Color Coded

She absorbed the feeling of blue around her. The cloudless sky pressed down on her, infecting her cerulean eyes. Violets at her feet swayed in the wind. Her blistered hands rested in the back pockets of her tattered skinny jeans as she approached the brook. Slipping off her sandals, she dipped her toes in the cool, crystalline water, her mind relaxing instantly.

Smooth, grey stones guided her downriver. Her faded jacket rippled in the soft breeze and her thoughts withered away with it. A bolder ahead signaled the end of her wading journey. She paused and scanned her surroundings, ready to reverse course until she spotted a column of smoke rising between the trees. The hem of her jeans soaked with curiosity, she followed it.

Her sandals forgotten, she stepped into soft, brown mud. The ground hardened as she ventured into the trees. Bright eyes wandered upwards, searching gaps in the branches for any sign of the smoke. Thorn bushes scratched at her vulnerable feet, but she didn't notice, her eyes glued to the sky. A fuzzy woodland animal scurried across her path, too quickly for identification. She smiled as the plume of smoke grew larger and a bend in the trail revealed two young people and their camping gear. An adventure.

The new-found couple sat by the red hot fire they had proudly created themselves. Her approach startled them, but she greeted them as a friend. The man's eyes invited her to sit with them, and the woman's ruby lips tipped into a grin. Absentmindedly, the man poked at the fire, sending sparks into the atmosphere. The scarlet sun sunk between the trees as they talked.

The trees around them turned black, and they sipped at hot cocoa to keep away the evening chill. An everlasting ebony sky was broken only by the light of the fire. I should go, she told them, remembering the gentle lady, her guardian, that waited for her return. Her pupils dilated, spotting movement between the trees. No, stay, they replied, guiding her closer to the fire and away from the darkness. Shadows danced on the ground around them. She debated between venturing into the unknown and staying within the safety of the fire circle. Then, the woman grimaced again, and a veil was pulled over her eyes.

Feeling Yellow

The tropical flowers whisper her name
Wild chanterelle encircle her bare feet
as rays from the eastern sun caress her cheek
Dressed in vintage lace
She embraces the summer
The rich scents of happiness
Worth more to her than gold

Pixie Dust

Prancing through the air
Interest sparkles
Xenia flies above the rest
Inviting them to follow across the
Everlasting sky

Dancing over clouds and
Under the sun
Sprinkling their pixie dust upon
Those who dream

Deep in the Woods

Evangeline Temperance skipped through trees and hopped over foliage. Soon after her family moved to a cottage in Ambria, the forest became her favorite place. The birds accompanied her with beautiful melodies, the butterflies fluttered in her wake, the tree dwelling and ground dwelling creatures poked out of their holes at her appearance. She found a solace in the forest that she could not describe and, as young as she was, did not fully understand. In a strange way, the forest became more of a home to her than the cottage was.

Young and innocent, she followed the butterflies, echoed the birds and greeted furry friends, believing only in beautiful things. When she returned home each night, she brought with her a bouquet of wild flowers for her mother or a circlet of daises for her sister or a tiara of vines woven gracefully into her own long, ashen hair. Day by day, year after year, she arose with the sun to visit her wild friends. The trees shifted as she passed and the forest woke only when she appeared for, unbeknownst to her, beautiful Evangeline was their queen.

One fateful morning, the woodland queen did not return to her kingdom. Somber clouds filled the sky and the forest did not wake. Upon the next sunrise, she did not return either, nor the next, and the forest began to wilt. Each day, they longed for their queen to return love to their land, but she did not come. And so, despair sent the forest into a timeless sleep.

(Object)ive Writing

Object: crushed beer can
Found on sidewalk outside of school.

"Come on, Bekah! It'll be fun!" My roommate, Kelsie, pleaded. I sighed, sprawled on my bed as she fretted over her outfit choice by the closet. "What about this one?" she asked presenting herself with a purple-gradient sundress and gladiator sandals.

"Cute."

"You've said that about the past five outfits."

"Because you look cute in everything." I rested my head back on the pillow and stared at the ceiling. "Look, Kels, you know how I feel about teenage parties and what they generally entail." Alcohol and drugs. Drugs. A substance that has taken lives from me.

"How many times must I tell you: it's a young adult party! Jacob said there may be alcohol, because Benny's coming to 'supervise', but I can promise no drugs." My bed shifted as she sat on the edge of it. "You can't be a recluse forever. Live a little!" She shook a smile out of me, flashing me a pure white one in return. "Plus, I hear Connor's gonna be there."

I sat up as she made her way to the bathroom, happy she didn't turn to see the blush in my cheeks. "Why would that matter to me?"

"I don't know. I know you guys seem a lot closer lately and I thought maybe..."

"No way Kels. Not gonna happen."

I went to the party in what I was already wearing; high-wasted shorts, a loose long-sleeved tee and my trusty red beanie. My bare feet rested on the dashboard as we sped down the highway in her tiny towncar, the wind rushing through the open windows blowing my hair into tangles. When we arrived at the secret beach, Kelsie immediately rushed out to greet people. I swung myself up to sit on the top of the car, studying the sun over the Pacific. This wasn't really my scene - socializing in general really isn't my thing - but it makes her happy, so I do it.

Benny and Jacob built a campfire down the beach a little ways. People trickled in, running down to the others with miscellaneous food and beverages. They cracked open beer cans before the fire was even started. I studied the waves past them, and the sand around them, trying to live a little like Kelsie said.

"You've got quite a view from up here." A man's voice spoke behind me.

I spun around and almost slid off the car. He flashed me a sly grin, knowing he had startled me out of serenity. Connor Jackson: my best friend since life decided to suck. I didn't bother responding, but instead sighed and turned back around.

"Why are you up here alone?"

"Partying isn't really my thing," I shrugged. "I just came because Kelsie begged me to."

"Well, now that I'm here, it is." He grabbed my hand and tugged me down the hood of the car. I nearly lost my balance as I landed, laughing fully for the first time in days. Not because of him, or because I almost made a fool of myself, but because I was walking toward a party where I was supposed to have fun, something that had almost ceased to exist in my vocabulary.

"What if-"

"No what if's today, Rebekah Sloan," he reprimanded me as we walked down the beach. "It's time to forget what happened and realize everything that's out there waiting for you to discover it. Life is about now, and if you spend all you're time in the past you'll completely miss the present."

I Am...ME

I am...

the "big sister," the leader of my two younger siblings, wishing I had someone to guide me instead.

a daughter of two overbearing parents who love to much and ask too much and set unreachable standards, but love nonetheless, and most importantly, a daughter of God.

entirely too innocent for my age, a little girl trapped in a teenager's body, never losing the desire to dream and explore, and often trying to escape the responsibilities and pressures of adulthood because if I had the choice, I would never grow up.

a friend to all who cross my path, passing out love in the hope that I will receive some in return just so I can give it away again.

a homeless soul, because home is where the heart is and my heart hasn't quite decided where it is supposed to be.

I am...

jazz shoes and spankies, finding solace in the leaps and turns of my routine, dancing across the stage and through life in the same way.

sweet tea consumed as though it was water, a vegetarian whose diet consists mainly of fruit and nachos.

acoustic and indie music, strumming along on my guitar, chilling out and forgetting the world, but also Broadway show tunes, belting at the top of my lungs and not caring if the entire neighborhood can hear me.

a night owl, staying up sometimes until the sun wakes up with me, grasping at the ideas that others share with me in their dreams.

independent, often wishing I had help but too scared to ask for it.

someone I am not when I step onto the stage, forgetting the troubles of life and absorbing a new personality, one that I can control within the confines of a script.

grandma's spiced tea and vitamin C drops, the actor's cure, an old blanket and a new book on cold winter afternoons.

I am...

bright blue eyes and pale skin that makeup cannot cover, a proud Irish girl, trimmed fingernails and freckled limbs.

short, and constantly reminded of it.

summertime, ignoring my sensitivity to the sun and inhaling the scents of nature, building campfires, singing songs and making s'mores with my Girl Scout friends, living in a world where boys and bullies don't exist.

headbands across my forehead, mismatched patterns, colored jeans and black shirts, bows and ribbons, hipster with an ever-changing style.

marching to the beat of my own drum, secretly absorbing what the world thinks of me and pretending not to care, a crazy, conflicted mess of a girl.

unexplainable and insecure as I step toward the future.