Little Red Love Story

1.) Flowers

I stride through the natural made path, stopping once in a while to pick up a flower or two. I smile watching the morning sun peek through the trees. It's a beautiful day, warm and a light breeze here and there. But the winter months are coming soon, I don't want to give up this weather.

I slow my pace, seeing as how my load is becoming heavier. A rose bush catches my sight up ahead, I want to go to it, but t's far from the path. In mother's orders, I'm not to stray from it. Also in mother's orders, I'm not to talk to strangers and I'm to go straight to grandmother's house.

No matter how many times I've visited grandmother alone by walking this path, and came back unharmed, my mother is always on extra precaution. It all started when I was younger, about seven years old. Grandmother and I was attacked by a wolf.

In the end we were saved by a 'kind huntsman'. It wasn't that big, but the whole town was talking about the incident in less than a day. To be honest, I'm a little scared, too. I still have nightmares about the unfortunate day, though a little over ten years have passed.

I sigh. A little bit away from the path won't hurt, will it? I carefully check my surroundings before making my way to the bush. I set down my basket and pile of the previous flowers picked, and start feeling around to snatch a rose. In my hurry to find a tender spot, my index finger brushes against a thorn. I pull back in pain. I grit my teeth while I examine the damage done.

The cut isn't that deep, but my skin is sensitive. Blood is gushing out. I groan, regretting coming here. The bundle could go without a rose. But since grandmother is sick, I thought it would have been nice.

Taking my handkerchief out, I wrap it around my finger tightly. I turn to take my basket up, but I'm confronted with it gone. My flowers scattered, and a faint trail of footprints. I follow the trail with narrowed eyes. It goes deep into the trees, a part I have never seen. I gather the flowers before I start to tail the trail.

Stepping carefully, I pause, tilting my head I listen.

I hear a soft crunching noise. I break into a slow jog, lifting my skirt as not to trip, in the direction I heard it.

I stumble a bit before I break through a few dead branches into a clearing.

I spot my basket under a tree, surrounded by apples. There isn't any damage done, as far as my eyes see. I pick it up tenderly. Lifting the lid, I check to see if the food was touched. I give a sigh of relief.

But I'm wondering who it was taken by, and why.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I catch glimpse of a shadow. My eyes widen as fear spreads through me.

Quickly gathering my things, I hurry out of the clearing.

When I reached the path, I decide not to pick any more flowers, I have enough. And I can't afford to delay any longer. The walk to grandmother's house is at least an hour.

I make it to grandmother's house by the time the sun was high in the sky.

"Sasha dear, you're here!" Grandmother calls from her bedroom, her voice gruff, as I start replacing the flowers in the vases that decorate the home with the mine. After that, I place my cloak on a rocking chair and walk into the room and say, "Yes, grandmother. Mother tells me you're sick again."

I sit down beside her and hold her hand. She smiles slightly. "It's nothing serious. Just a sore throat." I shake my head. "Still, you should take care of yourself. You live alone, I can't imagine why you don't. You're always welcome in our home, you know."

Grandmother pulls herself to a sitting position.

"Sasha dear, I know you're worried about me, but I'm fine with this."