"Noah, Noah, where are you? can you hear me? Noah..."
Kaelin shouted, but his voice was gradually faded; no one replied.
"Where are you?"
He murmured, moving forward.
As he stepped forward, the trees seemed to be closer to him. Their branches were tangling over his head, blocking the lights to enter into the forest. The air inside was heavy with the smell of damp earth and decaying leaves. He realized, the forest was actually denser than it seemed from outside!
"There is something, indeed."
From the moment Kaelin entered the forest, it seemed different. Though he couldn't find out, but he felt uneasy. Something was wrong with the forest.
His sixth sense was telling him,
"What others say about it is actually true. This forest does hold some secrets."
He walked deeper, shouting.
"Noah.. can you hear me?"
....
Suddenly he heard the cry of a child. He was crying out loud. Kaelin paused for a few moments to find the source from where the sound was coming from.
"It's there!"
He walked towards his right side.
The forest started to deepen. The soft grass floor started to change into networks of roots and pit floors concealed with dry and decaying leaves. He walked carefully, to avoid spraining of his ankle.
"Their he is!"
After a while he stopped and looked forward. Noah, the little boy was sitting under a big tree, crying. He walked slowly towards him, then sat down and patted his head.
"Noah.. are you alright?"
Startled, Noah looked at him. Seeing a familiar face after a long time, the frightened kid started to cry louder.
"Shh.. don't cry! Brother is here, you are safe. Don't cry."
He hugged the child and slowly patted his head to calm him down. Kaelin stood up with him in his arms. The frightened child hugged his neck tightly.
"Don't worry champ! you'll be alright."
With a gentle smile, he made his way back.
....
"How did you go inside? Didn't your mother forbid you to go there?"
Kaelin asked in a soft tone.
"There was a little rabbit inside. I entered to catch it."
Noah replied.
"But how did you enter through the fence! Did you get hurt?"
"No, I entered through a wire that was opened in the back fence. But after coming in, I couldn't find the way out"
"It's ok, but don't do it again. Mom was frightened, she will cry again."
"Humm."
He patted his head again. The child was really frightened today.
....
A lot of people were still standing at the edge of the forest. As soon as Kaelin came out, he faced an enthusiastic crowd. They were surprised to see them come out safe!
"Noah!"
Mrs. Lee came running towards them. She took her child in her arms, kissing his cheeks.
"He is alright."
Kaelin smiled.
"Thank you."
She said, in a chocked voice.
"It's ok, take him home. He is still frightened."
She nodded. Thanking him again, she went towards home. The crowd also started to fade.
"Are you alright Kaelin?"
An old man asked from the crowd.
"Yes." He smiled.
There is a wire torn in the backside of the fence, repair it as soon as possible. Noah entered through that."
They nodded.
Looking back once, he started to walk toward his home.
As he disappeared in the road, a shadowed figure draped in a hooded cloak hiding behind a large tree appeared in the forest. The face was hidden behind the cloak.
"Kaelin, thanks, for stepping in. Your destiny is waiting for you, you can't avoid!"
It whispered.
....
On his way back, Kaelin was thinking about today's incident. A web of thoughts surrounded him, he was searching the answers. He remembered clearly, from the moment he entered the forest, he felt like someone was watching him secretly. And when he was returning, for a moment he saw a cloaked silhouette.
"Who was that!"
"Moreover, why all the people who went inside never came out! And if it was the case, how we could escape safely!"
A bunch of unanswered questions were running in his head. Though he did not face anything inside and could came out with ease with Noah, it was sure that there was something strange.
His curiosity was increasing continuously.
"I have to find out what is the mystery behind this forest."
He murmured.
....
He knocked the door of his house, "Granny! Open the door."
After knocking some times, she opened the door. Her eyebrows were furrowed, and face looked serious. Grandma left the door open without saying anything.
"Did she already know that I went to the forest!"
Thinking, he entered and closed the door.
Grandma was sitting in the drawing room. Kaelin was going to his room when se said in a serious tone.
"Kae, stop."
Kaelin stopped and stood in front of her.
"Didn't I tell you not to enter the forest?"
"Humm."
"Then tell me, why did you enter?"
Kaelin sat before her.
"Granny, don't worry. Look, I'm perfectly fine! There was nothing inside! I just went, picked Noah and came out."
He tried to comfort her.
Suddenly, she slapped him.
"There was nothing! Do you know everything on earth! I've forbidden you Kae, not to enter into the forest ever, at any cost. Why on earth did you enter?"
she screamed.
" So what could I do! Just stand and see a mother cry to death for her child! Granny, Noah is just a four years old kid! How could I let him die when I could at least try to save him?"
"And what about me! What about you! Did you think what I'd do if anything happened to you? Did you think how I'd survive without you!"
"Granny, please calm down! Nothing happened, why are you panicking?"
"You don't know anything Kae!"
"Then let me know!"
Kaelin said in an angry voice. His patience began to break.
"How can I know if you don't let me know? Since childhood you are forbidding me to go inside the forest, but you never told me why! No one in this village knows the reason, why the people never come back after they go inside. But whenever you talk about the forest, it seems like you know a lot about it, but you always avoid the topic."
He stopped.
"If you want to remain silent, be silent, do whatever you want. At that moment I exactly did what my heart told me to do. I don't have a mother, so I couldn't just stand silently and watch a mother's cry for her child."
Kaelin walked towards his room. His heart was heavy. He never talked to his grandmother like this, but today he just couldn't remain silent. It's been a long time. Now its time for the truth.
Kaelin's grandma was still sitting in the drawing room. Her eyes were filled with tears.
"You don't know anything, Kae. I did all these for you, just to save you. But despite all my efforts, you did exactly what you didn't supposed to do."
She murmured.
"Kae, you don't know. This is just the beginning."