The World Around Me

I found myself standing in a field of tall grass, looking at the vast amount of land in front of me. My white dress clung delicately to my skin and my bare feet were begging for the opportunity to explore the world around me. I closed my eyes and listened for a long time, hearing birds and the sound of rushing water. Following my senses, I came to a creek and admired the beauty of something so untouched and elegant. I leaned down, grazing the water with my fingers.

The silence of my surroundings had begun to make the air feel empty, and my breath became short and labored. It was the feeling of fear that crept up behind me. I sprang to my feet and turned toward the field I had left behind in my dash towards the river. A tree had appeared in my short time away from the field. The branches beckoned to me, begging me to discover the intricacies of its wood.

I walked toward the tree timidly; I felt uncertain of what it was hiding behind all of its leaves. When I reached the edge of the roots, I began to circle the trunk. Half way around, I saw a boy sitting against the bark. I recognized this boy instantly, for he was always in my dreams, always lingering in the foreground.

He had short auburn hair, and eyes that seemed impossible. Emerald orbs pierced my dark green ones, as if trying to tell me some secret code that I did not understand. He stood up, laying a small book on the ground. He stood above six feet and easily loomed over my small frame. We were just inches from each other; breathing the same air, sharing the same space.

Without looking away from my eyes, he reached up and picked a fruit from the branches just above his head. He held a mango between us, offering it to me. I took it from him carefully, and sunk my teeth into it. The mango glided down my throat and into my stomach, leaving me with a feeling of shear happiness. It was then that I realized that this was no ordinary tree; this was the tree Adam and Eve had been tempted by. Bite after bite, the feeling grew stronger, and I wanted more. I wanted this happiness to never fade away like all other happiness did. When the mango had been finished off, I collapsed to the ground, not understanding why my knees had buckled. I felt disoriented with my face pressed into the earth. It felt like nothing would ever make sense again if I remained in that place.

The boy had closed the gap quickly, picking me up without effort. He walked around the tree nonchalantly, carrying me like I was the most fragile thing he’d ever held. The feeling of confusion subsided, but the feeling of beatitude had not. I dug my face into the crook of the boys’ neck. He smelled sweetly of fruit and cigarettes, a combination that had me craving this boy more than the fruit he had handed me.

When we got around the tree, he released my feet and I stood there, hugging his torso. Standing alone seemed to be too much effort; having him hold me seemed to be far easier. He laid down after a few minutes, bringing me down with him. I fell asleep with his arms wrapped around my waist tentatively and his breath in my hair. Contentment and happiness laced fingers in my stomach for the first time in a long time.

And then I woke up.