An hour ago, my cousin Nikita fell while skiing. He could not get up and now he  lies on the snow in the forest. My mother stays with him. Six o’clock. Dark and cold.  I called an ambulance to the edge of the forest. She arrived an hour later. Together with the nurses we are going to my brother about fifteen minutes. Skiing would be faster.

-How much longer? – the nurse asks, knee-deep in snow.

– Almost there. Can you see my mom in the orange jacket? My brother must have dislocated.

– Finally you came, – we see my mom.

– Nikita, how are you?

-I’m frozen, – he is sobbing. It is seen that my brother had been crying recently.

-On the phone you told us that the child had fallen.

-Who is he? He’s only 13 years old!

-His is too heavy for thirteen-year-old child. It’ll be a problem to get him to the car. Boy, can you move your leg?

-No, – my brother is ready to cry.

-Nikita, stop crying. It’s hard for all of us.

The nurse is calling his partner, who remained in the car, to bring a stretcher, which he did not take himself.

-Let’s give you a brace – the man is touching the leg of my brother.

-No, no, don’t touch, – Nikita is screaming.

-Don’t cry, – I say, a little rougher than I wanted to.

-The leg is swollen. I can’t get a splint.

Through some time comes the second the orderly with rag stretcher in the hands of.

-Come on, man, get in, everybody’s freezing.

-I don’t know how, –  Nikita says, looking at me.

-Please, be patient, – I say sharply, starting to tremble whether from the cold, or he nerves.

-I can’t, I can’t, it hurts!

-Don’t exaggerate, you don’t have anything serious. Make an effort. You’re too heavy to be carried.

Nikita is crying. He’s always exaggerating. I don’t want to believe he’s in unbearable pain. He likes to be pitied. But I’m not gonna do that. We don’t need a tantrum in the middle of the woods.

-Nikita, get on the stretcher. We are all frozen and tired to stay in the forest even longer.

The nurses and mom are trying to turn over a brother, he’s moaning.

-My leg, my leg, – he sobs, but he overpowers himself and climbs on a stretcher.

The nurses are trying to lift the stretcher, but they don’t have the strength.

-We can’t get him up there.

-I’ll help. Masha, bring your skis, – my mother is saying.

The three of them take a stretcher. Go minutes two, then stop to have a rest. I carry three pairs of skis behind them.

-He is too heavy – the one of the nurses is signing.

-Girl, give me your gloves, it’s cold, – the other man asks me.

-I will give you socks for hands, – my mother is offering, unbuttoning a backpack.

-Long walk? – Nikita is crying.

-Be patient, all seriously, even a little, – I say.

We go about 20 minutes, go to the edge. The nurse fetches the car, we can help Nikita to climb inside. He’s not crying anymore, he’s scared.

-Just don’t tell my mom, she will swear, – asked the brother.

I nod.

-You are brilliant, this is only dislocation, – I smile brother in the first time over the past two hours. I’m ashamed that I was so strict and rude, but maybe that was the only way to stop the panic from taking over.