Different Timezones /Hyunlix/

1 - December

Cold, wet Parisian streets.
Still beautiful, but so freaking cold that small icicles started forming on street lights. It's a middle of a night, there's no place to hide and warm up.
Finally, a car arrives and lets a frosty group of four inside.

Jisung, swallowed by many layers of clothes, enters the car first and disappears behind a scarf.
Chan and Changbin say it's not really that cold. They puff up their chest, and show to some invisible audience that they can handle the cold.

Hyunjin's shoes are covered in black slushy snow, and his coat feels more wet than dry. He's carefully hiding his brand new sponsor bag underneath.
It may have been given to him for free, but he appreciates pretty things, and especially those that cost like an average annual salary.

- Whose idea was to go to Paris in December again? - Jisung's voice is heard from underneath all the clothes.

- Oh come on, it's not all that bad. We got to meet a lot of people, and look - Hyunjin is happy.

- I am, I love Paris. But it's cold Chan...

- Ok, ok. We're now going to a warm hotel. Now, this time we're staying at a small place. I know it's not what you're used to.. no fancy gym, no large rooms, no welcome baskets with alcohol... Travel department made a mistake and they booked us at a small hotel. But it's not like we're too fancy for it. Our luggage is already delivered, we just need a bed to sleep.

- Aaahhh bed... yes...

*   *   *

Felix lays on top of a reception desk, his back is on an old wooden surface, and he's holding a phone above his head. Nothing ever happens at night anyway, so he usually watches a movie and then falls asleep on a sofa in the lobby. Movie is almost done.

Just as his arms became heavy, and eyes start closing...

- Ahmm. - someone gets into his face.

Felix rolls to the side, and, in an unsuccessful attempt to gracefully get up, he slips and pushes down a pile of papers that hotel guests have been signing.

He lets out a curse in combination of French and English, and gets up like nothing happened, all professional and cool.

- Welcome to hotel Montparnasse. How can I help you?

- We have two rooms reserved. Name Bang, Chan.

- Let me check... yes, two rooms are ready for you. I need ID for all the guests please.

Felix, still slightly embarrassed because of the earlier clumsy fall, enters data in the computer, hands out two room keys and points the way to their rooms.
The cold, wet, miserable looking group disappears.

- And that was all the excitement for one night. - Felix says under his breath.

He goes back to a scattered pile of papers, and starts putting it in order. He likes daily shift so much better because he gets to talk with people.

Felix is a social butterfly, friendly and chatty. He likes to be surrounded with people or some kind of a commotion. After getting a degree in tourism, he decided to continue working for his aunt Mrs Lee, who owns the hotel. It's a small hotel and they don't get much traffic, but it's a home for him.

Mrs Lee was once a beautiful ballerina, so pretty that men tried everything to get her attention. Men are like that, they never think they wouldn't have a chance with the most beautiful girl. They were all trying with flowers and dinner invitations. All except for Mr Lee. He wrote her a poem.

But, nobody has it all easy in life.
A jealous friend pushed her down stairs and she injured her leg. She wasn't able to dance ballet any more, and she ended up dancing in cabarets. With a very little decoration, or sometimes nothing at all on her top. She had a rent to pay. Paris doesn't make it easy on anyone.

A cabaret dancer and a poet in Paris... they were destined to be poor.
Until Mr Lee won a lovely, old hotel in a card game. The Lees poured their soul in the hotel (literally their soul because they didn't know how to hit a nail into a wall).

And now, 30 years later, Mrs Lee is alone at her penthouse apartment, and her nephew is working at the reception desk.

- Excuse me...

Felix was surprisingly interrupted for a second time in one night. He turns around and looks up.

*****