Figuring that the white and blue marker on the tree is a part of Dexter and Co.'s game, you head left. As you go you see the trees marked the same way every so often, and keep following them. Right after passing another marker, the trail banks, and you find yourself at the edge of a bright blue lake. The water is unbelievably clear, like you've seen in commercials for touristy areas of Caribbean islands. You walk to the edge and dip your hand in the water, surprised that its cold. The shock of it almost clears your aching head; instead you just remember that you're incredibly dehydrated. You feel like your brain is scraping the inside of your skull.

You dip both hands into the water and are about to bring it to your lips when you hear a woman's voice, quiet but authoritative.

"I wouldn't, if I were you."

Startled, you drop the water and glance around. On the bank to your left is a girl in a white cotton dress, cheek resting on her bent knees, looking in your direction. You immediately notice her hair, dripping down her shoulders and puddling onto the sand like caramel. There's so much of it that you have trouble making out the rest of her features. She turns her face toward the water.

You debate how much to engage with this girl. She's bent in on herself as if she's been sitting there crying. As far as you can tell there's no one else around. You could use her help, but this situation could go sideways.

"Ok. Uhm, why not, though? It looks fine and I, uh, forgot to bring water with me on my... hike."

The girl doesn't look at you as she says, "You're not from around here." Its not a question, so you don't answer. "Do whatever you want," she exhales, still gazing across the water at the pine trees on the other side, or at nothing, "but don't say I didn't warn you."

Not sure what to do you lean back and sit, taking a look around. Its beautiful, but odd. The lake is out of place in a pine forest. You don't see any ducks or even fish in its morning glory water. You realize that you can't see the bottom.

You sit in silence for a few minutes, neither you nor the girl making a sound. You're about to raise the issue of taking a drink again, when movement catches your eye from across the lake. There's something in the woods, something pretty big. You skid back a few feet, instinctively, trying to gain distance although an entire lake is between you and whatever that thing is. You think it could be a really weird looking deer- no more like a horse? You can see hooves as it ambles between the trees. But then you change your mind as it stands taller, peering across the water from behind a tree it grips with some kind of... claw? You decide it must be a mangy bear and that its time to get the fuck away. The girl hasn't moved.

"Come on," you stand up gesturing at her, but not getting any closer. "I think there's a bear over there. We should go."

She tilts her face toward you a little bit, but she doesn't change her focus. "I don't see a bear."

You look back across the water and the animal is still there. It seems to be sitting on its haunches, half hidden, looking at you. It stares as it flexes its shoulder, and you feel your throat close and your vision slant as a bat wing extends long between the trees, first the right, then the left. It holds both wings out as it stands, one claw peeling spirals of bark, then suddenly snaps its wings closed. It digs the other claw into he tree and leans back in a stretch.

Your head pounds. You're seeing things. You should have taken a drink of water, but too late now. You need to go.

"It's there," you insist to the girl. "Come on, lets go back down the trail, now." She doesn't acknowledge you.

"Look!" you insist turning back toward the animal just in time to see a man coming out from between the trees. He looks young-ish from here, and he certainly seems fit enough as he dives into the water. You blink your eyes against a moment where you expect the water to shatter, but he glides under with barely a ripple. When he surfaces he's halfway across, and smoothly swimming overhand toward you.

"That's my boyfriend." The girl says, melancholic. You stop worrying about the flying bear/deer hybrid creature and return to worrying about the girl. Shouldn't she be happy to see her boyfriend?

"Oh," you say, not sitting back down. "Is he uhm. I mean, you seem... Is everything, you know." The girl barely moves but her shoulders jump slightly, and she shakes her head just a bit.

"Its not that." She turns to face you full-on and for the first time you find irises that must drip tears the same color as the lake, rimmed red. "I was married before. Before him." She flicks her head toward the boyfriend, just far enough away in the water not to hear. "He died."

"Oh, wow. Jeeze, uhm." You sit again. "That sucks." You feel like a moron.

"Yes." she agrees. The boyfriend steps up onto the lakeside, shaking water off of himself like a dog. He's wearing cargo pants and the kind of tank top you'd call a wife beater. You clock that and wonder if the girl really is ok, but she doesn't seem frightened. She's barely moved at all, except to look up at the man. He's got dark hair falling into dark eyes, and based on his skin he spends a lot of time with his shirt off.

He nods at you but doesn't reach out a hand to shake. His voice is lighter than you expected. Younger, almost. "Hey," he says, before looking down at the sad, golden girl.

"They were on a hike," she says, looking back at him, "and sat here with me for a little while."

He holds a hand out and the girl takes it, standing up. She smooths her dress as her hair pours down to the back of her knees. The boyfriend's eyes on you are amused but assessing.

You feel the need to elaborate, like an amateur liar adding unneeded detail. "I saw a bear, across the lake," you blurt. "You must have scared it off."

The boyfriend's cheek quirks. "A bear?"

"Yeah, I mean, I'm pretty sure. It uh, it looked kind of weird though like maybe it was sick? So we were going to go, but then you scared it off. But maybe its still around?" You say this like you want him to agree.

"You're not from around here," the man lets his mouth twist all the way into a smile. "Thanks for keeping an eye on my girl. Yeah, we should probably get going. We live just through the way. Come with and I can show you a shortcut back to the main road from there. You can borrow the dog too, he knows the trails back and forth. He'll keep you safe. Y'know, incase of bears." He laughs again, winking.

You never thought the idea of getting mauled by a bear would be so hilarious. These people are clearly weird, but possibly safer than a bear? The couple starts at an easy gait between the pines, each with a hand on the other's back. They're both barefoot.