Moonlight Mountain

Chapter Four - The Fall

Finally, Ava was the first of their group to step onto the summit of Moonlight Mountain. There was a fenced off area where people could go admire the view and take pictures. Ava saw at least twenty other people at the summit, but she was just excited that she had made it. 

"Wow!" she gasped, taking in the scenery. There was a view of a different lake, with more mountains and trees for miles. "We're really secluded. It almost makes you feel small, doesn't it?"

Ron nodded, going up to the fenced-off area to get a closer view. Ava followed him, wanting to snap some pictures. "I love the forest. The mystery, the peacefulness. Anyone who doesn't like the outdoors, doesn't know what they're missing. I mean, look at it out there," he gestured over the railing to the vast forest below them. "So many things that human eyes have never laid eyes on."

Ava took in every word her father was saying, giving him a hug. "Exactly. I love the forest. Can we get a selfie?"

He grinned. "Sure, Kiddo." 

She snapped a selfie with her father, then her mother, then her friends, with the forest in the background of each one. After the selfies and view-admiring, everyone was ready to begin the trek down. Some of the other hikers had already gone. 

"This is amazing," Ava sighed, feeling accomplished. "I'm so glad you guys let me experience this. Thank you." She hugged each of her parents. 

"You're welcome, honey. Let's just get down now, and we'll go get some Burger King afterwards. My treat." Julie smiled. 

April grinned. "Wow, thanks, Mrs. Larsen. I wish my parents were as cool as you guys."

"Didn't your parents give you a 48-inch TV for your bedroom and pay for your new car that they got you for a graduation present?" Ava arched an eyebrow at her friend, April. April came from the rich side of town, and had grown up with everything given to her. She wasn't a snob about it, though. She never threw wild parties at her parent's place, only inviting Ava and Sherry over sometimes. She didn't show off her parent's wealth. She just acted like any normal person. 

April paused to reach her hands behind her head and wrap her long blonde hair into a messy bun. "Yeah, so? It's nice and awesome and everything, but sometimes I wish they were more into these kinds of things. Just going out and spending time together." 

Ava wasn't jealous of her friend. Okay, maybe she was a little, as her own parents were middle-class and often didn't have the money to spend extravagantly on her. But, she was happy with whatever her parents could do to make her happy. They often spent time together in place of fancy gifts. Ava couldn't help but think that maybe April was slightly jealous of her for that. 

"Perhaps with encouragement they could be," Ron suggested. "Maybe try offering to take them on a dinner date to one of their favourite restaurants." 

April nodded. "Maybe. I can try. Thanks, Mr. Larsen." 

Ava took one last look at the summit of Moonlight Mountain before they began the descent. Luckily there were no really dangerous or steep trails, it was a gentle slope downwards. However, when Ava found herself at the back of the group, she became distracted by a squirrel who was running up and down a tree nearby. Everyone else in the group was talking and laughing and didn't notice Ava stop to take photos. She just figured she would be done in a few seconds anyways, no need to make them stop again. 

She was wrong, though, and those seconds turned into minutes. As she was staring through the viewfinder, she realized she no longer heard the talking of her family and friends. They had gone ahead without her, but she couldn't even see them on the trail anymore. 

Ava shrugged it off, figuring she could just catch up to them, or they would eventually stop. She was a little creeped out at how quiet things were now, though. Almost as if the forest had swallowed them up. 

With that thought, Ava shuddered, put her camera in its case and began walking fast down the trail. Her heart began to pound again as she over-exerted herself, feeling the sweat drip down her face the faster she walked. 

Suddenly, almost as if out of nowhere, a root appeared, causing Ava to trip over it. She normally would have caught herself, however, there was nothing to grab onto, and she plummeted over the edge of the trail, into dense foliage and down a steep hill. She felt her arms and face getting scratched up as she tumbled, and she was unsure where she was going to stop. Would she end up falling several hundred feet off a cliff? The thought of plummeting to her death scared Ava, but she didn't scream. 

When she did stop, she landed with a thunk, and hit her head on something hard. Though she didn't pass out, it left her feeling dizzy and her head sore. She lay there, stunned for a moment, until she was able to look upwards to where she had fallen from. Through slightly blurry vision, she saw how high and steep the cliff was. It wasn't a few hundred feet, maybe a hundred, but she definitely would not be climbing back up, only to risk falling again. 

After getting her wits about her, Ava decided to stay where she had fallen and yell for help. 

"Help!" Ava screamed, as loud as she could, even though she didn't have a naturally loud voice. She was unsure if anyone on the trail above would be able to hear her. "I've fallen! Please help!" 

She continued screaming for a few minutes, but didn't hear anyone calling her name back to her or acknowledging that they had heard her. 

She knew she wasn't trapped on a ledge, as this part of the mountain seemed to extend along the trail. Maybe if she followed it, she could find a spot that would be easy enough to climb back up and reunite with her family and friends. 

She sat for a few minutes longer, willing herself to get up and get moving in the direction her family had gone on the trail above her. Her head hurt, and she reached up to touch it, then pulled her hand back. She was bleeding a bit, although she figured it wasn't life-threatening.

Feeling terrible that she had put herself in this situation, but still determined to make it out of here, Ava began following the cliff and looking for a safe place to climb up.