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The frozen lake cracked beneath his feet, sending a sharp, echoing sound through the stillness of the winter air. Lucas froze, his breath catching as he looked down at the faint, spiderweb-like lines spreading outward from where he stood. Beneath the ice, shadows of fish darted through the dark, murky water. His heart pounded in his chest. He had always known the ice could be dangerous this late in the season, but he hadn’t thought twice about venturing out. His family’s cabin wasn’t far from here, nestled in the woods just beyond the lake. Every winter, he’d come up for solitude, to get away from the busyness of city life, to find something that felt grounded. The lake had been his sanctuary, a place where he could walk and think, letting the vast, frozen surface lull him into a sense of peace. But now, that peace had shattered, leaving him suddenly aware of how alone he really was. He took a tentative step back, hearing the ice creak under his weight. It was brittle, thinner than he’d anticipated. A few steps more, and he could feel it shift, almost imperceptibly, but enough to know he was on dangerous ground. He knew he couldn’t panic—if he did, he might make the wrong move and plunge through the ice. Taking a deep breath, he steadied himself and slowly shifted his weight backward. Then, he heard a faint sound—a low rumble, almost like distant thunder. The crack beneath him widened, and in an instant, he was falling. Icy water enveloped him, his breath stolen away by the cold. Instinctively, he flailed, his hands grasping at the edge of the ice, but his fingers slipped as he struggled to keep his head above the surface. For a terrifying moment, he felt completely powerless. The cold was bone-deep, wrapping around him like a weight, dragging him down. He forced himself to think past the shock, his mind racing as he fought to stay calm. He reached up, managing to catch the edge of the ice with numb fingers. His muscles strained as he pulled, kicking his feet to keep himself afloat. Just as he thought he couldn’t hold on any longer, a gloved hand appeared, gripping his wrist. He looked up to see a woman crouched beside the edge, her face shadowed by a knitted hat. She was strong, pulling him up with surprising force until he finally scrambled onto solid ground, collapsing on his hands and knees, shivering violently. She knelt beside him, wrapping a thick wool blanket around his shoulders. “You’re lucky,” she said softly, her voice steady and calm. “The ice doesn’t always let go so easily.” He looked up, his vision blurred by the shock and cold. “Thank you,” he managed to stammer. He tried to focus, but her face seemed almost unreal, as though she had emerged from the frost and shadows. She nodded, her gaze steady and almost knowing. “Come on, we need to get you warm. Can you walk?” With her help, he rose unsteadily to his feet. The cold gnawed at him, and his limbs felt leaden, but he managed to stay upright, leaning on her for support. She guided him through the trees, moving with an ease that seemed effortless, as though she knew every step of the way. The snow crunched beneath their feet, the only sound in the dense, silent forest. They came to a small cabin, hidden away in a grove of pine trees. It wasn’t his cabin, though he’d thought he knew every structure around the lake. She opened the door and led him inside, where the warmth from a crackling fire seeped into his frozen bones. He sat down in front of the fireplace, hands outstretched toward the flames, while she set a kettle on the stove. As he thawed, he became more aware of his surroundings. The cabin was simple but cozy, filled with wooden furniture and lined with shelves of old books and jars filled with herbs and dried flowers. It felt timeless, as though it had existed here for centuries, hidden away from the world. “Do you live here?” he asked, his voice rough from the cold. The woman nodded, pouring hot water into a mug and handing it to him. “Yes. This place is my sanctuary,” she replied. “I don’t usually have visitors.” He sipped the tea, letting its warmth spread through him. “Thank you for helping me. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been there.” She smiled faintly. “Sometimes the lake calls people who are lost.” Her words hung in the air, and he felt a strange sense of recognition, as though she were speaking to something deep within him. “What do you mean?” The woman glanced at the window, where the lake lay still and frozen beneath a gray sky. “People come to the lake for different reasons. Some seek peace, others clarity. But if there’s something unresolved within you, the lake can sense it. It’s not always forgiving.” A shiver ran through him, though he wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or something else. He thought of the past year, the stress, the unresolved questions, and the inner turmoil he’d been carrying. He’d come to the lake hoping to escape it, but now it felt as though he were being confronted by everything he’d tried to leave behind. “Why did you come here?” she asked gently. He hesitated, then shrugged. “I don’t know. I thought… maybe I’d find some answers. Or maybe I just wanted to get away.” She nodded, as though she’d heard this many times before. “Sometimes we find answers in solitude. But sometimes, solitude forces us to face what we’ve been hiding from.” Her words struck a chord, and he felt a deep ache in his chest. He hadn’t realized how much he’d been running, how hard he’d tried to bury the pain and uncertainty that had weighed on him for so long. The lake, he realized, hadn’t been a refuge; it had been a mirror, reflecting back everything he hadn’t wanted to see. They sat in silence for a while, the fire crackling softly. The warmth and quiet began to seep into his mind, loosening the knots he’d tied himself into. He looked over at the woman, wondering who she was, how she’d come to live in this hidden cabin by the lake. But he didn’t ask. Some things, he sensed, were better left unspoken. Eventually, he rose, feeling stronger and clearer than he had in a long time. “Thank you,” he said, the weight of his gratitude filling his voice. “For everything.” She smiled, her eyes warm and understanding. “Remember, the lake only calls those who are ready to listen.” With a nod, he stepped out into the cold, the memory of her words resonating within him. As he walked back through the forest toward his own cabin, he felt lighter, as though he’d left something behind in the depths of the lake. For the first time, he understood that the answers he’d been searching for weren’t out here in the wilderness—they were within him, waiting to be discovered. And he knew, as he looked back at the lake one last time, that he would return to this place again, but he would never be the same.

Echoes beneath the Ice

Sbott

Sonja M Bott

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Breaking the surface

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