Page 57 of Valley Girls
“Yeah,” Rilla yelled down. Swallowing, she shifted her hips closer to the anchors. Took a carabiner from her harness and clipped herself to the anchors. Took another carabiner and clipped it the opposite way. “Off belay,” she yelled down.
Okay. She closed her eyes, trying to remember the steps. The blood pounded red in her eyes, and when she opened them the wall was bathed in the same red haze from the sunset. Every second that passed ticked loudly in her head, reminding her she needed to get down.
She started untying the rope from her harness. Deep breaths. People were waiting. She couldn’t fuck up, or she’d fall and there’d be nothing to catch her. She’d untie, pull it through a bail biner—a cheap sturdy biner they could leave behind—and then retie and lower out. It was awkward though—the rope was slippery and heavy, and had it felt this awkward before? She gripped the end, trying to thread it through the biner. This didn’t feel right. Shit. This didn’t feel right. What ...
And then the rope slipped.
Thwisssssss,it sang. Straight from between her legs. To the ground.
Rilla froze. Hands open. Eyes wide.
That did not just happen.
Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit.
She’d dropped the fucking rope!
“Rilla?” Petra yelled.
“I dropped the rope!” Rilla screeched. “Oh my god. I dropped the rope.”
Oh my god, I dropped the rope.
She closed her eyes. It was getting truly dark now. And here she was stuck on the wall. How could she screw that up?What had—?Her mind raced through the steps of cleaning the anchor.
Fuck.
She’d forgotten to pull up a long stretch of rope and tie it to her harness. That way, if she’d dropped the end, the rope would still be tied to her. Rilla swallowed, her throat so tight it ached. After all that effort, she’d gone and done the dumbest thingever. Gumby indeed. All she wanted to do was get down and go home. But she was stuck.
“Hang tight, Rilla. We’re sending someone up.”
Rilla buried her face in her bleeding hands and groaned. This couldn’t be more embarrassing if she’d sat down and tried to come up with a way to epically embarrass herself. She’d dropped the rope.
The wind blew and clouds gathered on the darkening sky. Chills ran up her arms. The sweat dried while she waited, trying not to think about what they were talking about below. Suddenly she remembered she was supposed to babysit. She was going to be late if she didn’t get down quickly.
It couldn’t get worse until it did.
Caroline appeared below. Climbing smoothly and quickly.
Of course they sent Caroline.
Rilla scooted over, giving Caroline space at the anchors. A second rope was tied to her harness. “Hey,” Caroline said with a smile. “Lose something?”
Rilla blushed and looked at her feet. “Stupid, I know.”
“It’s fine. Shit happens.” Caroline clipped herself into the anchors, threaded the second rope through the anchors, and tied Rilla in.
Rilla let her, feeling mortified and like a child who needed her mom to tie her shoes.
“She’s on belay, Hico,” Caroline yelled. “Double-check everything. You’re tied in. Your rope is fed through the anchors.” Caroline’s finger ran from the knot to the anchors.
Rilla nodded, following.
“Now, unclip and he’ll lower you. One at a time, just in case,” Caroline shifted away.
Rilla pulled herself toward the wall, unclipping the draws she’d been using, so her weight sank into the rope.
“Tell him when you’re ready to lower,” Caroline said, tying a knot and clipping the rope to her harness in preparation to thread herself through the anchors and be lowered. The very action Rilla had missed.
