Two Eyes Down

The Glass Castle

I watch as my feet switch off from hitting the ground forcefully. Have you ever stopped doing something for a while and then you start doing to again and it feels weird? That is the case with running for me, the only difference being that I don't usually run at all. But never, ever in my life have I had the capability to run and see the earth blur by beneath my feet. Never have I been able to see the grass wave by in the midst of the wind and result of my kinetic energy. Even if I'm in what seems like a scene for the Alice In Wonderland films, it is still a sight I've longed to see. Well, any sight is one I've longed to see. Most of my life I've had people subconsciously comment on something's looks, too pale, too dark, too light, to average, etcetera. I, in the other hand, would be perfectly happy stuck staring at a junkyard. Who knows, maybe that could be a good place to play I Spy with someone.

I get to a forest, thick with hardwood and leafy trees. It's quite eerie, and I keep seeing eyes of all kinds looking back at me, but the clouds still form, so I keep moving. I'm hopefully halfway through the bushwhack when I start to notice the low toned grunting followed by slow, heavy footsteps and cracking trees and branches. I stop in my tracks, hoping that it won't hear me and I can get out of here undisturbed. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. It seems like after getting quiet, so much so I managed to slow my paint and heart rate from exertion. It was no use though. I knew it the second I saw a yellow and infected toenail crush a tropical tree in which I had to dive to avoid as it crashed to the ground. When I spit out the dirt that had gone into my mouth, I turned.

I was met face to face with a blond, shaggy haired being with a nose as crooked as the smile planted on his face, speaking of planted, he had tree line and twigs growing out of all sorts of places. Moss was in the creases of his bare, hairy stomach and coating all of his cuticles on his humongous hands and feet.

"Hi there!" His voice boomed pleasingly, spreading his arms. "My name is Swing, the nature giant. What are you doing here mortal?"

My palms were sweating, I had a feeling that a wrong answer would give him a reason to play whack a mole with me as the mole and his fist as the hammer. "I-I don't know, I came to a hospital and now I'm here." I say nervously

"Well then, I'm sure the queen would love to have one of her kind at the castle. She is the only one here you know." Swing comes closer, as if it's totally normal for the ground to shake with every step to me. To him that's a definite, but I live on earth.

"I'm sorry, I don't, where am I?"

" you ma'am are in la la land, and proudly so. We better hurry along now, the clouds are thickening and I'm afraid of the dark. This forest ain't helping much. I wouldn't have to be here if it weren't for the hounds."

I immediately thought of the dogs in police investigations, usually for finding illegal items or bombs in an area. They have to be similar, right? I wouldn't know all the uses for the k-9 dogs, who are normally German Shepard's, but Demi's obsession with the crime shows forced me into learning about it.

"What'd they smell?"

"You."

"Me?" That's strange, this place is huge. The seemingly gentile giant stops from responding and grunts in anxiety instead, before looking down at me worriedly.

"Come, come, we don't have much time." He says frantically, bending down and flattening his hand on ground. With the other hand, he waved me forward, insisting to trust him and that we will go to a safer place. Reluctantly, I oblige, slowly stepping back to his finger tips and using his fingernail as a step, I'm able to jump to get a grip. Apparently, getting to where I was was enough for Swing, because he shook me in his hand like dice and then stood with his palm flat. I was crouched down from trying to regain the balance I'm constantly loosing. When I look around, a rainbow sky is swirling, bright flashes occasionally showing through the clouds and atmospheric haze, signaling a lighting storm.