Instinct

With an amused face, Jean looked at the stranger before letting out a stifled cough, but instantly clutched to his chest in the process.

'That hurts!'

Jean thought to himself before assuming a reserved state.

"Go ahead and spit in your palms"

The stranger instructed immediately Jean let out a cough.

Somewhat reluctant, Jean obeyed and lowered the container in his hand and spit on one of his palms.

In the next second, the stranger moved closer to the bonfire and gestured at Jean to follow him.

The moment Jean got there; the stranger told Jean to take a closer look at the contents in his palm.

This was the moment Jean was able to have a clear view of the face of the stranger. According to his estimation, he was a guy that was in his late forties. He had an average height and a handsome face. Though not as handsome as Jean, he was still attractive.

Just as instructed, Jean gently lowered his gaze and stared at the sputum in his hands. In the next moment, he flinched as his eyes widened in bewilderment.

What he saw in the palm of his hands, was sputum with some blood in it.

"You see why you need the medicine. Go ahead and take it."

The stranger instructed in a friendly tone.

Albeit Jean was reluctant to obey the stranger's command, the chest pains he was experiencing couldn't allow him to do otherwise.

A few seconds later, Jean approached the container with a limp and picked it from the ground. Although the chest pains weren't as serious as when he collapsed outside the forest some hours ago, it was still potent enough to demand for some attention.

The moment he coughed a while ago, it seems that it was the moment he awakened the chest pain. Since that moment, the chest pain had grown to the point that he felt the urgency of tending to his aching chest. And the only way to do that, was by taking the medicine that the stranger had given to him.

The moment he lifted the container from the ground and straightened up, he tilted his head and gazed at the stranger who was still standing by the bonfire.

"Before I take your medicine, I would like to know you first and maybe you could explain to me how I got here in the first place."

Jean asked with a serious expression.

The stranger let out a chuckle on hearing this. This looked weird to Jean considering that the question he had asked required a serious answer.

"Oh, that's simple. I am Casper, Casper Newton. Good to meet you, young man. What about you?"

The stranger said as he gestured at Jean with a grin.

Jean on the other side nodded his head and blinked for a couple of times.

"I am Jean."

Jean said after a short moment of silence.

In reaction to Jean's statement, Casper looked a little bit flabbergasted as he approached Jean. This reaction of his confused Jean to some extent.

'Why is he looking at me like that? Is there anything wrong with my introduction?'

A stream of questions ran through Jean's mind the moment he noticed Casper's strange expression.

When Casper got to where Jean was standing, he shifted to the side, picked the fabric from the ground and raised an eyebrow before covering Jean with it.

Although Jean found this act strange, he still appreciated the warmth that the fabric provided.

"Thanks!"

Jean said with a genuine smile. This was the first time that he was feeling at peace around Casper since he first saw him. Despite him suspecting him from the very beginning, up to this point, he had not seen any action from him that could suggest him as a harmful person.

Feeling assured of his safety, Jean sighed heavily before taking a sip from the drink in his hands. The moment the liquid touched his tongue, he felt a cold sensation through his mouth. And without a second thought, he swallowed it, then another and another. Before he knew it, the container was empty.

The reason to why he found himself finishing the liquid in the container subconsciously, was due to the fact that it brought a comforting sensation across his aching chest. In simple terms, it had an instant impact on his aching chest and he welcomed this feeling with open arms.

At some point, he was about to stop drinking the liquid so that he could ask Casper about it, but the comforting sensation in his chest was too nice to stop. Another surprising thing was that the liquid didn't have a specific taste. It was neither sour nor sweet. In simple terms, it almost tested like water.

'As if water has a specific taste. But what sought of medicine is this?'

Jean couldn't help but question himself about the identity of the medicine he gulped down his throat.

At this point, his breathing was starting to become clearer. The chest aches were also reducing with each passing moment. This whole situation made Jean to thank his stars for meeting such an expert at his critical moment. Though he still held some doubts about his safety around Casper.

'It isn't easy to just trust a stranger. But in my current condition, I can't choose who is to help me and who is not.'

Jean thought with a complicated look as he handed over the container back to Casper.

"For the question on how you got here, let me just answer you in simple terms."

Pausing for a moment, Casper glanced in the direction of the bonfire as his expression turned distance.

"I found you lying unconsciously outside this forest."

The moment Jean heard this statement, his heart skipped a beat as he sucked in cold air.

'So, this is the same forest I was trying to get in some hours ago? Was my instinct directing me to come this way so that I could end up in the hands of this guy?'

Jean thought for a while before he was snapped from his reverie by Casper's voice.

"At first, I thought you were dead, but when I pried on you, I noticed your vitals and that was when I took the initiative to save you."

With that, Casper turned mute and turned his head to face Jean.

"Thanks for saving me. I don't know what could have been left of me in case you didn't save me. Perhaps I could have been dinner for a prying animal, who knows. I don't have the right words to thank you."

Although Jean had some doubts about Casper's sincerity, but from his tone and body language, he could easily deduce that he was telling the truth. That's why he felt thankful for the act of him saving him despite not knowing him. He was also somewhat reluctant to talk about his kidnap experience. He was planning to reveal this to Casper the moment he was sure that he bore no link to the kidnappers.

"There is no need of you thanking me."

Casper said with a smirk.

"Why wouldn't I thank you. If it wasn't for your generous act, I might be not standing in front of you right now"

Jean said with a hint of exasperation.

"It is nothing. I only did it because it was the right thing to do. There's also a reason to why I was the one who met you and not anybody else. Perhaps it is fate"

Jasper said as a series of expressions flashed across his handsome face.

The moment Jean heard the last part of the statement, he shuddered from the inside. He had heard the term 'Fate' being linked to horrible things and experiences. So, the moment he heard this word, he felt startled for a bit.

'Fate, what does he mean by fate?'

Jean thought to himself before turning his attention to Casper.

"What do you mean by fate, Mr. Casper?"

Jean asked out of confusion.

"Oh, that is just a term used to stand for 'Unavoidable circumstances and events.'"

Casper said with an amused face.

'Oh, that is what it means.'

Jean thought before looking at Casper with a complicated expression.

"Just to ask, could the 'Unavoidable circumstances and events be always bad?'"

Jean asked out of curiosity.

"There is a possibility that the circumstances or events can either be bad or good. But what unite them is their unavoidability nature"

Casper said with a subtle grin.

In response Jean nodded his head, in agreement.

"How is your foot doing?"

Casper asked after a moment of silence.

Lowering his gaze to check on his foot, Jean leaped forward and approached the bonfire. The moment, the light lit up the wound on his left foot, his eyes narrowed.

On top of the wound, there was a layer of herbal medicine applied on it.

'What is this.'

Jean thought as he directed his gaze towards Casper.

As if reading his mind, Casper responded,

"That is some herbal medicine to help the wound recover in case you are wondering what it is."

In Jean's entire lifetime, never for once had he ever used a herbal medicine though he knew of their existence. He was used to the use of modern medicine that his mom used to bring from the hospital she worked. So, the moment he saw the herbal medicine that was applied on his wound by Casper, he failed to identify it.

This was his first time seeing an herbal medicine in real life, and this experience aroused his curiosity.

"Can I ask you something?"

Jean said after taking a quick look at his injured foot.

"Yes, go ahead."

Casper replied with a confused expression.

"Are you an herbalist?"

Casper remained mute for a few moments before answering.

"I will answer you in the right way if you will give me a chance."

Of all the answers that Jean was expecting, this was none of them.

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