Hello again! Well, to anyone who still reads this, haha. Well, I'm back into writing, and I found my stash of blurbs from last summer. I figured it was about time I finally posted them. Here's a first of many. Enjoy!

It probably wasn’t the best idea to be out here alone, but to my defense, I liked the isolation and peacefulness. And I did have my phone with me in case of an emergency, even if it did only have one bar currently, and at times no service at all. I also had pepper spray, and I knew how to use it. I wasn’t totally unprepared.

I came to this forest to think once in awhile. The trails were paved and soft under my soles, the trees wide and green with trunks covered in moss, along with healthy sprigs or bushes along the way. Various trails crawled throughout the area, each leading to different locations. The one I took today led to a colorful meadow, especially during this time of year.

Rarely did I see others during my visits, and I was just fine with that. Taking my time, I admired the naturesque scenery around me as I entered the meadow, thrilled to see the flowers blooming. I couldn’t help myself and ran through them, where there were already small trails. My hands were lifted up and I twirled with occasional giggles escaping from my lips. It was somewhat childish, but we are all children at heart.

As I stopped spinning, I was more than surprised to see a man with a camera, staring at me as if in a daze.

“Oh!” I said before my legs gave out and I dropped unceremoniously to the ground. I suppose I was spinning a bit too much.

The man was broken out of his stupor after I fell, and he rushed toward me.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt? Is there anything I can do to help?”

I could see that he was genuinely worried about me, but I shook my head.

“No…no, it’s all right. I’m fine, just startled is all.”

He let out a sigh of relief and plopped down next to me.

“Thank goodness! It’s quite a far ways from the parking lot to get hurt.”

I blushed in embarrassment. How long had he been standing there as I was lost in my own world?

“How long where you there? I don’t remember anyone on the trail with me…”

Ruefully, I made a note to be more aware of myself. It wouldn’t do for me to be ignorant of my surroundings, or people for that matter. I had to take care of myself especially when I was traveling alone.

“Oh, I was in the meadow for the last half hour before I…er…saw you.”

“I see…”

That really didn’t help my embarrassment, and when we both connected gazes, I could see a faint flush on his cheeks before I looked away. After a few moments, he cleared his throat.

“So, um, do you come here often? I’ve never seen you around before.”

“Well, I’ve come here a handful of times before, but I’ve never met anyone here before. Usually I’m alone, save for a few times, this being one of them. Though, I’ve never actually talked to someone before either.”

“I usually come here to take pictures, but you can already tell that,” he said with a sheepish smile while indicating to his camera.

He had a bulkier digital camera, a DSLR if I remembered correctly. He looked like more than your average photographer, and it seemed like he knew what he was doing with that camera,

I smiled before nodding.

“Yes, I noticed. Do you usually do landscapes?”

We were still sitting on the ground, although on top of trodden grass, but I found I didn’t mind too much.

“Usually, but I do deviate from time to time.” His eyes held a twinkle, as if he knew something I didn’t.

“Hmm, I see.”

I stood up and brushed myself off before continuing down the paved path created by others before me. I didn’t need to check if he was following, because he stood up as soon as I did. Walking along ahead, I admired the scenery again, my fingers lightly gliding across the petals and leaves.

He followed along quietly, observing all the while I could feel his stare on me, and for once I felt conscious of myself. Hearing the click of the shutter, I turned around and saw the camera in front of his face before he lowered it.

“Sorry, I couldn’t help it. It was too pretty to let go.” His face held a mischievous smile that told me he wasn’t really sorry. But sorry for what, I wasn’t exactly sure.

“You must be talking about this meadow.”

With a smile, I turned away and began walking again. He soon caught up and we walked together silently side by side.

“Well, meadow is nice, but I was talking about something else.”

He handed me his camera, and I gave him a curious look before turning my gaze to the camera screen.

“Not something, but rather someone," he clarified.

I gasped as I finally saw the pictures he took. The ones with the meadow were beautiful indeed, and the lighting was perfect. But what caught me by surprise was the girl at the center of each photo, smiling like everything was right in the world. She looked relaxed, happy, and content. This person couldn’t possibly be me, but at the same time it was. He had been sneaking pictures of me all along. I gave him an accusatory look, and he just shrugged with a smirk on his face.

“I did say I deviated from landscapes from time to time.”

I decided to let it go without a complaint, though a flush made its way across my face again. The pictures were bright, colorful, green, all of which added to the ethereal feeling.

“Well, you do have talent. I’ll give you that,’ I said with a straight face, handing back his camera, of with which he immediately snapped a picture of me.

“I know, but I do have to give some credit to the subject of my photos, do I not?”

I softly replied to his question.

“I suppose so…”

It was then that I realized we never even introduced ourselves. For all I knew, he could have been someone dangerous. He must of noticed my sudden stiffness and wariness, because he grinned.

“Oh, and I’m not a serial killer by the way.”

“Because all serial killers identify themselves as such,” I retorted before clearing my throat. “Besides, who ever said you were one?” I said faking ignorance.

“Your eyes.”

“And you would know that because…?”

“Eyes reveal a lot, even if not in words.”

He seemed to have a way with making me blush, and I could feel another one making its way across my cheeks.

“But to answer your million dollar question, I’m Jin Ki.”

He offered his hand, and now relieved of my previous worries, I gave him a smile, accepting his hand for a shake.

“I’m Bomi. Nice to meet you Jin Ki.”

Yup yup, I hope you liked it. I hope to see you in my next installment. Please subscribe, comment, and up vote!

<3 WinterRose