EVERYTHING MATTERS

CHAPTER 6

MY SPOT 

It has been a week since I last talked to Ash. He hasn't even attempted to approach me since the incident. On Monday I had the courage to go and sit at the cafeteria with my assigned grouping that he was a part of, but the moment I got there the tension between the two of us arose and without even acknowledging my presence he got up and left so fast that it was almost as if he wasn't even here in the first place. Did I come across as impudent when I proclaimed that I desperately longed to be alone? To me it was evident that those were not my intentions, but to him my tone could have offended him. I did not like to disgruntle people and the fact that I may have accidentally without conscious done that to him led to the repercussion of me regretting what i had said to him. Then from Tuesday to Friday Ash was not to be seen at break. 

When the school day on Friday comes to an end, I decide to ride to my spot in the forest to complete my homework as I know for sure that I will not prioritise time on the weekend to do it. The punishment for incomplete homework is a two hour detention on a Monday afternoon. I made a promise to myself that this year I will finish all tasks and work given on time to circumvent detentions. As I find that there is nothing more dreadful than sitting in an uninviting murky hall being observed by bland and featureless instructors who find satisfaction in watching you grow more and more impatient as the two hours go by slowly. Last year I spent countless hours in that unlit atrium due to my indolence when it came to doing my schoolwork.

It was amazing how my distressing mood would change to a euphoric spirit as soon as I reached my spot by the creek. I liked to imagine that it was my miniature utopia, a world of my own. The patent reasoning for my lifted mood when I would arrive was because here the person who I am is accepted. My emotions don't have to stay buried deep inside of me where eventually they would explode. Here, in my sphere my inner-self can be seen without the feeling of being vulnerable and misunderstood. My spot can be seen as a therapeutic place, because in this location I can freely off load the things that stay concealed within me. Doing this helps me to cope with the reality of the new world I unfortunately live in. 

I get caught up lying down on the damp grass looking up at the sky, only some parts of the airspace were to be seen as the trees that towered over me covered most of it. This created lighting contrasts where rays of the sun would manage to edge into the small gaps which the trees left, because of this it illuminated certain areas of the forest. It was beautiful. They gave the impression of stage lights beaming down. The specks of floating dust were visible in this brightness and exhibited the resemblance of glitter flying in the air. I also found the darkness alluring, it gave the woodland a mystifying setting, virtually eerie. It was as if the shadows held the secrets the world didn't want to show. My thoughts are suddenly interrupted by a faint snap of a twig behind me. My heart begins to race, I turn around swiftly and gasp when I see who is standing in front of me. I am relieved that it is someone I know but still frightened at the thought of being creeped up on. It was Ash. For some reason I wasn't surprised by his presence.

"Um. What are you doing here?" I ask.

"I'm not too sure, see the thing is that every Friday after school I always see you ride off  in this direction and I've been wondering for a while now where it is that you go so often. So to conclude, essentially I followed you here."

"Ash, no offense but that's really creepy."

"I know I know and I apologise for that, but being my curious self I had to know."

"Well now you do"

"So why do you come here so frequently?"

I did not know what to answer. I was debating whether to tell him the truth or not, as the verity could come out or be seen as very uncanny and moronic to him. What if he saw my reason as wrong and because of that decides to cut me out of his life? But as someone once told me honesty is the best policy. Therefore the truth it is.

"I come here to escape," I say quietly looking down.

"To escape the world?" he asks.

"Exactly"

The conversation was awkward. Everything was that way with the two of us.

"Have you explored more of this forest?" he said in a calm tone looking at me with soft eyes.

"No I haven't, but I don't think it gets better than this."

"I can promise you, you will be amazed by the beauty of this forest. Your escape world is much bigger than this spot you've found here."

But can anything get better than my spot?

He gestures his arms and says, "Come, I'll show you more of the charm that is offered here."

He smiles at me and walks off, stops, turns around and asks, "Are you coming?"

I smile happily and follow him, excited about the small adventure to come and delighted that Ash and I can move on from the past.