The Lone Wolf and the Stray Dog [Sean & Cassidy]

2 ☆ミ Reunion

Where the hell am I going? Cassidy pondered as she walked. She kept glancing at the map in her hand, trying to orient herself in the small town.

She was looking for a good public place, but the streets seemed like a maze. Every house looked the same, especially those with pastel facades and flower boxes in the windows. The sun was blazing, and Cassidy began to feel beads of sweat trickling down her forehead.

She stopped to examine the map more closely. Suddenly, she heard shuffling footsteps. Closer than usual, so she turned around and saw an older man in a straw hat walking toward her. He looked like a fisherman, given the hat and striped shirt. And he didn’t seem like a bad guy.

Her nervousness immediately faded as soon as he spoke. "Need some help, miss?" he asked kindly.

She hesitated, then smiled and rubbed her stiff neck. Time for a bit of Spanish. "Yes, I'm looking for a place, but it seems like I'm just going in circles," Cassidy admitted, trying her best to speak Spanish. "Some kind of... central spot, where most people are. If such a thing exists here," she quickly added.

The man glanced at the map and smiled. "Oh, that's easy. Go straight down this street, then turn right and you'll see an old church. From there, it's just a short walk. I'd accompany you, but I have something to take care of," he explained in Spanish.

She looked up at him and her smile widened a bit - partly due to his directions and partly because she was proud she understood him somewhat. "Thank you very much," Cassidy replied with relief and set off in the indicated direction. She turned back to the fisherman and waved at him. She hoped this time she would find what she had been looking for all along.

Following the instructions, she felt her hope gradually return. After a few minutes, she indeed spotted the old church, its towers rising above the surrounding houses. It was clear this was a significant landmark. She should have figured that out earlier!

With a sense of relief, she headed towards the building. Fortunately, it wasn’t uphill; otherwise, she would have given up right here and now.

Soon she arrived at a sort of "square," though it was hard to say if it could really be called that, but it was typically what the town centers were referred to as. She hoped it was the same here.

As she looked around, she realized the town center was as lifeless as the rest of it. She saw a few stalls, a small but very cozy café in the corner, and of course, a few essential shops. At the fountain in the middle, she saw a few children playing, but otherwise, not much was happening.

She found a free bench shaded by a tree. She sat down, pulled a bottle of water from her backpack, and took a sip. She was glad she had met the fisherman. Who knows where she would have ended up otherwise...

The purple-haired girl pulled out her phone to check the time, but instead, a red light blinked at her. Great, it's dead. And I don’t even have a charger, she realized, rolling her eyes and angrily tossing it back into her bag.

She gazed around for a while longer before deciding she could explore a bit more. Taking a deep breath, she gathered her strength, stood up, and slung her backpack over her shoulders.

Despite the few stalls, they offered a quite varied range of foods, from pastries to fish and seafood. She bought freshly baked empanadas, which reminded her a little of home - her mom loved exotic cuisine. She forced herself to shake her head and not think about that woman. Whenever she thought of her, she had to think of her dad too, and she definitely didn’t want that.

"¿Puedo ayudarte en algo, querida? (Can I help you with something, dear?)"

Cassidy quickly looked up and focused on a middle-aged woman standing behind a stall with handmade jewelry. She immediately put on a smile. "Solo estoy mirando."