Chapter
1

CJ heard a soft knock on her bedroom doorframe.

“Coffee?” Leo was holding two to-go cups from the coffee shop down the street.

“You’re a lifesaver.” She grabbed the cup he was holding out to her and took a sip. It was a vanilla latté, her favorite.

“You know, most of us pack the night before we go on a trip,” Leo said, smiling. “Not the morning of.”

“Shut up,” CJ said through a giggle. “I was busy.”

Leo’s face scrunched up. “Busy with what? It’s winter break.”

She turned up her chin and took on a fake serious tone. “If you must know, there was an invasion that only I could stop.”

Leo rolled his eyes. “Playing your new game again?” he asked. When she only grinned at him, he laughed. “Fair enough. You nearly done?”

CJ tossed a bottle of shampoo into her bag. “I am now!” she said and zipped the suitcase closed.

“May I?” Leo asked, gesturing toward the bag and bowing slightly.

“You may.” CJ gave a slight curtsy.

Leo chuckled as he grabbed the bag. This was an inside joke that had been going on for nearly the entire two years they’d been dating. “When are Alex and Katrina getting here?” CJ asked as they went down the stairs.

“They’re supposed to be here now,” Leo replied. “I’d wonder what’s keeping them, but . . .” He trailed off and gave CJ a knowing glance over his shoulder as they reached the bottom of the staircase.

She rolled her eyes. “I hope it’s not that again.”

“Hope it’s not what again?” CJ’s mom poked her head out from the kitchen.

“Nothing,” CJ said quickly. “Alex and Katrina have just been having some . . . problems recently.”

“Ah,” her mom said. “Well, at least the trip should be fun. You all packed?”

“Yup!”

Leo put CJ’s suitcase next to his by the front door. The one thing that CJ had done the night before was get her snowboard out. Now Leo’s was next to it, all ready to go.

“You may want to call them and see where they are.” CJ’s dad was in the living room watching the morning news. “Looks like there’s a storm that’s set to hit pretty soon. You’re going to want to get on the road sooner rather than later.”

“Cool!” Leo said, excited. “Fresh powder!”

“Could make driving difficult,” CJ’s dad continued. “Judging by the forecast, it could be pretty bad.”

Leo smiled and shook his head. “This station says every storm is going to be a disaster. How many times do they predict a blizzard, and all we get is an inch or two—sometimes nothing at all? I think they deliberately make the storms sound worse than they’re going to be just to get more viewers and boost ratings.”

“Still,” CJ’s dad said. “Better safe than sorry.”

“You’ve got all the clothes you need?” her mom asked.

“Yes, Mom,” CJ said, knowing it wouldn’t be the last question. Her mom always went through a checklist every time CJ went out of town, even if they were going somewhere together.

“All the gear for your board?”

“Yup.”

“Cell phone charger?”

“Yes, Mom, I’ve got everything I need.” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Leo take a sip of his coffee to conceal a smile. She gave him a little slap on the arm.

“Okay,” her mom said. “Just wanted to make sure.” She paused. “You know how to get there? Do you want me to write down the address of the cabin just in case?”

“We’re fine, Mom. We all have the address saved in our phones from when we went last year. And it’s not hard to find, anyway. I’m sure Katrina knows how to get there, since it’s her uncle’s cabin.”

Leo’s phone buzzed. He pulled it out, looked at it, then spun around to look out the window. “They’re here,” he said.

“Have a good time, sweetie.” Her mom pulled CJ in for a hug and a kiss on the forehead.

Her dad popped up from the couch and did the same. “You kids have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

“Oh,” Leo said with a smile. “Did you start snowboarding recently?” He had been around so much for the past couple years that by now he easily fit in with CJ’s whole family.

Her dad chuckled. “Okay, except that. You can do that.” He gave Leo a friendly slap on the back as they gathered their suitcases and snowboards and headed outside.

Alex’s blue minivan was parked in CJ’s driveway, the engine still running, and CJ could see Katrina in the passenger seat. Right away, something seemed off. Katrina wasn’t smiling. In fact, she looked like she was grinding her teeth in anger, but CJ hoped she was just imagining that.

Alex popped the trunk, and CJ and Leo loaded their bags on top of Alex and Katrina’s suitcases and ski gear. When CJ came around the side of the car, Katrina had gotten out.

“I’m going to sit in the back with CJ,” she said firmly.

“Do whatever you want,” Alex said back to her. His cold tone told CJ everything she needed to know. The couple had been fighting.

CJ grimaced at Leo, but he just shrugged. He was always trying to downplay their friends’ arguments. He probably figured everything would be fine once the trip got underway. CJ didn’t feel as sure about that.

She hopped into the back seat behind Alex, and Katrina got in next to her, behind Leo.

“Colorado, here we come!” Leo said excitedly as Alex pulled out of the driveway. “Six hours from now, we’ll be sliding down a mountain faster than a go-kart on steroids!” For a second, CJ thought he had just had too much coffee, but then she realized that he was probably trying to boost the mood in the car.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Alex said flatly.

“It doesn’t have to,” Leo replied. “It’s extreme!” He did something close to jazz hands. CJ giggled, but Alex just kept driving. Katrina didn’t appear to be listening at all. She was staring out the window, but CJ could tell she wasn’t really looking at anything in particular.

“Come on, you two,” Leo continued. “It’s winter break. We’re about to spend the next four days hitting the slopes, and we don’t have to worry about school for another week. This trip is going to be great.”

Alex didn’t respond, but Katrina turned toward the front seat, and CJ saw her roll her eyes.

CJ looked out her own window. Flurries had begun to fall from the gray sky. This was going to be a long trip.