The Lounge (A Welcome to the Ballroom Fanfiction)

Chapter 2: Lizzy Lindy

After a very long plane trip, Hyoudou’s plane finally landed in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Hyoudou didn’t feel like trying to find his way around big cities like Los Angeles and New York, especially if he wanted to take his time, so, now he was in Minneapolis. After some research, he found that Minneapolis was home to some famous dance clubs. As he unbuckled his seat belt and grabbed his bags, the people in front began to exit the plane. When his turn eventually came, he took a breath. Planes always irked him. The idea that a group of people flew 35,000 feet above the ground in a tube with wings never sat well with him.

Hyoudou entered the terminal, walking to find his suitcase at the baggage claim. After finally finding his way out of the airport, he found a taxi and began his trek into the suburbs of Minneapolis. After a twenty-minute ride, Hyoudou finally arrived at the condo he was going to rent while in America. His condo was about a ten-minute drive from downtown Minneapolis, but he wasn’t too concerned about traveling on the first night. Hyoudou paid his driver, grabbing his bags from the taxi before heading into the condo. He knocked on the door, and an older woman opened the door shortly after. “Hello there! You must be…”

“Hyoudou Kiyoharu.”

“Oh yes! A pleasure to meet you!” the woman exclaimed, jutting out a hand to shake.

Hyoudou put down his duffle bag, grasping the woman’s hand and shaking it. “Thank you for hosting me, ma’am.”

“Please, come in, dear! And call me Dede!”

Hyoudou nodded his head, dragging his bags into the building. He was met with a rather large, rich-looking hall, which shouldn’t have surprised him considering the images of the second-level condo he looked at when looking at places to stay. Dede closed the door behind him after checking to make sure all of his bags were inside. 

“Alright,” she began, clapping her hands together. “I’ll give you a little tour around the place.”

She pointed to a small hall with a door at the end. “Down that hall is where I live. If you ever need anything, don’t be afraid to give the door a little knock! You are always invited to drop by just to chat! My friends tell me that I make a mean hot dish, so feel free to stop by for supper! I’m sure my book club would enjoy a little company, you know!”

Hyoudou couldn’t help but grin. Dede’s enthusiasm was contagious, even after a 12-hour flight. “Your condo is upstairs,” she said, turning to face him. “Do you need any help with your bags, dear?”

“No, Miss Dede. I’ll be alright.”

“Are you sure, hon? I saw you at the front door, and all I could think was uff-da! Those bags look heavy!”

Hyoudou grinned once more, pulling his duffle bag off of his shoulder. Of all of the bags he brought, the duffle bag was the lightest. “If you insist, Miss Dede.”

“Thank you, dear,” she said, rushing up the cramped staircase at a remarkable pace for a woman her age.

Dede opened the door, allowing Hyoudou through before entering herself. “This is where you will be staying, Hyoudou.”

Directly in front of him, there was a kitchenette with a small table and a set of nice chairs sitting in the center of the granite countertops. Dede proceeded into the condo, passing through the kitchenette and into the living room, then down a charming wallpapered hall. “Down here is the bedroom, and across the way is the bathroom. Do you want your bags in the bedroom?”

“Yeah, that would be great,” Hyoudou said, following her into the bedroom.

The bedroom was quite large compared to the rest of the condo. A king-sized bed rested against the back wall, and large windows with white curtains lined the wall perpendicular to the bed. On the opposite side of the room, a television hung above a small dresser. Another door, which led to a closet, sat to the right of the dresser. Paintings, flowers, and other assorted art items lined the walls, filling the grey negative space. Dede plopped his duffle bag on top of the mattress, the bag sinking slightly into the blue quilt. “I know you just got here, dear, but would you want to come down for supper?”