Because the Night

lake view

Karen was a good friend, certainly, for sending her friend and her daughter on a free vacation. No one can deny that!

But she wasn't out of her mind with generosity. I mean, she wasn't going to drop an entire trust fund on getting the best room in the hotel. That would be deranged.

That's what she told the receptionist when she called to say her friend was taking her reservation, a few weeks ago

And that's the work Diego undid with the same receptionist, a few weeks later.

"You know, Mr. Moody, I'm not actually allowed to do this," she said, fingers typing at the near light speed that receptionists worldwide achieve on a daily basis, unsung heroes of productivity.

She said Mr. Moody as a joke. Jade had known Diego since he was a kid. She used to sneak him fun from underneath her desk, gum being one of the many things the real Mr. Moody did not like his son to partake in (fun being the other primary thing).

Diego had grown out of needing to steal gum. He could buy that from the commissary, now. But he still needed Jade's help to access the inner workings of the hotel. His charm could only get him so far, and computers were largely immune to it.

"How's this room?" She said, pulling up a free room that faced the mountains. "It has a fireplace. And it's twice the size of the one they're in now."

"That's true," Diego said, staring at the layout of room 412. He tried to picture Annabelle's reaction. Would she raise her eyebrow because she was impressed, or skeptical? "It's good. But it's no lake view,"

Jade sighed, but with endearment, and went back to the software. "Lake view, he says. Let's see what we can get, without your dad firing me for giving away a room for free."

"Forget about my dad," he said. "I'll pay the difference."

Jade turned to him. Ten years her junior, Diego  always reminded her of a wandering younger brother. Sweet, but constantly in his own head. She was shocked to see him putting other people first like this.

"OK, come on. Who's the girl?" She asked.

"This is business," Diego insisted. "Bu-si-ness. Also, it's none of your business."

"So there IS a girl," Jade laughed. "You better be careful. You know you're not supposed to be crushing on the guests. Break their heart, and they'll destroy us with a Yelp review. The power imbalance is too great."

Diego rested his palms on the desk and took a deep inhale. He saw other people approaching—a couple, in awe of the lobby. Luckily they moved slowly through the hotel, like all first time guests savoring the detailed carpets, walls, and randomly placed vases that were nearly five feet tall. But soon, they'd reach the desk, and Jade would have to go back to her real job.

"Please," he said, the most powerful word he could think of.

Diego was not someone who had to ask for things to get them.

Especially at the hotel.

And yet somehow, he found himself begging all day. For fancy desserts, for lake view rooms, for second chances.

He almost wanted to curse Lily for doing this to him—for turning him into someone who needed things for other people. As everyone knows, adding people is the first step to complicating a life.

Diego had been holed out in his his little room, for what seemed like months. Years. Maybe even his whole life in this hotel, a world away from the outside world.

Now he was out of that 150 square foot bubble, walking to the porch beside one of the largest suites in the hotel. He would wait until they got there, just to see their reaction. Just to see if making her happy felt as good as kissing her.

He would curse Lily, if she hadn't already totally and completely bewitched him.