They told us to be scared of the things we couldn't explain. They told us to stay away from the dark. But what if, the darkness is enticing? What if... you don't have a choice?
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After all, nothing is ever black and white, in the shadows.
**...
He meandered through the greenwood of Rosenville with curious eyes. The sound of his feet track, the splitting twigs and leaves underneath his boots made him chuckle. It only reminded the hiker to what extent he had been out in the woods. It murmured with life around him, this forest that is. He looked up at the canopy, scanning, searching for the birds that sung graciously around him, the glow of the sun settling upon his skin, giving him a beautiful golden hue.
This is nice.
Clutching his fists rather gently, the hiker continued pushing ahead. The sun got through the splits, illuminating the dirt path forward for him, beautified with fallen leaves, wildflowers and outgrown roots that crunched its way underneath his boots. A sense of warmth drifted in the air giving no signs of what lied ahead.
He walked on, taking in the scent of minty grass and the moist earth. Every breath he took was fresh, new... cleansing, kind of like water streaming unreservedly into his lungs.
After what seemed like an hours trudge, the hiker decided it was time for a break.
The lake.
It would be a nice place to unwind, maybe even add up to his nature based photography in his iPhone. Picking up his pace, the hiker trotted his way towards the lake.
As the heat and itchiness of the hike got to him, the lake began to look even more welcoming. Its water moved in the most modest of waves. He knew that in spite of the determined rays of the sun, the green-tinged water would be cool. The hiker strolled his way to the edge and sat down to take off his boots. He looked at the lake knowing all too well that this little basin of joy would probably be as deep as the trees and mountains around had been tall.
The sound of light waves sent a sense of warmth through the hiker. He looked around, admiring the dainty wispy mists in the midst of fresh leaves and vines surrounding him. The nature in the woods of Rosenville was truly a sight to see. He adjusted the camera in his iPhone towards the white oak tree that stood a few distances before him, taking clicks to his heart's content.
And that is when he saw her.
Dressed in white, she laid on the ground with no knowledge of his presence. Lowering his phone, the hiker squinted his eyes as he gazed upon the girl, her Chesnutt colored hair shining bright through the rays of the sun, concealing her face as she nothing but laid gracefully alone by the lake.
How long had she been there? He couldn't help but wonder what a young lady such as herself was doing here all alone in the forest.
The lad put his thick boots back on and trotted towards her. Maybe if he called to her...
He moved closer.
"Hello."
The young hiker spoke softly with a grin on his face but when she did not answer, his little beam of a smile turned into a frown. He only later realized why.
She was asleep.
He only trotted closer to her. Upon doing so he could not help but widen his eyes when he saw the girl, her eyes closed tight, as she soundly slept in this forest without a care in the world.
How reckless of her, he thought.
What muddled him in a series of thoughts however, was the bed made of lilacs, orchids and gardenias that the girl was laying atop. It puzzled him to see her laying on a bed made of flowers so innocently.
"Odd," he mumbled to himself.
And it did indeed raise a question, many actually as to why she was laying down in the middle of the woods on a flowerbed. It was definitely not something the young lad or anyone for that matter was accustomed to seeing everyday... or at all.
Maybe she's meditating, he thought through a tiny chuckle. After all, the forest was a tranquil place for one who needed alone time to clear their heads. The hiker himself was one. He did however, think of her laying peacefully on flowers rather peculiar.
As he gazed at her, he was convinced that she could be seen even in the shadows with not a drop of light in sight. She was pale... very pale. The white creaminess of her skin tone made him think of porcelain as the sunlight washed over her. The hiker wondered if he would just meet air if he reached out to her because of her paleness. She looked so fragile and dainty... as if she was a delicate flower herself. It was as though her pale self were only an apparition... a ghost. The beautiful flowers surrounding her like a mattress was what appeared to give the girl a sprinkle of color.
Instinctively, he crouched low and reached out his hand to tenderly shake her by the shoulder as a gesture to wake her up. Upon contact however, he retreated his fingers just as quickly as though a child had just touched the surface of a hot stove. But rather than heat, it was the iciness that stunned the young man for the girl was cold as ice.
"M-Miss?"
Nothing.
It was as if she could not even hear him, as if he was not in any case standing right alongside her... as if he was invisible. In the brief seconds of his touch upon her, it seemed that sufficient warmth was stolen from the girl as her lips turned a shade of blue. She looked as though she was frozen right through, lying perfectly still on a blossomed mat made solely of flowers.
The lad gasped as a wave of panic rushed through him. He stumbled backwards to the ground, completely in shock, his breath becoming irregular as he stared at her with widened, fearful eyes.
"Crap!" he hissed in dread.
What's more, he knew... no matter how much he denied it; he knew to his dismay... she was dead.
He swallowed hard, his beating heart not being able to slow down, the beads of sweat along his forehead getting more intense as he got up. His stomach turning, he feared he would throw up at any second. For a while he just stood there solidified, his mind unable to function. After all... he did only stumble upon a dead body.
The hiker looked down at her while his very own body trembled at the sight. The girl's chest remained motionless, no gleams of rise and fall, a guaranteed sign that she was lifeless. Much the same as him, she appeared to be young, perhaps 22 or 23. He noticed the star molded pendant that rested atop her collarbone as a shaky breath left his dried up lips. Even in death, she remained beautiful.
And he knew... deep down he knew the odds of her state being a natural cause was scarce. Individuals popping up dead in the woods out of the blue without any justifiable cause made no sense. He knew... she had been killed.
The young man looked away. He had seen enough.
In that moment he was scared. His throat began to dry, the feeling of bile rushing up, threatening him. His mind was in a puddle not knowing what to do. Sweat trickled down his face as he ran his hand over his mouth, panicking whilst he took baby strides backwards until his back harshly met a tree trunk.
He needed to get out of this mess.
With unsteady hands, the hiker grabbed his iPhone and punched in the required numbers. His heart was in no doubt a beating mess as he clutched on his phone, his knuckles turning white. He gulped hard, priming himself to speak as his call got through.
"911... what's your emergency?"
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