The Road Home by Clifford Beck - HTML preview

Chapter 10

The evening passed uneventfully as dinner began to bring a release of the day's tensions. The memory of their brush with death was soon to give way to the hazy world, within which dreams would guide them to the safety of temporary oblivion. In less than an hour, everyone was asleep except Maya. As a natural leader, she had assumed responsibility for the group’s safety as well as the smooth flow of affairs throughout the weekend. But their near interaction with the more dangerous fauna of the area left her shaken and unable to sleep. She refused to allow the group to realize just how afraid she was, and would spend the remainder of the weekend glancing out the windows. Their encounter with the forces of nature had begun to take its toll and secretly, all she wanted was to go home.

The rest of the weekend was without incident and, to the group’s disappointment, it was time to return to the world of books, papers, classrooms, and late-night studying. Not surprisingly, packing for their return took noticeably longer than unpacking. But once this had been accomplished, they made their way down the valley, turning right onto the road that led to Route 90. With Maya doing the driving, the rest of the group quickly drifted off to sleep—some with their heads resting on the shoulder next to them. It always seems to take longer to get where one is going than to return from where one has been, and the drive back to Tacoma was no exception. Pulling up to the tenement building that served as their quiet bastion of study, the tired students stepped out of the car and, unpacking, lumbered up to the second floor. Going to their respective rooms, they dropped their luggage and packs and collapsed on whatever soft furniture was close by. The weekend had passed far too quickly and tomorrow morning would soon arrive, bringing with it the tasks of classes and homework. As dedicated as they were, the roommates were in no hurry to return to the rigors of graduate study and would have preferred to have spent another week in the woods—bear or not.