ECSTASY→ s. stilinski [2]

2.6 chapter six

CHAPTER SIX
MOTEL CALIFORNIA
"spreadin myself thin
became my priority"
˚✧₊⁎*⁎⁺˳✧༚

     WHEN the yellow school bus packed with teenagers finally parked in front of the seedy motel, Shivani felt nothing short of sweet relief.

     After what had been an excruciatingly long ride trapped in a bus that stunk of sweat and Jared's nasty vomit, she was happy to get out. She didn't mind terribly that the hotel they were staying at looked as if it was stolen off of the set of a horror movie. Anything but that damned bus was good enough at this point. Isaac probably didn't mind either— what with his vast experience living in a freezer, nothing could possibly be worse.

     Lydia and Allison had decided to tag along to the motel, leaving the car at the previous stop. It was both because the car ran out of gas and because Allison wanted to keep an extra eye on the McCall boy. Shivani was beyond relieved that the two girls were there. Not that she didn't like Isaac, Scott and the others, but being stuck at motel with no one else to speak to but the boys didn't exactly sound like her cup of tea. As well as the lingering awkwardness between herself and Stiles. She desperately needed to pull Allison aside and ask her for advice, again. The Caddel girl was in need of a girl talk— and quick.

     Shivani let her eyes scan their surroundings the second her sneaker cladded feet hit the crunchy. The sole of her shoe crushed the gravel splayed on top of the other wise asphalt parking lot. Motel Glen Capri was written on a bold, bright sign at the very front of the motel. The blue and red lights flickered hauntingly, a chill running down Shivani's spine. Her lips pressed into a thin line as her imagination conjured up what the inside could look like. She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the thoughts. Whatever she was making up in her head was probably a whole lot worse than reality. At least that's what she kept telling herself, but there was just no denying the goosebumps left on her skin by the eerie vibe wafting off the place.

Shivani had exactly zero intentions of sharing a room with anyone but Allison and Lydia. However, those plans were derailed when Coach dangled the room keys in front of them, letting them know they'd have to pair up because there were only two beds per room. It wasn't like she had expected for either one of the girls to choose her, but there was no denying the pang that erupted in her chest when she watched the two grab a pair of keys and saunter off. Shivani never was a social kid, therefore she never had to experience the horrible feeling of being left out. She always took herself out of the equation. For the first time in her life, she got to know what the last choice was.

It was a bad feeling.

Stiles merely spared a glance in her direction before Scott and him wandered off to their own room. Shivani chewed at the inside of her cheek anxiously, her eyes fanning through the crowd of teenagers to see if there was another single girl in need of a roommate. There wasn't. Shivani was the odd one out, ironically enough not because of the fact that she was a mermaid, but because she didn't really have friends.