Writing Prompt Short Story Collection

Camping

Prompt: Fire-starters -> Write about building a fire.

(https://thinkwritten.com/365-creative-writing-prompts/)

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The wind gently swung Eva's hair behind her, tickling the back of her neck ever so gently. Her nose was red from the cool winds, it had been constantly running since the weather had turned. She reluctantly pulled her bare hands out of her hoodie to grab some wood off of the ground. Luckily it was fairly dry, perfect for the fire. A couple more steps and she had collected two large sticks, one medium one, and two handfuls of the twigs.

"Tyla is going to be so happy with me," she smiled to herself.

Tyla had originally been the one to say they needed to make a fire, but she had twisted her ankle earlier so now it was her job.

Her job to fetch the sticks.

Her job to tend the fire.

Her job to take care of Tyla.

Eva hummed that thought process as she made her way back to camp.

Her job to fetch the sticks.

Her job to tend the fire.

Her job to take care of Tyla.

The weather was slowly creating frost on the trees, but it was soon enough after autumn that the leaves still crunched under her blue hiking boots. She had actually gotten the boots from Tyla for Christmas a year ago. It was their first Christmas as a couple and they both loved the outdoors. Over their year together since then, they had gone camping every chance they had got.

She saw their tents peek out from the side of the trees, "Tyla I'm back!" she happily called out. Tyla didn't respond, she was likely sleeping then. As Eva turned the corner though, she saw Tyla sitting on the makeshift log without her coat on. She must of just not heard her.

"Tyla! You're going to freeze out here!" Eva practically screamed, dropping the wood and running into the tents to grab her jacket. Frantically she wrapped it tightly around Tyla as if to suffocate her with its warmth.

"C'mon love, you know better than to sit out here without a jacket," she said as she carefully brushed away a curl that had fallen in Tyla's face. Her hands swept away the ice that had collected on her cheeks, ignoring the bright red claw marks across her face. The bright claw marks that traced more of her body, leaving dark red stains across her clothes.

"See now Tyla, you're lucky you had me here to save you. Your-your so lucky I was here to save you," She mumbled as she continued to brush away frost and stray hair.

"No who would've saved you from that bear, if-if-if I was-wasnt here. Hmm?" Her hands moved faster and faster hastily trying to give her lifeless body the heat it seemed to desperately crave.

"I mean, no one but me could've saved you, you know? I was there, I-I fought the bear off and you, you just twisted your ankle," She looked downwards towards what should have been Tyla's ankle. Instead, flesh torn from the knee down filled her vision, Tyla's ripped jeans covered in her blood. Loose skin hung from the bone, making her woozy.

"I didn't run, I didn't run," She whispered pulling the corpse into a tight embrace, the wet blood smudging against her new grey hoodie.

"I SAID I DIDN'T RUN." She screamed throwing Tyla's body off of the wooden trunk.

"I mean, what was I supposed to do?! It-it was coming straight for me, and I- I had to leave! You wouldn't understand, you NEVER UNDERSTOOD. You were NEVER there for me." Her tone turned vicious and cold, "I JUST WANTED TO LIVE," her breath was coming out short and hot, causing little puffs of air in front of her face.

Tyla's body stared lifelessly from the ground, the birds already curious for the taste of her flesh. 

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TRY?" She screamed, "WHY DIDN'T YOU RUN!" she cried collapsing onto the ground, the cold slicing into her knees. Tears streamed down her face as her sobs turned into agonizing screams.

"I WAS GOING TO MARRY YOU" She continued to scream into the ground, her heart tightened and felt like it was about to burst.

"Then you just HAD to go up that trail," She grimaced, images of that day flashing through her mind. Spinning around and around till she felt dizzy.

"They said be careful of the bears, it was bear season, they said." She leaned her head against the cool earth to center herself.

"I told you we should stay, I-I TOLD YOU TO STAY," She cried once more into the earth, willing it to devour her whole.

Some silence passed before she spoke again. 

"I was going to propose to you that day," She whispered finally, "Except, except except I got a call. A call from S-Saraya." Her breath warmed the earth beneath her face, turning it into a muddy puddle. She swung her head up from the ground, staring directly at the corpse.

"Saraya, she-she-. Saraya told me to truth you fucking bitch," she spat, her heart collapsing once more.

"You disgusting. Fucking. Asshole. YOU FUCKED SARAYA. You CHEATED ON ME" She screeched, her voice cracking. She sat up, her arms wrapped tight around her chest as if to hold it together.

"Maybe that's why-why. That's why when the b-bear came." She paused, her sobs choking her up, "I-I pushed you and you twisted your ankle. Your poor dumb, weak ankle. Sensitive from TRIPPING OVER SARAYA'S FUCKING BEDROOM DOORWAY." She continued to sob, tears gushing down her face, screaming over and over again.

"I LOVED YOU SO MUCH," She yelled, salty tears falling into her cracked sore lips.

"Why didn't you love me back?"

She fell onto the cold wet ground once more. Her teeth chattered, her nose ran and she felt the world around her spin.

"It was so easy," she whispered to the worms crawling out of the soil, "To love you."

Her breath caught, too scared to utter the question that came next.

"Was it so hard then," She said a final tear falling from her eyes, "to love me?".