Scenic Route •A Bear Grylls Fanfiction•

Chapter Two: Caught In A Storm

As the day went on, we continuously wove our way carefully through the thick pine trees of the forest so Bear wouldn't get thrown off track as to where we were headed. It began to get cloudier as mist slowly began to impede our line of vision ahead. I tripped over several rocks as we tried our best to figure out how to continue on through the fog as the sky began to get darker and darker, even though it wasn't even four o'clock yet.

A strong wind blew in my face as I called up to Bear, "what should we do? I think it's going to rain." He just looked above and around us, trying to plan our next move as he started to set off back in the direction we were headed in before, wordless. I doubtedly followed him higher up the mountain, trying not to slip on the now-slick pine needles and moss that spread across the ground.

Not even fifteen minutes after I had suggested it would rain, guess what. It started to pour. Dreadfully. I sprinted ahead to catch up with Bear as he reached back and grabbed my wrist, pulling me with him as he ran through the forest higher up the mountain. I rubbed the water from my eyes as raindrops collected on my eyelashes and dripped from the hair at the nape of Bear's tan neck.

Suddenly, thunder roared across the sky as lightening blinded my vision, striking a tall dogwood tree several yards ahead of us. I screamed out, pulled my wrist from Bear's grasp, and began to run as fast as I could away from the path we were headed on, farther away from the upward direction we were traveling to reach the mountain peak. I heard Bear call out for me and I sprinted away. The rain whipped my face as I brushed my hair off my cheeks.

Lightening cracked again as white electricity streaked across the sky. Thunder shook the ground, causing me to trip over a fallen branch. I tasted blood in my mouth as I wiped my split lip with my sleeve of the soaked thermal shirt I wore.

I kept running and running for what felt like hours, until I finally realized that I didn't know where I was, or where Bear was, for that matter. The rain began to ease eventually as I found a large, smooth boulder to sit on. I untied my blue flannel shirt from around my waist as I slid it on my arms over my soaked shirt. My flannel didn't keep me too warm, but its was better than nothing.

I waited.

Eventually, when I didn't hear or see Bear anywhere through the misty woods, I called out for him. "Bear!" I heard my voice echo through the trees. My shoulder's slumped. Nothing. "Bear, where are you?" No reply. Shit, I was lost in the woods with no food. Bear kept the protein bars and crackers in his pack and we each carried our own water.

I continued to sit and wait as the rain drizzled on though the branches, dripping icy water onto my nose every few minutes. It seemed like hours had passed, but in reality, it had only started raining like an hour ago. Bear was nowhere to be seen or heard, and I have no idea which way I had come from, or which direction me and Bear had even been headed in. Man, I was stupid. A little lightening and thunder had scared me, and now I was not only cold and lost, but screwed.

I touched a finger to my stinging, bloody lip. I buried my face into my freezing hands as I silently cried. My shoulder's shook, not only from the cold, as I sobbed, saying a silent prayer to God that Bear would find me soon.

Suddenly, I heard a voice, muttering, off in the distance. "Bloody hell.." I heard the distinct snap of a branch. My eyes shot open as I stood, peering out into the fog through the tall oak trees that surrounded me and my trusty boulder I had been seated on. Then, a shadowy figure appeared nearly sixty feet ahead of me. "Bear!" I screamed out. I ran downhill towards him, throwing myself into his arms when I approached. He nearly lost his balance as his arms wrapped around my waist, burying his face in the crook of my neck.

"I was so scared you wouldn't find me.." I whispered, squeezing him tighter in my arms. Bear set me back on the ground as he shook the water from his dark brown hair. "Me too. You shouldn't have run off like that, Waelynn, especially when you don't know these woods like I do. There are some dangerous things in here that could have found you before I did, and then what would I do.."