The Secret Island

a bed in a small hotel she bo

d I pick? Red… b

n’t cause much worry about appearance anyway. Since she left the boat and set foot on this island, the atmosphere here was quite calming, part of her w

ome, took a short one-hour car ride, and a small ferry to this place. All this

ng on a white hotel robe. She spent an hour doing makeup. Even if no

rquoise blue and clear. The scene reminds her of a post-impressionist painting, and the tho

d no. If she wants to travel, she chooses the beach. Beaches have luxury resorts. And her family preferred Southeast Asia; they could more than afford a first-class trip there. Her parents were more than happy with this arrangement. They wanted her to live a comfortable life. A life they never experience growing up. And she is an only child. Her whim and wishes are always answered. Whatever she wants, she g

l challenges away. Life is too easy to the point it scares her. She didn’t have anything she could be proud of. There was nothing she did that was true of her own merit—her tutors probably helped with her grades, they helped with her college application too

stimable anxiety she had had something to do about the fear of the future.

horrible thoughts and slowly walked

ed her head out of the water. The first person she saw was t

ist on holiday; what an incredibly colorless and uneventful person, the type of man she

look on his face. Even from this distance, she still could sense that he was a serious person. T

Celine took a sharp inhale, broke the eye contact, an

needed more air, so she put her head above the

wrote something. She saw some numbers partially e

So

*

s he mean

uch about that man she disliked anyway. She never knew anyone so rude befo

t out for a few hours. And what she saw once the

d, things were scattered around the room, and most

e closet to find her phone, passport, and wallet. Well, if this neces

n loose or something? This was the firs

phone and passport. Still, she f

security camera (which she later found that it was just a dummy camera). This boutique hotel didn’t have any CCTV. Worse yet, the hotel manager blamed her for not locking the door before she went out. She talked to her mostly i

rt. The notion that the hotel would not take any responsibility and that sh

a manager didn’t say a word and walked away

this to me! Come back and talk it throug

e didn't know what to do. She couldn’t think straight. Anger still rushed through her vein. She walked out a

such a mess? What does life want from me?

elm of her life direction, cried. She cried out like when she was in pre-school. Her voice was loud without any shame. She coul

losed her eyes to cry like a kindergartener, and so she shut her mouth and immediately looked for that m

eline looked at him innocently as if this was the first time she had met this man. He

as nothing to lose. So, she told him the story. Her belongings in the room were sto

ef but from rage. Once she finished telling her story, the man immediately stood up. Celine could only blink his eyes because she didn't know what to

ll help you t

**

olice and reported her case. He asked her to list all her stolen

s of property brought by clients to the hotel. Hotel-keepers are to compensate a maximum of 100 times the daily hotel fee. That

at’s so

?” That explained why he seemed so uncompromising and

ernet and remember it. I don’t have to hav

wanted to compliment him, but what a stuck-up

ice officer to come to the hotel. Once the manager saw the police, the woman’s face lost

” Celine complained brashly. But she immediately fell silent

id just that. After he asked her to sit and wait on the lob

ce have promised that they will try to track down the culprit. But she knew the chance was slim. The tall man, the man that helped her although he didn’

to find the thief. But during that time, your room where the crime scene is located will be closed. They must plan to loo

d up at him and

eyebrow at her in questi

She just shook her head quickly. It caused the hair that had just bee

gh

and closed his eyes, c

ould do was just sit

er and change clothes in my room first and