything okay?”

Bridget sighed and sat down on the wooden porch swing, he sat down beside her and waited patiently for her to talk. She saw the concern in his eyes.

“My month is almost up,” whispered Bridget sadly, “and I don't want to leave...I've learned more of what I'm capable of doing and how much I can handle and that's because of you...if you hadn't come along when you did, I'd probably never have left the couch.”

“Scott, I have to say this and I don't know how, so I'm just going to blurt it out and hope you don't run for the hills...” Bridget took a deep breath before continuing, “I really like you and I know my divorce isn't final yet or if you're looking for a new relationship and I know that we've only known each other for three weeks...I promise that I'm not crazy. I just wanted to tell you that I like you and would like to see where this thing between us can go.”

Bridget released the breath she'd been holding as she blurted out her thoughts and closed her eyes, scared that when she opened them again that Scott would be gone. After silently counting to thirty, she opened her eyes again and found the he was still sitting beside her. She looked down at their hands, their fingers interlacing.

“I know you're not crazy Bridget and you don't know just how relieved I am to hear you say that,” confessed Scott relief shined brightly in his eyes, “I've been trying to work up the courage to tell that I like you too...a lot. We can take things slow and wait until your ready to move into a new relationship...I want to see where this thing between us goes as well.”

Bridget released a relieved chuckle and silently observed him, a tiny smile graced her lips as she saw truth and honesty in his eyes.

“I'd like that!”

Scott pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek before leaning back against the swing cushions, his arm around her shoulders. He smiled when he felt her lay her head on his shoulder and snuggle into his side; for the first time in years he felt happy and alive...he credited this new and positive change in him to Bridget and her sweet and gentle nature.

Bridget and Scott sat on the swing and looked out at the winter scene before them, both felt completely happy and at peace. Their meeting couldn't have been a coincidence, it was like they had been destined to meet and fall in love with each other.