They crossed the wood further down then before and came to a bridge. It was old, wooden and looked somewhat worn. Both men were not really exited to stumble through the underbrush.
“Hutch, when you mentioned the great outdoors...”
“Yeah...”
“That was not was I’d been thinking of.”
“Oh, really—I did tell you we were staying at a cabin.”
“Sure. But the only cabin I’ve ever seen was Dobey’s and that was comfortable.”
“You were complaining the whole time.”
“There were guys after us, Blintz. Crazy folks with dresses and bad manners who were after our lifes.”
“That was hardly the fault of the cabin. And what about the spider?”
“What spider?”
“That big one by the door.”
“Don’t roll your eyes. Don’t pretend you didn’t, Hutch. I know you. Now you’re smiling. Oh for ... where is that bridge.”
“Right ahead, mushbrain.”
Instead of the expected slippery planks they encountered splintering wood and a big mouth. Jaws with sharp teeth left a big whole in the middle of their only escape route back to town.
The partners didn’t believe their eyes.
“Hutch? Do you see what I see?“
“If you saw what I saw, pal.”
“But how?”
“Why?”
“Yeah.”
“Exactly my sentiment... hurry.”
“You are not thinking to cross that bridge, are you?”
“You want to return to that cabin?”
“Yes.”
Starsky started to drag his partner back up the hill.
“You said you never want to set foot into that spider infested love shack again.”
“Right now I say we move in and name the spiders.”
“Name the spiders? What is going on in that brain of yours,pal.”
“They are not going to leave because I want them to, right?”
“Right.”
“So I have to get used to them, right?”
“Would help I guess.”
“Right. So I name them and then I accept them because I know them.”
“Starsky that makes no sense, they’ll still be spiders and you’ll still be afraid.”
“It works.”
“How do you know that?”
“It worked with that creepy plant of yours.”
“You were afraid of Hilda?”
“Not after I heard you call her that.”
“...”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”
“Fine we will go back to the cabin, just don’t forget it was your clever idea.”
“Yeah, yeah. Move it,Blondie.”
"We could have crossed, if we were careful," Hutch concluded. He scrambled up the steep hill and was sweating profusely. Starsky followed immediately, he wasn’t up to another travel-hour back their former path either. Hutch observed the river and Starsky’s worried gaze. “Back through the woods,” Starsky uttered without real motivation. They made it to the top and gazed down. Hutch was still wondering if they had really seen a – when Starsky ruffled his feathers. “See you soon,shark.” Starsky shouted at the top of his voice, finally from the bank, before breaking into the fastest pace he could manage back to the cabin. Hutch stared after his curly-headed partner in wonder.
