Lost and Found

Chapter 1

"Your child needs help! We all know something happened to her, right?! Why can't we just settle things down for now?!" I opened my eyes, and the sunlight coming through the open curtain welcomed me.

I put my hand on the bed and sat up straight. I stared at the door, and I could clearly hear my parents shouting.

"Shut up, Fredo! I have many things to do right now; don't start with me!" My mom's high-pitched voice was all I could hear from outside.

"Are we just going to leave her? She needs us, and if you're busy, I'm busy too! I have things to do, and you're just going to leave her with me?!"

"Cailegh is a woman now, okay? She can handle herself. Just... don't start with me right now; I'm busy..." I bit my lip when I heard my mom's voice, followed by a loud slam of the door.

I kept staring at my bedroom door and sighed. Not a very good start to the day. I combed my hair with my hand and used my foot to feel for my slippers under the bed, but I couldn't find them. So, I got down and looked under the bed. I frowned when I saw they were not there, so I lay down to see better.

I reached under the bed to feel for them but only touched something unfamiliar. Its texture was rough and it moved, so I peeked my head under and screamed when I saw it was a cockroach.

"Kyaaah!" I screamed loudly and hurriedly stood up but bumped my head on the bed frame. Even though it hurt, I forced myself to stand and looked for something to hit it with. I grabbed a meter stick and chased after the cockroach, hitting it over and over while screaming.

Oh my God! Gross!

When I saw the cockroach was dead, I rushed to my mirror, grabbed my Victoria's Secret perfume, and sprayed it on the cockroach to make sure it was really dead.

Die, cockroach! Die!

I punched the air when I saw it was dead and laughed. I'm so great!

I frowned and blew out a breath when I realized my slippers were right in front of the bathroom. Annoyed, I walked over and put them on before going to wash my hands in the bathroom. After that, I sprayed some perfume on my hands.

I walked over to the cockroach that I had killed and pushed it with the meter stick I used. Then, I headed to the terrace while continuing what I was doing. The cool breeze greeted me along with a nice smell coming from the nearby sea.

I smiled and let the wind blow through my hair. It felt like being in a movie; I looked crazy here but ignored it. I felt like Rose from Titanic, except there was no Jack hugging me from behind.

In the distance, I could see people swimming in the sea while others played volleyball on the beach. I would probably swim and enjoy myself later.

Just as I was about to go back inside, I noticed a guy walking in front of our beach house. He was topless but wearing board shorts, had sunglasses on, and his hair was messy from the wind.

I gasped when he looked up at me, and luckily, I quickly stepped back. My heart raced as it beat quickly in my chest.

Shit! Brace yourself, Cailegh!

As I was about to go back to my room, I noticed the cockroach that I had just killed on the side.

I walked over and grabbed the meter stick next to it. I suddenly smiled at a crazy thought. No one would see, right?

I stretched out my hand and stared at the cockroach while raising the meter stick to get ready. It felt like playing golf; I was going to aim for the cockroach.

I laughed like a fool. I wondered who would be lucky enough to hit this lucky cockroach.

I jumped a little before swinging my hand holding the meter stick.

1... 2... 3...

"Oh my gosh!" I screamed in shock when instead of the cockroach flying away, I dropped the meter stick and it flew through the air. I was slapping my forehead in embarrassment, especially when I heard a loud curse from downstairs.

"What the fuck?!" I gasped when I heard a deep voice from below and quickly ran to peek, only to see that the guy in front of our rest house was hit by it.

Oh shit, Cailegh! Why do you have to be careless all the time?!

He held his head and bent down while the meter stick lay on the ground, resting. I quickly stepped back and rushed into my room to pull my hair in frustration.

"You're such an idiot, Cai! Fuck!" I grimaced at myself in the mirror while combing my hair.

It's so early in the morning, and I'm causing trouble?! I wonder how that handsome topless guy is doing. I hope he's okay now...

I fixed my face and covered up my black bikini since I had just finished showering and was about to swim and hang out.

I checked myself one last time before grabbing my glasses and hat and going outside. I didn't bother telling them where I was going; they wouldn't care anyway, right?

"Hi Cailegh, dear! Good morning!" I smiled when I heard Celia approach me, and I quickly took off my glasses to greet her back.

"Hi!" I walked over to kiss her on the cheek, and she stroked my hair with a smile.

"Oh dear, it's good you came by... How are you feeling? Has what you lost come back?" I stopped at what she said and shook my head. Celia is the one who took care of me these past three years when something happened, so I'm very close to her.

"Not yet..." I smiled weakly.

"Just trust yourself, dear, you can do it. Wait, where are your parents?" I shook my head again at what she said and ran my hand through my hair that was messed up by the strong wind.

"Is that so? By the way, how long will you be here, dear?"

"Just three weeks, then back to the city. I also need a check-up..." We chatted for a moment before I said goodbye and left our rest house.

I shouted when I got close to the water and quickly took off my sandals to get my feet wet. I was enjoying myself, but I didn't wet my body yet. No, not yet.

I decided to buy some fresh coconut from a nearby stall because I was thirsty. While walking, I occasionally sipped from the straw stuck in the fresh coconut I was holding.

I sat down on a white chair in front of the sea. I placed the coconut on the table and looked at my pale skin that was slightly reddening from the sun.

My goal for this short vacation is to get a tan. I look like a vampire with this color.

I removed my cover-up, revealing the black bikini underneath. I bit my lip and leaned back in the chair while looking at the sea. I was still holding the coconut and drinking from it.

"Hey! Trav! Give me back my sandals or I'll shave your head!" My ears perked up at what I heard, and even I couldn't understand why.

"You're crazy too! I'm older than you!" A loud laugh followed, and suddenly my heart started beating faster. I straightened up in my chair and took off my glasses before scanning the area.

Why does that laugh sound different? I didn't know why my heart was racing, but curious as I was, I quickly stood up to try to find it.

As I looked around while walking, I was shocked when I bumped into something, causing me to lose my balance and fall over.

"Fuck!" I should have landed on the sand below, but that didn't happen because strong arms wrapped around my waist and caught me quickly.

"Miss, are you okay?" I quickly got back up as he removed his arms from my waist. As I fixed myself, my heart raced when I met the gray eyes of a man.

I froze and stepped back, lifting my gaze to see his full face and trying to speak normally.

"T...Thank you..." I was surprised to see shock in his eyes when he saw me, and I even caught a slight parting of his red lips.

I stared at him. He had a fierce look in his ash-colored eyes and a sharp nose. His lips were red and thin like they were drawn by a very skilled artist. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed as he stared at me intently.

I was startled and gasped when he held both of my arms and spoke.

"Cailegh..." My chest tightened when he mentioned my name, it confused me.

"D...Do you know me?" I asked him softly.