AND THE SHOES YOU WORE WITH LONG, BLACK, SATIN LACE
MEL
When Mel decided she was ready to head back to 3CG, she was overwhelmed with the welcome she received from the girls in the office. She never knew how much impact she had on them until the moment she walked through the door and she was bombarded by a group hug. It was a beautiful moment and Mel shed a tear or two.
She also wasn't prepared for what she walked into when she opened her office door. Her office was small anyway, and now it was filled with balloons, flowers, stuffed animals, and mail piled on top of her desk. She
didn't realize the girls were in her doorway until she turned around and asked, "What is all this?"
"Fans," Katie responded, matter-of-factly.
Mel's eyes widened in surprise. "All of it?"
"All of it."
"Uh--well--how did they know?"
"All we know is that someone caught the entire conversation Taylor had with the doctor from the waiting room that night."
"You're kidding..."
"It blew up all over the fan community almost immediately. The app, the forums...all of it. The fans are pretty sure it wasn't staff and we haven't been able to track down the source of the leak."
"Well, there's an asshole lurking in every corner," Mel muttered. "So--so this is all from fans? For me?"
Katie smiled back at her. "For you."
Mel walked in her office and put her bags down, looking around. "Well I have to send thank you cards to all of them."
"All of them?"
"All of them."
"But there are at least 200 gifts and cards there. 200 fans. At LEAST."
"Well, these fans went out of their way to do something they didn't have to do. The least I can do is thank each and every one of them. It's not like I get fan mail on a regular basis like the guys do. I can handle this. If you guys want to help me."
Moments later, Mel sat in her office by herself, opening cards and letters. She immediately began listing each fan's name and address and the card or gift they sent. It would take time, but she was going to do this. It was so sweet of these ladies to think of her when she was virtually a nobody in their world.
She was pondering having the guys sign 200 photos of themselves to include in the mail, when Taylor gently knocked on her door and let himself in. Mel smiled at him knowingly. "I'm fine, Tay. There's no need to
check up on me."
"Wow, what's all this?" he asked her, looking around.
"From fans. Get well cards and such. Wasn't it sweet of them?"
"It's incredible," he responded in awe. "What are you gonna do with it all?"
Mel shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe donate them? Toys to the children's hospital and flowers to the nursing home? Well, the ones that aren't near death anyway..."
Tay sat across from her and smiled, his eyes glittering. "You're fantastic, you know that? Listen, how would you feel about taking a small trip?"
"Soon?"
"Yeah. This month. Maybe for Valentine's Day?"
"Valentine's Day?" Mel had never put much thought into Valentine's Day. It wasn't such a big deal for her. For her, it was another excuse for chocolate and cheap champagne. John used to go all out for Valentine's Day and Mel never understood it. Expensive dinners, expensive jewelry, expensive champagne, the opera, a carriage ride in below freezing weather, fancy black-tie parties...Mel was happy cuddled up at home, but John always seemed to want to show her off. And now here Tay was, making a big deal of it, too. What in the world was the appeal here?
"Yeah. Why not? Maybe somewhere warm...you know, if you think about it, we've never actually taken a vacation together. I mean, not a leisurely one. Not one where one of us wasn't working or anything. Let's go somewhere where we leave our computers at home and just enjoy each other. What do you think?"
Mel felt herself blushing just a little. She had to admit, it did sound pretty good. And lord knew she could definitely use to get out of Tulsa for a couple of days. "For how long?" she asked.
Tay shrugged. "I don't know. A weekend. A week? However long we decide we want to stay."
"Where do you have in mind?"
He looked up in thought. "Um...Coronado Island?"
"Never heard of it."
"It's right outside of San Diego. Gorgeous, historic resort...beautiful beach..."
Mel narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "You already have this booked, don't you?"
"You'll love it."
"I better.'
"I promise."
"Deal."
A smile spread across his face. "So we leave next Thursday. The weather's supposed to be nice. We'll go to dinner, walk on the beach, see the sights...just me and you."
She smiled and chewed on the end of her pen. "Well, at least I get some notice this time."
__________________________________
A week later, as Taylor drove their rental car across the two-mile Coronado Bridge that took them from San Diego to Coronado Island, Mel couldn't stay still in her seat. Her eyes widened at the views all around them. On one side was the San Diego skyline. On the other side was blue ocean, as far as the eye could see. Ahead of her was Coronado Island, set off by gorgeous rolling mountains in the background. She could barely
contain her excitement on that sunny day. New places like this one instantly turned her into an eight-year-old child.
"Tay, slow down, you're going too fast. I wanna look," she said.
He smiled at her and turned his attention back to the road. "I can't slow down, there are other cars behind me."
"Have you ever been here before?"
"Never."
"Well you could at least switch to the outside lane so we can see more."
Tay shook his head. "Uh, no thanks. We're fine where we are, you can see plenty."
Mel briefly scowled at him and let her eyes fall back onto the glittering water below. "I don't understand how you don't seem to have a problem with flying, yet you're so afraid of heights. I don't see how you're even
driving this car."
"Because I can't fall out of a plane--"
"--unless it malfunctions and explodes into a million burning smithereens."
"In which case I would already be dead. Besides, in this lane there's a less likely chance of me getting side-swiped and thrown off this bridge into that water down there."
"There's also the opportunity that you might lose control of this car, hit that guard rail right there, flip over it, and then get sent spinning right off the other side of this bridge and right into that water down there you're trying so hard to avoid."
He narrowed his eyes at her and stole a glance. "You're trying to kill me, aren't you?"
Mel shrugged her shoulders. "I'm just creative that way," she said, matter-of-factly. Then something caught her eye and her eyes widened. Whipping her head around at Tay, she said, "Did you see that sign back there?!"
"Uh, no, I'm trying to get us off this death bridge..."
"It was a sign meant for potential suicide victims. With the suicide hotline number on it! I think I just got goose bumps..."
"Exactly. Right there. Heights kill you. They're practically inviting you to do it. So many people apparently jump off this bridge they have to make a sign for it. Look around. Look at how beautiful the sights are. That's how it gets you, you know. That's how heights kill you and that's why we're snug and cozy right here in this
inside lane."
Mel couldn't argue anymore. Tay was a master at debate.
Coming off the bridge and onto the island, they had a little ways to drive before they got to the resort, but it didn't keep Mel from being glued to the windows. When they pulled up to Hotel del Coronado, her mouth dropped open. "Oh, Tay..." she gasped. "Look at this place!"
There were moments where it was impossible for Mel to take life for granted. No amount of money or opportunity in the world could match the feeling of seeing something for the first time and automatically appreciating the wonder and beauty of it. This was one such time. The Hotel del Coronado was a sprawling Victorian resort, white, with large, red turrets and nothing but blue sky behind it to create the perfect picture.
When Tay pulled the car to the door and unloaded it, allowing the valet to take it off their hands, they could barely get their hands back on their luggage before a bellhop arrived to help transport it.
Walking into the main lobby was like entering a completely different world. Mel's skin crawled in a fun kind of way. It was dark, and entirely of intricate wood. Everything was wood from the ceiling to the counters to the walls. All dark and intricately-detailed. Above them, a dark, wooden balcony that looked over the lobby. Besides the wood, the first thing you laid your eyes on upon entering the lobby was the over-sized chandelier that hung low over a table in the middle, flanked on either side by large, wooden columns. If you didn't get the antique Victorian feel from the outside, you definitely got it from the lobby.
Mel instantly took her camera from her pocket. "Would I be a complete nerd if I played tourist right now?"
Tay had been looking around, relatively awestruck himself, when he smiled at her. "That's what we're here for, right?"
They liked to have never gotten out of that lobby.
Once checked in, the red and gold carpet beneath them was traded for patio blocks and boardwalks as they were lead to Beach Village, the part of the resort that housed the cottages and villas. Unlocking the door to a ground floor junior suite cottage, Mel smiled when they walked in the door. The bellhop went over various amenities and activities offered by the resort and then left them alone. The suite was small, with a slightly open floor plan, housing a small bedroom with a king size bed, a bathroom with a luxuriously deep tub, and a small sitting area with a comfy loveseat and armchair, surrounded by large windows with a perfect view of the ocean. Mel's favorite part was walking out onto the patio-style porch and being face-to-face with the ocean.
"Tay," she smiled. "This is too much. I would have been just as happy in a regular room."
"Here we have privacy. No neighbors, no noise, no making awkward niceties in the hallway..." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. "Here, we're tucked away, seemingly secluded, where nobody can find
us. Just you, me, and the ocean."
She returned his smile. "I already never want to leave."
It was late afternoon when they'd arrived and they'd been traveling all day, so they were both exhausted. Intending to take a nap, but now too excited to sleep, Mel sat cross-legged on the bed while Tay lay beside her, one arm tucked behind his head, the other one flipping channels on the television above the fireplace. Mel was leafing through an informational binder about the resort, anxious to know all there was to know, when suddenly her heart started racing in fearful joy. "Tay!" she said excitedly, incessantly patting his ankle beside her. "Tay, guess what?"
He chuckled at her. "Mel, I'm right here. What's up?"
She looked behind her back at him and grinned. "This hotel has a ghost!"
________________________________
TAYLOR
Taylor didn't believe in ghosts. He knew Mel didn't, either, but he knew she liked the idea. She always said that while she wasn't a believer now, there could always come a time where she could be made into one. Who
was he to argue with that logic?
The sparkle in her eye at the suggestion of an early, casual dinner and a ghost hunt to follow made her hard to resist. Since the miscarriage the previous month, all he wanted was to see her happy. If a silly little ghost story did it for her, he was happy to play along.
They ventured to the main hotel and had dinner in the casually-set sports bar. While interested in his surroundings, Mel hardly paid attention. Her mouth was a mile a minute. "So her name was Kate Morgan, but she went by an assumed name, Lottie Bernard, right? Apparently she checked in alone or something, I dunno. I'd love to know why she felt the need to use an assumed name! Anyway, she was supposed to be meeting
her estranged husband or something and was pregnant and then was found dead by gunshot wound on one of the decks or something on the way to the beach. Suicide, they say. And she still haunts here, to this very
day!"
"Well what would make a ghost NOT haunt?"
Mel looked at him quizzically.
"You said 'still haunts here till this day.' I mean, as opposed to what? She's a ghost. Where's she gonna go?"
She shot daggers at him from across the table and he couldn't help but laugh. As she chattered on about a haunted room, he let it go in one ear and out the other. Instead, he found himself forever grateful that the two
of them could sit and talk like this and that she could confide in him with her silly little fantasies. She was his best friend, as well as his fiancée. Looking across the table at her, spirited in her conversation, he fell in love with her all over again.
After dinner, Mel practically dragged Tay to the lobby of the hotel. She paused long enough to slow her walking to look around once again. He couldn't blame her there. If they were going to make a history trip out of this, he planned to find out what went into the architecture of this room.
Making a beeline to the front desk, Mel wasted no time asking the receptionist, "Is there someone we can talk to about your ghost? I mean, is it too late?"
The receptionist took one good glance at Tay and then her face lit up as she smiled at Mel. There was always one, somewhere. Sometimes he was grateful, other times he wished he didn't exist. This time, he was
incredibly grateful. "Yes, ma'am," she said enthusiastically. Then she winked at her. "No time is too late for a good ghost story. And most times, the later the better."
Mel's grin matched the receptionist's. "That's what I'm talking about!"
The receptionist giggled and said, "Give me a minute and I will find someone who can help you further."
Tay was nearly embarrassed. He felt bad for pulling someone off their job at this time of night just to do a little ghost-hunting on a whim. "Um, why don't we just go back to the cottage and Google it," he muttered into
Mel's ear.
She turned and looked at him and she was clearly offended. Damn. Asshole move number one and they hadn't even been there twelve hours yet. "But we're here now. And the girl went to get someone."
He couldn't stop his mouth. "I mean, I'm sure they have some kind of exhibit on it or something we can go find, I don't see any reason in pulling someone off their job--"
"Well you can go back to the cottage all you want if you don't want to stay for any of this. But I'm interested in it and I'm going to stay. Besides, if it was gonna be any kind of burden, the girl would have said so. I'll meet you there when I'm finished." And with that, she whipped her head around and turned her back to him, defiantly. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
At that moment, a man, maybe a couple years younger than them, walked up in his uniform of a dress shirt, khakis, and vest. His nametag read "Seth." He was mildly stout with glasses and short, sandy-colored hair, combed over as much as he could comb it. He looked like someone you would find at a Star Trek convention. Tay instantly felt bad for pre-judging the guy.
"Hello, there," Seth said to the two of them, shaking their hands. "My name is Seth. And you are?"
Mel and Tay introduced themselves and then Mel said to him excitedly, "So I'm to hear you're the go-to guy for all the juicy ghost gossip around here."
Seth chuckled, obviously flattered, and pushed his glasses up with his forefinger. "Some would say that, yes. What can I help you with tonight?"
Mel glanced at Tay, then said to Seth, "I'm sorry for pulling you off your job so late at night..."
"Nonsense, this is my job! I was just catching up on an old Star Trek rerun in the break room, I wasn't even busy."
Tay had to turn around. He couldn't help it. He had to hide the victory smile that he couldn't wipe off his face. He was proud of himself for nailing the guy right on the head. He knew he was going to hell for what went through his mind, but he was taking any amusement wherever he could get it. He decided not to even bring it up to Mel. He would let her bring it up and he knew she would much later.
Her face lit up at Seth, excitedly. "Wonderful!" Then, to Tay's surprise, and mild amusement, she linked her arm through Seth's and said to him, "Okay, then. Lead the way and tell us everything you know. I wanna
see all the hotspots and everything! I mean, if it's not too much trouble."
Seth blushed and Tay nearly died, trying not to laugh. "No trouble at all, ma'am. Right this way."
Tay shoved his hands in his pockets and followed the new lovebirds as Seth repeated the story Mel had told him at dinner, his voice much more monotone than Mel's. Tay decided to take in the sights, letting the stories go in one ear and out the other. He took in small details here and there, such as how the woman had gotten married and had a child that lived only two days and four years later she ran off with her husband's step brother. She then became a housemaid and lied to everyone about her husband, telling them he was a gambler. Beyond that, she stayed five days at the hotel, only to be found dead on the steps leading to the beach due to a gunshot wound. Most blame suicide, some suspect foul play. Hence the stories of her haunting.
Tay had heard all he needed to hear of this crock. He was convinced that just because someone died somewhere, didn't necessarily negate an automatic haunting. If that were the case it'd be "I see dead people" everywhere you turned. Except that it wasn't. Which made it a crock. And he was ready for bed.
Which made his mind wander as they boarded the elevator--would this trip put Mel in the mood at all? They hadn't had sex since before the miscarriage, which was now right at a month ago. He had no way of knowing
if Mel even had the drive at all. He didn't know if the desire wasn't there, or if she was scared, or anything she was thinking about it. Normally, Mel was extremely open about these things, but this time she hadn't
uttered a word on the subject. He wanted to be respectful and not pressure her into it, and he had been okay with it for awhile. But it was starting to build up lately and it seemed like every single time he laid his eyes on her, his brain went straight to his dick and it was increasingly difficult to regain control of himself. Masturbating just wasn't cutting it anymore. He needed her. He wanted her. He craved her.
Before he knew it, they were stepping off the elevator and turning the corner to climb several flights of stairs,
each staircase getting more and more narrow until they finally walked up one that forced them single-file. Soon they were on level ground again and Mel was practically dragging Seth down a hallway that didn't quite seem to fit in with the rest of the hotel. It was small and narrow. They passed a couple of oddly-placed vending machine alcoves and the abrupt exit door at the end of the hallway seemed to come across as a warning. Tay would never admit it out loud, but he felt a few hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
The hallway was deserted and a sound couldn't be heard for miles. Tay was ready to go. He was officially creeped out, but his pride and his manhood wouldn't dare allow him to say a word about it. For all he knew,
Seth could drag the two of them into one of the seemingly deserted rooms and mutilate them both with a torturous Star Trek laser prop he had scored from Comic Con the previous year with his life savings. Tay immediately decided to lay off of Seth. He was their only way out of there. He sure as hell knew he wouldn't know how to get them back to civilization without him.
They stopped at a door near the end of the hallway, close to the exit door, and Mel curiously stood before it and stared at it. Room 3327. As Seth's monotone voice told the story of how Kate Morgan had stayed in this room for five days before killing herself, allegedly after failing to meet with her estranged husband and
learning she would birth a child without a father, Tay couldn't keep his eyes off of Mel. Her previous enthusiasm was lost, as if it had vanished into thin air. Even he was feeling a tad melancholy as he stood there watching her. He felt the need to reach out and comfort her suddenly, but she wasn't shedding any tears. She wasn't upset. She didn't say a word. She just stood--motionless. What he would have given to be able to crawl into her brain at that very moment.
Solemnly and silently, she listened as Seth continued on about how the room was said to be haunted by Kate now and how it was a popular attraction for tourists, especially around Halloween. After informing them that this was the most requested room in the hotel, he then described the vision that most people saw. Dark hair, large black hat, black Victorian dress, high-necked with lace detail. She frequently carried a matching parasol when encountered outside the hotel.
The entire time, Mel's eyes stayed on the door, never once looking at Seth, nor responding to him. Finally, she turned to him, her face emotionless and her voice monotone. She only asked one question: "Why was she
put in this room, in such an odd location, seemingly blocked off from the world?"
Mel's change in attitude didn't seem to phase Seth. He answered her question, probably much as he did every day. "Believe it or not, this was an extremely popular room before she ever checked into it. She checked into
it Thanksgiving night. After she was found, it was never rented out again until Christmas. Like I said earlier, it's now the most requested room in the hotel. There's a long waiting list for this room. As it so happens, it's empty tonight. Would you like to go inside?"
Silently, and much to Tay's surprise, Mel shook her head.
"No problem," Seth continued. "There are other tales of hauntings throughout the hotel. Would you like me to show you more locations?"
Tay looked at Mel, expecting her to light up with excitement once more, but she didn't. She remained stone-faced and silent. "Um, you know, it's been a long day," he said to Seth. "We really appreciate you doing this
for us on such short notice, but I think we're gonna just call it a night."
"I understand," Seth said as he began to lead them back in the direction they'd come from. "I'll be here all weekend, so anytime you two need or want anything, you specifically ask for me and I will personally see to it that your needs are met."
Tay smiled at him in appreciation. "Thank you, we'll be sure to do that."
Back down in the lobby, Seth parted ways with Tay and Mel and, taking her hand, Tay led Mel back to their cottage. He had to admit, he saw the hotel in a slightly different light now. And he couldn't deny being creeped out. But what puzzled him more than anything, was Mel's sudden emotional shutdown. One second, she was wildly animated and eager to take the hotel by storm and the next second it was like she didn't exist anymore. Tay couldn't read her. It was a rare occasion when he couldn't read her and he certainly wasn't comfortable with it this time.
Mel didn't speak a word for the rest of the night.
*****************
Later that night, Taylor dreamed. He dreamed of the dark, windy, crashing surf that they had witnessed before closing their cottage door for the night. Seemingly, beyond the surf, he heard Mel singing the lyrics to his own song, a song he had written when they were dating as teenagers. She sang randomly, starting from the middle of a verse, her voice faint, in the distance, the same lyrics over and over:
"And the shoes you wore with long, black satin lace
As you walked into my mind
As I walked into this old, forgotten hall
Just one look and I began to fall
Wish I could frame you and this feeling on the wall
To stare at till there is no time
And I waited for you
Just dreaming that you'd come back to me
And I waited for you..."
Suddenly her voice got louder and her face appeared in front of his. She stared at him, the same stone-faced expression she displayed in the creepy hallway. She said three words, and three words only. "You already
knew."
Tay's eyes snapped open into the dark and his arm immediately felt the bed beside him. Where the hell was Mel?
MEL
When Mel decided she was ready to head back to 3CG, she was overwhelmed with the welcome she received from the girls in the office. She never knew how much impact she had on them until the moment she walked through the door and she was bombarded by a group hug. It was a beautiful moment and Mel shed a tear or two.
She also wasn't prepared for what she walked into when she opened her office door. Her office was small anyway, and now it was filled with balloons, flowers, stuffed animals, and mail piled on top of her desk. She
didn't realize the girls were in her doorway until she turned around and asked, "What is all this?"
"Fans," Katie responded, matter-of-factly.
Mel's eyes widened in surprise. "All of it?"
"All of it."
"Uh--well--how did they know?"
"All we know is that someone caught the entire conversation Taylor had with the doctor from the waiting room that night."
"You're kidding..."
"It blew up all over the fan community almost immediately. The app, the forums...all of it. The fans are pretty sure it wasn't staff and we haven't been able to track down the source of the leak."
"Well, there's an asshole lurking in every corner," Mel muttered. "So--so this is all from fans? For me?"
Katie smiled back at her. "For you."
Mel walked in her office and put her bags down, looking around. "Well I have to send thank you cards to all of them."
"All of them?"
"All of them."
"But there are at least 200 gifts and cards there. 200 fans. At LEAST."
"Well, these fans went out of their way to do something they didn't have to do. The least I can do is thank each and every one of them. It's not like I get fan mail on a regular basis like the guys do. I can handle this. If you guys want to help me."
Moments later, Mel sat in her office by herself, opening cards and letters. She immediately began listing each fan's name and address and the card or gift they sent. It would take time, but she was going to do this. It was so sweet of these ladies to think of her when she was virtually a nobody in their world.
She was pondering having the guys sign 200 photos of themselves to include in the mail, when Taylor gently knocked on her door and let himself in. Mel smiled at him knowingly. "I'm fine, Tay. There's no need to
check up on me."
"Wow, what's all this?" he asked her, looking around.
"From fans. Get well cards and such. Wasn't it sweet of them?"
"It's incredible," he responded in awe. "What are you gonna do with it all?"
Mel shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe donate them? Toys to the children's hospital and flowers to the nursing home? Well, the ones that aren't near death anyway..."
Tay sat across from her and smiled, his eyes glittering. "You're fantastic, you know that? Listen, how would you feel about taking a small trip?"
"Soon?"
"Yeah. This month. Maybe for Valentine's Day?"
"Valentine's Day?" Mel had never put much thought into Valentine's Day. It wasn't such a big deal for her. For her, it was another excuse for chocolate and cheap champagne. John used to go all out for Valentine's Day and Mel never understood it. Expensive dinners, expensive jewelry, expensive champagne, the opera, a carriage ride in below freezing weather, fancy black-tie parties...Mel was happy cuddled up at home, but John always seemed to want to show her off. And now here Tay was, making a big deal of it, too. What in the world was the appeal here?
"Yeah. Why not? Maybe somewhere warm...you know, if you think about it, we've never actually taken a vacation together. I mean, not a leisurely one. Not one where one of us wasn't working or anything. Let's go somewhere where we leave our computers at home and just enjoy each other. What do you think?"
Mel felt herself blushing just a little. She had to admit, it did sound pretty good. And lord knew she could definitely use to get out of Tulsa for a couple of days. "For how long?" she asked.
Tay shrugged. "I don't know. A weekend. A week? However long we decide we want to stay."
"Where do you have in mind?"
He looked up in thought. "Um...Coronado Island?"
"Never heard of it."
"It's right outside of San Diego. Gorgeous, historic resort...beautiful beach..."
Mel narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "You already have this booked, don't you?"
"You'll love it."
"I better.'
"I promise."
"Deal."
A smile spread across his face. "So we leave next Thursday. The weather's supposed to be nice. We'll go to dinner, walk on the beach, see the sights...just me and you."
She smiled and chewed on the end of her pen. "Well, at least I get some notice this time."
__________________________________
A week later, as Taylor drove their rental car across the two-mile Coronado Bridge that took them from San Diego to Coronado Island, Mel couldn't stay still in her seat. Her eyes widened at the views all around them. On one side was the San Diego skyline. On the other side was blue ocean, as far as the eye could see. Ahead of her was Coronado Island, set off by gorgeous rolling mountains in the background. She could barely
contain her excitement on that sunny day. New places like this one instantly turned her into an eight-year-old child.
"Tay, slow down, you're going too fast. I wanna look," she said.
He smiled at her and turned his attention back to the road. "I can't slow down, there are other cars behind me."
"Have you ever been here before?"
"Never."
"Well you could at least switch to the outside lane so we can see more."
Tay shook his head. "Uh, no thanks. We're fine where we are, you can see plenty."
Mel briefly scowled at him and let her eyes fall back onto the glittering water below. "I don't understand how you don't seem to have a problem with flying, yet you're so afraid of heights. I don't see how you're even
driving this car."
"Because I can't fall out of a plane--"
"--unless it malfunctions and explodes into a million burning smithereens."
"In which case I would already be dead. Besides, in this lane there's a less likely chance of me getting side-swiped and thrown off this bridge into that water down there."
"There's also the opportunity that you might lose control of this car, hit that guard rail right there, flip over it, and then get sent spinning right off the other side of this bridge and right into that water down there you're trying so hard to avoid."
He narrowed his eyes at her and stole a glance. "You're trying to kill me, aren't you?"
Mel shrugged her shoulders. "I'm just creative that way," she said, matter-of-factly. Then something caught her eye and her eyes widened. Whipping her head around at Tay, she said, "Did you see that sign back there?!"
"Uh, no, I'm trying to get us off this death bridge..."
"It was a sign meant for potential suicide victims. With the suicide hotline number on it! I think I just got goose bumps..."
"Exactly. Right there. Heights kill you. They're practically inviting you to do it. So many people apparently jump off this bridge they have to make a sign for it. Look around. Look at how beautiful the sights are. That's how it gets you, you know. That's how heights kill you and that's why we're snug and cozy right here in this
inside lane."
Mel couldn't argue anymore. Tay was a master at debate.
Coming off the bridge and onto the island, they had a little ways to drive before they got to the resort, but it didn't keep Mel from being glued to the windows. When they pulled up to Hotel del Coronado, her mouth dropped open. "Oh, Tay..." she gasped. "Look at this place!"
There were moments where it was impossible for Mel to take life for granted. No amount of money or opportunity in the world could match the feeling of seeing something for the first time and automatically appreciating the wonder and beauty of it. This was one such time. The Hotel del Coronado was a sprawling Victorian resort, white, with large, red turrets and nothing but blue sky behind it to create the perfect picture.
When Tay pulled the car to the door and unloaded it, allowing the valet to take it off their hands, they could barely get their hands back on their luggage before a bellhop arrived to help transport it.
Walking into the main lobby was like entering a completely different world. Mel's skin crawled in a fun kind of way. It was dark, and entirely of intricate wood. Everything was wood from the ceiling to the counters to the walls. All dark and intricately-detailed. Above them, a dark, wooden balcony that looked over the lobby. Besides the wood, the first thing you laid your eyes on upon entering the lobby was the over-sized chandelier that hung low over a table in the middle, flanked on either side by large, wooden columns. If you didn't get the antique Victorian feel from the outside, you definitely got it from the lobby.
Mel instantly took her camera from her pocket. "Would I be a complete nerd if I played tourist right now?"
Tay had been looking around, relatively awestruck himself, when he smiled at her. "That's what we're here for, right?"
They liked to have never gotten out of that lobby.
Once checked in, the red and gold carpet beneath them was traded for patio blocks and boardwalks as they were lead to Beach Village, the part of the resort that housed the cottages and villas. Unlocking the door to a ground floor junior suite cottage, Mel smiled when they walked in the door. The bellhop went over various amenities and activities offered by the resort and then left them alone. The suite was small, with a slightly open floor plan, housing a small bedroom with a king size bed, a bathroom with a luxuriously deep tub, and a small sitting area with a comfy loveseat and armchair, surrounded by large windows with a perfect view of the ocean. Mel's favorite part was walking out onto the patio-style porch and being face-to-face with the ocean.
"Tay," she smiled. "This is too much. I would have been just as happy in a regular room."
"Here we have privacy. No neighbors, no noise, no making awkward niceties in the hallway..." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. "Here, we're tucked away, seemingly secluded, where nobody can find
us. Just you, me, and the ocean."
She returned his smile. "I already never want to leave."
It was late afternoon when they'd arrived and they'd been traveling all day, so they were both exhausted. Intending to take a nap, but now too excited to sleep, Mel sat cross-legged on the bed while Tay lay beside her, one arm tucked behind his head, the other one flipping channels on the television above the fireplace. Mel was leafing through an informational binder about the resort, anxious to know all there was to know, when suddenly her heart started racing in fearful joy. "Tay!" she said excitedly, incessantly patting his ankle beside her. "Tay, guess what?"
He chuckled at her. "Mel, I'm right here. What's up?"
She looked behind her back at him and grinned. "This hotel has a ghost!"
________________________________
TAYLOR
Taylor didn't believe in ghosts. He knew Mel didn't, either, but he knew she liked the idea. She always said that while she wasn't a believer now, there could always come a time where she could be made into one. Who
was he to argue with that logic?
The sparkle in her eye at the suggestion of an early, casual dinner and a ghost hunt to follow made her hard to resist. Since the miscarriage the previous month, all he wanted was to see her happy. If a silly little ghost story did it for her, he was happy to play along.
They ventured to the main hotel and had dinner in the casually-set sports bar. While interested in his surroundings, Mel hardly paid attention. Her mouth was a mile a minute. "So her name was Kate Morgan, but she went by an assumed name, Lottie Bernard, right? Apparently she checked in alone or something, I dunno. I'd love to know why she felt the need to use an assumed name! Anyway, she was supposed to be meeting
her estranged husband or something and was pregnant and then was found dead by gunshot wound on one of the decks or something on the way to the beach. Suicide, they say. And she still haunts here, to this very
day!"
"Well what would make a ghost NOT haunt?"
Mel looked at him quizzically.
"You said 'still haunts here till this day.' I mean, as opposed to what? She's a ghost. Where's she gonna go?"
She shot daggers at him from across the table and he couldn't help but laugh. As she chattered on about a haunted room, he let it go in one ear and out the other. Instead, he found himself forever grateful that the two
of them could sit and talk like this and that she could confide in him with her silly little fantasies. She was his best friend, as well as his fiancée. Looking across the table at her, spirited in her conversation, he fell in love with her all over again.
After dinner, Mel practically dragged Tay to the lobby of the hotel. She paused long enough to slow her walking to look around once again. He couldn't blame her there. If they were going to make a history trip out of this, he planned to find out what went into the architecture of this room.
Making a beeline to the front desk, Mel wasted no time asking the receptionist, "Is there someone we can talk to about your ghost? I mean, is it too late?"
The receptionist took one good glance at Tay and then her face lit up as she smiled at Mel. There was always one, somewhere. Sometimes he was grateful, other times he wished he didn't exist. This time, he was
incredibly grateful. "Yes, ma'am," she said enthusiastically. Then she winked at her. "No time is too late for a good ghost story. And most times, the later the better."
Mel's grin matched the receptionist's. "That's what I'm talking about!"
The receptionist giggled and said, "Give me a minute and I will find someone who can help you further."
Tay was nearly embarrassed. He felt bad for pulling someone off their job at this time of night just to do a little ghost-hunting on a whim. "Um, why don't we just go back to the cottage and Google it," he muttered into
Mel's ear.
She turned and looked at him and she was clearly offended. Damn. Asshole move number one and they hadn't even been there twelve hours yet. "But we're here now. And the girl went to get someone."
He couldn't stop his mouth. "I mean, I'm sure they have some kind of exhibit on it or something we can go find, I don't see any reason in pulling someone off their job--"
"Well you can go back to the cottage all you want if you don't want to stay for any of this. But I'm interested in it and I'm going to stay. Besides, if it was gonna be any kind of burden, the girl would have said so. I'll meet you there when I'm finished." And with that, she whipped her head around and turned her back to him, defiantly. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
At that moment, a man, maybe a couple years younger than them, walked up in his uniform of a dress shirt, khakis, and vest. His nametag read "Seth." He was mildly stout with glasses and short, sandy-colored hair, combed over as much as he could comb it. He looked like someone you would find at a Star Trek convention. Tay instantly felt bad for pre-judging the guy.
"Hello, there," Seth said to the two of them, shaking their hands. "My name is Seth. And you are?"
Mel and Tay introduced themselves and then Mel said to him excitedly, "So I'm to hear you're the go-to guy for all the juicy ghost gossip around here."
Seth chuckled, obviously flattered, and pushed his glasses up with his forefinger. "Some would say that, yes. What can I help you with tonight?"
Mel glanced at Tay, then said to Seth, "I'm sorry for pulling you off your job so late at night..."
"Nonsense, this is my job! I was just catching up on an old Star Trek rerun in the break room, I wasn't even busy."
Tay had to turn around. He couldn't help it. He had to hide the victory smile that he couldn't wipe off his face. He was proud of himself for nailing the guy right on the head. He knew he was going to hell for what went through his mind, but he was taking any amusement wherever he could get it. He decided not to even bring it up to Mel. He would let her bring it up and he knew she would much later.
Her face lit up at Seth, excitedly. "Wonderful!" Then, to Tay's surprise, and mild amusement, she linked her arm through Seth's and said to him, "Okay, then. Lead the way and tell us everything you know. I wanna
see all the hotspots and everything! I mean, if it's not too much trouble."
Seth blushed and Tay nearly died, trying not to laugh. "No trouble at all, ma'am. Right this way."
Tay shoved his hands in his pockets and followed the new lovebirds as Seth repeated the story Mel had told him at dinner, his voice much more monotone than Mel's. Tay decided to take in the sights, letting the stories go in one ear and out the other. He took in small details here and there, such as how the woman had gotten married and had a child that lived only two days and four years later she ran off with her husband's step brother. She then became a housemaid and lied to everyone about her husband, telling them he was a gambler. Beyond that, she stayed five days at the hotel, only to be found dead on the steps leading to the beach due to a gunshot wound. Most blame suicide, some suspect foul play. Hence the stories of her haunting.
Tay had heard all he needed to hear of this crock. He was convinced that just because someone died somewhere, didn't necessarily negate an automatic haunting. If that were the case it'd be "I see dead people" everywhere you turned. Except that it wasn't. Which made it a crock. And he was ready for bed.
Which made his mind wander as they boarded the elevator--would this trip put Mel in the mood at all? They hadn't had sex since before the miscarriage, which was now right at a month ago. He had no way of knowing
if Mel even had the drive at all. He didn't know if the desire wasn't there, or if she was scared, or anything she was thinking about it. Normally, Mel was extremely open about these things, but this time she hadn't
uttered a word on the subject. He wanted to be respectful and not pressure her into it, and he had been okay with it for awhile. But it was starting to build up lately and it seemed like every single time he laid his eyes on her, his brain went straight to his dick and it was increasingly difficult to regain control of himself. Masturbating just wasn't cutting it anymore. He needed her. He wanted her. He craved her.
Before he knew it, they were stepping off the elevator and turning the corner to climb several flights of stairs,
each staircase getting more and more narrow until they finally walked up one that forced them single-file. Soon they were on level ground again and Mel was practically dragging Seth down a hallway that didn't quite seem to fit in with the rest of the hotel. It was small and narrow. They passed a couple of oddly-placed vending machine alcoves and the abrupt exit door at the end of the hallway seemed to come across as a warning. Tay would never admit it out loud, but he felt a few hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
The hallway was deserted and a sound couldn't be heard for miles. Tay was ready to go. He was officially creeped out, but his pride and his manhood wouldn't dare allow him to say a word about it. For all he knew,
Seth could drag the two of them into one of the seemingly deserted rooms and mutilate them both with a torturous Star Trek laser prop he had scored from Comic Con the previous year with his life savings. Tay immediately decided to lay off of Seth. He was their only way out of there. He sure as hell knew he wouldn't know how to get them back to civilization without him.
They stopped at a door near the end of the hallway, close to the exit door, and Mel curiously stood before it and stared at it. Room 3327. As Seth's monotone voice told the story of how Kate Morgan had stayed in this room for five days before killing herself, allegedly after failing to meet with her estranged husband and
learning she would birth a child without a father, Tay couldn't keep his eyes off of Mel. Her previous enthusiasm was lost, as if it had vanished into thin air. Even he was feeling a tad melancholy as he stood there watching her. He felt the need to reach out and comfort her suddenly, but she wasn't shedding any tears. She wasn't upset. She didn't say a word. She just stood--motionless. What he would have given to be able to crawl into her brain at that very moment.
Solemnly and silently, she listened as Seth continued on about how the room was said to be haunted by Kate now and how it was a popular attraction for tourists, especially around Halloween. After informing them that this was the most requested room in the hotel, he then described the vision that most people saw. Dark hair, large black hat, black Victorian dress, high-necked with lace detail. She frequently carried a matching parasol when encountered outside the hotel.
The entire time, Mel's eyes stayed on the door, never once looking at Seth, nor responding to him. Finally, she turned to him, her face emotionless and her voice monotone. She only asked one question: "Why was she
put in this room, in such an odd location, seemingly blocked off from the world?"
Mel's change in attitude didn't seem to phase Seth. He answered her question, probably much as he did every day. "Believe it or not, this was an extremely popular room before she ever checked into it. She checked into
it Thanksgiving night. After she was found, it was never rented out again until Christmas. Like I said earlier, it's now the most requested room in the hotel. There's a long waiting list for this room. As it so happens, it's empty tonight. Would you like to go inside?"
Silently, and much to Tay's surprise, Mel shook her head.
"No problem," Seth continued. "There are other tales of hauntings throughout the hotel. Would you like me to show you more locations?"
Tay looked at Mel, expecting her to light up with excitement once more, but she didn't. She remained stone-faced and silent. "Um, you know, it's been a long day," he said to Seth. "We really appreciate you doing this
for us on such short notice, but I think we're gonna just call it a night."
"I understand," Seth said as he began to lead them back in the direction they'd come from. "I'll be here all weekend, so anytime you two need or want anything, you specifically ask for me and I will personally see to it that your needs are met."
Tay smiled at him in appreciation. "Thank you, we'll be sure to do that."
Back down in the lobby, Seth parted ways with Tay and Mel and, taking her hand, Tay led Mel back to their cottage. He had to admit, he saw the hotel in a slightly different light now. And he couldn't deny being creeped out. But what puzzled him more than anything, was Mel's sudden emotional shutdown. One second, she was wildly animated and eager to take the hotel by storm and the next second it was like she didn't exist anymore. Tay couldn't read her. It was a rare occasion when he couldn't read her and he certainly wasn't comfortable with it this time.
Mel didn't speak a word for the rest of the night.
*****************
Later that night, Taylor dreamed. He dreamed of the dark, windy, crashing surf that they had witnessed before closing their cottage door for the night. Seemingly, beyond the surf, he heard Mel singing the lyrics to his own song, a song he had written when they were dating as teenagers. She sang randomly, starting from the middle of a verse, her voice faint, in the distance, the same lyrics over and over:
"And the shoes you wore with long, black satin lace
As you walked into my mind
As I walked into this old, forgotten hall
Just one look and I began to fall
Wish I could frame you and this feeling on the wall
To stare at till there is no time
And I waited for you
Just dreaming that you'd come back to me
And I waited for you..."
Suddenly her voice got louder and her face appeared in front of his. She stared at him, the same stone-faced expression she displayed in the creepy hallway. She said three words, and three words only. "You already
knew."
Tay's eyes snapped open into the dark and his arm immediately felt the bed beside him. Where the hell was Mel?