Desirable

☪ Oddities ☪

"So how'd you find the process?" 

"Sorry?" I asked, snapping out of my daze. Matt and I were in the glass elevator. I had been watching the number tick up. It seemed we were going all the way to the top floor. 

"The process of recruitment. You know how they make you fill out all those different medical records and answer a bajillion questions?" Matt prompted.

"Oh, yea. That," I snickered, rubbing my eyes. "It seemed unusual, but after I researched this place I decided it was worth a shot to go through with the application. I heard that you can't submit resumes here- each employee has to be personally invited to work here. I'm sure all those medical records were for health reasons or whatnot. I do think this hotel is quite interesting though. I've never heard of a night hotel before."

"It's quite a beauty," Matt shrugged, his hand on the luggage rack. "I-" 

Matt was cut off as the elevator stopped on the fifth floor. As the doors opened, a bolt of shock ran through me. Damian stood in front of the doors, letting out a small smirk upon seeing Matt. His eyes then flitted over me before he entered the elevator, pressing the button for floor nine. 

How did he get to the fifth floor so fast? I wondered, distinctly remembering he had been on the second floor when I saw him. Silence passed for a while before Matt broke it.

"So," Matt coughed, obviously ignoring Damian's presence. "Will you be working night or day shifts?"

"I applied for day shifts at first but didn't get in. Apparently I only qualified for night shifts," I sighed, already thinking of the effort it would take to change my sleep schedule. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Damian smile at this information. Before I could begin to wonder what his deal was, the elevator dinged as it had reached the ninth floor. 

Damian swiftly stepped off but didn't walk away. Instead, he turned to face the doors, his eyes flashing red for a moment before the doors shut over him as we continued up.

"Weird," I muttered. The elevator quickly dinged again and I followed Matt into the hall. To my surprise, this floor was walled in. While all the others had been placed on balconies facing the inside of the hotel, this floor seemed to be cut off from the rest of the seamless, flowing interior.

"These are the staff quarters," Matt explained, leading me to number 1007. "Only staff is allowed up here, so if you ever see a guest be sure to quick them out. This is your room: 1007." He reached a hand into his pocket before pulling out a key. I took it and slid it into the lock, opening the door with a creak. 

"All other floors have a modern scanner to their doors, but all staff rooms have a classic key lock. Don't ask me why- I don't know." I nodded at his information as I entered the room, holding the door open for him as he pushed my luggage in. As expected, the room blew me away just as the lobby of the hotel had. 

It was magical. Beautiful. Majestic. A grand four-poster bed stood towards the back of the large room while an elegant chandelier hung from the ceiling. A decent sized kitchenette stood in the corner to the right while a large bathroom disappeared through a door to the left. In the center of the room rested a large couch with a TV bigger than my suitcases in front of it. Lavish rugs ran throughout the room and two giant windows arched behind the bed. 

"Wow," I whispered, surveying the room with awe.

"You like?" Matt chuckled, moving my luggage into a corner next to the bed. "These are the most over-the-top rooms in the hotel. Management could make huge bucks off of these, but they decided to save them for staff only. Every now and then an esteemed guest might stay up here, but very rarely.