Uncover

CHAPTER 1

2 hours.

2 long hours is the time it takes her to convince herself that what she's doing will be worth it.

2 hours of pacing the floors of her studio apartment, whispering words of encouragement to no one but herself until finally she managed to convince herself that this is the right choice.

It's just a walk through the forest. What could happen? She sees a wild and ferocious animal? Unlikely. Everyone says they only come out at night, and it's currently three in the afternoon. There had been a few news articles talking about a few wolf sightings, but she didn't plan on venturing too far into the woods so she felt she'd be fine.
At least that's what she tells herself in order to prevent going back on her decision.

She'll bring a backpack containing a few things, get there, explore for a bit, then come back home. Simple.

Without giving it another thought she put on her shoes, jacket, grabbed her car keys and backpack all in under 30 seconds, before rushing out the door.

The dreary, dark clouds stare back at her as she steps outside, promising an onslaught of rain in the near future. Violeta stands still for a minute glaring up at the clouds and cursing their horrible timing. She can only silently pray the rain holds off until after she's done her exploring.

Snapping out of her staring contest with the dark sky she quickly unlocked her old and beat-up jeep before stepping in and closing the door, her actions rushed. Wether it be from nerves or the foreboding feeling the storm clouds caused- she wasn't sure. Choosing not to dwell on it, the car starts up with the twist of the key and with the changing of gears she swiftly pulled out of her apartment complex's parking.

The car ride to the forest was filled with doubtful thoughts and second-guessing. Voices of her parents filled Violeta's mind as their past words attempted to convince her now to go back on her choice.

There's no room in life for adventure Violeta.

Focus on work Violeta, maybe then you'll succeed.

Nothing she did was ever good enough in the eyes of her parents. Despite the countless hours she put into her work at her job as a journalist, none of it mattered. If you weren't the best of the best (or you weren't making big bucks) then you were nothing at all.

Shaking her head in an attempt to rid herself of the chastising voices of her parents, Violeta was shocked to realize she had already arrived at her destination. The thick branches filled with leaves of the numerous trees loomed overtop the road and offered even more shade from the sky despite the darkness the clouds created.

Pulling over to the side of the road, she parked the car and sucked in a breath.

No turning back now.

Grabbing her backpack and slinging it over her shoulder, she exited the car and locked it behind her. Turning to face the forest, she's greeted by copious amounts of green on display; the trees swaying in the breeze, almost as if they're greeting her.

Breaking into a grin, Violeta makes her way towards the run-down dirt path at the edge of the forest and comes to a stop before she can enter.

This will be good for her. Everybody needs a little TLC in nature, right? She deserves a little relaxation after the countless hours she put into work. 

Clearing her mind of all the doubtful thoughts attempting to filter through her mind, she closes her eyes and breathes out a sigh. A sense of unease filled her body for some odd reason, causing her to feel restless and on edge.

Upon exhaling she opened her eyes and gave a small, slightly forced smile in an attempt to reassure herself - not that it did much.

"Alright Violeta, let's do this" she says, quickly glancing around to make sure nobody but the trees witnessed her small pep-talk to herself.

And with that, she took one step after another onto the path, slowly becoming more and more engulfed by the untamed wilderness with each noisy step; the crunching of twigs and leaves under her shoes and the chirping of birds being the only sound heard around her.