Standing nearly at the top, he looked back, watching the steep road that led him there.
The sun came back.
His shadow consumed everything, entrenching the hill in darkness. The petal-covered path was no longer pink; all the trees had lost their color.
He gazed up, shifted his head to the sky, his back still facing the sun.
Everywhere he looked, only the storm covered his vision. Moment by moment, they came closer. Just by looking at the dark sky above, the cold sensation came back to him. Even with his back lit by the sun, his spine shivered, unable to remain steady even after ten seconds.
The rain was about to reach where the path diverged.
A light breeze flew by, swaying his bangs to the side, uncovering his scar on the right side of his forehead. For seconds, he did not move. Then, he turned his head to the left, staring toward his apartment, but no matter how he shifted his posture, that place was no longer in sight. Only the soil of the hill spread before him.
He sighed, brushing his hair back where it was before.
Breathing in so much air, he turned back, his body facing the sunlight, no longer feeling the weight of the storm from behind.
He stepped towards the last trees.
They closed the path off with only a tiny gap between them. Although he could have gone around and re-entered the path, he didn't do that. Not wanting to step away from the road he was walking on for all that time, he decided to keep following it, no matter how unreasonable that might have been.
When he made it to the last pair of trees, he raised his leg and stepped to the other side of the road. Squeezing himself through the gap between the two trunks, more than half of his body made it through, leaving only his left leg on the other side. But, as he tried to lift his other leg, he couldn't move that part of himself to the side where the rest of his body was. Just one limb separated him from moving past the tree, and yet, even after all this time, one part of himself always ended up being stuck. Even when he rotated it, it remained in the same spot it was before.
Squeezing himself through a small gap when he could have taken an easier path might not have been the best decision he made, though. Instead of blaming himself for what he chose to do, his focus was on freeing his leg from the tree.
When he realized that no matter what he did, he couldn't free himself, he grabbed the trunk and almost went back to where he came from, and just then, a thought flashed before him.
Slowly shifting his eyes back, he saw that it was his shoe that was stuck between the trees. Although he felt the pressure before, he could only conclude that it was his feet that couldn't move. When he realized this, he immediately tried to kick his dark blue shoe off.
Finally, he made it through.
His shoe landed on the other side, rolling away from the tree, disappearing into the greenery.
His heart trembled.
His legs began to move, and as soon as they did, an angular object pressed against his left thigh. Putting his hand on it, he gazed at his pants, then shifted his head up to the sunny sky.
Slowly, he blinked once, then turned away from the tree.
The sun brightened with each moment as it peeked through the gaps in the clouds, sparkling in his eyes.
There was no path or trees anymore. Only the grassy plains spread before him like an endless field. No more flowers, nor anything of that sort. Just the sunny sky, along with the white clouds and the storm in the distance, was visible.
Birds chirping filled the air.
There were so many. Though, he couldn't see any. The closer he got, the more he heard that melody.
When he almost made it to where the birds were singing, a bush stood in his way.
A lone, circle-shaped bush.
It was the only one that was there. He got closer and went around it.
A bird horde stood before him.
There were so many that the overall color of the ground was painted with theirs, leaving only small patches of green between them.
As soon as the man emerged from behind the bush, they all flew away.
Their little wings flapped so fast he thought his own eyes deceived him as he watched them elevated to heights he could never reach. Flying high in the bluish sky, their figures lit by the sun, casting shadows over the man.
Unlike his, their shadows did not last. They disappeared, leaving only the blended sky behind.
He turned his head back down and gazed at the bent grass in front of him. Grabbing it at the bottom, he slid his fingers upward, creating a faint, dry rustle.
Some distance away, a place where the height of the grass did not reach the man's knees was spotted. He walked there as he stomped on the grass, then sat down, bending his knees until his seat met the soft soil.
The wind whooshed at neither low nor high volume.
He felt the cool gust of wind wrapping around his body, washing away the rain from his skin. The warmth of the sun melted the water, leaving it only on his clothes.
The air carried a raw, earthen scent when a light breeze swept the grass in the meadow. A fresh, tea-like scent filled the man's nostrils. Fine droplets rested on the grass; just a few, taking the rain from the man's body, slowly dribbling down the blades as they lightly dipped under their weight; the sunlight reflected from them, glaring in the man's eyes.
Instinctively, he closed his eyes, shutting them in an instant; they were cold. Though, even with his eyes closed, the light did not disappear. It remained, painting his entire vision vibrant orange.
Eventually, the light invaded the inside of his eyes, warming them up thoroughly.