Just Go From Here

Given that there still weren't that many residents, the Hotel had a very quick and efficient gossip chain.

And the gossip always started with Niffty.

It couldn't be helped.

When not doing general maintenance and upkeep, Charlie and Alastor would often give her specific job duties. However, they rarely ever gave her a schedule, even if something needed to be done pronto. That was one of Niffty's favorite things about working in the Hotel. She could do whatever she needed to, whenever she needed to, and that Alastor and Charlie thoroughly trusted her to get the job done.

Niffty could no longer keep count of how many times she'd been fired from an employer. It was something to do with how creepy she came across. Which was absolute nonsense because she always tried to come across as polite as she could…At first. The more comfortable she got in a particular work environment, the more outspoken and spastic she'd become. This unsettled every one of her previous employers due to her unpredictability. It was downright aggravating for her because all she wanted to do was keep herself busy.

And just like Husk, Niffty should also be downright aggravated that she was indebted to Alastor. At the end of the day, though, she had absolutely no complaints.

At the time, she had only been in Hell for a year or two, and for what felt like the hundredth time, she had just been fired from her most recent job. She was bored, and she just wanted something to do. She didn't want to give up, but it was getting to that point. Alastor, ever the opportunist, approached her and made her a deal. From that point on, she worked for Alastor.

Not once did Alastor ever find her creepy, disturbing, or untrustworthy. And after he'd summoned her to help with the Hotel, everyone else followed suit. Everyone in the Hotel often approached her to let her know of something that needed cleaned or repaired. Charlie and Alastor's orders took priority, but it was nonetheless great that everyone else asked her to do things. For the first time in a very long time, someone other than Alastor trusted her. And not just someone, but the entire Hotel. Niffty couldn't even begin to describe how that felt, what it meant to her.

However, you could not trust Niffty to keep her mouth shut. Nearly everyone in the Hotel didn't have filters in front of their mouths and they did enjoy gossip, but even they knew when something wasn't any of their business.

Niffty did not. She had the gift of gab, and it was unavoidable.

Due to her not having a set schedule, she could work whenever she pleased. So, in her mind, it was only logical that she worked all hours of the day. She'd never had a job where she had complete free rein to do as she liked. Why wouldn't she work every chance she got? This was where her spontaneity came in.

Even though she was now a lot more communicative about where she was cleaning and when, she still often popped up in random places. Most of the time she announced her presence for all to hear, but what was really jarring was how quiet she could be.

Niffty's day always started excessively early, normally at around four or five in the morning, though she sometimes started as early as three. She took breaks as needed throughout the day until it was time for her to call it quits at the end of it. Which was normally around midnight. The only other sinner that could possibly rival all of this was Baxter, who often kept himself up all day and night to tend to his experiments.

Aside from the one time where Baxter told Niffty to keep it down so he could concentrate, she quickly caught on that most of the residents liked to sleep during those particular hours, so she took it upon herself to learn how to be more quiet. She was a lot more assertive now, but she could still be polite when she wanted.

This was frightening, because now you never knew where Niffty was, when she was going to make an appearance, or if she was eavesdropping. She never eavesdropped on purpose, but she kept herself just as busy as Charlie, and as a result was all over the Hotel each and every day. It was unavoidable for her to accidentally hear or stumble upon something, or someone…or someones.

She knew that Alastor had been in love with Charlie for quite some time. Niffty was a hopeless romantic and she saw the signs quicker than Husk did, which was saying something because Husk was far more observant and level-headed than her.

Alastor always wanted to help Charlie, always wanted to be around her, and that first game night – God, Niffty could cut the romantic tension with a knife.

If Charlie was in love with Alastor, Niffty couldn't say at the time. She had been dating Vaggie and if she did like Alastor, she probably just didn't realize it.

Was Charlie in love with Alastor? Well, after many weeks, this question had an answer.

Niffty, for once, had given herself a break for the day. And by break, that simply meant she was giving herself something else to do. She didn't like how plain that window was on the fifth floor. It was such a shame that Steel had destroyed the original mosaic when he'd broken in, because the apple depiction on that burnt-looking background had been very pretty, if not slightly ominous in Niffty's opinion.

With an old sketchbook she'd found in a storage room, she sat in front of the clear window and started doodling ideas for a different stained glass design. She knew Charlie would probably appreciate it.

By early evening, she decided to put it on pause for the time being, head to dinner, and call it a day. It had been way too long since she'd gone to bed early. She couldn't wait to get more than four hours of sleep. Ooh, maybe she'd get six or seven if she felt like spoiling herself.

It looked like Alastor hadn't prepared any dinner, so everyone was left fend for themselves. Niffty thought it a bit odd given that he also hadn't done breakfast or lunch. Normally, he would make at least one meal for everyone each day. How strange, but Niffty wasn't deterred. She simply raided the kitchen's fridge for some snacks, and took them to her bedroom.

It should've also been strange that no one had seen Charlie all day either, but in this case it wasn't. Everyone knew that Charlie had had some sort of episode in the hallway the night previously. So, that meant she was probably just taking it easy for the next day or so.

Niffty enjoyed being surprised because she sure as hell did not put two and two together.

On her way back to her room, arms greedily filled with snacks, Niffty was about to pass Alastor's room given that she lived only a couple doors down from him.

She stopped in her tracks at the end of the hallway when she saw Alastor and Charlie talking. She was about to turn around and find a different route to her bedroom, until she noticed how close together they were standing. And Alastor's hand...Those sharp claw-like fingers of his were touching the side of Charlie's face with the utmost care.

Niffty's eye widened. Oh…This could be interesting.

For once, she couldn't help but eavesdrop.

They were pretty far away from where she stood, so she couldn't make out what they were saying. But at some point, Alastor asked Charlie something, causing her to blush and reply. Alastor grinned widely, leaned down, and –

Niffty all but short-circuited!

He pressed a soft, but fairly hesitant kiss to Charlie's forehead, causing Charlie to blush even harder.

Niffty walked away, smiling from ear-to-ear, and unable to wait to tell someone, anyone, about what she'd just witnessed.

All of the other sinners were gathered in the common area eating their dinners that night when Niffty enthusiastically stampeded towards them. In her excitement, she blurted out everything.

Sanderson raised a brow at her. "Alastor does not care if he invades someone's personal space," he said in response to everything she'd just said.

"Yeah," Vaggie grumbled tensely. "Knowing him, it was probably just his whole gentleman act…Emphasis on 'act'."

"No, no, no," Niffty shook her head as she bounced on her tiny feet. "It is waaaaay more than that. God, they were practically swooning-"

Vaggie snarled and glared daggers at Niffty. "Give it a fucking rest! He just touched her face! That's all he did! God, do you fucking hear yourself?!"

Angel Dust, who'd been sitting right next to Vaggie, flinched and cringed at the scene unfolding in front of him.

"No, no, no," Niffty repeated hastily. "I left out the best part-"

"Uh, look, Niffty," Angel frowned at her. "Whatever you think you saw-"

"Oh, I saw it!" Was Niffty's loud response.

Angel slapped a hand to his face and he did a frantic glance at Vaggie. She wasn't looking at Niffty anymore, or anyone for that matter. She stared down at the uneaten plate of food in her hands, her knuckles white as she gripped the edges of the porcelain.

Angel then tsked, deciding to try for nonchalance. "Eh, don't listen to her, Vags," he shrugged as Niffty continued to ramble. "She can't keep her mouth shut. God knows what's actually true or not. You know how she-"

"And then he kissed her!"

There was a crash, as Vaggie's plate lifelessly hit the floor.

"Jesus Christ, Niffty," Angel hollered angrily at her.

Niffty snapped her gaze to him to ask what his problem was, and then she saw that Vaggie was still staring at the destroyed remains of her dinner. Her long hair covered her face, so no one could see her expression, but they could all feel it.

"Oh," Niffty squeaked quietly. "Um…But don't worry, Vaggie! It-it was just a kiss on the forehead! Not the lips! Well, I mean, it could've been. Maybe they have kissed. If they're dating – they clearly are dating, and if they – Uh, no, wait! Come back! I – That was, um…"

But Vaggie had already left the common area. Silently. Without a word.

"I was…" Niffty tried as she glanced at everyone guiltily. "starting to apologize."

Angel exhaled harshly as he stood up, uncaringly letting his empty bowl crash to the floor next to Vaggie's plate. "Yeah, well, you didn't fucking succeed," he snapped at her. He walked away in Vaggie's direction. During that night in the hallway when Alastor had carried Charlie away, Angel had tracked Vaggie down to make sure she vented to him. This night would be no different. They weren't exactly what you would call 'friends' quite yet, but they had mutual trust now.

Later that week, Niffty did get a chance to apologize. Vaggie responded to this with a blank face, a curt head nod, and walked away. Vaggie mostly did her own thing now, practically avoiding everyone every chance she got.

Needless to say, everyone in the Hotel now knew that Charlie was dating the Radio Demon. Husk hadn't even been in the common area at the time, but he heard through a drunken Angel Dust sitting at his bar a couple days ago all he needed to know, even if he was smart enough to draw conclusions on his own over time.

Husk wasn't the least bit surprised Alastor had confessed his feelings to Charlie. When Alastor wanted something, nothing stopped him. However, he was surprised with how long it took, with how much patience and respect Alastor had displayed during the mean time. Husk had no doubt that Alastor probably would've kept a professional distance until the end of time if it meant Charlie's happiness.

Husk and Charlie were both currently in the entryway. While Charlie was setting a cardboard box on the floor, Husk was maintaining the concierge desk.

After he had finally cleaned every nook and cranny, and after using his mineral oil to wipe down all of the wooden surfaces, he was now busy organizing it. He was currently trying to get an old computer to start up. Technology wasn't exactly his forte, but he had orders to maintain the concierge desk.

He grumbled irately as the computer tried and failed to start up again. Rolling his eyes, he placed his hand on the countertop to reach for some beer, only to remember that he wasn't at his bar, and that he hadn't taken any alcohol with him to the desk. He glanced at his bar, which was only several feet away, and he was about to go grab some when the computer made a positive-sounding chirping start-up noise.

"You gonna wake up yet, you stupid thing," Husk griped at it. And actually, it did. After it was done loading, the home screen appeared. "Fucking finally. So, uh, what do I gotta do next," he asked Charlie.

"Now, nothing," she said as she got out a few small picture frames from the box in front of her. "I'm still trying to figure out what the best use of it is going to be. I want a database of all of our residents and their progress in the Hotel, but there are too many demons out there that know how to hack a computer so I don't want to risk anyone's personal info until I have that figured out, so…Yeah. Not sure yet." She briefly looked up at him. "But thank you for keeping an eye on that while it started up."

"Psh," he huffed as he got out from behind the counter and walked over to her. "No problem. It only took like, what, thirty minutes of my time? Yeah, easy-peasy and not at all aggravating."

Charlie grinned at him. "You didn't have to sit in front of it, you know."

He shrugged. "Yeah, well, nothing better to do. And it's supposed my job and all that shit." He crossed his arms as he watched her take apart a picture frame and set a photo inside. He scoffed. "Really? The pig?"

Charlie smiled down at the picture of Fat Nuggets now resting in the center of the wooden frame. "Yeah, why not?"

Husk raised a brow. "Why not what?"

Charlie got to her feet and started walking around, inspecting the walls. "Now that we have all this wall space, I still want us to use it for pictures. And I figured, hey! Why not let everyone choose what pictures they wanna put up?" She placed the picture of Fat Nuggets on the wall. "It's everyone's home," she said quietly. "Not just mine." She turned to smile at Husk. "What do you think?"

Husk flexed his jaw, wanting to say something at least decently poignant. He pointed to the picture. "The pig is a weird first choice, don'tcha think?" Yeah, he thought to himself. Real poignant, you jackass.

Charlie only shrugged at that. "Maybe, but Angel wanted it up. And like I said, these walls are supposed to be for everyone now," she said as she glanced around the entryway.

He scoffed again as he turned towards his bar. "Yeah, well, don't let Angel get too crazy. Knowing him, he'll just put dick pics everywhere. And not actual ones, no, he'll draw 'em by hand directly on the walls like an immature high schooler."

Charlie chuckled. "Oh, I'm sure he won't." She reorganized the box, picked it up, and took it over to Husk's bar. She placed the box on the floor and hopped up on the stool. "And besides, even if he did, I could just ask if Alastor could make the drawings disappear."

Husk smirked knowingly at her. Clearing his throat, he asked, "The usual?"

"Yes, please," she smiled politely.

Husk knelt down to his mini-fridge. He got out two bottles of non-alcoholic apple cider and placed them on the counter. He poured one of the bottles into a wine glass and passed it to her.

"That's a new brand I found," he said. "Supposed to be sweeter, less bitter than what you usually drink. Let me know what you think."

Curious, Charlie took a whiff of it, took a sip, swirled some of it in her mouth, and drank it as she smiled. "That's really good," she said, and she took a longer sip. "I think I'm gonna have this more often."

Husk nodded once and took the other bottle away. He was tempted to bring out some beer for himself, but he was too curious about something.

"So, uh," he began, trying and failing to hide his smirk. "You look like you been smiling a lot."

"Oh, uh," she stammered, tucking her hair self-consciously behind her ear. "I…If you say so."

Husk finally let the smirk come back, unable to help himself. "Yeah, I do say so! Sounds like you and Alastor are a thing now."

Charlie almost choked on her cider. With wide eyes, she swallowed and coughed while Husk snickered a little. "You know," she asked incredulously.

"Do I? The entire fucking Hotel knows." He paused to take in her sheer surprise. "Niffty gets around."

Charlie groaned, placed her elbows on the counter, and buried her face in her hands. "Okay," she gave a muffled sigh as she looked up at him. "I mean, it's not like it was gonna be a secret or anything, but…it still would've been nice to be able to you all on our own terms."

"Yeah, Niffty lives here. You don't get that choice."

Charlie rubbed her temple. "I guess."

"So," Husk said. "All that smiling you're doing…I take it everything's going good? You know, with you and Alastor?"

As expected, a smile appeared on her face again. "Yeah," she sighed. "It's really…I'm really happy. I mean, it's only been a few days, but still. He's…yeah," she sighed again, this time the smile slipping.

Husk's brows scrunched. "Nah, come on. Can't be trouble in paradise already."

Charlie shook her head. "No, no trouble. At all, really. He's…Husk, I had no idea how…gentle and considerate he could be. Well, actually, that's not really true. I did know, because he's been like this with me for a while now and…Ugh, I'm an idiot for not seeing it sooner."

Husk half-smiled at her and shook his head. "Nah, you ain't an idiot. You were dating Vaggie. Why would you look someone else's way when you were with her?"

After a second, Charlie nodded. "Yeah, you're right. That makes sense."

"So what's eating at you, then?"

"I guess I just never expected us to…happen. Not in my wildest dreams." Husk poured her another glass as she continued. "Because aside from the fact that I didn't think I'd be his type, I didn't think that he would be mine." She paused to cringe. "Wow, that sounded way less awful in my head. Um, what I mean is, and I'm not judging him, I'm the one who was born in Hell so who am I to judge, but…"

Husk nodded knowingly. "He's done some bad shit. Yeah, believe me," his voice dropped to a bitter murmur. "I know."

Charlie nodded as well. "I know he was a serial killer when he was alive. I should be terrified of even being near him, but I'm not for some reason. I don't know why I'm not afraid of him like everyone else is. Should I be?"

Husk looked thoughtful before he spoke. "As professional as Alastor is, you'd know right away if he didn't like you, or if he threatened you. Did he ever do anything like that to you?"

"No," Charlie immediately said. "Not once. He's been…nothing but nice to me. And everyone else, too. Well…Not as nice. He still insults everyone sometimes, but…I don't think he's threatened anyone here. Not recently. Not that I can remember."

"So what are you worried about then," he asked.

This made Charlie look up from her glass to stare at Husk. "I…I don't know. I've dated plenty of others over the centuries that have had histories just as bad as Alastor's. Hell, I was even trapped in a really bad relationship for a time. And I admit, Al isn't a good person-"

"He's good to you, though," Husk said. "Even I see that."

Charlie fidgeted with her empty wine glass. With a groan, she asked, "Be honest. Am I over-thinking the hell out of this?"

Husk exhaled. "You're the one who's dating the Radio Demon. You tell me."

She shook her head. "That doesn't exactly answer my question."

"That's 'cause I don't have an answer for you. Look, if it's any consolation, you're right. Yeah, he threatens me on the off occasion, but I guess that's just how we communicate and shit. Everyone else though? Nah, haven't seen him threaten anyone in a long-ass time. Fuck! Now that I think about it, he hasn't even killed anyone since joining the Hotel. And you should see the way he looks at you. He's so over the fucking moon, it's almost pathetic. You remember when I said you were making him more bearable?"

She nodded.

"I wasn't lying. That's all you. Nobody else." He took her glass to clean it. "Are you over-thinking things? Shit, maybe you are, maybe you ain't. Ain't up to me to tell you that. So long as he keeps on treating you and this hotel right…Just go from there."

Charlie silently contemplated his words. "Yeah," she exhaled. "No, I…I think you're right about everything. I'll…Just go from here."

Husk shrugged as he put the glass away. "And if he puts a toe outa line, kick his ass. He'll listen to you. God knows he don't take orders from no one else." He looked around. "Where is he right now anyway? Making dinner for all us lowly bums? Bit early still."

"Yeah," Charlie said as she slid off the bar stool. "He hasn't figured out what to make yet. I was gonna see him after I put up that picture of Fat Nuggets. You know, to see if he…needed company."

"Uh-huh," he muttered with a smirk. "You think that's even a question?"

"Well," she shrugged, rocking on her heels. "We're about to find out. He normally cooks alone, so." She smiled at him. "Thanks, Husk."

He grimaced. "I didn't do shit."

Her smiled turned into a smirk. "You know…You wouldn't make a bad therapist."

He rolled his eyes so hard they nearly rolled out of his skull. "Yeah, let's give every bartender a certificate why don't we. Like that'll be a good idea."

She chuckled and shook her head at him. She glanced down at the cardboard box full of picture frames. "Before I go, I wanted to ask you if I could put these empty frames in your storage room down here. It's not exactly fun having to haul these back and forth between here and my bedroom."

Husk nodded once, and he walked around the bar to the box. Charlie was about to suggest that she could take it there herself, until she saw the expression on Husk's face. Actually, lack thereof, because his face was completely neutral as he stared down at the box, but didn't pick it up.

Charlie looked at him with concern. "Everything okay?"

Ever so slightly, Husk shook his head to clear it. Then, he glanced at the walls, and then his bar. "One sec," he muttered. He reached behind his counter. Normally, when he was getting something from his bar, one could hear a lot of noisy shuffling and clattering, as if Husk was asserting some sort of dominance over his alcoholic possessions. This time, though, he seemed to move quietly and with care.

Gripped gently between the tips of his claws, he brought out something rectangular and handed it to Charlie. "You got enough space to put that up?"

It was a small canvas painting that was fraying around the edges. It depicted a wine bottle and a filled glass sitting on a table next to a dove. In the background was a flashy-looking stage of some sorts that was purposefully blurred to accentuate the foreground.

"This is so beautiful," Charlie breathed. She looked at Husk, who was now kneeling down to pick up the box. "Any place in particular you want me to put it up?"

Without looking at her, he turned towards one of the 'Employees Only' doors near his bar. He muttered something noncommittal and unintelligible as he left through the door, leaving her alone.

Before Charlie set off for the kitchen, she hung up the painting.

She put it up right next to Husk's bar. She didn't plan on hanging any more pictures on that section of wall if she could help it. For some reason, even though he'd avoided her gaze, this painting meant a lot to Husk.

* Shout out to RedHood001. In a review, they said that Husk is turning into something of a reluctant therapist for the group, and honestly they were incredibly spot on about that happening. The story was already headed in that direction with that kind of thing, admittedly, but I didn't want to offend them. RedHood001 is fine with me continuing to use this as an idea, so thank you very much!

While I was doing the final edits, my fidget toy fell right on my keyboard. Everything looks fine, and I'll reread it a few more times. So I apologize for any errors. Even though this update was right on time, the next one might not be. I still have to work out a particular plot point. Thank you everyone for your patience and all the support you've given my story so far.