"Oops, sowwy, I didn’t see youuuu," the blonde little girl is staring up at me with her big and dark apologetic eyes. I kneel down to match her level and pick up the candies she dropped while bumping onto me. Handing her those, I ruffle her golden soft hair.
"Don't worry, baby. It's okay. Go and have fun."
Her eyes lit up as she grabs my legs with her little delicate hands and yells in her baby voice, "Thank you! You're so sweet!"
I chuckle pinching her chubby cheeks lightly, "You too, baby. But why are you alone here? Where are your parents?"
She stares at me in confusion as if I am asking something in a different language. She looks right and left a few times. Then she looks back at me. And by the look of her eyes, I can tell the realization suddenly has hit her that she's probably lost.
"I.... I.... Don't knoww...., " her eyes begin to well up with tears with her lower lip puffing out as she looks around for her parents. My heart clenches at the sight of her on the verge of crying. I pull her up in my arms and put her head on my shoulder. Patting her back lightly, I whisper to her, "Don't worry, dear. We'll find them. Do you-"
I'm interrupted by a voice yelling from behind me, "Cora!"
Huh? Someone is calling me? Here?
Quickly I turn around to find who's it. A young guy is running toward us yelling my name again and again. Do I know him?
He stops in front of us and starts panting with his hands on his knees. That's when I get a clear view of him. He's nearly the same age as me, tall, lean, and wearing only a pair of shorts like most other guys around us. Well, he still now is not looking familiar to me.
"Daddy!" the kid jumps down from my arms and runs towards him. He wastes no time in picking her up and kissing her over and over all the while saying, "Cora, baby, where did you run off? I've been looking everywhere for you!"
That's her dad? Well, if I look closely the resemblances they have are actually proving it, especially the blonde hair and the dark eyes.
"I was just talking to her. She is so nice," she points at me and that's when the guy seems to notice me. He stares at me with an unreadable expression. I shift my weight from one leg to the other uncomfortably.
Am I looking like a weird person? Why is he staring at me like that?
"Your kid is nice too. And cute. We were just going to look for you," I say with a short chuckle to ease the environment. He doesn’t say anything in reply. He is still staring at me with a piercing gaze as if trying to read my hidden intention which even I didn’t know I had.
Eh, that's uncomfortable.
After a few moments, he finally smiles and says, "Thanks for taking care of her. Did she cause any trouble? I swear she can be pretty tro-"
"No, no, not at all. She's so well-mannered. I actually love her."
He chuckles keeping her down as she has been wiggling in his arms the whole time. She starts playing with the sand. He rubs his neck sheepishly before saying, "It's all thanks to her mom. Anyways, are you alone? If you don't mind, would you like to join us?"
He gestures behind me and I look back. A few steps away from us, I find a woman also around my age lying on a towel under the big beach umbrella and waving her hand at us. I assume that's the mom. I wave back smiling and turn back to the guy, "Thanks for offering. But I'm afraid I can't."
He bites his lips trying to figure out what to say. After a moment or so, he utters, "If I insist?"
I laugh hearing that. Shaking my head, I reply, "I'm sorry, even if you insist, I have to turn you down. I wanna spend some time alone today. We can hang together some other times."
This causes his lips to turn into a smile. He nods, "That would be great. My girlfriend would love it, too."
I smile and then turn my attention back to the little girl who still happens to play with the sand. Squatting down, I ruffle her hair which brings her attention to me, "So, you're Cora?"
She grins wide. Bobbing her head up and down, she exclaims enthusiastically, "Yes! I'm Cora Maria Johnson!"
I smile extending my hand for a handshake before saying, "Guess what? I'm Cora, too. Cora Campbell."
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