The Legend behind the Falls

Chapter 9

Lexi

Did he say that he was in love with me? How is that possible? He barely knows me.

I mean. I guess I have a little crush on him. He's not as bad as I thought he was. He doesn't really talk at school, and Sam and Jack really like him. Sam says that he doesn't get bullied at all anymore ever since Ryder started sitting by him in math class.

That's gotta count for something.

But in love with me? WTF?

I just turned and started walking again. If we don't keep hiking we'll never make it home before sunset.

"I think we can gather a plant from here for our project" Ryder points out. He pulls out the research he had and points to a plant on the forest floor. We compare it to the drawings we made and realize that it is the same. I pull out a plastic bag and scissors and hand them to Ryder who has reached the plant. I labeled the bag with the name of the plant and the location according to our GPS.

"1 down 12 to go," Ryder says as he put the bag away in his backpack. "Let's go find more plants" and he walked off. I shook my head and followed behind him.

We had already walked for nearly 4 hours and had found a total of 5 native plants and 1 invasive plant. Ryder said we would be coming up to a waterfall soon and it would be a good spot to rest and maybe have a snack. I could hear the rumble of the water getting louder the longer we walked on the trail.

Suddenly we came to a clearing and a clear pool appeared to the left side with a waterfall coming down from the mountains.

"Wow! I've never seen anything so beautiful" I whispered looking at the waterfall.

"Me either" Ryder stated. I turned to look at him and he was staring straight at me. I quickly turned away and looked for a good spot to sit down to rest and eat.

After eating some granola, fruits, and water I was ready for a nap. I took off my shoes to dip my feet into the water. Ryder copied and sat beside me on a rock next to the pool.

"I thought the water would be cold since it's coming from so high up the mountain" I questioned out.

"Yeah, I thought that too, but like your dad said, this place is almost magical," Ryder answered looking into the waterfall.

"Have you ever explored behind the waterfall? It looks like there's a ledge there?" I asked Ryder.

"No, I never have. Should we?" He asked standing and reaching his hand out to help me stand. I placed my hand in his and he pulled me up.

"Yeah! Let's see if there's real magic back there!" I giggled and started walking, Ryder's hand still holding mine.

As we approached the cliff we could see a ledge we could walk on that would take us behind the falls. We approached slowly since it was wet and we didn't want to slip.

When we stepped behind the falls we found a cave and a blue light. We looked at each other and walked in slowly. The blue light was everywhere, but we couldn't figure out where it was coming from. On the wall there was writing.

          When you find the plant that has 1 more 

          Wait until the dark of night

          Under the light of the Goddess Luna

          Make the wish to your hearts delight

"What does that mean?" I asked Ryder.

"I don't know. Doesn't Luna mean moon?" Ryder says.

"Yea, but what does it mean the plant that has 1 more?" I looked at him confused. Ryder shrugs his shoulder.

All of a sudden the blueish light became blueish smoke and we start to cough as we make our way to the mouth of the cave. Only that when we make it to the mouth of the cave we're no longer at the waterfall.