Author's Note: Hello! I may have given a longer hiatus of my other fanfic "nobody's dream" than I intended to. I was a horrible person and decided to give this one a try. If you like Yu-Yu Hakusho fanfic's feel free to see that one out. If not, I hope you enjoy this. This was a challenge by a friend of mine to create an OCxOC type story. There will be mature content throughout. Let me know what you think. Creative criticism is always welcome.
What was it about the day that bothered her?
It was sunny out but the warmth wouldn't reach Paige. She was about to go on a trip to the local forest with her friend Damien after a long round of exams at her college. Both had decided to come back to Paige's hometown and visit her mother and check out the local haunts.
Damien had called her up a couple days ago asking to go on a picnic to the Southern forest. She had accepted and agreed to help prepare half of their meal. Today was the day they would be setting out and she was giddy, trying to keep the smile from her face as she walked towards the public transit.
Paige had met Damien a few years ago at their local college. She had been studying art history at the time they met and was in the process of finishing her final. As she was walking out with her portrait of a man who volunteered to model nude for their class, she ran straight into Damien and smacked the painting onto the floor, where the canvas frame cracked.
Not exactly the best way to meet your new friend, but it was all downhill from there.
Paige stared out at the city whizzing by and saw herself staring back in the reflection of the window. Her dark brown eyes which were so light they looked to be honey colored stared back at herself in furrowed brows. The woman's full lips were pulled into a frown as she thought back to the grade she received on that final. An F that would continue to haunt her academic career until her graduation the following year. Thank goodness she had Damien to help her drown her sorrows in liquor at the time. He felt so bad about it, but in a sense, she was glad she didn't have to put a naked man on display for others to see. The man himself was awkward to look at and made it difficult to paint. You could tell where she had quickly made a sketch and which areas she focused on. Everywhere but a certain area held much detail, from the red moles on his legs near his thigh, to the folds and wrinkles of his middle-aged face.
No, the only place she didn't focus her attention on was his junk.
His no-no square.
His unmentionables.
The last thought made Paige snort through her mouth and cover the lower half of her face, trying to keep the stupid joke from coming out in the form of a laugh. The poor man tried to be a good volunteer model, but she couldn't keep herself from feeling awkward and modest at the thought of painting nude models.
In the long run, Paige had forgiven Damien for his accidental bump into her, mostly because she didn't have to deal with a giant nude painting in her portfolio. The poor guy had spent weeks trying to make it up to her, and after the second week she had caved and just forgave him outright. The man knew how to apologize, that was for sure. The final straw that led to him being forgiven was when she was wallowing in self-pity at her F of the final at the bar, drinking her cares away. Damien had found her and decided to be her wingman and drinking buddy for the night.
What a good guy.
Honey eyes stared as the cityscape turned into rural blurs of spots of green and yellows. By the time she arrived at the forest she could see Damien hanging out by a giant walnut tree the size of a two story building. Paige pounced off the bus and happily walked over to meet with her friend.
"Damien! Hey!" she cheered and stumbled down the steps of the bus. She blushed in embarrassment as the passengers giggled at her clumsy exit. She reached him and stared up at his tall frame, taking in his features much as an artist would with their model. He had a good foot and three inches on her five foot 5 chubby frame. Her curly black hair was drawn up on top of her head in a messy bun not unheard of for an artist to have and her bright brown eyes were hidden behind sepia-toned sunglasses. Her smile was like a thousand-watt bulb as she reached her friend and hugged him.
While things started off rocky with the two, Damien had proven himself time and time again that he was a loyal friend and a close confidant.
Damien smiled and his dark brown eyes crinkled in delight as he saw his friend, "Hey!," he enthused, "Nice picnic basket, there!" he joked as she brought up a plastic grocery store bag filled with half of their picnic.
She rolled her eyes and smacked him upside his dirty-blonde hair. He flinched but laughed heartily at her and rubbed his head.
"Come on man! I'm a broke artist, what do you want from me?"
He groaned at her response.
"You may be a broke-ass artist, but you'll make it eventually. Have more confidence!" he said in earnest.
She rolled her eyes once more. He really was a good person. He was one of the few (ok, maybe only) friends who she believed it when he said she could make it as an artist.
She became more embarrassed at his eager belief in her and shoved her hands into denim overall shorts. Her tophalf being covered by a green short sleeve crop top. She shoved him and he shoved back playfully.
They shoved each other playfully as they walked further into the forest. It was such a nice sunny day out with giant fluffy clouds making their way across the sky, but the warmth of the sun didn't seem to reach into the forest itself either. It felt almost as if it was holding its breath in waiting.
The forest was actually a federal preserve to the local wildlife, but many of the locals had nicknamed it Roanoke Forest since many who entered wound up disappearing without a trace. Due to all the disappearances, the locals also believed the forest to be haunted.
Now that Paige was closer and actually within the forest, she could see why the townspeople spoke about it being haunted. She shook her head. She liked to believe in the mythology of life, but there was little to actually make her believe that anything on the magical spectrum was real. No ghosts appeared to her while growing up, no such things as monsters under the bed. Just regular old horrors like thieves and humans with bad intentions.
The thought that this place could prove her wrong made a shiver crawl down her spine, whether in anticipation or fear, she wasn't sure.
"What's the matter? You scared of some local myths and legends now, Paige?" smirked Damien
She pouted and was tempted to stick out her tongue, being called a chicken was high on Paige's list of buttons not to be pushed that Damien was always eager to push and get a rile out of her. She held her breath and counted to ten mentally before letting said breath go again in a woosh.
"No," she began in a defensive manner, "I just think that it's a little chilly out right now" she finished pathetically.
Damien just smiled and ruffled her hair, "Sure, squirt."
Paige's cheeks puffed in annoyance again but chose better to hold her tongue. Her honey eyes scanned the forest area. Despite the chill in the air, the forest itself was beautiful.
Beautiful in a way that also whispered of hidden dangers. There was the sound of a body of water not too far in the distance, far enough away that one couldn't see where exactly it was.
"Let's go eat our lunch by the river!" enthused Damien with a boyish grin.
Paige grinned back and nodded, "Sure!"
They trudged out into the wilderness, following the animal-made pathways and trails throughout the forest itself. As they walked they could hear the birds singing and the mysterious rustling that was no doubt other small critters going about their day. Forest seemed alive as they traveled further into it, spotting wildflowers and berry bushes around the overgrowth they traveled through.
The sun's rays could barely penetrate the forest canopy, which created a soft light effect on the area with various areas that were punctured by the bright sun above the shelter of the canopy pf trees.. It made Paige feel as though she were seeing the wild for the first time. No way man had touched the virgin forests with how far in they had walked. If there was ever a time to believe in the Green Man and Mother Nature, this would be the place to see them.
Paige breathed in and closed her eyes as she tilted her face upward to one of the spots where the sun had broken through. She was used to the sounds of the nature as she had grown up close to the forest as a child. Her and her mother lived in a small one story home that was on the edge of the city for her childhood all the way up until her college years, when she had to go away. Ofcourse she would visit every holliday she had the chance, but it was difficult when she lived many hours away from home with no way to get there except by the generosity of strangers and public transportation.
She let her breath leave her body in one big sigh and she smiled up at the trees. Paige was glad to be back near her hometown and in the forest she used to live next to. She had never been this deep into the forest before, however she was glad she had explored further now that she was older. It would have been dangerous for a young Paige to explore on her own. .
They must have walked for about forty-five minutes before they finally found the source of the water noises Paige heard when they first entered into the area. Little did she know it was actually a huge rushing river, cutting right through the forest with the force of the Mississippi River. Many who grew up in the South or along the Mississippi itself could attest to the rapids that were created within the river, and this one seemed no different in nature: violent and awe-inspiring.
Damien and Paige slipped down the shoulder of the riverbed and slowly made their way down, hoping to find a less violent portion of the body of water.
After walking down stream for another twenty minutes they found a little whirlpool off to the side of the main river which was calm and clear enough to see the beautifully pebbled bottom of the river.
"Don't they look like gems, when they're in the water like this?" enthused Paige her hands itching to sketch the scenery.
Damien nodded his head and grunted, his mind more occupied on getting their picnic set up and getting down to eating.
Paige laughed and began to set up their picnic with Damien.
The young man brought sandwiches and some drinks while Paige brought the sides, such as potato salad, various salsas, and some left over bean soup that her mother taught her the recipe to.
"What was it that you called this soup again?" Damien asked as he heaped portions onto his paper plate and bowl.
"Frijoles charros. Drunken beans cooked in some beer with bacon and other things." stated Paige as she also heaped food onto her plate and into her own bowl.
Both were positively salivating and both were met with the sounds of nature again as they dug into their meals.
After a while both came up for air from the food and began chatting about various things and reminiscing about the past.
They laughed and chatted for a while before the both of them decided to jump into the river and check out the area.
It was almost impossible to imagine such a serene area could be located on such a forceful river, but there it was.
Paige walked waded within the water and relished the feeling of the cool water on her hips and legs and the humid air on her upper half. The two feelings contrasted nicely and made her truly feel that summer had arrived within the area. Cicada's were screaming in the distance, which was her way of understanding that summer had truly arrived. This place was truly a wonder in itself.
The forest continued from Paige's hometown all the way until it met the coast in a tiny strip. If she were to look at it from a map it would look like one of those hurricane maps where the tail of the hurricane would be the outlet to the coastal area and continuing in larger areas until it reached its destination or even like a horn, with the base being larger than the tip.
She dunked her jet black hair under the cool clear water and stared around at the wonder of the underwater world that was the small pool whirling just off of the river. She saw the sparkling pebbles, the various underwater plants that clung to boulders just hidden under the crystal clear water, and she could have sworn she could see how the currents moved around the whirlpool before exiting. Almost as if the water was taking a break from itself. It left the pool only to be swept back up into the swift current of the gorgeous white water river.
The further down she looked the more miraculous the body of water was. It had giant boulders jutting out of the middle of the stream at random intervals, no doubt from early tectonic activity. Long ago when the plates were much more active than they were now.
Certainly this place was one of wonder and magic.
Paige felt a tug at her ankle and was immediately submerged up over her head and began sputtering as she came up for air,
"What the hell?!" she coughed and choked as she saw Damien cackling out to her left and pushing his hair out of his eyes.
She used her arm like a giant wave maker and splashed the man with a wall of water, "You asshole! You could have killed me!" she sputtered.
Damien cackled even harder and waved his hand at her in a 'calm down' motion.
She glared at the man and then smirked evilly. Her eyes were lidded with mischievous intentions as she ducked and disappeared before Damien's eyes could open from his bout of laughter.
As he calmed, he opened his eyes and looked around, "Paige?" he asked. She was nowhere to be found in the clear water or the bank of their little whirlpool.
Where did she go?
Damien called out for her again and waded further into the water, worried his friend had fallen into the current only to hear a feminine warcry warble from above him.
Paige had climbed out of the water and behind Damien had a chance to see where she had gone and pounced on him. They wrestled within the water and she dunked him multiple times while laughing gleefully.
After what felt like an eternity, both decided to call a truce and get out of the water. Damien and Paige were careful in getting out as the boulders they climbed down to reach the water earlier were overgrown with algae and moss, which made it tricky to maneuver the terrain.
As Paige began to climb out of the water, she felt her feet slip and she screamed as she fell back and into the edge of the pool where the waters were too rough for either of them to travel near.
Her eyesight was obscured by the violent raging of the river and plant life that hide the dangerous current from both of them. She could feel herself being pulled by some undertow. She coughed and screamed for Damien,
"Help!" she coughed as she struggled to keep her head above the water. She felt her head knock into something, likely another boulder.
Her vision became clouded by red and was blurry, no doubt a concussion.
Stupid boulder.
Her body flailed around as she felt the water drag her further downriver, and she could barely hear Damien's screams for her over the roaring of the river itself.
Her eyes began to unfocus more and she could feel herself slowly fading away as the river bashed her body against various pieces of debris. Paige knew that this was likely it.
Bitter resentment for the river made her cry out underwater, using the last of her oxygen as her eyesight turned gray at the edges and she felt herself relax into what was going to be her watery grave.
Who knew if they would find her body. If they did, she knew her mother would be heartbroken and she would never get a chance to explore all she had planned of the forest, of her hometown, of wherever she wanted to travel to. She would be leaving behind a world she had worked hard to be successful in. She would be leaving her mom behind too.
Damien would be left behind as well.
None of that seemed to really matter as her mind grew more fuzzy and she closed her eyes in bitter resignation.
If only she had listened to her mother about not going into the woods.