The Wave
The Kiss of Pond Lilies
Nathanial Solberg
By
About the Writing
Lost in a dense forest after a frightening encounter with a mysterious woman, a man's curiosity and longing lead him deeper into the woods. As he journeys through the moonlit night, the man's desire to find the enchanting woman becomes all-consuming. Finally reaching a tranquil pond adorned with shimmering lilies, he is drawn in by the woman's beauty and an irresistible kiss that may change his fate forever.
The Writing
The Kiss of Pond Lilies
The tree branches snapped profusely under the zenith of my horse's stomps. With each step, dead leaves and bark crunched, and my horse and I soon found ourselves lost deep in the forest. My town was far off, and the white sheet that had spooked my steed was long gone, but my horse continued running on. I yanked the reins as hard as I could, but only on the third tug did my house finally come to a halt. It was a coincidence, most likely not due to my relentless pulling. A woman with hair that flowed like a waterfall down her shoulders stared back at the both of us, her lips parted as a small chunk of meat spilled out. Her robe spilled off her shoulders as she arose, and my horse soon backed up in fear. However, I could only focus on her eyes, which locked in with mine. An eternity filled those few seconds before my ride drove back into full gear and ran off again towards the village; in panic again, I began to pull the reins, but it was already too late. I turned back, but the forest had parted its way behind me, and I was smack dab in the middle of my village. I had no supplies carried handy like I'd set out to get in the first place. My wife traversed over to the both of us as I hopped off my horseback and led him in towards the stall near our boat mooring;
""Bread? Water? Anything?""
The only thing that stared back at me was the woman from the woods. When I looked my wife in the eyes, I was still unbelievably endowed and lost in a trance, but I managed to utter a few words from my mouth;
""Closed. No one was there in the town over.""
She looked at me confused but didn't question me. She walked back, where she went to tend to the horses and children. Night arose, and I wanted nothing more than to see that beautiful woman's face again as I turned and tossed in my bed. I rolled over to see my wife drowning in her slumber. Minutes passed as I revised my decision, so I tiptoed out of bed, leaving scuff marks on the floor beneath me, and out of the front doors, wide open. I ran towards the woods where the trees parted and trampled over the same branches and leaves my horse had earlier. My feet were bare, however, and each step let a piercing pain rip into the bottom of my feet. I was sure some part of me had to be leaking blood. But nothing mattered, but the mere hope of what lay alone deep in the woods; the moon echoed, and the trees swayed. I submerged my fate deeper and deeper in the forest by the minute. The cracked branches and leaves ended, and then I saw her lying near a pond, glistening in the moonlight. Her hair still flowed in the distance despite her golden locks lying on the grassy floor. I peeled past the bushes and sat at the end of her feet, looking for her to succor me.
All I could do was admire her in all her glory. She awoke. In the pale moonlight, she gleaned bright and locked eyes with me once more. Both our feet dangling in the pond beneath us, as she danced hers around in the water. Surrounded by pond lilies, they burned in the darkness as she leaned in for a kiss.
And gladly, I took it.
However, my eyes had been forced open, and all I could see was my infidelity, my wife's face passed by in a flash, and my children growing up in the world without me.
Thoughts raced of her with another man and my children calling him dad; her lips tasted like guilt, and I couldn't help but begin to cry. I coughed, and I coughed and began to choke on the water despite being above land, collapsing to the ground. Tears and regurgitation pooled into the pond while she rubbed my back. I couldn't see anymore, but all I felt was the slight push and the overwhelming feeling of being suffocated in water.
My feet turned into roots, and my arms into yellow petals; my hair blossomed into a pollinated center, and my face rotted into nothing more than a memory. Then, the realization washed over me of those who'd surrounded me in this pond of agony, and the woman went back to sleep.