Ancientt (Elaine Waters)

Ranrok one-shot part 3

Added 2023-05-30 04:52:26 +0000 UTC

SIERRA

The camp is packed up. Every notebook I’ve filled, every camera I used, every shirt I wore is placed neatly in my backpack.

My coworkers are more than glad to be returning home. As wonderful as the Amazon is, there comes a time when we miss indoor plumbing and no bugs.

They have been keeping a close eye on me. Concerned that I’ll run off into the wilderness like a child, like I always do. They have no idea that photography is no longer the reason I trek away. Ranrok is my secret. The sweetest memory I’ve ever had. One I’ll never forget.

It feels unfair, letting him go after I’ve just seen a glimpse of who he is. But we are clearly from different worlds. I don’t belong here in the wilderness, and society would never accept him.

As we make our way out of the camp and toward the pickup truck, I clutch tightly onto the bag containing the fossil Ranrok gifted me. My thighs are tightly pressed together, too, remembering his other gift.

My coworkers have beers on the truck, celebrating the successful expedition. But I have nothing to celebrate. My gaze is locked on the window, looking for a sign of a red man coming after me. There was nothing but green and brown. Like he doesn’t exist. A figment of my imagination.

But he can’t be an imagination. My skin remembers his touch too well.

For hours, I stare out the window. Even as night approaches. Even as the trees become shorter, the path less rocky, the birds quieter.

He didn’t even sing me his bird call one last time to say goodbye. I’m left wondering if he’s even missing me. If he’s lamenting what went unfinished between us.

If he’s sad that I’ll never see him again.

SIX MONTHS LATER

I slap shut my computer, frustrated. I’ve been editing the same paragraph for an hour, unable to finish my research paper. I have no patience for it.

It’s late at night. I should probably give up for now.

With a sigh, I jump into bed and read a mystery book until my eyes are blurry and dry from sleepiness. I check my phone one last time before setting it on my nightstand to charge. Then I pull the single drawer open and retrieve my vibrator.

There’s a tight ball of anxiety low in my belly and there’s only one way to unwind it for just a few minutes. I turn the device on and wiggle my shorts and panties down to my thighs. I press the vibrator against my folds, my limbs relaxing before my feet begin to dig into the bed and my lip slips between my teeth. I moan, chasing the high, preparing to release as my pussy floods with my wetness, pooling on my clean sheets.

Until it all stops. The vibrator dies from lack of battery, and I haul it off the bed in sheer anger. My hands ball up as I fight my tears, but I’m not strong enough.

I’m so fucking frustrated. So distracted from my work. The fossil that Ranrok gave me was a dinosaur bone after all. I’ve been writing a paper on it that could get significant recognition, but focusing on it is hard. It hurts remembering that I’ll never see him again.

For months, I’ve been fighting the urge to return to the Amazon. The University won’t support another expedition for a few years. If I trek into the wilderness alone, I might just get myself killed long before finding Ranrok.

“Ahh!”

I shoot up from my bed when I hear my landlord’s cry. She’s a sweet older woman that lives upstairs, and I rent her basement.

I quickly change into a pair of pants and run outside, rounding the house to knock on the door.

“Ms. Cynthia!” I shout. “Are you okay?”

She comes barging out the door, trembling in my arms

“A demon, Sierra! I saw a demon from hell.”

What?

Seeing my confusion, she points into her apartment. “I was looking out the balcony and saw it prowling in the bushes. A big red demon!”

No way. It can’t fucking be Ranrok! He wouldn’t move so far away from the rainforest.

I barge into the dark apartment, running right into her balcony, tripping over a sandal on my way. I drag my eyes desperately through the darkness, but I see nothing. He’s not here. Or maybe he is hiding.

“Ranrok!” I yell.

But the only reply I receive is from Ms Cynthia asking me what’s wrong, and who I’m talking with.

He’s gone.

Minutes after convincing Ms Cynthia that she’s just sleepy and it was a large cat that she saw, I go downstairs and walk around the bushes. There’s nothing here. He is long gone.

But this won’t end here. If he has been watching me from afar this whole time, I can’t possibly let him go. He has risked himself just to see me. I need to do the same.

I won’t be at peace until I see him again.

— —

I look at my calendar. It’s fully closed off for the next two weeks, because I’ll be on vacation. I never told anyone that I’m headed back to the Amazon. Only the sketchy fisherman that is supposed to take me there. He worked with my father years ago, and although I know the man vaguely, I’m desperate to be taken back to the rainforest.

He didn’t ask many questions. I paid him well enough to focus on getting me there alive.

I pull my heavy backpack on and ensure my shoelaces are tied before heading out. I have a long trip ahead, but it will be worth it.

My heart races in my chest as I hop on the fisherman’s truck. The smell of fish is strong, but it’s not the reason why I’m nauseous. I’m terrified of what’s to come. Ranrok will surely be furious to see me.

And the wilderness will be as unwelcoming as the last time. It will be hard trekking alone. Although I know how to read maps and compasses and I’m prepared with technology and medical kits, anything can go wrong when I’m all alone.

My ankle has completely healed, but if I’m not careful, I could sprain it again.

I suppose I should be thankful that I rarely speak with my family and no one is worrying about my absence.

The drive across Brazil’s colorful, humble towns ease me. I look out the window, staring at the merchants and the kids playing outside. It takes two days of driving to reach the rainforest. I slept in the bed of the truck, under the stars with my blanket pulled up to my nose to mask the smell of fish. I can tell he cleaned the truck from top to bottom, but the smell lingers.

Oh well. I will persevere just for Ranrok.

The fisherman drives me as deep as he can, but then we part ways. I return to the base my coworker and I had been studying at. The path is mostly paved, but my muscles are already being tested and the mosquitoes are eager to welcome me back. It’s hot and humid, and the smell of fish lingers.

At least my cell phone has low reception.

I drop my bag on the camp ground. It’s empty. Only our footsteps remain on the dirt.

I look around. It’s getting dark, and the massiveness and creepiness of the rainforest is becoming overwhelming.

The first thing I do is start a fire. I’ll need it to warm my food and ward off the bugs.

It takes me a few minutes to gather the right sticks. Now I’m digging through my bag for lighter fluid, cursing for over-packing.

“Sierra!”

I jump, falling onto the pile of sticks when I hear my name being growled out.

God, Ranrok sneaked up to me like a predator. If he had been an animal, I would have been done for.

“Ranrok!” I gasp, ready to clap and cheer.

It worked! He found me!

He doesn’t look as pleased as me. His fists are clenched, and his jaw set. “What are you doing here, all alone!”

I run up to him, hugging him like I’ve dreamt of doing for the past six months. He’s even broader than I remember. Taller. Or maybe the months living in the Amazon have hardened him that much more.

He doesn’t hug me back.

“I know you went to see me in my town. You risked yourself.”

“So you thought you’d do the same?!” He grips my biceps and pulls me away. “The rainforest is no place for you. Give me the bag. I will lead you away.”

He is practically seething. Yelling and glaring at me.

“No!” I reply, stomping a foot like a child. “I came to see you. I missed you. I will not return until I’m ready, and there’s nothing you can do! I won’t be bullied.”

A rumbling warning sound comes from his chest. And it’s not sweet like the birdcalls he used to whistle.

I’m yanked forward, pressed against his bare chest. His muscles engulf me, and it’s like being in another rainforest. I feel so small, so lost, but I’m not afraid. This is where I want to be.

His lips come down in mine, kissing me like we’re on borrowed time. So soft and desperate. Lonely, I figure. He has been lonely.

I forgot how massive he is. How he can easily wrap his arms around me and carry me off the ground. It’s like he missed me so much he wants every last pound there is to me.

“Goddamn it,” he grits, pecking my lips and rubbing our noses together. “I missed you too.”

My world becomes complete. The dangerous journey here was worth it. I may only have a few days left, but I will make the best of every minute, every hour.