Soulbound

Chapter Two

                “And by that you mean Lynn will do it, right?” His cousin raises her copper eyebrows.

                “That’s not true! I’ll be...what’s it called? Super-...super-...supervising!” Angus grins.

                Lynn rolls her eyes. “Whatever you say, coz.”

                I watch their amusing exchange. Though they grew up a sea apart, they seem to be really close. I guess that’s one of the good things about technology, it helps us stay together. When their mock bickering finally ends I ask, “Are you sure? It’s my room and—”

                “Go!” Sigge surprises me by commanding.

                Outnumbered, I shrug and exit through the door leading to outside. I hop over the fence, shove my hands into my pockets, and start walking, letting my feet take me away. The town we moved to, Seirenes, is quiet and small. Jan wanted to move to California, but I thought it would be better if we started off in a less crowded place. Our talent is surely to be noticed here where no one else seems to be interested in performing. A smile settles on my face as I daydream about getting up on stage in front of a lively crowd of fans, all cheering for us.

                I was sixteen when the four of us decided to make a band. Hard to believe that is was almost three years ago. Music has been my everything for as long as I can remember. Growing up with just my grandmother was difficult. We lived in the middle of nowhere. My childhood was spent mostly out in our backyard which was basically an expanse of forest so large, in all my time there I never had a chance to explore it all. I never really minded being alone, after all, it was all I ever knew. But now it’s like I have these cravings for company to make up for all those years of being by myself. Then there are times, like now, when all I want is to be on my own for awhile.

                As I walk, I notice the air changes. It becomes frostier, not necessarily unpleasant, but nippy. Out of the corner of my eye I spot a path. It’s barely visible and it was pure luck that I found it. After a moment of hesitation I turn off the trodden trail I’d been taking onto the track. The path is barely wide enough for me to tread on, I have to tuck my arms in tight to avoid the spindly thorns on the bushes beside me. I duck below the branches that swoop low like arms reaching out, step over the exposed roots that burst from the ground as if fearing the dark. My heart starts to beat faster and faster and before I know it, I’m running down the path, not caring if the brush tears at my skin. After what seems like forever, I finally break through the foliage into a clearing.

                Stopping to catch my breath, I turn and examine where I came from. Outside of the small forest, the trees look majestic with their silver trunks and now seemingly harmless branches bedecked in brilliant leaves of crimson, orange, and gold. Goosebumps rise on my arms. I rub them, inwardly cursing at my stupidity for leaving without a jacket. As I watch, some leaves fall and join their discarded sisters on the floor of the woods, a soft barely audible crinkle as leaf lands on leaf.

                If I could only capture the sound, I longingly think. What was I panicking about? It’s just a forest after all, I should be use to those. I shake my head at my foolishness and decide to continue onwards. The farther I progress, the colder it gets. Soon my breath mists in the air. I huff, making myself look like a dragon.

                I throw my head back and laugh freely. A tinkling sound answers me in the distance. My ears perk at the sound. It happens again. Straining my hearing I manage to make out the sound of water lapping against a shore.