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Smiling politely, I take it and wish her a good evening.
When we reach the elevator, the doors slide open immediately.
“I honestly didn’t think they’d move us to the VIP section just because we waited ten minutes in the lobby,” Ioana says with a chuckle. “But I’m definitely not complaining.”
“I’m just happy it got solved because I can’t wait to get to the room,” I admit tiredly. “I want to take a shower and collapse into bed.”
Ioana steps out of the elevator first when the doors open again.
“Hmm… looks like my room’s on the right and yours is on the left,” she notes, checking her card then glancing at mine.
“Those were probably the only ones available,” I say, looking down at my room number.
“If we don’t fall asleep after showering, come to my room and we’ll watch a movie.”
“I’d like that,” I tell her with a small smile. “But I’m not making any promises.”
Considering how badly my feet hurt and how exhausted I feel, I’m almost certain I’ll fall asleep the second I lie down.
Honestly, I want that to happen.
Sleep is the only place where I get a little peace.
I reach my room at the same time she reaches hers, and after waving at each other one last time, I type in the PIN. The door unlocks with a soft click.
The room is dark, obviously, but I remember the receptionist’s explanation and check the wall to my right for the card slot. I find it easily, and the second I slide the card inside, a faint sound echoes through the suite, signaling that the power has turned on.
I press the light switch, then rest my forehead against the door for a moment, just to breathe.
That’s what happens every time I’m left alone.
A crushing heaviness settles inside my chest, so intense that I wish I could cry, scream, do anything that would force it out of me and leave me empty afterward.
Why do you miss someone who hurt you?
Why don’t you only feel resentment, frustration, maybe even hatred?
Why longing?
Our brains should work differently than this. They should replay every painful thing that person did to you, remind you they’re bad for you, then erase the ache completely.
Erase the need for them.
The thought lingers in my mind as I draw a deep breath and straighten, finally turning to the room.
The second I do, my backpack slips from my hand and crashes onto the floor.
A sharp shiver tears through my entire body.
“What are you doing here?”
THIRTY-SEVEN
Zayn
I’ve been waiting in this room for over two hours.
After several conversations with the hotel owner—during which I had to convince him I wasn’t dangerous, explain that I wanted to surprise my girlfriend, and sit through him looking me up online—I finally managed to persuade him to tell her and her friend, once they arrived, that something had happened to their rooms or that they’d accidentally been assigned to other guests.
