Searching the hotel room I come up empty. Dane is nowhere to be found and a sense of panic rolls over me. I make my way back to the bedroom and round the opposite side of the bed where Hannah still lays.
I reach to wake her but a notepad on the nightstand snags my attention. Picking it up, it reads:
Went to run a quick errand and pick up some breakfast from the best patisserie in Paris. Don’t forget to change your flight. I changed mine :) Be back soon. - Big D *wink
My body relaxes as I take in his words and can’t help the small grin that forms when I exhale out a deep breath.
I don’t know what I thought when he wasn’t here. I guess itshouldn’t matter but I feel relieved regardless and I’m not quite sure how to process it.
Grabbing my phone I look up our flight reservations and login. I run through the options and see there’s a flight tomorrow night and the morning after that.
Glancing over at Hannah's sleeping form, she looks so peaceful and so at ease. The way her eyes gleamed with hope when he asked if we could stay longer was more telling than I expected.
Not only has she needed this vacation to get away from the busyness of our life back home but it’s the first time she’s let loose since the accident. Hell, even my rigid ass isn’t constantly looking at the clock or figuring out what’s next on our agenda.
I’ve loved what this trip has brought out in us. Whathehas brought out in us.
I want to choose the latter, giving us two more nights here. Plus the later flight is dramatically cheaper and I’ve created a habit of saving every penny. I hope that works out for Dane because I really don’t want to go back to a hostel after staying in a private room.
Reaching in my bag I dig for my wallet so I can see how much cash I have. I want to make sure I have enough to cover at least one night here.
I remove a few items, continuing to dig but I come up short. Pretty soon my bag is empty and I’m still missing my wallet. I can’t change my flight without my credit card and I need my ID for everything. Closing out of the website and leaving our flights as is, I scan through my bag again and still nothing.
“Fuck.” I run my hands through my hair, my eyes bouncing back and forth as I recall my steps.
I haven’t used it since the hostel. I must have left it in the safe there. “Shit.”
Pulling the cloth belt apart, I slip on my boxers, shorts, anda shirt from the pile on the floor. I slip on my sneakers and run to the room, adding to Dane's note.
Had to run back to the hostel. Forgot something. Love you. - Ethan
I hate to leave her to wake up by herself but I need to go back as soon as possible.
Dropping the pen, I press a quick kiss to her temple, grab the spare hotel room key, and jog back to the hostel. It only takes about twenty minutes to get there at my running pace. I pass by the front window and I see the same front desk gal—I think Dane said her name was Sally—pointing to the computer as she talks to another employee behind the desk.
I feel instantly relieved; hopefully she’ll remember and let me check the safe. She said she wouldn’t rent out the bunks and I really hope it’s still there.
Entering through the front door, there’s a small narrow way that creates a blindspot for anyone coming in. It seems to be common in some of these old buildings in Paris. I never really noticed it before but as I hear Sally talking I remain frozen behind the wall barrier.
“Dane was here this week?” the lady I don’t know asks Sally.
“I swear he should just rent a bed for half the year, he’s here that often anyway. I wish when I was younger I lived as freely as he does.” There’s a brief pause and some tapping.
“Did you enter the total wrong? You only had the three guests for these days but the total revenue shows all the beds were rented…twice,” the other lady asks.
“Oh no dear, that’s correct. The first night Dane checked in with only two other separate travelers. He came down that first night and rented out every single bed in both rooms until that large group was reserved. He even paid for me to cancel theother reservations and not only refund what they paid but give them a severance for another hostel or hotel room.”
“Hmm, interesting. Why would he do that?”
She pauses for a beat. “Dane’s requested some strange things in the past so who knows.”
Holy shit.
That first night, he came down here to talk to her. He rented out every single bed. He made her cancel the other reservations. So what? So he could be alone with us?
My thoughts run rampant reliving that night. It was after the glory hole. He had showered. He must have known then it was me. He saw my scar and knew right away.
My chest feels heavy as my mind runs through each of those moments, trying to recall the conversations.
