Ocean Kisses

Taken

Beef's POV:

I stepped into the bookstore, the faint smell of old paper and wood mixing in the air. The place had a charm, but today, it felt a little out of place—like something had shifted. Books were scattered haphazardly on tables and shelves, some open, some half-fallen over. It wasn't a disaster, but the clutter was noticeable, especially considering how neat Keralis usually kept everything. Maybe it was the storm of thoughts I had swirling in my head that made it seem more chaotic than it was.

I glanced around, wondering if he'd been in a hurry or just distracted. The counter was covered in a few random items—an empty coffee cup, a stack of journals, and some pens lying askew. It was subtle, but there was a certain messiness that wasn’t normal for him. It wasn’t a disaster, but it definitely stood out.

I made my way upstairs to his apartment, heart rate picking up a little bit. I didn’t know why I felt so uneasy—it was just the necklace, right? But something felt off. I pushed open the door, the creaking floorboards greeting me as I stepped inside. The apartment was exactly what you'd expect from someone like Keralis: cozy, a little lived-in, but nothing too crazy. Books and journals were stacked by his bed, a few more open on the nightstand. A couple of clothes were left strewn across the floor, but nothing that screamed anything serious. Still, the place felt strangely empty.

There were no signs of a struggle, no indication that anything was wrong. Just… him not being there. It was like he just vanished. His phone was still on the nightstand, which made my stomach drop. I shot him a text, but the silence that followed only made me more anxious. His phone was here, but where was he?

I rubbed my hand over my face, trying to calm the rising panic in my chest. What the hell was going on? Had he gone to the store? Maybe he'd just taken off for a bit, but even as I thought that, the unease in my gut told me it wasn’t that simple.

I quickly pulled out my phone to text Keralis, but as my eyes caught the plug next to his bed, I froze. His phone was still there, charging. My heart started to race, a tight knot forming in my stomach. He wasn’t out getting coffee, or even running errands like I thought. He was gone.

A sudden wave of unease hit me, and I didn’t waste another second. I shot a quick message to Xisuma, hoping he'd be able to help.

"Get to the store, something’s wrong. Keralis isn’t here, but his phone’s still here, plugged in."

I didn’t know why it felt so urgent, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. We had been planning another dive today, and Keralis was our best diver, the one I trusted to get the job done. Without him? We were screwed.

I glanced around the room again, as if something would magically explain where he went. But there was nothing, just the quiet hum of his apartment, the silence ringing too loudly in my ears. The longer I stayed there, the more it felt like something had slipped through my fingers, something I couldn’t quite grasp.

I paced around the room, my mind racing as I tried to figure out what had happened to Keralis. The silence in the apartment felt suffocating, and the mess around me was only adding to the chaos in my head. Where had he gone? Why didn’t he say anything? My thoughts were interrupted by the jingle of the bell downstairs—the one that signaled someone had entered the bookstore. I froze for a moment, confused.

Rushing downstairs, I nearly tripped over myself. When I saw Xisuma standing by the door, gasping for air, my heart skipped a beat. His face was pale, sweat glistening on his forehead, and his breath came in ragged gasps. It was clear he’d run here, maybe even faster than he should have.

"Did you run here?" I asked, my voice a bit more frantic than I intended.

He nodded, still trying to catch his breath. "I... I tried to get here as fast as I could," he panted, his eyes wide. "I don’t know what’s going on, but I couldn’t just sit there, Beef. Keralis—he... he’s been acting strange, right? I’m worried."

I nodded, feeling my own anxiety spike. "Yeah... and now he’s gone. His phone's still upstairs, and I don’t know where he went."

Xisuma looked more shaken than I had ever seen him. “I thought I saw him earlier this morning, but it was... different. Something didn’t feel right.”

"Different how?" I pressed, my voice tight.

"He was distant, almost like he was... somewhere else, you know? And I’m not sure if it’s just me, but I think that necklace he’s been wearing has something to do with it. Have you noticed anything strange about it?" Xisuma’s gaze shifted towards the back of the shop where Keralis’s belongings were, the unease clear on his face.

The necklace. That’s when it hit me. The necklace Keralis had been so attached to lately. I hadn’t really thought about it, but now, with Xisuma bringing it up... something felt off about it all. My stomach twisted, and I knew we couldn’t sit around waiting any longer.

"We need to find him," I said, determination cutting through the panic.

We searched everywhere in the town, each corner, each alleyway, hoping to find any trace of him, but it was like he’d vanished off the face of the earth. People in the market, the café, and even at the pier said they hadn’t seen him leave. It was as if he had just slipped into thin air.

The only thing anyone could confirm was that he’d been acting... strange earlier this morning. They said he kept looking at the necklace, staring at it like it was pulling him in, lost in some kind of trance. It was unsettling to hear, and as much as I wanted to dismiss it, something about it all didn't sit right with me.

Then, one of the regulars mentioned something that made my heart skip a beat. They had seen someone—a person I didn’t recognize—talking to Keralis earlier. I wasn’t sure, but I thought they said his name was XB. That name... it rang a bell. That guy from the night before, the one with the strange vibe and the weird energy. He had talked to Keralis, and then—just like that—they both disappeared. No one saw them leave, no one knew where they went. It was like they just vanished, together.

The more I thought about it, the more it felt like we were dealing with something bigger than just a missing person. I knew the connection to the necklace was important, but what did it all mean? Why had Keralis been so drawn to it, and why did that guy, XB, have such an influence on him?

Xisuma seemed as lost in thought as I was, but we both knew one thing: we couldn’t stop here. We had to find Keralis. Whatever was going on, it wasn’t something we could ignore. It wasn’t just about the necklace or the strange person he’d been with. It was about Keralis himself.

"We have to figure out what this is about," Xisuma finally said, his voice steady despite the concern in his eyes. "We can’t let him disappear like this. Something’s happening to him, and it’s not just the necklace. That guy, XB... he knows something."

I nodded, already knowing what needed to be done. "We need to find XB. He’s the key to all of this."