Under the tree that once shielded the snow for dozens of people, a young girl slept. Her body curled up from the cold. A powerful wind gusted against the tree above her, causing piles of snow to fall from the rustling leaves, and descend upon the girl.

Nabi winced as piles of snow struck against her body. A sharp sensation stung her face, a feeling akin to that of a needle piercing her skin.

She wiped her cheeks with her arm, as she struggled to move her stiff body. It was strangely cold. She remembered sleeping next to a warm camp fire. It shouldn't be so cold she thought.

She shifted her head to check the camp fire, nothing was there. Once more, she shifted her head and searched her surroundings. Nothing, she saw nothing. There was no fire to keep her warm. There were no people to welcome her.

Her heart sped up, as she stood up and began to run around. No matter where she went, she could not find anything. Not even the animals that inhabited the forest.

"Is anyone here?!” A frantic yell escaped her pale lips, accompanied by a moist mist.

Several minutes passed, yet there was no response. From the east, the sun steadily rose from the horizon. 

Where did everyone go?

Nabi ran back to the area she fell asleep at. Her legs gave in, the moment she arrived. She felt exhausted. Her breathing became irratic. Fear encased her confused mind.

She layed down on the bed of snow that covered the forest in its entirety. She stayed still, with her knees tucked between her arms. Her gaze wondered around, as she pondered about where everyone could have went.

A bit of luggage still remained. Mostly covered in snow, the luggage was hard to see. For the luggage to have gathered so much snow. How many hours had passed since the owners left them unattended?

The whole forest was encompassed with snow. Everything was white. As snow began to pile up on her body, her gaze fell on a peculiar spot. An almost unnoticeable opening in the snow.

Immediately, she rose from her position, and worked her way towards it. Her movement was hindered because of the amount of snow. But she managed to make her way, very quickly.

A familiar face stuck out from the opening in the snow. Her heart clenched as sudden realization struck her.

Nabi's body burst forward, and began to dig the body out of the snow. Her eyes blurred. Tears formed in her small pair of eyes.

"Grandma..." Her arms dug faster, with every preceding dig. "Grandma..." Her faint voice carried within it, the emotions that swelled her heart.

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Nabi grabbed the arms of her Grandma and pulled. Her frozen hands refused to gather strength. Tears began to overflow as she realized she couldn't grab onto her Grandma's arm.

She lowered her torso and put her arms under her grandmother's armpit, and pulled. She struggled to keep her arms still. She feared for the life if her grandmother.

With one last pull, she finally pulled her grandmother out. The lower body of the elder was completely frozen. With a trembling voice, she began to wake her grandmother.

"Grandma, wake up! Wake up!" Nabi's hand gently shook the shoulders of the elderly woman.

"Nabi..." Her grandmother replied, her eyes still closed. Her voice was barely discernable, Nabi struggled to listen to her words.

"There is a tower..." Nabi didn't say anything, she concentrated on listening to her words. "You must go there. Go-" Her words fell short and did not continue.

Nabi kept calling for her grandmother, but not a single response was heard or seen. She died. Nabi knew, but refused to believe it. She spent the next few days talking to her grandmother's deceased corpse.

”Grandma, I’m sorry.” Nabi’s weary eyes stared at the cold snow below her.

Nabi constantly whispered towards her grandmother. Expressing her regret and self loathing. Her grandmother took care of her since she was young, but she couldn’t do the same for her grandmother. 

Nabi flung her arms in anger and swept the snow around her, creating a mess. She yelled out to vent out her frustration. She felt so pathetic. 

Nabi hugged her grandmothers frozen corpse and cried. In this cold world only she knew how much her grandmother cared for her. 

With every passing day, every passing minute, every second, her chest grew tighter. Every word that left her pale lips, and every thought that crosses her aching mind, her hopes shriveled up.

Nabi buried the frozen corpse of her grandmother, under the snow covered tree that sheltered her from the snow.

Nabi sat next to the grave and stared at the sheet of snow under her and bowed down. With her pale fingers, she wrote something on the sheet of snow and bowed. She stood up, and walked towards the structure in the far distance.

Thank You,

Rest In Peace Grandmother.

Along with Nabi's figure in the distance, the words she carved into the sheet of snow slowly faded away under the falling snow.