Eric--Part Six

Splog # 35

Six

   Eric was standing in front of the large tree. He was thinking how truly huge it was and wondering what kind of a tree it could be. The only ones that he'd seen this big were Sequoia trees but this didn't look anything like the pictures of them that he'd seen. Its color was a very dark brown and there were branches growing all around it, entwining it like a myriad of arms hugging it tightly. When he looked up he was surprised to see that the trunk ceased not very high above his head. There were a lot of jagged edges sticking up, but then the tree just ended. As if it had been cut in half by lightning or something. But when he examined the area around the tree, he didn't see any trace of part of such a massive body falling to the ground. Just a not-very-high trunk in front of him that was wider than he was with outstretched arms.

   He looked to the left at the path and figured that was the most sensible direction in which to head. The path looked clear and well-traveled and inviting. Before setting off, he took a glance to the right and was surprised to see that there was a trail leading in that direction also. He hadn't noticed it as he was coming over the arch because it led through grass that was high in many places. There were flowers and weeds and bushes scattered along the trail and occasionally even growing in the middle of it. He looked at the well-defined path to his left and thought it would be wiser to go that way. Then he looked at the overgrown trail to his right and felt a tug of excitement, or maybe adventure, pulling him in that direction.

   He looked straight ahead at the tree and told himself that he was going to make up his mind now. "Right this minute," he said out loud.

   And he heard a voice reply, "In a little while."

   He froze. There was someone here.

   "Hello," he said. "Who's there?"

   "In a little while," the voice responded.

   It was a woman's voice, or maybe a girl, an older girl, in her late teens or even her twenties. He looked in all directions but there was no one to be seen. He looked up to see if there was someone perched in a tree. Nothing in sight.

   "Where are you?" he cried.

   "In a little while," the voice repeated.

   "In a little while what?" he almost yelled.

   "In a little while." Quietly. Calmly. And not far away.

   Eric started to walk around the tree to see if there might be someone there. He hadn't even gotten halfway when he came to a spot where one of the branches stuck straight out in front of him blocking his way. As he got close to it, he saw that sitting on the branch, all in a row, were an apple, an orange, a pear and a peach. He looked around. The fruits had to have been placed there by someone. Was someone watching him? Were they trying to play some kind of trick on him?

   "Hello?" he said quietly.

   "In a little while."

   "Right. Are these for me? Is it ok to eat them?"

   "In a little while."

   "I can eat them in a little while?"

   No answer.

   Eric was a little frustrated. He picked up the pear and examined it. It looked just like any other pear he had ever eaten. It felt firm and ripe. It smelled normal. He took a small bite between his teeth and touched it with his tongue. Juicy and sweet. In fact, delicious. He figured enough of a little while had gone by. He ducked under the branch and started eating the pear and walking around the tree again.

   It felt good to be eating as he slowly made a circuit of the great tree. Just as he was coming back to the front where the path and the marble walkway were, he thought he caught a glimpse of a piece of white cloth and a leg disappearing around the tree ahead of him. He started to run and when he got back to the branch, there were only two pieces of fruit on it. An apple and an orange. He looked around on the ground to see if the peach might have fallen but it was nowhere in sight.