It's thick mattress, crisp white sheets and shiny wood looks like the definition of comfort. To most, the bed would beckon their usage; a normal person would unable to resist lying on this piece of furniture heaven.
But I'm not a 'normal person'.
This sight haunts me, fills me with dread and makes me want to do a 180 and head for the door.
Charlie looks at me for a second and then walks over to the bed - and I can suddenly see why his eyes were filled with confusion. Just below the pillows, lies a bouquet of deep, red roses with a note. He picks them up, examines them, and the reads the note out loud.
"For the happy couple. Marriage is the bond that binds lovers together and your long journey of love and commitment starts here. We hope you have a pleasant stay at the Pines Hotel."
Well, if I wasn't at a loss of words before - I definitely am now. Charlie looks at me for a moment with knitted brows before a look of understanding ripples through his face.
"Oooh..." He says taking off his coat and flinging it on the bed. "This is the Honeymoon suite."
"What -- why've they given it to us?" I ask, walking over to him to admire the flowers - also taking off my extra layers of clothing... including Charlie's scarf.
"I suppose they really are all booked up. - that's why we have a double bed..."
"Uh..." I start. "I'll, um, sleep on the floor."
"Uh, no you won't."
"It's fine, I don't mind." I reassure.
"You're not sleeping on the floor, Dan."
"Why not?"
"Because that's not fair."
"Well it's not fair on you to have to sleep on the floor, either."
He pauses for a moment.
"I didn't say I was gonna sleep on the floor..."
"Well then who is?"
"None of us." He says as if it's the easiest thing to understand.
"Well where am I gonna sleep then... on the balcony?" I reply, with my confusion turning into frustration.
"In the bed."
"And where are you gonna sleep?"
"In the bed."
I finally understand what this boy is getting at and I shudder.
"What... the... both of us?" I say slowly, swallowing after the 'the'.
"Yeah sure, why not?" He says with a smile springing back onto his face, his question more of a statement than anything else. I choose not to argue.
He sits on the end of the bed and lowers his back on it, moaning when his body makes contact with the mattress.
"Shit." He mumbles. "Dan you have to try this." He pats the spot next to him and I too sit on the edge of the bed and lower myself down. I feel the mattress dip when I finally meet it and the crisp sheets immediately caress my nose a fresh scent.
"Oh fuck," I laugh. "That's good."
We lay there for a moment and gaze at the ceiling. It's slightly textured and I study each little bump and depression, feeling my mind getting slightly lost. When Charlie slightly sifts beside me, I notice that our bodies are close, that our arms are touching and I sit up immediately, feeling a little flustered.
YOU ARE READING
The Hawthorne Effect (BoyXBoy)
Teen FictionThere's only one thing that annoys Dan Adams more than a cliché, and it's the fact that in the past few months his life has actually become one. After falling for the notorious Charlie Hawthorne, he starts living out the age-old cliché of the high s...
