RÍONE ripped open a packet of Mexican trail mix and put some of it in her mouth.

Immediately, she scrunched her face. The first thing that she thought was that it was too sweet for her liking. Then, as the spicy flavours mingled with the preliminary sweetness, her face returned to normal. It was okay. Nothing great, but it would do. Maybe the peanut butter one would have been better.

It was a little after twelve noon. Ríone was in her car, which stood on the outskirts of the town. To her left was where the woods began from. Her face was flushed. Beads of sweat had formed on her forehead. Her hair was unkempt and bits of twigs and dried leaves were entwined among them.

Jake had proved to be more elusive than she had expected.

Last night, after having read the black booklet, she decided to try and find Jake. Right after she spoke with Derek, she made a trip downtown to the local grocery store and got a bunch of trail mixes, which were to be her food supply for the entire duration she was out in the woods, looking for her best friend.

Which, so far, seemed to be futile. After six hours of driving and hiking, she had not found him. Instead, she perched on the driver's seat of a very stuffy car, sweaty, tired and munching on a packet of trail mix, whose flavour she did not like.

Talk about hard luck.

In a short while, Ríone was halfway through the packet. A sigh escaped her lips. She could not do it. Tying the mouth of the packet, she turned around and threw it in the back seat. No, she did not like this at all. Peanut butter would have been a way better option than this. She turned the key and started the engine.

Rows and rows of trees bypassed her. It was beautiful, those trees. The way they looked skywards at the sun, their leaves that shone like emeralds, and the smell of petrichor that emanated from its soils. If the sea dominated the southern front of the town, the forests dominated the north. Nestled in-between them were the few thousand residents of the town. If Ríone had been a tourist, she would have loved this place.

But then, looking at those trees, all she experienced was despair. Her face was crestfallen. Those trees, they too, hid secrets. She knew it. Could feel it. The way the wind would make goosebumps rise on her skin, she did not know what to make of it. Especially after all that happened in the last few days. She was uncertain about anything that had ever happened to her.

A sudden intersection. Ríone turned the car in that direction and drove straight. Close to the clearing, she noticed the trees were less in number. She was about to drive further into the forest when she noticed something. A faint shape hidden among the trees.

She stopped the car. Opening the door, she got out and peered in its direction. A triumphant smile emerged on her lips. Yes, that was a house. A kind of fixer upper one, built with logs of fallen trees and floorboards. It had a thatched roof. The front door was crooked and stained black.

Ríone took a deep breath. Here goes nothing. This had to be the place where Jake was living, the one Craig told her about. There were not too many people living in Loutham and an even lesser percentage lived in its woods.

She walked over to the backseat, opened the door, moved the packets of trail mix and brought out a purple cardboard box. A treat for Jake she had got from the cafe. And it was still warm. A good sign it was. If there remained anything of the old Jake in the man she was about to meet, he would absolutely love them. Croissant au beurre used to be his favourite dessert.

Leaves crunched underneath the soles of her shoes. A cool draft blew overhead through the trees. Very little sunlight perforated through the thick canopy of the trees. It was dark and damp. At a distance, she could hear the buzz of the insects living in the forest.

Her cheeks puffed up. Tears glistened in her eyes. Jake. She was finally going to meet him. An eternity of memories that she had with him replayed them themselves in her mind. Oh, how she missed him! She ought to have reconnected with him earlier.

Soon, she stood right outside the front door. Ríone balanced the box in her right hand and raised her left arm to knock. In that instant, silence encompassed the vista. The only sounds were the beats of her heart that raced like a horse in a marathon. She knocked. Once, twice, three times. Then she waited.

A shuffle of feet. Each second that passed raised her heart rate. When would he open the door? That was all she could think. The sound of footsteps resounded from inside the house. Her breath hitched in her throat. After a moment's interval, the door opened with a grunt.

It revealed a tall man with a clean-shaven face standing on the threshold. A thick mess of auburn curls filled his head, some of them falling up to his arched brows. His eyes were deep-set and a beguiling shade of sea green. He had thin peach lips and sharp facial features to stress it.

"Um, who are you?" He asked, an eyebrow raised at the sniffing Ríone. The sonorous timbre of his voice reverberated all around the forest. "You do not seem to be from the town."

"Jake, don't you remember me?" she said. "It's me. Ríone. I came back, Jake."

"Oh, my god."

For the next few moments, they stared at each other. It was as if the entire world had come to a standstill. Then Jake came out of his house with tears in his eyes. All of his face had gone red.

"I can't believe that you are here. You really are here." He said, standing in front of Ríone. "I mean, look at you, all decked up and looking like a girlboss." He gave out a weak chuckle.

"I had to come, Jake." She answered in-between her sobs.

Jake took her into a tight embrace. Ríone hugged him back with greater force, the barrage breaking in that instant. She wept on his shoulder, wetting the grey fabric. His musky scent travelled through her nostrils, calming the beats of her galloping heart. This was wonderful, this feeling that encompassed her being. It was indescribable, but so marvellous. So very marvellous.

In Jake's arms, she recovered the sunshine days of her childhood.