Chapter 12: Castles of Sand
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"Hey Karen, I got you something." I watched as Kai crossed the room toward my bed, upon which I was currently sitting. I raised my eyebrows at him.
"Really? What is it?" I asked, trying to see what it was he was holding behind his back.
"You have to close your eyes first," he told me teasingly. "Come on, I'll tell you when you can open them again."
I smiled and closed my eyes, waiting for him to tell me when to open them.
"Ta da!" he exclaimed a few moments later, and my eyes fluttered open. A large, bright array of flowers was before my eyes, obviously picked only a short time ago. "Do you like them? They're the first flowers of spring!"
I took them excitedly from his hands.
"Aww, how sweet! Thanks, Kai!" I replied, getting up and placing them in an empty vase near my window.
It had been three days since I had woken up not knowing who or where I was. With the help of Kai, I was slowly learning about my life before the accident on the beach. We had talked late into the night the night before; he told me of our recent stroke of luck in the vineyard, of my father and mother, and the townsfolk. He told me about the beach as well, explaining that it had been my favorite place to go. We decided to visit it after breakfast today. It seemed like I was learning to walk again. Everything I found out about myself was so intriguing, from which toothbrush I used to the fact that my eighteenth birthday was only in a couple of days. I also began to wonder what my relationship with Kai had been before I had forgotten everything. Had we secretly liked each other? Would he have told me if we did?
For one thing, I was pretty sure I had fancied him. He was attractive, friendly, and hardworking... why wouldn't I have? I hoped our trip to the beach that morning would uncover whatever relationship we had shared.
"So are you ready for breakfast?" I heard him say, shaking me from my thoughts.
"Oh, yeah. I'll take some of the usual," I laughed. I had been eating Captain Crunch every morning since I had woken up.
I watched as Kai left the room to go and get it ready and then went to change into some decent clothes. As I pulled on a pair of jeans, I surveyed myself in my bathroom mirror. My long, golden brown hair was resting behind my shoulders, the two blonde streaks hanging out in front. My complexion was fair and still a bit pale from the loss of blood from the accident, yet my cheeks were slightly flushed, perhaps from my recent visit from Kai. My eyes shone bright green, though they did not fit with the rest of my appearance. They held something behind them... a lifetime of memories, most of which were still unknown to me. Something else unsure, as if they were telling me something wasn't right. I didn't know myself. I was beginning to wonder if that were a good thing or not.
I had the chance to completely start over, but what if I'd never wanted to start over?
A knock resounded on my bedroom door. I turned from my reflection and made my way to it, deciding I would let things go as they were going for now. Opening the door, I saw a beaming Kai, offering a hand to me. I stood staring at it for a moment before I realized that I must have looked like an idiot, and then took it. He led me downstairs, hand-in-hand, to the kitchen, where my bowl of cereal awaited.
My mother had apparently gone out again, and so it was just the two of us as we ate, talking and laughing.
"I remember once," Kai was saying, a slight smile playing on his lips, "when we were younger, and you were building a sand castle on the beach, when I accidentally came and knocked it down. You were so mad you started chasing me around until we were both worn out, so we laid back on the sand until the stars came out. We tried counting them all, but there were too many and we kept having to start over until we drifted off to sleep. Your parents found us the next morning and boy, did we get scolded for having worried them sick."
"Ohh! I bet we did," I answered him, giggling. "Hey! We should build a sand castle once we get there," I suggested, hoping it would help me recall the memory.
"Sounds like a plan," he responded, a large grin on his face. "Are you ready to go?"
"Yeah, let me just run up to my room really quick," I told him, wanting to freshen up before we headed to the beach.
After I took my empty bowl to the sink, I ran upstairs and into my bathroom. I couldn't help feeling excited, yet part of me was still hesitant. How could I be sure what I felt now was what I had felt before? What if I was making a mistake? I guess I would just have to trust that my feelings were right.
I brushed my hair and teeth and put on some makeup quickly so I wouldn't keep Kai waiting. I exited the bathroom and glanced over at the flowers he had given me earlier that morning. He was sweet, that was for sure.
Suddenly my eyes caught on something on the shelf below. After squinting at it for a bit, it appeared to be a block of rusted metal, and I wondered why I would ever have kept junk in my room. I went over to it and picked it up, examining the surface. Immediately I felt a sense of nostalgia. But for what, I didn't know.
A knock sounded at the door again. I quickly remembered Kai had been waiting for me and set down the hunk of metal.
"Sorry," I said as I opened up the door and traveled downstairs with Kai.
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If Flower Bud Village's weather was always like that day's, I couldn't imagine why so few people lived here. The sky was surprisingly blue for winter, and you could tell spring was right around the corner. The snow was beginning to melt away, and blossoms were starting to form on the trees. Blades of grass could be seen poking their heads out from under the previously frozen ground, and some of the animals were beginning to wake from their long naps.
When we arrived at the beach, what I was saw was more beautiful than I had expected. The great expanse of water reached out as far as I could see, and the sun glimmered softly on the surface. It was a wonder no one was there.
"And here we are!" Kai said as we made our way across the sand. "Now, should we start on the construction of our castle?"
I was still captivated with the ocean. I knew now why it had been my favorite place to go.
"Did you know that the water is always different?" I asked abruptly, not quite sure where it was coming from.
"Is it?" he laughed.
"Yeah," I continued, "the molecules are always changing, always moving. The waves touching our shore today could be in China tomorrow."
"Oh, I see," he said, "interesting." Yet he didn't sound sincerely interested. "Shall we build castles, then?" he repeated.
I came back to my senses. "Oh, yeah... of course," I answered.
After a couple of hours we had constructed a magnificent castle, complete with four towers and a moat. After adding a few finishing touches, we sat back, admiring our work. It was about noon now, and the waves had been coming in closer and closer to where we were.
"Well, that's probably the best castle anyone's ever built," Kai said, leaning back onto his hands.
"I'd say!" I answered, grinning.
We sat in silence, still staring at the castle.
"Hey, Karen..." he said after a moment, and I looked up to meet his gaze.
"Yeah?" I asked.
"Do you... do you remember anything about us before... you know, your accident?" he asked shyly.
I felt my cheeks burn. I had the feeling I was about to find out what I had been wondering all morning.
"Um, well..." I hesitated. "Not exactly, no."
"Oh," he replied. There was more awkward silence between us, during which the crash of the waves could be heard.
All of a sudden a wave struck our castle, causing the wall closest to the ocean to sink down. We both jumped up, trying to keep it from turning into a giant blob of wet sand. Though after a few minutes of trying and failing, we finally gave up. The waves were beginning to roll in even further now, and our whole castle was being ravaged by them.
What happened next was a blur. Somehow Kai and I, amidst our laughing and attempts to save the castle, had ended up so close to one another I was practically sitting on his lap. I felt one of his arms wrap around my waist and I teasingly yelled, "Hey!" and pushed him down on the sand. However, on the way down, he grabbed hold of my arm and pulled me down with him. Somewhat conveniently, it seemed, for I had landed on his chest, my face mere inches away from his.
"You know what Karen?" he asked, and I could feel his breath on my face.
"What?" I was smiling.
"I've loved you since the day I met you," he said, and I was slightly taken aback.
"Wow," I replied, knowing now what was coming. "I hope I can say the same."
And with that, I closed the gap between us. He was a good kisser, and I could tell he had been wanting it for a long time. It felt as if minutes had gone by before I finally broke away.
"Kai?" I whispered.
"Hmm?" he seemed to be in a state of bliss.
"This doesn't feel right..." I said, reluctantly.
He put his hands gently on my face and brought me down to kiss him again. This time he varied the pressure of his lips against mine, and I couldn't help but feel my heart swoon.
"What about now?" he asked.
"Well," I said, not knowing what to say. I was reluctant, but I didn't know why. Didn't I want this? Had it happened before? Finally, I gave in and decided I would worry about it later. My emotions were too foggy to think at that moment. "Never mind," I said, and leaned back down again.
Little did I know of the ferry that had come ashore behind us. I didn't hear anyone approaching until they came within a foot of where we were. At the first hint of someone watching, I quickly turned over. He was staring, a look of horror on his face.
"Well, I'm back," he said.
AN: I know, I know, Karen's got some issues here... three days after she wakes up and doesn't know who she is and she's making out with some guy on the beach. But hey, if you got hit on the head you probably wouldn't be completely rational either. Just sayin'.
