The hike

We had been going strong for two whole hours now without a single break. Not a single one. The hike was meant to be an experience of a lifetime for the out door, adventurous people. For me, it was an opportunity for my college applications. Walking 25 kilometres with a 10 kilo backpack on my back was absolutely NOT my idea of fun. My feet were sore, my back was bruised and I'm pretty sure I had acquired about a dozen blisters since we took our last 2 minute break back at the lake. To top it all off mother nature had decided to play around with us by sending hail, strong winds, rain and then beating hot sun so we died of dehydration. To put it straight the weather was being bi polar.

" Dorkson! We will never make it to the campsite before night fall if you keep lagging behind like this!" Austin Moon yelled as everyone snickered. So much for staying as a group, they were all already making it up the hill as I was stuck panting at the bottom.

" Would you just shut up! If you allowed the group to take more breaks then maybe those less able would be able to keep up!" I glowered as he rolled his eyes. He was a class A ass and a bully too.

" Austy maybe we should take a break. Not everyone is in such good shape like us." Cassidy his wanna be girlfriend sidled up to him. Someone pass me the sick bucket because I am about to puke up the one packet of raisins I got to eat on our 2 minute break thanks to Austin. I sighed before thinking of a come back.

" Says the girl who got Austin to carry her bag for her just because she 'broke' a nail trying to pick it up." I snapped before attacking the hill. I stomped forward sending dirt flying from under my walking boots.

" Just stop with the chit chat, did I say we could have a break? No, keep moving." Austin retorted. I scowled to myself at his attitude. Carrying a two person tent on my back with a trangia ( cooking equipment) was really weighing me down yet Austin hadn't even broken a sweat yet. I swiped at the stray strands of hair that were flying in my face from the now ferocious wind. Chills shot down my spine as I rubbed my arms to keep warm. The only person getting me through all of this was Dallas. My long term crush. He was sweet, sensitive. Basically everything Austin was not.

"Hey Ally Pally, you think you can make it to the top?" Dallas asked, his brown hair flying wildly in the wind making him look perfect. Then again he looked perfect all the time right?

" I think - I - am- dying!" I gasped with a raspy breath. He just looked amused at my growing pain. Visibly he slowed down his pace so we could walk together. Every now and then he turned into a motivational speaker just so that I would put one foot I front of the other as opposed to falling to the ground. Ungracefully of course.

" Dallas stop distracting her. Take the map and lead, I will bring up the rear." Austin shouted again. Dallas gave an impressive eye roll as Austin passed him the map and started walking at my snail pace. " Really Ally, you can't walk any faster?"

" No!" I snapped. We were coming to the end of the field and I had a feeling we would be going into the woods soon which basically meant more wet leaves to slip on and more fallen tree branches to trip over. There was yet another style in front of us separating the field from the nearing woods. A style meant impending doom for me. Some genius decided to stick two planks together as steps so people could climb over fences. It stopped cattle and animals getting through to other fields. I still don't understand why they couldn't just put a padlocked fence instead. I was always either too short to get my leg over it or would lose my balance due to the 10 kilos on my back and would fall over it and into the mud as you do when you have no physical ability what so ever. We still had miles and miles of ground left to cover. Everyone had already made it over the style accept me and Austin who were walking behind. A loud moan escaped him as we lost sight of the others.

" We are so far behind we can't even see them now."

" No one asked you to walk with me."

" I'm trying to help you."

" Did I ask for your help?" I argued as we reached the first step of the style.

"No but you look like your about to die."

" Yeah because you won't let the group take any breaks."

" Ally we already took a break."

" For 2 minutes."

" It was more than two minutes." he said suppressing an eye roll. " I'll go over the style first and then I will help you over."

" Okay." I replied as he took the first step and then swung his foot over the creaking wooden post narrowly missing my face. I moved backwards so as not to get knocked but hit the fence, scratching my arm on the barbed wire and shaking the unstable wood. Austin dived over as the fence wobbled before smacking the ground with a hard thud. Loud groans emanated from him as I untangled myself from my backpack and slowly hauled myself over the damaged style.

" Are you okay?"

" Do I look okay?"

" I am so sorry." I yelped as I saw his swollen knee. My lack of physical ability was endangering others now too. He grabbed fistfuls of grass within his hands before pulverising them. He was in too much pain. " I'll get the first aid kit." I whispered, biting my lip so I wouldn't cry. This was all my fault. I dug through my ginormous bag before pulling out a small red first aid kit. Rifling through the contents I spotted the small pack of bandages and began tearing open the white paper packet with as much force as I could muster. " Hold still." I said before carefully positioning him so he could lean his weight on me as I bandaged the swollen area. He dug his face into my neck before inhaling and squeezing my hand as I found pieces of metal barbed wire strung through his tender skin. The slightest movement sent him shaking which worried me even more. "It's okay." I soothed before rubbing his arms to keep him warm. I continued bandaging his knee just as I had learnt during my first aid lessons. Wiping out the wounds and tending to him carefully. His gaze was trained upon me as I continued working on his injury. A look of awe flickering through his face of anguish.

" How are you able to do all this?" he smiled slightly.

" I took first aid lessons." I replied before tightening the bandage and letting it rest. He lay against me for a few more moments breathing heavily. Only then did I realise our group was nowhere in sight. They had left us and gone with the map which meant I was lost out in the countryside with none other than an injured Austin Moon.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, the ret of the story will be based around Austin and Ally trying to survive together out in the countryside which of course brings them together so hang in there! Please review and tell me what you think and whether you think it is worth it for me to continue with this idea.