By the time we reached the bridge, the clock had already come to just a little past nine and Gabriel was nowhere to be seen. For someone who was always early and never on time nor late for anything, it came to a small shock to the both of us. "Where's Gabe?" I asked over the sounds of the river, still rushing with snow-melt from winter despite it being June.
"Good question." Effie frowned, hesitantly.
Looking comically clueless, we both looked in all directions, as if Gabriel was hiding from us in the thick bushes which lined the perimeter of the woods, expecting him to suddenly jump out and give us both a fright for a laugh.
"I'll call him, he'd better pick up," She scrambled for the phone in the back pocket of her drenched chinos.
Hopefully, if Gabriel can't make it, Effie will cancel today's plans and we can visit the farmer's market instead, I thought to myself with a bounty of hope bubbling inside.
"Gabriel? Gabriel! Where on earth are you," A screech pierced my ears, "It's half nine!" She tapped the screen with force, putting it on speaker.
"Effie, Jesus - can you shout any louder? The speaker is right next to my ear and the mic is practically in your mouth, can you speak normally for onc-" Gabe's humble voice protruded from her battered cellphone.
Her eyes widened, "Sorry Gabe! Damn, who burst your bubble this morning? Anyways, Val and I are already at the bridge."
I sighed, silently praying that Gabriel was consumed by his morning regime of reciting the flags of the world and painting carved pieces of driftwood.
"I have a surprise for you both, but I need help. Can one of you come down to the bay? I'm halfway through the woods and I can't make it on my own, I swear I keep seeing shit." Gabriel choked. He seemed to have always chosen the most perfect days for such impractical things. At this point, I didn't know if I'd be home in time to complete the chores before father's arrival.
"Okay, fine, I'll be there in fifteen." Leaving little room for Gabriel to respond, she tucked her phone back into her pocket and bit her bottom lip.
Despite Effie's feisty and uncontrollable nature, she always had a soft spot for Gabriel. If it were anyone else, she would've left them to continue with her own anticipated plans. A heavy sigh was released from the pit of her chest, "I'll just meet you in the woods, alright?" She turned to me, "Go to the clearing that we visited a couple of months ago. Gabe and I will get there in about half an hour."
Not leaving me with much choice at all, she turned on her heel and made her way back in the direction we both came from, the mud squelched sickeningly under her shoes as she shouted back at me, "That's an estimate!"
I stood still in the rain for a solid five minutes. The ends of my hair resembled wet rat's tails by then and with just my shorts and silly pyjama shirt under a coat that felt like wet paper, I regretted not wearing more layers.
The idea of walking into Floran's wood on my own made me freeze on the spot, debating whether I should just wait for Effie and Gabe here by the bridge and swallow my pride, or find shelter in the thick forest canopy. I didn't want to risk Effie having a small tease at me for being a coward, as if I were a child afraid of the monster under my bed, so with that idea, I crossed the uneven limestone bridge and fought through the undergrowth lining the woods.
Seeing the rooftops of houses in Crescent Bay and the sharp steeple of the Bell Tower forced milkshake of regret and guilt inch through me. I imagined father to be working hard, trying to get the most for his money to fill the kitchen at home, all the while being proud that I was helping at home with the chores - not going on absurd 'adventures' and risking my sanity.
After reciting in my head what Effie had said, I began to feel very confused, "Go to that clearing that we visited a couple of months ago?"
What clearing?
Unless I was going insane and had started to lose my mind (which was a fair possibility at that point) I couldn't recall any occasion where we visited Floran's Wood. From my memory, I had never stepped a foot into the place all my life other than that other day which was a complete accident.
There was no way she could've even mistaken someone else's company for mine either. The only rational explanations I had for her thinking this was either she had a very vivid dream of it happening, or she got high with the Crescent Bay group and went into the woods with them one day.
But that doesn't explain why Gabe is coming along.
Although he had no backbone and was always easily persuaded or manipulated to make the same decisions as others, I knew for certain that he would definitely not go into the woods either. Yet apparently he had already done so before and will be again that day. I swallowed hard, trying to push back the lump in my throat. Raindrops tickled down my forehead and cheeks as gravity pulled them closer to her, like lovers.
Come on, Val, get a fucking grip.
I was sick and tired of succumbing to my weak and mousy attributes. Effie laughed in the face of fear, I was cowardly in it. But that day, I wanted to show the world that Valentina wasn't the quiet, shy girl who never dared to put herself out there. I wanted to reinvent myself in that moment and throw myself into the tides of discomfort.
I even believed I could go through a spiritual epiphany which I've heard others describe before; stories of those who are in the darkest of their hours but still manage to climb the steep cliffs out of their ego. Except for me, I'm adventuring out of the safety of a cave I always kept myself within.
Today, I want to be like Effie.
Without a second longer wasted, I pushed myself off the wall of the stone bridge, wet moss tainting my palms green and marched towards the lining of bushes which fenced Floran's Wood.
-
I kinda feel sorry for Val. No one should ever make themselves feel inferior when judging their attributes with someone else's. We're all special and unique in our own way. Although, I do wonder if her effort at being courageous like Effie will pull off or perhaps, Val will just end up digging herself a hole that only gets deeper.
I guess we'll just have to wait and see...
Don't forget to vote if you've enjoyed the story of Earlpond so far!
-Nessa ♡
WC: 1174
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Through the Veil
Romance- a poetic novel - Valentina Voss-Fields was the quiet kind of girl who lived in a magical island known by the name of Earlpond. It was an land only the chosen could find, with a purpose that they only remembered when their minds pierced through the...
