I hummed a response but didn’t probe further. Instead, my mind drifted to Danny and I said, “Nora, since I won’t be in A City for several days, I trust you to take care of that matter I mentioned to you before. By the way, there’s also Danny. I met him in an alley a while ago. He looked like a pitiful mess, so I told him to come to me if he needs anything. I may need your help on that since I won’t be around for the time being.”
Even through the phone, I could feel her pouting as she answered, “Alright, alright. I got it. Honestly, you’re too kind for your own good. People like Danny are already beyond saving. Why are you getting yourself involved with him? You’ll only bring unnecessary trouble to yourself.”
I chuckled softly and merely said, “Thanks for your help, anyway. I’ll make it up to you!”
She sighed again. “I know.”
After we ended the call, the taxi coincidently arrived at the airport. I got off and took my suitcase before heading toward the boarding gates. When I was collecting my ticket, I inadvertently spotted a friend.
Well, maybe not a friend… she’s more like an acquaintance.
After collecting her ticket, Tessa scanned her surroundings, as if hiding from someone. Then, she walked toward the international boarding gate.
She’s going abroad? Where?
I wasn’t close with her to begin with, so I didn’t intend to approach her and pry for information. As the distance between us increased, I headed to the terminal to wait for my flight.
At some point in time, I had unwittingly developed a habit of reading a book before boarding a plane and all the way to my destination. But I was happy about it since it was a good habit.
The flight lasted for four hours. By the time I arrived in K City, it was already quite late. I fished out my phone and checked my WhatsApp. Even though I didn’t receive any messages from Ashton, I didn’t feel that sad about it.
It was eight o’clock in the evening and I wondered if Summer was still awake. After giving it some thought, I dismissed the idea of calling her and took a cab to a hotel, planning to see Summer the next morning instead.
When I reached the hotel, I approached the front desk to settle the check-in procedures. To my dismay, the lady working the desk was quite slow at her job. She spoke on the phone while handling my check-in information, and would occasionally throw apologetic glances at me.
I wasn’t exactly in a hurry, so I would smile in response without rushing her.
After she put down the phone, she sent me another apologetic look and stated, “I’m sorry, Miss. Our hotel is fully booked. We can’t check you in anymore.”
I was dumbfounded. “But it’s only eight.”
She smiled and patiently explained, “Well, Independence Day is coming soon, so our hotel is mostly receiving tourists groups lately. Individual guests usually have to arrive earlier to book a room, so I’m really sorry!”
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