“Try to keep up!” Jason yelled as he whizzed past me, leaning his body into the wind to get more speed.

I shook my head, smirking as I drove my skis into the snow, shoving off down the hill. Not long after, Drew Wesley pulled up beside me, looking me up and down.

“You ski like a girl,” he quipped, raising an eyebrow under his ski mask.

“That’s what I am, stupid,” I laughed, shifting towards him and elbowing him in the arm.

He lost balance and slowed down, nearly falling. My laughter echoed through the woods as I leaned into the wind, leaving him in the snow.

“Now who skis like a girl!?”

“Aw, come on!”

The day was perfect, though bitterly cold. I was able to keep fairly warm bundled in my coat, scarf, etc; while keeping moving. My brother Jason had invited me on his team’s ski trip, knowing that all the guys treated me as “one of them”.

I played basketball (and about ten other sports) with my brother most of my seventeen years of life, and for some reason that made a great impression on his chums. Drew was his closest friend, and we both sort of….liked each other. Don’t tell anyone!

Twins Mark and Tyrone came up on either sides of me, grabbing onto my arms and sliding along in sync. I grinned slyly, snaking back and forth so I sprayed them with snow.

“Rude!!” Tyrone yelled, releasing my arm as he wiped off his glasses.

We all laughed and joked each other the rest of the way down the hill, and I could tell this was going to be a great day….