As I took my first steps through the entrance of the Nature Trail, I was confident that this was exactly the escape I needed to decompress.

The damp soil sunk beneath my boots.

Flowers bloomed, the leaves on the trees shook and hummed gently in the summer breeze,

and birds sang.

I felt like I'd walked into the Garden of Eden.

Lost in thought and devouring the beauty radiating itself through all my senses,

I never heard the footsteps approaching behind me.

Hey there, a woman's chipper voice plucked me out of paradise.

Happy trailing, I asked politely, despite my annoyance at the disruption.

Definitely, I come here a lot when I need a break.

How about you?

The girl lingered slightly behind, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear.

First timer, but I brought reinforcements, I said, gesturing to the map in my hand.

There are better areas from when they were first building the trails.

They're not as well maintained, but they're easy enough to follow.

They won't be on your map.

I'm taking one up to the river.

Some people say it's dirty, but I like to

dip my feet in any way. We were walking side by side now, our boots smacking the dirt trail and

rhythm. I looked at her closely for the first time. We looked close enough to the same age,

maybe her being a year or too younger. We were sporting identical hiking boots. In another

life, we might have been friends.

...