Born Wild

Stagnant town

Hey :) so the first chapter I've realized may not be all too exciting, but if you read a couple of more i promise it's a good story!
The night filled the forest with darkness. The only light came from the large full moon as it appeared from behind the clouds in the sky. Tala Thorn walked past the sliding glass door to her back porch. She stepped down the creaky wooden steps and felt the firm ground beneath her. As she walked farther back in her yard she turned up the crunchy autumn leaves. She took a deep breath, smelling the crisp air, and looked out among the dark trees and lightning bugs glow here and there.

She heard a twig snap.

She quickly turned to her right to see what it was. In the darkness were two glowing yellow eyes. The creature stepped into the moonlight, its wide paws leaving prints in the mud. Its pointy ears and whiskery muzzle twitched as the beast stared firmly at her. The wind brushed past her as she stood still, her hair blowing in the wind. Her heart raced and she felt a chill rush down her spine. It howled into the night sky and she gasped.

She stepped back and shook her head, noticing that the wolf was gone. She breathed and looked around for a moment to take everything in, before seeing that the prints were gone as well. The wolf hadn't been there at all. She looked down at her dirty bare feet. She had slept walked again.

Tala walked back inside and collapsed back onto her twin sized bed. Her heavy head fell back against on the pillow. She sighed and stared up at the ceiling, feeling the fall breeze flow through her open window. She rubbed her eyes and looked at her alarm clock. It had to be the middle of the night. It was 3:30 am.

She switched her glance from the alarm clock to the framed picture on her nightstand. Those weren't the same people they were when the picture was taken. She looked at her father. He was a well-groomed man who looked genuinely happy. He was now depressed and grizzly. She looked at her younger self. She was so carefree and content. She had her hair in pigtails and freckles all over her face. Now she was an adult with emotional scars and responsibilities. She looked at her mother. She thought about how things would be so different if she were still here.

She turned around in her bed and tried to fall back asleep. She couldn't help herself from thinking about how unhappy she was with her life and how everything turned out.

She woke mid-Saturday morning and looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. Her pale skin glowed from the touch of the morning sun through her window. Freckles covered her arms and legs. She had a round face with a few blemish scars on her cheeks and long light brown hair. Her eyes were blue-green in color. She was simple yet had a beautiful aura to her that couldn't be placed.

She washed her face, brushed her hair, and put on light mascara and lip balm. She changed into black athletic shorts, strapped sandals, a white t-shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a loose flannel over it. She quietly opened her bedroom door and peered out. She noticed her father asleep on the couch with an empty bottle of whiskey on the table. She shut her bedroom door behind her and snuck past the living room. She tried to block out the dingy smell and darkness from the windows and blinds being closed. She walked past the kitchen, irritated at the mess he caused last night. Chips were spilled on the counter and dirty dishes filled the sink.

She knew that later she would be the one cleaning the house.

"She wasn't the one paying for the house and it was the least she could do."

That was what her father told her at least. She couldn't wait for the day she finally earned enough money from her job at the clothing store in town to move out on her own. When she graduated in the spring she wasn't sure if she wanted to go to college or not, so she was taking a gap year to work. She planned on saving up enough money to move out as quickly as she could and then go to college. She had only been working for a few months and didn't have much saved. She had to buy her own clothes and toiletries because she didn't want to annoy her father by asking.

She grabbed a chain with the house key on it in case he left and closed the door behind her. She walked outside down the sidewalk, soaking up the warm Tennessee sun. Tala and her father lived in a small town called Willowdale. The forest ran for miles over the mountains, covering the area in green life. There were pine trees, bears, and hiking trails everywhere. It was a beautiful area. Tourists would come to visit East Tennessee to see the amazing smoky mountains, go to Gatlinburg, or backpack on the Appalachian Trail.

She wanted to go on a short hike today. She didn't have a car but they lived close to several trails. She spent most of her free time there.

Her life felt mundane and boring except for the time she spent outside. She didn't desire a high-class life filled with expensive things. She was content living in the forest with her hair messy and her soul free. She felt most like herself when she was hiking in the forest or prancing in the snow. She wanted to spin in the water and wade through trees. She wanted to climb rocks and frolic in the grass. She felt the most content outdoors.

Tala aspired to be not only practical, but also kind, loyal, and honest. She realized she was a lot like her mother was before.... She didn't want to think about that right now. She leaned onto the fence of the trail bridge and looked down at the small flow of water. She admired the bugs skating across the top of the moving river and the fresh smell of the forest. As she passed by a few backpackers she thought about how much her family used to go hiking and camping together. Most vacations were spent going to places with forests rather than beaches like most kids.

Her favorite place they ever went was to the coast of Washington in the summer. They had gone when she was 14. She missed the thriving life, the mist, and the beauty of the coast.

Her mother, Kita, owned a lot of land in town where she sold vegetable and fruit plants, house plants, succulents, and more. Her father, Ben, has owned a small outdoors store in town since Tala could remember. They both hired people to take over while on vacation. It had been 4 years since everything changed. She felt dissociated from who she used to be. She still was the same person of course, but she had gone through so many changes and loss that she felt separated from her past self. With time she healed and accepted everything, but part of her was gone with her mother.

She walked on the dusty trail back toward her house and hopped onto the sidewalk near the road. A car roared past on the other side of the street. She stood and watched it drive away as the breeze blew her hair to the side. A chill ran down her spin and her brain scattered into thoughts.