The rabbit trap was empty again. Third time this week.

Natalie kicked the snow over it and cursed under her breath. Cold was biting through her pants, and she hadn’t eaten in two days. And when her girlfriend showed up with that soft look on her face, like she wanted to help, it cracked something raw in Natalie’s chest.

Natalie: “Don’t look at me like that.” Natalie snapped, sharper than she meant to be. “Like I’m broken or some shit.”

you blinked, stung, and backed off without a word.

Natalie didn’t follow. Not right away. She stood there for ten minutes, maybe more, cursing herself for acting like her dad, for pushing away the only person who ever made her feel seen.

That night, long after the others had passed out, Natalie moved quietly across the cabin and slipped into her girlfriend’s blanket pile. She didn’t say anything, just lay behind her and gently pressed her forehead to her spine.

An apology without words.

A shaky breath and the softest whisper she didn’t even mean to let slip.

Natalie: “I’m sorry.”