Deep In // Klance AU

Chapter 16: Lance

I had envisioned a prompt, punctual arrival home, yet I found myself in an alternative realm where my intent no longer stood as a variable. My stark eyes and my bad temper were directed towards the abruptness in what was my decision to take an unfamiliar route. My steps grazed the surface of unmarked terrain; it's path whispered compelling promises of a quickened arrival time. That was typically the generic conviction concerning short cuts; however, that did not qualify for this particular scenario. 

Before I had settled on embracing my impetuousness, I considered the unwarranted extension of length that the tempting, novel pathway could adversely supply. It was solely one of those suspicions that you had as you drove down the road from or to your home. I had hypothesized such a thing since I was eight and I just didn't care enough to consider any repercussions of testing my theory now.

My feet dared to explore the unchartered grounds of the novel earth that belonged to the angled, forested trail. My legs had a pre-programmed GPS system that directed me towards my house, yet it was unable to warn me of any unpleasant encounters. So when I realized I was crossing through Florida's Everglades, I was wholeheartedly not expecting such vicissitudes. And even though I did not live in that part of the state, my soggy jeans and my filthy shoes could bare as reasoning for my melodrama.

I underestimated the depth of the soil, much like how I was faulty in my math and optimistic in my luck. The ground was not solid, but rather a marshy pit of quicksand. My shoes sunk into that muddy puddle, paralyzing my movements after the first brush of the cold, liquid sod. Some foreign, internal force assisted in helping me cope so that I could manage to pull my legs out from the muddy hole, yet I was effectively neurotic.

My eyes caught view of a rock that had been conveniently placed near the pool. I sprawled over the hunk of solid mineral, finding room on its edge to sit. With this newfound balance, I attempted to cover up the crime scene of mire and sludge, but as I rubbed the shoes' body clean, the sole of my left sneaker fell off. I was defeated by the earth's sticky element.

I would receive tremendous discomfort if I were to continue my walk home in my soaked, worn shoes; I feared for the formation of blisters on my delicate skin. Such an act would create an excruciatingly painful last color guard performance of the year. I decided that dealing with a tough callus on my heel would be worth walking barefoot home. The decision was finalized once I removed the sneakers off of my feet and properly disposed of them into a communal trashcan.

In analyzing my experience, little inferring is compulsory when discerning that my walk home was utterly miserable. My mother caught on quick too. She could see the journey on my tired face, "¿Por qué estás sin tus zapatos? No me gustan los pies descalzos en las calles," my mother shook her head violently back and forth in disapproval, "Está bien para la playa, pero no para el paseo a casa. Estoy muy descontenta, Lance."

Remembering that I threw my shoes away in a fit of rage, I looked down at my muddy toes and the drenched cuffs of my jeans. I did my best to argue my case, but my Spanish wasn't forming fast enough. Too much was on my mind, "Tenía los zapatos por años. Los eran viejos."

My mother's initial reaction was not a surprise, even with her sounding more distasteful than nurturing. She lamented her word choice as she caught on to the acerbic quality of her phrasing. She never really was one to stay moody and I was more than obliging to take up forgiveness. With a roll of her eyes and a sweet laugh peeping out from her lips, she wrapped her heavy arms around my skinny frame, "Tontito."

I dismissed myself from her presence after a light kiss on her cheek, "Mamá, tengo mucha tarea. Estaré en mi dormitorio hacerlo todo. Te quiero."

The delicate treads I took up to my room were paired with finger twirling along the stair's railing. I'd skip a step or two over the course of my ascension to accelerate my advent at the top. I had much to make up for after this afternoon's fiasco.