The Lost and the Found

The storm was gathering at the off-shores of the beach and the people who were enjoying the seas retreated back to their houses for safety. Fishermen were heading back to the land, securing their boats. Amidst all the cautions, a lone man stood at the docks with blank eyes staring off at the distance.

After the fist drops hit the earth, the man sat down on the edge of the of the dock and allowed the sea to submerge his ankles. The man's face was fully wet in no time since the rain had unfailingly pelted the land; no place in the immediate vicinity was left dry.

There was water dripping on the cheeks of the man and he was unsure whether he was crying or it was the rain. With several locks covering his eyes, he looked up at the sky. Silently, he cursed or prayed; he did not know...

For minutes, he remained in his position. The man did not notice that there was a local approaching him.

"HEY! That's dangerous!" The local ran towards him.

The static man stared at him; dark lock were sprawled outside of his raincoat, his hazel eyes reflected different shades especially when lightning would flash.

"Are you sane? Why are you out in this weather?" The local yelled. "Come with me!"

The local dragged him without much effort since there was no resistance. For ten minutes both men walked under the treacherous weather. By the time that they had arrived at the house of the local, the other man immediately went to his bedroom and prepared dry clothes as well as towels.

The man had stood motionless at the doorstep until the local had offered him a towel and change of clothes.

"I- I'm Lovino Vargas by the way." The local said, finally introducing himself.

"A-Arthur. K-Kirkla-land..." The man said, his green eyes meeting hazel ones.

"Ah... Mm, nice to meet you Kirkland." Lovino said and he walked towards the kitchen to prepare something warm for them to drink.

"A-Arthur. Call me Arthur..." The man had called out. Lovino nodded and he proceeded with filling the kettle with water and heating it up.

For minutes there was only silence in the house since Arthur had proceeded to the bathroom, taking a quick shower and drying himself.

Once Arthur was finished, he walked towards the kitchen and had seen that Lovino had already prepared bread and warm drink on the dinning table.

"Have a seat." Lovino said after he had finished setting the table. "You can stay here until... Well..."

There was a long pause and Arthur waited for the continuation of the sentence but there never was. So the man had seated himself.

Quietly, they ate and drank; both had thoughts, thoughts they wanted to say but the right words to convey them were difficult to express.

"Just stay until you feel like it." Lovino finally said after he had finished drinking his warm chocolate.

"Thank you. Thank you for all this..." Arthur said with gratitude and he smiled at Lovino.

Lovino who was across Arthur, felt a tingling sensation inside him. He murmured a quiet your welcome and began to keep the dishes and mugs since Arthur had been finished as well.

Arthur was about to offer that he should be the one to wash the dishes but Lovino had shoved him off and said that he should wait by the living room.

At the living room, Arthur had noticed that there was an upright piano and he approached the instrument; slightly disappointed that it was closed he lightly ran his fingers on the cover. He then redirected his attention to the nearest bookcase and he was amazed that the entire shelf was filled with music sheets from famous musicians and Arthur assumes that there were personally written ones as well.

"Ah!" Lovino who had just arrived at the living area let out a surprised gasp.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... Be privy." Arthur looked at the floor while speaking. "I just got curious."

"D-Don't worry about it. I was just... Surprised." Lovino replies with pauses, looking for the right words.

An awkward silence arose between both of them. For some seconds both men had been rooted at their position.

"Uh."

"Um."

When they unintentionally stuttered together, a quiet giggle escaped Arthur's mouth; on the other hand, Lovino raised an eyebrow but he also gave in to the infectious laughter.

"Do you play the piano?" Arthur asked when they had relatively calmed down.

"No. My younger brother plays the piano." Lovino said, slightly quiet. "I- I make the music sheets a-and play the vi-violin."

Lovino's face was slightly red after he revealed what he was capable of.

"I- I'm not showing off or anything like that! I'm just telling you so that there will be no misconception!" Compared to earlier, Lovino's voice was loud, as if he was yelling.

Arthur did not take any offense and he just smiled and nodded. "Maybe we can have a duet sometime."

Lovino's eyes dilated and then, a small smile formed on his face since he knew that for once, someone really tried to understand him.

-o-o-o-

Three months have passed; Arthur was able to get a part-time job at the flower shop and also at the preschool.

During those past months, Arthur was able to find out more about Lovino. The man was of Italian descent, Arthur was able to deduce that much during their initial meeting; Lovino was very private about several topics but eventually he would open up; the man had very high alcohol tolerance level; since he had an extensive knowledge on music, he was a teacher at the primary school in this town and the next town. Occasionally, he accepted tutorial classes.

There were many things that Arthur had taken notice of, the little things about Lovino that is but he could not enumerate all of it.

A small smile appeared on Arthur's face.

"..."

-o-o-o-

The rain had been incessant for the past days and Lovino was sulking. Due to the rain, the man was unable to harvest the already ripe tomatoes in his garden. As a past time, Lovino tended a vegetable garden.

Recently, flowers had been added specifically roses into the garden. It was Arthur's idea to add flowers. This was before he got a job as a florist. Lovino had noticed the other man's expertise with the flowers and he recommended him to the shop owner who was searching for someone to help her.

For the past months, Lovino had allowed Arthur to live with him. Arthur was very proficient with household chores but he was forbidden in the kitchen. Lovino had trusted the Englishman to cook their meal one time but the food was bland, much to Lovino's dismay. Since that time, Lovino took the initiative to teach Arthur with adding the proper seasoning. Lately, his cooking has improved but Arthur was only allowed in the kitchen when Lovino was supervising him.

Lovino's mood lightened recalling the memory. Somehow, he always felt at ease with Arthur despite some occasional bickering. To Lovino, the man's presence was soothing.

Later that week, the rain had already stopped and Lovino was happily harvesting the tomatoes. Once he had finished harvesting, he decided to cook something with tomatoes for dinner. Lovino began opening the cupboards, searching for ingredients. To his dismay, what was left was not enough to make a meal for two.

Quietly, Lovino cursed himself and he made his way to his bedroom to retrieve his wallet.

The walk to the grocery store was short and Lovino was happy that the shop owner was not there. The shop owner was Antonio Fernandez Carriedo. Lovino did not hate the man but sometimes the attention that was given to him became cumbersome.

After paying for his groceries, Lovino returned back to the house. Along the way, Lovino saw Arthur who was bringing flowers that were yet to be arranged.

Lovino was thinking twice whether to call out Arthur or not. Lovino decided to not to since the house was already in sight.

Dinner was scrumptious, in Arthur's opinion. Lovino's cooking was always stellar but he knew that the man had a magic touch with his cooking.

Quiet days passed by between them. That was until one day a letter had arrived addressed for Arthur Kirkland. Quickly, he skimmed through the letter and he read it properly again.

Arthur, it is urgent. You have to return home now. Please. You must heed this.

- Francis Bonnefoy

The seconds that ticked became a full minute until Arthur was able to react. The man took a deep breath and neatly folded the letter back to the envelope. 'Home, huh?'

Later that same day, Arthur had told Lovino about the letter and that he needed to return to his place. Arthur did not disclose everything but he only said about the urgency.

"Lovino... I'm very thankful that-"

"-t's alright bastard." Lovino cut Arthur's speech. "If its very important, you have to go. Besides..."

'We're not tied to one another.' Lovino did not say the end of his sentence.

"Ah, um. Truly thank you." Arthur said, with an earnest smile on his face. "I don't know how to repay you..."

"No need... I... I enjoyed your company Arthur." Lovino averted his eyes; his cheeks were turning red at what he had said.

Arthur was unsure how to reply; he was rooted on where he stood until he said, "I also had a great time with you Lovino. Maybe we can meet again..."

"Maybe we can..."

Lovino and Arthur shook each other's hand.

At that moment, both men had wished that they had spoken what was in their thoughts. However they did not.

Their meeting which was unprecedented, so was their parting. Nonetheless, it was not meant to be permanent. Nothing was permanent except change.

-o-o-o-

This is just an experiment; to kick out my writer's block and laziness. Hope you like it :)

If there are errors please point it out. Hahaha, I was writing this on my phone so I might have missed something :)