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The Ski Lesson, by Lisa Marie Mercer
 The
storm intensifies. The powder deepens. Visibility is fading. One wrong turn, and
she could fall to her death, buried beneath the snow, where no one could save
her. So she thinks.
He has been watching her. Watching her for days, he wonders who she is, and why she always skis alone. She's graceful, yet tentative, bordering on beautiful. If she was his student, he could make her beautiful. "Beautiful as a skier," he clarifies to himself. He gains speed on her, and sees where she's about to turn. " Oh no! Don't go there!" He hadn't planned to go there himself, but in the depths of his mind, he has somehow become connected to her. In connecting to her, he's committed to protecting her. In her present fear, she remembers all her fears. Amidst the crowds and confusion there lurked a potential for violence, perhaps unintentional, but dangerous, nonetheless. Her fears, of course were lacking in logic. She has the tactics and technique to get down the slope, but in her paralysis, she neglects to invoke them. He skis through the whiteout, watching the snow-sliders become ghosts of their former selves. Where is she? He can't see her, so he has to sense her. What is the scent of a beautiful woman in fear? Suddenly, a voice comes from behind her. "Are you okay?" Startled, she turns towards him. Under ski clothes and snowfall, she can't make out his features, but she senses his maleness, his kindness yet toughness. "Are you okay?" His words bring back memories of danger in the darkness. In a scene set in a city, it was a different danger from the one she now confronted. "Are you okay?" He speaks in the same type of voice as the one who once saved her from human violence. Can he save her from the elements? Can he save her from her own self-doubt? "You're not from around here," she says. Then she laughs at her cliché. This is not the response he expects "Does that mean you don't trust me?" "Oh no…you sound like someone who once helped me." "Maybe I can help you now." "I don't think so. I don't know how I got here, and I don't know how to get away." He thinks he understands her. CLICK HERE FOR PAGE 2
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She
stands, transfixed at the edge of the trail. In terror, she stares at the slope
below her. How did she get here? How will she escape? "Choose a line!" her
instructors wo
uld
say. She can't find a line. The trail is narrow and crowded, leaving little room
for choice. She hates it when she doesn't have enough choices.