So what if I never saw them again? It would be no skin off my nose. They were probably a couple of playboys looking for an easy treat to snag. But, if that was the case, why did they walk out of the bedroom? Because you weren’t the treat they were looking for, came the self-doubt that liked to creep up from time to time.
My second alarm went off and I hurried to turn it off. It was time for me to go.
Of course, it was raining. I should have expected as much. My luck was always shitty luck — it never failed. It was the one thing I could always count on.
I struggled with the compact umbrella I kept in my work bag. “Oh, come on. Don’t tell me that you’re broken.” I banged the handle against my forearm and the thing flew open, nearly poking one of my eyes out.
See what I’m talking about?
Not only was it raining but it was windy too, which meant that I got soaked all the same, umbrella or not.
By the time I reached the bus station, I probably looked like a drowned sea otter or something of the sort. Fitting, considering I had nearly drowned less than twenty-four hours ago.
What would have happened to me if those guys hadn’t shown up to save my life? I thought to myself, as I waited for my ride.
Most of my college friends had cars of their own. Some of them had even made enough money to put a down payment on a house. One of them had gotten married on some tropical beach down in the Caribbean. Suffice to say, I didn’t really hang out with them all that much. Seeing them, just reminded me of my own shortcomings and no one likes to look their failure in the face.
Finally, the bus arrived.
It sped into a puddle and nearly soaked me with muddy water. Somehow, I had managed to sidestep the assault. That definitely would have added insult to injury.
The doors creaked open and the bus driver ushered me inside.
“Jane, how are you, dear? How was your weekend?”
I sat right beside Mrs. Shirley. She was a nice woman who had been divorced by her husband after he won some casino jackpot — the asshole. Mrs. Shirley, however, never seemed put off by it. In fact, if I had to guess, she was enjoying her newfound freedom. I had yet to see her without a smile on her face.
“It was… odd, to say the least.”
“Oh?”
“Long story.”
“It’s unfair to tease me like that,” she said.
“Alright, alright,” I conceded. “I went swimming last night and nearly had an accident but these two guys came and saved me.”
The woman smiled knowingly. “Sounds like the beginning of a romantic comedy to me.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s nothing like that. They were complete strangers.”
“Everyone starts off as a stranger, dear. It’s your job to get to know them.”
“But they left without giving me their numbers.”
“Now that’s a crying shame.” She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Before she could say anything else on the matter, we reached the hotel. I thanked her for the ride and limped inside. I tried to make it as unnoticeable as possible but I was getting some funny looks from my fellow co-workers.
“What’s up with you?” asked Terry. She worked the front desk alongside me but most of the time she was MIA. It was very rare to find her actually doing her job, which meant that most of the workload fell on my shoulders.
“I fell.”
“Looks like it was a pretty hard fall.”
“Yeah, it was,” I said and my thoughts immediately brought me back to Landon and Roman. Had I fallen for them? Honestly, I had no idea. All I knew for certain was that they had infected my brain like some sort of parasite. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t forget them or their handsome faces.
“I’ll be back in a minute,” said Terry. A second later, she had disappeared. Typical. Rumor had it that she was sleeping with one of the wait staff in the laundry room during all of his breaks. I wouldn’t put it past her. She was the kind of carefree and scandalous woman, who would do, just that.
At the sound of the front door opening, I looked up and greeted our newest customers. “Hello, welcome to the Crown Loch Resort. Checking in?”