Paradise Hotel
It was very hot. Not only was it hot but it was unusually heavy too. Opening her tired red eyes, Hitomi tried to assess the current situation. It was only until she tried all her might to straighten the blurry images in her eyes that she realized she was lying in the arms of her new lover, Van Fanel.
Slightly startled she didn't move, but she could feel slow warmth rising on her cheeks. She couldn't deny that this was indeed a very nice position to be in especially with a handsome man such as Van but the fact that he was half naked made her blush even more. It was wrong. It was all so very wrong. She had to do something but her body didn't seem to want to move. It was as if it had a mind of its own and currently it just wanted to enjoy the feeling of a handsome half naked man holding her with his strong sturdy arms. As Hitomi was thinking of more strange thoughts, she didn't notice the slight movement of the man sleeping next to her.
"Good morning," Van said with a soft voice. Hitomi looked up at his face and realized that he was staring just as intently. He didn't try to take his arms off her nor did he look away; he simply kept staring. It was a crime for a man to look so good. Even if he looked like he just woke up, he still looked attractive.
"I– I need to go to work," Hitomi said quietly as she tried to suppress the blush that was slowly creeping up her cheeks.
"Oh right. Sorry." Van moved his arms and allowed Hitomi to get up. Lying in the bed and slowly watching her, he noticed that she stopped moving and turned to stare at him. Saving her from embarrassing herself again, he quickly got up while muttering something about going to the bathroom.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Hitomi quickly dressed herself before heading out of the room to make breakfast. She decided to make her and Van some omelets and coffee. After all he was one more mouth to feed. Getting her apron on she quickly pulled out some pots and utensils while putting water into the kettle. Then she cracked four eggs and put them into the pan. As she stirred and mixed the ingredients together Hitomi tried to remember what happened the night before so that Van ended up in her bed and not outside. Being too preoccupied with her thoughts she didn't notice snake-like arms entwining themselves around her waist in a tight embrace.
"Hi.To.Mi."
"Yu– Yukari!" Alarmed, Hitomi put the spatula down and turned around with quick movement only to stare into a cheerful face with red hair bouncing around. "I didn't know you were coming today."
"What are you talking about? I come every morning!" Yukari said with a confused face. She tried to find an excuse in her head that would make Hitomi forget such a thing and couldn't seem to find a good reason except one; her ex-boyfriend. He did after all dump her two days ago and Hitomi, who really loved him, didn't exactly take it the way she thought she would.
"Strange. If you didn't know I was coming then . . . why would you have two of everything set out on the table?" Yukari looked at her friend even more confused than before.
"That– that's because . . ."
"Kanzaki, after I fold the blankets where do you want me to put them?" Van walked in, still shirtless, while letting out a yawn. Stopping in the middle of his walk, he saw not one but two women staring at him; one blushing furiously and one starting to look absolutely livid. "I didn't know you were having a guest over this morning."
"Wh– who the hell are you?" Yukari who was confused before, now felt angry. First her best friend acts funny and now a shirtless man walks into the room as if it was nothing. It was outrageous! The poor girl broke up with her boyfriend two days ago and she's already fooling around with other men! Before Yukari went into a state of shock, Hitomi quickly led her to the table and sat her down while pouring her a glass of water.
"I– I can explain everything Yukari! Please just calm down!" Hitomi pleaded with her friend as Van sat down across from her and Yukari still fumed about his presence.
After explaining the events from the day before Yukari finally managed to calm down and listen to her friend's explanation. Though she didn't understand why Hitomi would ever buy a lover, she tried to reason with her conscience that she had no other choice; that her breakup with her boyfriend drove her to it. Yes, everything was that bastard's fault.
"Yukari?" Hitomi looked solemnly at her friend who took a deep breath and returned her gaze.
"Let's settle the rest later, right now we need to get to work. Hurry up." Getting up from the table and grabbing her purse, Yukari left the apartment without saying a word leaving the two in silence.
"Uhmm . . ." Hitomi twiddled her fingers nervously and bit her lip before a warm hand held her fingers still. Looking up she stared at Van and found that he didn't look as if he was even affected at all. He was calm in an almost abnormal way.
"It's okay. I can take it from here. Just go to work." He gave her hands a squeeze and smiled gently.
"Will you be okay here alone? I won't get back until after five."
"Yeah. I need to go and get some clothes anyway." Reassured, Hitomi took off the apron and gathered her things. Then with a faint goodbye, she too left the apartment. Van finished cooking the omelet with ease and sat down to eat with a hot cup of coffee. After finishing up and washing the dishes, he realized that Hitomi never answered his question of where to put the blankets after he was done folding them. While pulling on his shirt he decided that he'd leave them on her bed thinking that it was the most logical thing to do. After leaving the apartment and reaching the ground floor, Van suddenly realized that he didn't lock her apartment much less have a key to it. Already late as he was, he decided that on this day the heavens were giving him divine punishment.
Hitomi was quiet during the entire ride to work. Every once in a while she'd glance over at Yukari and then quickly turn away. Although Yukari didn't say anything, by the way she was driving, Hitomi could tell that she was still angry. Trying to start a pleasant and normal conversation, Hitomi opened her mouth a couple of times before closing it just as quickly.
"I'm not angry, so stop getting nervous." Yukari kept staring at the road even when Hitomi looked up at her with a slightly hopeful face. "I was just shocked that you'd find another lover so quickly, even if he's fake."
"I know." Hitomi stared at her hands sadly. "But after he left me I was so lonely and you know how I hate being lonely."
"You could've just called me!" Facing Hitomi, Yukari looked at her as if she had just asked the most ridiculous question ever.
"But I didn't want to depend on you anymore." Hitomi smiled a sad smile at Yukari who faced the road again and drove when the light turned green. "You're living with Amano now and you two are engaged. I'm sure you're doing a lot for the wedding and I don't want to disturb that happiness."
Yukari sighed for a moment and realized that she had also hurt Hitomi. Living with Hitomi was great; they were after all best friends. But when Amano proposed to her and asked her to move in with him, she couldn't refuse. Even while knowing that Hitomi hated being lonely more than anything, she still answered yes and moved in with him a few days later. She thought it'd be okay, considering Hitomi had gotten a lover that very same week and she seemed happy enough. But six months later, even after they lived together, he just got up and left her. The worst part was that that very same day, Yukari was laughing and smiling with Amano and his parents. That was just two days ago and even if Hitomi was smiling now, Yukari knew that her heart still held so much pain.
Parking the car, Yukari slowly got out and waited for Hitomi to do the same. Yukari locked it and then walked towards the elevator that would take them straight to Hitomi's department. Though they worked in the same building, Hitomi's department was different than her own.
"Please be strong today?" Yukari said with a grin while staring at Hitomi's blank face. "Don't let the bastard have the satisfaction of seeing that you still cry over him."
"I won't." Hitomi gave an honest smile this time. "After all I have someone better now, even if it is all fake right?"
"Right." Yukari watched as Hitomi got off the elevator while waving to her. Waving back, Yukari pushed the button for the doors to close and waited for the elevator to reach her floor. With a small ding, Yukari got off the elevator and walked towards her office all the while thinking that from now on she'd never let Hitomi feel such unbearable pain ever again.
Hitomi walked through her department and headed towards her office. All around her people welcomed her back from her absence. Some even asked if she was feeling better enough to walk around and work the next day. Hitomi almost forgot that she had called in sick the other day; the very same day she met Van. Though she walked with a small bit of confidence, she knew that once she reached her office all her walls would come falling down. It was hard trying to avoid your ex-lover if he was your boss. No doubt the news of their breakup was probably already being whispered in the secret corners of the department.
"Welcome back Ms. Kanzaki." The secretary looked up with a bright smile. Smiling back, Hitomi tried to enter her office as quickly as possible so that a certain topic wouldn't come up. "Ah, Ms. Aston isn't in today."
"O– oh. All right, uhmm . . . thank you for informing me." Hitomi slowly walked into her office and sat down at her desk. Well at least she dodged one bullet today. Now all she had to do was dodge one more; that is if he decided to enter her office again. Staring at her door with a slightly hopeful expression, Hitomi suddenly shook her head. No, their relationship was over; never again would she expect anything from a person like him. Opening a file folder, she decided to get through the day by thinking of new ideas for the fall line.
Getting out a suitcase, Van quickly packed his belongings while muttering to himself silently. Although living with a client was normally a part of the contract, Van still disliked having to move his things all the time, switching from client to client. Taking a quick break he lied down on his bed and thought about his client. She was certainly different than the other ones he's had in both manner and appearance. Though he had only met her yesterday, Van could tell that Hitomi was a kind and gentle person, who was weak at heart and very shy. She was also very beautiful, though her first impression would say otherwise. But if she wore contacts instead of glasses, cut her hair short, and wore clothes that outlined her body, then she could be every bit beautiful as the models one sees in magazines. While thinking of Hitomi's knew look, Van didn't notice someone entering his room.
"Sorry to bother, but I'm looking for Dilandau. Do you know where he might be?" A fair haired woman entered Van's room with pale skin and bright eyes. Van quickly sat up and recognized the woman at once.
"Celena!" Celena smiled at Van as he got up to give her a warm and welcoming hug.
"It's been a while hasn't it Van?" Celena let go first and readjusted her now wrinkled shirt before looking back up at Van's smiling face.
"So you're looking for Dilandau? I actually don't know where he is right now but he should be somewhere in this hotel." Though Van's answer didn't help Celena any, he knew that she was still grateful for the response. "I'm actually about to leave right now but we can go back to the lobby together if you want."
"Sure. I would like that." Celena smiled and watched as Van quickly finished the rest of his packing. Grabbing the suitcases that held the luggage he and Celena walked through the door towards the lobby.
"Though it was short, it was a nice walk." Celena and Van laughed together before snake-like arms wrapped themselves tightly around Celena's waist.
"What brings you here today my darling?" Dilandau whispered softly into her ear as he hugged her tightly from behind. Giggling, Celena turned around to return the embrace.
"Dilandau, I missed you last night." Celena kissed his cheek lightly before pulling away from his embrace. "I missed you quite literally."
"What do you mean?" Dilandau gave a confused expression as he kept staring at Celena's smiling cheerful face.
"You were with a client last night." Dilandau suddenly became horrified and tried to turn around and run to his room. Unfortunately for him Celena already had a tight grip on his arm. "I saw you walk into a hotel last night with one of your clients. I don't quite understand why because I would have thought that you'd remember what you promised me."
Whimpering in pain, Dilandau turned towards Celena and gave a painful but sheepish grin. As he tried to explain himself, Celena suddenly became violent. As Van watched Celena yelling and screaming at Dilandau who was trying to defend himself from her continuous attacks, he felt sorry for his good friend. He had to admit that it was amazing how long their relationship had lasted or even for Celena to accept him as a host. But as amazing as their relationship was, it was still one of ups and downs. Though they acted as if they hated being in a relationship, the truth was that deep down they loved each other more than anything in the world. And because of that love, they decided to get married. However, the deal was that Dilandau would not sleep with any of his clients and that he'd quit after their marriage. Of course Dilandau was disappointed but if she had set those rules than he'd be more than happy to comply. The screaming had died down on account of Folken's intrusion and now Dilandau was on his knees while holding a pouting Celena around the waist while apologizing over and over again. Oh yeah, that boy was definitely a whipped dog. Chuckling to himself, Van waved goodbye to Celena as she left after saying what she had to say and doing what she came to do.
"Damn, that woman is a beast." Dilandau stood up and brushed a hand through his hair as he sighed. "But I love her so it can't be helped."
"You're such a masochist." Walking over to join in with his brother and best friend, Van smiled as Dilandau glared at him with a look to kill.
"Try saying that one more time Fanel and I'll beat you to a bloody pulp." Dilandau grabbed his friend and put him into a headlock while preparing to give him an extra painful noogie. But before Dilandau could bestow his gift, Folken separated the two.
"Don't forget Dilandau that Van is still doing his job. You wouldn't want to ruin his pretty face now would you?" Smiling to himself, Folken held up Van's luggage, which had somehow made their way towards the group. While thinking of how efficient Guimel and Shesta were, Van took his brother's keys, grabbed his luggage then headed out the door.
"Do try to make Hitomi happy, Van." Van smirked as he left and Folken smiled. It was time to get back to work, now that the commotion was taken care of, and Folken slowly walked away, back to his office.
"You didn't tell him did you?" Dilandau turned to his boss before he walked away completely. Without having to turn around, Dilandau knew that Folken was smiling to himself.
"What Van doesn't know won't hurt him." Walking away once more, Dilandau just stared at Folken's back.
"You're really a cruel person Folken." Laughing, Dilandau walked towards his room and the lobby became silent once more.
Van waited patiently outside the tall building after parking the car just across the street. After looking up Hitomi's name in the file at the hotel, he had managed to find out where she worked. Then, like the perfect lover, he waited outside her workplace so that he could pick her up and take her home. Feeling uneasy, Van leaned against the building and checked his watch. It was nearly six and if he didn't know better, he could've sworn that Hitomi had mentioned something about finishing around five. He looked up towards the sky and closed his eyes. He began to remember Hitomi's crying face and how it begged him to stay and comfort her. He remembered how vulnerable and pitiful she looked. Just who was this guy to make a grown woman cry so much? As he pondered on the thought he didn't see the two women walking out the entrance.
"Van?" Hitomi stopped in her tracks and stared at the young man who now stared back.
"I thought you finish around five. Geez, you made me wait an hour." Van pushed himself off the wall and headed over to her. Grabbing her hand, he turned to the other woman and spoke. "I'm sorry Ms. Uchida but I'll be taking Kanzaki home from now on. You can continue to come in the morning but when she's done I'll always be here waiting."
"W–wait! Van!" Van dragged the pleading Hitomi across the street towards the car leaving a speechless Yukari. Leading Hitomi up onto the sidewalk, Van unlocked the door. The opening it, he waited for Hitomi to get in. When she wasn't moving to get into the car, Van looked at her curiously and saw that she was blushing furiously.
"What's wrong? Aren't you going to get in?" Van continued to look at her intently. Just as he made a movement to touch her, Hitomi flinched. Noticing Van stopped. "Is it because I held your hand? You don't have to be so embarrassed about it."
Hitomi turned to face Van with her mouth wide open, in an effort to speak. But before the words could ever come out of her mouth, someone had called her name from behind.
"Hitomi?" A handsome blonde haired man walked arm in arm with a just as beautiful woman by his side. He stopped as he called her name and saw her turn around. Hitomi didn't know what was more embarrassing, letting Van grab her hand or meeting her ex while Van was with her. In a state of shock, Hitomi couldn't seem to find any words to say and kept staring at the two who stared just as strangely in return. It was then that she noticed the silver band on the young woman's finger. So the rumors that were circulating around the office later in the day were true; he was getting married.
"Is he a friend of yours Kanzaki?" Shutting the door, Van put an arm around Hitomi's shoulder while looking at the couple with a gentle smile on his face. "You should introduce me."
"Hitomi, who is this?" Although it wasn't meant as a question of accusation, to his fiancé it seemed as if he still cared for Hitomi.
"Hitomi, is he your new boyfriend? He's really handsome." Hitomi blushed again as she felt Van tighten the arm around her shoulders almost in a protective gesture. It was more than enough to see her ex at a time like this but it was worse seeing him with the woman who stole him from her. Not only that but she saw this woman everyday in the office. Though they acted like friends and partners, the beautiful Millerna Aston, always managed to appear as if she was the saint. Hitomi muttered something quickly to Van before trying to move closer to the car. "Allen, it's getting late. We should go soon. Father and mother will be expecting a visit tonight."
As Millerna lead Allen away, Hitomi hurried into the car. But just before she closed the door she heard Van speak.
"By the way, my name is Van Fanel." Allen turned towards Van from the other side of the street and stared. "Thanks for getting engaged, because if it wasn't for that then I'd never have met Kanzaki. Oh and good thing you'd didn't get her pregnant because it'd be sad to see her take care of her child without the real father."
After saying all that he had to say, Van got into the car and started the engine. Looking out from his side of the window, she saw that Allen had remained where he stood almost in shock. As they drove away, Hitomi tried to think of some reason as to why Van would say something so strange. She wanted to ask Van as he drove, but when she looked up at his face she saw something in his eyes that made her silent. He was angry but for what reason Hitomi couldn't understand. Trying not to think of it too deeply, Hitomi leaned back in her seat and stared at the road from her window. Though the silence was unpleasant, Hitomi dealt with it as best she could. After all who in their right mind would bother an angry man behind the wheel of a car?
A/N: my back is in so much pain right now . . . i think it's because i sit and lie down in uncomfortable positions. so i had my mom rub some icy-hot stuff on it. i don't think it's really helping all that much. well another chapter is done for Paradise Hotel and i'm glad because this weekend i'm getting myself ready to move into the dorms. yay for college! i'm also packing my things to get ready to move to another location. i swear my family moves too much. uhmm an update on My Loving Tsubasa No Kami:once i finishing typing up the next chapter it should be up around the beginning of october if not mid at the latest so no worries there. anyway thanks for reading and remember to review please! until next time!