Marriage and You

Part 3 : First Night

The hotel room they checked into was just as he'd hoped it would be. Not too fancy, or unnecessarily huge. The interior wasn't over the top, but that wasn't something he would complain about either. There was a bed and furniture they might not even get to use to make their stay here comfortable, and for him that was enough.

Still, it wasn't to say that he was impressed. Much like how they were treated at the restaurant earlier, the staff here were equally accommodating. From the moment they stepped into the door and straight to the reception to check-in, everything was pretty much perfect.

Another ground staff was assigned to assist them, helping them with their bags even though there weren't many. Him with his suitcase, and Gulf with his small traveling bag and his backpack. The staff who went with them went as far as opening the door for them and helping them put their belongings inside, before leaving with a curt 'Hope you enjoy your stay here' and closing the door behind them.

He gave the room a quick once-over, taking in the sight of the room he would be staying in with his quiet husband. For three days, if things work out as planned. He stood there glancing around, aware of the awkward silence and the stiffness in Gulf's stance. He opened his mouth to ask what was wrong, but realized quickly what was causing it when his gaze followed Gulf's line of sight and found what the younger man was staring at.

Further inside where the bed was, the mirrored ceiling above, the elaborate way the beddings were folded, was that distracting thing taking up almost half of the space on the bed. It was the first thing he'd noticed earlier, but he did his best not to focus his attention on it knowing there was nothing he could do about its existence.

Obviously, Gulf didn't share the same sentiment.

And well, it wasn't like he could continue ignoring it now, seeing Gulf's reaction. Part of him wanted to regret taking this room instead of asking for another one that was less, well, intimidating, but he had no idea how to explain it to the organizers should the hotel inform them about the change.

In part, it was the embarrassment that made him consider it at first. The itinerary didn't include the things he was briefed with after the wedding, which were mostly stuff that were to be done during their honeymoon. The dinner was one, and the photos they took together to email their respective mentors along with it. That wasn't so hard to accomplish, though, given that it was clearly mentioned in their itinerary, but the others, not so much.

This, right here, was one of those.

He'd braced himself for the worse, really, especially since he was certain the hotel had already been informed beforehand that the couple checking in were both men. In normal circumstances, he wouldn't let it bother him, but given the uniqueness of their situation, it was kind of difficult not to feel uneasy.

The room itself didn't look any different from the ones he'd checked in before, but given that this was a honeymoon suite, the presence of that welcome gift sitting in the middle of the bed that greeted them when they stepped inside was both embarrassing and, if he was going to be completely honest about it, terrifying.

Gulf clearly wasn't expecting it, if his reaction upon finding it there was anything to go by. He stopped on his tracks right there, a few steps away from the bed and darted his gaze between the bouquet of flowers sitting there on the bed to Mew's face.

His husband was frowning when he asked, sounding and looking confused. "Flowers?" and Mew tilted his head in answer, wondering if he should point out that the flowers' presence shouldn't bother him as much as that other thing arranged behind it. 

The bright red pouch was unmistakable even from a short distance.

He nodded. "You don't like it?" he asked, careful as he sidestepped the younger man. The entire room smelled like vanilla, and a quick glance at the nearby table told him exactly why. Scented candles were lit, all six of them, surrounding a small square red box in the middle. Part of him was scared of what was inside of it.