Liberation

chapter 4

chapter 4: Exposed

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Sayaka asks.

Midari walks past her. "Of course it is. I booked it myself. Nice place, right?"

Sayaka's eyes remain on the lavish hotel towering over them. It was a far cry from the motel in middle school.

"Where did you even get the money for this?"

"Oh, that. I borrowed some from the Council," Midari admitted nonchalantly. "No biggie."

"What?! Why would you do that? How much did you take?"

"A few million."

"I can't believe you. Now I have to redo the budget."

"Calm down would ya? You can fix it." Midari patted her shoulder.

Aggravated, Sayaka ignored her last comment and stormed into the building. Midari followed her into the reception.

"Uhh, we have a reservation for Ikishima," she told the receptionist.

The young woman behind the desk typed on the computer. "Alright. Your suite is on the twenty-fourth floor, room 8706. Here's your room ke—"

She stopped talking when she looked up at Midari. Like many people she's encountered, the receptionist stared at her for a moment, taking in the eyepatch and piercings.

She coughs and averts her gaze. "I apologize. Here's your room key."

Midari shrugs it off. She's gotten worse reactions. "Thanks."

Sayaka follows her into the elevator. She was still mad at Midari but she was cooling down. For now, she didn't say a word. It was silent until Midari opened the door.

"Oh my god," Sayaka breathed as she looked around the room.

Midari drops the bags she was holding. She runs around the room while Sayaka stood frozen in front of the door.

"Yo! Check this out!" could be heard from another room. Sayaka could hear Midari jumping around and yelling. "This is awesome! Sayaka c'mere. You hafta see this!"

Still in shock, Sayaka follows her voice. As she explores, she tries to take in everything. The polished marble floors reflected the light illuminating the room. The large windows in the living room area presented a perfect view of the city skyline. Just by looking at it, Sayaka could tell the couch was an expensive genuine leather. Even the entertainment system was state of the art. Sayaka found Midari jumping on the large king sized bed.

"Look, Sayaka!" she called. "This bed is huge ."

"I-I can see that," Sayaka stutters, still shocked.

"I bet yours is the same."

Sayaka furrowed her brows. "Mine?"

"Yeah. I got a two bedroom suite."

Sayaka doubles back and tries to find her room. She opens a door. It was a small coat closet. She opens the door next to the couch. It was a large bathroom. It even had a jacuzzi. Sayaka made a mental note to try that during their stay. She opens another door and finally sees a bed just as big as Midari's. She sits and is instantly surprised by the softness. She lies back and stretches her arms. She could sleep here forever. She grabs one of the fluffy pillows mad hugs it to her chest. She sighed. Sayaka started to doze off.

"Told you it was awesome," Midari cried.

Sayaka jerked as she was startled. Midari didn't even seem to notice.

"Have you seen the bathroom yet? I can't wait to try out the jacuzzi. Oh, we should also..."

Sayaka tuned her out as she began her rant again. She mentally went over their itinerary for the next week. Today they were resting after the long flight. Tomorrow was Saturday. They were going to find some good places to eat and take a walk around the city. Sunday was the concert. On Monday, Sayaka wanted to visit a few museums in the area while Midari sleeps the day away or whatever she decides to do. They planned to go to the waterpark on Tuesday. Midari was getting more piercings and a tattoo on Wednesday. Thursday was their last day and Midari wanted to go to the beach. Besides having to watch Midari as she gets a tattoo, Sayaka was satisfied with their arrangements.