Becca was happy. At least before Ash left, she was. In fact, she’d never been happier. She looked up at Christian, the streetlights through the window casting a shadow on his face. She remembered telling him how handsome he was. That hadn’t changed either. She laid her head on his chest, his arms around her. She used to love doing this, lying in the “nook,” as she called it, listening to the steady beat of his heart. “I wish we could’ve done this back then. Talked about everything. Laid it all out there,” she said.

“I do too,” Christian replied. Becca sighed and lay back down, the two of them lying side by side. She wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that. Christian finally reached for his phone and sighed. “I should go.”

The thought of him leaving her alone in this house was unbearable. The silence alone might actually kill her. “Could you stay? Just a bit longer,” she said.

“Okay… but only if you try and sleep.”

She’d spent all this time being angry at Christian, and now it was gone. “Can I ask you something?”

“Always,” Christian said.

“Do you think Ash is alive? Do you think we’re going to find her?”

This wasn’t a fair question. Becca understood that. Cops were trained to never answer questions like this. You were setting yourself and the loved one up for heartbreak if things went south. His grip tightened and he pulled her in even closer.

“Hell yes. I know in my heart that Ash is coming home. You just have to keep the faith. We all do.” She understood he couldn’t make any guarantees, but his words soothed her. At last Becca’s eyes flickered shut.

It was still dark outside when she jolted awake. A storm was brewing, angry clouds hovering in the distance.
She wasn’t sure how she’d wound up back on the beach. There wasn’t anyone in sight for miles, only an endless horizon of water and sand. She blinked again, spotting a solitary figure in the distance, sitting in the sand, just inches from the sea. It was Ash. She tried running, the sand weighing her down, her body heavy and clumsy.

“Ash. Ash, it’s me.” The young girl’s eyes showed no recognition. None at all. “Ash,” Becca called out again, but this time her words were drowned out by the roaring of the ocean. Becca picked up her pace, watching as the tide changed in an instant, waves rushing in. Becca tried to run faster. With each step she sank deeper and deeper into the sand. She was so close. All Ash had to do was turn around, and Becca could reach out and grab her.