Lost Love

Prologue: Where It All Began

Australia: Thursday 12th January 2012

I was in paradise. A complete, hedonistic paradise. And I was willing to put that down to the beautiful boy who was currently making out with me on the Gold Coast beach at sunset.

‘Ozzy!’ I exclaimed in laughter, as he swept me up off of my feet, as if I was as light as a feather and ran at full speed towards the ocean. ‘Nooo! I don’t want to get my clothes wet!’ 

Just when I thought he was about to throw me into the ocean, he stopped abruptly and placed me down onto the wet sand. Gazing down at my petite frame against his massive one, his bluey green eyes twinkled in amusement beneath his mess of curly brown hair and his lips were curved into a smile, making a prominent dimple appear on his left cheek. With our chests rising and falling heavily, he pushed my messy ombré blonde hair out of my eyes so I could see him clearly. My hair had turned a lot beachier than it ever had done back in England due to the salty fresh air and sea, but I embraced its tousled nature.  

‘I only stopped because you look so beautiful tonight,’ he told me, his voice being the only sound I could hear. ‘So beautiful.’

I ducked my head in embarrassment. His words did funny things to me. Not only did they make me smile like a complete loon; my stomach was doing flips at the same time at the sound of his voice and those words mixing together. It was a perfect harmony and the compliments were all for me.  

Five days.

That’s all I had known him for and yet it felt so, so much longer. We had been completely inseparable for those five days too, because I just couldn't get enough of him. 

‘Immy, I need to ask you something. It’s pretty serious,’ he said, his face echoing his words.

He caught my attention at that, because serious was not something he did often, before raising his hands to cradle the back of my neck, causing me to look up as he whispered, ‘You’re making me feel things I’ve never felt before. I’ve never felt this way for frankly anyone and I never anticipated falling so hard, but it’s not even been a week and I’m not ashamed to admit it but I’d do anything for you right now.’

My lips began to break out into a smile, as the usual goofy and irresponsible Ozzy was opening his heart up to me with such beautiful words that I couldn’t believe they were meant for me.

His expression mirrored mine as he continued. ‘I don’t think I’ll be satisfied being just your friend, Immy. I want us to be a whole lot more.’

I lifted my arms to wrap them around his neck, causing him to hunch down a bit so our foreheads could rest against one another. ‘I’d like to ask you to be my girlfriend, Immy.’

My usual response would be to tease the heck out of him, but I couldn’t help but nod frantically and press my lips immediately to his, giving him my answer through actions, because words seemed utterly superfluous in that moment.

                                              +++

‘So what’s happening between you and that boy, Imo?’ My best friend and travelling buddy, Daisy asked as I came out of our dinky hotel room shower after my evening with Ozzy. It was gone midnight, but she insisted on me sharing what happened on my evening. Being careful not to expose myself, I flopped down opposite her and let a massive grin spread across my face as I changed into a light weight t-shirt on and put on some clean underwear, throwing my wet towel across to the other side of our room. I'd deal with that in the morning.  

I didn’t even know where to begin describing what was happening between me and Ozzy. It all seemed to be happening so fast, so furiously, so unexpectedly, but I was falling, hard.

‘Everything,’ I answered her wistfully, my lips twisting in coyness. ‘We really like each other, Dais.’ She turned so I could see her face and waited for me to elaborate. ‘I think we’re dating.’

Her eyes bulged as I said that. ‘Dating? But you’ve only known him not even a week.’

I exhaled and looked to my side at her. ‘I know, I can’t explain it. It’s just, when we’re together, I feel like there’s nothing missing in my life. He asked me to be his girlfriend tonight and I said yes, well, I kissed him first and then said yes, but I just, I can’t describe to you why, because it sounds so ludicrous, I know, but I need him. He is so much fun to be around and I could talk to him forever. Five days and no one has ever made me feel this way before.’

She sent me a cautionary look and warned, ‘This could all just be a holiday romance with the intensified feelings of the first time you really liking a guy.’  

Sighing, I got my phone out and quickly sent a message to Ozzy, to put both of our curious minds at ease.

‘Call me paranoid, but lemme double check. The boyfriend/girlfriend thing, you meant it, right, Oz?? Xx’ (12.11am)

‘Um, awkwarddddd...x’(12.11am)

‘Kidding, Immy ;) yeah, of course I meant what I said, I want you as my girlfriend.You’re special, Immy. I’ve never spent the night just talking to someone, but with you it was just easy and fun. Though not sure what your parents will say when you’re travelling with your new boyfriend of only a week... :P Xx’ (12.12am)

I showed her the message and smiled broadly, confirming everything that I needed to know. ‘I really, really like him, Daisy. I think he’s it for me,' I admitted, my heart beating faster as I said the words aloud. 

‘And all you had to do was travel to the other side of the world to find him,’ she responded with a wink, before nudging me off of her bed and asking me to turn the light out so we could both finally get some sleep. And the sooner I slept, the sooner I would be back in the arms of Ozzy and that made it all the easier to drift off into dreamland. 

A/N: Lovely readers, I'm back! :D So, what did you think of the prologue and blurb so far?! I really would love your feedback :) Song on the side is so peppy and cute for this chapter too. The next chapter goes back to the present tense where the story properly begins...Please let me know what you think!