The Lies We Tell

7 - "We're not lost"

One of the very first things you learn as a child is that if you ever find yourself lost in the woods, you should stay exactly where you are. Moving around makes it more difficult for people searching to find you, so sit tight and hug a tree.

Alex and Colby might not have received this information, because they were barging through the forest, hoping to find the trail that had led them there.

"It has to be this way," Alex said, trying his best to not show any fear. The woodland coverage crunched under their shoes as he tried to find something, anything, that would tell them how to get back.

Colby, on the other hand, was much more worried about mosquitoes. Despite putting on bug spray before the canoeing competition, he wasn't able to re-apply since then and he could already feel the little devils trying to bite him.

He swatted at a few stray bugs flying around his head and ran straight into the back of Alex who had suddenly stopped.

"Did you find it?" Colby asked, pulling both his arms into his t-shirt to keep bugs off them.

Alex didn't respond. To be honest, Alex didn't even hear him. He stood still and squeezed his fists together as tight as he could manage before saying, "I can't find it."

"Wha-" Colby didn't know how to process that information. He may not have realized it, but he put his faith in Alex finding the way back. He looked at his surroundings, his eyes passing across the lush green foliage that encircled them. As a few last sun beams glimmered through the leaves, Colby knew they were in deep shit.

Immediately Colby went into problem solving mode. He popped his arms back out and knelt down onto the soft earth to began looking through what he had in his backpack. At the sound of rustling, Alex turned around.

"What are you doing?"

"Seeing what supplies we have. We're not going to make it back tonight so we'll have to camp out here."

"Here?!" Alex said in disbelief. "We can't stay here. There's no way in hell. We have to keep moving." He adjusted his backpack and started heading out into the darkness that slowly crept into the woods when he felt a hand wrap around his wrist. With a whip of his head he was face to face with Colby, who had stood up from his position on the ground.

"You're not going out there alone."

"Like hell I'm not. Let me go!" Alex twisted in a panicked motion and Colby dropped his grip, not wanting to hurt the boy.

As soon as Alex was free, he continued walking.

"What the fuck is he doing," Colby cursed under his breath while grabbing his bag and following Alex deeper into the woods.

"Alex!" He called, "ALEX!"

In one swift motion, Alex had spun around and placed his hands over Colby's mouth.

"Shut the fuck up!" He hissed, glancing nervously into the forest surrounding them.

Colby didn't know how to react. What he had initially thought was Alex's stubbornness was turning out to be something completely different. He looked closely at Alex's face that was turned to one side and noticed how dilated his pupils were. Small beads of sweat were forming Alex's hairline, despite the temperature dropping significantly once the sun had fully set.

Colby gently grabbed the hands that were covering his mouth and spoke softly, "if we keep moving now, we're going to get more lost. Let's make a little camp for the night and wait until it's morning to find our way back."

Short breaths escaped Alex's mouth as he glanced left and right, searching for something in the dark.

Colby had never seen Alex like this, so vulnerable, and all he wanted to do was protect him.