Caterpillar With Glasses

The steady drip of rain through the pines softened into a mist around them. They were silent for the moment, the sound of shoes hitting damp soil the only communication between them. Ellie hadn’t been sure what to expect when Paul had asked her to go on a hike. They’d driven out here without checking the weather, but it was summer, and a little damp wouldn’t kill them. Probably. The rain filtering through the larch needles hardly reached them below, anyway.

Ellie could tell Paul was working up to saying something. It wasn’t an awkward silence, he just needed some time to collect all the thoughts and words into an order that he wanted her to hear. In the meantime she concentrated on keeping up with his longer stride, and breathing in the vital green around them. She hadn’t truly realized how unique this little corner of the world was before leaving it.