She strapped into her burton board and jumped up.  She gained speed and weaved down the run listening to Foo Fighters. She needed to clear her mind and get on the hill. She was mad, disappointed, sad, but mainly she was at a loss. She had broken up with her boyfriend after a year and a half of dating and moving to Summit County from Utah. When they first started dating he was so fun and always took her to do cool stuff like camping and dirtbiking. She had fallen for him and his charm…  until it wore off. She thought moving to the mountains would help because they would rely on each other more, make friends together, and spend more time together. But instead he neglected their time together and spent lots of time with other people and friends. She was over it, she had fallen in love with the mountains instead.

She sped down to the terrain park, she was a pretty good rider and there weren’t too many people around so she hit some rails and jumps. She came in a little too fast, slipped on a rail and landed right on her shin, pain shot right through her bone. She sat over to the side until the pain started to mellow so she could continue down the hill. A guy came up behind her and sat next to her. She didn’t notice him until he asked, “Are you alright? I saw that shin splitter…”

Leah responded, “Oh damn… Ya haha. I’ll be fine, thanks.”

“Here, I can follow you down to the base and we can look at your leg.”

He helped her up and they steadily rode down to the T-bar at the base. Leah unstrapped and lifted her goggles to the top of her helmet. The guy did the same and they made their way inside. He introduced himself with a charming smile, “My name is Smith by the way. Hope I didn’t scare you up there, I just saw you eat sh**.”

“Oh no you’re fine, I appreciate it. I’m Leah… Man that’s so embarrassing.”

“No, haha, the way you rode that rail was actually pretty badass. Can I buy you a drink?”

They sat together and talked for almost two hours. She told him about how she moved out here and loved Summit County and the culture. She briefly told him about her disappointing break up and where she was living. She couldn’t stop staring at his green eyes when he talked about his experience up in Breck. He had dark brown hair, neat stubble that made his jawline pop, and his eyes looked calm and reassured. He had lived in Breck for five years working as a carpenter. He was from Michigan and now he loved Colorado. He was smooth yet flirtatious. 

People sated to make their way down to the gondola as the shadows on the hill grew longer. Leah said she had to go and started saying bye. Before she left Smith invited her to get a drink later downtown. They exchanged numbers and both left happy and anxious for that afternoon.

They met in town at a pub at 8. They talked and saw eachothers friends. They were all laughing and having fun. Leah actually felt happy and got her ex-boyfriend off her mind. Smith was so handsome with thick brown hair, a thick flannel, and a sweet cologne. He was so caring and laughed at her humor. He was very collected and laid back which Leah was not used to… she rather enjoyed it. She had worn skinny jeans and a pretty v-neck shirt. She did her make-up extra special and put on her best flirting game; which was mostly cracking jokes about the Summit County atmosphere.

In the crowded loud bar, Leah hoped in the back of her mind Smith would ask if she wanted to get out of there and be alone. When she looked into his warm eyes she felt hope. Maybe this great, kind guy would treat her right and not leave her lonely.

As she was dreaming about Smith,  when her ex boyfriend, Jake stumbled out of nowhere clearly drunk.
“ So you’ve already got a replacement huh?”

“What the hell Jake? You’re an ass.”

Then Smith tried to diffuse the situation, “Hey I don’t want any trouble man. You don’t want to do something you’ll regret...”

“Like what man?!” Jake shot back, “What the hell are you gonna do? Protect this b****? You know what? You can have her.”

“Watch your mouth! Get out of here. You don’t deserve her anyways.”

Jake flipped them off with a beer in his other hand and stumbled away.

Leah sat there with a look of disgust and turned red with anger and embarrassment.

“I’m so sorry,” she said “ That’s so embarrassing…  he’s a  d*** .”

“ No it’s not your fault that he’s a piece of sh**.”

“Thanks so much for standing up for me… damn.”
He paused and sipped on his beer as his hand was slightly shaky. Then Leah realized she was sweating and she was still red with anger. Then she relaxed when she watched Smith. He was about to fight for her and stood up to her ex! Her passion for him grew and she couldn’t help reaching over and grabbing his hand. She whispered thanks and they stared into eachothers eyes.

“Do you want to get out of here?” He asked.

She nodded and he walked her out with his arm over her shoulder.
Leah felt warm and secure and realized how much she really loved Summit County. Moonlight shone on the white peaks as the two walked through town. Love boiled in her heart for this guy and the mountains surrounding.