She and I sat on the porch to watch the darkness. She managed to lead me to an old abandoned two story home as the fog thickened even more. The foggy forested dimmed as the sun descended. At the time I was only concentrated on her and not the fact that she was walking blindly into fog like it was an everyday task. We walked on the dirt path that was cluttered with dead leaves and fallen branches. I gave her a smile shortly after and agreed to follow her. I was quiet for a moment, conflicted if I should go with her or not. Her skin was smooth even with the bruises, soft and plush like but so very cold. "I can.take you." she muttered softly taking my hand. So where are you staying?" I looked around it was almost impossible to see anything, not only that but the sun was starting to go down. "My name is Rubin." I smiled at her, "What's yours?"Ī fog rolled in while she stood there silently, then once I could barely see the trees behind her I heard her whisper, "Lulu." She slowly turned to me her black bangs were long and overgrown. "Hey." I watched her finish wiping her legs off with the water and stand straight up. She wore a torn pleated uniform dress but no shoes, her legs were covered in bruises and cuts. She had pitch black messy hair in these two pig tails she didn't look much older than me maybe thirteen or fourteen. I turned my head and in a pond a few feet away there was a girl washing her legs off. Once I was on empty I fixed my pants and planned my way back but just as I was about to leave something caught the corner of my eye. The last thing I wanted is one of my family members just peering behind a tree and causing another one of those awkward moments in life. I walked into the collection of trees moving just far enough to see the light. She told me not to go too far and I nodded to show her I understood. I had the greatest urge to take a piss so I told my mother I was going into the trees for a moment. It was getting closer to sun down and the camp was all set up and the fire was crackling in the center. The only part I didn't like was that there was no actual bathroom so if you needed some quiet time in a john you needed to take a shovel and hope you don't pick up poison ivy. It was pretty nice, quiet and unmoved by the urban life just a few miles down the road. This year we went up about 10 miles and half way around the mountain to a grassy flatland. Every year we would hike a bit higher and walk a bit farther. My brother Andy, my parents, my Aunt Laura, my Uncle Ben and I always planned an annual camping trip to the nearby mountains. It all started with another family camping trip.
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