Chapter 24
"Trees"
Tuesday December 2nd

APOV

I awoke in the middle of the night with a throbbing headache. I rolled over, sat up and slid my feet onto the floor. I made sure that my feet were stable before I attempted to stand. My eyes shot open then, and I instantly cringed back. I had left my light on, and my brief second of exposure to the blearing light only sent another blast of pain through my temples. I clutched my head for dear life and stood wearily, making my way into my small bathroom.

I shuffled around in the cabinet before finding the bottle of Tylenol. I slowly popped it open, dumping two in my hand. I closed the lid and gently placed it on the sink, but abruptly picked it back up, reopening it, and dumping out two more pills. I felt around the rim of the sink, finally feeling the water glass. I took the medicine and dumped the extra water down the drain, before cringing again, as I walked back into my bright room. Through squinted eyes I found the light switch and flicked ot off, suddenly remembering I should take some food with this. Sigh.

I walked in a zombie like state across the basement; through the large living room, through the entryway, through the small office, around the corner, and up the stairs. I opened the door entering to the upstairs and another beam of light smacked me across the face. The kitchen lights were beaming, mocking me, ridiculing my headache. I grimaced and found a pudding cup from the cupboard, ripped it open, found a spoon and dug in. Just then my mom came bounding down the stairs.

"Afternoon, sleepy! You really shouldn't eat that without dinner." She said, in a light tone. I did not mean to glare at my mother, it just happened. Her afternoon reference made me wonder what time it really was. I knew that I had slept for an hour after I got home, only getting up to put disinfectant on my wrist and forehead. And to change my pants. Oh no!

I looked down only to see that I was, in fact, still wearing the same tee-shirt from today, paired with a pair of grey boxers. I grimaced. Great, just great. I rolled my eyes, and looked over at the clock. It read ten fifty three. I sighed and slid into a barstool at the counter, picking at the goopy drown stuff that I was putting into my mouth. My mom excused herself and went back upstairs as she heard her phone going off. I nodded, and returned to my dinner.

I realized just then that I wanted someone to talk to. I really, really wanted someone that I could just explain my whole messed up situation to. I rolled my eyes at my own idea and sighed. It as eleven on a school night. I shouldn't call anyone. Another sigh. i threw my pudding up away and wandered into the living room, looking out the window. I pressed my forehead against the cold glass, and cupped my hands around my face, looking outside. I watched the wind blowing through the trees in a hypnotic like state. It was quite soothing. I grabbed the blanket off of the recliner closest to me and walked back into the kitchen, sliding open the glass door, and stepping outside.

The icy air whipped around me, and I pulled the blanket around my shoulders, wrapping it around my body. I stared up at the trees, wind making the barren branches dance in the darkness. I smiled and walked a few steps closer to the line of trees, wrapping the think blanket tighter, and lying on the cold, hard ground. I introduced myself to the branches swaying above me, and laughed at myself doing so, but continued talking, nonetheless. I told the branches that I had several problems, and no one to talk to. They simply silently swayed, as the icy wind danced them about. They seemed to wave at me to continue, so I did, gladly.

I told them about my stupid emotions and my detachment today from my buddies, my headache, and lack of person's to talk to. I suddenly chuckles and shook me head, fighting a shiver up my spine. I realized I was talking to trees, and sat up. Suddenly, I heard a snap in the forest. My heart accelerated, and my breath caught. I stood up slowly, heart pounding from my chest, making its way up my esophagus, into my throat. I wrapped and blanket around me tighter, as I took small steps backward. I whirled around on my heel and ducked through the glass door, quickly sliding it shut behind me, heart still pounding. Get yourself together, Aiden, it was a tree. Yeah, a tree that moves?

I got a cold drink of water, calming my nerves, and went back into the living room. I sat down on the couch, and realized that I was shivering. I grabbed the quilt off of the back of the couch and pulled it on top of me, snuggling under its warmth. I involuntarily yawned, breathing an a massive amount of oxygen, clearing my head and calming my nerves. I sighed and settled into the blankets. At least the trees listened...

Suddenly I was clawing the the branches, hands shaking violently knees trying to clamp down tighter on the rough bark; trying to climb higher. The sweet rust flavor ran into the corner of my mouth, and I choked back on the taste. My nerves were only making the blood pump harder, run faster. It tickled as the warm liquid reached my chin. I drew in a ragged breath, trying to stop the violent spill of tears, but it was no use. The hot rain leaked from my eyes, blurring my vision. I clenched tighter to the tree and buried my face in the bark.

Help! I silently screamed. Won't somebody help me!? I opened my mouth to speak, but my shaking jaw would utter no words; no sound but a small whoosh of air that flowed over my lips. The shaking of my arms spread to my back and down my spine, eventually making my entire torso quiver with fear. I couldn't think. I couldn't do anything but hang on. My arms and legs were growing weak. The aching spread to my neck as it stiffened. My calves and shoulders burned, but I was dead set on hanging on. I heard the cracking of the branches below, and winced, tightening my grip on the rough tree. My entire body was aching, burning, weak. I couldn't hold on any longer. Hot tears once again spilled over my lids, and I gripped them shut tightly. My chest tightened and I screamed internally; outwardly coming out as nothing more than a harsh, pleading whisper.

"…no…!" My hands dropped off of the tree, scraping against the jagged bark, and my legs followed. My arm barely missed a branch as it fell. My body then followed. I was pushed backwards by the horrible thing of gravity that was shoving me downward quite fast. I silently screamed again, and pulled my arms and legs in to a fetal position, anticipating my impending demise that was the ground. My body stopped abruptly, landing much softer than anticipated. I sucked in a ragged breath and waited for the pain. It never came. The only pain that my body was enduring was, no doubt, from the aching tenseness of my muscles.

Suddenly, I felt myself being placed on the ground gently, as I felt the wet grass and soft earth beneath my fingertips. I squinted open my blurry eyes, barely seeing a silhouette in the moonlight. My breath caught, heart accelerated, and my hands started to shake again. I saw the figure suddenly spin around, and was at my side before I could react. I clenched my eyes closed and internally screamed out into the darkness. I felt something brush up against my arm, and cringed away, pleading silently not to be harmed. I felt something on my face then, but before I could turn away, I realized what it was.

It was flesh. It was a hand. It was a very warm, comforting hand, trailing down the side of my face. A shiver shot up my spine, and I reached my own hand up, but it was stopped. A warm embrace engulfed my wrist, pinning it to the ground. An ounce of panic shot through me, before subsiding. I took a deep breath and calmed the nerves. The small voice in my head was screaming at me to try and get away, to run; not to relax. It was questioning my sanity, and why I would not be afraid. I tried to answer it, coming up with nothing. I didn't know why I wasn't afraid. The warm skin that was on mine comforted me. I wanted nothing more than to be wrapped in an entire embrace, and never let go.

I felt the warmth draw nearer and nearer until it was hovering over my head, warming my cold flesh like a campfire on a chilly night. The hand trailed down my face again, slowly wiping the wetness off of my cheeks, before resting on my jaw. I then felt hot liquid drop onto my forehead, sliding down my hairline. I heard a deep, ragged intake of breath, a sob, if you will, as I felt the wind of air was taken in, chilling the temperature only slightly. Hot breath spread across my face, slightly intoxicating me, as the beautiful deep voice offered only two painful words.

"I'm sorry."

Suddenly, the conscious that resided in my brain decided to finally appear. It made me realize that I was in nothing more than a dream, running from nothing more than something I was secretly afraid of. Yet, the thing that I was running from wound up comforting me, instead. My mind mused over these ideas, the terrifying dream, and the difficult symbolism. Then something clicked. The haze of understanding slowly started to lift as a piece of the mysterious dream was uncovered.

I sat up, clutching my head with my hand, allowing hot tears of my own to spill onto my face and drop into my lap. I drew in several stifling breaths before composing myself. Then… I smiled. I decided right then and there that I was done trying to figure things out, and done trying to run from them. I had crossed over that oh-so-scary line. So be it. I was done spending all my time over-emotionalizing it.

However, I was not done with one particular thing. Or, should I say, person. There was something unexplained there, I sensed it in my blood. It tingled over my body, and made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. It made the wind around me so much sweeter, the air lighter, and my heart ecstatic. I didn't know what was going on, but I didn't care. I was accepting that there were unexplained things going on, and I was willing to let them be unexplained. I was not, however, willing to let myself run away from this. It was too good to let go.

I wiped the wetness off of my face and smiled a triumphant smile. I slid off of the couch and flipped the light on, looking at the clock. It read 6:57. I yawned and stretched, breaking into a grin, laughing at myself for the flighty feeling that I got when I thought of going back to school. Happy about school? I shook my head. Oh, I am a mess. I thought, laughing. Before practically skipping downstairs to get ready.