Forever alone

In the dead of night, a teen-aged boy emerged from the trees with nothing but a twig that he sharpened into a pencil and an old blue book he brings everywhere he goes. Especially here, during these nights when the moon is high above and there isn't a sound in the dead of night. Except for his footsteps crunching over the dead leaves and branches. He walks over to his usual spot in front of the lake, settling down and making himself comfortable. He sits on the rich leafy green surface leaning against a log as he begins his nightly ritual. Flipping through the pages in his patched-up book he finds a blank page. Drawing, peacefully laying under the soft glow of the stars giving him just enough light to see around him. He spent the entire day by himself, some may say he’s lonely yet he never felt lonely. Alone sure but never lonely. Nothing ever bothered him here in the deep woods. Crack! 

Wiping his head around, his piercing green eyes studying the dark trees, looking for the cause of the sound. Waiting to hear it again, but nothing. He went back to drawing. It wasn't uncommon to hear things crawling in the night, but a voice calling out is unusual. 

“Hello,” a gentle voice came from behind. The boy immediately stood up letting his book fall. With all the nights he came here, he would never think of seeing a person, let alone a girl. He stared as a blonde pale girl stepped out of the shadows. “Hi, I’m Ella,” Her big blue eyes glowing in the dark, reminded him of his book that he had forgotten on the ground.

He stared, flabbergasted. “Who are you?” 

“I just told you who I am,” Ella chuckles.

“No, but-” he hesitates. “A girl like you shouldn't be in the woods alone,” 

“I'm not,” she states, taking a step closer. “you’re here,” she says playfully.

“But you didn't know that you walked freely into the woods alone,”

“Sure, that's true but, I did know you were here. I live on Cherry Lane and I see you every night walking to the lake. I always told myself that I would see what you were up to all these nights, so here I am.”

“Why do you care, you don't even know me?” His eyes were hollow and his voice was sharp. 

She blinked looking up at him through her eyelashes, “well, I want to,” the boy didn't know how to respond. No one ever wanted to get to know him. The boy let out a hollow chuckle walking back to gather his things and leave. “Wait, where are you going?” The boy kept on walking without looking back. “What is your name?” Her voice echoed in the night only to be left with silence.

Out of the woods, the boy walked into an old red farmhouse not far from the lake. Stepping into the kitchen he passed the living room where his dad lay asleep with an empty bottle clutched in his hand while the TV played in the background. 

In the morning he quickly ate breakfast and did all the chores he was given by his dad before going off to the woods with his book, hoping to be alone this time.

The afternoon sunshine glistened through the branches high above as he walked to his familiar spot by the lake.

Sitting down, and starting to sketch, he couldn't stop thinking of Ella and her luscious hair and eyes, so he added her to his page, trying his best to capture her beauty. Until it consumed him he couldn't take his mind off of her. Driving him crazy he got up and began walking out of the woods towards Cherry Lane. He didn't know why or what made him do this, he just felt a strong passion to find her again. To his surprise, he saw Ella through the trees walking towards him. Her blue eyes fell on him, and she froze. 

“Jack, my name is Jack,” the boy said. Ela stared surprised until breaking into a smile. “I'm sorry for leaving last night, I didn't know what to or-” Jack struggled looking for the right words to say.

“It's okay,” Ella assured, “I'm also sorry, I don't think I realized how creepy that could have been preceded,” They laughed and for the first time in a while Jack felt happy. “Well, I have to go before my parents realize I left the house, but I'll see you tonight right?”

“Yeah, sounds good,” Jack stayed in the woods for much longer, thinking about his mom and how much he missed her. The thought of going back home to a place with an intact family was only a dream.

The night came much quicker than Jack could have imagined. Laying down as motionless as the deep blue lake in front of him, drawing aimlessly in his shabby book. “Hey,” Jack looked up to see Ella walking out of the shadows, returning his gaze back to his sketch, Ella choosing to sit adjacent to him. She watched him for a moment. Until shattering the silence, “So what do you do all these nights?” 

He rested his pencil looking up at her. “Well, most nights I draw, and if I'm not drawing, I'm looking up at the stars,” he stated simply.

“What do you draw?” She asked, looking down at the hardcover book.

“Whatever is around me,” he said, studying the surface of the lake, memorized by the beautiful shimmering reflection of the moonlight.

“Can I see?”

“What? My sketch?” He said with a look of confusion spread across his face. The only person who ever had an interest in his artwork was his mother.

“Yes, of course, let me see,” after a lot of convincing, Jack finally showed her a simple sketch of Ella standing by the lake. She looked up at him and laughed, she loved it so much she tried to recreate it in real life. Stepping into the cold icy water, Jack joined her moments after they were waist-deep splashing and swimming in the water. He would have never thought of swimming in the clear crystal lake if it wasn't for Ella. From that night forward they spent their evenings together filled with laughter, sketching, and swimming, under the navy blue sky. Jack slowly lost touch with his pen, distracted by exploring corners of the woods with Ella. Building campfires and roasting marshmallows that Ella stole from her house. “I don't believe you,”

“Why because you live in a mansion,”

“I don't! I live in a two-story house,” She couldn't believe that Jack lived on a farm. Jack went along bringing her one night to the farm, and showing her all around. Yet Ella never brought Jack to her house. Her family would never accept such a thing. That she would find herself waiting for her parents to go to sleep along with her siblings to sneak out to meet Jack in the woods. It became a beautiful ritual that she loved. 

 Lost in all the events with Ella Jack begins slipping with the chores on the farm. Weeks on end, forgetting his tasks that one day his father snapped. Jack left the house with black and blue on his face that night. Ella pretended not to notice, she knew not to pry in one's life. He already told her that his mom died when he was young she felt sorry and maybe that is why she never brought him over. Showing him how perfect she had it. A perfect family, house neighborhood. The only chores she had to do was take out the trash but she would never tell him that.

Green fresh grass carpeted the forest floor while Jack and Ella lay admiring the full bright moon. Ella asked Jack, “What do you think about when looking up at the moon?”

“Home,” Jack softly said, keeping his emerald eyes up at the sky.

She looked down at him and then back to his eyes, “home,” she repeated, “what’s that like?”

“I don't know, I'm not sure, I just know it's not here. I mostly think about leaving, leaving this town behind, and starting a better one.” Ella stared at him feeling his pain, she knew she could take that away from him.

“Well why don't we, why don't we jump on the train by Bellbrook Street it leaves every noon. We can leave everything behind,” 

Finally breaking his gas looking at Ella, “You would do that?”

“Yes of course,” She laughed, “we can meet here in the morning, then walk to the train together.” He nodded excitedly, they both walked home a little faster than usual having so much larger of what holds in the morning.

Jack woke up way before Pa did, he gathered his things and walked into the woods. Ella is still eating breakfast with her whole family, her plate still filled with white toast eggs, and more. It was a daily ritual, eating breakfast with the family she loved but it was her last. Once Ella sneaked out of the house she met with Jack. 

Walking to the rustic old train hand in hand, she looked over at Jack, a determination that seemed to pierce through the air. She looked up to see the train sitting waiting for them. She noticed the dark gray clouds rolling in above them. “I just realized you forgot your book,”

“It's okay, I'll get a new one,” 

“No, you have so much work in that one,” She pleaded.

“It doesn't matter, the train is leaving soon, I'll find a new one,” They approach the train, Jack stepping in while Ella stands facing him. “What are you doing?”

“I don't think this is a good idea anymore,” her voice shaking.

“It was your idea,” he said looking down at her tears welling in her eyes, “come on,” he whispered helplessly. “Please, I love you,” It was the first time he had ever said that to anyone. Still holding hands they stared deeply into each other's eyes, “Stay.”

“I can't,” her blue eyes holding the ocean became rivers that fell down her cheek. 

The train whistles warning them of its departure. “Out time is up”

She looks back at everything she has, “I love you but-”

“You are so determined to leave with lies on ur lips!”

“No! It's true, I do love you, but you can not ask me to leave everything behind, my family, my friends, my home! It's everything I have!”

“And it's everything I don't”

“I don't know what this is, I don't even know where we're going!?”

“It's love, that's it! It doesn't matter where we are going because we have each other and we will always have each other!”

“It's torture! It's nothing but torture!” The train jolts as it begins moving. “Oh God,” she whispered looking down at the tracks, “I'm sorry but I can't” 

He looked at her for the very last time, “I will forever miss you.”

The train begins to move forward, “Goodby Jack”

Slowly letting go, Ella helplessly watches Jack being swept away by the train, forever lost. She stared for a moment letting tears fall off her cheek. 

Later that day, in the dead of night, Ella emerged from the trees with nothing but herself. She walked to where Jack would be sitting if it wasn't for her. Nothing but a blue book was left behind. She smiled to herself, sitting down by it and opening the last page to find one of his sketches of her. She looked up, noticing how alone she was, and began to cry. Hunched over Jack's book forever alone in the woods.