An Eye for an Eye **LT**

Chapter 12

Cecilia's POV-

"Hey"

My eyelids fluttered open, meeting Louis' ocean blue irises. Sweetly, he gazed down at me, his hand resting gently on my shoulder. The smell of cigarettes and a strong cologne wafted into my nostrils as a small smile pulled his plump lips up into his tiny dimples.

"Are we here?" I rubbed my eyes, trying hard to fully wake up.

"We are indeed" he offered out his hand, which I took, helping me out of the passenger seat of his car.

Once my feet were grounded, he let my hand go and walked around to the trunk of the car. As he began to get our luggage out, I looked across the parking lot, my arms hugged to my chest since it was a little chilly out. Ahead of the little grassy area that lined the parking lot, as well as the long sandy beach, the ocean was clear-its waves crashing lightly against the sand as if planting gentle kisses onto it. The air was cool as it blue through my hair-almost too cold to think about swimming. The breeze smelled salty with a hint of fishiness against my face, but I loved it. It was an old familiar scent that reminded me of family vacations when I was younger. I hadn't been to the beach in forever and had nearly forgotten the familiar scent.

From above me, the sound of seagulls shrieking filled my ears. It felt like forever since I had heard it, but it was definitely a harmony I missed. 

"Are you ready?"

My attention was whisked away, back to Louis. He stood, the smile still on his face, with his bag over his shoulders and my suitcase and a case of beers in each of his hands.

"Do you want me to carry anything?" I asked, noticing how full his arms were.

"I got it" he gestured for me to follow behind him up toward the hotel.

I hadn't really looked at it yet, since the beach stole my attention pretty quickly. The outside looked like a normal hotel, but I knew it probably cost more than it appeared it would since it was oceanfront. I would definitely be venmoing him half of the room fee. Especially since I knew he was barely paying his bills as is. I guess he really did need a vacation if he was willing to splurge a little bit.

When we got into the lobby, everything was themed blue and white. Different murals made of shells were in frames on the wall, and wooden sea creatures hung on thin wire dropping from the ceiling, spinning subtly in the wind of the air conditioning..

I followed Louis to the front desk where a middle aged woman sat typing away at her computer.

"Hi, how can I help you?" she asked when she saw us.

"I made a reservation" Louis replied.

"Can I have your ID?" she outstretched her arm.

He set down the case of beer, dug his hand into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. Quickly, he opened it and pulled the card out, handing it over to the woman.

She took it with aggression with her left hand, the long finger nails on her right hand typing away as her eyes stayed glued to the plastic card. The whole lobby was an eerie kind of silence, almost like it should be at night. But maybe it was because everyone was out on the beach like they had come here for.

I continued to stand behind Louis patiently, watching the woman finish up putting information into her computer. Finally, she handed his ID back to him.

"You will be in room 213" she swiped a card on a little device and slipped it into a tiny envelope. "There's two keys there for each of you. Keep it away from your cellphones because it might break the key. Elevators and stairs are down that hall"