It had been a busy transport. B'Elanna was stressed from taking care of Miral, who had gotten sick 10 minutes into the flight. Tom had tried to help, but it was crowded and hot, and B'Elanna told him he was making things more difficult. I almost offered to hold Miral, but after she puked on B'Elanna and Tom, I decided against the idea.
We were all quite happy when we finally arrived in Paris. The fresh air was refreshing, and the atmosphere was very different than that of San Francisco's. Although every native to Earth could speak English these days, most cultures still spoke their native languages. It was interesting to hear the people at the station talk to one another in French. To me, English was over rated- most species in the Federation knew it.
Our hotel was just minutes away from the transport station, so we walked there, hauling our bags with us. The weather in France was cool; much unlike San Francisco. There was a slight breeze, carrying with it the scent of bread, cheese, and wine. I wondered if all of France smelled this good, or if it was just Paris. As we walked, I could feel the heavy burden on my shoulders lift, and I sighed with relief.
"Harry?" Tom asked.
"Yeah, Tom?"
"I was just wondering why you sighed. Are you alright?"
"Oh. Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Great, actually!" I replied eagerly. Apparently, I responded with a little too much enthusiasm, for Tom looked at B'Elanna, who nodded her head and smiled. Tom smiled back, and held his arms out to hold Miral for a while.
Then the burden was back.
Watching them –B'Elanna, Tom, and Miral- together as a family, caring for each other, helping each other out when they need it most, made me remember that I had no real family. Oh, sure. My mom. My dad. I was happy that my parents were still alive, but I wanted something more. I wanted a family of my own. A part of me felt guilty for coveting what Tom had; another part of me didn't care if coveting something you didn't have was a sin or not.
We reached our hotel, and checked in. From the looks of the lobby, the place was huge. The clerks were very helpful –they even carried our luggage up for us. They gave us three room keys; one for Tom, one for B'Elanna, and one for myself. The clerks left us, and we opened the door to the suite.
It was more than I expected.
It had two bedrooms, a living room, a dining room, and a kitchen. Each room connected to its own bathroom. We had a marvelous view of the Eiffel Tower, along with streets filled with markets and shops. It looked like something from a post card; and I felt like royalty. I'd been to many places, and I'd seen many sites, but nothing could compare to Paris.
"Harry, if you don't mind, B'Elanna and I need to larger room because of Miral. Is that alright?" Tom asked as he set his and B'Elanna suitcases on the floor.
"Sure," I said. "I only need a place to sleep and use the bathroom. Besides, I don't have a wife…or a kid." I mumbled. Tom must have caught on to my mood, for he smiled apologetically at me, and then went with B'Elanna to their room, leaving me alone.
Alone. That was the last thing I wanted to be.
I picked up my suitcase, and made my way to my room. It wasn't that small at all; it was larger than the room I had at my parent's house in Korea. To my left was an antique-looking dresser with eight drawers. To my right, a full length mirror was hanging on the wall. Directly ahead of me was a queen sized bed, complete with a white down comforter, four pillows, and two night stands that looked similar to the dresser on each side. At the foot of the bed was a chest. Curious, I set my luggage down and lifted the lid; it was empty.
I could hear B'Elanna laughing, but I couldn't hear what she was laughing at; Miral was silent, and I could only hear faint noises that must have belonged to Tom. B'Elanna giggled again.
"Tom, not with Harry next door!"
Oh. That explained everything.
I put my clothes away in the dresser; I only filled three of the eight drawers available. Maybe I would find some more clothes in the next month. I set my bathroom up, and then freshened up. The familiar steps that usually comforted me now just made me irritated; brush my teeth, do my hair, wash my face. It was repetitive-and I used to like that. Now it was just like everything else in life.
I heard someone knock on my door, so I quickly rinsed my mouth out and ran to greet whoever it was; of course, it was Tom.
"Hey, Harry, are you ready?"
I touched my hair gently; it felt presentable enough to return to the public with. "Yeah, sure. Where are we going?"
"Sandrine's!"