A Full Moon Rising

Chapter Two

That afternoon, Camila walked into her house and put her stuff down. She didn't even acknowledge her parents and sister in the family room because she wanted to start her project as soon as possible.

Running up the stairs, she went into her room and grabbed her camera. After setting it up and grabbing what she needed, she headed back out.

There was a hiking path that led into the mountains down the street she lived on, so she headed there. It was a nice day and she was grateful that there wasn't any crappy weather outside.

After walking the trail for half an hour, she came to a break in the trees, which allowed a beautiful view of the range of mountains in the distance. She noticed there is a lake in front of the mountain, allowing there to be a perfect reflection. This is a perfect place to do her pictures.

Camila pulled her camera out of her camera bag and set it down on the rock next to her. After taking a few pictures from multiple different angles, she decided she wanted one while she was standing on top of the huge rock beside her.

She was almost all the way to the top when her foot slipped and her leg got caught and scraped by a sharp edge of the rock.

"Shit!" She yelled in agony. The rock was sharp enough to break skin and draw blood. The blood was now running fast down her leg. While looking at the wound, Camila heard the crunching of leaves behind her. The sound was in a pattern and getting louder, like someone was walking up to her. She turned around and couldn't believe whom she saw.

"Lauren?"

"Are you okay?" She asked in a raspy voice. Camila has never heard her speak before and she was shocked that the girl could even speak.

"Not really." Camila spoke up. "I was trying to do my photography project and I slipped on the rock. It scraped my skin and drew a lot of blood."

Lauren leaned down and analyzed the wound. "This will need a bandage." She stood back up and looked around, analyzing where they were.

"Do you live near here?"

"Yeah I live on the road where the trail starts."

Lauren nodded, "Okay. I'll take you home." She leaned down and grabbed Camila's legs with one arm and the other arm holding her lower back. She picked her up and carried her bridle style down the rock.

"You don't have to carry me you know," Camila said.

"I know but this is a serious wound. It would help lessen the likelihood of shock and reduce bleeding if the legs are elevated. Plus, losing a lot of blood can make a person feel faint or dizzy and they can pass out. Walking by yourself isn't a good option."

Camila looked at her, "How did you know that?"

"My aunt," Lauren explained. "She's big on medicine and healing. The few years I have lived with her so far, she taught me a lot of what she knows."

Camila nodded, "I need to get my bag. It's by those trees over there." She said, pointing to where her bag was on the ground.

Lauren walked over and put Camila down for a second and grabbed her bag. After shouldering it, she picked Camila back up and started walking down the trail.

"Are you sure you want to carry me? I'm sure I'll get heavy soon."

Lauren looked down at her, "You are a lot lighter than what you make yourself out to be. I know what I'm doing."

Camila stayed silent. Lauren was right. She didn't know much about medicine like the girl carrying her does. All she knew was how to place on a Band-Aid.