It was a hot day so Leah Alexander, not having a garden of her own, had put on her bikini under her clothes and gone to the local park to lie in the sun. As she sat on the grass rubbing sunblock onto her skin, she saw the young man on the bench opposite her. He wasn't looking directly at her ... in fact he didn't appear to be looking at anything in particular ... so she lay face down on the towel she'd bought with her for that purpose. When she turned over onto her back he was still there, but she paid it no heed. However, he was still there an hour later when she packed up to go home.

It was a mixture of concern and curiosity that made her go over to him before she went home again. He was wearing a jacket and he was clearly hot and his face was getting red from the sun.

"Excuse me," she said, "You're going to get awfully burnt if you sit here much longer! Do you want some cream for your face?" He looked at her with a kind of blank, puzzled expression.

" ... I don't know where I am ... I don't know what I'm doing here."

"Oh, dear! Are you ill? Can I help you home!" He had that same, sad look.

" ... I don't know where that is." She quickly examined her options: walk away; take him to a police station or a hospital; or...

" ... Okay! You'd better come home with me ... it's not far ... we'll see if you have anything on you to help you remember!" He stood up.

"Thank you!"

They didn't talk much as they walked, but she did say: "My name's Leah, by the way!" Back at her first floor flat, she helped him off with his jacket, then got some moisturiser to put on his face.

"I'll get us both a nice, cold drink: you look through your pockets for anything that might have a name on it!"

When she returned there was a small pile of his belongings on the table: a couple of one-pound coins and some smaller denominations and a bus ticket; but no wallet or credit cards, or other things that might tell them who he was. Leah picked up the bus ticket.

"Well, this is something! Unless you picked this up in the street, we know approximately where you got on the bus and what time. And looking at your clothes and shoes, they are clean and well looked after, so I'm guessing that you had a home; rather than living rough, or something! If you'd like to wait here, I'll just change my clothes, then I'll get us something to eat! And I suppose we'd better think about getting you some more clothes ... you can't wear the same things all the time in this hot weather! I'll put the TV on, too ... something you see might jog your memory."

Leah left him sitting on the sofa with his drink and the TV remote control. In her bedroom she took off her skirt, top and bikini, replacing the last of these with the bra that she taken off earlier and clean knickers. For the first time she considered the wisdom of her actions: should she have brought a total stranger into her home so readily; he seemed okay, but if he was a schizophrenic, or something, his mood could change unexpectedly! But she couldn't just turn him out now: if he had genuinely lost his memory ... as she believed he had ... he was vulnerable. And there was something: and not just the fact that he was quite good looking; that made her want to help him! Besides, she had just started her two week summer vacation and she had no other plans. If they hadn't found out anything by the time that she had to go back to work, she'd have to reconsider her options!

"Anything?" she asked, rather optimistically. He shook his head. "Oh, well!" she exclaimed, "It was worth a try! Look, I've got to call you something! Do you have any preferences?" He was watching a daytime rerun of a natural history programme.

"What's that man's name?"

"That's David Attenborough ... shall we call you, David, then!" He nodded again. "Okay!"

"Right! That's that settled! We'll have a sandwich, then pop out and get you a few bits and pieces!"

Having eaten, Leah collected her bag and car keys. David was dressed as he had been: except that Leah had suggested that he might be more comfortable without his tie and if he rolled his shirt-sleeves up. There was something else, though:

" ... Er, before we go, David, a bit of a personal question: what sort of underpants are you wearing?" He undid his belt and his trousers and pushed them down over his hips a little way. "Okay! We'll get the same type!" She then took a flexible tape measure and got his waist and chest measurements. "Right! Let's go! I don't think you need a jacket in this weather ... and we'll go in my car!

"Do you think you know how to drive, David?" she asked him on the way to the store.

"I'm not sure: but it does seems familiar somehow!"

The shop that Leah was taking him to was part of a shopping complex. She parked her car and once inside the shop, she took him to the men's section, where she bought him a six-pack of fitted boxer shorts, socks, some plain T-shirts, a pair of jeans, and a pair of cargo shorts, together with a cheap pair of trainers [sneakers]. In a nearby shop she bought a pack of disposable razors, shaving foam and deodorant.

"You should be alright, now. When we get back you can have a nice shower and change your clothes; and I'll put your shirt, underwear and socks in the washing machine: it's been a bit hot and sweaty today!"

"You've been very kind!" David said, " ... I don't want to be a bother!"

"That's okay! I'm on holiday for a couple of weeks: and if you don't mind, perhaps we can go out for a couple of day trips somewhere while your here; it will be nice to have some company! I should have got you some swimwear I suppose; but we can pop back there another day, if necessary!"

Back at Leah's flat once again, David did as she said and had a nice, refreshing shower; and he had to admit that the shorts and a T-shirt felt much better than what he had been wearing!

"So what job do you do, Leah?" David asked her.

"I'm a driving instructor. I've always wanted a job where you help people, and I like driving, so it's a good combination. It's also flexible ... although the hours can be funny sometimes!"

"In what way?" David asked.

" ... Well, this time of year, the days are longer, so you sometimes work up until nine in the evening: although a lot of learners don't like driving when it's getting dark, and I don't blame them! And older people would rather spend the money on holidays with their families; whereas people in their teens and early twenties are on school and college breaks."

Leah made them both some dinner later in the evening, then they sat and talked. She discovered that although David seemed quite intelligent and articulate; and he was certainly inquisitive and personable; conversation isn't easy with someone who can't remember personal details about themselves. A conversation is more than one person asking the other questions: it is often about likes and dislikes and things in common; the routine exchanging and comparing of information. And although he was always polite, Leah, whose job involved being aware of her client's temperaments, recognised the underlying sense of frustration in his tone of voice and facial expressions.

"I think it might be too soon to see if anyone has reported you missing yet, David; if we assume that you only left home this morning. Somebody might be worried about you; but they might wait to see if you turn up on your own ... it's not like when a child goes missing! We'll give it a few days, then we'll go back to the bus station where you ... or someone ... bought that ticket in your pocket; and we'll go to the nearest police station to there, to see if anyone has asked about you. But now I think we ought to go to bed! I trust you, David, and I only have one bedroom here, so you can share my bed if you want to. There's a spare toothbrush in the bathroom. Come on!"

After they'd been in the bathroom they got undressed. After taking off his shirt and shorts, he said to Leah: "Do you want me to leave my underpants on?"

"Only if you want to! I've had naked men in my bed before; and I've got nothing that I don't want you to see!" And as if to prove her point, she took off her underwear and got onto the bed ... it was too hot and humid to get in it. He did the same.

"Goodnight, David!"

"Yes, goodnight, Leah!"

David was still sleeping when Leah first woke up. There was more than a foot in distance between them, so she turned onto her side to look at him, as he lay on his back; one arm by his side, the other resting on his belly, and his head turned so that it faced away from her.

Mmmm! Pretty yummy, she thought, I definitely would! He had the body of someone who ate well and looked after himself: not over-muscled, but with a flat belly. Apart from his face, his skin was quite pale and as far as she could see, there were no obvious scars from old injuries. And of course she looked at his groin! Not huge; but a nice size, she thought.

Oh My God! What if he's gay! Would he still be gay even with amnesia? And more to the point ... should she try and find out! She always did like guys with fair hair and blue eyes! They weren't that common really: a lot of little boys who had those features as children, got darker hair as they got older. But if they stayed very fair as they became adults, she always had to concentrate harder if they became her clients! So David was fit, fair, and good looking ... how could someone not report him missing!

Then she looked down at herself. Curves in all the right places: nice bum and boobs; even if she said so herself! She went to the gym often, but not excessively, and swimming when she could. She'd never had any trouble getting men if she wanted them ... or getting rid of them when she didn't! And although now twenty-six ... nearly twenty-seven ... she wasn't sure if she ever wanted to get married; and she wasn't particularly maternal, although she loved her sister's kids to bits! She looked at her alarm clock: ... perhaps just another hour!

The next time she woke up, David was standing looking out of the bedroom window: this time she was able to study his broad back, firm buttocks, and strong thighs. Nice!

"Have you been awake long, David?"

"No, not very! I didn't disturb you, did I!"

"No, I woke up earlier, but I went back to sleep! Have you been in the shower yet?"

"No ... I've just been standing here and looking out the window ... it's a very odd feeling knowing that you live out there somewhere, but not knowing where!"

" ... Well I'm going to have a quick shower, then I'll put the kettle on ... I thought we might have a run down to the coast today! It's glorious weather, but it's not the weekend, so the traffic might not be too bad! How do you fancy that!" He smiled.

"Okay! Sounds nice!" Leah returned his smile.

" ... Well there's no need to sound so enthusiastic!" she said, playfully mocking him.

"Sorry!" David exclaimed, "Can I get you some breakfast, I ... I get this feeling that I know how! Then when we've eaten I'll have a shower!"

"Of course! Anything like that might trigger your memory! There's lots of stuff in the fridge and cupboards ... use anything you find! I'll be twenty minutes or so!"

"Wow! This is terrific! And you made it from stuff I had lying around ... I'm really impressed!"

"Thank you! I'm not sure what it's called, but it's got mushrooms, tomatoes, garlic, eggs, spinach, and olive oil in it."

"Well, it's fantastic!" Leah said, "You're either a very enthusiastic amateur; or you do this for a living!"

"It did seem very natural! I just looked at what you had available, and I just seemed to know what to do!" Leah smiled at him.

"Well, obviously I hope you get your memory back quickly ... but if you don't, I might just keep you if you cook like that all the time! Are you going to have a shower, then we can go out!" She had said it as a joke, but now that she came to think about it, it wasn't such a bad idea!

"So where are we going?" David asked when they were in the car.

"A little place just north of Skegness. It's not quite as commercial as there; but on a day like today, it might still be quite busy! The good thing, though, is that it's only just over an hour away and I know it quite well. Does Skegness sound familiar?"

"No, not really ... sorry!"

"There's no need to be sorry, David! I imagine that this must be very difficult for you! Let's just relax and catch some rays today! But we've got to make sure you're well protected from the sun: I remember what it did to your face!"

The car park that she usually used when she was there had spaces. Leah hadn't bothered bringing food, as there were plenty of places to buy it. The first thing that she did was to buy David swimwear. She quite fancied seeing him in a little pair of Speedos ... he certainly had the body to wear them ... but he preferred something that offered a bit more coverage. He tried them on in the shop and left them on under his shorts. Leah, too, wore her briefest bikini under her clothes. On the long, wide, sandy beach they put down their towels.

"Do you fancy the water, David: if you're not sure about swimming, just walk in to a comfortable depth! The water came up to mid-torso when he stopped.

"I'm not sure whether I can't swim or I just don't want to, but I think this is my limit for now," he said, "I'll stay here, or maybe go back a bit while you swim!"

"Okay! Or you can go back onto the beach! But we need to baste you like a turkey with the sun block; so if you go back, slap a load on your front, and I'll do your back when I get there!"

He was happy to stand partly submerged as Leah swam away from him. The waves and the sand under his feet made staying still precarious; but although salty, the water was cool.

"Shall we go back now!" she asked him, after ten or fifteen minutes of swimming. Although their costumes were still wet, by the time they reached their place on the beach, their skin was dry. "I think as you burn so easily, you ought to cover up after a little while ... I'm okay, I'm already quite tanned!"