Bear

She held up her phone, gazing at the top right corner. A large outcropping of rock lay ahead. Her dad slowed the car down for the turn. They passed the outcropping and… she held her breath. The last of the four bars faded.   

“Mom! Dad!” she shouted.

“Did it happen?” her mom asked, glancing back at her.

“Yup! Which means our vacation has officially started. Only twenty more miles to go” she replied, as she showed her phone off to no one in particular. She put her phone away and drank some lemonade.

***

They pulled up to their cabin. The cabin was small, but it was right next to a lake that she loved swimming in. Inside the cabin there was a small kitchen and two bedrooms. She sat down on her bed and set her suitcase down. She looked outside. The moon shone brightly through the window.

“How did it get this late so fast?” she pondered. 

The only thing in the room besides her bed was a small dresser that would hold her clothes. She could unpack later though. She stretched her body and snuggled into the blankets. Before she knew it, she was asleep.

***

She woke up. Her head was groggy. She unzipped her suitcase and changed into new clothes. Her mind was a mess. She stumbled into the kitchen to find her parents in a chaotic frenzy gathering up little bits of food. 

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Our food is gone, taken by a bear. We have nothing left,” her mom said.

 Her mind snapped back into focus. Their food was gone. How were they going to survive?

“Wait, can’t we just drive back?” she asked.

“No!” her mom cried. “The bear wrecked the car too. There must have been some food inside” 

Her insides dropped. How were they meant to get back now? They could not call anyone because they had no internet. 

Her dad let out a sigh and stopped.

“We are going to have to walk back,” he said. 

He scooped up what little food he had managed to gather and walked toward his bedroom.

“Grab a ton of water bottles and stuff them in your sleeping bag. Dad will grab the other sleeping bags and the tent,” said her mom.

She rushed to her room and grabbed her sleeping bag. She grabbed her water bottle, her parents' water bottles, and a few plastic ones she had from leftover lemonade. She filled them up till the point they risked overflowing and screwed the caps on, making sure to screw them extra tightly. She tossed them all in her sleeping bag, which she tied into a bundle and hoisted over her shoulder. She put her shoes on, opened the door and stepped outside. Her parents were waiting for her, just outside the door.

***

She was walking at a brisk pace, but she soon realized she couldn’t travel long distances at the speed she was going. She slowed down and her legs welcomed the change of pace. When they finally decided to take a break, she practically collapsed onto a nearby stump. 

“My watch says we have been walking for fifteen miles,’’ her dad announced. “Almost there.” 

She couldn't believe they had only walked fifteen miles. She knew fifteen miles was a long distance, but it had felt so much longer. Her aching legs seemed to agree.

“We need to pitch the tent,” her mom ordered.

“Uuuhhhhhhggggggg, give me a second,” she groaned as she slowly stood up. 

She stumbled forward and then regained her footing.

 “Alright,” her legs sent a new wave of pain as if to protest against standing.

She stumbled over to where they had decided to pitch the tent. Her dad had already started and she helped as much as she could. When the tent was up, a thought occurred to her.

“Won’t the bears want the food we gathered?” she worried.

“I brought a bear proof container, and as long as we keep it far away from the tent, we should be fine,” her dad replied. 

“We are okay. We will be okay. We can do this,” she mumbled under her breath over and over again.

 She learned that this helps with nerves. She wasn’t sure it was working though. Her breath was just as quick as it had been a few minutes ago. Her heart still raced, though she wasn’t sure if this was because she was nervous or tired.

“Come on, we need to go to sleep,” her mom called to her. 

She crawled into their tent, hauling her sleeping bag full of water bottles behind her. She set up her spot and put the water in the corner. They only had her two lemonade bottles left. The other four bottles had been devoured throughout the hike. They only had five miles until they could get internet and call someone. She was excited for the moment where all four bars returned. Never again would she celebrate not having internet. She longed for the comfort of her old life. She snuggled into her sleeping bag and closed her eyes. She couldn’t seem to fall asleep. Worry plagued her thoughts.

“What if a bear attacks? What if the tent falls? What if a wolf or coyote comes across us?”

 Her brain could only think of the what-ifs, allowing no room for thoughts of sleep. Still her body ached for the comfort of sleep. Slowly the what-ifs faded and she found herself drifting into blackness.

***

She opened her eyes. She was staring up at a wooden ceiling.

“Wait, what?” she gasped.

She stood up and looked around. She was back in her room at the cabin. Her suitcase sat unpacked on the floor and her water bottle on the dresser. 

“Was I dreaming?” she wondered.

She pinched herself, but nothing happened. She was really here. 

“But how?” she pondered. “Unless maybe it was all a dream.”

She relaxed, none of it had actually happened. She put on new clothes and stepped out into the kitchen where her parents were scrambling around frantically.

“Bear!” her mom gasped.