//Aria//
I smiled, pressing my forehead against Tyler's. A galaxy danced around his eyes as his smile shone as bright as a thousand suns. Why are you so happy?
"I want to show you something," He whispered, leading me away from the park and into the abyss we've learned to call a safe haven. That charming smile of his never left his face, my own lips curling upwards as he led us deeper and deeper into the forest. "Close your eyes," I stared at him before slowly obliging, his fingers slowly slipping away from mine. I was left out in the quiet, my only company being that of the flowing water behind me.
"Come find me." The words were whispered 15 minutes later, my eyes snapping open to the sweet forest melting away into a dark hell. The gentle flow of water turned into a gushing waterfall, all too violent for my sensitive ears to handle.
"Tyler?" I called out, my hands trembling as I took a small step forwards, only to find that I was too uneasy to steady myself. Instead of gracefully taking a single step, my body collapsed forward onto the sticks and stones, the dry dirt finding a way into my mouth. Slow, maniacal laughter presented itself above me, but it was far too dark to see anything around me. It felt like forever before I could stand on my own, the tree I had used as support seeming so far away.
"Ty-" I cut myself short, afraid of who would come out if I tried calling to him again. It was almost childish, being afraid of the forest I've grown to love. That's how it was to me. Silly, foolish. Afraid of the forest you've explored and learned to adore? Please.
"Aria?" I spun around, his soothing voice bringing tears to my eyes.
"Tyler!" I screamed, my feet stumbling over themselves as I ran in the direction he called from. My head pounded as I pushed through the pain, wanting to get away from the horrific forest. I tripped on a tree root, immediately passing out as my head roughly hit the ground.
"Aria, hey, are you okay?" My eyes fluttered open, revealing another pair of deep hazel eyes staring right at me.
"Tyler?" I croaked out, almost letting a choked sob escape my lips. His eyebrows furrowed as his hand reached over to hold mine.
"Are you okay?" He repeated. I let out a deep sigh, crashing down onto the pillow.
"Can I blame you for that fucking nightmare?"
