There's a Light

Chapter 17: There's a light!

The heavy rain suddenly poured down as I was walking to catch the bus. I, of course, missed the bus because I was late to leave the office. I was drenched from top to bottom because I did not bring my umbrella with me. I hate this rain. Although I usually love the rain, arriving at the dorm panting and looking like a drenched cat was not in my itinerary for today, nor for tomorrows, or the next day.

Thankfully, the dorm is pretty near and the walk will probably just take me ten minutes. It will probably be a nice exercise if it weren't for the rain that would surely make me sick. Though I do not want to be absent from work when I have just started working. So much for leaving a nice-promotion-worthy first impression.

I ran through the rain. The sun was almost setting as the rain poured down harder. I was clutching my bag in front of me as I ran fast. I was already out of breath and I was shaking from the cold when I suddenly bumped into a tree branch!

My bag is now soaked to the floor. My notebooks and probably all the money from my wallet is probably as wet as I am now.

The world spined as I tried to stand. My vision got blurry and blocked by a red stain-probably my blood. That branch really is tough! It managed to injured my sturdy and stubborn head when my aunt couldn't even give it a scratch.

The heavy rain continued to pour down relentlessly as I struggled to my feet, feeling disoriented and dizzy from the impact. The place around me looked unfamiliar, unlike the usual path I took to reach the dorm. It seemed as if I was in a different part of the town.

Trying to regain my composure, I wiped away the rainwater and blood that blurred my vision. With each step, I felt the ground beneath me become softer, almost like I was stepping at the forest floor. Which is weird, how did I end up here when I was just walking on the road before I bumped into the tree?

Clutching my soaked bag to my chest, I tried to find my way back to the familiar path, but every direction seemed equally foreign. Panic set in as I called out for help, but my voice was swallowed by the rain and the haunting thunder.

Where am I? I was so sure that I was taking the right path. And besides, the direction to reach the dorm was pretty simple. I just had to walk straight and follow the signs I don't remember turning a right or a left.

How come I ended up in the middle of the forest?!

Mr. Willards will get mad at me for sure if he finds out that I entered the forest again--Which I didn't even intend to do! Who would want to go back to the area where they saw a ghost?!

I gave up on shouting and I tried to stay as calm as possible. The sun is already setting and the forest is getting darker. I don't even have any source of light with me. My phone is dead and I don't have a flashlight or a match because why would I bring one to the office? Can this situation get even worse?

As I stood amidst the maze-like forest, the rain continued to cascade down, soaking me to the bone. The ground is now turning into a mud pod and everything is getting wet and slippery.

"Well, Irene, congratulations! You've managed to wander into a forest in the middle of a rainstorm," I quipped to myself, trying to lighten the mood. "At least it's not a haunted forest, right? Wait a minute... didn't I see a ghost around here before? Oh, lovely."

I chuckled nervously, attempting to keep my spirits up despite the increasing darkness and my lack of orientation. "Okay, Irene, focus. I just need to find a stream and follow it. As they said in the movies and it is a fact that there is always a community beside a body river. But first, let's try and go back to the road."

In an attempt to not get lost, I began to make marks, drawing smiley faces and hearts on the trees. The forest may have become a maze, but I was determined to leave my own unique mark. A happy and positive mark to not let myself sink into my stress further. 

I walked further and further as I tried to go back to the road. It felt like I'm already walking for hours in the forest. My feet are already aching and the wound on my forehead stopped bleeding. The sun is also gone, seems like it gave up on me.

Megan is probably really worried now. It's either she's planning to call the cops as she curses me or she's staring at the door as she crosses her arm.

With every step I took, the forest seemed to shift and change around me. A cluster of luminous mushrooms illuminated the ground, casting a soft glow on the path ahead. "Well, isn't that nice?" I said with a grin. "I'm practically having a private light show in the middle of nowhere."

This is probably the forest's reward for me. There's a mushroom like this right? Just like how the Maldives water glows at night. There probably is a mushroom that glows at night. I would have to search about this when I get back.

In the distance, I spotted a faint light, and hope surged within me. "Civilization!" I cried, half-jogging towards the glow. "I knew I'd find my way back."

I excitedly ran to the light. There's no way this isn't the street lights.

"Irene! Stop!" A voice echoed inside the forest. A familiar deep, worried voice.

"Sir Killian?" I stopped on my track and I turned around.

Why is he here? Did Megan told them that I'm missing?

"Sir Killian, I'm here!" I shouted and continued to run to the source of the light, assuming that Sir Killian is there.

"Don't move!" His shout echoed throughout the forest "I'll come and get you!"

"Okay!" I shouted and exhaled.

I can't help but smile as I hugged my bag tightly. I can't believe that Sir Killian is here to help me. I will probably get shouted at later but it is better than staying here, stuck in this green lush forests that seems to not want to let me go. I would rather be with the dazzling Sir Kilian and be stuck with him.

Before Sir Killian could get to me, the light so far away was suddenly in front of me as it erupted-a kaleidoscope of vibrant hues swirling and dancing with a life of their own. My surroundings blurred as the brightness intensified, yet I felt no discomfort; instead, an overwhelming sense of serenity washed over me.

"Killian." I called one last time before my gaze darkens.