Press comes home to the country after serving in the army and living in the city. He is beset by memories; the water running by the hollow, the girl that he made love to in the forest, and his childhood. When he gets home, his aged mother welcomes him; and his father comes home with a little girl that he does not know. His parents tell him that the girl, Stella, is Bennie's daughter - the girl that they had taken in and treated as a daughter. Bennie had died after childbirth, and she had been ashamed of being pregnant out of wedlock. Press wonders if the girl is his daughter; after all, he did remember sleeping with Bennie. But she had lied to his parents about the girl's age, so he wonders if his mother can tell. Despite this question of paternity, he resolves to be as much of a father as he can, because Stella does not have anyone else to fill the role. He strives to win her affections by buying her a doll, but Stella remains timid and shy. His mother informs him, however, that the girl has warmed to him in her own way; she follows Press around whenever she can. When he is cutting wood with his father, she follows them into the forest, but the old man sends her away because she could get hurt. Press dismisses the incident easily enough. He has been restless all this while, but suddenly his passions are diverted by the arrival of a girl carrying jars. He offers to walk her home, but she informs him that she is married. Despite this, he does not give up pursuit. Press waits for her to come back the next day, and follows her homeward, determined to engineer a run-in that would hopefully lead to conversation. As he follows her, he is unaware of Stella following him until he hears her crying from behind him. Confused, Press turns - only to find that a snake has come dangerously close to the girl. He acts quickly, pushing her away and grabbing hold of the reptile even as it sinks its fangs into his calf. Press kills the snake, and ignores the bite, lifting Stella and walking home. He observes the sunlight spilling into the thicket from where it parted on the road.