“Could you please define 'It'?” I asked the old man.

He lightly smiled and said, “No one has lived to define ‘It’…..” He looked towards the front door. Rock came inside and dashed into the other room.

“…Yet” He completed his sentence. 

“If there is something dangerous in the woods, then why didn’t people of this town work to resolve the problem?” I asked him.

He chuckled. “That vision of yours sounds ideal. No one cares about each other except their own beloved ones.”

I briefly glanced towards the picture of the man in the park.

“Help me out with lunch now, come on.”

I got up and followed him. I saw Rock sitting near a bowl. The old man handed me a pet food packet from one of the kitchen cabinets.

“Time to start bounding with Rock, the better you get along with this dog. The better your time will be here.”

“Ok.” 

“Don’t spill it.” 

I said, “I won’t.” This old man is not aware that he does household chores properly. If he ever visited the house I live in with my mom and her partner back in Jaky, searching a speck of dirt in that house would be like searching a needle in a giant hay stack.

I poured the food in the bowl. Rock gave me a suspicious look and then looked at his bowl, then at me, then at food. He sniffed the food. Then he finally began to eat the food. This dog has trust issues. But so do I to some extent.

“Rock does not do great with strangers, but once he is familiar with someone, he won’t harm them. He adored my wife and Mike a lot.” He said with a smile, as if reminiscing about the old times.

“He adores you too.”

“Yeah, but not as much as he does for Mike. It was Mike who brought Rock’s mother, Luna. If it were not for Mike, this good boy wouldn’t have come into existence.”

Rock’s ear perked. It seemed that the dog is good at multi-tasking.

“Yes, and he is quite defensive too.” I said.

“Alight, now that’s enough of about Rock. Now let’s get started with lunch, Casey.” The old said while bringing his hands together.

~~

I stared at the ceiling, listening to the voice of crickets outside. I had unpacked some of my stuff from my bag, but not all of it yet. Who knows when this old man will kick me out for a mistake? But I don’t plan on making any mistakes, at least this is what I am trying to do so far. Rock keeps his distance from me, and so do I. 

The old man had given me the bedroom on the second floor. It had a balcony connected to it. The view was mostly of woods and not much. 

I have no idea how the old man keeps the house in the middle of the woods in order. Okay, not exactly in the in the middle of the woods, as this house is still connected to the road indirectly, as there are some other houses and cabins, but they are quite far from here. I stare back at the books I have brought with me here. The book I was reading was becoming interesting but at the same time I did not have energy to read. I was about to continue my reading session when the old man called me downstairs. I grumbled to myself internally and came down.

The old man said, “Let’s sit outside for a while at the porch. There are some things I want to discuss with you.” 

“Ok, yeah.” I replied but my tone did not sound sure, it was more like I was asking a question. The old man gave me a doubtful look but shrugged it off. 

I entered outside, the sound of crickets was now louder then before but at the same time it felt calm, with the rustling of leaves. There were some owls hooting too. Rock was nowhere in sight. The lighting of the porch looked dim but it was enough to see the plants placed at the edges of the porch. The old man has lots of plants. 

I sat in one of the chairs. The old man took a seat next to me. “How is everything going on back in Jaky for you?”, he asked.

“It is fine, the usual school, then back to house and work on homework, maybe sometimes hanging out with friends.” I spared out the details about my life back at the house, these things don’t concern him.

“Are you able to get along with your mom’s new partner?”

“Yeah, we are getting along well. Wait, why does this all concern you in the first place?” No wait that’s not what I was meaning to tell him directly. 

“Sorry, I did not mean to say like that. But I don’t want to talk about him much; it is still awkward between him and me.” I muttered, if I was not twirling my hair ends before, I was certainly now doing that.

What is wrong with you, huh? You cannot do anything properly, you will tell others what we tell them to say and yet you mess that up. 

I tried to shake off his words from my mind, he is not here. He is in Jaky not in Noletown, and just because he is not here I don’t need to remind myself about his nasty words and stupid rules. Hopefully, the old man does not seem like a chatterbox who would directly tell Mom or her partner about what I just told him.

“It’s alright, I just wanted to know how you are doing, it’s been 16 years since I saw you. You were so small and full of energy. Your mom would call or look out for you in every 30 minutes, thinking you probably ran into woods.” He said, smiling to himself.

“What about you? You live here all by yourself, how are you able to do that?” I asked him. 

“First thing first I don’t live here by myself, Rock is always here to give me company, thanks to Mike.” He said while staring at the woods.

“And..?” 

“There might not be as many people around us in areas like in cities; I have my own friend group here too. We sometimes gather at weekends for a drink at each other's cabins or houses. But we enjoy our own company most of the time.” 

“Oh, I see.”

“If you walk on the dirt path leading back to the main road and head back in the direction we came from, you will see some houses and a couple of 2 story apartments. Some of my friend’s grandchildren live there, they are around your age and go to the town’s high school.”

Ok great, but why is he talking about someone’s grandkids? 

The old man said, “I will be meeting some of my friends this coming weekend in that area, you can join me too. I am sure you would prefer some interaction with people of your age, rather than spending time at a cabin in the woods."

Interaction with other people of my age, for some people stuck in a situation like this it might be a golden opportunity but for me it’s a big no. I am fine by myself plus most people won’t prefer to meet an outsider like me who will just disappear in 2 months.

I looked at him mildly surprised, “No, there is no need of that, I don’t mind this place or you. I am actually grateful that you let me stay here for my summer vacation. It’s a breath of fresh air from city life.” Also a breath of air away from Mom and her partner.

Though it’s amusing in the first place that there is a high school in this small town, and high school means teenagers like me in this tiny town, certainly I am in no mood to interact with them. Having a group of 3 friends back in Jaky is enough for me. 

“No need to be grateful, it’s your home too. Irrespective, of what happened between Mike and your mom. You are still my granddaughter, my family. I would be very happy if you would visit me again too. You are always welcome here….” He said, looking at me with a spark in his eyes.

I don’t know how to describe my mind’s state. I am feeling so unsure, I feel like I am in a mist, and there are voices criticizing me, telling me I don’t deserve any of what this old man is saying. But him saying those words made me feel warm from inside in a good way. But those voices are telling me, “You don’t deserve that kindness; you always mess good things up.”

“…..and by the way, in case you change your mind about talking or hanging out with those children, just inform me before you go, and no matter what happens, when alone outside, always stick to that concrete road path. You got it?”

“Casey? Casey, do you hear me?” The old snapped his fingers in front of my eyes.

My eyes blink in surprise. “Sorry, I spaced out for a while. But yes, in case I go out, I will inform you.”

For a moment I swear, I saw a pair of eyes looking at us from the woods under the dark sky from the woods, and those eyes looked big and were white with a mix of yellow in between.