Fight, Flight, or Freeze: The Healer's Story
Chapter 35: The Cabin In The Woods

Chapter 35: The Cabin In The Woods

Time seemed to pass much more slowly. I hadn’t heard from Bai Long Qiang in almost three months, and although school was keeping me busy, I had already completed all the assignments due this semester.

That meant that I spent most of my time either staring at the ceiling of my dorm room or staring at the tracking device on my phone. Either way, I was going stir-crazy.

"If you want, you can always go to the cabin," said Mom out of the blue. I had taken to calling her every evening just to be able to talk to someone who wasn’t in medicine.

"We have a cabin?" I asked. This was the first time I had ever heard of something like that. Since when did we have a cabin?

"Mmmm," she hummed. "But it is out here by City D, so that probably won’t help. Maybe next time you come home, I’ll take you out and show you where it is. No one has been there for years, but it was quite cute, sitting on the lake. Maybe I’ll have someone go and make sure it is in working order. Would you like that?"

"Yes!" I hissed. I would love to go anywhere that was not within the confines of this university. I wasn’t like the other students who could just jump in their cars and leave. Hell, the last time I had even attempted to, I was stopped by no less than three police officers asking if I knew where my mother was.

"Alright, my little squirrel, I’ll get everything set up. Maybe over the winter break you can go. It’s only a few weeks after all," Mom continued. I could hear her already planning everything in her head.

"Squirrel?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. Mom never really called me anything other than Tang Tang, so I wondered where this was coming from.

"Mmmmhm. I was using the washroom at the apartment this morning, and I found a box of chocolate bars under the sink, along with some bottles of water. I really didn’t think much about it until I found more food stored in almost every room of the place."

"Ah, that," I cringed. Yeah, I had taken to ’squirreling’ away food wherever I could. That incident in the bathroom was apparently enough to set me over the edge. Hopefully, they haven’t found the stuff that I left in Grandma and Grandpa’s house.

"Yeah, that," she smiled, and I could hear her laughing at me.

"Sorry, Mom," I said, wrinkling my nose. I could go back and take the stuff out now, but it was almost like having a security blanket there, knowing that there was food.

I reached under my pillow, grabbed a bunch of gummies, and opened them up. You needed food to live, and I was bound and determined that I was going to live.

-----

Knowing that I had something to look forward to when winter break came, the time between then and now sped by. It helped that there were no classes, only exams, but either way, by December 20th, I was ready to run to the airport.

The flight didn’t last that long, and Mom and Dad were waiting for me down by the arrivals. "Grandma and Grandpa are already at the cabin," said Mom as a way of an introduction. She held me in her arms tightly.

"I am so proud of you, of how much you have accomplished. But sometimes, I want my little girl back."

That sentiment pierced me through the heart, even though I am sure that was not her intention.

"I miss you too, Mommy," I said. I had a long list of reasons and excuses as to why I had to move to City A in order to get my medical degree, but it was pointless. All I could do was let her know that I missed her too.

"Come!" said Dad, interrupting our moment. He quickly pulled me in for a hug and then shooed us both out to the car as he took my luggage. "The cabin is about an hour away, and it is starting to snow."

"Is there enough stuff inside just in case we get trapped by the weather?" I asked without thinking. Mom and Dad looked at me strangely but simply nodded their heads.

"There is more than enough food and water if the weather gets too bad. There are also plenty of game in the forest if it really comes down to that," assured Dad. I was pretty sure that the man had never touched a hunting rifle in his life, let alone how to track down game. But I was sure that miracles could happen.

We left the airport without too much trouble and were quickly on the way to the cabin.

"So, tell me all about your first semester. What are the classes like? How about the teachers? Is anyone being mean to you? Are you getting enough sleep every night? You aren’t going to grow if you don’t get enough sleep," started Mom as she turned around in her seat to look at me.

"Honey, you have to give her the chance to answer your question before you start with the next one," laughed Dad. But I didn’t mind.

I answered everything, all the while clutching my cell phone, hoping against hope that I would be able to hear from Bai Long Qiang after all this time. But I wouldn’t let that get me down.

"Here we are..." said Dad as we pulled off the main road and onto a dirt path in the middle of the woods. This was everything I wanted it to be and more.

I don’t think the building in front of me qualified to be a cabin in any way, shape, or form. It was a two-story log building with glass panels all around that let out the lights inside. There was a small porch in the front with two deck chairs on either side of the door that seemed so welcoming, I never wanted to leave this place.

"Do you like it?" asked Mom as we all got out of the car.

"Like it? This is amazing!" I said as I looked between her and the front door. This was more than I ever could have dreamed!

Suddenly the door opened.

"Welcome home, Kitten."