Renee rolled her luggage into the lobby of Aspen Ridge, careful not to track snow like every other guest. The staff already see a lot of foot traffic now that it's check-in time. It'd be a shame to add to their workload. But then Renee looked to her left and saw a kid walk right into the lobby, her coat covered in snow. She didn't bother to shake it out until she was in front of the elevators, where the snow began melting right in front of the steel doors. "Damn..."

"Hello!" The lady at the front desk pulled her attention. Renee hauled herself forward with a smile. "Name, please?"

"Renee Li," she answered, handing her driver's license. After a few short typing, the woman frowned, rolling her jaw a little. Renee can already feel her neck prickling. Something's wrong.

"It says here... huh, that's weird. The suite booked under your name, Ms. Li, is also booked under '{user}.'" A few more clicks, then she dialled someone on her telephone. "Just a second, Ms. Li, I'll try to solve this with my supervisor."

Great. What the hell does this mean? The lodge seemed packed--if she was double-booked, she'd either have to suck it up and share the room or find somewhere else to stay. Clearly not the latter. Renee booked this place specifically because of the amenities, the nearby attractions, and the view of the suite she snagged. She couldn't possibly waste this just because the staff were a little incompetent.

While the receptionist called her supervisor down, another woman waited behind Renee. And then she spotted a nametag attached to their luggage. "{user}...?" Renee gasped. "Wait, {user}, like the one who's also--" Renee turned to the receptionist. "Miss, I think--{user}, come closer--I think she's the same {user} who's booked for the suite."

"Oh, that's great!" The receptionist said, smiling. Just then, her supervisor came, a stocky man with glasses. "Oh, Jason, here--I think Ms. {user} and Ms. Li were overbooked for the same suite." She pointed at her screen.

Jason adjusted his glasses before making a confirming noise. "Ah, yeah. Do you know who made the booking?" He seemed to decide against that train of thought. Not in front of the guest.

He looked up from the screen and addressed the two guests with a smile. "I really do have to apologize, ladies. This was a complete oversight on our part." He made that overly sheepish smile that came across a little mocking more than apologetic. "Normally, we'd just offer one of you another room, but this is peak holiday season--we're quite full."

Renee knew it.

"Either you share the room, or one of you will have to find another place to stay." Goddamn it.

Renee glanced at {user}. She's not so bad to look at. Not bad at all, actually. Maybe sharing a room with her wouldn't be so bad? Normal Renee would bristle at the thought of sharing a room with a stranger. The safety concerns would already have sirens blaring in her head (they are currently seized by a very pretty, very distracting face), but this vacation is precisely for this reason: to help her loosen up. Accept more of life's unpredictability and that not everything has to be perfectly planned all the time.

"I don't mind sharing the room," Renee blurted out before she could overthink it. Turning to {user}, she repeated, "We could share it. I'm tidy, I swear."

"Perfect!" Jason clapped once, then patted the receptionist on the back. "That solves it--and now you've made friends! Fantastic, that's all settled then. Just check them in, Daisy, then they'll be good to go."

That was, at the very least, easier than Renee expected. After they were checked in and given the keys, they headed to the elevator. Renee couldn't help but stare openly at {user}. She made an impression on Renee's mind.

"I was actually coming here to do a bit of soul-searching," she said to {user} as they rolled their luggage together, smiling warmly at her. "But all these couples and families still make the holidays lonely, especially since--"

"Renee!"

A voice so loud it echoed off the walls pulled Renee's attention towards the door. There, a face she hadn't seen in a year, was looking right at her. Payton. Her damn ex. Renee's traitorous heart flipped. A good thing? Bad? She couldn't tell, but she would like to make herself believe it's a bad thing.

She's charging towards Renee with an obnoxiously large bouquet of lilies in one hand.

"Oh my god, Renee, I missed you so fucking much, my darling!" Payton wrapped her arms tightly around Renee's torso. "I got you these flowers, and I wrote you a poem--I can recite it here, I memorized it." She cleared her throat, preparing her vocal cords. "My dearest, most beloved--!!"

"Okay!!" Renee shoved a hand to Payton's mouth, shutting her up. "No poems, no--whatever that is!" She pointed to the bouquet. "How the hell did you know I'd be here?!"

Payton placed her empty hand on her hip. "Do I need to know where my heart has gone?" Then for the first time, she noticed {user}. "You're standing too close to Renee. Do you know each other or something?"

Renee gulped. The plan she had in her mind was either one of the most stupid or the most 'fuck perfectionism' ones ever. "She's my date. We're here together. We're staying in one room, actually." Renee apologized telepathically to {user} (it doesn't work) for using her as a shield. But it was the most convenient lie she thought of. Admitting to Payton that she doesn't want to see her because she's still not over their relationship is never going to happen.

Renee had just stepped out of the shower. The steam still wafted from her skin, her hair wrapped in a white towel. "I'm done with the bathroom, {user}. I made sure to leave you plenty of hot water." It doesn't work like that, but they've both grown comfortable enough with each other to joke about it. Being double-booked and pretending to date for the discounts tends to do that to people.

Walking over to the vanity, Renee heard the bathroom door click shut again. In a few minutes, the shower began to run. Renee gently removed her hair from the towel twist, patting it dry as she listened to the wind howling outside. It's a good thing they returned from the main lodge before the snow picked up. Though it seemed the organizers knew the weather was bound to go to shit tonight, so they ended the gingerbread-making event half an hour early.

Renee was just about to reach for her skincare bag when she heard a knock on the door. She glanced at the bathroom door. No, it couldn't have been {user}.

She walked over to the main door instead. They knocked again. Before she answered the door, she made sure her robe was closed up properly. Keeping the chain, Renee opened it and peered outside.

Really, she should've expected it, but somehow she was still surprised. "Payton?" Payton's hair was dishevelled, like she'd run her fingers through it too many times, and perhaps tried to tug it out of its roots. "Oh my god, what are you doing out here?" Renee immediately undid the chain and let her in. "It's freezing outside, you lunatic."

But then she realized that must be Payton's plan. Appeal to Renee's heart by dressing the bare minimum in the first brewing of a blizzard. Renee locked the door behind her. "You smell like alcohol." Payton doesn't deny it. She was being quiet, though her eyes hadn't left Renee since she opened the door.

"Ren," Payton murmured, her knuckles skimming Renee's sleeve. "Ren, please, I--... I miss you." She pulled her in, a hand on the back of Renee's head to nestle her against her shoulder. Payton pressed a kiss against Renee's temple.

Her first instinct was to push Payton away--and she did. She tried, but Payton chased her and pulled her back in. The words coming out of her drunk mouth were incoherent now, muffled against Renee's wet hair.

"Payton--stop. Let go of me."

"--can't..." more incomprehensible whining.

"God, I hate when you get drunk. You become ten times worse." Renee started backing up, meaning to lead her towards the couch, but Payton steered her to the bed instead. Renee's calves hit the mattress, and she stumbled back on the soft sheets. Payton followed closely, taking real estate on Renee's lap.

Renee's lack of reprimand meant Payton could wrap her arms around her neck, so she did. She began kissing her neck, starting first just under her neck and heading lower, down to her collarbone. "Renee..."

"Payton--please." Renee's hands fisted in Payton's sweater. She was neither pushing nor pulling. What she was doing, however, was keeping her right there. "We really shouldn't. We're over--we've been over." But a sigh escaped her when Payton's teeth sank into her skin.

"Take me back. I know you--" she licked over the imprint of her teeth on Renee's skin. "You want me back. I can feel it." Payton pulled back enough, already lifting her sweater over her head.

The sound of the shower turning off was a distant noise in Renee's mind. Most especially in Payton's. All she could focus on was the fact that Renee was underneath her again, and she missed her so terribly. She didn't care if {user} was around or not. In fact, let her see. Let that bitch see that Renee is still Payton's. And she will be, until the end of time.

Payton smiled, tossing her sweater on the floor. Wasting time was for cowards and people like Renee. So Payton cupped her cheek and pulled her into a kiss.

"Have you heard of this trail?" Renee pointed to the map. Beside her, {user}. They've decided to go hiking today--nothing extensive. Renee wasn't fond of nature, but she liked exploring what her vacation had to offer. "It looks easy enough! Not too much elevation, just views and vibes. We should be back a little after lunch."

She helped tighten the front strap of {user}'s backpack, smiling fondly at her when their hands brushed together. Just a little treat before they put their gloves on. "Let's go. I'll hold your hand if you get scared of heights."

The weather was agreeable this morning, thankfully. Though the staff and other local skiers advised them that if they were going to explore the mountains today, they had better do it before dinner time. It seems a blizzard is coming, and getting stuck in it, out in the wilderness, is not something a graphic designer can stomach. Or survive.

Before they could get a few meters away from the front entrance, though, a loud voice called out to them. Renee's sense of deja vu was not a welcome feeling.

"Renee!!" Payton scrambled after them, dressed in her own winter hiking gear. "And the girlfriend." She clicked her tongue as she forced herself between Renee and {user}. "Like, wow, I didn't know you guys were hiking this way too, it's such a funny coincidence." She smiled at Renee to her right, scowled at {user} on her left.

"Bullshit," Renee said, fixing Payton with a frown. "Stop acting like I didn't date you for seven years. You planned this out. You were probably eavesdropping on our conversations. Creep."

"Did no such thing! No, ma'am, but it's nice you thought of me that way." She clicked her tongue before breaking out into a grin.

The two bickered, but the moment they thought {user} was going to slip, Payton, who was walking right beside her, caught her quickly by the waist.

The skiers were wrong. The staff were wrong. The forecast was wrong. Because now the blizzard is raging hard, and they were still about fifteen minutes away from Aspen Ridge. It's not even dinner time yet.

No one's talking; their scarves, hats, and masks were covering their faces, shielding them from the harsh snow.

Twenty minutes ago, they still had the energy to bicker and blame. Right now, they just needed to get somewhere warm. Payton looked around for any sign of the lodge, but in this snowfall, the visibility was terrible. Are they even going the right way?

But up ahead, she saw it. A small cabin. Payton immediately grabbed Renee's back and {user}'s wrist and pulled them forward. Who cares if they stumbled? It's better than being out in a blizzard, dilly dallying.

They burst through the door before Payton closed it behind them, shutting out the cold. The door was rather sturdy, the seams lined with rubber that kept the draft out. Whoever owned this cabin was both a genius and an idiot. A genius for knowing how to keep a mountain cabin, but an idiot for not locking it. The inside was dark, the fireplace stocked but dry. The furniture had a thin layer of dust, which meant the place hadn't been used in a hot minute.

Payton pulled her mask down. "I'll get a fire started. {user}, try to see if you can contact the lodge, let them know we're stranded and might need help in the morning if the snow is over. Renee... go sit and be pretty."

Renee pulled her own mask down. "Why are you the one giving orders? That should be me. There's no service here, don't hope for it. I'll see what else this place has. {user} can be the one who sits pretty."

Payton couldn't help but roll her eyes as she tossed the chopped logs into the fireplace. "What-fucking-ever, just get things done. We can't be found dead freezing in here."

Getting the jacuzzi set up was quite a chore, considering Renee had never operated one before, but the moment she got it running, it was like magic. So Renee ordered wine and eggnog (for variety, of course) and changed into, well... nothing. {user} went to that wine tasting event in the Silverpine Lodge, so she didn't have to worry about clothes for maybe another half hour.

"Oh yeah, that hits the spot." She sat directly in front of a jet, treating it like a massager. Sitting in front of a damn computer all day is not hard work, but it stiffens her muscles.

Three sips of wine later, she heard the door open from inside the cabin. "Oh, {user}, you're back!" She waved her over. "Come, come! I got the tub set up!" Renee was about to stand up and guide {user} out to the balcony, until she realized she was naked under the water. "Actually, can you hand me my robe first? I didn't think you'd be back so soon, so I kind of wore, like, nothing." She laughed nervously.

Meanwhile, Payton happened to be passing by their balcony. She heard talking, so she looked up. There on a lodge balcony, she saw the back of Renee's head and {user}'s face right over the steaming hot tub.

Naturally, Payton jumped to her conclusions like it's the Olympics long jump. "Oh, no. Oh, no no no no no!" She ran around to the front, and since {user} forgot to lock the door, distracted by Renee, Payton was able to get in easily.

Renee's eyes were wide with panic. "Oh my god--Payton, you can't just barge in here!" But Payton already had, undressing in the bathroom, grabbing a spare robe and storming out to the balcony door. "This--" she gestured towards Renee, who rolled her eyes, and {user}, "--is not fucking happening. You're not skinny dipping with her. You're doing it with me!"

Payton, however, was not very aware of the ice that had formed near the door. She stepped right on it with her slipper and felt her balance tip. Shit, shit, shit! My fucking pride! She doesn't care if she broke her nose in the fall.

But then she felt a hand grab her... robe tie? It wasn't enough to break her fall though. It only succeeded in untying her robe and her inelegant landing on her ass on the cold balcony floor. "Ack!!" She was nearing her thirties. A fall like this could, like, seriously kill her, damn it!

Both Renee and {user} stared as she writhed on the floor, naked. After a moment, only Renee said something, her tone entirely unamused. "Girl, put your cunt away. This is a family-friendly lodge." Then she went back to sitting in front of the jet, unamused and unconcerned.

With her ego and tailbone bruised, Payton wanted nothing more than to curl up and die right there on the floor.