drake ft future - life is good
chapter fifty seven
"it's so ..beautiful." I gasp, looking up at the hotel. "is it even a hotel? it looks like a mansion villa."
diallo chuckles whilst removing our suitcases from the back of the car with the help of quan.
"it's better than a hotel. it's a resort with a whole spa."
"you done a good job diallo." ayana giggles hysterically , clasping her hands together , staring at the hotel in awe. "the pictures I am going to take in here. Instagram ain't ready for me !".
I know that's right.
I was really appreciative that diallo went over the top and took us to a whole resort instead of a hotel. it meant a lot to me.
we walk up to entrance where we were politely greeted by two women holding trays on one hand filled with just the right amount of cocktails for all of us.
both of their faces had the perfect amount of blusher, rose tinted lips & their hair pulled back into a sleek bun, not one strand out of place.
it felt like we were in alice and wonderland.
"Welcome to the town of Scottsdale! Is it your first time here?" the slightly shorter one asked, her eyes beaming with happiness.
"Yeah , we - "
The taller one interrupts diallo." Great! Welcome to the town. We hope whilst you stay here you have time to look around the area and see all its great picturesque scenery."
We all nod our heads frantically, fake smiles plastered over our faces , not sure whether to speak or not without being interrupted.
It was all so funny to me. It felt like we were in a old indie movie.
"Okay, follow us inside so we can show you around the wonderful Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn Resort & Spa!"
we waddled inside behind her where more rosy faces & cheery smiles greeted us.
some men ran out from a room taking our luggage in seconds to our surprise, and piling it onto the trolley.
"your luggage will be in your rooms." they say in unison , giving us a tight lipped smile before disappearing off into a gold elevator.
"do they even know who's luggage is who's ?". I whisper to the group.
"shit, they look like they know everything." quan scoffs.
we all laugh quietly whilst following around one of the women who was telling us about the resort.
"our luxury hotel prides itself on providing guests with attentive service, deluxe amenities, heated outdoor pools, garden terraces and desert trails in the Sonoran Desert." she speaks.
we look through a large, tall glass window where there was an outdoor pool , the water glistening.
"so pretty." I say under my breath.
"take our complimentary shuttle to our 18-hole championship golf courses, or treat yourself to a refreshing massage in our tranquil day spa. savor gourmet dining experiences in our on-site hotel restaurants and bars, or relax in privacy with our resort's large casitas and suites boasting sophisticated furnishings and outdoor living spaces."
we all looked around in awe, even diallo was shocked, as if he didn't order this place himself.
we came to a balcony in the main upper area which overlooked the outside & gave us a wonderful view.
it was so beautiful. the sun was setting, so the sky had tinge of purple transcending into yellow.
"you like it?" diallo whispers to me whilst everyone talked about the picture perfect view.
"yeah." I reply dreamily. I touch his hand softly. "thank you for this. you didn't have to."
"it's my pleasure shawty. honestly. we all need a break from life. i'm glad you even came up with idea." he chuckles, squeezing my hand.
I was a bit startled by his hand touching mine, I mean we have slept right next to each other but this just felt like a different type of touch..
"i'm glad i did too." I smile, looking away from him and back at the sunset.
my hand gently squeezing his back.
~
lauryn hill - I used to , played quietly as I applied the last of the coconut oil in my hands on my legs.
vanessa had put me onto this song and I couldn't stop listening to it.
old school music was always relaxing to me.
my makeup and hair were done, my outfit was on & I smelt like a billionaire.
I was so ready for dinner with everyone tonight. I hadn't eaten since we left and my stomach was screaming for food.
I open my text from ayana.
ayana: you ready?
me: yea, i'll meet you downstairs ?
ayana: okayyyy, i'm going down now
me: okay see you there 😙
I look at myself one more time on the mirror before making my way through the dimly lit resort.
everything about this place was perfect. the lighting set the mood & was changed accordingly to the time of day, as it was 7pm the sky was darkening and the lights in the hotel restaurant were dim.
the interior of the building was perfect. the colour scheme made so much sense.
I have to give diallo credit where it's due. he really has wow'ed me.
"isn't it gorgeous?" ayana sighs, doing a 360 in her stilettos before staring at me. "wow ryan, you look amazing. let's get some pictures."
"thank you , so do you !" i blow a kiss before she pulls me away to a hallway with better lighting for pictures.
after taking loads of pictures for instagram we go the dinner room full of other guests with their partners or family.
it wasn't much people though, only around five different groups. this place seems like it's hard to get a reservation. i'm surprised diallo has even got us in here.
they pull out our seats at a round marble table and we sit down , making ourselves comfortable.
"where's diallo?" i ask quan.
"he's on the phone to his moms, should be down soon though. why you got a crush on mans or somethin'?" he jokes.
i roll my eyes. "no."
"trust me quan, enais and I thought she was lying but i'm starting to believe that they really don't like each other how we think they do. they just look like best friends to me. i'm done with the made up love story." ayana surrenders.
quan shrugs. "i feel ya. aight we done with the jokes now."
i huff. "finally."
they both laugh at me as I stick a middle finger up.
I was just glad they would stop with their fantasies of me and diallo ever being a thing.
"isn't this menu amazing?" i smile, as i see dishes with chicken.
"check out the chefs too." quan points to the rear end of the dining area where there was a large kitchen full of chefs working extremely fast, perfecting every single dish.
"this is unreal." ayana says.
"it is." a voice agrees.
I turn to see diallo coming from behind us, joining us at the table.
he looked really well put together and so handsome.
like.. really handsome.
"glad to see everyone's put in effort." I grin, throwing an indirect compliment his way.
his eyes meet mine from across the table , his eyes darting down and then upwards , taking all of me in.
"yeah.." he nods slowly. "a lot of effort."
ayana and quan were too busy taking pictures of each other from across the table to even notice the whole vibe on our table had changed.
diallo's eyes lingered some more before I looked away. it was getting too much and I was feeling things I didn't understand.
I looked over the menu to distract myself, just on cue as everyone else began to look over the menu.
the food was american cuisine. I wasn't too surprised as the restaurant was called lincoln steakhouse & bar.
I mentally noted down my order as diallo called over a waiter.
a young woman came over with a ipad which I assume was to take our order down.
"yes madam?"
I place my order , then everyone else does the same.
our drinks came first.
I had got a long island iced tea. it was quite strong but this was a whole holiday.
everyone else ordered some sort of colourful concoction , all of us sipping away.
a slow instrumental played in the background as voices filled the room.
"guys don't get too carried away with the cocktails as we are going to a bar after on the beach where they're doing cocktails until 2am." diallo notes.
"that's what I like to hear." quan daps him up and ayana claps her hands together like a little girl.
I was excited for that because when i'm tipsy i'm even more fun than usual.
"let's make a toast." ayana suggests.
we all grab our glasses and look to diallo.
"oh shit, yall want me to do it?" he laughs.
"yeah, you got us this amazing hotel, it's only right." I say.
he shrugs and clears his throat. "a toast to good friends and good memories."
we all touch our glasses together before taking a sip.
ayana and I take some pictures of the drinks and the dining area for our instagram stories and then take some selfies for memories.
quan and diallo were doing their own thing. talking about guy stuff.
boring !
"this is amazing ryan." ayana whispers to me.
"I know." I breathe in, looking around once more at the tranquil setting we were in. "it's amazing."
our food finally arrives all at once which was a relief as I hated waiting for every plate to come like most restaurants do.
everyone's meals looked so tasty.
we took pictures of the table covered in plates & decided to share our starters with one another.
instead of ordering starters first , then mains .. we decided to get both in one go.
as for dessert, we would of course have that separately.
my meal was grilled steak & mashed potatoes. there was also the cutest complimentary salad on the side.
"this shit bussin'." quan says through mouthfuls of salmon. "excuse my french but i don't give a fuck."
i snort , almost choking on the remaining potato sliding down my throat.
he was so funny without realising. he did not care about any type of etiquette where ever we went.
"you can take quan out the hood but not the hood out of quan." ayana giggles.
quan nods his head like a little boy. "you know that's right baby."
i roll my eyes while diallo chuckles. our eyes meet again before parting ways as the waitress comes over.
"so glad to see you've enjoyed our food. our chefs go above and beyond to make sure we offer high quality food with high quality service!"
"now, would you like dessert? we recommend our award winning new york cheesecake. it has a unique flair to it that only lincoln steakhouse can achieve!" she chimes.
I gulp, feeling slightly under pressure as if she was only talking to me.
everything about the employees was so professional and perfect. you would think they rehearse their lines before starting the day.
"you know what?" diallo begins, wiping his mouth with his napkin. "we've ate a lot ma'am & we're about to drink some more alcohol. cheesecake and a martini sounds nice before you end up in the toilet regretting ever mixing the two. don't you agree?"
we all chuckle, including the waitress who returned back to a tight lipped smile as if her boss was watching her every move making sure she didn't stray away from her lines.
it was kinda cute how they wanted to be so on point with everything.
"i agree sir. would you like to pay or would you like a few moments to work out the bill first?"
"no need to work out the bill, we've decided to split it between all four of us." he responds.
she was right. we had discussed on the way here that we would split the bill at all times to avoid confusion or drama.
plus, none of us were selfish. we made sure not to go too crazy on the menu & to be mindful of each other's wallets so that when it came for the time to pay, there wasn't a $100 charge for just one person that we all had to cover.
it was so relaxing having a mini vacation with easy going people.
after paying for our food we made our way back to our rooms to quickly change for the beach just below the hotel.
it was around 8.40 pm by now and the beach area closed at midnight so we had more than enough time to get tipsy and maybe even drunk.
although i was worried about ayana and quan. Lord knows they couldn't handle themselves at her mom's wedding.
let's see what the night brings.
•
the beach area.
the hotel rooms
lincoln steakhouse & bar restaurant