Vacation Time, Please
Chapter 11: A Room with a View
By: IMBSA
IMBSA: Sorry for the wait, but, well, I'm working on some other projects and fanfics. (BREEP! RED ALERT: SHAMEFUL PLUG!) I'm sure some of you guys know how hard it is to break into new territory anime- (and fanfic-) wise. Such has been the case as I'm trying not to get my name blasted all through out the fandom. Sorry, once again.
Disclaimer: "Ignorance can take you to a lot more interesting places than knowledge."
IMBSA: Well, enjoy!
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Amon pushed the door open withdrawing the credit card-like key, slowly allowing it to shut as the three entered the room.
"Now THIS is what I call a room!" Sakaki remarked. A gigantic view of the hotel's pool greeted them warmly. Michael smiled to himself as he rushed to make his way to the view from their balcony window. He pushed the sheer curtains aside.
"Awesome! Poolside!" He exclaimed with wide-eyed wonderment. Sakaki joined him in a quiet macho rejoicing of a fist to fist touch. They took a peaceful moment to take in the beauty of the crystal, pool water surrounded by tropical flora and fauna and to revel on the possibilities of what scenes they would take in from then when the sun warmed up the next few tropical days. Finally, things were looking up. Sakaki turned to Michael who was smiling dreamily to himself and whatever secret thoughts crossed his mind. They couldn't help but notice Amon's less than happy reaction as he stood scanning the room slowly, calculatingly.
"Looking for bugs Mr. Bond?" Sakaki joked in a mock-British accent; Michael grinned, enjoying this moment of happiness and Sakaki's little comment.
"Sakaki, where do you think you will be sleeping tonight?" Amon questioned, hands on hips.
Sakaki thought for a moment as a smug grin made its away across his face. "Well….if I'm lucky…."he began half-jokingly rubbing his chin thoughtfully, yet couldn't finish as Michael nudged him.
"Dumb-ass!" Michael muttered as he pointed. In their excitement they hadn't noticed what was nagging Amon. There it was in all its glory as if teasing them, laughing at them…mocking them: the only bed in the room. One large king sized bed.
"Wha----There's no-o way!" Sakaki was almost at a loss for words in his disbelief. Somehow the beautiful pool scene was totally erased from his mind as the nightmarish notion of sharing a bed with Michael and Amon uninvitedly slipped into his thoughts. "I know we came here for team-building," Sakaki finger-quoted, "but this is totally freakin' ridiculous!" Sakaki massaged his eyes, then his temples as he sat on the huge bed, the new gigantic thorn in his proverbial side. How much more ill-fate would they endure? That familiar feeling of impending doom made its presence known yet again.
"It's karma, dude….We have bad karma," Michael observed matter-of-factly, almost surrendering to the idea that it was their destiny and sat down dejectedly near Sakaki who was now looking morosely at the carpeted floor.
"It's such a sweet view, man…I'd hate to lose it!" Sakaki remarked, as he stretched his arms over his head and yawned. Could he really get used to sleeping that close with his co-workers? He shuddered. No. Unthinkable. He leaned back and couldn't help but lay down after those hellish plane rides, the van, the hotel/campground incident….And now…this. It felt good to stretch out. He faced the pop-corn ceiling.
"Yeah….Can you imagine?" Michael said as he raised his arms as well and yawned, jet-lag slowly closing in on him. "Awesome view!" Michael commented quietly.
Sakaki felt the bed move slightly, so he turned to continue his conversation with Michael only to find himself unexpectedly rolling towards the hacker's spectacled face, and Michael getting an extreme close up of Sakaki's chin. It was a wonder that they didn't collide. The sight scared them. No; petrified them. They both scrambled to stand up in their panic. Somehow the room, the pool view just wasn't that important anymore. At least not as important as where they would lay their heads for some much-needed shut eye. Certainly it was not there in that room and that god-forsaken bed that seemed to be a menacing reminder of bad karma.
"Let's get another room!" Sakaki decided as he readjusted his twisted jacket.
"I'm sure they'll have other poolside view rooms available with more than one bed," Michael remarked, feeling just as awkward, nodded in agreement as he and Sakaki picked up their bags. That was way too close for comfort. As Amon suggested they go to the front desk, Sakaki was almost positive he heard a little laugh come from Amon's direction. If a smirk could be heard, Amon had one. It was as if fate punished them for their smart-assed comments the two had been making.
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It seems the only remaining room was one with a view of the beach. Sakaki, Michael, and Amon made note of the two beds (a roll-away would be coming in later) and made no complaints.
"Okay, I admit, the room with the poolside view was sweet, but this takes the cake!" Sakaki admitted, genuinely delighted with the room. He opened the sliding glass door to the balcony and surveyed the view. Gulfstream trade winds cooled the breeze that softly stroked his brown locks. The sight and sound of waves gently lapping on the shore compelled Sakaki to have them observe this transcendental moment.
"Guys…" Sakaki called out to Michael and Amon, "you need to freakin' check this shit out! It's awesome!" The two men walked over to feel the ocean breeze and take in the view of the water. The sun was starting to set, making the sky and clouds look like a sherbet flavored ice cream. Seagulls' cries echoing in the salty air.
"Are we gulfside?" Michael asked.
"Yes," Amon answered. He looked like he was even managing a grin.
"Man, look at those small islands way back there….Check that out—Jet-skis for rent!" Sakaki pointed at a sign excitedly.
"The view is freakin' amazing, man! Look at that boat, see it in the horizon?" Michael commented, "and the mountain back there!"
Mountain? Did he just say mountain? Florida didn't have mountains….Did it?
"Mountain? That's not a mountain, dumbass, that's another island!" Sakaki corrected.
"No way, dude…that's too damn big for an island…That's a mountain." Michael debated.
"With all those seagulls hanging around it….That probably like Seagull Island, not friggin' Seagull Mountain! We're in the tropics, my friend!"
"Well, Hawaii has mountains and it's in the tropics!"
"Hawaii has volcanoes, shithead! There's no volcanoes here in Florida either!"
"Well, I've seen pictures enough to know that is a mountain. I'm telling you Haruto; that is a mountain!"
"Okay, Mr. Vicarious Traveler, I will bet you the roll-away bed that that is an island and not a freakin' mountain!"
"What? You mean loser sleeps in the rollaway bed? You're on, Haruto, you're on!" and with that they shook hands, sealing the bet.
Amon had heard the two bickering, but remained quiet throughout their conversation to do some observations of his own.
"We can check out that island tomorrow, dude," Sakaki emphasized pointing at it along the far right side of their view.
"Oh—you mean check out that mountain tomorrow. Besides, what are we gonna do about tonight, Einstein?" Amon could tell they would soon turn to him, as they usually did, to settle the disagreement.
"Amon, what do you think-- is that a mountain or an island?" Sakaki asked. Amon didn't know how to break it to them. He also wondered which of the two would be sleeping in the rollaway bed. Amon was still deciding how to tell them. He could cut the suspense in the air with a knife.
"You're both wrong." Amon stated to their dismay.
"What?" Michael questioned, glancing back at his self-proclaimed mountain.
"Okay, so if it's NOT an island and not a mountain, what the fuck is it then?"
Amon took in a deep breath and let it out slowly before he answered with assuredness.
"That…is a landfill."
Sakaki and Michael could NOT believe their ears.
"Did you just say landfill?" Sakaki asked
"Landfill as in trash landfill?" Michael needed some type of clarification.
Amon nodded with certainty. All three men stared in awe. Clouds of seagulls lifted up and down on the said landform. At a closer inspection, one could actually see lights set up on tall metal posts.
"That sucks! Well, it still hasn't settled our bet because we BOTH lost, and we still don't know who takes the roll-away bed. We need a secondary bet or a coin toss or something," Sakaki observed ready with his wallet and searching his pockets to find a quarter or similar coin.
"Yeah, we do know who takes the roll-away…You take the bed, Haruto," Michael announced.
"No way! We just said that was a landfill!"
"Okay, think about it…what is a landfill?"
"A place where trash is dumped."
"Yeah and when you keep dumping stuff on it, what happens to it?"
"It starts stinking," Sakaki commented. He knew where this conversation was going, but he refused to give up.
"No, it gets larger and larger, because it becomes a mountain of trash! Not an island of trash, mind you, a mountain of trash!" Sakaki was speechless. "It's a mountain!"
How could he argue that point? Haruto resigned himself to sleeping on the roll-away bed that night. He didn't think Amon would be up to dissecting that one.
"Who's the dumbass, now?" Michael needled Sakaki with a smile.
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The girls were settling in their hotel room. They managed to get one poolside with two double beds. Like the men, they decided one room shared would make opportunities for team building more apparent. Robin stated that she would take the rollaway bed. After all the arrangements were made, the three girls decided to freshen up before dinner with the other members. Doujima was perusing through her toiletry bag. Karasuma and Robin were almost ready, waiting for Doujima, who came out of the bathroom.
"Miho, does toothpaste go bad? Like does it spoil?" Doujima questioned.
"I don't think so, why?"
"Well, this tube of toothpaste smells…weird. And you know what, the strangest thing is that my toothbrush looked like someone cleaned grout with it. The bristles were all spread out and freaky looking. I think someone's been messing with my stuff," she proclaimed as she kept a mental note on all the bizarre events that happened with her luggage. Sakaki came to mind. "Now I'll have to use this generic crap from the front desk," Doujima loved her name brands. She made a comment on Robin's almost new look. Doujima recognized it as the outfit she and Robin wore when they "worked" at Harry's for a short stint. It was a black halter top with black flared pants. She had her red locks in a neatly twisted updo.
"That's cute on you, Robin. It goes great with your new accessories," Doujima commented.
"Thanks," she smiled shyly, still trying to be a little humble, though her hand went up to the cuff on her left ear.
The two groups met for a short reunion in the lobby. Sakaki and Michael were casual enough to be labeled informal, but dressy enough to stay away from sloppiness. Amon cleaned up well, sporting a crisp buttoned-down shirt. Though the article of clothing was black, it was good to see him in short sleeves and not profusely sweating. Surprisingly, his compactly, muscled arms looked tanned for someone who trolled around in long sleeves 24/7. The other five suspected a tanning bed, or possibly a bronzing cream. He jokingly held his arms out to present his new look, at least for Amon's standards; a slight grin of amusement seemed to cover his lips. Robin's halter top was quite different than what they had expected. But it too was a welcomed change. The six members decided to a grab a quick bite to eat at the hotel's restaurant, despite Doujima's protests. It might have been the first time she didn't get her way on this trip.
Dinner went on uneventful. Nothing was mixed up, or burned, or tasteless. It was great to finally feel settled in. Amon excused himself from the table. Sakaki came up with an idea. He called their waitress over, "Hi!" he quickly read her nametag,"….Dawn. I just want you to know that we have a birthday on our hands."
"Really? Whose birthday?" She asked as she held a small tray in her hands looking down at Sakaki with a sweet smile. Dawn was a fresh faced brunette waitress who drew a few suspicious looks from Doujima.
"You know that guy that was sitting over there? Yeah, it's empty now, but he'll be back. Anyway, it's his birthday and we kinda wanted to wish him a happy……" Sakaki, thought for a moment, "Four –oh….he'll be turning 40. He's very proud of looking so dashing at that age, he'll want the whole world to know how old he is."
"Forty you say? Wow! Awesome! He doesn't look that—," Sakaki cut her off as she tried to search for a more politically correct word,
"Old? Yeah, I know, he's like so-o healthy, strong, eats right, works out and takes vitamins, he really takes good care of himself," Sakaki said, almost too proudly.
Dawn picked up on this vibe. "And you know he takes really good care of himself because--? " she suddenly had a knowing look on her face, wanting Sakaki to fill in the blank.
"Because they're lovers!" Doujima chimed in with a wink. The whole table tried to contain their laughter.
Sakaki shot Doujima a look. If she only knew why he felt compelled to even do this. "Thanks a lot, sis…Uh—no," Sakaki nervously laughed, trying to save face. "He's the wrong gender. Actually he's my brother."
"Your brother?" Dawn repeated in almost disbelief.
"Step—older brother that is…Anyway, he really doesn't think we remembered. So if you could take care of that I'd really, truly appreciate it. Thanks!" With that Dawn walked away. Sakaki saw faces of shock and disbelief.
"Haruto are you crazy? Amon's not going to be 40!" Karasuma remarked.
"I know that, you know that, we all know that….But the rest of the world will think so!" Sakaki sipped some of his soda. He craned his neck to see where Dawn was. He caught sight of her talking to a small group of waitstaff. Perfect. The word would spread like wild fire. The rest of the members noticed Sakaki's smug grin. "What? Don't you want a free dessert?" Sakaki asked his fellow members in response to their expressions.
"Oh, Sakaki! This is not the place to manipulate for free desserts. I know all the best ones!" Doujima bragged. But a bigger point needed to be made.
"You know how funny he gets being the center of attention in public," Robin remarked.
"You might just piss him off," Michael cautioned.
"Piss him off? The dude was born freakin' pissed off…He needs to lighten up, quit being that angst-ridden, leather-wearing self and get the lead out! Seriously, let's get the crab out of his shell." At that moment Amon returned to his seat.
"Still hungry, Sakaki?" Amon asked, taking in the tail end of the conversation.
"Yeah…I was thinking the crab dip or something light like that. Or dessert." He trailed off, praying that was all he heard.
The restaurant seemed to get quiet, or perhaps Sakaki was just imagining it. A raucous palpitation was coming from the kitchen. It sounded like a march, but not really. The cadence continued, louder as it were, a line of several waitstaff members, 20 perhaps, were clapping loudly in time. Leading the line was Dawn with a chocolate cupcake, topped with a candle clearly displaying the number "40" and snaking its way to Amon's table. The six members were soon surrounded by the restaurant waitstaff as Dawn presented Amon with the chocolate cupcake decorated with the lit candle that was almost as big as the cupcake itself. The singing of a moronic birthday song that the waitstaff all knew, (but patrons obviously didn't) piped out in loud motley voices. Amon felt his cheeks flush and he could have sworn there was a spotlight on him. He remained tightlipped and stone-faced throughout the duration of the song and clapped less than enthusiastically when it was done. After some meager throwing of confetti, the restaurant seemed to go back into service mode, shuffling food to and from the kitchen. All watched Amon, noticing his obvious discomfort
"It's not my birthday. And I'm not 40…whose idea was this?" Amon asked.
Michael broke the awkward silence.
"You know it's a bit late…I think I'll head back to the room," Michael conceded quickly getting out of the booth seat.
"Yeah, me too," Robin feigned a yawn getting up with Michael.
"Great idea, I—need to get some rest," Doujima announced grabbing the back of Sakaki's shirt.
"I'm really not that hungry….anymore," Sakaki commented as Doujima pulled him out of the booth. All the members, save for two were out the door. Still waiting for an answer, Amon's narrowed eyes were now upon Karasuma, who was basically trapped beside in the middle of the crescent shaped seat of the large booth. More awkward silence wrapped around them before it too was banished by Karasuma's voice.
"They just wanted to get some free dessert," She admitted.
Amon blew out his candle and took it off the cupcake. He grabbed a knife and cut the pastry in half with one slice. Karasuma raised her eyebrows slightly. "Here." He said. "We've been abandoned."
"It's your cupcake—" She was cut off when he placed the chocolate confection on her plate as if giving her no choice in the matter. She looked up at his face and noted his expression. While to the casual observer it might not have changed, to one who had known him as long as she did, it almost seemed as if he was…pleading with her to stay. Her thoughts were confirmed by his next words.
"Don't make me eat this alone." It sounded like a command, as most of his speech did, but Karasuma somehow sensed that it was more vulnerable than it seemed. Whether this knowledge came from simple woman's intuition or her Craft, the brunette Hunter did not know. Nodding in agreement, Karasuma turned and dug into the cupcake as Amon did the same with his half by her side.
"Aw, that's so sweet, look at them!" Doujima half-squealed as she peered at the other two Hunters still at the table from her hiding place behind a huge fern by the restaurant door.
Sakaki whispered, mocking late-night news anchors, complete with a fist-curled microphone, "Breaking News: Amon does have a heart, as scientists observed today in the midst of rigorous trials. Doctor Lee, what is your analysis of this situation? Is it feigned or real?" He thrust his fist into Michael's face.
"Whatever Haruto." Michael responded, giving him a wry look. "Talk to me in the morning and we'll see who's making poking fun at whom, Mr. Roll-away bed!"
"SH!" Both Robin and Doujima exclaimed from where they watched the couple with mad intensity.
"I meant to tell you that you orbo's been located," Karasuma mentioned.
"You're kidding."
"No seriously, I called Raven's Flat when we made flight rearrangements back in Atlanta and had Hattori pick your duffle bag up from the airport."
He stared at her, brows furrowed. "I wanted you to sweat it out a little bit. But you've done your fair share of that for the day," she continued. He sheepishly grinned if only for a moment. "By the way, that's a really nice shirt you bought, Amon."
"I didn't buy it. Doujima did….Why? What's wrong?" He continued with a question at the sudden…anger, was it?..on her face, sensing something amiss.
"Oh, nothing…." She replied though gritted teeth, lightly rubbing the back of her right shoulder.
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IMBSA: Hoped you liked it. We couldn't keep having them attack each other. But the fates—ah, yes a different thing all together. Fact: This hotel truly does exist as we have stayed in it during one of our trips to Key West. We had a beachside room with a superb view, only to find out the view included a landfill in the background. I guess it was really too far to be able to pick up the smell of it. The stench was never an issue. It's more the thought. (That sucks!) Amon and Karasuma sharing a cupcake—we had to put some mushy stuff in there too. Team building, remember? Oh, and it's not that I have anything against gays. This is merely for humor-purposes. We don't mean to offend anyone, and if we have, well, sorry.
O00AnimeChild0oo: So fucking glad you approve! Thanks so much for reviewing.
Prospero53223: Whew! My allowance isn't where it should be. Ear cuff on Robin? Hmmm….nice thought. I don't think Amon would fashion himself after Big D, though. But he certainly needs more color especially in the tropics.
Siberian-Tigress: Karasuma was way too presumptuous thinking she knew Amon, even though ultimately she was correct. But can you blame her? She's been trying to get him out of his clothes for at least the last two chapters…. Again, can you blame her?
Lady-Azura: Yes, with tattoos being a relatively permanent thing, we thought that solution might even help out someone in a similar predicament. (J/K) My dad gave me that idea, but I don't know where he got that from.
Jordan: Cool! Don't you love when that happens? Makes you feel like you were written in as part of the story. Any future plans of owning a tattoo parlor on Key West?
Sakaki's Girl: Well, sometimes luck could change—sometimes. And when you think about it, it did for them…if only for a moment! More fun found in Key West::tilts head: Beware the porn, it is everywhere! WE ARE SURROUNDED! RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES, FLEE IN TERROR! For some reason, I feel like shouting in this chapter….
Konfizkate91: Back, yay! Thanks for reviewing!
Jainen-black: Well, we answered that a bit in this chapter. I'm not sure that we know either. Doujima's the one who bought all the crap.
Thanks for reviewing---R&R peoples!