Short Story: Senior Trip

"Blair, Hurry! What is taking so long?" "We have to be back at my house by 10:30 to meet everyone." "I know" was the short reply. The two girls finally hauled Blair's purple suitcases outside and struggled shoving them into Zander's car. With a quick kiss on the cheek, Blair said good bye to her mom and jumped into the leather seat. Zander stuck her head out the window, maneuvering down the familiar driveway. Trees seemed to fly by and with a screech, they were on their way. An excited scream filled the car. "Oh My Gosh! It is finally here, our senior trip!! Ah!" The excitement was apparent as the girls pulled into Zander's driveway. Red, white, and black sprinkled her driveway as suitcases were waiting. As she stopped the car, Hannah opened her tailgate, depositing her bags in the car. "Y'all, I am so frickin' excited. I didn't sleep an hour last night." Lauren and Chloe moved across the driveway clothed in sweatshirts and Soffees. "Hey, Blair, Don't forget to use the bathroom, and did you bring your CD's?" greeted Chloe. "Yea, they are in Zander's car."Zander thought to herself, is there anything I need? She was interrupted from behind with a hug from Andrew, "Gah, you scared me." She turned and surveyed her driveway, everyone seemed to be ready. "Okay, Ryan will you come here. I have a question." "Yea" he said walking away from his truck. "You just go onto 85 North, and then get onto Highway 321 North, right?" "Yea, that's pretty much it, but let’s try to stick together so we can stop and grab lunch together,." Zander replied with an excited look, "Okay, sounds good."Ryan led the way with Zander zigzagging through traffic close behind. Chloe rode shotgun and took full advantage. "Gah, Zander, I don't like this song! You can't make us listen to your weird music for the next four hours. I refuse." Her bluntness became stronger and stronger with every passing year that the girls were friends. The laid back driver responded with an "Okay, whatever works for me." Finally, Ryan's Chevy truck signaled over to get on Hwy. 321. "Yay" said Zander, " only 90 more miles from here guys!" Andrew's sarcastic personality flared with an "Oh, Yippee guys! Only NINETY more miles.” They followed the truck into the Wendy's parking lot. The group of ten united with pained looks on their faces. "My butt hurts" Jonathon crudely said. "I know, I have had to pee for thirty minutes." replied Hannah.After the quick stop they were on the highway yet again. The Acura SUV lagged behind, as its transmission groaned up the mountain. Zander shifted into neutral and hurriedly put her '99 into four-wheel drive. "Damn, Zander look to your left." Her concentration dwindled as her eyes soared down the rocky cliff six feet away from her. "Oh my gosh! That is SCARY." She glanced at her speedometer, reading out loud "I'm only going 20 mph. "Well, go ten," said Chloe "It feels like a damn roller coaster in here." The steep road slicing through the mountain slowed the two vehicles with threatening curves. With every turn the houses came farther apart and gravel roads threw clouds of dust behind them. "Y'all! Look! That's our house!" Zander pointed to the end of the long driveway Ryan's truck was already climbing. "Wow, that's amazing." The other teens in the car stared at the three story wood cabin, awe crept through the air as they similarly thought how this was theirs for a whole week.The boys jumped out with Ryan unlocking the recently painted door. Blair ran inside screaming, "Y'all - this is AMAZING." "I know," replied Andrew "and we don't have to worry about making to much noise because no one is around!" Jonathon walked in the door saying "Yea, the nearest house is at least two miles away." The air was warm as Zander found the hot tub, "Look, this is gorgeous!" she said talking to no one in particular. She ran back inside to find all the bedrooms claimed. "Ugh, you guys, I don't want to sleep on the third floor all by myself, that's scary." Andrew shouted from a room away, "Oh, don't worry baby, you won’t be by yourself." "Shut up, you perv" she shouted back jokingly. "Andrew would say that." she thought to herself.The girls unloaded their stuff into the driveway, directing to the guys which bag went where. Someone in the back seat called out "Okay, Hey! Ryan, Jonathon! We are going to a grocery store in Boone, be back in a couple hours." By 6 o clock they were crunching back up the driveway, with dusk beginning to set in. Zander thought about how the yellow and orange signified the first sunset she would see in the mountains. The kitchen smelled of Italian, while Lauren boiled spaghetti and heated up tomato sauce. Zander hurried up the stairs to get her cheap wine and the SoHo cups she had brought. "Ladies," she said on the way back down "does anyone want some wine?" She got four "I do's" while uncorking the bottle. "I am so glad I'm here" she thought to herself "No parents for a whole week."With alcohol and television Monday and Tuesday flew by. "Guys, look, it is supposed to get really cold tomorrow, thirty-eight degrees!" "Dang" said Jonathon. "Well at least the hot tub will feel good." piped Hannah. Three days later the group had surprisingly not had any major accidents. Most were getting along while staying up most of the night and sleeping where they fell became habit. "Oh my Gosh, Look outside" rang through the house way to early in Thursday morning. "Be quiet, Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" mumbled Zander to the uncaring girl. Blair urgently replied "No, look, seriously, it is snowing...like a lot" The three story wood cabin blended in with everything surrounding it, the green moss covered rocks, the brown vinyl lid on the hot tub, the green trees that filled valleys, and the gray mist that hung over Grandfather's Mountain. Everything was now white. A nervous excitement filled the house as the angry sky poured down the white coldness all day. This was an adventure for the Southern group. They ran out of ice for the cooler and with a not so clever idea, Jonathon put his drinks outside on the porch."Hey, Lauren, Y'all, Listen to this!" The weather guy looked… well, like the weather guy always looks. His suit was normal, his emotionless smile and how his arm swept across the screen was all normal. Everything was normal except for what he was saying. "Use strong caution. Do not venture outside for any reason. Do not drive until further noted. The temperature for Banner Elk, Valley Crucis, and Blowing Rock will be in the negative teens during the next week. Nearly five feet of snow fell last night, with a lot more expected. This snowstorm will have winds up to forty-five miles per hour. Good luck and everyone stay safe and stay indoors!" The room was quiet. The shocking voice had left everyone thinking to themselves, letting the news sink in. “Oh my god, what are we going to do? I’m going to call my mom,” said Chloe, leaving the leather chair behind. A murmur erupted with whiny scared voices mulling over what they had just heard. “Guys! I have no service! I can’t get anything at all.”