A bus was running on a road that had small, stony hills on its left side and tall pine trees on its opposite side.

Within the bus, a 13-year-old kid was looking out the window on the right side of the bus and watching the sea of trees. The kid turned his head and looked at an eighteen-year-old man beside him. 

"Brother, when are mom and dad going to come back?" asked Wenston.

The young man's eyes turned teary, then he rubbed Wenston's head. His name was Reed Maxwell. The young man had fair skin and short brown hair.

Their parents died in an accident while on a trip. The car they rented burned, and it took time before the authorities identified the DNA and notified Reed. Their remains were cremated. Wenston was an autistic child and can't understand that their parents can no longer come back.

Reed looked at the trees and thought,"Dad, did you predict it? Why did you tell me to go back to Woodville when something happened to you and mom?"

As Reed kept thinking, a commotion was happening within the bus. A man was arguing with a female passenger.

The man's name was Carson.His body was huge. He was wearing a sleeveless denim jacket and had tattoos."Girl, why did you push my head?! You are so damn rude!"

"Rude? You should be telling that to yourself! You keep leaning your head on my shoulder and rubbing your hand on my thigh!" said the twenty-year-old female passenger named Mia. 

The passengers were looking at them. They averted their eyes when two men with tattoos and also wearing sleeveless denim jackets stared at them.

"I am sleeping. How could I ever do that?!" said Carson, then he looked at his friends sitting on opposite sides. "Did you see me put my hand on her thigh?"

"No," answered the men named Clayton and Cole.

Carson smiled, then he looked at Mia."Girl, you are ruining my reputation. You should apologize."

Mia sneered."You can only fool a person like yourself whose brain is on the head below your pants."

Some passengers couldn't help but laugh.

Carson looked at them with intimidating eyes, then chuckled. His face turne fierce.

"Bitch!" shouted Carson, then he raised his left hand and slapped it at Mia. A hand stopped his slap. He looked up at the five-foot seven tall young man who held his hand.

"Boy! Mind your own business!" Shouted Carson as he stood up from his seat, but his head was suddenly held by Reed's hand.

Boom! Carson's head hit the back of the seat in front of him, causing him to wobble and fall to the floor.

Reed turned around to his side and dodged the fist coming to his head, then he made a front kick.

Clayton was kicked in the belly and fell to the floor.

Reed dashed and struck Cole's jaw, then made a flying kick.

Clayton was trying to stand up, but his face was kicked and he passed out.

Reed looked at Carson, who was furiously staring at him. He walked toward the man. Carson swung his arm, but he ducked, then punched the man's belly. He made a left hook on the man's jaw and followed it with a right uppercut.

Carson fell to the floor and lost consciousness.

Cole was still conscious, but he felt dizzy and confused."W-What is happening?"

Reed patted the man's shoulder."Nothing, you should go to sleep."

"I-I don't want to."

Reed smiled."You have to."

He hit Cole with his fist and put the man to sleep.

A twenty year old white young man stood up.

"Yeah! Those assholes deserve it!" said the young man named Cooper. He was quite chubby, had curly black hair, and was wearing eyeglasses with black frames.

"If you did not do it, I would have done it! I would have kicked their asse-!" Cooper stopped speaking when he saw a giant bald man standing up from his seat.

The bald man was more than two meters tall. He also had tattoos and was wearing the same clothes as Carson. His name was Jack. He was staring at Cooper, causing the young man to feel terrified.

"I was—I was just joking," said Cooper with a look of fear on his face.

Jack moved and raised his hand toward Cooper.

"Ahhh! Heelp!" Screamed Cooper as he tried to run to Reed, but Jack held his clothes.

"Hahahaha, don't worry, boy, I am not one of them."

Cooper felt relieved.

Jack looked at Reed and clapped his hands."You did a good job, boy. Those bastards bring shame to riders, but be careful because they belong to a gang."

Reed nodded his head.

"Thank you," said Mia.

Reed smiled and nodded, then he went back to his seat. Wenston had been clapping his hands. Reed smiled as he rubbed the kid's head.

Cooper tapped Jack's chest with the back of his hand."You almost caused me a heart attack."

Then he looked at Jack's tattoo and said,"Your tattoo looks good."

Jack smiled when he heard Cooper.

"It looks scary. What is it called?"

The smile disappeared from Jack's face. He stared at Cooper and said,"It's my wife."

Cooper's eyes and mouth were wide open. He felt his legs turned into jelly. "Y-You're joking, right?"

Jack slowly shook his head.

"I was-I was just joking," said Cooper. He awkwardly returned to his seat. He raised his left hand and covered his face because he felt the stare from Jack.

At the next bus stop, Carson and the two others were thrown out of the bus.

A few hours later, there was a simple wooden sign standing at the roadside. The sign was saying,"Welcome to Woodville."

Reed looked outside of the bus. Below the mountain road, there were small hills around a wide forest with a long river."I'm back."

The bus arrived at the town center. There were buildings for shops and other types of businesses. The sea of trees and the silhouette of the mountains can still be seen from the center. Light rain started pouring from the dark sky.

Cooper rushed out of the bus. He felt relieved when he got out. He felt suffocated inside. He took one last look at the bus, but his heart skipped a beat because the bald man was looking at him from the window. He immediately ran away.

"Hahahaha! The kid should have learned his lesson. His attitude will cause him his life someday," said Jack as they walked away from the bus stop, then he looked at Reed beside him."Boy, you can come to my shop if Carson and the others cause trouble for you."

Reed nodded his head and thanked Jack. Then he and his brother went inside a diner to eat lunch.

A beautiful lady came out of the kitchen and went to the counter. She had fair skin, long auburn hair, and brown eyes. She was quite tall and had a slim body. She took out papers from her pocket and started studying.

The other woman at the counter smiled as she looked at the girl named Ava."If my daughter is a tenth as studious as you, I will be very happy."

Ava smiled with a sad look and thought,"It's my only hope."

Ava brought Reed's order, and she couldn't help but gasp. The tray almost fell from her hands, but she quickly reacted and caught the tray and plates. She moved to the table with a surprise look on her face."Reed?! Is that you?!"

Reed also had a surprised look on his face as he stared at Ava.

"I thought you were going to chase your dream. Why are you still here? Why is there a sad look in your eyes?"thought Reed, then he gave her a smile."Long time, no see, Ava."

Ava stared at Reed, then also smiled. She moved her head down and faced Wenston. The kid couldn't look at Ava and looked elsewhere."Hello, Wenston, do you remember me?"

Wenston shook his head. Reed can't help but chuckle.

"Ava, there is another order!" shouted the woman at the counter.

Ava looked at Reed and said,"See you later."

Reed nodded his head."See you later."

Reed and Wenston walked out of the diner after eating. He looked at Ava, who was busy serving.

Ava looked at them. She smiled and waved her hand. Reed also waved his hand.

They rode a taxi toward their home.

"What happened to you, Ava?" thought Reed as he looked outside through the car's window. He felt conflicted when he met his childhood friend again.

The taxi ran on a dirt road. A smile couldn't help but appear on Reed's face as he looked at the woods. He had so many memories of Woodville.

The taxi arrived at their home.

Reed looked at their house. It was a single-story house made of wood. There was a terrace and a small stair outside.

They went inside and started cleaning. He removed the clothes that covered the furniture. Wenston swept the floor. Reed chuckled as he looked at the floor swept by Wenston. The dirt on the floor formed a smiley head with three hairs.

After cleaning, Reed went into the woods while Wenston watched TV.

Reed looked at the trees. He remembered how his father trained him. There were obstacles on the ground.

He suddenly dashed and jumped toward a tree. His right foot kicked the trunk and jumped to a branch. His hands held the branch, and he pulled himself up as he rotated his body. His feet landed on the branch,then he suddenly jumped toward a rope hanging from another tree. He held the rope and rapidly swung. He let go of the rope and made a somersault in mid-air. His feet landed on a branch of another tree.

Reed stood up as the wind blew his hair and sleeves. He closed his eyes and calmed his breath. The sound of nature became more clear to his ears. He remembered what his father always told him.

"Hear nature with your heart as you breathe. When you reach a particular state, your senses will become stronger."

Reed opened his eyes.

"Dad, I thought you taught me so I could protect Wenston from bullies. It should not be as simple as that. What secrets are you hiding?"