Behind The Eyes

 BEHIND THE EYES

alternative fiction of company of wolves

 Elizabeth woke up sleepy eyed in her pasture of blankets and pillows. She lifted the blanket up off her body and placed her feet onto to the ground beneath her. She shuffled into the bathroom and splashed cold water onto her face. As soon as the water hit her face, her senses began to awake. She looked at herself in the mirror and ran her fingertips through her vibrant red hair, pulling it back with a rubber band, letting soft curls hug the sides of her face. She brushed her teeth and followed by applying her favorite lipstick, labeled Ruby Red. Elizabeths phone began to ring from her bedroom and she made her way to pick it up, a soft voice began to speak when Elizabeth answered  

“ Hi Red, are you on your way over? “

Elizabeth’s favorite color since she was a young girl was red. Her favorite sneakers were red, her favorite crayon was red, and ladybugs were her favorite animal. Elizabeth would collect the red leaves from the forest trees near her grandmothers house, and they would press them between two thin sheets of glass to capture to radiant color. Elizabeth always found it sad that the beautiful colors of the fall leaves lasted for such a short time before they dwindled into nothing. As she got older, she found a way to analyze things that average people would look over. There was something about that specific color that allured her. To Elizabeth, red symbolized a fiery heat and warmth, along with a sense of danger. Red was in association with life and vitality, it embraced the focus to the essence of life and living with the emphasis on survival. Red portrayed lust and passion, and managed to stimulate deeper passions within her, as well as others. Due to Elizabeths passion for the color, her family and friends began to call her red when she began wearing her red sneakers with a red jacket or shirt every day. When Elizabeth got old enough she colored her hair red, and the nickname remained. 

Elizabeth, confused by her grandmothers question sprung her eyes to her calendar hanging above her bed. Sure enough, Sunday September  3rd was circled with a note saying “Lunch with Grandma.” 

“Yes Grandma, sorry I woke up a little late this morning, but i will be heading over soon.” 

“Okay.” She replied “I will see you soon! Be safe!”

“I will” Elizabeth said. “I am going to walk through the forest, I’ve been so busy lately I haven’t had much time to take in the beauty of the season.” 

Elizabeth and her grandmother said their goodbyes to each other and Elizabeth dressed herself. She put on a pair of faded blue jeans, and a black sweater, along with a vibrant red scarf and her classic “Red” sneakers. She walked out the front door and down the road on a cool autumn day. The sunshine was bursting into the leaves and sending an electric scene of red, orange, and yellow. She walked to the end of the road and entered the park that led into the forest. As she walked she quietly sang songs to herself, and took in the purifying crisp air only the woods could provide. As she walked deeper into the trees, she heard the sound of dry leaves on the ground being crunched quickly beneath ones feet, the sound became more clear and she saw a dog running near to her. It was a beautiful golden retriever, who had a forest green color labeled “Hunter”. Hunter said hello to Elizabeth with a wagging tail and kisses on her hands. Elizabeth crouched down to pet the pup and used the silly voice that came out of her when she got excited 

“Hey buddy! Where did you come from?”

When she looked up her eyes looked into the person who was standing in front of her. Gazing into a pair of eyes is a wonder. Elizabeth got lost and drowned in the depths of them. Now she knew why they said that eyes are the windows to the soul. They had an appeal that drew her. Their remarkable shade of brown, were enchanting, warm, and full of life.

“Sorry, I usually don’t see many people this deep into the woods, so I let Hunter off of his leash. He loves making new friends.” 

Melody blushed, embarrassed that he may have caught her puppy voice

“It’s okay, I love dogs! I’m walking to my grandmothers house, she lives over the bridge.” 

“Would you allow me to have the honor to walk you there?”

Elizabeth nodded her head in a shy manor and they began to walk together.

“So what’s your name?”

“Max. What’s yours ?”

“My names Elizabeth, but you can call me Red.”

Elizabeth was nervous and giddy around Max. He was very attractive. Older, but not too much older. He was clean shaven and tall, wearing a red flannel jacket that Elizabeth was very fond of. They walked together and talked about their interests, to find they were extremely similar. As they got closer to the house Max slipped his hand to intertwine with hers. Max,  Elizabeth, and Hunter happily arrived to her Grandmothers house. 

Elizabeth walked with Max to place Hunter in the fenced area with her grandmothers bull dog. As they walked around the house, Elizabeths grandmother came out of the house and onto the porch. Her face showed an instant sign of relief as soon as she saw Elizabeth. Her grandmother said frantically 

“Thank goodness! I was worried sick”

Elizabeth and Max walked up the stairs and Elizabeth grabbed her hand and held it in hers. 

“Why grandma? Everything is okay! Sorry it took me so long, I met Max and his dog Hunter on my way here . He is in the fenced area with Rocky.”

Elizabeths grandmother invited them in and she turned on the television. Max and Elizabeth took a seat on her grandmothers floral couch. A sketch of a bearded man came up on the television for reports of harassing women, violating them, and leaving them alone , across the forest about 35 miles from Elizabeths grandmothers house. Elizabeth became frightened and immediately turned towards Max and squeezed his hand. 

“ I think you should stay here tonight Elizabeth, I don’t want you walking home through the forest alone.” Her grandmother said.

Elizabeth agreed and they gathered at the table. Elizabeths grandmother asked him endless questions about his family, and himself in general. Usually, this would be embarrassing to her; but Max didn’t seem to be bothered by it, and Elizabeth was intrigued with his responses and the sound of his voice. The shine that came through his eyes, framed with bold sweeping eyelashes made her weak to the bone. As they finished their meal, Max began to clean up the table insisting that the women relax. They moved back into the living room and Max sat beside Elizabeth holding her hand in his and brushing his fingers softly alongside her arm. He looked at her and smiled, receiving a smile in return. She was head over heels for this guy that had stolen her heart in a matter of a very short period of time. His shirt that lie beneath his jacket fit him perfectly so his rounded shoulders were visible. The went outside together and sat beside the water, Elizabeths grandmother knitting on the porch nearby. They skipped stones together, and the words Max were speaking began to become unclear. She couldn’t seem to focus on what he was saying due to the overpowering emotion his presence caused her to feel. He grabbed her chin and slowly brought her face closer to his. She had been gifted with another opportunity to look into his eyes, as she watched them begin to close. He sweetly kissed her on her lips and smiled sweetly when he pulled away from her. Elizabeth had butterflies in her stomach and was full of bliss. They spent the day by the water playing with the dogs and holding each others hands. He pulled her close to him and kissed her forehead. He made her feel special, and made her radiate happiness. The day went by quickly and the sun began to set. They went inside and started a fire, Hunter and Rocky were barking outside when Elizabeths grandmother sincerely asked

“Max, could you let the dogs in? It’s too cold for them out there !” 

Max smiled at Elizabeth and responded to her grandmother 

“Yes, of course I can.”

Max left the room and Elizabeth went into the kitchen with her grandmother who was beginning to make a pie. Elizabeth urged her grandmother to sit down and that she would do the rest and put it in the oven for her. She agreed and sat down, Elizabeth looked out the kitchen window and saw Max chasing Hunter around the backyard. Elizabeth put the pie in the oven and ran to get his jacket to bring outside for him. As she was running she heard something drop behind her but she was to eager to bring Max something to keep him warm. Elizabeths grandmother sat on the couch and was deeply focused on the news station playing on the television. The reporter announced that the identity of the man had been found, after speaking with victims he was well known in other areas along the coast but yet to be caught. The described him as a handsome young man, age 23, last seen wearing a green camouflage hat with a beard. His name was Logan Kane. A commercial came on the television and Elizabeths grandmother went into the kitchen to check on her pie in the oven. She looked outside to see Rocky and Hunter, but not Elizabeth or Max. She walked down the hallway to the backdoor when she found a camouflage hat on the floor, with a wallet wrapped inside. Suspiciously she opened it to see a drivers license with the name Logan Kane. A photograph identical to that of the one shown on the news just moments prior to this. He rushed towards the door, and yelled for her grand daughter but there was no reply. All the response she received was the sound of the leaves rustling in the wind.