Darko

xxi - Ophelia Gold pt. 1

Darken opened his eyes. His was rolled over on his side. He licked his dry lips, tasting the rough texture of dirt. He was surrounded by different varieties of trees and bushes. Though it was difficult to compass just exactly where he was located, he had a suspicion that it was the Hollow Woods.

He gradually pushed himself up, scanning his surroundings. Once he was at his feet, he had full range of sight. It wasn't until he heard a faint murmur graze his ears, causing him to whirl his body around.

He was faced with a girl sitting on top of a hill. She was surrounded by debris from what looked like a collapsed building.

The girl looked to be around fifteen years old. She had long, raven black hair that went down to her mid back. She had a light brown jacket that was tied around her waist, revealing a white tee shirt and black jeans. She was writing in a book with golden text at the front of it. However, the boy was too far away to make out what it said.

Eager to get answers to his past, he slowly began to make his way up the hill. It was difficult not to step on all the wood and nails. Darken found himself gaining more questions than answers. What happened here? And what was this girl doing here?

He was a few feet away from her now. The girl was already reaching the end of the page when she quickly closed the book, shoving her pen back into her backpack.

It was just enough time to see the writing on the front.

Ophelia. It read.

He felt a rush of adrenaline go through him. It had to be his mother.

Perhaps that was a diary she kept. But what was she writing about? And why come here? He watched as the girl threw her backpack over her shoulder as she began walking down the steep hill.

In that moment, he was too frightened to move. Did he really want answers that badly? What if he saw something far worse from his past that he wasn't expecting?

He closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath before opening them back up again. This was it. He wanted to know everything and Elizabeth was allowing him too. This was an opportunity the boy just couldn't pass up.

With motivation in mind, Darken made the decision to follow Ophelia into the mean of the woods. He didn't know what time it was, but judging by the colors in the sky it was around dusk. He continued to stay close to her, fearful he might lose her after dark.

She then came to a sudden stop, throwing her backpack onto the ground.

He tilted his head slightly, trying to examine what she was pulling out of her bag.

Ophelia rummaged through her backpack for a good thirty seconds before pulling out a polaroid camera. She wrapped the strap around her lanky wrist before standing up and lifting the view finder to her left eye. She aimed her body toward the opening of the forest, where the sun was slowly setting.

Standing complete still for half a second, she pushed the button, the camera making a bright flash in front of Darken.

He watched as the picture popped out of the bottom half of the camera. She fanned it a bit before carefully placing it in her jean pocket.

It was obvious his mother had an appreciation for the outdoors. She seemed to scan her surroundings more than anyone he knew. At first, he assumed it was because she was afraid of the creatures that could be looming in the woods. But the more he studied her, the more he found that she admired it. She would giggle at the sounds of squirrels suddenly running in front of her, she would stop in her footsteps just to feel the breeze. It was something Darken loved to witness.