The Elite (Editting)

Chapter 19: Hermes' Hotel

"Is that it? I'd like to go to sleep now," I replied. I was still thoroughly annoyed with him.

"No, its not. No telling people who we are, why we're here or where we're going." 'As if, I don't even know where we're going or why we were here.' Gabriel kept droning on about rules for me to obey and I zoned out and nodded whenever he took a breath. "Are you listening?"

"Yes, sir, drill sergeant, sir!" I stood and saluted Gabriel before dropping my arm.

"Donatella, I don't want it to be like this between us," he reached his hand out to take mine.

I pulled back my hand and took a step back. "No Gabriel, we aren't going to keep doing this. You can't kept getting mad at me, then apologizing and expect me to forget! I'm not doing it anymore Gabe."

"I know, and I'm sorry. I don't mean for it to be so...complicated between us. It should easier."

"What should be easier? Us getting along?"

"Yes! When the prophesy about us was made, it was foretold that our personalities would clash but we would always get along. It isn't true, you can't stand me and all I want is for us to get along."

"Well, Gabriel, if you didn't have so many different sides, maybe we could get along." Gabriel looked so pitiful. I walked to his bed and sat down. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"No, its fine, glad to know what you really think of me," Gabriel said, pushing up from the bed and crossing the room to the bathroom. His voice was hard and sad.

I followed him to the bathroom before he slammed the door in my face. "Gabriel, don't be like that, I didn't mean it to hurt you. Well I did, but please, I'm sorry." Gabriel didn't say anything. I sunk down to a seated position outside the door. I figured Gabriel would have to come out the bathroom eventually and when he did, I would be waiting for him.

And wait I did. I sat outside of the bathroom door for two hours before giving up and climbing into my bed to go to sleep for the night.

"Wake up Donatella," Gabriel's voice greeted me early the next morning. His voice was gruff and thick with the sounds of sleep. I rolled over and crashed into the cream colored wall next to my bed.

"Gabriel, I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean it, I was angry," I said as I collected myself from the floor of the hotel room. I crossed the room to Gabriel's side and apologized to him repeatedly.

Gabriel completely ignored me as he proceed to comb through my bag of clothes and essentials. "Here, wear this," he said, throwing a sturdy looking pair of jeans and a sweatshirt at me. I threw my hands up to catch the items before a pair of men's hiking boots flew my way. I narrowly missed getting hit in the head by ducking at the last moment.

"Okay," I replied. I could almost hear the hopelessness in my tone. 'Look at me, always messing something up.' I carried the clothes with me to the bathroom and closed the door. My hands found their way to the controls of the shower and turned the water temperature to just below scorching hot. I quickly stripped out of the clothes I'd been wearing for what felt like a week and jumped under the warm stream of water.

As I stood there washing the dirt and grime from my body, I began to cry. The salty tears ran down my face, mingling with the warm droplets of water as they flowed to the drain at the bottom of the shower. I finished my shower and washed my hair before killing the water and grabbing the towel I had placed near the shower earlier.

I changed into the new set of clothes and used the hotel's hairdryer and blow dried my dark brown hair to its naturally kinky-curled state. A look in the mirror showed me that my eyes and nose were cherry-red. I damped a paper towel and laid it on my eyes, hoping to relieve some of the redness before I had to face Gabriel on the other side of the door.

"Donatella," Gabriel said. He looked at my face and saw the redness I had been trying to hide and pulled me into his arms. I couldn't resist allowing myself to be folded into Gabriel's arms. The tears I had tried to hide burst forth again and turned Gabriel's shirt darker where the tears landed.

"I'm so sorry, Gabe, honest," I said tearfully. I felt his head nod against the top of mine; I was surprised he could even understand me through all the sobbing.

I felt his lips kiss the top of my head. "It is alright belle, you didn't mean it, you were just angry. Right?" he asked.

'But I did mean it, that's the problem. I meant it when I said it but I wasn't trying to hurt him, I was just being honest.' "Right, I didn't mean it."

"Then there's nothing to cry about," he said, letting me go. "Now, stay here, I have business to attend to."

"Stay here, what do you mean stay here?"

"I mean just that. Don't leave the room until I get back," Gabriel answered. He opened the door before turning back to look at me one last time. "If you want something, call for room service."

'What am I supposed to do while Gabriel's gone; I don't even know when he'll be back!' I thought. I sat down on the edge of one of the bed and pondered my options. 'I can always leave the room, as long as I'm back before he is.'