The group—Lisa, John, Luna, and Max—were searching for Louis when they heard a crying voice nearby. Suddenly, a small figure appeared.
It was a little girl, around eight years old, sobbing.
The group froze in confusion. Why was this little girl crying? And what was she doing here in the jungle, in the middle of the night?
Luna stepped forward, knelt beside her, and asked gently:
"Hey, little one… why are you crying? Are you lost?"
But the girl didn't reply. She just kept crying and crying.
"Where are her parents? Why is this child alone in the jungle?" John asked, frowning.
"Maybe she got lost," Lisa suggested softly.
"But what is she doing here at night?" Max added.
"Let's ask her again," John said.
Luna leaned closer and asked:
"Hey kid, who are you? Where are your parents?"
This time, the girl spoke through her sobs.
"I came here with my parents this evening. We were in our car when it suddenly broke down. My father tried to repair it, but he couldn't. My mother was sleeping, so my father told me: 'If your mom wakes up, tell her I went to find a mechanic.'"
She stopped for a moment, wiping her tears, then continued:
"While I was looking outside the window, I saw a sheep in the jungle. I got out of the car and started following it. I don't know how long I chased it, but I couldn't catch it. Then, when I looked around, I was lost in the forest. I tried to find my way back, but I couldn't."
Lisa's heart ached for the child. She stroked the girl's hair and hugged her gently.
"Don't worry, sweetheart. We'll help you find your parents."
"Really?" the girl asked, sniffling.
"Yes," Lisa assured her.
"What's your name, little one?" Luna asked softly.
"My name is Stephani," the girl whispered.
"That's a beautiful name," Lisa said with a warm smile.
"Now what do we do?" John asked, looking around.
"What do you mean?" Max asked.
"Well, we were searching for Louis… and now we also have to find this girl's parents."
"So?" Luna raised an eyebrow.
"I mean—should we search for Louis first or for her parents?" John clarified.
"I think we can do both. While looking for Louis, we might also find her parents," Max suggested.
"You're right," John nodded. "Let's search for both."
The group started walking again, this time with Stephani holding Lisa's hand. Their journey to find both Louis and Stephani's parents had begun.
______________________________________
On the other side, another group—Louis, Luna, John, and Lisa—were still searching for Max. They kept calling his name, but Luna looked pale and distracted. She wasn't paying attention to her surroundings.
Louis noticed and asked gently, "Luna, are you really okay?"
"Yes, I told you I'm fine," Luna replied quickly.
"But you don't look fine at all," Lisa said, worried.
"Yeah… you look like you've seen a ghost," John added.
"I told you, don't worry. I'm okay."
"You sure?" Louis pressed.
"Yes!" Luna said firmly.
"If you say so," Louis sighed.
The group grew quiet again and kept walking. But after a few minutes, Luna spoke.
"Like I said before… we should split up."
"I thought that topic was over," Lisa replied.
"It's not over. We only got distracted by that voice earlier," Luna insisted.
"Are you sure?" John asked skeptically.
"Luna, listen. This isn't a good idea—we should stay together," Louis said firmly.
"But you were the one who promised: if we couldn't find Max, we'd try my plan," Luna argued.
"Yeah, I said that. But the rest of us don't agree," Louis replied.
"Fine," Luna muttered.
"Thank God you changed your mind," John said in relief.
Luna frowned but stayed silent. She couldn't convince them otherwise. As the group continued their search for Max, Luna quietly kept her own secret plan in mind.
______________________________________
Meanwhile, Louis and Luka were walking together through the jungle in silence. Luka's mind was full of regret.
Why did he even come to this party? And why did he agree to follow Louis into this dark forest?
His thoughts were broken when Louis spoke.
"Hey Luka, are you lost in thought?"
"Why do you ask that?" Luka replied.
"Because I've been calling your name, but you didn't answer. You seemed deep in thought," Louis explained.
"Oh… yeah. I was just thinking about how the heck we'll ever get out of here," Luka admitted.
"Like I said, we'll find a way. Don't worry," Louis assured him.
"Ye—" before Luka could finish, he froze. He had heard something.
A faint whisper.
"Luka… where are you?"
His blood ran cold. He couldn't recognize the voice, but it was soft, eerie, and close.
"Hey Louis—did you hear that?" Luka whispered urgently.
"Hear what?" Louis asked.
"Someone's calling me!" Luka said, eyes wide.
"I didn't hear anything. Maybe it's just your imagination because you're scared," Louis replied.
"That's not my imagination! And I'm definitely not scared!" Luka snapped defensively.
"Okay, okay. Calm down. Maybe you're just hearing things. Try again—listen carefully. Do you hear it now?" Louis asked.
Luka strained his ears, but the voice was gone.
"No. Nothing now," he muttered.
"See? I told you—it was just in your head," Louis said.
"Maybe you're right," Luka sighed, though doubt still gnawed at him.
"Come on. We have to keep looking for the others," Louis said.
Luka followed quietly, but his mind raced. Was it real? Or just his imagination?
______________________________________
Meanwhile, Anna and Max were searching together. Max walked calmly, but Anna kept shouting names.
"Lisa! Luna! John!" she called loudly.
"Hey, can you stop shouting? Try searching quietly," Max muttered.
"If we stay quiet, we'll be wandering forever. At least if we call out, they might hear us and come to us," Anna argued.
"You're right… but if a wild animal or ghost hears you instead, we won't live long enough to find anyone," Max replied dryly.
Anna's eyes widened. She instantly stopped shouting and began walking silently.
Max smirked at her reaction and kept searching beside her.
After a few minutes of silence, Anna suddenly froze. She had heard something.
A faint voice.
"Anna… where are you?"
Her face went pale. She turned to Max.
"Max! Did you hear that?"
"No, I didn't," Max said calmly.
"But I swear—I heard someone calling my name!" Anna insisted.
"You sure?" Max asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes! Maybe it's our friends. I was calling their names, so they must have heard me!" Anna said hopefully.
"Hmm… maybe. But are you sure it's really them?" Max asked skeptically.
"I'm sure. It has to be," Anna said firmly.
"Okay then. Do you know where it came from?" Max asked.
"Over there." Anna pointed to the trees.
"Alright. Let's go. We need to see who's calling you," Max said.
Anna nodded, and together they followed the mysterious voice deeper into the jungle.