Chapter 43

• Ayla POV
• I’m walking down the dirt path in the forest beside the house, but everything seems different, the world seems different, the sun is shining through the leaves on the trees, and I can feel the warmth on my skin. My fingers graze against the top of the bluebells as I let my fingers trail across them, the petals feel like silk against my fingertips. I can hear the chirping of the crickets and the sweet song of a bird that makes my heart feel light. The small stream seems larger than I remember, like it’s swollen with a glass-like liquid that seems to sparkle as the sun hits it, not the brown murky water I saw when I jogged along it. I can hear the water rushing past me fast, it makes the air smell fresh and invigorating. As I inhale, I can feel my body filling with vitality. I see the dirt path split. One path leads off along the gushing stream, and the other deep into the forest. The last time I was here, this path didn’t have a fork in the road, it followed the stream. I didn't even hesitate in my decision. I took the forest path, it seemed brighter and full of life. As I walk along the path I see small creatures flutter by me. The flowers seem bigger and brighter here and the trees look larger than any trees I’ve ever seen before. I enter the clearing and see the large tree I found earlier today, but it pulses. The unusual tree shines golden, a halo surrounds the tree and the leaves softly sway as if they’re dancing a beautiful dance in the non-existent breeze. I move toward the glowing tree, it beckons me to come closer. As I get closer to the tree, a beautiful woman steps out from the hole that looks like the entrance to a magical world and gracefully moves toward me. She doesn’t seem to walk but glides across the ground. She is wearing a beautiful long floaty blue dress. As the sun hits it, it begins to shimmer and sparkle, it looks like something from Ancient Greece. Her long brown hair flows, but I can’t feel any breeze against my face. Her lips are as red as roses and her skin looks softer than silk. I look down at my pink silk pyjama set and feel underdressed.
• “Ayla, you have to be careful. He has found you.” She warns me in a sweet, harmonious voice that resonates within me. Her eyes connected with mine in an intense stare, but I found it hard to look away from her. Her eyes were just like mine. I’ve never seen anyone with eyes like mine.