Thread: Moonlit Secrets (Elvish and Hailey Comet)

Shrugging off his hiking pack and letting it fall to the leaf-strewn ground with a weighty thump , Alex practically collapsed against the nearest tree, leaning heavily against the thick alder trunk as he tried to recapture the breath driven from his lungs and marshal his thoughts. Someone had been following him, likely since he left his part-time college classes. Not good. That meant someone was suspicious. He'd only heard the clumsily muffled footsteps about halfway up the mountain too, when the trees and foliage had thickened and the crunching of leaves beneath his would-be shadow's feet had become painfully obvious. Even worse. That meant they had at least a fair idea of where he was going. Glancing up at the orange and pink tinted sky, Alex guessed that it would be at best fifteen minutes before the sun set and the moon began it's orbit. Not enough time to double back and find another hiding place and certainly not enough time to deal with this follower. The only thing for it was to keep hiking and hopefully lose them in the rapidly darkening woods. Grabbing the backpack and slinging it over one arm with surprising strength, Alex set off again, turning off the hiking trail and into the untamed thickets in the hopes of discouraging his unwanted observer. And there was plenty to observe too, Alex being anything but unattractive. He might have lacked rugged features or chiseled musculature that most people would think of as 'handsome', but he made up for it with slender grace, short, silky ginger hair, long legs and pale skin contrasted by full lips, all the standards of effeminate beauty upon a male body in perfect proportions... To the point where even normally straight men found themselves unnervingly attracted. His outfit didn't help much either, navy green cargo shorts clinging almost skintight as he dropped briefly to all fours in order to duck under a low hanging tangle of thorny vines, giving anyone watching a fine view of his spankable backside, swaying tauntingly as he crawled through the bracken. The rest of his clothing was equally unconcealing, white hiking sneakers and a plain black muscle shirt showing off his lean build fit but not displeasingly brawny, slim, but not skeletally so. Finally Alex reaches his destination, brushing leaves and mud from his attire as he climbs to his feet within the small clearing, a sanctuary nestled within a cleft in the hillside. Already here was a camouflage patterned tent, stocked with bedroll, food, extra clothes, even cash and a fake ID if he ever needed to run and didn't have time to grab anything... Everything he needed to keep his secret safe, so that he could keep his life and his friends and his only-just-now-beginning-career. The thought brings a shiver to Alex's spine, causes him to glance back over his shoulder towards the far off hiking trail. He's far enough out and well concealed enough that nobody could see him from the path, but what if whoever it is is still following him? Best to keep still, yes, keep still and quiet and hope they leave before the moon rises. Clambering inside the tent, Alex grabs a water bottle, slowly draining it sip by sip as he waits for nightfall.