“Goodnight, kiddo,” my dad said. Turning over, he kicked the tent and groaned. But it didn’t take long for him to fall asleep.
“Goodnight,” I mumbled. He yanked the blanket from me, revealing the true strength of the wind that night.
Staring at the ceiling of the tent I felt uneasy. The cold currents rustled the nylon fabric, only adding to the sound of my snoring father. I turned, scowling at him as he lay completely sprawled out, poking me in the ribs with his elbow. Another gust, sending me into fetal position. Grabbing my arms for warmth, I immediately flinched. My fingers were like ice, chilled to the bone.
That’s how I felt inside. No warmth left. No feelings, no thoughts, except for the desire for my dad to shut up. Another gust. I huffed in defeat, getting up to unzip the tent. The wind was strong, smelling of wet grass and rain. My teeth chattering, I made the decision to leave. The heaviness of the air tugged on my heart. I’m not meant to be alive, not like this. “I'm sorry, dad,” I whispered. My last goodbye.
I had a place in mind, so I followed the river, balling my frigid fingers into fists. Pushing through the thick brush ahead of me, our campground got smaller and smaller as I continued; the fire flickered until it was nothing from my point of view. Sticks and pinecones crunched under my steps. The sky of ink above me was unforgiving, its cold full moon lighting my path to what would be my eternal freedom.
My ears rang; I dug my fingers into them and slowly it faded. Finally reaching the end of the river, I realized how high I had actually been. The waterfall was powerful and loud, thrashing its might down the sheer drop. Long way down, I thought as my knees began to tremble. My sleeves flew up, and with instinct I pulled them down, my icy fingers stinging my skin. I was alone, but even I couldn’t bear to look at my scars anymore, I just wanted to pretend they were never there. As I stared at the moonlit lake far below tears welled up in my vision. The tip of my nose burned fiercely as I tried to hold back my emotions. I just wanted to stop the scars; my heart stomped in my frozen body as I thought.
As I inched closer to the edge, the thought of the fall became calming, almost. The ripples in the lake below making tiny splashes as a way to entice me. The breeze making the cattails and tall grasses dance. The fireflies’ flecks of twinkling green light. My body ignited as if aflame, ready for freedom.
My ears rang again, a glare speckled in my peripheral vision. I turned to it, seeing something in the water. Sleek as an eel, a long iridescent tail almost glowed in the night, gliding between the tall rocks in the running river. In disbelief, I stumbled back, not believing my eyes. There it was again. The glow traveled slowly through the water, almost towards me. My ears rang, almost painful this time with the sound of a voice, clear as a nightingale.
Then it emerged, a woman with skin pale as milk. Her silvery hair wrapped around her cheeks, visibly rouged even in the night. Her bottom half was that of a fish, layered in scales the same color as the moon. Stars gleamed in her eyes and her melody only rang clearer. From the rippled water she reached towards me, changing her pitch as if speaking through song.
“Come to me,” she sang. She never spoke the words, but they appeared in my head. Her face held a serene expression, her white hand grasping at the air in front of me. Her starry eyes locked onto me, and her voice rang through my ears beautifully. I took a step towards her, I felt like I had to. This beautiful creature was calling to me and with each step I took she glowed brighter, warmth emanating from her. “This way,” she beckoned again. My body was taken over by her voice, her aura lifting its weight until it was wind as well. Tears curtained my cheeks as I was swept away. Reaching out to her, our fingertips met. Hers, as hot as flames, and mine, cold as ice, intertwined. She held my weightless body, rocking me as if I was a baby. Changing her pitch, she traced her fire along my cheeks, swirling on them as if swimming in my skin. Seeing her closely, her face glistened in the moonlight, only making her more desirable. Her breath smelled of lavender and her hair lifted off of her body with a mind of its own. Closing her star-filled eyes, she leaned forward. I closed mine in anticipation, completely entranced by her music. A kiss was placed on my forehead, and my vision went clear. The storm of thoughts that clouded my mind was swept away with the wind of the night, warmth flooding into my body, a tsunami forcing the ice out. She pulled back, serenely looking at me, and I was happy. Finally happy.
A twig snapped in the distance, forcing my eyes away from the creature in the water.
“Darla?” my dad said emerging from the trees. “Sweetie, it’s freezing out here, what are you doing? It scared me half to death when you weren’t in the tent. Wow, this is high!” He pushed the bushes from his face as he came forward, leaves crunching under him. It hadn’t seemed to click for him that he never would have seen me again after this night. I focused my eyes back to the woman to find nothing. I reached for her, begging inside for her to reappear, for her to hold me again. But the water continued to thrash as it did when I arrived. The wind the same temperature, the glow vanished from sight. She was gone.
“Oh, sorry dad,” I said as casually as I could while wiping my face. “I just wanted some fresh air.. and it’s pretty out here.”
“Well next time, can you at least let me know? You’re lucky I went in the right direction, there could be so many dangerous animals out here,” he said, animating his head movements around. “Can we go back to the tent, please? The fire’s pretty too, I promise.” He reached for my hand. Taking it, we started along the path to our camp. The fire’s flicker returning through the trees as we continued.
I tugged at my sleeves again, but not in shame. I could still hear the woman’s high pitched hymn in my ears, ringing with pure joy. I felt the warmth under my skin spread all the way to my fingers, thawing them of their ice. A rush of wind blew past, lifting my sleeves again. Oh my God, I thought. I held my wrists up to see nothing. Nothing but clear, pale skin. I held them up to the moonlight. My scars, gone.
I felt the tip of my nose burn again as a tear fell from my eye. The nothingness I felt blossomed into purpose. I didn’t want my dad to shut up anymore. I just wanted a hug.
“Darla, are you crying? What’s wrong?” I hugged him. Something I haven’t done in a long time. “Jeez!” he said, startled. I don’t blame him, but it only took a second for him to hold me like he used to. It felt good. “I love you, you know that?”
“I love you, dad.”
We walked the rest of the way, twigs snapping under our feet as we went.
Olivia Adorno is a 12th grade creative writing student from Pembroke Pines Charter High School. Her writing habits tend to lean to a more ‘fantasy world,’ and she loves to paint pictures with her words.
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