Feelings I Don't Know How to Say Otherwise. - 2. Cliff

Heat throbbed against my skin, tingling against the cool air. A flutter of leaves sounded as the wind stroked the fleeing strands of my hair. My toes curled against the rough protrusions, clinging to them, devoting themselves to the reliability of friction.

The air enveloped me in a cool embrace, calming the uneasy heat pulsing through my veins. Droplets of perspiration clung futilely to my temples, losing the fight against gravity: falling, silently. I held fast, rooted in my stance, firm against the fluid air.

Brushing against the nape of my neck, sliding under my shirt, a gentle nudge guided my hunched body. My toes curled instinctively, not willing to part from the sturdy surface, but my body, exhausted, wanted to fall into the current: be swept away. Gentle breaths against my ear startled my mind, remembering in the last moments, the consequences of falling. I dug my heels into the ground, relieved at the firmness of the soil pushing against me.

Lulling draughts of cool air circled me, waiting, as beads of perspiration slid down my back. The effort to stand siphoned away the last wisps of my will.

Maybe it won’t be so bad, I thought.

Muffled protests escaped from behind the haze of comfort, drifting by unnoticed as my heels lifted, balls of my feet pushing against the crumbling soil. A soft touch guided my feet as I walked towards the calming song of promise.

Everything stilled, the elusive wind dropped. The moment of clarity drew my eyes to the emptiness that lay before me.

It’s a long way down, someone whispered.