The Starling Saviour

Chapter 3

'Enjoy your stay,' the hotel lobby receptionist passed us our room key with an unnatural smile.

'Thanks,' Isaac smiled back, taking it and heading to the left corridor.

'Wait, we're sharing a room, right?' I asked, concerned, following Isaac.

'Well, there is only one key,' Isaac waved it in front of me. 'And we need to spend as little money as possible. We don't have any jobs yet.'

I hardly knew Elliot, and it had been a long time since I properly knew Isaac. I didn't know how comfortable I would be sharing a room with them, especially since I needed space to change and relax. I knew I preferred to spend time on my own, but going from being completely lonely to living with strangers in a very short amount of time was quite scary.

Plus, living with them could mean they might see my scars and wounds on my body from the island. Then I would need to do a lot of explaining, and I seriously wasn't ready to tell then my life story.

But if we wanted to be able to afford a place of our own, and if I wanted to share an apartment with them in the very near future, I had to deal with it. Technically, I had already spent the night in the same room as dozens of strangers, only we were prisoners on a cold, wet boat and caged in cells.

I had been through much worse circumstances than this.

'What the hell,' I shoved my worries aside, arriving at the door of our room. 'It's not like you're going to do anything bad while I'm there! Just, leave the... romance out of the room.'

'Don't worry, we're not going to cringe you out or anything,' Elliot laughed as Isaac unlocked the door to our room. 'But we're taking the double bed!'

Elliot dumped his luggage beside the bed, instantly claiming it as he led on the bedcovers.

The room itself was sickly sweet and awfully pink, as if an army of pink Furbies had exploded all over the furniture and threw up on the walls with glitter.

'Why did you book the princess room?' I rolled my eyes at Isaac.

'It was the only room left that we could afford,' he said, trying to stifle his laughter as he looked around at his mistake. 'I didn't realise it was this... repulsive.'

'That's one word to describe it with,' I commented, shaking my head in disbelief.

Traipsing towards my bed, I sighed in utter dread.

'Oh god,' I said, metaphorically facepalming myself.

I had the children's bed.

---

'Let me get you a tiara with that,' Isaac joked as I tried the bed out.

'You look so uncomfortable,' Elliot laughed, pointing at how much my feet were sticking out from the end of the bed.

'This isn't funny!' I looked at them both in annoyance. 'Just my luck that I'm considerably taller than a toddler.'

'Oh, this is too good!' Isaac laughed, flipping his phone open and pointing it towards me. 'Smile for the camera!'

'Don't you dare put that online!' I threatened him whilst trying not to laugh myself.