Page 52 of Entwined in Norway

‘We can do something if you’d like? Rafting? Cycling? Paragliding?’

‘I think I would prefer to pour my energy into something else.’ He fixed his gaze on Ida and she felt herself turn to mush.

‘Let me make the bed.’

‘What can I do?’

‘Bring some wood in? We might want a fire later.’

Ida went into her parents’ room. It was easier than at home because they’d never kept much at the cabin. It was full of memories more than things. When they’d come for Christmas, she’d brought new bed linen for that room, knowing that using the sheets they all associated with their parents’ bed would be too much. With the five of them plus Emil, someone had to take this room. In the end, she and Ingrid had shared it, and it had been fine.

She pulled the sheets out of the cupboard and made the bed. All she wanted to do was spend three days right here with Erik, but they were going to have to venture out for food at some point because the cupboards were bare.

Later that evening, after they’d strolled into town and back for groceries, they made a quick meal of pasta with a jar of pre-made sauce, and sat on the veranda with glasses of wine in their hands.

‘This place reminds me a lot of where I live in Banff. I haven’t been back there much since my accident. I thought it would be too hard.’

‘Is this hard?’

‘No. Maybe because I’m with you,’ he smiled at her. ‘But also it’s summer so no one else is boarding either. And I guess at home all my friends are from boarding. I’ve kind of avoided all of that.’

‘I know it’s not the same, but there is so much I’ve avoided since my parents died. I didn’t want to talk to anyone who knew them because they might not know they’d died, or they’d be sorry for my loss.’

‘That’s it though. It’s easier to take yourself away from all of that than put yourself through the heartache.’

‘But maybe you have to have some of that hurt to be able to move forward?’

He looked at her. ‘It was hard enough dealing with the fact I could hardly walk for months. I think that’s why even now, I still feel angry sometimes.’

‘About what you’ve lost?’

He nodded. ‘All because of some guy who was out enjoying himself and didn’t pay attention to what was going on around him. Sometimes I wish I could have five minutes with him to make him understand what he did.’ Erik’s eyes were fixed on the view but Ida could tell he wasn’t looking at it.

‘That would make you feel better for about five minutes but it wouldn’t change anything.’

‘I know.’ He sighed. ‘My whole life was ruined in a split second. It’s hard not to be mad about that.’

Ida remembered how grumpy he’d been in those first couple of days after he arrived at Lysgården. ‘If you’re still in pain sometimes, that makes it harder to put it behind you. It must have been pretty bad.’

He looked at her and she got the feeling this wasn’t something he usually talked about. He’d told her about how he was injured but she sensed the aftermath was almost worse.

‘Yeah. The guy went into my side, landed a jump on me. My leg took the impact, but with my arm broken too I couldn’t get mobile for weeks. That set me back from the start. If it had just been my leg I could have kept my fitness up but once the cast came off my arm and I could use crutches, I’d lost so much. The rehab was just brutal.’

Ida reached over and squeezed his hand. ‘And you’re still recovering.’

‘I guess.’

‘Look how far you’ve come. You’ve done the hardest part already.’

He looked at her, his eyes shining with tears and his jaw tight. He nodded and Ida slipped out of her chair and onto his lap, taking him into her arms. She wanted to take all of this hurt away for him.

‘I’ve never told anyone this stuff before. I think my mom knows but I don’t talk to her about it because she went through all of that with me. She needs to think I’m okay now. And my dad… it’s like he always thought the snowboarding wouldn’t work out. He was waiting in the wings ready to take me on as a joiner when I failed.’

‘You didn’t fail, Erik.’ She fondled his soft earlobe while she gazed into his eyes, wishing the hurt away.

‘It’s hard to remember that when I’m there. Coming here was the best thing I ever did. Somehow sitting here in a ski resort with you doesn’t hurt like it would at home.’

‘We haven’t seen a snowboarder today, maybe that’s why.’