Shelter in the woods

This is a random short story. Enjoy.

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“I think we lost them,” a young man looked over his shoulders, his hair plastered to his face from the rain. He placed his hands on his knees and breathed heavily.
“I wouldn’t count on that, oh brother of mine,” said his companion, standing slightly taller and equally drenched. “Let’s go deeper into the woods.”

The two men moved quickly, heading where the trees grew thicker.

“Let’s stop here, Robin.” The taller man looked at his brother. Robin leaned against a tree, breathing heavily.

***

Night fell. The rain stopped. Slowly, the woods were filled with the nocturnal symphony of the insects. The brothers had squeezed as much of the rain out of their clothes, but they didn’t have any dry clothes to change into. They sat down in the nook formed by the roots of a giant tree, and huddled together for warmth.

“Lark?” said Robin.
“Hmm?”
“What are we going to do?”

Lark was silent. A breeze rustled the trees, and the insects seemed to quieten. A leaf, shaken by the breeze, detached itself from its root and fell. It swirled as it fell, forming intricate patterns in the air. A hush seemed to have flowed through the woods, the insects stopped chirping, the frogs stopped croaking…

The leaf landed on Lark’s hand. He looked at it for a moment, then flicked it aside. “Tomorrow, we’ll skirt around the edges of the woods to the north. There should be a small road that connects to a larger one. That road will lead us to Honeybeech. I have some friends there.” As if that’s the cue, the nocturnal sounds of the woods returned.

“It’s going to be a long day tomorrow. Get some sleep, little brother.”

***

Sunlight glinted off the dew drop hanging precariously on the leaf. A small bird landed on a branch, singing to greet the sun. Its landing shook the branch on which the dew drop was, and the dew drop dropped. It flattened, then elongated as it fell, struggling to maintain its spherical shape.

With a tiny splash, it landed on Robin’s cheek. “Hmm?” Robin blinked a few times, trying to wipe the sleepiness away. He lay with his eyes open, staring at the leaves above.

“Lark?”

No answer.

Robin also couldn’t feel his brother beside him. He jerked up, looking around. His brother was nowhere to be seen. “Lark?” He stood up and looked around.

“Lark!”