I looked at him disappointed and told him I had mistakened him for an old friend of mine. In an attempt to walk away, Mayla slipped and fell on Andy. They were both silent for a moment, and then they burst out into laughter. "What's your name? Andy asked Mayla. " Mayla, Mayla Smith, " Mayla answered. He stood up first and offered his hand, and she took it after hesitating for a while. His palm was soft and smooth. Almost similar to that of a freshly born baby. She stood up and thanked him for his help. She then gathered her cleaning stuff and left.
Later that day, Andy came down to get supper. Coincidentally, it was time for Mayla to close and go home. As she stepped out and walked a few miles away from the hotel, it started raining without warning. Confused, Maya didn't know what to do. She decided to run back to the hotel. When she got there, she was drenched to the core. Andy was seated there. He stood up, removed his suit, and covered her with it. He suggested that he follow him upstairs to change his clothes. She wanted to decline, but she realized she was wearing her only set of clothes and might end up getting sick if she didn't change them. She agreed and walked slowly and steadily behind Andy to his room. She took off the suit and walked into the shower, where she took a hot shower, and then came out wrapped in a white towel. Andy gave her a T-shirt and a pair of shorts to change into. When Mayla checked the time, it was 8:00 pm. She knew her mom would be worried if she didn't come home.
When she brought out her phone to call her mom, she realized it had shut down. She started panicking and then turned to Andy, asking if she could use his phone to call her mom. Andy hesitated. Mayla was already acting suspicious when she came to clean up his room that morning. Why then does she want to call her mom with his phone? Why not use a colleague's phone? Andy thought to himself. Mayla read his mind and told him it was okay. She was going to sort things out on her own. The moment she turned to leave the room, Andy took her hand and placed the phone in it. She quickly called her mom and told her she'd be late because of the storm. Her mom told her, 'No problem, but just be careful and stay safe, too.'
"The storm sure looks very nasty today, " Andy said as he looked down the streets from his window.
"It gets worse each time, too. The storm is always bad, causing havoc and destroying properties, " Mayla added.
"There are times the water from the storm gets into the hotel. When it happens, there's always a power outage," Mayla said. "But we could be lucky today, maybe it might not …"
Just then, a crack of Darkness took the room in a single second. Andy reached out for his lamp and turned it on. All of a sudden, the room brightened. The wind began to blow, causing the curtains to lie closely against the walls, as if they had merged with them. The entire room suddenly became cold. Mayla started to shiver. Andy, seeing this, took his blanket and covered her. "Are you fine now ?" He asked her. She nodded her head and told him she was grateful. He asked her if she was comfortable sleeping close to him for the night. Mayla told him it was fine, but it meant she had to get up early and leave before the manager came around, since it's against the hotel's management rules to sleep at the hotel.
The wind blew at Mayla fiercely, "Are you okay?" Andy asked.
"Yes." She replied. Even if she wasn't, she couldn't say it. What difference was it going to make?
Just then, they both noticed the picture had fallen from the table and had turned over. Andy quickly picked it up and turned it around. "Why do you keep turning the photo over?" she asked, surprising herself. "'Sorry, 'she said after she realized she was intruding on his privacy. "You seem to be really interested in this picture. Is there anything I have to know? Andy asked Mayla, "Oh no," she replied. "I just feel like it's a pretty picture, and it's okay to let others see it," Mayla added. Adrian's eyes flickered as the lightning struck. "Because sometimes what you recognize is more terrifying than what you don't." Then why do you keep the picture if it hurts you ?" Mayla asked. Andy smiled, but he said nothing. Just then, their eyes caught. And for an instant, the storm and the house went dead silent. They looked into each other's eyes without saying a word. Their little time was cut short when they heard a firm thud on the door.