Chapter 130. Rosa’s Birthday (3/10)

All… head out? What did she mean by that? Yeah, playing stupid isn’t going to change reality no matter how hard I wish.

“Rosa, you invited Alicia to go with us as well?” I asked her while Alicia wasn’t around.

“Of course. It’ll be more fun that way.” She said that as if it was a matter of fact.

“But… we only booked one room with two beds though.”

“That’s no problem, you sleep on one and we’ll sleep on the other.”

“You think Alicia will be fine with that arrangement? Sleeping in the same room as me?”

“It will be fine. Don’t worry about it so much.”

“If you say so.”

“By the way, what about me?”

“What do you mean, what about you?”

“You say it to Alicia but not me?”

“I’ve said it to you many times already, haven’t I l?”

“It’s my birthday, yet you told another girl you loved her in front of me before you even said it to the birthday girl herself.”

“If I say it too much they’ll just become worthless words that don’t mean anything though.”

She puffed out one cheek dissatisfied and grumbled, “I love you.” She looked at me ready to murder me if I didn’t say it back.

“Hahaha. Fine, I get it. I get it. I love you too.”

“Who do you love?”

“Isn’t it implied? It’s just the two of us here.”

“Maybe there are ghosts around us that only you can see.”

“Oh? Was that who you said you loved just now? I’m sorry for misunderstanding.”

“I love you, Ran.” She was clearly fuming.

“I love you too, Rosa.”

“Then just say so next time! Jeez, why do I have to pick a fight for you to say it to me and Alicia gets a free hand out? Where is the equality in this world? Is it because she’s so innocent and easy to tease and I’m not?”

“Yeah, it’s definitely that. You just want to bully her and see her get embarrassed when she’s still so innocent and new to it.”

“I’m going to tell her everything you said. I’ll make sure your cheap tricks won’t even make a single dent in her armor. I’ll make it so she’s the one who’s bullying and teasing you, just wait.”

“Good luck with that.”

When Alicia returned, she had a bag in hand with a box inside it. It was definitely Rosa’s cake that she baked the day before. I guess the plan was to eat it at the hotel rather than here.

‘Let’s go! We’re losing money every second we delay.” Alicia grabbed Rosa by the hand and dragged her along. What was she in such a rush for? We still had to wait for the bus. Honestly, it looked more like she was scared I’d suddenly propose to her next. Was this what they called PTSD? Where she’d associate me saying I love her with me boldly kissing her before I propose?

I immediately stopped her and said, “Don’t be in such a rush. It will be a while before the bus gets here. Rather than going in your school uniform, take the chance to change into some casual clothes. Also, grab some indoor clothes for the hotel and carry your uniform in your bags for the morning.”

“Oh! You’re right! How could I forget about that?” Because you’re flustered and want to flee, afraid I’ll corner you, drop down to one knee, and randomly propose to you on the spot.

The two of them headed up to their shared room and changed as I’d suggested. They both returned with a bulging bag on their back.

They’d definitely packed a lot more than what I told them to. Well, they were girls, I suppose it was expected that they’d need a lot more things than a simplistic guy like me. A change of clothes was all I required.

With all our necessities for a night out together, we caught the next bus.

When we arrived at the hotel, as we were already checked in we headed right up to our room.

Our room was on the twelfth floor. The hotel had a swimming pool on the roof which we planned to visit a bit later.

Before that, we had to drop our stuff off in our rooms first. The second inserted the key card, pulled it out, and opened the door, I immediately froze in place.

I didn’t take a step in.

“Hey, what are you doing? Why aren’t you going in?” Rosa asked curiously from behind.

I closed the door and took a deep breath while I calmly processed what I saw inside the room.

“Is something wrong with the room? Has it been left in a mess or something?” Alicia probed when she saw my bizarre out-of-place reaction.

“No, it’s not a mess… I just think I’m seeing things incorrectly. Let me just reconfirm one more time.”

I put the key card back in and cracked open the door a bit. I verified my eyes hadn’t deceived me and I shut the door closed for the second time.

I calmly pulled out my phone and sent Irene a text message in all caps, ‘I SPECIFICALLY SAID TO GET THE ONE WITH TWO BEDS, DID I NOT!’

An immediate reply came as if she was ready in advance, ‘Whaaaaat? But it was cheaper for one bed. Just share, it’s with your girlfriend, right? It’s not a big deal~”

‘Your daughter also tagged along!’

‘Really? Even better then. They’re both your girlfriends, right? As they say, three heads are better than one.’

‘Don’t screw with me, it’s two heads! Two! Not three!’

‘What? You mean I remembered it wrong? But online there were results for three~ why~?’

Really? I got distracted and couldn’t help but do a search.

My eyes opened a bit wider when there really were idiots using three heads instead of two. What the hell? Oh, I see, I see. Another country uses three instead of two. So that’s where it comes from.

I never even knew that.

WAIT! Don’t try to distract me!

‘Irene, fix this. Now. I’ll pay.’

‘Don’t wanna~ I’m at work~ just suck it up and deal with it. Stop being a little bitch~’

Being called a little bitch, I grit my teeth and took in a deep breath.

‘Fine. I get it. Just don’t come crying to me if anything weird happens.’

“Do it, pussy. You won’t.’

I locked my phone off and ignored everything she sent after that.

She could get pretty snappy through texts. I learned that about her today.

I opened the door for the third time and stepped inside.

“One bed?” Alicia asked.

“It seems so. I requested two beds, but it seems your mother went with the cheaper option.”

“That… sounds like something she would do.”

“I can sleep on the couch in the corner and you two can share the bed.” It was a one-seater so I’d have to sleep while sitting up.

“No way, let’s all just use the bed,” Alicia innocently suggested.

“You’re fine with that?”

“If Rosa sleeps between us it shouldn’t be a big deal, right? From what Rosa told me, you two are used to sharing a bed, right? We’re both in a relationship with you… so… I think it’s something I should get used to eventually…” She averted her eyes toward the bed as she struggled to get the latter part of her explanation out.

“Well, it’s your choice I guess. I offered, just don’t complain if you can’t fall asleep later because of me.”

“I won’t complain. I’ll just kick you off the bed while you’re asleep if I really can’t sleep.”

“How heartless. I thought you were supposed to be a good girl.”

“I am a good girl. I’m protecting my best friend Rosa from you by kicking you off the bed. Aren’t I kind?”

She justified her actions in such a manner.

“Right. Right. You’re truly a role model.”

I dumped my bag on the couch and took a seat on the bed on the left side of the room. It was nice and bouncy, very springy. The comforter covering the bed was soft and fluffy. The bed was completely white; both pillows and sheets.

There was a table beside the window with a wooden chair and a lamp on the desk. A dresser directly across from the bed where you could store your clothes. A flat-screen TV was mounted to the wall over top of the dresser. The entryway had a closet with an ironing rack and a mirror sliding door. Right as you entered, on the immediate left was a door that led to the bathroom.

Honestly, it was a very standard hotel layout. I’d been to several hotels together with my mother and a lot of them had a very similar design. I imagined there was probably some science behind it. 

From an engineering standpoint at least, it probably reduced piping to minimize how far water would need to be pumped up against gravity. It could also reduce electrical wiring costs during construction. You could minimize the material used in both of these cases I suppose. With the bathroom where it was, it allowed for a much larger window for guests to look out of and admire the scenery.

If I thought about it from that perspective, it did make sense why so many hotels adopted such a simple layout. But there was no point in seriously trying to figure it all out.