Scarlet XXXV

Seven years I spent wandering in circles through the swamps and black forests. Now I find myself, once again, standing before an unlocked gate. I’m overwhelmed by the compulsion to look back to the forest one last time. I’m unsure if I am more afraid of the light seeping through the cracks, or if I’m afraid you’ll come running out of the shadows again to convince me it’s safer here. The air smells cleaner through the door, the warmth of the sun is calming on my hands, and I can hear the waves crashing on the shore for the first time in a very long time.