When I come to Mina’s house, and start walking up her path, I see her standing on their porch, her eyes closed, head slightly tilted up, and this content smile on her face. I freeze in place, not wanting to disturb her, because she looks so – so at peace. But she must have heard my feet crunching on the gravel, because she opens her eyes anyway. Her eyes meet mine, and she smiles.

"There’s a change in the weather, don’t you think? All that snow that has melted. I think it means the beginning of spring."

Spring. That word, it just signifies so much hope for me. I am sick of the cold.

"I wish," I say. "But I kind of doubt it."

She shrugs, and opens her arms wide. "Come here, you alright?" She asks, referring to the crappy day I’ve had.

I melt into her arms, feeling the support and warmth. "Yeah," I mumble into her hair.

She gives me one last squeeze, and then pulls away. "Come in," she says.

I follow her into the lit, warm house.

"Your parents home?" I ask.

"My dad is," she replies. "But he’s down in the garage painting. He’ll probably come up to get some of whatever we make later. He kind of lives in his own world. And my mom has gone on a business trip."

I nod. Of course she has. To take Mina’s mind off it, I ask, "shall we get started?"

Her face lights up. "Yeah!"

Mina has this massive sweet tooth. She insists we start on dessert first, so after rummaging through her fridge and pantry for a bit, I decide we’ll be making homemade ice cream. It’s pretty simple, but when it comes to beating the eggs, Mina has no clue.

"Here," I say, closing my hand over hers, which is holding a handheld whisk. "Like this." I gently move her hand in the direction it’s supposed to go. Eventually, she gets the hang of it.

When the mixture has been put in the freezer to harden, Mina says, "I’m done with this. I want to show you something."

I deliberate telling her off for leaving a job half done, but my curiosity gets the better of me. "What?"

She smiles mysteriously. "You’ll see." With a big grin, she grabs my hand. "You’ll need your boots. We’re going outside. On an adventure."

Mina leads me through a gate at the back of her property. In front of us, the woods stretch out for miles. I breathe out into the frosty night air. "It’s cold. You sure this is a good idea?"

She rolls her eyes. "Frightened of the big bad woods, or something?" she gently teases. "Trust me, I know my way through them like I know the back of my hand."

I let out a sigh, crossing my arms to try keep warm. "Fine. This better be worth it."

"I promise you, it will be," she says, gently taking my hand and uncrossing my arms. Her fingers curl around mine. She might just be right.

Mina leads me along an old, winding path through the trees. We avoid tripping over ancient, gnarled roots that disrupt the track, although several times I’m sent stumbling and have to cling to Mina so as not to fall over. Overhead, through the leaves, we occasionally catch glimpses of the stars. There’s no moon tonight. These woods feel different from the outside world. I notice it almost immediately. There’s this feeling, of isolation. Quietness. Almost like time has slowed. It’s hard to explain.

No, I have it. No matter how weird this sounds, it’s still true. The feeling is pureness. This place is untouched.

We end up in a clearing after walking for twenty minutes. Mina is watching me expectantly.

"What?" I ask.

"You don’t see it?"

I look around more carefully this time. "No, what is – oh!" There’s a small tree hut nestled in some branches. I can’t believe I spotted it. No one would, if they weren’t looking for it

"First things first. I want to show you my tree house, but later. It was where I went as a child when I was feeling upset. It’s still kinda there for that reason, but I also just use it as an escape, when I need to get away from the world, to think, for my life to slow down, you know?"

I nod. I absolutely do.

"But the place I want to take you first is just two minutes walk from here." She continues. "This way." She starts walking. Our hands have slipped out from each other’s hold, and I follow her. It doesn’t take long for us to come to a giant, crumbling cliff.

"Careful," she warns.

I take a step back.

"Or," she grins, "live life on the edge." She walks forward, to the very tip. I’m frozen for a second. Then, ", Mina" I burst out. "Step away from there!"

She grins, and stretches her arms out like a tightrope walker, taking careful steps along rim of the cliff.

"Mina, I’m not kidding. You’re going too far." There’s a note of urgency in my voice.

She spins around, meets my gaze, and then slowly and deliberately, steps towards me. I breathe out.

"Why the were you doing that to me?"

Her eyes are glinting. "Sometimes, you’ve just gotta let it all go. Crying, rushes of adrenalin, or shouting out loud . . . which is what I want you to do."

"Huh?" I ask. She’s confusing me, and also scaring me a bit.

"Shout. Scream. I dare you. Right now. Right here. In the middle of nowhere. Tell the world you don’t give a ."

I bite my lip.

"Do it. We can do it together. When was the last time you shouted, the loudest you could? Have you ever? Just opened your lungs and poured out your emotion?"

No. I haven’t. I’ve never screamed. I don’t even know if I can.

She grasps my hand. "Together?"

I close my eyes. Let it go. Live your life. "Yeah," I say.

Watching each other, we open our mouths. I screw my eyes shut, tilt back my head, and scream.

The air is drawn out of me. My heart is pounding, my body buzzing, so alive. Every sense feels heightened. The wind, tickling the hairs on my arms and chapping my lips. The smell, of pine needles and damp earth. The air tastes of wood smoke. I can hear nothing but my own voice pouring out of me into the darkness. As my lungs deflate, my scream dies, a strangled sound. I take a breath in. "I. Don’t. Give. A. !"

You might think it sounds crazy. It probably would, if you weren’t there. But for me, it made such perfect sense. If I’d stopped and questioned it, I wouldn’t have had the guts to scream. But for just a minute of my life, I was with Mina, living in the moment. You should try it some time. Just open your mouth and scream. I dare you.

It made me feel ok, being me.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

A/N:

AFTER A LONG WEEKS OF NOT UPDATING LOL CHAPTER 17 IS FINALLY HERE^~^ I'M SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING FOR TOO LONG, IT'S JUST THAT I'M BUSY WITH MY OTHER FANFIC >.< SO YESH THANKS EVERYONE FOR SUPPORTING MY STORY ^~^ I'LL UPDATE SOON DON'T WORRY :) OH AND IF YOU LIKE YOU COULD CHECK OUT MY OTHER FANFICS ESPECIALLY THE 'NEW ROOMMATE' LOL. SEE YOU ON THE NEXT CHAPTER ^~^ LOVE YOU ALL.~

COMMENTS ARE HIGHLY APPRECIATED.

~_momoring_