Lost & Found.

The next morning when I woke up, staring at the water damage on the previously white ceiling, it completely slipped my mind that there was a boy in the room. A delinquent who had stolen a motorcycle, followed me to my hotel, and narrowly rescued my car from the terror of scratch marks. I had forgotten about everything that had happened the past week or so and started to wonder why my ceiling looked so damaged and why my back hurt like hell.

Then it hit me.

And, boy, did it hit me hard.

“Ow!” I screeched holding my head in pain as the guy standing above me swore loudly, covering his ears and glaring at me.

“What the fuck?” he yelled, causing me to scowl back at him.

“I should be asking you the same thing,” I retorted sharply. “Is it normal for you to wake people up like that?” I asked incredulously, peeking at his face from beneath my arms. “Seriously?”

He just shrugged, turning around before I could decipher the glint in his eyes.

I groaned, sitting up confused as to why any person would do that. “Get up, Little Rabbit.” I heard a door open and then shut again. Sitting up, I glanced around the now empty room, everything was gone. My bags were no where to be seen. Breathing erratically, I flipped off of the bed and fell hard on my stomach. I reached my arms out on the carpeted floor underneath the bed but I couldn’t feel or see anything. My heartbeat suddenly picked up even more and tears were forming at my eyes.

He’d taken all of my stuff and left.

He’d taken the book.

I would kill him.

I started pacing the small room, rubbing into my scalp with my fingertips and pulling at the roots of my hair. “What the fuck do I do now?” I asked myself as stared at a wall, going over the pros and cons that hitting it would bring.

“Rabbit has a dirty mouth?” The accent in his voice made me realize who it was. I spun around to face him.

“On occasion, yes,” then I realized that he called me ‘Rabbit,’ “did you just call me Rabbit?”

“Of course I did, Bunny sounds too...” he wiggled his eyebrows to illustrate his point. I wanted to hit him over the head with the nearest, heaviest thing.

“You-you’re-I-ugh!” I spit it all out at once, not being able to think fast enough to come up with a good, coherent insult or, even, really understand what was going on.

He looked at me with furrowed eyebrows and a look that almost could be called concern. “You can call me Fox, by the way. I figured it would get old after a while if you went on calling me ‘you there’.”

Rabbit and Fox. Cute.

Not differing much from ‘cat and mouse,’ I assume.

I could feel the heat rising in my face. “I’m going to kill you.”

“Oh, let’s not be melodramatic.” he said with a serious face before bursting out in laughter. “You honestly think you could kill me?”

I brushed off his comment and turned to glance around the empty room. “I take it you did this?” I didn’t wait for an answer. “Where’s my shit?”

“I loaded it into your car already. I had to run to get some things anyway.” He said it so nonchalantly, I couldn’t even describe how badly I wanted to hurt him, even if I tried. My hands clenched into fists.

“You stole my car?” I said it quietly and evenly.

“Yeah, and I brought it back too. By the way, you need better hiding spots. Under the bed isn’t the most creative of places.” I could hear the smirk in his voice.

My head dropped and I shook it slowly side to side, trying to understand any of this.

“I need food,” I groaned.

~~~

‘So I turned myself to face me, but I’ve never caught a glimpse of how the others must see the faker. I’m much to fast to take that test...’

It almost registered that I liked the melody, as it floated in one ear and escaped right out the other.

“So, what are you trying to tell me here?” I asked, confused. It was the third time I’d had to say those exact words in the past half hour. It was almost like he spoke in riddles, but I knew the only reason I couldn’t understand him right now was because I hadn’t eaten anything yet.

I hadn’t gotten my coffee yet either.

The waitress passed again with yet another cup of coffee for someone that wasn’t me. I growled, and it surprised both Fox and I.

“What’s your deal?” he half-laughed, but I could tell he was half-scared too, I would never understand why, though.

“Coffee,” I grumbled as the waitress passed again, giving me an odd look.

“Remind me to never wake you up early.” Fox rolled his eyes from the seat across from me.

My head snapped in his direction and I narrowed my eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing,” he laughed, “absolutely nothing.”

The waitress finally came around with a cup of coffee for me and I watched with wary eyes as she set it gently on the table. “Are you two ready to order?” she looked at Fox with a too-big smile.

I narrowed my eyes up at her, taking in her bright blue eyes and shimmering blonde hair. I looked back to the table, trying to ignore the familiar pang in the pit of my stomach. “No.”

Fox sighed before the girl could leave, “on the contrary...”

“No.” I looked up to him as the blonde waitress scurried away.

“What’s up with you? You got your bloody coffee, calm down already.” The annoyance was clear in both his eyes and his voice, but I didn’t care.

“Why are you still here?” I asked, glaring across the small table.

“Because,” he paused. “Hey! Don’t answer my question with a question!”

I took a sip of the coffee, ignoring the way it stung my tongue as it burnt it. “Too late.”

I never looked away from my cup. I pretended to be mesmerized by the light swirls it made when I poured the liquid creamer, something I’d never really fancied, into it. I pretended that the sugar melting in the hot liquid was something amazing that I’d never seen before. Fox huffed from across the table, making me look up at him, only half interested.

“You aren’t as innocent as you pretend to be.”

“Would you please just tell me why you’re still here?” I asked, sighing as I pressed my forefinger and thumb against the bridge of my nose. I could tell it would be a long day, considering it was only nine and I already had a headache the size of China.

Fox cocked his head to the side looking like a scruffy, yet adorable, and confused puppy. “Now,” his eyes flickered from my hands, which were still stirring my coffee pointlessly, then back to my eyes, “why would I do that?”

I glared and tried to decide on what I would eat, both of which were completely pointless. I shook my head before taking a drink of my coffee, ignoring the way it left my tongue tingling. It was too hot, but I was too tired. “Cheer up, Rabbit.” When I looked up at him he was half-smiling at me.

I just gave him a tired frown before taking another drink of my scalding coffee. I wouldn’t be able to taste anything ever again. I watched the waitress come back around to our table. “What can I get ya?” she asked, smiling brightly in Fox’s direction.

How could he look so deranged and mean and still get all of this kind of attention. I glared into my coffee cup. “She’ll have blueberry pancakes with a side of sausage and I’ll take,” he paused to think for a second.

I blanked as he finished ordering, just staring at him, mouth parted in awe. “Close your mouth, gawking isn’t Rabbit-like,” he smirked from across the table.