Colin

 

I was so glad Abby was taking a nap because I needed her to simply trust what I was doing. Her panicking and incessant worrying was becoming annoying. I had better judgment than that. I wasn’t going to get us killed or hurt or stranded on the side of the road. Abby needed to calm down, lean back, and let me do what I do best.

The soothing music knocked her out and the car was finally silent. I kept riding the taillights of the truck, but he soon pulled off the highway. There was no one in front of him so I had to keep my eyes on the yellow line at my side to make sure I didn’t go over it. This blizzard was getting worse, but it wasn’t at a point yet where I thought we wouldn’t be able to make it.

But, the more I traveled, the worse it got. I hit downed power lines and trees that were bowing on the side of the highway. Cars were pulling off faster than I could approach them. My headlights were showing me nothing but falling snow, and I could feel the tires underneath the car beginning to slip. The wind was getting worse and I was having a hard time keeping myself steady in the lane I needed to be in.

And little by little, cars were exiting and leaving me on the highway to fend for myself.

I traveled for ten minutes before I came upon the next exit, and there were multiple signs for lodging. I pulled off as Abby continued to sleep, her body curled up on the warmed seat while she snoozed. I’d brought us as far as I could in this weather, especially considering how dark it was, and I knew she would be pleased by the fact that I had to pull off and find us somewhere to stay for the night.

Except none of the hotels on the exits had vacancies.

It was Valentine’s Day weekend and everything was booked. Hotel prices had skyrocketed to take advantage of the romantic vacation business, and with every stop I made I became more and more frustrated. The hotel desks would point me up the road towards shady motels I was trying to avoid, but then I had no choice. None of the hotels had vacancies and the ice was beginning to stick to the roads.

We had to find a place to stay, otherwise we’d be sleeping in the car.

Why this conference had to take place over Valentine’s Day weekend, I’d never understand. Maybe because I was surrounded by people who didn’t celebrate these kinds of holidays, or maybe people actually thought a global conference was a romantic way to spend a weekend like this. Either way, it put me in a bind I didn’t want to be in. I was going to pay an exorbitant amount of money in order to put us in some shitty motel for the night because all the decent hotels were booked because of the storm or because that was the only thing people considered romantic.

Hotel room sex and hot tubs that weren’t theirs.

Rolling my eyes, I pulled off the road and into the first motel. I was fifteen minutes away from the highway and Abby was still sound asleep. I was relieved when they didn’t have a vacancy because they didn’t look like they had any power, so I rode up the street to the next one. That motel looked even worse and cost even more, but even that one didn’t have any vacancies.

But the front desk attendant guided me into one last place I could try.

The motel looked like something out of a horror film. It sat off the road and back in the woods, surrounded by the very trees that were breaking because of the ice that was stacking on the branches. The walkways leading up to the hotel were dark, the sign itself was only half-lit, and the bulb at the front desk was blinking.

“How can I help you?” the attendant asked.

“Please tell me you have two rooms for tonight,” I said.

“I got one room with a jet tub,” he said.

“Only one?” I asked.

“Take it or leave it.”

“How much?” I asked.

“$250 for the night.”

“Two hundred and fifty dollars for one night?”

“Take it or leave it.”

I looked back at Abby and I could see she was starting to stir. Her body was shifting around and her head was lifting up from the seat. I had no idea how she would react to this, but I knew if I made any mention of how pissed off I was, she would gloat about being right. About how I should’ve listened to her and taken the time to pull off when I still had my choice of hotels. Now, I was stuck at another weird motel with only one room, and I couldn’t even complain about it because I had been arrogant.

Great.

“I’ll take it,” I said.

After a few signed pieces of paperwork and the man taking my card, I reluctantly took the keys to the room. Abby was sitting up in her chair now, her eyes darting around in an attempt to find me.

“What’s happening?” she asked, as I got in.

“The storm got worse and cars started pulling off for the night. My guess is we’re a little less than halfway through Iowa, but we can’t go any further. This is the only motel that has a room.”

I pulled the car up to the room as Abby’s eyes widened, but then a small giggle started emanating from her side of the car. And that giggle turned into laughter, and that laughter turned into her holding her stomach and screeching with hilarity in the car.

“Do you really have to do this now?” I asked.

“Oh, you don’t get to say shit,” she said.

“Come on. Let’s get our stuff inside.”

“This is going to be great. A dingy motel you actually have to keep your mouth shut about.”

“Let’s get ourselves inside, please.”

She picked up the bags of food and drink she still had at her feet as I grabbed our bags from the trunk. I handed her the keys so she could open the door, and she had to put her shoulder to it to get the door to open. She went stumbling in and I bit back a grin as she cussed and fell to the floor.

“You all right?” I asked.

“Piece of shit door,” she said, murmuring.

I brought our stuff in as Abby looked around the room and I could tell that even she was mortified. The wallpaper was peeling from the walls. The bed was crooked in its frame. The couch was obviously dusty from years of no use and the mini-fridge was making this loud whirring noise. There was something in the bathroom that was leaking substantially as Abby slowly walked over to the counter.

But then she lifted the folded washcloth and a cockroach came scurrying out.

“No!” she shrieked as she ran back towards me. “No. Not this place. We’re getting in the car and finding another place to stay. Hell, we’ll stay in the car. I’m not bunking with roaches.”

I was trying to hold my tongue on the situation, but she was right. The little toiletries and the mini-fridge did not off-set cockroaches. I went over to the bed and pulled back the covers, ready to check for bedbugs. This place was old and dirty, and part of me would’ve rather weathered the storm.

But the quality of the sheets shocked me, and I bent down to sniff them before I nodded.

“The sheets are actually decent,” I said. “Even though the bed frame is broken.”

“Did you know there’s a jet tub in here, Colin?” Abby asked.

“I did, yes,” I said.

I walked over to the couch and pulled off the dusty cushions. I was relieved when I saw pull-out bed underneath it. I looked around for the sheets to go with it and found them in the dresser the box television was sitting on. They were of a decent condition as well, and smelled just as nice as the ones on the bed.

“The couch is a pull-out,” I said. “So I’ll sleep there and you can take the bed.”

“That’s good, because the actual bed is only a double,” Abby said as she came out of the bathroom.

“What’s that look for?” I asked.

Abby had this weird look on her face. It was a mixture of shock and pleasant surprise. She looked back at the bathroom before she looked back at me, and I furrowed my brow as I tossed the sheets onto the couch.

“Abby?” I asked.

“The bathroom’s actually decent,” she said. “It’s stocked with some nice things. Rose-scented bubble bath. Different types of mini shampoos and conditioners. Soaps. Face washes. Make-up remover pads. And there’s—other stuff.”

“Other stuff?” I asked.

“Yeah. Just—yeah.”

“It is Valentine’s Day weekend. Maybe they were—trying to do things up nice?” I asked.

“Uh huh,” she said mindlessly.

I watched Abby as she continued to look around the room. There were brown spots on the popcorn ceiling from water that was beginning to leak through the old roof. Her eyes settled on the bed as she studied its crooked form, her fingertips landing on the sheets. She ran them along the fresh linens and nodded, more shock rolling over her features before she grinned.

“I guess we’re moving on up, aren’t we?” she asked.

I smirked at her comment before I looked back at the couch.

“If you aren’t comfortable sleeping on a crooked bed, then you can have the couch. I just figured even though the bed is crooked, it would be more comfortable for you,” I said.

“Aren’t you the one with a lot of work to do?” she asked.

“Yes, and the couch has an outlet right by it.”

“Then you can sleep on the couch. You should technically be in the doghouse anyway.”

“Dog houses are for men in relationships,” I said.

An uncomfortable silence settled between us before Abby sighed and nodded her head.

“Well, that’s fine then. I’ll take the bed. But for now, I’m going to take a shower. Or a bath. Or something to help me feel clean,” she said.

“That’s fine. I’m going to get started on working once I can figure out the internet password here. If they have it.”

Shit. I forgot to ask the front desk if they had internet.

“Remember our deal,” Abby said.

I picked up the hotel room phone as Abby backtracked into the bathroom. I called the front desk and was relieved when they said they had internet. I wrote down the password then pulled out the couch bed, making it up with the sheets before I changed clothes. I pulled out a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt before I turned my laptop on, but something caught my attention.

Rather, it was something that should’ve caught my attention, but didn’t.

Even though Abby had been in the bathroom for a few minutes now, there was no water running.

“Abby?” I asked.

But she didn’t give me an answer.

I logged into my laptop and hooked it up to the internet before I walked over to the bathroom. The bathroom was separated from the room this time, so I knocked on the door to try and get her attention.

“Abby. You okay in there?”

But there was still no answer and I couldn’t even hear her walking around.

My hand descended onto the doorknob and I paused for just a moment. If she was hurt, she’d be crying out. If she was upset, she’d be talking to herself. If she was being quiet, maybe she just wanted some privacy. Some time to herself to adjust and digest the situation we had found ourselves in.

But I still felt a little flutter of panic in my stomach, and my curiosity got the best of me.

“I just want to make sure you’re all right,” I said.

Then, I opened the door just to glance in and make sure there was nothing she needed.