Each piece of art will be paired with a short story of 200-1000 words. The art will be at the bottom of the chapter.
The prompt list I'm using can be found here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CUSzT18LbFp/?utm_medium=share_sheet
Robin huffed, slashing another mark into a tree with his pocket knife. He was out of sight of the campsite by now, and getting lost... well, more lost, wasn't his idea of a fun time. He couldn't believe the others had managed to drag him out here.
He'd been initially very hesitant to the idea of camping in the middle of nowhere. He'd never even been camping without an RV before, let alone outside of a campground. But May had assured him she was experienced, and he, foolishly, had taken her at her word.
It had been fun at first. They'd set up their tents, got together some firewood, and when it got dark, they stayed up singing songs as Gabi strummed her guitar. It had been nice.
And then, when it became morning, May couldn't find the trail back. None of their phones had signal, so May had enlisted the whole group to split up and look for the trail.
They'd been at it for what Robin estimated was an entire day. He'd taken a break in the afternoon, and gotten back to it just as evening set in. Not a smart move in hindsight.
His tiny flashlight barely illuminated the overgrown forest, making the surrounding darkness seem even darker. At least he had been laying a trail of his own. Thank God for survival tv shows.
Robin peered into the brush ahead, seeing no possible way of passing it. He sighed and turned around.
He began walking back the way he came, looking for his last mark. He squinted, taking in his surroundings. Did the trees seem a little... different than they used to? He shook his head, continuing forward.
Where did he put that slash in the tree? He must have passed it by now. He'd gone in a completely straight line! Robin swore, looking around for anything that looked familiar.
Nothing. The crickets chirped, the trees rustled, and there hadn't been a rock there before. Robin knew that there hadn't been. He felt his chest begin to tighten.
"Hello?" He called out, as loud as he could. "May? Gabi?" His shout didn't even echo, muffled by the surrounding brush. He stifled a sob. What did people say to do when you were lost?
Stay in one place. Yeah, he could do that.
Robin sat with his back to the rock that shouldn't have been be there, and took a deep breath. He let out another shout, just in case, but heard nothing back.
Minutes passed. Eventually, even his small flashlight went out, leaving him in complete darkness, except for the faint light of the moon through the clouds. Soon, an hour had passed, and no one had heard his shouts. Then two. And then Robin went to sleep.
When he woke, he could feel the warm sun on his skin. He blinked his eyes open.
The rock was gone. As were many of the trees.
Robin was in what he assumed was some sort of clearing, laying in the tall grass. Sitting up, he saw that he was still surrounded by forest.
All alone.
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