Mark nodded at Nora’s request to help her. He leaned down, grasped the bottom edge of the doorway with his hands, and slid out, lowering himself slowly to the surface. When he was fully extended, he let himself fall the last few feet, wary of slippery spots on the rocky surface.<i>‘Thank goodness for movie training,’ </i>he thought to himself. Had this happened last year when he was still acting in that high school supernatural drama series he wouldn’t have been half as fit as he was now. He supposed working out had benefits that went beyond looking good and picking up women.<br/><br/>He reached up and helped Nora down, helping her set herself on the ground beside him.<br/><br/><i>“Okay, the snow isn’t all that deep, thankfully.” She shouted back up to them. They were much taller than her, so hopefully for them to get down, it wouldn’t be as much of a struggle.</i><br/><br/>Eddie didn’t need any help, but Mike accepted some with solemn appreciation.<br/><br/>“Alright,” Eddie said as he glanced around. “We can go up the ridge there,” he pointed to the north, “what do you think? Search for two hours, max, and then meet back here?”<br/><br/>Mark squinted at the horizon. “Yeah, it looks like the sun will be up soon. The horizon’s glowing, unless it’s a city…” He wished he had his phone. At least then they’d have the satellite map. He twisted and looked to the south, along the other direction of the ridgeline. “Nora and I will go in that direction. Maybe we’re closer to civilization than we thought.”<br/><br/>He looked at her, surprised at how well she was holding up. He was still numb from it all. It felt like a script where no one was allowed to yell ‘CUT!’ and send them all to the snack tables.<br/><br/>“You ready?” He pulled on his gloves and snugged a hood around his head. The mountaintop had an eerie quiet to it, broken only by the crunch of their feet on the snow, and the soft sound of a light breeze in the trees. He was glad to be doing<i>something, </i>no matter how small. He had to believe there would be a rescue attempt and they’d find themselves being hoisted up in helicopters heading off to hospitals and hot food soon. They had to be coming…he could pretend to be strong and brave as long as he kept believing that.