The Jasmine Hotel

1

"Viv! Viv come on" Dad shouted up the stairs.
My dad was a very punctual guy and my mum, well she was definitely not, doing everything and anything at the very last minute. Literally. I guess opposites do attract.

It was Fall Break (October), and for the first part we were meant to be visiting my great aunt. But then there was this whole family fall out and they never wanted to see us again. Not that I wanted to spend any time with that old grump or her clingy kids.

"Oh violet let me come with you, lemme do this with you, lemme do that with you"

Since the plan changed, we had to make a last minute booking, at the Jasmine Hotel. I was looking at their website and it looked pretty cool, kind of eerie and mysterious with old wood and stuff.

I even read up on it and apparently there was like a whole Texas Chain Massacre over there!

I told Dad but he just brushed it off. Vivian, my step mom, was hardly interested, thinking it was just part of this  "phase" I was going through.

"Gosh Ben! I'm coming, I just need to put my shoes on!" Vivian yelled back at Dad.

***

At last when we got into the car and went on our road trip, we arrived at the Hotel. I was genuinely pretty excited, well that was until I actually got to see the hotel itself.

It was in NO way close to what I had been anticipating, in the worst possible way.

I heard Vivian giggle excitedly and tried to start a conversation with me about it but I ignored her. I really despised that waste of human flesh, dressed in pink and fluffy pom-poms.

The hotel was a very modern white and glass building with loads of off-buildings and extensions.

It had very posh, happy and fancy people standing at the entrance, mostly old people going in.

***
Walking in, immediately you get bombarded with the 'unique' smell of Jasmine. Oh how ironic (!)

As I looked around me, my hands came in contact with the pristine white desks and walls, and I sat myself down on one of the sofas to take it in, meanwhile, my parents were sorting out our room keys. I made eye contact with the bell boy, a fairly old man, except I couldn't properly be sure as his face was deformed, not slightly, but majorly. Pretty massive accident it must've been. If it even was an accident.

His left eye was faded, making an obvious implication that he could only see from his right ; making it even creepier when he shot her side glares as he walked past to help this old woman that seemed quite dazed. She was the kind of lady that wore pearly necklaces and bracelets with light pink blazers and pencil skirts. Eugh.

She was ALSO one of those people that just blabbed on and on and being the incredibly nosy person I am, I chose to listen to their conversation.

"Oh yes yes, my husband was a downright idiot! Haha! But he was so wonderful too! Always buying me this or that... Unfortunately he died of causes we are yet to be informed of a couple months ago, and after all that I simply couldn't stay in that house. However he did leave quite a fortune behind for me - as we had no children and his parents died in an awful car crash. Oh but don't think he fortune compensated for his loss.." She trailed on, not sounding too convincing on that last part.

I looked back, nonchalantly, and saw the bellboy looking to the heavens, probably wondering how he came to having to provide his services to crazy old ladies.