“I think Christmas break chiseled out a chunk of my soul.” The statement fell matter-of-factly, twisting around the curls of smoke and his visible breath in the cold air. Perhaps in a former life he’d been a canary, his mother’s insistence that they spend her half of their vacation in Aspen had chilled him to the marrow, Tripp was certain that there were parts of him that had not yet defrosted. He’d only gone for apres ski and the opportunity to zag down summits in a sleek new Moncler jacket. They’d been back on campus for the better part of three weeks, but he’d kept to himself, not quite feeling like barging into conversations and school life with his usual ferocity. After another reflective drag, he craned his head up, thoughtfully offering the cigarette to the person beside him. “You happy to be back?”