This wasn’t just cold. This wasn’t bitter, or even biting cold. This cold was arresting. He ceased being aware of his hands and feet an hour ago. Or at least what seemed like an hour.

Was the loneliness and hunger so bad that he had to leave the cave? He had been arguing with himself for several days about what to do. Certainly he couldn’t have stayed there, without any food his chances of making it out dwindled with each day that passed. But did he really just have to jump up like he did and run out of the cave? Oh hey, the storm looks fun; let’s go check that out! Now the thesaurus entry for stupid was running through his head.

He wished Didier were here. Not because he wanted the company, but because that bastard deserved to suffer as much as he was at that very moment. The thought made him smile. The images of a Didier popsicle made him almost forget his own misery.

He didn’t realize that he had stopped walking.

He didn’t even think it was that cold anymore.