His lost

The Girl in the Rain Ethan Cole woke with a sharp breath lodged in his throat. Rain hammered against the bedroom window like impatient fingers, and for a few seconds he stayed frozen beneath the sheets, staring at the dark ceiling above him. His heart pounded so hard it hurt. The dream again. No. Not a dream. It felt too real to be called that. He pressed both hands against his face and exhaled slowly. His skin felt cold and damp even though he was inside his room. The same thing happened every morning after the nightmare. It was as if some part of the rain followed him back into reality. A girl stood at the center of his memory. Blurry. Distant. Almost impossible to see. But he always remembered her eyes. Gray. Not the soft gray of clouds, but the pale silver-gray of a storm before lightning split the sky apart. She stood beneath heavy rain wearing a dark coat, her hair soaked against her cheeks. Every single time, she whispered the same words. “You promised.” Ethan swallowed hard. He never understood what the promise was. Or who she even was. His alarm clock flashed 6:14 AM beside his bed. He groaned and sat up slowly, rubbing sleep from his eyes. The room smelled faintly of dust and old books. Across from him stood shelves crowded with novels, broken headphones, and framed photographs turned face-down. His gaze lingered on the photographs for a moment. Especially the largest one. The frame was cracked at the corner. He quickly looked away. Outside, thunder rolled across the sky. “Perfect,” Ethan muttered. He dragged himself out of bed and crossed the room. The wooden floor creaked beneath his feet as he pulled open the curtains. Gray clouds covered the entire town of Bellmere like a blanket of smoke. Rainy again. Bellmere always looked half-asleep during storms. The streets below were nearly empty except for a few cars moving through puddles. A woman hurried beneath a black umbrella while the neon OPEN sign at the diner across the road flickered weakly. Ethan rested his forehead against the cold glass. And then— For one terrifying second— He saw her reflection behind him. The girl. Standing silently near his bedroom door. Soaked in rainwater. Ethan spun around immediately. Nothing. The room was empty. His breathing became uneven. “Get a grip,” he whispered to himself. He had been seeing things ever since the accident. That was what the doctors said. Trauma. Survivor’s guilt. Memory instability. A dozen complicated words pretending to explain why his mind felt broken. Ethan grabbed a hoodie from the floor and shoved his arms into it before leaving the room. The hallway outside was dimly lit, and the smell of coffee drifted from downstairs. His mother was already awake. She always woke early now. Ever since the accident. The staircase creaked softly as Ethan descended into the kitchen. His mother stood near the stove pouring coffee into a chipped mug. Her dark hair was tied messily behind her head, and tired circles hung beneath her eyes. She looked up weakly. “You’re late.” “It’s six in the morning.” “You missed your alarm twice.” Ethan frowned. “I only remember hearing it once.” His mother said nothing. That bothered him more than if she had argued. Lately, silence had become her favorite language. He opened the fridge and grabbed orange juice before leaning against the counter. “You heading to work today?” he asked. She nodded faintly. “Double shift.” “At the hospital?” “Where else?” Ethan stared at her carefully. She looked thinner these days. Fragile somehow. Like grief had been quietly hollowing her out from the inside. Neither of them mentioned Noah. They almost never did anymore. The absence of his older brother lived inside the house like a ghost no one wanted to acknowledge. Ethan took a sip of juice. Then paused. A strange ringing sound filled his ears. His vision blurred slightly. For a moment, the kitchen disappeared. And another memory crashed into him without warning. Rain. Screaming tires. Glass shattering. Someone crying. A hand slipping from his. Then— Gray eyes. “Don’t let go.” The glass slipped from Ethan’s hand and shattered across the kitchen floor. His mother jumped. “Ethan!” He stumbled backward breathing hard. The memory vanished instantly. “What happened?” she asked quickly. “I—I don’t know.” His hands trembled violently. His mother stared at him with concern before grabbing paper towels from the counter. “You need more sleep.” “I’m fine.” “No, you’re not.” The words came out sharper than expected. Ethan looked away. Neither spoke again while cleaning the broken glass. By the time he left for school, the rain had become heavier. The town of Bellmere looked colorless beneath the storm clouds. Water streamed along sidewalks while wind rattled tree branches overhead. Ethan walked with his hood pulled low. Students crowded the school entrance trying to escape the rain. Loud conversations bounced across the parking lot, but Ethan ignored most of them. He preferred being unnoticed. Unfortunately, that became difficult after surviving an accident that killed someone else. People stared at him differently now. Like he carried tragedy around his neck. As Ethan reached the front steps, someone slammed into his shoulder. “Dude, watch where you’re—oh.” Marcus Reed stood there holding two energy drinks and looking mildly embarrassed. Marcus had been Ethan’s best friend since middle school. Tall, loud, and impossible to ignore, he somehow treated every situation like life was a comedy sketch. “You look terrible,” Marcus said. “Good morning to you too.” “No seriously, man. You look haunted.” Ethan forced a small smile. “Thanks.” Marcus handed him one of the drinks. “Peace offering.” “You realize these taste like battery acid?” “Battery acid with purpose.” They entered the school together. Lockers slammed shut around them while fluorescent lights buzzed overhead. The hallway smelled like wet jackets and cheap perfume. Marcus lowered his voice slightly. “You get the dream again?” Ethan glanced at him. “How did you know?” “Because every time you have it, you walk around looking like you fought demons in your sleep.” Ethan stayed quiet. Marcus was one of the few people who knew about the nightmares. “Same girl?” Marcus asked. “Yeah.” “The rain girl?” Ethan nodded slowly. Marcus scratched the back of his neck. “Maybe she means something.” “She’s just a dream.” “You don’t believe that.” Ethan didn’t answer. Because honestly? He didn’t. Not anymore. As they turned the corner near the library hallway, Ethan suddenly stopped walking. Someone stood at the far end of the corridor. A girl. Dark coat. Wet hair. Gray eyes. His entire body locked up. Students passed directly through her without reacting. As if she wasn’t there. The girl stared straight at Ethan. Then slowly raised one pale hand. Ethan’s heartbeat thundered in his ears. “Marcus…” “What?” “The girl.” Marcus frowned. “What girl?” At that exact moment, the hallway lights flickered violently. And the girl vanished. Just like that. Ethan felt sick. “You okay?” Marcus asked carefully. Ethan nodded too quickly. “Yeah.” But he wasn’t. Not even close. The rest of the morning passed in a blur. Teachers talked. Students laughed. Pens scratched across paper. But Ethan barely heard any of it. His thoughts stayed trapped on the girl. Everywhere he looked, he expected to see her again. By lunchtime, his nerves were stretched thin. He sat alone near the cafeteria windows while rain poured endlessly outside. Marcus had disappeared to flirt with someone from the soccer team, leaving Ethan with uncomfortable silence. He pushed food around his tray absentmindedly. Then noticed something strange. A cassette tape sitting beside his backpack. Ethan froze. It definitely had not been there before. The tape looked old and worn out, its plastic scratched with age. Written across the front in faded black marker were three words. FOR ETHAN ONLY A chill crawled down his spine. Slowly, he picked it up. On the back was a smaller line written messily beneath the label. > If you forgot, listen carefully. Ethan stared at the handwriting. Something about it felt horribly familiar. His pulse quickened. “Where did you get that?” Ethan nearly jumped out of his chair. A girl from his history class stood nearby staring at the cassette nervously. “Get what?” “That tape.” “You know about it?” She hesitated. Then shook her head too fast. “No. Forget it.” Before Ethan could stop her, she walked away into the crowd. He looked back down at the cassette. The ringing in his ears returned. Suddenly— Another flash. Rain hitting a windshield. A girl laughing softly. Music playing somewhere distant. Then a voice. Clear this time. Her voice. > “If you forget me again, I’ll disappear forever.” Ethan’s breath caught. Again. The word echoed through his skull. Again. Not for the first time. Again. His hands tightened around the tape as fear settled deep inside him. Because somehow— Without understanding why— Ethan knew one thing with absolute certainty. He had heard that voice before. And whatever he forgot… Was beginning to come back.