Lost & Found

Ch.11 - The Beach [Part 2]

Though the pain did go away, Noiz cursed out loud in his native language as he dove into the sea, hoping the salt of it would get Koujaku's piss off his skin. Koujaku remained laughing from his spot along with Ren. Even Mink couldn't help but to chuckle. Aoba rubbed the back of his head slightly before looking around. Something caught his attention, having him quietly walk away. Clear was the first to notice just a few minutes later.

"Master? Where are you going?" Clear asked. The group all turned to see Aoba walking along the beach, his eyes focusing on something at the distance. They all looked at each other before shrugging, following Aoba. Soon enough whatever Aoba was looking at came to clear view. It was a church that stood on a cliff facing to the ocean. It was large and white, with a notable bell on the top.

"A church?" Mink asked.

"Aoba's church." Koujaku muttered, receiving glanced from the group. He cleared his throat. "Aoba was raised in that church along with the other orphans until his parents adopted him."

"I remember." Ren muttered under his breath. Aoba stared at the church, feeling the warmth of the sun increase as it started to set, its rays directly hitting his skin. He slowly brought his hands to his ears, clasping them.

"...It was hard to hear back then." Aoba said, bits of memories flashing before his eyes.

"So this is where Aoba was brought after the whole incident? Seems peaceful." Noiz commented. Suddenly the bell of the church began to ring. The sound echoed across the horizon, reaching to the ears of the group. The bell brought even more memories to Aoba, tears staring to form at the edge of his eyes. He slowly knelt down, his hands still over his ears, warm tears falling down his cheek.

"...mom, dad..." He muttered. The group got closer to hear him. "Mom and dad...I haven't seen them since they left the island...I wonder if they're ok...I want to see them." Aoba spoke. He lifted his head up, smiling at the group. "I want them to come back. I want to introduce you to them...I want them to see how happy I am with you guys." That sentence penetrated every heart of the group. Happy. He was happy with them. It was an accomplishment. They were doing it right.

"WHA Aoba!" Clear squealed, hugging Aoba tightly as tears fell from his eyes. "You're smiling, you're happy! We're so glad! That's all we want!" Clear said emotionally.

"Huh? You guys...?" Aoba muttered. The rest of the boys looked away with a blush creeping on their cheeks. Aoba smiled. "...thank you."

The group enjoyed their beloved day on the beach, eventually deciding to head home once the sun started to set.

"I'm going to warm up your bath, Aoba-san!" Clear said happily as he hurried up the stairs.

"Thanks Clear." Aoba said as he looked over at the group. "I really liked it today...can we do it again?" Aoba asked.

"Of course!" Mink quickly said. He realized how loud he had been, and cleared his throat, embarrassed that he had let himself get excited. "I-I mean...yeah...we totally could." Aoba tilted his head to the side and laughed brightly.

"Thank you, Mink." Aoba said with a smile before heading upstairs. Noiz sat down on the sofa and quickly started to work on his coil as Ren tried to decide on what to cook for the night. Aoba walked up to his room, taking off his swimsuit and getting some shorts on. He hung his swimsuit on the balcony to let it dry, when he noticed a hooded man staring up at him from the alley. "Um," Aoba muttered. "Hello?" Aoba asked. But the man quickly turned away and went on his way. Aoba shrugged his shoulders slightly, closing the door. He walked over down the hall when Clear stepped out of the bathroom.

"It's all warmed up, Aoba!" Clear said.

"Thank you, Clear." Aoba said, looking down and then back up. "I'm going to make it up to you guys...I'm going to repay your kindness. I promise." Aoba said with determination in his voice.

"Aoba..." Clear muttered. He smiled. Aoba was slowly but surely, coming back to his usual self. It was wonderful. "I'm happy that you're happy, Aoba." Clear said. Just then there was a loud knock on the door.

"Hm? Who could it be?" Aoba asked.

"Koujaku will get it. Go take the bath." Clear insisted, Aoba walking inside.

"Coming." Koujaku called as he dried his hair with a towel. He opened the door, and Mizuki fell right in with an 'oof!'. "Oi, Mizuki?"

"K-koujaku, guys, you're here! Are you ok?! Is Aoba ok?!" Mizuki asked frantically. He was sweating and panting.

"Hey calm down! Everything's fine, we just came back from the beach!" Koujaku assured. Mizuki breathed in relief.

"What's going on?" Mink asked, Noiz standing up to greet Mizuki as well. Mizuki looked at them worriedly.

"You haven't seen it, then?" Mizuki asked.

"Seen what?" Koujaku asked. Mizuki pulled on Koujaku's arm.

"Come with me." Mizuki insisted. Koujaku looked back at Mink and Noiz, who looked back at Mizuki with concern.

"Ren, we're going out for a bit." Noiz said.

"Alright. Be careful." Ren said as he looked down at the cookbook, looking for the right recipe. Mizuki then dragged Mink, Koujaku and Noiz all the way down to the Junkshop, which was the closest location.

"Just tell us, Mizuki." Mink hissed.  Mizuki shook his head and then pointed at the shop. The group glanced up and their eyes slowly widened in realization. The entire front of the shop had been vandalized. Black, white and pink spray paint had been painted all over, into an eerie and familiar design they all dreaded.  

"M...Morphine..." Koujaku stammered in disbelief. The three of them then suddenly turned to Mizuki, now taking a closer look at him. He had a bruise on his bottom lip, and on his cheek, his clothes were out of place and his hair a mess, dirt on him as if he had been pulled and dragged around.

"...they're back."