Glass sky

Quiet filled the cold evening, minus the crunching of snow beneath boots. Eurydice Talbot made her way through the park leading to the frozen pond. It had been far too long since she visited the area. As she came to the hill past the trees overlooking the pond, she noticed small groups of families and teenagers enjoying the night skating. It appeared to be more calming than most days were.

Breathing in the crisp winter air, she carefully made her way down the slight slope, not wanting to slide and hurt herself. She grasped the strap of her bag containing her skates. The last time she set foot on ice was two years ago before the accident.

Eurydice sat on the hill overlooking the frozen pond watching the group of children play. While sitting in silence, listening to children’s laughter filling the frosty clear air, she could not help but remember the colourful days of childhood. The happy and carefree days where she and her dear friend would spend most of their day skating as the youth below. They would frolic in the snow, which in turn would make their cheeks as rosy as a cherry by midday. Those days and that friend were long gone.

“Eurydice! Get your head out of the clouds!” a familiar female voice called out to her.

Eurydice nearly jumped out of her skin as she blinked while gazing around her surroundings. Where did that voice come from? She let out a sigh lowering her head to rest on her arm. The voice still haunted her mind.

“Eurydice, get up! You lazy bum. You don’t want to waste the day in bed, do you?” Artemis Reid asked as she bounced on her best friend.

“I was in the middle of a pleasant dream,” Eurydice whined, pulling Artemis close to her. She let her green eyes adjust to the sun-filled bedroom, finally resting upon Artemis. Green eyes met grey ones as Artemis grinned at her. Her rainbow hair pulled back into a French braid under her grey knitted headband.

“Artemis…did you just sneak in again?”

“No, your mom let me this time,” Artemis replied, sitting up against some pillows. “Chris is waiting for us outside.”

“This is way too early, even for you.”

“Eurydice, it is like ten in the morning. Now get up. We have a fun day planned,” Artemis said, shaking her lightly.

“All right, all right. I’m up. You are evil for this,” Eurydice groaned, sitting up rubbing at her eyes.

“This is payback for not answering my phone calls or texts.”

Eurydice stretched her arms, feeling her back crack in the process. Flipping over the covers, she got out of bed and walked over to the bathroom. All the while, Artemis was rummaging through her closet, searching for a nice outfit.

After twenty minutes, Eurydice opened the bathroom door, a towel wrapped around herself, and her chest-length brown hair blown dried, hanging to the one side. On her bed was a pair of jeans, a round-neck striped knitted sweater, and her underwear. Next to the outfit was Artemis, laying back, staring mindlessly at the ceiling.

“Am I that dull to wait on?” Eurydice asked as she slipped on her underwear.

“No, not at all. The bed is just comfy,” Artemis answered, yelping as a wet towel landed on her.

“You should have let Chris in. He must be freezing,” Eurydice replied as she pulled on the jeans, followed by the shirt.

“He’s used to it. If not, well, sucks to be him.”

Eurydice shook her head as she headed for the door. Artemis trailed behind her, grabbing her jacket off the computer chair and followed the other girl downstairs.

“Mom, going out with Chris and Artemis. We’ll be back later,” Eurydice called from the front door; after getting her boots, gloves and jacket on. Sitting next to her was her backpack with her skates ready to leave.

“You three have fun. Remember, dinner is at six. Artemis and Chris are welcome to join.”

“Thank you, Daniela.”

Out in the driveway, headbanging in the blue SUV was Chris Martin. The girls smirked as they snuck up on the driver’s door, knowing he wasn’t paying attention and banged on the window. Chris jumped in his seat as he turned the music down.

“Way to give someone a heart attack,” Chris gasped as the girls got in the car, Artemis in the front seat, Eurydice behind Chris.

“You’re easy to spook,” Artemis replied as she put on her seatbelt.

Chris shook his head as he backed out of the driveway. “What is the plan? Where are we going first?” he asked, driving out of the cul-du-sac.

“No matter what we do, tea is required. The one upfront decided to wake me out of a good dream.”

“Oh, that’s why I waited for half an hour.” Artemis stuck her tongue out in the rear-view mirror. “There are good trails around the pond. So, I say we go for a hike first, followed by skating.”

“Are you sure the pond will be thick enough? I thought I heard people say to be cautious around there.”

“Don’t be a chicken now. I assure you; the pond is fine. Chris and I checked it out an hour before getting you.”

Letting out a sigh, Eurydice glanced out the window as she let Artemis’ words sink in. A part of her wanted to trust Artemis, sixteen years of friendship, she never steered her wrong. However, nearly a month ago, Eurydice remembered a news report of a young boy who had fallen through thin ice close to their usual spot at the pond.

Artemis was the more adventurous one, taking risks at every turn. Eurydice, on the other hand, was cautious and thought things out. There were times when Artemis would do something, and Eurydice would tag along with her, trying to be just as brave as her friend. One day on their hike, they climbed up a small cliff next to the waterfall. Artemis made it look so easy, scaling up with no problems. After encouraging her and talking her through it, Eurydice built the courage to follow suit. Sadly, partway up, she slipped and fell, breaking her arm in the process.

“Eurydice, Earth to Eurydice. If you don’t wish to have your tea, I can throw it away,” Artemis teased, holding out an extra-large earl grey toward the other girl.

Eurydice snapped out of her thoughts at the mention of tea and reached for the cup letting out a small gasp. “Thank you!”

Eurydice held the cup in both her hands, eyes closed as she felt the hot liquid warm her insides. She was in her happy world, enjoying the first cup of tea of the day. The conversation in the front seats drowned out her thoughts the closer the car got to the park.

Chris parked the car a few feet from the playground. They grabbed their bags from the backseat and headed towards the trail part of the park. The trail was surprisingly busy for a Saturday afternoon. There were small groups of families and people walking their dogs.

A smile came across Eurydice's lips as she gazed back at her friends as the three made their way down the

path toward the snow-covered woods. Artemis and Chris ran to catch up with Eurydice as she continued to wander further away. Occasionally the girl would look behind her and grin before taking off at a run. Laughter filled the woods as the three of them ran down the path enjoying their time.

After some time, Chris took out his camera and started to snap some photos of the scenery, along with candid shots of the girls. For once, he was able to capture a nature photo of them.

Getting closer to the bridge, Chris pulled Artemis back without Eurydice noticing, hoping to get answers.

“Eurydice seems to have perked up since we picked her up. Have you noticed?” Chris asked.

“She has a lot on her mind. I know she is a little nervous about going to the pond.”

“What is taking you two so long?” Eurydice called, leaning against the post.

“Just enjoying the sights!” Artemis called back.

They spent a few hours hiking and playing in the snow, and then they trudged through the snowy fields and down the hill towards the pond. Eurydice noticed that the pond was surprisingly empty for once.

Artemis was the first one on the ice, doing a few laps, too excited to wait for the other two.

Eurydice watched her as she tied up her skates. A bad feeling formed into the pit of her stomach. She pushed those thoughts away as Chris helped her to her feet.

“Are you all, right? You seem a bit off,” Chris asked.

“Do you ever get a bad feeling about something, and the feeling refuses to go away? I am feeling that way right now,” Eurydice admitted.

“I give you my word Eurydice; nothing bad is going to happen,” Chris promised, taking her hand and leading her to the ice.

When Eurydice's blades hit the ice, all the negative thoughts slipped away as she pushed off, racing toward Artemis, leaving Chris in her dust. Freedom overtook her as she skated circles around her friend. Laughter resonated from the three teenagers resorting to their childhood days.

“I do not know about you two, but I am up for a race. What do you say?” Chris asked.

“Oh, I am down for that!” Artemis replied enthusiastically.

“All right, how about to the other side and back?” Chris suggested.

“On your marks. Get set. Go!”

The three were off speeding down the pond with the destination in sight. The competitiveness of each began to show, trying to pass each other.

Artemis and Chris were neck and neck refusing to back down, none of them realized the severity of the danger as they neared the middle of the pond. Eurydice felt her heart race hearing cracking noises under her blades. She could have sworn the cracking sounds were getting louder and louder.

“Eurydice, you better keep up, or you’re going to lose,” Artemis laughed while looking behind her.

“I think perhaps we should turn around. I don’t feel comfortable,” Eurydice admitted.

“Don’t be such a baby. I told you, we are safe!” Artemis called, pushing off again, her blade snagged on the jagged ice causing her to stumble and fall on the ice.

“Guys, help!” Artemis called panic filled her voice.

Chris and Eurydice watched in horror as the ice opened, swallowing Artemis up, their eyes opened wide with shock as they raced towards the opening, hoping to save her.

Eurydice felt the tears rolling down her cheeks as the memory filled her head. The longest two years of her life. She wiped them away with the back of her hand when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“Thinking about that day, weren't you?” Chris asked, sitting next to her.

“Hard not to be thinking of that day, to be honest,” Eurydice admitted leaning against him.

Chris kissed the top of her head pulling her into a hug before standing up and held out his hand. “Artemis wouldn’t want you to just sit here like this; she would want you to get back on the ice and skate.”

Eurydice nodded, taking his hand as they headed down to the pond, got their skates on, and went onto the ice.

Once the blades hit the ice, Eurydice pushed off further on to the pond closing her eyes feeling the breeze rush past her. Oh, how she wished Artemis could have been with them. That day could have been prevented altogether. She felt Chris grab her hand and pull her further on to the pond spinning her around.

“Smile. Live your day. Don’t be sad for me.”

Eurydice swore she could see a faint outline of Artemis on the ice smiling at them.