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.

Chapter 2

"Do you know me?" I saw him frown at what I said, and he was about to speak when someone called me from a distance.

"Cailegh!" I didn't take my eyes off his gray eyes that were staring at me. A moment later, I felt someone behind me who called my name again, so he let go of my shoulders.

"Do you know me?" I asked again, trying to catch his gaze as he quickly looked away from me.

"Cailegh, who is she?" Harris asked beside me. I glanced at him for a moment before turning my attention back to the man in front of me.

"Do you know me?" I asked him again, but he just shook his head and turned to Harris.

"I must be mistaken..." he said firmly before turning back to me and walking away. I stood there staring at his back as he walked away.

No, he called me by my name!

"Wait!" I ignored Harris calling me and went straight after the man I was talking to earlier.

"Wait! Brother!" I quickly blocked his path.

"What..." His expression was surprised when he saw me, and he cleared his throat.

"Do you know me?" I asked him like a broken record, still holding my chest because I was out of breath from running. This handsome guy has long strides; he walks so fast!

I stared at him while trying to catch my breath, but his gaze wasn't on my face. I followed where his eyes were looking and found them staring at my chest.

"Hey!" He almost jumped in surprise at what I said and glanced at my chest again before biting his lip and shaking his head.

"Don't you have decent clothes to wear? You're showing too much skin..." he said grumpily, making me look down at my bikini. What's wrong with it?

"Excuse me, we are at the beach. What do you want? Should I wear a sweater?" I smiled and crossed my arms. His eyebrows went up at what I said, and he let out a loud sigh.

"Tss... Just don't wear such..." He pointed at my bikini like he was annoyed.

"Pfft, some people are almost naked!" I pointed to a woman on the seashore whose bikini barely covered anything.

He gave me a sharp look but didn't answer and turned away from me.

"H-Hey! I'm not done talking to you!" I quickened my pace and followed him. "Do you know me?!" I almost shouted again.

"No, I don't know you..." he answered without looking back at me, but I wasn't convinced. That's impossible... He called me by my name earlier, so it's impossible for him to say he doesn't know me.

"Come on! You know me!" I proclaimed. People around us were starting to look at us, but I ignored them, they were just jealous!

"Hey!" I screamed and hurried my steps it was almost like running because of how fast he was walking, and I couldn't catch up with him. We were near a hidden part of the resort, but I was still chasing after him I wanted to talk to him.

"Come on!" I didn't care that I was only in a swimsuit right now. I'm sure no one would see anything inappropriate.

"Wait! Hey--" I felt my slipper catch on a stone, causing me to fall hard on the floor, and my knee hit the ground.

I gasped in pain and closed my eyes as my knee throbbed.

"K..Hey!" I tried to call him. He hadn't gone far, but he didn't look back. I felt disappointment wash over me, mixed with the pain in my injury.

"Miss! Are you okay?" I looked up and saw a group of men in front of me. I closed my mouth and nodded.

"A..I'm fine.." I said nervously, suddenly feeling anxious as one of them looked over my body.

"Are you sure, Miss? Come with us, we can help treat that.." My heart raced at what he said, and I quickly shook my head.

"H..No, I'm fine.." I kept shaking my head and tried to stand up, but my knee hurt too much.

"Come on, miss, that looks like a big wound.." One of them grinned. I bit my lip and shook my head again.

"No! I'm okay.. My boyfriend is coming." I lied, but it seemed to have no effect on them.

"You must be joking with us, miss. Your boyfriend wouldn't leave you here like this. Where is he? He's not here, come on, let us help you.." I continued shaking my head and trying to get up.

"He'll be here soon, he just went to get something." I made an excuse.

"Miss, you know.." He grabbed my arm, but I shook it off.

"Let go of me!" I pushed him away, but he still held onto my arm. I couldn't move or fight back because of the pain in my knee.

"You know, miss--"

"Fucking touch her and you'll die." I gasped when I heard a voice and quickly looked for where it came from.

"Don't interfere here, man. Just leave this to us.." One of them said something that gave me chills as he touched my arm, so I quickly moved away.

"If you lay your fucking hands on her again, I'll break your neck." He said sharply with a dark expression.

"Dude--" Before he could say anything else, my brother punched him in the jaw, causing him to stagger back.

"You idiot!" The man shouted and punched back at him. I gasped in shock at the fight and stood there stunned. I even forgot about the pain in my knee as I was amazed by how easily he was hitting those guys.

"Don't you fucking touch my girlfriend." I gasped again at what he said as he kicked one of the three men who were now on the ground; one had blood on the side of his mouth.

"You jerk.." One of them said as they helped their friend and ran away. My brother turned his back to me like he was deep in thought.

"Hey.." I called him. He stood up straight and slowly turned to look at me. He had a dark and sharp expression that made my heart race.

"What are you thinking, woman?! You almost got hurt because of that stupid outfit you're wearing!" His voice was loud and his face was very angry when he turned to me.

My mouth dropped open as I quickly looked down when our eyes met.

"What? You're just going to look down like that? Look at yourself! You look like a.." He couldn't finish his sentence as I heard his footsteps coming closer to me.

"Leigh.." He squatted down in front of me and held my chin.

"T..Did you call me?" I said, confused. He just smiled and kept holding my chin. "Hey.." I called him.

"Travis.. I'm Travis.." he said softly, and after a moment, he stood up and took off his shirt before coming closer to me and putting his shirt over my head.

"Next time, don't wear something like that. Sorry for shouting at you." He said gently, calming his voice as he held my foot to check my knee.

"Travis.." I called him. He looked at me before standing up straight, and I was surprised when he suddenly lifted me, so I quickly held onto his neck.

"You're still so clumsy.." My eyes widened at what he said as he started to walk.

"Huh? How.. You know me!" I hissed.

"I don't." He smiled and shook his head before starting to walk while carrying me.

Chapter 3

"You know me." He sat me on the sofa and moved away from me.

"No, you're so loud." He went somewhere, and I took that chance to look around. We were in his rest house, which is actually close to ours. The inside of his place is very manly, but the materials used are really nice. It was refreshing and made me feel relaxed.

Travis really has good taste in designs...

"Travis.." I whispered softly and leaned back on his sofa. Even his name sounds good and really fits him. I adjusted the shirt I was wearing and glanced at the kitchen he went into. When I confirmed he wasn't there, I brought his shirt to my nose.

"Oh wow, it smells so good!" I giggled and closed my eyes before smelling it more. His natural scent lingered in my nose, and it smelled so nice.

"You can smell me instead if you want." I quickly dropped the shirt and sat up straight. In front of me stood Travis with a kit in his hand. He was smiling, showing off his yummy abs.

"H..Have you been here long?" I fixed my sitting position and turned my feet to the side.

"Not really, but enough to see you dreaming and smelling my shirt." His eyes sparkled, and I felt so embarrassed.

"I..I just smelled it, it smelled bad." I tried to excuse myself, but he just laughed at what I said before sitting down at the table in front of the sofa.

"Uh-huh? So, are you telling me I'm wrong when I heard you say my shirt smells so damn good?" His smile changed a bit as he tilted his head to watch me.

"It's just your imagination!" I bit my lip and swallowed hard as I saw his expression change before he shook his head.

"Why?" I asked, pushing my hair away from my face.

"Don't bite your lip." I let go of my lip that I was biting and cleared my throat.

"Um.. Travis.." Suddenly, I felt shy calling his name. He looked at me and ran his hand through his messy hair, then made a face after a moment.

Why is he still handsome even when he makes that face?

"What happened to you?" I asked.

"Nothing," then he stood up, surprising me when he knelt in front of me to check my foot and inspect my wound.

"Why do you have to be so careless?" He said without looking at me as he handed me the medicine kit and took out cotton and alcohol.

"My slipper got caught on a rock."

"Whose fault is that?" He asked.

"The rock's fault. It's stupid, it blocked my way." He stopped putting alcohol on the cotton and smiled at me when he looked at me.

"You silly." He laughed softly as he brought the cotton closer to my knee, but before he could get close, I quickly pushed his hand away.

"Don't! That hurts!"

"Tss.. It's not, come on. The blood is already dry." He brought it closer again, but I quickly pushed his hand away again and shook my head.

"Please, no..." I pouted and acted cute. He smiled shyly before he let go of the cotton, and I was surprised when he took my hand and squeezed it.

I felt a strange electricity in my body and a tickle in my stomach from what he did.

"You can do this, it's just like an ant bite." He gave me his warm and reassuring smile before looking at me, so I nodded without thinking. His smile was really charming.

"Good. Okay then." He nodded and released my hand before reaching for the cotton again and bringing it close to my knee. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on something else so I wouldn't feel the sting, but when the cotton touched my knee, I winced and immediately grabbed Travis's shoulder.

"Ouch!" I almost pinched Travis, and when I didn't feel him move, I opened my eyes, only to find him staring at my hand on his shoulder and swallowing hard.

"What's wrong?" I asked; the cotton was still in his hand but hadn't touched my knee again.

"You... You still do that." I was confused by what he said and spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

"That. Touching my shoulder when you're hurt."

"Huh?" My mouth opened slightly in surprise.

"W... Nothing... Okay, I'll clean your wound." He cleaned my wound and treated it, but I felt a bit crazy and wondered about what he said. Why does he know so much?

"You know me, right?" He threw away the cotton before coming closer to me.

"Nope."

"Trav, come on... I know you know me, please." He sighed before biting his lip and sitting next to me.

"Yes, I know you." I sat up straight and faced him.

"Really?" He nodded.

"What happened? You don't remember me?" He asked in surprise. I smiled faintly and nodded.

"I just... I just can't remember anything. Sorry if I was annoying earlier. I just want to ask you things."

"How come? Even me? You can't remember me?" I saw emotion in his eyes as he leaned back while looking at me.

"Sorry... No, that's why I want to ask you. I want to know someone who knows me, and as you said, you know me." He nodded but the emotion in his gray eyes didn't go away.

"I know you... really well..." My heart raced at what he said, and I felt lighter inside.

"Let me introduce myself formally again. I'm Travis Joseff Samaniego." He smiled a little, and my heart raced faster when he extended his hand to me.

"Cailegh Camilla Ignacio..." I took his hand, and his warm palm felt so familiar.

I quickly let go of his hand because my heart was racing too much, and I fixed my hair.

"What happened?" He asked with surprise as he took a breath.

"I don't know... Really... No one can tell me... I've been clueless for the past years, so that's why I want to know someone like you..." He sighed heavily at what I said and stared at me.

"It must be your parents," he said firmly.

"Do you know them too?" He nodded and placed his hand on his temple while rubbing it.

"Yeah..." His answer made me think that this man really knows me, no doubt about it.

"What was our relationship before? Were you my boyfriend?" I tried joking around with a smile, but I saw how he froze and opened his mouth in surprise at what I said.

"You seriously can't remember anything?" He suddenly asked in a serious tone. I quickly nodded before answering.

"I was just kidding, but yes, I really can't remember. Not even a single thing." His gaze stayed on my face as if searching for something, then after a moment, he looked away.

"What am I to you?" I asked. He looked at me before speaking.

"Just... an old friend..." he said, but I felt unconvinced.

"You must be a great old friend of mine..." I smiled and took a deep sigh.

"I wish I could remember you. You know, I just woke up not remembering anything, and they just told me something happened that I don't know about. I tried asking them who I am and what happened when I still had some memories, but they refused to answer me. They just told me to forget the past because it's not important."

"It's really not important..." he suddenly said, which made me anxious.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, nothing strange happened before... As far as I remember, you didn't experience anything special, so it isn't important to remember anything." He said this coldly; his mood changed again.

"But I want to remember everything! I want to go back to how things were. I'm clueless, empty, and I don't know anything! Please..." I said, almost begging. I felt my tears starting to fall down my cheeks.

I was scared that he might not help me. I was scared that he wouldn't agree to my plea. I don't want to be clueless anymore. He is my only hope.

He pressed his eyes shut, and when he opened them again, he was staring into my eyes.

"Help me... please..." I said softly, my chest tightening at the thought that he might not be able to help me. I don't know why, but I want him to remind me of the past. I know it's already gone, but the desire to know it won't leave my mind and heart.

I can feel that something in the past was important to me, and if only I could find out what it was, I would feel whole again.

"Please..." I repeated.

"I'll think about it..." he replied, and I was surprised when he wiped the tears from my cheek and caressed my face.

"I'll think about it..." he said again before pulling me into his arms.