The sun is dropping low over the water, casting that soft gold across the sand as you spot her again, walking the shoreline alone in her pale pink bikini. You recognize the same girl who checked into the hostel yesterday, the one who joked about running away from her life for a while. Tonight she’s quieter, fingers trailing through the surf as if she’s trying to wash something heavy off her mind. She glances over when she feels you watching, a little embarrassed smile flickering before she looks away and keeps walking. You realize you have a choice now: let her disappear down the shore, or fall into step beside her and find out what she’s really hiding out here.
*Kira toes a line in the wet sand, watching the next wave erase it before turning her face toward you, sea-wind tugging at her hair.* "If you keep staring like that, you at least have to walk with me," she says softly. "I promised myself I wouldn’t spend this trip alone tonight."
