Wow, thanks for the reviews guys! I didn't even have to ask! :D For this chapter, though, I will update as soon as I get 5 more reviews, whenever that is. I like this chapter, but I think I like the next one more. This one starts off kind of boring, I know. Sorry about that, had to get the camp out of the way. Anyway, here you go! Chapter 3 of "Loyal as a Dog." By the way, does anyone have any opinion on the title? Thanks,
-M.F.
Jimmy with Gina in front of him. Which wasn't the best, but wasn't the worst.
But guess who was behind me?
Yeah… Seth.
Once, twice, and a third time. So, three times I tripped on the path that was layered with roots and rocks and holes. Now, I have never been a clumsy girl, so I would like to blame my tripping so much on the fact I had never been "hiking" outside of the school trips, and…
My one true love was behind me. He was right there. Right there!
I wanted to, oh I don't know, trip backwards maybe, and he would catch me and we would look at each other and laugh and he would say-
Oh. Guess I am just like all those other girls now. Engineering my own movie moment, I mean.
I decided my own personal health required me to focus on the path. I hiked my bag higher up onto my shoulder and marched on, watching more carefully for natural obstacles. We hiked up a small hill, then wound to the left, then went down another hill until we were in a small valley with a rim of hills around us, except for one side that was flat. On the flat side, there was a river, flowing clear and strong.
Girls set up on one side, boys on the other with a campfire area in between. Then, for the rest of the day we were free. Until dinner, anyway.
Gina and I had to share a tent, as we had signed up to, so it was somewhat tense pitching it and then bringing our stuff inside.
"Hey… Look, I am sorry." Gina's face was hidden by the tent material, her hands working at looping a pole through one end, but her voice was clear. "I shouldn't have reacted like that. I will support whoever you like, so long as he makes you happy."
"Okay, forgiven." I was over our little tiff, and happy to make up with her. When we pitched our tent, we decided to go with a group of people going exploring. Seth and Jimmy were in the group. Along with 5 other girls and 3 other boys.
We hiked over one side of the round hill, everyone laughing at Melanie's trouble. She refused to get her hands dirty, so she was trying to balance the whole way. Not gonna happen.
Then we all ran down the hill, away from camp, bumping into trees and each other. We split into smaller groups and wound through more trees. Gina, myself, and two other girls ended up with Seth and Jimmy.
"Think there is anything out here?" one of the girls asked, her tone peculiar.
"Don't be stupid, Mandy. What could be out here? A rabid rabbit?" the other girl answered.
"Whatever, Sarah. I was just wondering… if people had ever gone, I don't know, "missing" out here." Mandy leaned up against one tree and we stopped walking.
"Missing?" I asked, crossing my arms.
"Yeah. Like, serial killers, wild animals, accidents… There are lots of possibilities."
"I doubt anything will get us while we are on our school trip," Jimmy answered, shoving his hands in his pockets, a big grin on his face. "Besides, you girls have two big strong guys like me and Seth, no reason to worry!"
"My hero," Gina mocked. Jimmy let out a laugh and we followed suit.
It was fun. I was having fun. Then I got one of my feelings. The I'm-being-watched feeling.
I pondered this while the others continued walking.
"Coming?" Seth asked, looking back at me while the others continued.
"Oh, yeah, duh," I answered with a nervous laugh, catching up to him.
"You scared at all?" Seth said, in a teasing tone.
"Me? Of course not! I am a girl that can take care of herself!"
"Suuure you are, I'll remember that."
"As you should." I started laughing at the sheer freeness of talking to Seth.
We walked on for a while, laughing and listening to the others talking about this or that. And then I fell into Seth.
I swear to God, it was not on purpose. Seriously.
I tripped over this random rock and fell into him and his arms totally caught me. The surprise was, he was on fire. Like, he was really warm. Okay, not hot warm, just warmer-than-your-average-bear warm. Not quite Yogi status.
I looked up at him, shocked, but that didn't last long.
"Hey, look at this!" Mandy called from ahead. We broke apart and walked over to where she was standing, staring down at the body of an animal.
"Oh my God…" I heard Gina whisper. The animal's- a boar- head area was covered with blood, as was its left leg.
"What do you think happened?" I thought out loud, looking up at Seth. His face shocked me as much as his temperature, if not more, as he looked down at the animal. A mixture of pain and disgust and… defiance. I looked at Jimmy and his expression was the same.
"Lets keep going, it is stupid to just stand here. This is the circle of life, and what not." Sarah began walking, and we followed slowly.
We walked along a hilltop, a thick cluster of trees to our left. Gina, Sarah, and Mandy were discussing the boar while Seth, Jimmy, and I remained quiet.
Then I made the mistake of looking into the cluster of trees; my feeling of being watched was at an extreme. I made the mistake of looking into the trees, and seeing a devastatingly beautiful face look back, but only for a second.
But that second was enough to make me forget the ground and trip. Rolling down the steep hill into the trees.
Toward the beautiful monster that awaited a fresh meal.
