Page 11 of Sage Haven
But that was a long shot, because every night, when the world quieted, I peeled off the mask and it was waiting for me again.
The memories. The fear. The shame.
It never left.
It just lurked beneath the surface, patiently awaiting.
By the third week, I found trails nearby my apartment complex. They were tucked just beyond town, winding through a forest that stretched as far as I could see.
I made a habit of walking those trails every morning, right after the nightmares spat me out of sleep and before the day had a chance to crush me beneath its weight.
It became my solitude.
The trees arched overhead like old sentinels, their branches knitting together into something that felt like protection. The river cut through the woods with a quiet murmur, its voice softer than my own thoughts and the sounds of the bird filled the spaces between with their song.
And for the first time in years, I felt…lighter.
Not whole but less broken.
Each step away from the past, felt like a quiet rebellion.
A middle finger raised against everything that had tried to bury me.
I didn’t know where the trail led.
I didn’t care.
Forward was enough.
Then, one morning, I found a small clearing
Hidden just beyond a bend in the path.
A meadow that looked like it had been painted onto the world by some gods I didn’t believe in. Wildflowers spilled over the earth in every riotous color imaginable—violet, gold, crimson, ivory.
Untamed and almost rebellious.
Butalive.
The river glittered nearby, its surface catching the light in a way that made it look molten.
I stood there for a long time, just… staring.
It was too perfect. Too beautiful.
I half-expected it to vanish if I blinked.
For a moment, it felt like I’d stepped into another world entirely.
One untouched by the things that haunted me.
I sat by the riverbank, fingers drifting over the petals, tracing their softness as if they might ground me in something real. The water whispered against the shore, and since coming to Providence I felt something close to safe.
Not exactly safe, but close.
And close was enough.
So, I came back.
