Author's Note: The brackets represent Russian. [ ]
Vlad climbed out of the taxi cab, looking up at the grand building. It was amazing and he was almost in awe. He turned around to grab his luggage and thanked the taxi driver. His first time traveling outside his country, Russia, Vlad was excited and nervous.
Granted, his English wasn't good, but he was only here on business. A whole month in America though. It was almost a dream come true for him. He felt a tap on his shoulder and he turned around. The taxi driver was frowning at him.
"Hey bud, you didn't pay." The man said.
Vlad blinked, confused. The driver rolled his eyes and made a hand gesture that meant "money." Vlad blushed in embarrassment and quickly paid.
"Sorry." He said, his accent very thick.
The driver grumbled at him, got in his cab and drove away. Vlad sighed, grabbing his luggage. He walked inside the hotel, the lobby busy with people going to and fro. He walked up to the front desk, ringing the bell on it.
He looked down at his bags, making sure everything was in place. "Hello! May I help you?" Vlad looked up and nearly forgot to breathe. A beautiful young man, wearing the uniform of the hotel workers smiled at him.
"Welcome to The Amity Hotel! May I have your name, sir?"
Vlad blinked and he looked down, his face reddening again. "Vlad." He muttered lowly.
"Uh-huh...And your last name, sir?" The young man asked.
"Vlad Masters..." He muttered again.
"Okay, give me a moment while I look you up on our computers, sir." The young man said. Vlad nodded dumbly, still holding on to his luggage.
"That's an interesting accent you have, by the way. Where are you from?" The young man asked.
Vlad blinked, confused. What did he say? He cursed himself times a thousands for never learning English properly now. The boy looked at him and smiled again.
"You can't speak English?" He asked.
Okay, he heard the word "can't" and "English". He understood that. Vlad shook his head.
"Is this your first time to America?" He asked.
Ah, okay. Vlad also understood the word "America". He nodded and said, "Da." The boy looked up from his computer and smiled again.
"Is that Russian? Are you Russian?" He asked.
Vlad nodded again and he felt his heart flutter when the boy's smile got bigger. "That's so cool..." The boy said. Vlad didn't know what he said, but it sounded like a compliment.
"Alright, Mr. Masters. Your room is room 24-B on the second floor. I'll get a bellhop here in just a moment to help with your bags. Here's your card key for your room. I hope you'll enjoy your stay at The Amity Hotel!"
Vlad fumbled with his card key, trying to take in everything the boy said. He has to say something to him. Anything! As a bellhop came to carry his luggage, Vlad stumbled out his awful English.
"Yes. You have...good stay, yes?"
The boy blinked at him and chuckled. "Sure I will, Mr. Masters."
"N-Name, please?" Vlad had the nerve to ask.
"Oh, my name's Danny. See? Right here on my name tag. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call with the phone in your room, alright? Do you understand?"
Vlad just nodded dumbly again. He went to follow the bellhop to his room, always glancing back to Danny. Once he was from sight, Vlad smacked himself on the forehead, muttering.
["You complete moron. Not one day you're in this country and you talk like an idiot around an angel. You stupid stupid moron."]
Vlad forgotten about the bellhop and the confused worker was stuck listening to him mutter in Russian. He was finally to his room. Vlad tipped the bellhop after the man placed his bags inside the room. The bellhop explained the best as he could about calling room service and calling the front desk. Vlad frowned at how slowly and loudly the man was talking.
He's not stupid and he's not deaf. He just can't speak and understand English. He regretted tipping the man now. When he was finally alone in his room, Vlad sat on his bed with a sigh.
He'll only be here for a month. He has to make the best of it. And the first thing he'll do is work on his English. Vlad went into one of his bags, looking for his Russian-to-English book. He pulled it out and flipped through the pages. He'll be prepared this time.
Next morning, Vlad got dressed and went down to the lobby, where they were serving breakfast. He smiled when he saw Danny at the front desk, typing into his computer. He took a deep breath, walking up to the desk.
'You can do this. You practiced all night.' He thought.
Danny looked up from his computer and he smiled. "May I help you?" He asked.
Vlad leaned against the desk, smiling back. 'You can do this.' He reminded himself.
"Have morning, yes?"
Danny furrow his brows. "Excuse me?" He asked.
Vlad frowned. 'Wait, crap. That didn't come out right. Try again!'
"Uh, goodnight...no...aahh..."
Vlad felt himself sweating as Danny stared, clearly confused. Why couldn't he remember to say "good morning" in English? It's so basic and simple! A child from his country can say it so why can't he?
["I'm so sorry, I must sound like a complete idiot to you. Please forgive me."] He said in Russian rather fast.
Danny continued staring and Vlad felt like smacking himself on the forehead again. Now he was looking more like an idiot. He failed to see the blush on Danny's face as he looked away, running his hand in his hair.
"Um, Mr. Masters, if you're looking for where they serve breakfast, it's that way." Danny said, pointing to the direction where the coffee and bagels were.
Defeated, Vlad just nodded. ["Yes, thank you. I'm sorry."] He said.
"Um, right...Enjoy your bagels!" Danny said and went back to his computer.
Danny waited until the older man walked away and he glanced away from his computer screen. He watched Mr. Masters pour himself a cup of coffee and sit down to drink it, looking rather upset.
'Never thought I'd find Russian sexy until today.' Danny thought to himself, typing away on the computer.
Meanwhile, Vlad continued drinking his coffee, too upset to try bagels. He glanced back at Danny and he frowned. Determination came over him. He's going to try to talk to this boy, even if it'll take him forever to say one sentence in English.