The alarm has snoozed countless times since the morning. The alarm on his phone came back again, and it's now 3:00 P. M. Finally, Reo woke up.
Reo took a quick shower and brushed his teeth. The late teen saw his reflection in the foggy mirror over the grimy sink. Dark circles surrounded his sullen eyes; his beard and moustache haven't touched razors for months; and the bones in his torso have started to appear. The young man in the mirror decided to shave his scrabbly facial hair, thereby subtracting five years from the way he looks.
He wore his favorite black band shirt, faded with age, under a chaffing grey cardigan that his mom gifted him nine years ago. The denim pants, leather boots, and beanie on his head completed the look.
After preparations and eating the sandwich he quickly made, he left the house he had tidied up the past few days.
A bag hung on his back that contained things he would need later, like ropes, knives, medications, weapons, a flashlight, and the sandwich he made earlier. Reo was going to the forest, the sea of trees, where he could find solitude, tranquility, and peace.
Reo was not at the foot of the mountain yet, but he was yawning almost every ten minutes, his shoulders were already bowing, and he switched his heavy bag from shoulder to shoulder. He traveled to different provinces and cities last week to visit his family and friends and gave them gifts from his collection of books, anime figurines, and band and music merchandise. He tidied up his house a few days ago. His sleeping pattern is abnormal. These things might be the factors that add up to his extreme exhaustion.
Since he woke up late, he's been unable to follow his plan for this day. He hasn't visited the theme park and mall to enjoy his own company. He hasn't had a cup of coffee in his favorite cafe, and he hasn't browsed the bookstore.
Upon entering the forest, there was a huge wooden sign that he read and just shrugged his shoulders.
Photo courtesy of Ahmad Kadhim via Unsplash
The sun started to set and the sea of trees was getting dark.
On the trail, Reo noticed a shoe covered in mud that probably belonged to the person who entered this sacred forest but didn't make it out alive. Yet, no shaking can be sensed from his hands and no abnormal beating in his heart. He knows what he entered, and this won't make him turn back.
The surroundings were very different from the city. Instead of skyscrapers, he was surrounded by tall trees. There was no exhaust from cars but dew and fog in this place. The forest was so peaceful that Reo could hear his own deep breaths and drops of water from leaf to leaf.
The darkness enveloped the forest. But before that, Reo left the trail and found his perfect spot where he would spend the night up to days or months. Or until somebody finds him.
He eats the chicken sandwich wrapped in parchment paper in his bag with the help of a flashlight from the side pockets of his bag. With the light, he will see what he's going to get in his bag.
While munching the food he enjoyed as if it was his last meal, he got stuck in a deep thought about his whole life; family and friends; mistakes and failures; and plans and decisions. A tear escapes his eye while he thinks about these things, and he continued to cry. This place can be so lonely.
Reo told himself this is the last time he will cry. He opened his bag again and used the flashlight to choose the item he would need and use. A rope. A knife. A gun. He was still deciding.
Reo freezed for a moment.
He felt a sharp throbbing pain in his leg. And he heard a slight movement in the twigs and leaves on the forest floor, moving away from him.
He raised his pants on one leg up to his knees. Then, he finds two punctures on the skin, bleeding. He realized that he had been bitten by a snake.
Now, he wants to escape the forest and survive. But wherever he looked, the trees all looked the same, and he had left the trail earlier to find a perfect spot. He was probably bitten by a venomous snake and was now lost in the Sea of Trees.
But in the first place, before entering the forest, Reo was already lost. He'd been finding himself for years, and he thought that he would find himself and the eternal peace he was longing for there.
And because of the snake that could kill him, he realized that he really wanted to live. He thought about how selfish and stupid his decision was. The tears in his swollen eyes flowed.
Reo lights the way with his dim and flickering flashlight.Despite the pain in his legs, he ran and ran. Thirty minutes later, he found the wooden markers on the trail. Then, he continued walking.
The forest was getting brighter. This means that he's closer to the outside of the forest.
He ran and ran while screaming his lungs out about how stupid he was with his decisions today. His tears flooded, his chest lightened, and his mind calmed as he was getting close to leaving the forest.
Photo courtesy of Jakub Kriz via Unsplash
He recognized the sign again that he had read earlier but never tried to follow.
"Life is the greatest possession we have from our parents. Think again carefully about your parents, siblings, and children. Do not worry alone, first talk to us, "the words on the sign with the telephone hotlines of the police indicated below.
Reo got antivenom from the nearest hospital after he escaped the forest he entered, the Sea of Trees—the Aokigahara Forest, which is widely known as the "Suicide Forest."
This is my entry for the The Ink Well Prompt # 80 and August 2022 Contest.
Thanks for reading.