The gentle sunlight fell on his face, warm and cozy, dispelling the chill that had seeped into his bones.
Hert stood dazed on the beach, barely moving his stiff neck, his gaze gradually lowering as he saw the girl hugging his waist.
Peals of laughter rang out, and the girl looked up, revealing an innocent and pure face, with dimples on her fair cheeks.
Thinking Hert hadn't heard her, the girl spoke again.
"Welcome back, Dad."
A voice buried deep in his memory resurfaced, and Hert's body shook involuntarily as if electrocuted.
A sharp pain emerged in his mind, but soon it blurred and eventually faded away. Hert felt he had forgotten something.
Hert looked at his casual shirt and shorts, noticing tiny grains of sand between the nails of his fingers. His hand stiffly rested on the girl's head. The moment they touched, Hert was incredibly tense, as if fearing the girl would vanish into smoke before his eyes.
