Chapter 14 #2
The car ride lasts four hours, and while they do sneak in a few questions about me, mostly about my internship and my friendship with Ronnie, I’m able to keep the conversation mostly focused on them and the competition.
It’s been a long day, though, and eventually I get tired and rest my head on Lukas’s shoulder. It’s so cozy and warm sandwiched between him and Felix, and once the sun sets and it gets dark, I nod off, lulled to sleep by the car’s vibrations.
I’m awakened by a kiss to the side of my head. “We’re here,” says Lukas, his voice soft.
I blink awake. We’re idling in front of a massive hotel. Doormen are already pulling bags from our trunk as another guy in a red jacket slides into the driver’s seat, ready to pull away as soon as we step toward the front doors.
“Come on, sleepyhead,” says Felix, helping me out of the car.
Yawning, I try to clear my head and take in as much as I can of my surroundings.
“Welcome to New York City,” says the doorman, opening the front door for us to walk through. He doesn’t give us a second glance, even with my arms hooked through both Felix’s and Lukas’s.
The entrance is opulent, filled with people even at this late hour, lots of flowers, and a few cozy little sitting areas tucked into corners. We make our way to the front desk, Elliot and Sebastian behind us with my backpack and our three suitcases.
The woman at the desk takes Lukas’s information, then glances at us. “There are two queen beds. Do we need a trundle bed added to the room?”
“No,” says Lukas, frowning.
She nods and slides a packet of key cards across the desk.
“Enjoy your stay,” she says, but we’re already turning away.
“The elevator is over here,” says Lukas, pointing.
The guys nod at a few people huddled in groups, many of them solving cubes, but we don’t stop to say hello.
We have the elevator to ourselves. Everyone else is probably getting ready to go out on the town, especially since it’s New York. But after the long car ride and a full day of classes, I’m exhausted. I really hope the guys aren’t going to want to drop our bags in the room and also go out.
Sebastian’s hand hovers over the buttons. “Tenth floor,” says Lukas.
I wonder if they feel the subtle tension filling the elevator with each floor we go up, or if it’s just me. Felix went over the schedule for the competition in the car, but beyond that I have no idea what the guys have planned for this weekend.
Passenger princess all the way on this trip.
And whatever is going to happen between us is probably already planned out on their shared calendar.
I received the email to join it, but I haven’t been able to bring myself to actually open it and look over the details yet.
It feels like it toes the line of dating too much to allow myself to be a part of their group calendar.
As soon as the door to the room swings open, there’s no ignoring the way the two queen beds dominate the room, with only a single desk and chair tucked into the far corner and a small table under the TV. I’m obviously going to be sharing a bed with two of them. The question is, which two?
I move to enter the room, but Elliot lays a hand on my arm, stopping me.
“Actually, would you mind?” He leans down to unzip the top part of a suitcase.
“Elliot has a routine,” Lukas explains when he sees my confused look.
“You have no idea how many germs can be in these rooms.” Elliot begins pulling cleaning supplies out of the suitcase.
Had I misjudged when I thought they were sharing two suitcases?
Maybe they’re only sharing one, and the second is for Elliot’s disinfecting wipes and sprays.
I can’t decide if the idea is funny or concerning.
“I’m sure they cleaned the room before we checked in,” I tell him.
“Sure, they cleaned it,” agrees Elliot easily as he begins wiping things down, “but did they did they sanitize it?”
“I, uh, I don’t know.” I’ve never given much consideration to the steps housekeeping takes when turning over rooms for guests.
“Exactly,” he says, moving into the bathroom. “And why should we live with uncertainty when we can ensure the outcome we want?”
“If we want it sanitized, we should sanitize it,” clarifies Sebastian. “That way we know it’s been done.”
“Makes sense to me.” I’ve been taking care of things for almost as long as I can remember because if I want it done correctly, I should just do it myself. I’ve seen what happens when my mom depends on my dad or I depend on either of them, and no thanks.
“Okay, that’s the best I can do. I can’t clean the carpet, so we’ll just have to use our room slippers,” says Elliot, setting his cleaning supplies down on the credenza beneath the TV.
“Uh, I didn’t bring any room slippers.” How was I supposed to know to pack something like that? I don’t even know what room slippers are. Are they like shower sandals, but for wearing in the room?
“Don’t worry, we packed some for you,” says Felix, swinging one of the suitcases up onto the unfolded suitcase rack. He unzips it fully and drops a pair of fuzzy pink slippers onto the floor. “They’re washable.”
“Thank you.” It’s both very sweet and very weird that they bought me slippers, not so that I would be cozy and comfortable, but to keep my feet clean.
I grab my own suitcase and am about to lay it on the foot of the bed when Elliot practically dive-bombs me, his eyes wide and slightly panicked.
“You never want to set your suitcase on the bed,” he tells me. “You’ll transfer all of the germs from the wheels onto the bed.”
“Okaaaay.” I draw out the word and look around the room for a place to put the suitcase. “I can just keep it on the floor.”
“That could be a tripping hazard,” Sebastian points out. “And you’d have to bend over all the time to get things out of it. Horribly inconvenient.”
“Why don’t you put yours on the credenza,” suggests Elliot, moving his cleaning supplies over so there’s enough space.
“I can call down to the front desk and have them bring up another suitcase rack,” suggests Lukas, moving toward the phone.
“No, no, this is fine. There’s plenty of space here, see?” I tell him, swinging my bag up to sit next to Elliot’s supplies. I didn’t think where my suitcase went would be such a big deal.
On the upside, all the tension I’d felt in the elevator has disappeared in the wake of all the room prep.
“I’ll make a note of it at least for next time,” says Sebastian, pulling out his phone. I wonder if they have a special app for these types of notes, or if he’s putting it into their calendar app somehow, or what.
“Thanks?” I’m not sure that we will ever go on another trip together, so his making a note is probably pointless, but if it makes him happy then I guess there’s no harm.
“It’s not a problem,” he assures me, clearly not understanding my tone. Just as well. I don’t feel like having to have a discussion tonight about whether or not this will be a repeat occurrence.
“So … what’s the plan for the evening?” I ask as the guys pull out and put on their own room slippers. This is their weekend and their competition, so if they want to go out, I’ll rally for them.
But I really hope they don’t want to go out. I’m exhausted. That was a nice little nap in the car, but I need some real sleep.
“We usually get an early night’s sleep before a competition. Registration starts early,” says Lukas.
“Did you, uh, did you want to go out instead?” asks Felix, ruffling up the back of his hair in discomfort.
“No, no, an early night sounds great.” I shake my head emphatically, sagging with relief. I don’t know that I could have pulled myself together enough to go out without a coffee.
“We’re done in the bathroom, if you’d like to use it,” says Elliot, after the guys have rotated through, changing into pajamas and brushing their teeth.
If we’re staying in, I’m going to get comfy too. I grab my sleep clothes and toiletry bag and slip into the bathroom. It’s going to be interesting to be in such close quarters for this weekend. At least at their house we have a little more privacy.
Before I go back into the room, I eye my reflection.
It’s obvious I’ll be sleeping in one of the beds with two of the guys, which is going to be pretty tight, even in a queen bed.
My hair tends to get a little wild when I sleep, and I’d hate for one of them to wake up with a faceful of it.
I dig into my toiletry bag for a hair tie and braid my hair back off my face.
At least this will help keep it from attacking my bedmates while we sleep.