HOTEL CORTEZ.
I took a step closer to the direction of the eerie building, noticing the way a curtain shifted on the first floor. The movement was accompanied by the front doors opening slightly, enough to reveal a figure wearing a luxurious blue suit walk past.
Before I could take another step, a hand wrapped around my arm and I gasped at the unexpected action.
"There you are! I was wondering where you were, bitch!" Queenie cried out with a smile so sweet, it would give any bystander a cavity. "What are you doing standing out here? Let's eat!"
She dragged me, rather forcefully, towards the restaurant, raving about the food she ordered. We sat down at the table and I noticed that she ordered me some Pepsi, which was coincidentally my go-to drink when I didn't feel like ordering alcohol.
"I got us the shrimp fried rice, pork dumplings, sweet and sour fish, some spicy chicken, and these-Hey! Are you listening?" I blinked rapidly, pulling myself away from the reverie I had trapped myself in. I was met with Queenie's angered glare and shrunk back slightly at the intensity of her stare.
"Sorry, I was distracted... It's just... That hotel across the street." My bottom lip was caught between my teeth as I thought about the stranger in the blue suit. "It's so creepy..."
"Oh! The Hotel Cortez?" Interested sparked in Queenie's dark brown eyes and she leaned in, placing her chin in the crook of her hand. "I've been there. I know it looks like shit outside, but it looks better inside... Kind of."
"Did you really stay there? The place looks like it's crawling with ghosts." I chuckled and Queenie joined in, her eyes straying away from me and towards a window that pointed directly at the hotel.
"I have a good... friend... that stays at the hotel. He and I played cards a lot before we... lost connection." She murmured, a shadow of a smile haunting her lips as a hint of fondness clouded her pupils.
"Oh no, I'm sorry. What happened?"
"Well, he and I had a rough start to begin with. He's cocky, old-fashioned, and constantly begging for attention." Sadness tainted the smile threatening to break free from her lips. "You can't blame him though. He's alone and needed someone to connect with. But he was so fucking annoying and I wanted to kill him."
Her gaze flashed over to me and she shot me a wicked grin. "And he was dying to kill me, and succeeded."
My brows scrunched together as I interpreted her words as a metaphor, trying to decipher what she meant. Queenie shook her head and continued to speak.
"Long-story short, we became friends and actually began to get along, despite our differences." Queenie's dark eyes shone with warmth as she spoke about the man in the hotel. "I think both of us were happy to find someone that felt the same way we did... At least, that's how I felt. We met when I had to check in at the hotel after playing the Price is Right."
"After some weird-ass events, I had to stay at the Cortez more and we spent every day together. I liked hanging out with him and beating him at cards. But then..." Queenie trailed off, a tint of sadness laced within her words. "I had to go back to reality and leave the hotel. We haven't spoken since."
"That's awful." I frowned, my heart twisting at her sad tale. My hand clasped her wrist in a comforting manner. "I'm sorry Queenie."
After a few moments of silence, my voice broke into the air. "Do you think you'd ever go in there and see him again? I'm sure he misses you."
"And let him know I missed him too? Girl, please!" Queenie laughed and shook her head. "He wouldn't let me live it down. It would be the only thing he'd talk about! His ego is already big enough."
YOU ARE READING
Twisted Souls || Michael Langdon
Fanfiction"He was consumed with darkness and I was his anchor, tethering him to the light." ~A story where two souls discover the true meaning of salvation in a corrupt world~
