Cerulean Found

Chapter 69 - Strangers in the Night

It has been a week since we had all gone dancing. A night that was supposed to be filled with carefree beats and endless laughs had turned into something more. It was the beginning of an incredible adventure, an adventure that I never could have imagined I would ever be on.

After I so eloquently proclaimed my love to Josh, the two of us reluctantly got out of the Jeep, neither wanting to escape the warmth and coverage of the dry vehicle. And perhaps, neither wanting to escape that moment. That moment when I confessed my feelings for Josh as it rained down all around us.

I walked a few feet behind him, as we headed up the center trail that would lead us to the lagoon and the great Pennial tree. I could barely keep up with him. It was hard walking with no shoes on. With every step that I took my feet sank deep into the slushy mud. It was cold and soft, but occasionally I'd step on something hard, which I assumed was a branch or a stone. Josh kept shining the flashlight on the ground for me to check before I stepped, which was sweet of him, but I really didn't want to know what I was actually walking on. I could only imagine the type of bacteria I was contracting with every step. I couldn't wait to take a shower and cleanse my body.

Even in the canopy of the trees we still got drenched. The rain didn't appear to be letting up either, instead it kept it's heavy and steady downpour.

I was soaked to the bone. I knew my make-up was running down my face, and my hair was plastered to my cheeks, but that didn't bother me anymore, because I knew that Josh loved me regardless of what I looked like. Plus it was completely dark in the forest so there was no way that he could see what a monster I looked like. I didn't even know what I looked like, but I secretly hoped that I looked slightly amazing, kind of like one of those actresses in an action adventure movie who basically go to the ends of the earth fighting evil and, of course, still look gorgeous, covered in mud. I was certain this wasn't true in my case. I knew I didn't hold up well in the rain, our trip to Lukka Pointe proved that theory, but pretending to be a gorgeous actress with my very own action hero, played by Josh, kept my mind busy and off of the topic of my mud covered bare feet.

I clung tight to Josh's jacket, which hit just above my knees. I hoped I didn't ruin it, but I secretly was glad he had offered it to me because there was a slight chill in the air. The rain water was warm, but the earth was cold to the touch and every step that I took sent a shock through my body. There was a strong breeze that kept rushing through the trees causing me to experience a nonstop shiver.

I kept asking Josh if we were almost there, but every time I asked, I never was able to decipher his words. It was hard to hear anything with the constant hum of the rain, the howl of the wind and the loud rumble of thunder. When the lightning flashed, I became momentarily paralyzed as the forest became illuminated in an eerie white glow.

Josh frequently turned around to check on me. He would mumble things that I couldn't make out. I began to wonder if Josh was lost because we had been walking for what felt like over an hour. Finally, Josh stopped. When I caught up to him, I saw that we were standing in a clearing with a large mass of water in the center. We had made it to the lagoon.

Josh shined the dim flashlight to my right. I followed the stream of light with my eyes. I couldn't believe what I was gazing at. It was a huge tree that was bigger than any I had ever seen before. In that instant I knew that we had arrived. We had made it to the great Pennial tree that Josh described from his childhood.

The Pennial tree had a massive reddish purple trunk that must have been at least 7 feet wide. The tree extended into the heavens at least 30 feet, maybe more, it was hard to see the tree in all of its glory in the dark stormy night that engulfed us. As Josh shined the light around the Pennial, my eyes caught sight of the bright green leaves that indeed look like cones. They hung down and all around like bright green Chinese lanterns. The branches extended in every direction -up, down, left, and right. Some hung so low that they were just above my head.