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I was the plain girl in school who no one ever really saw. Guys didn’t pay attention to me, and I didn’t even get to go to my own Prom.
When am I ever gonna get out of here? I thought to myself with exasperation.
I lived in Beckonsville, this small town that felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. I’d been born and raised there and never once left, not even to any of the nearby towns for school trips. The family hotel was near the mountains, and it put me even further from town. A distance I could clear with a quick drive, but I didn’t have a car of my own, and I rarely left to go anywhere, because where was the need? I worked for my dad, he didn’t see much reason in paying me a salary, so the best I got was a small allowance that I was saving up for the day I would, eventually, leave town. I couldn’t afford to go and waste it in town.
The dream to leave home… I was starting to have reservations about whether or not it would come true.
Feeling slightly depressed from my own thoughts, I stepped outside of the hotel to go for a walk. I hadn't reached very far when I heard the screech of tires on asphalt, and looked up to see a car break before hitting a tree. I just stood a distance away, a little shell shocked at what I’d just witnessed, and I didn’t move even as the driver stumbled out of the car. It was pretty easy to tell the man was drunk, because he couldn’t walk straight at all.
So damn lucky Dad wasn’t in town right now. If he saw that… he’d probably turn the guy around and send him elsewhere.
Dad didn’t care much for drunks.
I saw the man stumble and thought that he might need some help, so I stepped forward and called out to him.
“Hey, there. Would you like some help?”
He looked up at me, bewildered for a moment at seeing someone else in front of him. Then his expression shifted, and he grinned, almost sheepishly. He opened his mouth to say something, only to lose his balance, even though he was standing still. I jumped forward and caught him with an arm around his waist, pulling his own around my shoulders.
“Thanks,” he said with a laugh. “Whoa. The world is fucking spinning right now, I feel like I need to be on the ground.”
“You are on the ground,” I pointed out. “Your feet anyway. But, if you knew you were drunk, it was stupid to get inside a car in the first place, you know.”
He just laughed at my reprimand. “So…sorry about that. I just heard there was this great hotel out here, and I needed someplace to stay for the night…”
“You could have left your car in town and asked for a taxi or something! What you did was reckless.”
We weren’t so far from the hotel, so it was a matter of minutes before I had him inside. I took him to the seats around the lobby and sat him down on a sofa. He grumbled a bit as I let him go, but still went willingly.
“Do you have any luggage or anything in your car?” I asked. “I’m pretty sure you left it open, so I was gonna go close it for you and bring you the key here…”
He blinked his eyes open and smiled lazily up at me. “Just…some stuff in the trunk,” he mumbled. “Thanks for helping me out.”
“You already thanked me. Let me just get you some water or you’ll have a hell of a hangover tomorrow morning.”
He grumbled some more as I rushed off to get him that glass of water. I had to shake him a little to get him to open his eyes when I got back, then I pushed the glass and made sure he was drinking before I made my way outside. It had only gotten later, and the streetlights that lined the drive up to the hotel had come on automatically. I looked around, wondering where the day had gone. A stray breeze swept past me, and I hugged myself as I shivered and jogged over to the car.
He hadn't even closed the door when he stumbled out of it, and he was lucky there weren’t that many people this far up the mountain or someone might have been tempted to make off with his car. Hell, I was myself, just a little bit. But it wasn’t like I had the cash to get myself far.
The key was still in the ignition, and after a moment, I decided to just get inside and drive the car closer to the hotel. It would be better than carrying his stuff all the way. And leaving his car where it was, locked or not, would raise a few eyebrows if anyone happened to see it.
I drove the car to the hotel’s parking lot around the side of the building, then I looked through it for anything I thought the man would want. I found a suitcase in the trunk and a backpack in the back seat, and I took both, locking the car. Then I went back inside, breathing a sigh of relief as I closed the door behind me.
He was where I’d left him, empty glass left on the table, head leaning against the back of the couch.
“Sir?” I called tentatively, moving closer to him. “I have your things and your car keys here.”
I had to shake his shoulder before he opened his eyes, and he squinted up at me. “Oh. You’re back.”
I nodded and gestured to the suitcase, slipping the backpack off my shoulders and onto the seat next to him.
“I got your things for you. And here are your car keys.” I held them out, and he took them from me. “I’ll assume you want a room?”
He nodded, and I turned around to head for the counter. His shoes squeaked on the floor as he followed me. I got behind the counter and wrinkled my nose when I realized he’d left his luggage behind. But I ignored that for the moment. At least he’d followed me to the counter.
“Just a single room would be fine.”
“For the night or longer?” I asked.
He frowned and looked down. “Um… I’m not sure. Can I just pay for tonight and I can tell you tomorrow if I’m staying or not?”
“Sure,” I said.
We got the business end of it out of the way quickly. He’d pay in the morning, and I got him a room and a key. I had him wait for me at the counter as I went for his bags. Then I led him up the stairs.
“Were you just passing through?” I asked, engaging in some small talk. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around town. Or were you visiting someone in the area?”
He shook his head, and almost tipped over. My hand automatically reached for him, and I caught him before he could fall. He shot a grin at me as he righted himself and sighed.
“I don’t come from around here, but I guess it kinda reminds me of my hometown. That’s why I decided to stop over. I actually have somewhere I need to be in a few days.”
His expression changed again, and I wondered where it was he had to be, what he had to do. Because I thought he looked nostalgic, and just a bit sad.
We headed to the room and I unlocked it and led him inside. Even though he was acting calm and somewhat sober, I realized he was still a bit drunk. I thought about getting him something to eat, but decided he might not wake up for it, anyway. I left the luggage by the closet and got him to bed. I had him sit down on the edge so I could take off his shoes.
“So you need to take your jacket off?” I asked, concentrating on untying his shoelaces. “And the tie. You don’t want to accidentally choke yourself in your sleep.”
He chuckled, and the sound was unexpectedly low and warm. I looked up once I had his shoes off. He was taking off his jacket, then his tie, and undoing the first couple buttons of his shirt. His fingers fumbled a little, and I might have helped, if I wasn’t so busy staring at him.
The man was a mess.
His hair was slightly overgrown. His face was pale and he had dark bangs under his eyes and a thick beard on his jaw. He smelled of booze like he’d soaked himself in the stuff. His clothes were disheveled, and taking off his jacket and tie hadn't made his rough appearance any better.
But…underneath it all, I thought he was actually hot, now that I’d had a closer look.
You’re not allowed to think that of random drunk guys that nearly crash at your doorstep, I chided myself, getting to my feet and taking a step back. Besides. He’ll probably be gone tomorrow.
“Get some sleep,” I murmured. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”
He just grumbled, shifting so he fell on the bed. He didn’t even bother to get the covers over him,
and I sighed as I reached for him to try and pull them out from under him so I could cover him. He didn’t put up much protest, and I figured he’d fallen asleep. But then he mumbled some more, and what he said made me pause.
“Please, don’t leave… I don’t want to be alone.”
I froze for a second and just as quick as that he started to snore. I fixed his covers, and left him alone, wondering again about him and his life, even though it was none of my business, but it was clear it was a lot worse than mine.
Chapter Five
Scarlett
I was up early to make breakfast. I was the only employee around seeing as Dad wasn't around, I had to do all of the work around the hotel.
Thank fuck there aren’t that many people around at this time.
It might be beautiful around that time of the year, but it was also the cold season, so mostly only people wanting to take a short vacation from society showed up in the mountains around then. We get better business around the summer, and my dad never would have left me alone then.
As much as I loved my dad, having him be away for a while was surprisingly freeing, even though I was technically still working.
Once I had everything ready, I set up the tables in the dining room, so it would be an open buffet and the few guests we had in the hotel could take care to feed themselves. It was simplest, so all I had to do was stand to the side and supervise a little. Breakfast went without a hitch. There was only one problem, the man from last night, didn’t show up.
When most of the guests had eaten and only a few were still left in the dining room, only a little food left, I started to grow a little worried. I could cook something up for him in the kitchen. And it wasn’t like I’d told him about when we would have breakfast served. But shouldn’t he have gotten up already? He’d gone to sleep pretty early without something to eat, and it was mid-morning already…
After some moments of fidgeting around for no reason. I decided I could leave the dining room unattended for just a bit. I went up to his room with the spare, just in case. I stopped in front of the door and knocked.
