Marmalade Sunset

Chapter 5

The lodge the class was supposed to stay in was a fair distance away from the town, situated on a hill behind the stump lighthouse watching over the ocean. It was funded by a consortium of investment firms, though the exact origins of the building's ownership was unknown. Someone with deep pockets snatched up the title to the land seemingly out of thin air and began building soon after. How that person got the title was also a mystery. Locals weren't exactly pleased with the mayor's decision to allow the construction. They enjoyed the occasional visitor or two but Luco's Coast was certainly not a tourist attraction. Glenn took it upon himself to investigate the odd building.

He didn't have anything planned for the rest of the night and he needed something to do before he went to bed.

After the sunset (and a short moment watching it unfold), Glenn threw on a windbreaker and left towards the lodge. The night was chilly and the grass beneath him was frosting at the tips. He knew the path was somewhere around the area but with the town's roads being mainly unlit aside from the occasional streetlamp and the subtle light from the moon, he ended up making several loops around town with nothing to show. It was only when Al found him when he finally made some progress.

She was coming to get him for dinner at the lodge and apparently had waited by his tent for a short while before noticing him searching around aimlessly.

Glenn couldn't help but feel embarrassed knowing that he indirectly told her he knew the town in and out.

Al took out her flashlight and marched past the train station, crossing over the tracks, and then cut a corner into a clearing he'd never seen before. To their left was a perfectly paved road leading up to the lodge while thick bushes and trees walled off the right.

"Apparently they don't have permission to knock over the trees so they had to improvise." Al commented.

Her breath clashed with the frigid air around them.

"Not exactly inviting, huh?"

She had changed into warmer clothes for the night. She wore a corduroy jacket that matched her eyes and a pair of fleece lined pants and a pea-coloured beanie. In comparison, Glenn only had a thin jacket over several layers of tees and a pair of joggers. He felt underdressed when he stood next to Al but he was warm enough, probably.

The two walked in silence up towards the lodge. Al lit up the path and swerved around the road to get away from bugs while Glenn trailed a few steps behind, cautiously approaching the building.

The lodge was surprisingly small, given how many people were staying for the week. It stood at three stories and stretched from edge to edge near the cliff. A wide clearing made it a convenient location to look out at the ocean. The large fence built around the perimeter reminded Glenn of the house he stayed in before he left.

Several strobe lights lit the area in a yellow tint and at the gate, a slouching man wearing a high-visibility jacket asked to see our IDs.

Al showed some kind of pass and didn't wait for an approval before entering anyway, leading Glenn by hand.

The man sat back down in his booth and sighed visibly. He wasn't having a great night as it would suggest.

Al took him through the sliding doors and slipped past the lobby, through what was probably a conference room, and finally let go of his hand at a dining hall. It was a modest looking dining area, without any quirks to speak of. A long line of tables with dishes were at the front and a short line of classmates slowly pieced together what seemed appetizing. Glenn glanced around the room and couldn't see any staff which seemed off.

Maybe they were busy elsewhere.

Al returned to her table and sat down across from Ms. Stewart, who was finding the food hard to digest. Al removed her jacket to reveal a tight fitting turtleneck.