lost-in-our-words

[lost-in-our-words]

@felixarren

“Stellar Hearts” Chapter I (Part II): Juliana

Again, thanks to anybody who offers any suggestions, corrections, or constructive criticism. This story belongs to me, so please do not copy this story in any way, shape, or form.

—

By that point, the day was beginning to reach its final moments. The sky had yet to transform from its usual baby blue to the splendid rainbow of pinks and purples that I had always found myself falling in love with, but the blinding sun was now tucked behind the vivid aspen and maple. Peering its crescent from behind the roof of the Cabin, I could see the moon gently glowing high in the sky, preparing to replace the sun. Thus, it was time for me to part ways with my friend, promising that we would have to meet up again later that weekend. Agreeing, Mya bid farewell and returned to her lipstick red Prius before speeding off rather carelessly southwards, around the woods to where her neighborhood sat. Meanwhile, and not so disappointingly as Mya would have thought herself, I was left walking back to my own house. As opposed to Mya, I lived in a smaller neighborhood, known as Hearth Ridge, which adjoined the western border of the woods. Considering Haynes stood proudly opposite of my home, I was left with the task of traveling a somewhat long distance in one of two directions. First, I could have decided to venture around the woods in a similar direction to Mya. This was the longer route, yet, whenever I ended up in a situation similar to this, I would always choose this option, simply because the alternative was to trek through the interminable woods, so brimming with seemingly untouched nature, and more importantly, effortlessly easy to lose oneself in. However, today, my heart pulled me into the trees. It had been quite some time since the last time I had actually been deep within the woods, and so, I suppose I had decided to visit once more.

The further inside I wandered, the more potent the cardinal and gold leaves became. I had felt as if I had been walking inside of an artist’s canvas, paint being brushed above me in a majestic manner, creating a natural masterpiece. The air smelled cleaner, free of pollution, and the ground was soft with loose dirt. Around me yet out of my sight, I could hear the pleasantly melodic chirps and tweets of redbirds and jays, and beside me on the rugged bark of a maple tree, two bushy squirrels raced down the trunk and scurried across the ground in front of my feet.

Perhaps I had been missing out on more than I thought. Between the refreshing atmosphere and the change in scenery, I was becoming infatuated with the woods.

Then, my feet came to a halt and my lungs became still. Before me, peeking its head through a thin bush gazed a white-tailed doe, donning a brilliant tawny coat and eyeing me cautiously. Her build was on the small side and I could vaguely see her ribs protruding from sides, obviously at the very least a little malnourished. Nonetheless, she stood in front of me proudly and on edge.

Ever so slowly, my shoulder wiggled my camera bag off of them, the straps gliding down my arms, and once I had removed it from my body, and still keeping a close eye on the doe, I rummaged through the bag for my camera. Upon pulling it out, I once again zipped up the bag and moved it onto my back as it had been before.

She was such a beautiful creature, and I admired her lavishly.

My photography career had always revolved around portraits, primarily that of senior pictures, and rarely, aside from the not-so-often occasion that my family sought out a Summer vacation, would I find myself capturing any images of Mother Nature or her creations. Yet here I stood, a mere handful of yards from a gorgeous deer. A wide smirk spread across my face as I fumbled around with lens cap. To my grief, the round item slipped from my fingers and plummeted to the ground where it exuded a moderate thud.

Consequently, with its long ears shooting up in surprise, the creature turned and bounded off away from me, and with a heavy, disappointed groan, I chased after the animal. She seemed to always stay within my sight, leading me on a goose chase. One moment, she would be bouncing off gracefully through the woods, and the next she would come to an unexpected halt and glance around through the nothingness until spotting me creeping up on her. Then, I would stop, raise my lens, and hover my finger over the shutter button, but as my luck would have it, the doe would be overcome with camera shyness and rush off once more with me following. Luckily for me, though, I was in no rush to return home, and so I could carry on with the endless chase without worry.

Occasionally, I would find myself able to capture a picture, but it was never anything to ogle at. One would be of the deer just as it was hopping off, and another would be of it glancing around curiously, but the golden shot, the photograph I had set my heart on, required me being face to face with the creature to the point that I could see every hair on its face and the reflection in its eyes. The animal, however, was adamant about avoiding me, and so it seemed impossible, and when the doe found itself wandering into a small clearing, I approached it with extreme prudence. Alas, it paused and watched as I came closer and closer to it, and finally, it did not budge from its position. Perhaps it gave into my persistence, or maybe it understood that the mechanism hanging around my neck was not a weapon that would cause harm. So there I was, ultimately a prime distance away from the magnificent doe. She was looking directly into the camera, most likely curious. I was not about to let this opportunity to escape my grasp. Thus I focused my camera, and without any more hesitation, the shutters snapped.

The doe became spooked and once more bounded back into the woods and out of my sight. A short moment passed where I simply stood in my spot, praying that the photograph would live up to my expectations.

“Please be at least decent,” I murmured to myself. Some voice deep inside of my soul demanded I not look at the photograph in case it had turned out to be a failure, but I had to see if I had succeeded. My finger hovered weakly over the image playback button, my breath being held anxiously.

“I think you ought to charge that doe for the photograph,” a voice snickered from behind me. Startled, I responded to the voice by swiftly spinning on my heels in surprise, which sequentially resulted in my heels catching on each other and myself tumbling onto my ass, covering my jeans with dirt.

Grimacing due to the pain in my rear, I glanced up at where the voice had emitted from, and to my surprise, in front of me sat two boys which I had failed to notice before, presumably too distracted by the deer to have detected. Sitting inside of a small cavity in the side of a protruding rock formation, they both eyed me carefully, seemingly waiting for me to make a ensuing move.

“Dammit,” I grumbled, dusting off my pant legs. “I didn’t realize that other people roamed these woods this late at night.���

One of the males was about six feet tall with skin heavily tanned. His hair, brunette and styled in a pompadour fashion, glistened presumably with some sort of hair product in the sky’s remaining light, which was now turning those favorable shades of unnatural colors. I could make out a tattoo wrapped around his ankle, peeking from between the top of his sneakers and the bottom of his black skinny jeans. It seemed to be a beautifully detailed depiction of a range of mountains, snowcapped and illuminated by a strong moonlight. Upon hearing my comment, he turned to the second, appearing to send a bitter glare towards him. This other person was much larger in build, both by muscle and height and his eyes burned a rich amber and which stood out against his rich, black, quiffed hair, noticeable even from a considerable amount of feet away. In contrast with the first male, his skin appeared unblemished of tattoos, and he had a very relaxed presence about him despite his friend’s glower.

The latter of the two was the first to lower himself from the hole in the rock, the other reaching out seemingly in an attempt to stop him. He must have been unsure of me being there. Nonetheless, the man persisted to approach me and offered a hand to help me up, which I took graciously and was brought back to my feet.

“Cam over there can vouch for me when I say that I am not the most subtle person in the world,” the man declared, his eyes much more vibrant up close if that was at all possible. It was a rather difficult attribute not to take notice to. “Despite this, I am surely a man who understands when an apology is in store, and so I hope you accept my apology for frightening you.”

My lips shifted in thought, still a bit irked with the pain in my behind. Nonetheless, I nodded to assure him that everything was fine, and happily, he offered me a toothy grin.

“The name is Orion Shepherd,” he introduced, still smirking with happiness. “Over there with the salty stare is Cameron Drake, or as you heard me refer to him, Cam. I’m not too sure, though, how kindly he would take to a stranger addressing him in such a way.”

Don’t go assuming I plan on making friends with a pair of strangers I just met, Orion.

“He’s likes to bark, but he doesn’t have any bite. Honestly, I’m quite surprised that he hasn’t called you out on the sudden arrival.”

I glanced at this supposed Cam, who still seemed unsure of me intruding on their whatever-the-hell get-together.

“I apologize if I was interrupting anything,” I apologized, hoping not to get on anybody’s bad side, particularly Cam’s. Orion did not seem to mind my sudden appearance, though. “On my way back home, that doe caught my attention and I found myself chasing after it.”

“For a photograph?” he chuckled. “I hope it was worth the chase. Those deer sure can be swift and easy to lose track of.”

I nervously nodded in agreement. His comment led me to believe that Orion was a hunter of some sort. However, these woods were strictly off-limits to hunting. Of course, that didn’t rule out the possibility of him being a hunter, and more importantly, whether or not he was one didn’t matter to me.

Why was I thinking about it so thoroughly?

“Time, time, time, Orion!” Cam finally blurted as he hopped out of the cavity and approached Orion with steam coming from his ears. The smaller man leaned into Orion’s ear and seemed to give him a very intensive lecture out of my earshot about who-knows-what, yet Orion simply continued to smirk, his friend’s words seemingly going in one ear and out the other.

Throwing his hands in the air, Orion responded. “We aren’t in a rush, Cameron. Hush now. I’m still in the middle of introducing myself.”

Grumbling, Cam demanded that he leave him out of the conversation. “Maybe this little discussion will be over faster if you leave my intro out of this.” Following his temper, Cam leaned up against the rocky protuberance, arms crossed and foot tapping, waiting impatiently.

“Excuse Mr. Grumps. He forgot to eat his breakfast this morning and now he’s cranky.”

Cam found little humor in the joke from his crotchety position off to the side. I, however, found myself offering a vague giggle. This seemed to in turn make Orion happy and proud that he got a different reaction out of me. Thus, feeling accomplished, he continued to introduce some more pieces of information about himself.

“In case if you were wondering, which I’m sure you were, the two of us were simply spending the rest of the evening out here. Earlier, we were having a nice dinner at some restaurant up in Bear Creek and made the decision to spend a little time out here, mainly for my sake, because let me tell you I absolutely adore these woods.”

I couldn’t blame him. The Foxborough Woods sure had stolen my heart since I entered them earlier this evening. “It sure sounds like you two were having a rather glamorous date,” I joked with a wink towards Orion.

Once again, Cam did not enjoy the humor, shouting with clenched fists, “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I swore I could see a long stream of spit shoot from his mouth. Meanwhile, Orion was cracking up in a fit of laughter, similar to the one Mya and I had at the Cabin. These two characters sure seemed to have contrasting personalities. Orion was very laid back and seemed to enjoy his introductions. Certainly, he was the social type, whereas Cam appeared to not take to fondly to strangers. He had turned his back for a moment by that point, face red with anger, his chest rising and falling ever so calmly as he attempted to regain a little composure, and once the atmosphere again returned to normal, Orion no longer stumbling through his outburst and Cam once again quietly sulking and digging his foot into the dirt, I continued the conversation, questioning if they attended school somewhere in the Haynes area. The two both appeared college age to me, and so I assumed they were both students at the community college.

However, Orion shook his head. “Sadly, I’m not pursuing an education as of now.”

“Neither am I,” I added. “I graduated from Haynes High School last year, but have yet to decide exactly what I want to do.”

“Haynes High School?”

I nodded. “Did you not?”

“I’ve lived here in the Haynes area my entire life. I used to attend the elementary school here as it was the only one nearby at the time, and did the same for middle school. However, once I hit high school, I began attending Jefferson High School down the road a few miles. My mother worked in the office there and, at the time, I had been dealing with an unmanageable amount of anxiety, and so I figured it would be best to be near a family member during the school day in case if anything happened.” He shrugged, his grin now fading into indifference as if recollecting on the troublesome experience, but a beam of understanding from me returned that smile back to his lips. “Graduation was a couple years back and I never found the need to pursue an education just yet.” Orion paused and hummed for a moment again, once again looking at the sky, which was starting to lose its color as the sun was setting further, the brightest of stars and Venus peeking through the streaks of cotton candy clouds. “Cam is attending the community college, though, to fulfill his gen-ed classes for now.”

“My friend, Mya, is doing the same thing. I avoided going through anything like that for now just so I could avoid the stress until I decide what I want to do with my life.”

Understanding my situation, Orion nodded before advancing the conversation. “How come you’re out here?” he queried. “You do understand that these woods are thick and easy to get lost in if you don’t know your way around, especially when night hits.”

“I can navigate these woods fairly easily. After dining with Mya in town, I decided to cut my way through the woods on my way home. Besides, I enjoy the Autumn leaves.” I narrowed my eyes, a bit offended that he would think I couldn’t handle my own navigation.

“So you’re risking getting lost in these woods, which are practically a forest, just to look at the autumn leaves?” Cam asked snarkily.

“Don’t be critical Cam!” Orion snapped. Cam was now sending a fiery scowl, sharper than any glare before. Nonetheless, Orion did not budge and turned back to me. His gaze lowered down to the camera around my neck and he cocked his head in a curious fashion. “I never gave you the opportunity to look over that picture of the doe.” He held out his hand. “Perhaps you would allow me to be the first to take a gander at it. Photography has always amazed me you see, so I am genuinely interested in what you captured.”

My fingers wrapped tightly around my camera securely. Sure, Orion appeared to be kind, but he was a stranger nonetheless. I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to trust an unfamiliar person with my expensive device, but the man gave me a gentle smile and I could not see a speck of criminal intent in his eyes. Hesitantly, I pulled the camera from around my neck and handed it to him. “Careful,” I demanded softly.

“I promise.” Orion held the Nikon in his hands, wary of his grip on it, and found his way to my gallery of photographs. The first one to appear on the screen was the one which I was greatly interested to see myself. Another light hearted grin spread softly across his face and he turned the back of the camera to me so I could see the image on the screen. A rush of joy and relief flashed through my body as I laid my eyes upon the splendid image that I had been chasing after, clear and crisp. Without a word, he continued to search through more of my photographs, which were at first pictures of the girl from that afternoon and followed by other senior portraits which I had taken prior to today.

“I’m an amateur, so I’m not entirely sure how good they are,” I commented in a humble manner, yet still proud of the photo of the doe.

Orion looked up at me without the slightest twitch of his head. “These are pretty damn good if you ask me.” Not expecting the comment, his compliment sent me sputtering for a grateful response, but before I could find the words to thank him, he raised his palm and shook his head, and thus he switched my camera off and held it back out to me. “You claim you aren’t a talented photographer, but I would definitely beg to differ. In fact, if it wouldn’t be too strange a request, I would be very appreciative to be given the opportunity to take a look at a few more of your gorgeous pictures.”

At that moment, Cam cleared his throat obnoxiously loud in order to interrupt our conversation. This resulted in Orion’s sweet smile fading into a frown of displeasure. As the two of us glanced over at the impatient man, he walked towards us, obviously still frustrated.

“Need I remind you again, Orion, about our prior commitments,” Cam spit through half-clenched teeth. “I’ll have you know that I have yet to be late thus far, and I do not plan on being tardy now.” He seemed to stumble through his words as if unsure of what he was intending to say, perhaps due to the palpable anger boiling inside of him.

I figured I had outstayed my welcome despite Orion seemingly enjoying the company. Besides, the sky was finally reaching the brink of night, all colors now disappearing from the clouds above us, and I presumed Orion was right about being out in the woods this late. The remainder of the journey home would prove to be fairly difficult in the thick of nightfall, despite my confidence in my ability to navigate through the trees solo.

Cam continued to shoo me off, Orion repeatedly demanding that he check his manners, which never happened. As I was being led away, I recalled that I had forgotten to introduce myself earlier. Therefor, I blurted out, “Juliana,” before departing, reaching my hand around Cam and giving a brief handshake to Orion before it was broken up by his friend as well. “Juliana MacKay,” I reiterated before giving in to Cam’s wishes and turning, beginning to head off towards my home.

Before I could find myself venturing too far, my attention was once again turned towards the two boys as Orion called out to me. “Juliana!” he squawked, his voice echoing through the woods. “I’ll be expecting those pictures tomorrow.” I could vaguely see that same sort grin that he had been giving me the entire evening once again spreading from cheek to cheek.

Unsure if I should commit to his request, I simply continued on my way westwards, reflecting on the meeting with the two boys. Albeit a strange and sudden encounter, I was inexplicably curious to return. Tonight I would consider returning in the morning, but for the time being I focused on finding my way home underneath the crescent moonlight, tired and now aching for the warmth of my bed sheets.

[lost-in-our-words]

@felixarren

“Stellar Hearts” Chapter I (Part I): Juliana

Again, thanks to anybody who offers any suggestions, corrections, or constructive criticism. Before I start, I need to be sure to state that this story belongs to me, so please do not copy this story in any way, shape, or form. Also, if anybody has a more effective way to post (instead of in long parts of a chapter), please suggest them. I want to make sure I’m making my posts easy to read. And, without further ado, here is Chapter I of Stellar Hearts.

—

Autumn was settling over Haynes, evident by the display of fiery hues replacing the natural green of the trees’ leaves. It was the first of October, and by now I was beginning to see residents of the isolated town break out their heavy jackets and scarves. Meanwhile, I was huddled with my friend, Mya Townsend, inside of the Cabin, a modest, yet charming restaurant which sat humbly on the outskirts of Haynes, overlooking the Foxborough woods. The two of us were partaking in our annual tradition of enjoying a warm cup of hot cocoa from one of the local restaurants when the month of Halloween struck. I watched Mya, who sat silently across from me, gazing out the large windows which had replaced the western wall of the quaint restaurant, intended to provide the restaurant’s patrons with a splendid view of the woods’ Autumn trees and their leaves which swayed back and forth ever so gently in the mid-afternoon breeze.

I ran my finger along the rim of a porcelain cup which sat in front of me on the polished table, half empty of the chocolate beverage and completely drained of what whipped cream that had arrived with it. Compared to some of the other hot cocoa’s Mya and I had tasted over the previous years, this one was quite a letdown. Between its more watered down taste and the lack of marshmallows, I was sorely disappointed. Nonetheless, hot cocoa was hot cocoa, and thus I continued to sip away, as did my friend.

Mya sat upright in her chair and ran her fingers, whose nails were glossed over with a vibrant pink, through her blonde, bobbed hair. I had learned that this signal meant she was interested in starting up a conversation. However, she was never the best at bringing about a discussion, and so, instead, I cleared my throat and offered a question to her.

“You’ve been attending that college for a couple months now,” I began, my hands now clasped around the warm mug containing the disappointing drink. “Have you figured what major you may be interested in pursuing?”

Mya glanced up with a delighted smirk on her face, more than likely because a conversation had been stirred.

With a shake of her head, she explained to me that she still hadn’t the slightest clue what she may be interested in. “I’ve still been trying to wrap my head around a few possibilities, but they all seem to not be quite what I’m looking for.” She paused for a moment and glanced into her cup, seemingly studying the bits of whipped cream which still floated on the surface of the liquid. As she lifted the mug in her hands and enjoyed the warmth which radiated from it, albeit not taking another sip, she continued. “Alexus told me before senior walkout that she was considering studying a foreign language, and, thinking that perhaps she was onto something, I had convinced myself that such a major may be interesting. Thus, I enrolled in a French class this semester, but it just isn’t enthralling enough to peak my enthusiasm.”

“Enthralling?” I questioned. “That’s some impressive vocabulary for you, don’t you think?” Of course, I was joking around with my friend, but I had never expected to hear the word “enthralling” to escape her lips.

Ignoring my remark, she continued to tell of her journey through searching for a major. “After plan A failed, I tested out a few other ideas, pondering them for some time and weighing the pros and cons. I’ve sat in on a pair of classes, including an introductory sociology class and a women’s studies class which covered gender equality.” Mya lowered her head and seemed to enjoy a faint whiff of the hot cocoa before again looking up from her mug with a particularly unamused look. “Picking a major is a ‘major’ pain in the ass, Juliana. Although, I am sure you understand my pain. Tell me, have you come any closer to discovering what you’d like to do with your life?”

She got me there. While Mya was currently attending the Haynes Community College to explore her options while also knocking out some gen-eds, I diverged from her path. Likewise to her, I was indecisive in regards to my future, but had no intention of attending classes when I was still in the dark. This was not due to financial issues as many suspected, especially as my parents are offering to cover tuition and any other expenses, but rather an issue concerning avoiding a “mental overload” as I described it. I wasn’t exactly the best at managing schoolwork in high school, and so instead, while the majority of my graduating class is spreading across the United States to pursue careers, I had made the decision to take a year off from schooling and instead am focusing on my side business of photography in the meantime. Simply enough, it was named “Juliana’s Photography,” a cheap service as I wasn’t the most talented person with Nikon, but I could provide half-decent senior portraits to those who resented the thought of paying top-dollar for something so insignificant as photographs that may live only in a scrapbook or on a house wall, and to my amazement, the business was doing rather well. In fact, I had just returned from a photo shoot and still had my carrying case full of equipment resting beside me, and after stating that I was no closer to coming across an attractive major, Mya turned her attention to this photo shoot instead, curious as to how it had gone.

I offered a vague shrug. “The shoot was nothing spectacular. Nothing out of the ordinary occurred. My subject, a fairly pretty girl from Jefferson, had this obsession with fixing her hair nonstop despite being perhaps the most photogenic person I had ever come across. Thus, to my dismay, it would take several shots before I could ultimately snap a picture where she didn’t have her fingers up and tangled in her black hair.” As I reflected on the photo shoot, the corner of my lip flicked with a delicate twitch. “Now that I think back to it, however, little miss Priss was quite the nuisance, constantly insisting that another photograph be taken because of one tiny issue that could hardly be noticed, and no matter how many times I assured her that I could fix whatever the hell it was in editing, she begged for ‘one more picture just to be safe.’”

“I couldn’t have the patience for such an annoying client,” Mya joked as a response, then continuing to sip the last of her hot cocoa.

I offered a faint chuckle in response, drawing a look of confusion from Mya. From irritation, my mood returned to collected as I recounted what occurred following the session. “Except the mother offered to pay extra, obviously understanding how much a pain her daughter was being,” I added.

“How much?”

“Double what I was charging her. As tremendously as I wanted to accept the extra payment though, I refused. I was just being humble. Nonetheless, the mother shoved the large amount of cash into my hands and scurried off with her daughter before I could reiterate that I simply couldn’t accept it.”

Mya slammed her palm on the table and sent a stern glare my way, claiming that I was an imbecile for turning down such a glorious offer. However, deep in her sea green eyes, I could see a glimmer of humor. Before I knew it, she was bursting out in a fit of laughter, dubbing her comment as a joke and begging that I should not take her seriously, and surely, I wasn’t going to take her serious anyways. She is a terrible jokester after all. Anybody with functioning eyesight could see straight through her charades.

Returning to a sitting position on the wooden chair, she took a deep breath to regain her composure. Mya sure could crack herself up.

Our conversation went silent for a moment following the madness, and amongst the discomforting feeling of the ensuing awkwardness, Mya cleared her throat. Between her lips, I spotted a thin opening as if she prepared to speak, yet not a word came out. So, in an attempt to move the conversation forward, I reached down and unzipped the unvarnished black bag sitting by my feet, keeping an eye on my friend’s fingers which glided softly along her mug as she eyed me curiously. Searching throughout the bag, my hand moved between different lenses and filters before finally arriving at my camera.

“We were originally supposed to travel out to some field by the zoo about fifteen minutes east of town,” I started, “But the clients gave me a ring last night and said they discovered this small garden up on the northern outskirts of Haynes. It’s a wonderful venue, public and free to enter, and it actually made a great backdrop in my opinion.”

Pulling the camera out of my bag and switching it on, I handed the bulky device over to Mya. “Take a look,” I insisted simply with a faint smile curled upon my lips.

Graciously, she took the camera and focused her attention to the small screen on the backside of it. For a few silent moments following, she examined the pictures one by one, quietly dissecting the images and admiring the background which I had glorified. Some of the photographs had the high school senior sitting impatiently upon a granite stone wall with an array of colorful flowers, primarily irises and tulips, behind her. In others, she was standing with her back against an old wooden shed that we had found, the timber structure rustic in nature. However, perhaps my favorite photograph was the one with the black-haired woman holding a vibrant scarlet rose to her nose as she took a whiff of its floral scent. My reverence for the photograph, however, arose from how genuinely candid it was. It took one snap of the shutters for photo to be recorded, unlike all of the other pictures which required numerous attempts. There was no need for fixing the hair, no “one more photo just in case,” but simply a wonderful portrait.

Mya paused on one of the images, and reflecting off of her pupils, I could vaguely make out the photo that I had appreciated.

“Being here in Haynes, it meant I didn’t have to get in my car and drive anywhere as well.” I dug my heel into the carpeted floor and offered a faint smirk. “That was a plus.”

My friend’s emerald eyes rolled with misunderstanding as she gently let my camera down onto the table, and slowly, she relaxed back into her chair, sending a somewhat irked glare my way. “I’ve never understood what your quarrel with driving is,” she commented with her arms crossed loosely in front of her stomach.

This was not the first time that she questioned my distaste towards driving, and sure enough it would not be the last. Never did I understand why she was so passionate about understanding this uncommon trait of mine, but she always seemed determined to convert me into a lover of driving. “I’m serious, Juliana,” she reiterated, but now with a very gentle smirk creeping their way onto her face.

“Driving is stressful,” I responded modestly. “You must have said it a thousand times how driving gives you some sort of freedom, but I hate being responsible for a two-ton vehicle on a road with a bunch of maniacs who seem to have no respect for the rules of the road.”

“Stickler,” Mya mumbled.

“I’m sorry that I don’t want to get myself killed!” I sputtered, not angrily, but more in quick retaliation, accidentally sending a shot of saliva towards Mya. She flinched from the flying fluid as it landed on the table in front of her. In embarrassment, I swiftly covered my hands over my mouth.

How disgusting that must have been?

Instead of an appalled reaction, however, my friend once again broke into a fit, and by that point, we had turned into a pair of girls sharing a bout of giggles in the restaurant, drawing the attention of the other customers. Through my joyful tears, I could see a few other people scattered here and there, generally patrons similar to our age, becoming infected by the contagious laughter as well. The mature joint was no longer quiet with hushed gossip, instead being overcome with multiple tables sharing in the mirth that we were not able to contain within ourselves. Our waiter, seemingly aggravated with the sudden guffaw, returned to our table with checks in hand, settling them upright in front of Mya and I respectively before walking off without another word. Taking the hint, the two of us signed our checks, ensuring to tip the waiter as apology for the unwanted outburst, and dashing off quickly once we were free to. Thus, us two women, still suffering from an unstoppable frenzy of laughter, were left outside face to face with the boundless Foxborough Woods.

[lost-in-our-words]

“Stellar Hearts” Chapter I (Part II): Juliana

Again, thanks to anybody who offers any suggestions, corrections, or constructive criticism. This story belongs to me, so please do not copy this story in any way, shape, or form.

---

By that point, the day was beginning to reach its final moments. The sky had yet to transform from its usual baby blue to the splendid rainbow of pinks and purples that I had always found myself falling in love with, but the blinding sun was now tucked behind the vivid aspen and maple. Peering its crescent from behind the roof of the Cabin, I could see the moon gently glowing high in the sky, preparing to replace the sun. Thus, it was time for me to part ways with my friend, promising that we would have to meet up again later that weekend. Agreeing, Mya bid farewell and returned to her lipstick red Prius before speeding off rather carelessly southwards, around the woods to where her neighborhood sat. Meanwhile, and not so disappointingly as Mya would have thought herself, I was left walking back to my own house. As opposed to Mya, I lived in a smaller neighborhood, known as Hearth Ridge, which adjoined the western border of the woods. Considering Haynes stood proudly opposite of my home, I was left with the task of traveling a somewhat long distance in one of two directions. First, I could have decided to venture around the woods in a similar direction to Mya. This was the longer route, yet, whenever I ended up in a situation similar to this, I would always choose this option, simply because the alternative was to trek through the interminable woods, so brimming with seemingly untouched nature, and more importantly, effortlessly easy to lose oneself in. However, today, my heart pulled me into the trees. It had been quite some time since the last time I had actually been deep within the woods, and so, I suppose I had decided to visit once more.

The further inside I wandered, the more potent the cardinal and gold leaves became. I had felt as if I had been walking inside of an artist’s canvas, paint being brushed above me in a majestic manner, creating a natural masterpiece. The air smelled cleaner, free of pollution, and the ground was soft with loose dirt. Around me yet out of my sight, I could hear the pleasantly melodic chirps and tweets of redbirds and jays, and beside me on the rugged bark of a maple tree, two bushy squirrels raced down the trunk and scurried across the ground in front of my feet.

Perhaps I had been missing out on more than I thought. Between the refreshing atmosphere and the change in scenery, I was becoming infatuated with the woods.

Then, my feet came to a halt and my lungs became still. Before me, peeking its head through a thin bush gazed a white-tailed doe, donning a brilliant tawny coat and eyeing me cautiously. Her build was on the small side and I could vaguely see her ribs protruding from sides, obviously at the very least a little malnourished. Nonetheless, she stood in front of me proudly and on edge.

Ever so slowly, my shoulder wiggled my camera bag off of them, the straps gliding down my arms, and once I had removed it from my body, and still keeping a close eye on the doe, I rummaged through the bag for my camera. Upon pulling it out, I once again zipped up the bag and moved it onto my back as it had been before.

She was such a beautiful creature, and I admired her lavishly.

My photography career had always revolved around portraits, primarily that of senior pictures, and rarely, aside from the not-so-often occasion that my family sought out a Summer vacation, would I find myself capturing any images of Mother Nature or her creations. Yet here I stood, a mere handful of yards from a gorgeous deer. A wide smirk spread across my face as I fumbled around with lens cap. To my grief, the round item slipped from my fingers and plummeted to the ground where it exuded a moderate thud.

Consequently, with its long ears shooting up in surprise, the creature turned and bounded off away from me, and with a heavy, disappointed groan, I chased after the animal. She seemed to always stay within my sight, leading me on a goose chase. One moment, she would be bouncing off gracefully through the woods, and the next she would come to an unexpected halt and glance around through the nothingness until spotting me creeping up on her. Then, I would stop, raise my lens, and hover my finger over the shutter button, but as my luck would have it, the doe would be overcome with camera shyness and rush off once more with me following. Luckily for me, though, I was in no rush to return home, and so I could carry on with the endless chase without worry.

Occasionally, I would find myself able to capture a picture, but it was never anything to ogle at. One would be of the deer just as it was hopping off, and another would be of it glancing around curiously, but the golden shot, the photograph I had set my heart on, required me being face to face with the creature to the point that I could see every hair on its face and the reflection in its eyes. The animal, however, was adamant about avoiding me, and so it seemed impossible, and when the doe found itself wandering into a small clearing, I approached it with extreme prudence. Alas, it paused and watched as I came closer and closer to it, and finally, it did not budge from its position. Perhaps it gave into my persistence, or maybe it understood that the mechanism hanging around my neck was not a weapon that would cause harm. So there I was, ultimately a prime distance away from the magnificent doe. She was looking directly into the camera, most likely curious. I was not about to let this opportunity to escape my grasp. Thus I focused my camera, and without any more hesitation, the shutters snapped.

The doe became spooked and once more bounded back into the woods and out of my sight. A short moment passed where I simply stood in my spot, praying that the photograph would live up to my expectations.

“Please be at least decent,” I murmured to myself. Some voice deep inside of my soul demanded I not look at the photograph in case it had turned out to be a failure, but I had to see if I had succeeded. My finger hovered weakly over the image playback button, my breath being held anxiously.

“I think you ought to charge that doe for the photograph,” a voice snickered from behind me. Startled, I responded to the voice by swiftly spinning on my heels in surprise, which sequentially resulted in my heels catching on each other and myself tumbling onto my ass, covering my jeans with dirt.

Grimacing due to the pain in my rear, I glanced up at where the voice had emitted from, and to my surprise, in front of me sat two boys which I had failed to notice before, presumably too distracted by the deer to have detected. Sitting inside of a small cavity in the side of a protruding rock formation, they both eyed me carefully, seemingly waiting for me to make a ensuing move.

“Dammit,” I grumbled, dusting off my pant legs. “I didn’t realize that other people roamed these woods this late at night.”

One of the males was about six feet tall with skin heavily tanned. His hair, brunette and styled in a pompadour fashion, glistened presumably with some sort of hair product in the sky’s remaining light, which was now turning those favorable shades of unnatural colors. I could make out a tattoo wrapped around his ankle, peeking from between the top of his sneakers and the bottom of his black skinny jeans. It seemed to be a beautifully detailed depiction of a range of mountains, snowcapped and illuminated by a strong moonlight. Upon hearing my comment, he turned to the second, appearing to send a bitter glare towards him. This other person was much larger in build, both by muscle and height and his eyes burned a rich amber and which stood out against his rich, black, quiffed hair, noticeable even from a considerable amount of feet away. In contrast with the first male, his skin appeared unblemished of tattoos, and he had a very relaxed presence about him despite his friend’s glower.

The latter of the two was the first to lower himself from the hole in the rock, the other reaching out seemingly in an attempt to stop him. He must have been unsure of me being there. Nonetheless, the man persisted to approach me and offered a hand to help me up, which I took graciously and was brought back to my feet.

“Cam over there can vouch for me when I say that I am not the most subtle person in the world,” the man declared, his eyes much more vibrant up close if that was at all possible. It was a rather difficult attribute not to take notice to. “Despite this, I am surely a man who understands when an apology is in store, and so I hope you accept my apology for frightening you.”

My lips shifted in thought, still a bit irked with the pain in my behind. Nonetheless, I nodded to assure him that everything was fine, and happily, he offered me a toothy grin.

“The name is Orion Shepherd,” he introduced, still smirking with happiness. “Over there with the salty stare is Cameron Drake, or as you heard me refer to him, Cam. I’m not too sure, though, how kindly he would take to a stranger addressing him in such a way.”

Don’t go assuming I plan on making friends with a pair of strangers I just met, Orion.

“He’s likes to bark, but he doesn’t have any bite. Honestly, I’m quite surprised that he hasn’t called you out on the sudden arrival.”

I glanced at this supposed Cam, who still seemed unsure of me intruding on their whatever-the-hell get-together.

“I apologize if I was interrupting anything,” I apologized, hoping not to get on anybody’s bad side, particularly Cam’s. Orion did not seem to mind my sudden appearance, though. “On my way back home, that doe caught my attention and I found myself chasing after it.”

“For a photograph?” he chuckled. “I hope it was worth the chase. Those deer sure can be swift and easy to lose track of.”

I nervously nodded in agreement. His comment led me to believe that Orion was a hunter of some sort. However, these woods were strictly off-limits to hunting. Of course, that didn’t rule out the possibility of him being a hunter, and more importantly, whether or not he was one didn’t matter to me.

Why was I thinking about it so thoroughly?

“Time, time, time, Orion!” Cam finally blurted as he hopped out of the cavity and approached Orion with steam coming from his ears. The smaller man leaned into Orion’s ear and seemed to give him a very intensive lecture out of my earshot about who-knows-what, yet Orion simply continued to smirk, his friend’s words seemingly going in one ear and out the other.

Throwing his hands in the air, Orion responded. “We aren’t in a rush, Cameron. Hush now. I’m still in the middle of introducing myself.”

Grumbling, Cam demanded that he leave him out of the conversation. “Maybe this little discussion will be over faster if you leave my intro out of this.” Following his temper, Cam leaned up against the rocky protuberance, arms crossed and foot tapping, waiting impatiently.

“Excuse Mr. Grumps. He forgot to eat his breakfast this morning and now he’s cranky.”

Cam found little humor in the joke from his crotchety position off to the side. I, however, found myself offering a vague giggle. This seemed to in turn make Orion happy and proud that he got a different reaction out of me. Thus, feeling accomplished, he continued to introduce some more pieces of information about himself.

“In case if you were wondering, which I’m sure you were, the two of us were simply spending the rest of the evening out here. Earlier, we were having a nice dinner at some restaurant up in Bear Creek and made the decision to spend a little time out here, mainly for my sake, because let me tell you I absolutely adore these woods.”

I couldn’t blame him. The Foxborough Woods sure had stolen my heart since I entered them earlier this evening. “It sure sounds like you two were having a rather glamorous date,” I joked with a wink towards Orion.

Once again, Cam did not enjoy the humor, shouting with clenched fists, “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I swore I could see a long stream of spit shoot from his mouth. Meanwhile, Orion was cracking up in a fit of laughter, similar to the one Mya and I had at the Cabin. These two characters sure seemed to have contrasting personalities. Orion was very laid back and seemed to enjoy his introductions. Certainly, he was the social type, whereas Cam appeared to not take to fondly to strangers. He had turned his back for a moment by that point, face red with anger, his chest rising and falling ever so calmly as he attempted to regain a little composure, and once the atmosphere again returned to normal, Orion no longer stumbling through his outburst and Cam once again quietly sulking and digging his foot into the dirt, I continued the conversation, questioning if they attended school somewhere in the Haynes area. The two both appeared college age to me, and so I assumed they were both students at the community college.

However, Orion shook his head. “Sadly, I’m not pursuing an education as of now.”

“Neither am I,” I added. “I graduated from Haynes High School last year, but have yet to decide exactly what I want to do.”

“Haynes High School?”

I nodded. “Did you not?”

“I’ve lived here in the Haynes area my entire life. I used to attend the elementary school here as it was the only one nearby at the time, and did the same for middle school. However, once I hit high school, I began attending Jefferson High School down the road a few miles. My mother worked in the office there and, at the time, I had been dealing with an unmanageable amount of anxiety, and so I figured it would be best to be near a family member during the school day in case if anything happened.” He shrugged, his grin now fading into indifference as if recollecting on the troublesome experience, but a beam of understanding from me returned that smile back to his lips. “Graduation was a couple years back and I never found the need to pursue an education just yet.” Orion paused and hummed for a moment again, once again looking at the sky, which was starting to lose its color as the sun was setting further, the brightest of stars and Venus peeking through the streaks of cotton candy clouds. “Cam is attending the community college, though, to fulfill his gen-ed classes for now.”

“My friend, Mya, is doing the same thing. I avoided going through anything like that for now just so I could avoid the stress until I decide what I want to do with my life.”

Understanding my situation, Orion nodded before advancing the conversation. “How come you’re out here?” he queried. “You do understand that these woods are thick and easy to get lost in if you don’t know your way around, especially when night hits.”

“I can navigate these woods fairly easily. After dining with Mya in town, I decided to cut my way through the woods on my way home. Besides, I enjoy the Autumn leaves.” I narrowed my eyes, a bit offended that he would think I couldn’t handle my own navigation.

“So you’re risking getting lost in these woods, which are practically a forest, just to look at the autumn leaves?” Cam asked snarkily.

“Don’t be critical Cam!” Orion snapped. Cam was now sending a fiery scowl, sharper than any glare before. Nonetheless, Orion did not budge and turned back to me. His gaze lowered down to the camera around my neck and he cocked his head in a curious fashion. “I never gave you the opportunity to look over that picture of the doe.” He held out his hand. “Perhaps you would allow me to be the first to take a gander at it. Photography has always amazed me you see, so I am genuinely interested in what you captured.”

My fingers wrapped tightly around my camera securely. Sure, Orion appeared to be kind, but he was a stranger nonetheless. I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to trust an unfamiliar person with my expensive device, but the man gave me a gentle smile and I could not see a speck of criminal intent in his eyes. Hesitantly, I pulled the camera from around my neck and handed it to him. “Careful,” I demanded softly.

“I promise.” Orion held the Nikon in his hands, wary of his grip on it, and found his way to my gallery of photographs. The first one to appear on the screen was the one which I was greatly interested to see myself. Another light hearted grin spread softly across his face and he turned the back of the camera to me so I could see the image on the screen. A rush of joy and relief flashed through my body as I laid my eyes upon the splendid image that I had been chasing after, clear and crisp. Without a word, he continued to search through more of my photographs, which were at first pictures of the girl from that afternoon and followed by other senior portraits which I had taken prior to today.

“I’m an amateur, so I’m not entirely sure how good they are,” I commented in a humble manner, yet still proud of the photo of the doe.

Orion looked up at me without the slightest twitch of his head. “These are pretty damn good if you ask me.” Not expecting the comment, his compliment sent me sputtering for a grateful response, but before I could find the words to thank him, he raised his palm and shook his head, and thus he switched my camera off and held it back out to me. “You claim you aren’t a talented photographer, but I would definitely beg to differ. In fact, if it wouldn’t be too strange a request, I would be very appreciative to be given the opportunity to take a look at a few more of your gorgeous pictures.”

At that moment, Cam cleared his throat obnoxiously loud in order to interrupt our conversation. This resulted in Orion’s sweet smile fading into a frown of displeasure. As the two of us glanced over at the impatient man, he walked towards us, obviously still frustrated.

“Need I remind you again, Orion, about our prior commitments,” Cam spit through half-clenched teeth. “I’ll have you know that I have yet to be late thus far, and I do not plan on being tardy now.” He seemed to stumble through his words as if unsure of what he was intending to say, perhaps due to the palpable anger boiling inside of him.

I figured I had outstayed my welcome despite Orion seemingly enjoying the company. Besides, the sky was finally reaching the brink of night, all colors now disappearing from the clouds above us, and I presumed Orion was right about being out in the woods this late. The remainder of the journey home would prove to be fairly difficult in the thick of nightfall, despite my confidence in my ability to navigate through the trees solo.

Cam continued to shoo me off, Orion repeatedly demanding that he check his manners, which never happened. As I was being led away, I recalled that I had forgotten to introduce myself earlier. Therefor, I blurted out, “Juliana,” before departing, reaching my hand around Cam and giving a brief handshake to Orion before it was broken up by his friend as well. “Juliana MacKay,” I reiterated before giving in to Cam’s wishes and turning, beginning to head off towards my home.

Before I could find myself venturing too far, my attention was once again turned towards the two boys as Orion called out to me. “Juliana!” he squawked, his voice echoing through the woods. “I’ll be expecting those pictures tomorrow.” I could vaguely see that same sort grin that he had been giving me the entire evening once again spreading from cheek to cheek.

Unsure if I should commit to his request, I simply continued on my way westwards, reflecting on the meeting with the two boys. Albeit a strange and sudden encounter, I was inexplicably curious to return. Tonight I would consider returning in the morning, but for the time being I focused on finding my way home underneath the crescent moonlight, tired and now aching for the warmth of my bed sheets.

[lost-in-our-words]

“Stellar Hearts” Chapter I (Part I): Juliana

Again, thanks to anybody who offers any suggestions, corrections, or constructive criticism. Before I start, I need to be sure to state that this story belongs to me, so please do not copy this story in any way, shape, or form. I want to make sure I’m making my posts easy to read. And, without further ado, here is Chapter I of Stellar Hearts.

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Autumn was settling over Haynes, evident by the display of fiery hues replacing the natural green of the trees’ leaves. It was the first of October, and by now I was beginning to see residents of the isolated town break out their heavy jackets and scarves. Meanwhile, I was huddled with my friend, Mya Townsend, inside of the Cabin, a modest, yet charming restaurant which sat humbly on the outskirts of Haynes, overlooking the Foxborough woods. The two of us were partaking in our annual tradition of enjoying a warm cup of hot cocoa from one of the local restaurants when the month of Halloween struck. I watched Mya, who sat silently across from me, gazing out the large windows which had replaced the western wall of the quaint restaurant, intended to provide the restaurant’s patrons with a splendid view of the woods’ Autumn trees and their leaves which swayed back and forth ever so gently in the mid-afternoon breeze.

I ran my finger along the rim of a porcelain cup which sat in front of me on the polished table, half empty of the chocolate beverage and completely drained of what whipped cream that had arrived with it. Compared to some of the other hot cocoa’s Mya and I had tasted over the previous years, this one was quite a letdown. Between its more watered down taste and the lack of marshmallows, I was sorely disappointed. Nonetheless, hot cocoa was hot cocoa, and thus I continued to sip away, as did my friend.

Mya sat upright in her chair and ran her fingers, whose nails were glossed over with a vibrant pink, through her blonde, bobbed hair. I had learned that this signal meant she was interested in starting up a conversation. However, she was never the best at bringing about a discussion, and so, instead, I cleared my throat and offered a question to her.

“You’ve been attending that college for a couple months now,” I began, my hands now clasped around the warm mug containing the disappointing drink. “Have you figured what major you may be interested in pursuing?”

Mya glanced up with a delighted smirk on her face, more than likely because a conversation had been stirred.

With a shake of her head, she explained to me that she still hadn’t the slightest clue what she may be interested in. “I’ve still been trying to wrap my head around a few possibilities, but they all seem to not be quite what I’m looking for.” She paused for a moment and glanced into her cup, seemingly studying the bits of whipped cream which still floated on the surface of the liquid. As she lifted the mug in her hands and enjoyed the warmth which radiated from it, albeit not taking another sip, she continued. “Alexus told me before senior walkout that she was considering studying a foreign language, and, thinking that perhaps she was onto something, I had convinced myself that such a major may be interesting. Thus, I enrolled in a French class this semester, but it just isn’t enthralling enough to peak my enthusiasm.”

“Enthralling?” I questioned. “That’s some impressive vocabulary for you, don’t you think?” Of course, I was joking around with my friend, but I had never expected to hear the word “enthralling” to escape her lips.

Ignoring my remark, she continued to tell of her journey through searching for a major. “After plan A failed, I tested out a few other ideas, pondering them for some time and weighing the pros and cons. I’ve sat in on a pair of classes, including an introductory sociology class and a women’s studies class which covered gender equality.” Mya lowered her head and seemed to enjoy a faint whiff of the hot cocoa before again looking up from her mug with a particularly unamused look. “Picking a major is a ‘major’ pain in the ass, Juliana. Although, I am sure you understand my pain. Tell me, have you come any closer to discovering what you’d like to do with your life?”

She got me there. While Mya was currently attending the Haynes Community College to explore her options while also knocking out some gen-eds, I diverged from her path. Likewise to her, I was indecisive in regards to my future, but had no intention of attending classes when I was still in the dark. This was not due to financial issues as many suspected, especially as my parents are offering to cover tuition and any other expenses, but rather an issue concerning avoiding a “mental overload” as I described it. I wasn’t exactly the best at managing schoolwork in high school, and so instead, while the majority of my graduating class is spreading across the United States to pursue careers, I had made the decision to take a year off from schooling and instead am focusing on my side business of photography in the meantime. Simply enough, it was named “Juliana’s Photography,” a cheap service as I wasn’t the most talented person with Nikon, but I could provide half-decent senior portraits to those who resented the thought of paying top-dollar for something so insignificant as photographs that may live only in a scrapbook or on a house wall, and to my amazement, the business was doing rather well. In fact, I had just returned from a photo shoot and still had my carrying case full of equipment resting beside me, and after stating that I was no closer to coming across an attractive major, Mya turned her attention to this photo shoot instead, curious as to how it had gone.

I offered a vague shrug. “The shoot was nothing spectacular. Nothing out of the ordinary occurred. My subject, a fairly pretty girl from Jefferson, had this obsession with fixing her hair nonstop despite being perhaps the most photogenic person I had ever come across. Thus, to my dismay, it would take several shots before I could ultimately snap a picture where she didn’t have her fingers up and tangled in her black hair.” As I reflected on the photo shoot, the corner of my lip flicked with a delicate twitch. “Now that I think back to it, however, little miss Priss was quite the nuisance, constantly insisting that another photograph be taken because of one tiny issue that could hardly be noticed, and no matter how many times I assured her that I could fix whatever the hell it was in editing, she begged for ‘one more picture just to be safe.’”

“I couldn’t have the patience for such an annoying client,” Mya joked as a response, then continuing to sip the last of her hot cocoa.

I offered a faint chuckle in response, drawing a look of confusion from Mya. From irritation, my mood returned to collected as I recounted what occurred following the session. “Except the mother offered to pay extra, obviously understanding how much a pain her daughter was being,” I added.

“How much?”

“Double what I was charging her. As tremendously as I wanted to accept the extra payment though, I refused. I was just being humble. Nonetheless, the mother shoved the large amount of cash into my hands and scurried off with her daughter before I could reiterate that I simply couldn’t accept it.”

Mya slammed her palm on the table and sent a stern glare my way, claiming that I was an imbecile for turning down such a glorious offer. However, deep in her sea green eyes, I could see a glimmer of humor. Before I knew it, she was bursting out in a fit of laughter, dubbing her comment as a joke and begging that I should not take her seriously, and surely, I wasn’t going to take her serious anyways. She is a terrible jokester after all. Anybody with functioning eyesight could see straight through her charades.

Returning to a sitting position on the wooden chair, she took a deep breath to regain her composure. Mya sure could crack herself up.

Our conversation went silent for a moment following the madness, and amongst the discomforting feeling of the ensuing awkwardness, Mya cleared her throat. Between her lips, I spotted a thin opening as if she prepared to speak, yet not a word came out. So, in an attempt to move the conversation forward, I reached down and unzipped the unvarnished black bag sitting by my feet, keeping an eye on my friend’s fingers which glided softly along her mug as she eyed me curiously. Searching throughout the bag, my hand moved between different lenses and filters before finally arriving at my camera.

“We were originally supposed to travel out to some field by the zoo about fifteen minutes east of town,” I started, “But the clients gave me a ring last night and said they discovered this small garden up on the northern outskirts of Haynes. It’s a wonderful venue, public and free to enter, and it actually made a great backdrop in my opinion.”

Pulling the camera out of my bag and switching it on, I handed the bulky device over to Mya. “Take a look,” I insisted simply with a faint smile curled upon my lips.

Graciously, she took the camera and focused her attention to the small screen on the backside of it. For a few silent moments following, she examined the pictures one by one, quietly dissecting the images and admiring the background which I had glorified. Some of the photographs had the high school senior sitting impatiently upon a granite stone wall with an array of colorful flowers, primarily irises and tulips, behind her. In others, she was standing with her back against an old wooden shed that we had found, the timber structure rustic in nature. However, perhaps my favorite photograph was the one with the black-haired woman holding a vibrant scarlet rose to her nose as she took a whiff of its floral scent. My reverence for the photograph, however, arose from how genuinely candid it was. It took one snap of the shutters for photo to be recorded, unlike all of the other pictures which required numerous attempts. There was no need for fixing the hair, no “one more photo just in case,” but simply a wonderful portrait.

Mya paused on one of the images, and reflecting off of her pupils, I could vaguely make out the photo that I had appreciated.

“Being here in Haynes, it meant I didn’t have to get in my car and drive anywhere as well.” I dug my heel into the carpeted floor and offered a faint smirk. “That was a plus.”

My friend’s emerald eyes rolled with misunderstanding as she gently let my camera down onto the table, and slowly, she relaxed back into her chair, sending a somewhat irked glare my way. “I’ve never understood what your quarrel with driving is,” she commented with her arms crossed loosely in front of her stomach.

This was not the first time that she questioned my distaste towards driving, and sure enough it would not be the last. Never did I understand why she was so passionate about understanding this uncommon trait of mine, but she always seemed determined to convert me into a lover of driving. “I’m serious, Juliana,” she reiterated, but now with a very gentle smirk creeping their way onto her face.

“Driving is stressful,” I responded modestly. “You must have said it a thousand times how driving gives you some sort of freedom, but I hate being responsible for a two-ton vehicle on a road with a bunch of maniacs who seem to have no respect for the rules of the road.”

“Stickler,” Mya mumbled.

“I’m sorry that I don’t want to get myself killed!” I sputtered, not angrily, but more in quick retaliation, accidentally sending a shot of saliva towards Mya. She flinched from the flying fluid as it landed on the table in front of her. In embarrassment, I swiftly covered my hands over my mouth.

How disgusting that must have been?

Instead of an appalled reaction, however, my friend once again broke into a fit, and by that point, we had turned into a pair of girls sharing a bout of giggles in the restaurant, drawing the attention of the other customers. Through my joyful tears, I could see a few other people scattered here and there, generally patrons similar to our age, becoming infected by the contagious laughter as well. The mature joint was no longer quiet with hushed gossip, instead being overcome with multiple tables sharing in the mirth that we were not able to contain within ourselves. Our waiter, seemingly aggravated with the sudden guffaw, returned to our table with checks in hand, settling them upright in front of Mya and I respectively before walking off without another word. Taking the hint, the two of us signed our checks, ensuring to tip the waiter as apology for the unwanted outburst, and dashing off quickly once we were free to. Thus, us two women, still suffering from an unstoppable frenzy of laughter, were left outside face to face with the boundless Foxborough Woods.

[lost-in-our-words]

“Stellar Hearts” Preview

Welcome to Lost in Our Words once again. Just a recap of how I plan to run this blog:

“How I plan to approach this is I will post chapter by chapter, and if anybody has comments or suggestions, it could help to improve the story going forward as well as provide inspiration to continue as writing can sometimes feel like a tedious activity.”

And so, I have been outlining the first story that I plan to post on this blog! At the moment, I am calling it “Stellar Hearts,” but that is subject to change once the actual story gets written.

So, without further ado, here is the preview for Stellar Hearts:

“Sometimes, fate can lead people in strange directions, and for Juliana MacKay, an amateur photographer, fate would lead her on a journey one Autumn evening when she would run across two peculiar boys. But when she makes the decision to befriend the two, she finds herself in a surreal sequence of events, leading her to the discovery one of her friend’s lycanthropy secret, a surprise romance, and a fight to keep her newfound partner alive.”

Writing on this story will begin soon, and I can’t wait to post the first chapter! If you’ve got any questions, please ask, and I would love the news of this blog to spread if possible so I can share my work with others as well as get more feedback so I may improve my writing.

GENRE: WEREWOLF - ROMANCE

Make life a story worth telling.

~Arkenta

[lost-in-our-words]

Welcome ~ Lost in Our Words

Welcome everybody to “Lost in Our Words.” I would just like to introduce myself and this blog.

First, I would like to introduce myself and let you all get to know me a little bit better:

You may refer to me as Arkenta, or Ark for short. I am currently a college student at Iowa State University studying to become a meteorologist, but in my spare time I enjoy getting involved in competitive tennis, playing the piano despite not being too talented at it, and most importantly, writing stories (more on this to come). It is also worth noting that I am bisexual and am fully supportive of anybody in the LGBTQ+ community. Feel free to message me any questions, whether or not related to this blog, and do not be afraid of asking a stupid question. No question is stupid. You can also ask at arkentawolfdragon if you would rather.

Now onto more information about this blog:

As I mentioned before, I enjoy writing stories. I occasionally attempt poetry, although I am not as avid about writing poems. However, I have one problem, being I am merely an amateur writer at best. My vocabulary is not as wide as it probably should be, I am prone to having plot holes, and my biggest fear is that I cannot create enticing material. Thus, Lost in Our Words is dedicated improving my writing as well as hopefully entertaining others in the process. WHAT I ASK OF YOU ALL is for some feedback, whether it be pointing out issues in the plot, vocabulary errors or suggestions, or even ways to improve the story to make it more entertaining. It would be very much appreciated. However, I must be honest with you, I cannot provide anything in return aside from a thank you and of course giving you credit for any suggestions that assist me in my writing.

My stories often consist of fantasy and/or romance plots. For example, just so you may get a taste of what my plots may be like, I recently finished my first ever book (sadly, it is not too good, and so I don’t plan on sharing it). This was the summary:

“Aiden Holmes has never been one for being praised as a god by the humans on his world, Horizon. Being a Nava, a rare human-dragon species, he and those alike are seen as magnificent protectors of all the people of the planet. However, his isolation leads to a chance encounter with a woman that will change his life forever, bringing him out of his shell and introducing him to a newfound love. But, when a corrupt Nava attacks his hometown and threatens to overpower all of Horizon, he must balance both his blossoming relationship and his duties in order to protect all those that he loves.”

I am currently working on a new story, now paying more attention to details and the plot, but I still have flaws like I said. So, I ask of everyone to please help me become a better writer, and I hope that I can entertain you with my stories as I learn to become a better story-teller.

How I plan to approach this is I will post chapter by chapter, and if anybody has comments or suggestions, it could help to improve the story going forward as well as provide inspiration to continue as writing can sometimes feel like a tedious activity.

Also, before I sign off, a big thanks to @felixarren for the support and idea to bring my writing here.

Make life a story worth living,

~Arkenta.