"I was once told that when the wind blew; the trees would call out to one another to tell of a weary traveler in order so they could guide him to safety. I now see that when the trees call, they tell of an intruder, so that they may relocate themselves and make it so the traveler found himself lost. For that deceit is what makes the trees living."
BEEP BEEP BEEP. The explosion of the agitating pester awoke Jordan Fells from her seemingly endless slumber. The girl released a tiresome groan and rolled to her left; the comforters that swarmed her petite form were thrown off in a quick motion as she slid from her mattress and onto the faded blue carpet. She wove her hand in front of the motionless sensor as the alarm was silenced, leaving Jordan alone in her nonexistent thoughts.
She was not a morning person. She stalked to the bathroom and snatched at the light switch; the small room becoming bright as her eyes flickered and shut, her arm shielding herself from the sudden burst of light as her pupils adjusted to the new-found scenery. She squinted carefully and slowly allowed her eyelids to open, glancing at her homely appearance that reflected from the glass that stood above the bathroom sink. Her locks of dark brown were twisted into untidy heaps and wrapped with a thin band that seated a bun proportioned unevenly against her oval skull, strands escaping from the mass and falling around her small ears and towards her forehead. She pursed her chapped lips and ran her fingers against her uneven skin tone as she twisted the nozzle of the sink and allowed the warm water to run against her bitter skin. She lowered her face and splashed the liquid across her flesh; the mild heat awakening her as her eyes darted open. She reached forward and pressed a toothbrush to her teeth; removing from her tongue the vile taste of morning, the cool mint shifting between her lips as she untied the hair holder from her locks. Her hair was frayed and wiry, fine and a rich chocolate in color. She fluffed it once, but did not bother to apply product to her face nor hair.
She stripped her cotton nightgown from her body and replaced it with a pair of faded blue skinny jeans and a baggy t-shirt that was detailed in spiraled crystals that she had lain out the night before. She slipped on a pair of socks and pulled on a pair of knee high leather boots that zipped along the side, with a brass buckle at the base before retreating from her bedroom and decending the twisted staircase that seperated the top floor from the bottom. The click of her heeled boots echoed about the foyer as she pulled the strap of her messenger bag over her neck and clutched a binded notebook in her right hand that was fastened shut with a delicate copper lock.
Jordan pulled her bangs from her eyes with her free hand and twisted the brass doorknob; a rush of windchill penetrating the light jacket she pulled over top her t-shirt; the autumn breeze severing her cheeks as her bleached skin altered to a faded pink as her body trembled, her arms wrapping about her shoulders as she tried to form a natural insulator; her hands rubbing the jacket's sleeves in an attempt to create a friction that would warm her body.
The creak of the wooden door's clasps signified that another was exiting Jordan's home. "Jordan! Did you eat breakfast?" The voice hollered in an anxious call. Jordan disregarded the comment and continued her light stride down the sidewalk, the puff of her breath against the air swarming her lips like a cloud of thin smoke. She was bitter since her parent's separation, and despised the fact that she would remain in the custody of her father until next summer. She was bitter because as much as her father tried, he could not replace the comforting touch of a mother's embrace.
The hues that decorated the trees delivered an array of a sunset even in the shadowed hour. The gentle swish and crunch of the already fallen foliage under her feet allowed her to forget her troubled present and her resentment towards her father as the browns pulverized under her footing with every step. The beams of a headlight several meters behind her caused Jordan to shift to the interior of the sidewalk, timid towards the motorized vehicles that her classmates drove in an unruly and carefree manner. She breathed evenly and pulled the collar of her jacket closer to her neck as a gentle gust swept through the rural development; the breeze arousing the fallen leaves that settled about the asphalt. The gentle whisper of the trees above her as the branches danced in the invisible air caused her lips to form a thin smile. Autumn. What a beautiful time of the year.
It was 6:03 am when she entered the vacant corridors of Treverson High. The white flicker of the school's lights remained dim, the hour to early for even the electricity to stir. The gentle grumble of the ancient vents delivered a pleasant temperature that shielded her from the bitter nature that roamed beyond the drywall. She carried herself down the stairs, the echo of her leather boots against the tiles the only signification that life roamed the hallways. She made a turn and turned the metal hook of a handle that was stationed at the opposite end of the D-wing and she entered. She found herself in a comfortable enviorment; shelves lined with texts from different cultures, of different genres, of stories where even the impossible was possible. This was where she remained. She would remain here until the bell that signified class was sprung. Here was where she felt truly at home. Here was a place where she could be welcomed, where even the impossible...was possible.
YOU ARE READING
beLIEve
AdventureA war between two nations. A regular group of high school students, who are living their lives as mortal children, discover that a close friend of theirs is hiding a secret that can destroy the lives of not only them, but also their families. These...
