Hero's POV
Jo and I are back on the elevator again. When we get to the fifth floor, I help Jo with her stuff. I pull out my key card from my hoodie pocket it and scan it on the door.
I turn the door knob and swing open the wooden door. "Voila, welcome to my room."
"Wow," Jo and I step inside as I shut the door behind us. She studies my room like she has never seen anything like it before. I wonder what kind of thoughts were forming in that mind of hers.
"Neat innit?" I brag even though I wasn't the one who cleaned it.
She turns her head and gawks at me.
"Staring?" I say.
She giggles and the sound waves of her laugh brush off my unpleasant, yet playful words. "Hm... you don't really seem like the type of person to keep a tidy room."
"Wow, put me on blast again and I'll have kick you out." I tease.
"Alright," she tries to hide her smile.
I plunge onto my bed with my head buried in the covers. For a moment I close my eyes but then remembered Jo was here so I reopen them. I scoot my body up so that my back is leaning on the leather headboard and grab the remote from the bedside table. The TV usually has nothing but boring documentaries but I turn it on always. The screen lights up revealing a man in a jungle who I infer is studying the wildlife.
"Hotels have shit shows. What's the point of the TV being here?" I ask Jo as if she knows the answer.
"Not sure."
I switch my attention to Jo and see her unzipping her backpack. Her heavy ass backpack that she was was struggling to carry only an hour ago.
"What are you doing?" I ask her.
"I'm unpacking a few things," she pauses and turns her head to me, "could I use your shower?"
"Go ahead."
"Thanks." She pulls out a pale pink v-neck t-shirt along with a pair of flowy gray pajama shorts.
When Jo closes the bathroom door, I turn off the TV and try to force myself to a nap. The upper half of my body starts to overheat, I pull off my thick hoodie and throw it on the floor which reminds me of Jo saying I'm not tidy. She's not wrong. I hear the sound of the shower run and the next thing I know, I'm drifting off to sleep.
By the time I wake up, I feel strange. I still haven't gotten used to the unfamiliar ceiling despite the fact that I've slept here a couple times already. How long has it been? fuck, I hope it isn't late. I tap on my phone screen to check the time and notice i've only slept for about twenty minutes. My body still feels drained although I just took a twenty minute nap. I get out of my bed and walk towards the bathroom door.
My head is pounding for no reason. I hope splashing cold water against my face will help, that's what I see in movies all the time.
When I open the door I recall the fact that Jo was taking a shower but it's too late. I see the foggy glass shower door open as Jo's leg peeks out.
When she notices me she quickly gets back in the shower and the shower door slams shut. "Hero!" She hollers.
"Shit! Sorry," I say the same time I walk out. I close the door behind me and shut my eyes. I run my hands into my hair and contemplate over the events that just occurred. I'm so fucking stupid, how did I forget that Jo was here? At least she caught me before I was able to see any more of her.
I fall back on my bed and shift both of my hands behind my head. What will I say to her when she gets out? Would we just sit in silence and not talk? I'd rather have her scream at me than us sitting in awkward silence any day. I wait for her on the bed, just sitting there waiting with my hands folded on my lap.
My thoughts get cut off when Jo enters the room with her slightly damped hair, I take not of her pink top and grey cotton shorts.
I clear my throat, "Jo?"
"Hero..."
"Sorry about... That, I had just woken up from a nap and I forgot that you were in there."
A shy smile appears on her face, "It's alright," she says but I can tell she's unsure.
"I didn't see anything." I assure her.
God this is fucking weird.
"Well," she lets out a sigh and heads toward my bed, the next thing I know she is sitting right by me. Everything about her looks so much more admirable up close. Her eyebrows curved in swooping arches over her eyes that resembled an aqua blue pool that reflected green specks of the trees. I run my eyes up to hers again and witness the black speck in her eyes expand.
"Let's get to know each other," she says with a graceful smile.
"Okay," I throw my hands up in defeat "what do you want to know?"
"Hmm," her lips pucker as she gawks at the wooden floor looking for a question. "What is the first thing you notice about a person?"
I bring myself back to the very first time I saw her, the first time I couldn't get my eyes off hers.
"Eyes." I say casually.
"Lame, everyone says eyes."
"You asked a question and I gave you an answer," I shrug. "Ask me another question."
"How about you ask this time."
"Alright," I look around the room before I give her a question. "What's something you wish you could change about yourself?" I say without thinking. Fuck, why would I say that? I don't want her to think that I want her to change or be different in any way.
She doesn't seem to take offense to my question. "My vulnerability, I guess." Her smile starts to fade just a bit.
