The ultimate challenge of survival(Closed)

[CoSurvivor]

Looking out the window of the small bush plane that was taking the small expedition out into the vast final frontier of the Alaska wilderness the views they were able to take in were astounding. Cameron Abrams was one such soul who had been looking forward to this trip for about a year. His good friend, Jackson Williams had talked him into a few hiking courses when they were in highschool the bug for the unexploited wilderness and air unnecessarily filtered through air conditioning or blocked by thick panes of glass was just something both of the young men enjoyed. It was the discovery of the world around them, sometimes the ability to unhook from all the trappings of civilization and get to something a little more simple just sucked them both in. Well, more Jackson than Cameron, but the two had been best of friends for years. The idea of saving for a trip to Alaska and checking off one that bucket list was just something neither could ignore. So, after a year of planning here they were, thousands of miles from civilization, with a small group of 5 other explorers, they'd be on an adventure unlike any other.

The trip started rather uneventful each team of two flew in from their respective homes to Fairbanks Alaska, each arriving within days of each other, gathering what supplied they might need locally and then making their way to “Alaska Frontier Tours.” Each of the three teams of two brought a variety of experience to the expedition.

Cameron and Jackson, both from Colorado, veterans of outdoor trekking and across a number of states, and long tours in the lower 48. They were no Baer Gillis material but the two had seen a few adventures.

Dom, or Dominic Santini and Michael Landini both Italian adventure seekers. Adrenaline junkies who hadn't ventured to the U.S. but they'd made plans well beyond this 14 day trek to eventually spot out K2,

Alice Tanner, and Kacey Waverly both from California, experienced and actually they've toured Alaska before making a shorter excursion 2 years ago.

All six were greeted by Howard Lowell, or just “Howie” as he perfered to be called. The man was in his mid to late 40's and had the lithe almost too athletic appearance of someone who's spent a lot of time out in the Alaskan wilderness.

Howie started everyone off on equal footing, they were all required to bring specific equipment with them from their point of origin, and other items would be supplied by the tour company. All of them were required to be versed with the area by topographic map, GPS coordinates of way points and have the necessary survival gear for the days ahead. Regularly Howie would remind them all, the trip they were going on was NOT for beginners, and if at some point one or a few of us couldn't hack it, we'd have to make adjustments to the tour. Over all the expectation was that the full tour would take between 14-16 days. Depending on weather patterns, We'd be checking in by satellite phone at way points, and a rescue party would be sent out looking for us if we went missing beyond our due date. If we went missing for more than 3 days everyone would come looking for us as we were going on established areas that we'd be able to find shelter if the weather went bad.

The grand scoe of the tour would take them over some difficult terrain, steep inclines and challenges that would test their endurance. Plenty of areas where the less experienced expedition might take the wrong turn and end up dead. In moderate weather, the trip would be fantastic. In difficult weather, such as a snow front rolling in and a temperature drop, you'd be a human popsicle in a matter of hours. However the difficult terrain would have it's pay offs. Fantastic views of untouched wilderness that no human had touched in years. Including opportunities to see the Aurora Borealis at certain parts of the trip. All being said, they'd be required to trek between two peaks, do some snowshoeing, test their skills but over all with the pedigree that this group had, they'd make it home with nothing but a few bumps, bruises and a couple of scrapes. The orientation took the better part of a day, at the end, they were told to return the next morning packs and equipment ready to go.

Cameron and Jackson took the opportunity to go over the terrain, studied their topographic maps and turned in early. Starting in the morning it would be a long trek.

The team of 7 headed out early in the morning to the Fairbanks airport, gathering equipment and baggage, they loaded up in a small bush plane and headed off to the wilderness. The trip started just as Howie had suggested, great views, tough terrain and an untouched wilderness that was awe inspiring. Sunset on their first night allowed them to catch the distant northern lights, and the group's first opportunity to trade stories. It seemed the only girls in the group mostly stuck together, while the clothes Alice as wearing were practical, Cameron couldn't not notice that Alice was attractive and, one tough chick.

At 6.'1 195 lbs Cameron was no slouch. He was in shape, he prided himself on trying to eat right as every bit of food he ate was fuel for the trips he took. With his bright blue eyes and short cut brown hair matched his trimmed up facial hair that he just never quite got rid of he painted the picture of someone who cared enough about their appearance to keep his beard in check, but if he just got flat lazy his beard could rival the Wolfman in just a few weeks.

By day three the proverbial honeymoon was over and everyone was down to the business of the expedition. Luckily everyone was professional and kept in mind why they were truly there. Day four was going to take the group up peak one, and as they reached camp for the night about half way up the mountain, Howie gave them an assessment of the challenge that would be coming the following day.

“The trail will take us near straight up a vertical face, we'll follow a switch back to near the summit and then around the back side of the mountain. When we get there, due to the current weather patterns I'm expecting to see some of the worst weather we should see all trip. When we reach the backside, we'll be following a narrow trail about 300 yards long that cuts along the edge of a vertical cliff. So, watch your footing, the ledge is narrow, maybe two or three feet wide, so be careful. Just so you know we're not all nuts, there is a safety line you'll be attached to. So as you butts tighten up while you cross the stretch, don't be afraid to grab hold of that line.

I say this because a few years back two very good friends of mine took the same trek we are going up. They didn't hook into the safety line and both men plunged 12,000 plus feet straight down the side of the mountain. This shattered compass that I always carry is a constant reminder of how dangerous this mountain can be.”

The group called it an early night, considering that they had a rough day ahead of them before they got to the other side of the mountain, they would need as much rest as possible.

The morning trek up the vertical face was just as Howie had described it, trecherous, risky but an adrenaline rush. It took them the better part of the day to reach the top of it and to start around the back of the mountain. The team was staggered going across the narrow ledge, Howie suggested that they break their normal pairs as a challenge like this would do good to test us all and our team work. So, he mixed pairs. Cameron and Alice, Dom and Jackson, followed by Kacey and Michael. Howie would be last, making sure that each team made it without issue. Each team would head across and make it to a relative wide flat area at the end of the narrow ledge. It would act as a gathering point where they'd rest before heading down the rest of the mountain.

The description that Howie gave them was nothing compared to what it was like traversing the narrow ledge. At this elevation the wind whipped them around a bit, and the llarge snow pack about 50 feet above them. It looked precarious, almost as if nature was telling them of the urgency that there was to get across. Cameron and Alice strapped in by safety harness and were given ample time to make the trek at least half way across before the next team started. Cameron could look straight down and see the clear sky below, the Alaskan wilderness stretched for miles. That's where they'd be going in the days ahead, a winding river stretched across the landscape like some ominous snake tormenting him. It was stunning, terrifying and awe inspiring all at once. Cameron took his time getting across, and with Alice close behind him they made it to the end.

Unstrapped from the safety line, Cameron sets down his pack and assisted Alice getting unhooked and helping her get her own pack off as well. Taking a breath, and smiling to his team mate, Cameron made a wry smile and commented, as he looked out at the expanse before them. “Beautiful view...” He could have been talking about Alice, or the view below, however his train of thought was cut off by an unworldly noise. It sounded as if a part of the world was going to break open, but at this height it might be the ground underneath his feet sliding off the mountain side. Looking up, and feeling the rumble of the mountain shake, He watched as the snow pack above them first cracked..and began to slide. The remainder of the team, Jackson, Dom, Kacey, Michael and Howie were all directly in it's path. Cameron did the only thing he could do. He screamed.

“AVALANCHE!!”

Dom and Jackson were about three fourths of the way across, and Cameron could see the whites of Dom's eyes, as the snow pack fell in a wave. The avalanche consumed the team, and as his worry for their safety took over he watched the strain on the safety line begin, one, two, then three safety petons snapped away from the mountain side under so much weight of the snow as the line was stretched finally beyond capacity. Reaching for it, Cameron screamed, but he was too late, the line snapped.

 

[Emstar202]

Alice awoke in a sea of power. Her monstrous neon pink bag had probably helped break her fall and likely helped save her life, but it seemed to be gone now, buried underneath another snow pile most likely. Alice wiped away the snow flakes that obscured her vision. She practically had to tunnel her way out of the thick powder and even when she did there was not much to see besides white. "Kaycee!" she called out instinctively for her best friend of fifteen years. "Kaycee!!" she called again, louder this time. Still there was no reply. She began to yell the rest of her teammates names, starting with Cameron and going down the list. "Fuck," she muttered after several long minutes with no responses.

Alice took a deep breath of the cold air and closed her eyes tight. She couldn't believe what had just happened. As the last bit of snow settled around her feet from the avalanche, Alice wondered if this was one of her adventure nightmares she'd often have before a trip, and maybe her and Kaycee were still napping in the airport waiting for their flight. She punched herself in the arm, but when she opened her eyes, she was still surrounded by white. "Fuck!" she cursed again, rubbing her hands together and then brushing some of her short blonde hair that had fallen from her hair tie out of her face.

"Okay. Don't panic. You've been trained for this. It's gonna be okay," she preached to herself, trying to coax herself into at least a mockery of calm. She forced her aching body to trudge forward through the snow, towards the direction where the snow had fallen, knowing that was her best bet of finding her pack and her companions. She waded around for a bit, before she finally spotted a bright neon pink strap sticking out of a snow pile. "Yes!" she cried. "Thank God I went for a bright color," she muttered to herself as she yanked her backpack out of the snow. Next, she unzipped it and rustled inside for a moment before yanking out a black standard issue walkie talker they'd all been given. She frantically activated it and spoke, "This is Alice Tanner. Are any of you guys okay? Where are you? Somebody please answer."

 

[CoSurvivor]

The world was dark, cold and he could feel blood begin to rush to his head. He remembered seeing the safety line snap, watch Dom's eyes go wide as what he thought was a scream, or a number of them were caught in the crash of snow that took the rest of the party down the mountain side. Cameron turned his head to the right, squeezed his eyes and looked again being greeted by the wide expanse of the view below him. "What the fuck?" he said out loud to himself as he regained his orientation.

He was laying on his side, nearly pushed off the end of the cliff wedged against a small rock that he'd normally pay no attention to, but now was thankful it was there. So while being pressed against it by the snow that had fallen, and half covered/half sticking out of the snow he could hear someone yelling behind him. A female voice he was sure must be Alice. Thank god she was ok.. Cameron wasn't religious, but at the moment it almost felt appropriate to say something.

Groaning, he stretched his right arm up as far as he could straight up in the air, yelling back at Alice, hoping she'd hear him.

"ALICE!, HELP!!" "I'm over here!!!"

His movements were pushing him precariously close to falling off the cliff, he hoped she'd hear him..

 

[Emstar202]

Alice felt hopeless as she waded around the powder, begging someone to answer her pleas. Someone had to be alive. She wouldn't accept that they were dead until she had proof. Kaycee would be fine. She had to be. Alice let out a grunt of frustration as she stumbled over a hard clump of snow. Where was everyone?!

"ALICE!, HELP!!" Alice whipped her head in the direction of the scream, causing her neck to crack. It hurt like hell, but her whole body was aching and in this current situation the pain did not matter. It was a male's voice. Cameron. "I'm over here!!!" he continued to shout. Alice trudged through the snow in the direction of the voice as fast as she could. "I'm coming! I'm coming!" she hollered. As she waddled closer to the voice, she finally spotted him, wedged between a rock and snow. His frantic movements were causing him to slip closer and closer to the edge of the cliff. "Stop moving, you idiot!" she shouted.

When she finally neared Cameron, he was almost off the edge of the cliff. Alice would not lose him now! With a gust of adrenaline, Alice sprinted as fast as she could through the heavy snow. When she reached him, she gripped the collar of his jacket and yanked him back from the edge, cursing at him. "Jesus Christ, what the fuck are you doing?! You just survived an avalanche, and now you're scooting towards the edge of the cliff? You got a death wish or something?" Alice was fiery and she wasn't about to lose the one survivor she found. She looked at him now, at his handsome face wet from the snow and the ice chunks in his hair and the frost on his beard. Alice felt an overwhelming surge of emotion and she pulled him forward, hugging him tight. "I'm so grateful you're alive."

 

[CoSurvivor]

Cameron was just as happy to be snatched up by Alice, being pulled away from the cliff edge probably moments from falling off he was willing to take any insults, funny serious or otherwise thrown in his direction. Alice was holding him tight, under normal circumstances he responded in kind, and held her closely as well, burying his face in the wet material of her jacket. A muffled response escaped his lips

"Me too.. I'm glad you pulled me back, I... I wasn't trying to push off the edge but the snow was starting to push me closer, and all I could do was wave my arm, anything more and I'd have gone over before you got to me."

Pulling her up with him, and moving a good 20 feet away from the edge, Cameron looked back to observe the spot where he just was, and where all of their team members used to be. He didn't dare go back out that close, no fucking way would he go back out there. And from what he saw there was no way the team survived that fall.

He knew from their trip up here Alice was a tough chick, this would suck for both of them, but right now they needed each other and they had to get off this cliff side now, before any more snow fell on them. Grasping her hand, and looking into her beautiful eyes Cameron spoke words he never thought he'd say.

"They're gone.. all of them.. and even if anyone did survive that fall, they'd want us to get the fuck off the side of this mountain, and get some where safe before heading down the rest of this mountain. So what do you say we get our shit together and off this cliff??"

 

[Emstar202]

Alice snatched her hand out of his grasp and snapped, "We can't just leave them here. We need to look until we find them. Alive or dead or whatever. Okay?" She then trudged away from him, not bothering to wait for his confirmation. She pulled her pack more snugly to her back and moved forward. She couldn't believe Cameron just wanted to give up! "They could still be alive, just buried beneath a fuck ton of snow okay? We have to try and find them," she stated determinedly.

 

[CoSurvivor]

Cam looked at Alice as she berated him for even the possible suggestion that they'd leave their friends... Swallowing what personal offense he felt, Cam sucked it up, they were both stressed, they'd nearly died, and right now, they needed each other. So speaking firmly and confidently he pulled her back to him, forcing her to look at him.

"Alice...I, I know how you feel, I just watched my closest friend fall 12,000 feet to his death. I nearly fell to my death as well. But thanks to you, I'm still here. I don't want to leave them either. We'll get down this fucking mountain and find them, their avalanche distress signals should give us an idea of where they are."

Taking a deep breath, and speaking again, knowing he had to convince her of every word he was going to say, Cam looked over at his snow covered pack and spoke one more time.

"But right now.. we need to work together, for our friends, and for ourselves. On this trip I've noticed you are the toughest chick I've ever met, so I know we can get out of here. But we need to work together, get down this mountain and then find our friends. At which point we can call for help."

Pulling his pack on his shoulders, Cam strapped in and looked over at Alice..

"Are you with me?"

 

[Emstar202]

Alice let out a bark of laughter unexpectedly after he spoke. "I feel like I'm in some fucked up survival movie or something. That was a great speech. Yeah, yeah, you're right. We need to get moving," she finally agreed, nodding at him.

She'd forgotten for a moment than he'd lost someone as well, and having them both randomly running around the mountain in search of their missing friends without any sense of direction would just hinder their survival. Cam was right. Good on him for having a more level head than her.

"I'm with you," she told him, leading the way down the mountain. He'd just called her the toughest chick he'd ever met. Alice wasn't sure if she could agree given the reckless way she'd wanted them to act in their situation, but she would take the compliment as he meant it.

The two made their way down the mountain, periodically using their walkies to try and find their friends, but it was to no avail. It was slow going, and by the time they finally got down the sun was starting to set and pink and purple hues were sprayed like water color paints across the sky. Alice pulled her pack closer to her and took a step closer to Cameron so their shoulders touched briefly as they moved. "What should we do? I don't want to stop looking but..." she passed a look upwards to the darkening sky as her words trailed off.

 

[CoSurvivor]

Looking back to Alice he nodded, "I don't want to stop either, you're right we need to find a place to camp out for the night... we are not doing them any favors by running around in the dark on this fucking mountain."

Cam normally wasn't one to through F bombs around, but this whole situation had him amp'd up, he couldn't help it. Stopping, he unzipped the left chest pocket on his jacket he pulled out the well folded and laminated topographical map of the mountain. Turning it and then looking at Alice he pointed at the map, and trailed his finger along where they were, and what looked to be a flat area not far from their current position.

"With Howie gone, I'm looking at the trail we have on this map, and a marker of where the gap we crossed where the avalanche happened, this spot here looks to be our best bet. I think it's a good enough spot to stop for the night."

Traveling for another 10 minutes they found the spot, a decent clearing that was mostly flat, only with a few rocks that they cleared out. Making space he looked over at Alice,and made had to stop in his tracks. Cam got a sort of glassy eyed look about him, staring at Alice for a moment, then right through her. He couldn't believe in all this rush to get down safely he'd forgotten one important detail.

A tent.

Jackson had been carrying theirs while Cam had carried a few extra supplies that his larger pack could handle. He hadn't though about it until just now. When he brought his mind back to focus he looked at Alice with a bit of concern, and a hitch in his throat, through all of this he'd kept up his steely resolve. Now with the adrenaline rush wearing off, he was starting to crash.

"Alice, I don't have a tent, Jackson was carrying ours as I was carrying some of his supplies... Please tell me you have yours.?"

 

[Emstar202]

The only thing that was really keeping Alice from completely breaking down was the hope that she would find Kaycee and the others. That hope drained quickly as Cameron and her began to pick out their spot for the night. If they hadn't found the others by now, chances were next to nothing they would find them tomorrow. Alice shook her head hard to keep from thinking about it. Kaycee was resilient. Maybe she'd holed up in a cave somewhere or something. It was a comforting thought.

Alice trudged after Cameron through the thick snow on their way to the point on his map. They spent the ten minute walk in silence, each accompanied by their own somber thoughts. Alice started to shiver as the sun descended further from the sky. It was going to be a cold night.

Alice was staring at her feet when she heard Cameron say, "Alice, I don't have a tent, Jackson was carrying ours as I was carrying some of his supplies... Please tell me you have yours?"

She faced a moment of panic as she frantically rifled through her bag. "I really think I do. I hope I do. I know I do," she said, trying to remember. The minute it took her to look through her bag was a full minute of desperation until at last she unearthed the tent. "Thank fucking christ," she muttered. Alice had the mouth of a sailor. She was one of those people who just never quite grew out of her high school smartmouth. "Here it is," she said to Cam with a genuine small smile. At least this would help them get through the night.

The two set to work immediately. It wasn't too difficult; both had had a great deal of experience setting up all manner of tents and sleeping bags. The worked together quietly and swiftly so that by the time the sun officially set they were sharing a small ration of food and water from Alice's pack, sitting side by side. "Let's not eat any more than this," Alice said. She knew Cameron would understand, even without her saying because we don't know how long it will take for us to be found.

 

[CoSurvivor]

Cam heard those words from Alice and knew what she meant. They had no immediate plan, what would they do? stay near the mountain and try to get help? would they venture out on what planned route Howie had set up for them and try to get out by themselves? He wasn't sure, right now what he was sure of he didn't like.

He looked at Alice, and next to her just off to the left sat his pack, He remembered back to when he'd purchased it about 3 years ago when his last one had out lived itself. It was a sort of graduation day, the two had decided to make a go of some harder treks and some of the patches that were on the pack reminded him a lot of those previous memories.

He could feel it start to well up in him as he stared down at the small piece of dried fruit he had in his hand. biting off a smaller piece than normal, and chewing slower, he nodded, fighting off the urge to start crying. Looking at Alice he fought it off and replied.

"You're right. Eat what we have out and chew slow.. conserve energy and.. body heat. We might want to share a bag??? it's damn cold out there.. and I don't want either of us to freeze any toes off."

Cameron followed up with a sheepish smile and quickly saying "It's just a thought.. if you're not comfortable with it, that's ok with me.. really.."

And that's when he thought about it how close they'd be. Alice was an incredibly attractive woman, both physically and mentally as she was out here with him holding her own. He'd called her a "chick" earlier and was a tad worried he'd offended her, how crazy to be worried about emotional sensibilities at a time like this.. but he'd never been in a situation quite like this before. If she agreed he'd try to remember his manners, and remember that the whole situation was out of their control, and she may not really want to be that close to him.

 

[Emstar202]

Alice pretended not to see the watery look to Cameron's eyes, because if she acknowledged it she feared her eyes would get the same effect. She knew he was thinking about this friend. His friend had been a cool guy, not quite as cute as Cameron, but he'd been a cool dude. Alice had swapped camping stories with him around the fire the other night. No. She couldn't start thinking of him as something of the past. Maybe he was alive, and the others were too.

Cameron's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. He was suggesting they share a sleeping bag, and then practically took the suggestion back by telling her it was only a thought and they didn't have to if she wasn't comfortable with it. Alice laughed loudly and brushed away his suggestion. "Even at a time like this you want a piece of this fine ass huh?" she joked, enjoying the sound of her own laughter. It made her feel like the situation was less dire. "Let's just get some sleep, okay?"

With that she flashed a brief smile at him before turning away and unrolling her own individual sleeping bag. She slipped out of her snowy, wet jacket and snow pants and crawled inside her bag quickly. Damn. Her thighs were freezing. So were her hands. And her feet. And her arms. Dammit, every part of her was freezing! She could practically hear Kaycee scolding her now in that playful tone of hers, 'How many times have I told you? You need to pack warmer clothes!' Since childhood, Kaycee had always been more prepared than her, some would say over prepared. Her best friend always had everything under the sun in her bag. Sun screen? Check. Water? Check. Sudoku? Check. Tampons? Check. Hot cocoa mix? Check. Alice could really go for some hot cocoa right now. She reached a hand up to itch her face and realized she was crying. All these thoughts of Kaycee had her wondering if she would ever see her best friend again. It was a hard thought to face. All through the trek here she'd been ignoring that fear in the name of survival, but now, with nothing to do but await sleep, her mind was active with worry.

What if they hadn't searched enough? What if Kaycee had just been mere yards away from them, buried under a foot of snow, and they were unable to hear her pleas for help? What if right now she was being frozen alive underneath a mountain of snow and ice? These 'what ifs' came as Alice's own personal internal avalanche, and soon that avalanche spread outward. Alice starting sobbing, loud heaving cries reminiscent of a dying wolf. There was no hiding them from Cameron. She couldn't make them stop. She could barely breathe. She shook like a leaf inside her sleeping bag and gripped the fabric tight as fear after fear bombarded her head and the avalanche continued.

 

[CoSurvivor]

Cameron had been taking his time getting undressed, folding his socks into his boots as he'd wormed his way out of his pants. He'd already shed his jacket and was pulling his sweater over his head when he was about to chuckle and make a comment about the fact that he had been checking out her ass earlier.

"Ya know... you do have a cute ass.. even hidden underneath all that...."

That's when he saw Alice shaking, sobbing uncontrollably.

He stopped, shed what clothes he had left on save for his boxer briefs, unzipped Alice's sleeping bag and wedged himself in.. He wasn't thinking anymore, he was acting on a protective instinct as the wall of tears was coming out of Alice with no sign of stopping. Wrapping his arms around her, Cam rubbed his hands along the length of her back, pulling her close to him, trying to rub what warmth he had in him on to her body.

Lastly with his arms wrapped around her, Cam put her head under his chin, letting her nuzzle into his shoulder. Speaking as softly as he could Cam attempted to console her as best possible.

"Alice..I miss them too..all of them, even annoying Dom.. We looked all we could today, any more out there and we'd be putting ourselves at risk. And you remember Howie, that pain in the ass would chew some off if he knew we were out there looking for them in the dark. Tomorrow morning we'll head out and look for them, see if we can find any signals... I promise... "

After a while of repeatedly talking soothingly to Alice, telling her it will be alright, massaging warmth back into her shaking body he could start to feel her relax.. just a little, he looked down and placed a kiss on her forehead, then leaned away and looked down to make eye contact with her. Was it the situation they were in that made her the most incredible woman he'd ever met? Right now he didn't care, what he did want to do was kiss her. With a slight lean down he touched her nose with his, hen leaned in just a bit closer and lightly touched her lips with his. Pressing his lips against hers for a full kiss, no opening of his lips, just a sensual light kiss was electric, setting off a blaze in his chest. If Alice didn't want this she'd let him know right quick.. and then he'd be out actually freezing his ass off.. literally. Pulling back he made eye contact.. hoping he hadn't gone too far.

 

[Emstar202]

Alice let out a yelp of surprise as her sleeping bag was unzipped and Cameron wedged himself in beside her. She was shocked to find him mostly naked. From what she could feel in the darkness he wore nothing save for boxer briefs. His bare skin was a stark contrast against her body, because she was still dressed in sweats and a sports bra. She'd been too cold and anxious for sleep to take them off. His body was taut and hard against hers, and at first Alice's own slim body was rigid against his. "Didn't I tell you to sleep in your own bag?" she joked, pretending to be angry with him. She turned over to face him as his hands started rubbing her back, offering what comfort he could. She was a little embarrassed to be crying in front of him. She'd shown him nothing but strength before, and now she was clinging to him and shaking as he tried to calm her down.

He pulled her head against his shoulder, which she was more than okay with as it hid her red, blotchy face and quieted her sobs. His hands kept moving in slow, soothing circles against her back. Alice sighed softly as her tears started to subside. His words helped a great deal; soft words filled with reason that worked in tandem with his backrub to calm her anxious mind. Alice had been tense in his arms as first, but as time went by she started to relax and lean into him. Her eyes were closed as he held her tenderly against his body, so when he kissed her forehead it came as a surprise. Alice sighed contentedly and opened her eyes to meet his. Though her cheeks and eyelashes were damp with tears, her cries had lessened and her heaving sobs had stopped altogether with his help.

He was looking at her as if asking permission for more, and something in her green eyes must have given him the permission he seeked, because then Cam was angling his head to kiss her. Alice's lips parted of their own accord as their lips met and her hand reached up to tangle in his short brown locks. The kiss was perhaps the most tender she'd ever received. He made no move to deepen it, no move to grope her body or take more than she was willing to give. He just kissed her sweetly, and Alice kissed him back.

"Mmm," Alice let out a soft moan as he pulled away and met her green eyes with his. Her body felt tingly all over and she rubbed her leg against his in a display of approval. "I think you were right. Sharing a sleeping bag for warmth is definitely a good idea." Her tears were dry now and a mischievous smirk played at the corner of her lips. Kaycee and the others weren't far from her mind, but for now Cam's baby blue eyes kept her focused on only him. Her hands moved from playing with his hair and fell to his shoulders, trailing down to his back and pulling him tight. She savored the feel of his hard body against hers, but even though they were clutching each other tight, it was still hard to keep warm. "It's so cold, Cam," she said, squeezing him tight. His body lay flat against hers, her breasts pressed against his muscled chest and she sneaked a leg in between his. This closeness kept her from freezing and her whole body was tingling with excitement at their closeness.

 

[CoSurvivor]

Cam couldn't help but grin just a little, after nearly getting pushed off the side of the mountain Alice still have an addictive sense of humor. Truth be told, humor was the best medicine to try and deal with any crazy situation, so he added on to Alice's comments saying, "I know it's a smidge cold out there. Just one or two degrees below zero.. so we'll have to stay just a little close together, if we want to attempt to keep warm..." Smiling, Quin could feel Alice's leg slowly work between his own, in response his right hand went to the knee of her other leg, finding the spot behind her knee and traced his fingers up the back of her thigh. sure he was doing this over the fabric of her sweats, but he figured Alice would enjoy the sensuality of it. Finally reaching the curve of the pert ass that he'd admired all the way up the mountain. Cupping her behind, he kissed Alice again not waiting for permission.

This time the kiss was a little more sensual. a subtle suck of her bottom lip as he drew away, he realized that he enjoyed the sweet taste of her lips, he knew there was a hidden passion to Alice as and when he'd kissed her the first time he couldn't help but notice a subtle touch of passion in her response, the touch of her hand to his hair was intimate, not something to take lightly. Kissing her twice was maybe pushing his luck, so he cuddled in with Alice, the position was comfortable, but his backside was going to get a little cold. For Alice, the bag was probably quite comfy, together, they were just a little big for her sleeping bag. So, giving a mock grimace, he raised one hand and whispered, "my ass is gonna freeze, and while we are both snug in your bag, I'm afraid it's just a little small for both of us... but I have a plan."

Smiling to Alice, Cameron sat up and reached over snagging his sleeping bag then unrolled it next to them and unzipped it down to the bottom. in order to finish his plan he had to act quickly, before all his squirming around compromised their warmth. So, raising the bottom of Alice's bag with his feet he started worming them inside of his, sort of cocooning them inside of his larger bag. lastly he needed to get it underneath them, so instead of asking for Alice's help.. he thought of a far sexier and more intimate way to do it.

Without warning, cam rolled on top of Alice, whispering, "don't move" as he snuck a third kiss of the night, taking Alice in both hands lifting her up and then scooting them both inside of his sleeping bag. The whole operation was funny, and the faces he was making were hilarious.. but it was Cam's attempt at keeping this beautiful green eyed woman next to hm warm,, while being a bit goofy and taking the edge of their situation.

Finally moved, and surely prompting a wave of giggles from Alice, he move off of her and to her side so his back would be facing the colder fabric of his sleeping bag. With a wide grin Cam cuddled back into Alice, bringing her leg back between his, and returning his hand to her incredible backside. Snuggling in, Cam finished, "Okay, I think we can survive our current cold snap like this, don't you?"

 

[Emstar202]

Alice laughed lightly at Cam's humor. She accepted his excuse to snuggle closer in an effort to "keep warm" and trailed her fingers down his back, hopefully inducing shivers of a different nature within him. For Alice, her body was shaking a bit from the crying and cold, but she was also tingling all over in his arms. It had been a while since a man had held her like this. She'd taken some time for herself after a breakup a couple years back, and she'd sort of gotten used to doing things on her own or with Kaycee. Having Cam hold her was nice.

A surge of heat went straight to her core when he grasped her behind and kissed her again. She sighed, barely audible, and kissed him back, gentle and slow. She wasn't sure how long they kissed for, but it was enough to raise her temperature as well as dampen her panties. Their lips parted at last, Cam sucking on her bottom lip as he pulled away from her. Alice licked her lips after he pulled away, savoring the taste of him.

When he mentioned the sleeping bag was too small, Alice shook her head and said with a smirk, "I think it's just fine, actually." As she spoke her hands lowered and grabbed his firm ass and gave it a playful squeeze.

She watched as he reached for his larger sleeping back. She thought he was going to suggest moving into that one, but instead he cocooned them within both sleeping backs, creating a far warmer atmosphere. "Ah, good idea!" Alice praised him, leaning in to accept his third kiss. What he did next surprised her, and left her laughing at his awkward faces and overall goofiness. "Yes, this is much better!" she agreed with a smile. She felt his hands go to her ass again and she couldn't help but roll her eyes. Playfully, she told him, "Okay, do I have a space heater in my sweats or something?" She laughed then, gave him one more kiss and then turned over so her back was nestled in front of him. His body cradled hers, spooning her. She wiggled her hips a bit to get comfortable, and perhaps a little teasingly, across his groin.

 

[CoSurvivor]

Cam more than appreciated the mutual groping that was going on between the two of them as he moved them inside of his sleeping bag. He couldn't remember a more awkward situation becoming comfortable. He let out a playful chuckle in response to Alice comments about her sweats containing a space heater, and thought of making a rather naughty comment about her hot little ass, but thought better of it, at least for the moment.

Instead, he appreciated every curve, he could feel of her body, as she finally turned and got comfortable, he spooned into Alice as well. The slight motion of her hips was exciting, it had been a long time since any woman had made advances on him, and while feeling a bit awkward at the beginning of this whole thing, at this point he tossed all of those feelings out of the tent.

As Cam placed his hand on her hip, pulling her back to him slowly, grinding forward into Alice as she pushed back. he tried getting them going on a slow motion grind then bringing his hand to her stomach to hold her there. He enjoyed this which made Cam think back to the comment he was going to make about her ass not too long ago. So, with a soft voice he spoke up as he had his lips tease across her neck. Cam kissed her shoulder taking in the intoxicating scent of her. "Alice, as a matter of fact, I think you might have a space heater in your sweats... anymore of this... and I might ask you if I can find out for sure." A brazen comment for sure.. but she'd laugh, god he hoped she would. However, spooning with Alice like this was making it impossible contain an erection. he was growing hard, and from their position he was sure Alice was going to notice if she hadn't already. So, calming himself down, or at least trying to, he snuggled in, kissed her shoulder and whispered "let's try to get some sleep..." He'd spoken the words... and his eyes shut before he could do much more.

Exhaustion took Cam to a deep sleep faster than he'd thought possible. He woke, with a bit of daylight coming through the tent walls. It was day time, but what time? He felt a little stiff from laying in one position all night, still spooning into Alice just as they were when he last kissed her shoulder. He was relaxed, and with that, came a relaxation of certain muscles allowing blood to flow. And a full blown erection.... that was poking Alice in her perfect ass. Noticing it and feeling a slight bashful, not sure if he had woken her up due to his movement, and the pressure against her behind, he felt the need to move his hips slightly away to decrease the pressure against her ass. If she woke, he'd apologize profusely, and move immediately. He dared not move, at least not much as he slowly, brought up his right arm and looked at his watch. 8:15.. it was later than he'd hoped, but still early enough that they could get out and look for the team. But only when Alice woke, he'd comfortably wait till then.