The Forest

Evan packed a small bag for the weekend and boarded a coach from London, bound for the West Country. He had come to a major cross roads in his career, and felt that the refreshing country air would soothe his jaded mind. The fast pace and pollution of London had certainly taken it's toll on him, and this was his first outing away from the capital for over a year.

As he sat at the back of the coach, he rest his head gently against the back of the seat and drifted away, as he did so, he thought to himself about how good it felt to leave the over crowded city behind him, if only for a few days. He reflected upon how emotionally cold and empty London can make you feel, this despite the millions of people each day who surround you almost everywhere. Evan slept until he arrived at his hotel.

It was now early afternoon, and deciding to make the most of his weekend of freedom, he wasted no time in leaving the hotel. Dropping his bag onto the floor, it made hardly any sound as it hit the soft luxurious red carpet, of his hotel room. Inspecting the bathroom, Evan gazed at the modern design. Evan gave an approving nod to himself as he gazed up at the big power shower unit standing in the corner of the Arctic white room.

Gulping down a small glass of water, Evan grabbed his door pass from the side table, looking back into the room, he gently closed the door behind him and made for the lift. On his way out, he stopped off at the hotel reception to get a map of the local area. Evan had never been to this part of the world before, but a close friend had repeatedly recommended the location to him, to help him clear his head and decide on the future.

Studying the map in some detail, Evan left the hotel, and looked around, noticing that the area was almost completely deserted. He still didn't feel as alone as he did in London.

Glancing at the map again, and rotating it slightly to his left he looked on once more, with that he and set off down the long and picturesque road, he was making his way to the forest.

The Forest was only a short distance from Evan's hotel, a large forest which took up almost half a page of his fold up map of the town. Along the way Evan encountered few cars, and even less people, he passed by only a handful of walkers, some with dogs, others with small children. As he walked the route slowly, the wind seemed to caresses his ears and whisper to him softly, before gliding away it would gently run through his long black hair, forcing it to part his head and blow around aimlessly, until he ran his hand through it to settle it down once more.

Evan had finally reached the forest, he looked over at the entrance on the other side of the road. Beside him throughout the journey had been a fenced off section of woods, he waited patiently for a tractor to slowly pass down the road, and entered the forest.

To the eye, the forest looked fairly straight forward. Huge bushy trees on either side, the air whistling around the branches, as the leaves gently fall to the ground. In the middle was a long dirt track, it went on for as far as Evan could see into the distance. As he looked ahead, he couldn't detect any sign of life. Evan took a big deep breath and filled his lungs completely with the healthy country air. After this he reached into his pocket for a cigarette, but after a moments hesitation, he thought better of it, and started off along the track. Evan wanted to take everything in, breathe everything in, he wished to bathe in his current surroundings, the air was so much fresher than he was used to. He thought that maybe he should move to the country, and as the thought bounced around in his brain, a bird flew out of a nearby tree, loudly flapping it's wings as it glided away and into the distance beyond him.

Evan kept a steady eye on the track ahead of him, it still seemed to run on for miles. After some time he passed by some cyclists, they seemed to be a family. A bit further along and he met a man walking his dog, they exchanged glances, Evan looked back on the old man after they'd passed each other, the dog ran off ahead as the man walked on steadily, leaning on his stick to support him.

Peace surrounded Evan, as he walked he listened to the sound of his walking shoes hitting the gravel track, his feet would disrupt the dirt as he moved forward, causing it to shift abruptly and spill forward as the small specs of dust would rise and settle back down on the ground. Small stones slipped back and forth almost in rhythm with his boots scuffing against turf beneath him.
For a while these were the only sounds he could hear.



Only a handful of people had passed Evan on his walk, and none of them were going his way. He'd been walking in deep thought, soaking in as much of the scenery as possible for nearly two hours. The early onset of darkness was beginning to creep in. It was then that he stopped walking and turned around, hands on hips he looked back on himself, upon the path he'd been following. He thought how much it looked the same as that which lay ahead of him, with no clear distinctions between either direction.


Suddenly as Evan began to ponder this, he became deeply confused. He knew he now had to turn round and head back towards the hotel, as time was against him and night would soon follow. If he carried on walking in the same direction any further, he had no idea where it would eventually lead him. Panic struck him as he now couldn't remember which way was back. They both looked exactly the same he thought, he had turned round to look behind him, but now as an unsettling feeling began to rise up inside him, his mind had tricked him and so had the forest track.

He thought about sitting on the verge, but instead paced around, desperately trying to coax his memory into reminding him of his previous footsteps. With Evan's mind racing, he decided to waste no more precious time, and chose a direction hoping for the best that it would lead him back to more familiar ground. He couldn't be sure now if it was the true way back or if he was continuing along the same path as before, and once again into the unknown.


The wind had picked up by now, and a cold breeze struck through the air, wrapping around Evan as he quickened his pace this time, feet hardly touching the ground as he was eager to find out if he'd made the right choice. He tried hard not to think about the two hours walking he'd have to do to get back. Another thought then hit him just as a small branch came hurtling through the air, having fallen from a nearby tree, it landed peacefully next to Evan's left shoe. He couldn't be sure if they would lock the forest at any time, Evan hadn't even thought to read the information board on the way in. He took in a nervous breath and quickened his pace further, feeling all the joints of his legs ache for submission, after all the hours of walking. At this point adrenalin had kicked in and pushed him on despite the pain that he could feel in his body.

While he was walking, he constantly looked around, never before had he been so hopeful of meeting a fellow face, so he could check his bearings with them. He thought back to London, and how many times he'd despised never being alone. His body began to shake as he progressed further, a cold and uncomfortable sweat was beginning to break out over Evan's body as both his feet winced with agony.

The wind continued to whistle around the trees as the lone figure of Evan made his way along the forest footpath.









The next morning an American couple on holiday, armed with their three children took to the forest. It was a bright sunny day, and the air was clear as always. The wind had settled down, blowing itself carefully upon the old trees. Whilst on their journey, they stopped briefly to glance at a Town map guide that lay before them, cruelly discarded on the cold and hardened ground.






END