Next To You

Chapter 5

I pushed open the door to the hotel entrance, it was quiet. One person was at the front desk. I went to ask him if Mr.Park was still there. He said he was. I took the elevator this time, I was getting tired it was after 11 pm. I walked into his office, it was pretty big. I called out to him and I heard nothing. Just then someone came into the room. It was him, he looked agitated. He snapped, "What are you doing here?".. he looked at me as if I was trespassing. "I thought I would bring you coffee and some cookies and donuts. I looked around observing his office, it was well organized. There were bookshelves, a coffee table, and a couch. His desk was neat and clean as well. "Fine, whatever," he said writing something in a notebook. "I'll just set it down here." I smiled, waiting for him to respond. "Okay bye!" he yelled. I gasped in fear. "Do you have to yell at me?" grumbling I walked to the door and took one last look at him. He better not waste those, I thought. "Leave!" he screamed. I jumped, not just a small jump, I nearly jumped out of my clothes.

"Alright", I told him closing his door as I was leaving. "So scary", I mumbled. "It's okay I'm not angry," I told myself getting into the elevator. I went over what just happened. I shook my head to wake myself, I was very tired. It started storming. I took a deep breath. I sat in the lobby and dozed off. I wasn't sure how long I was asleep, but I felt something tap me. "Mr.Park?" I rubbed my eyes, I was hoping I was in a nightmare. "Go home", he ordered. "Am I awake?" I was asking myself out loud. Why do "you keep sleeping in the lobby?" he leaned down. I - wait how did you know? I crossed my arms, trying to put up any kind of defense I could think of. "There are cameras, I always check them," he replied. I stood up, He crossed his arms. "Miss Winters, go home and get some rest," he demanded rubbing his temples. "I was waiting for the storm to slow down," I explained, gathering up the bag I had the snacks in. I was curious if he drank the coffee I brought or are any of the cookies or donuts. He shook his head and walked outside. It was light rain now. He didn't offer me a ride, he just drove off. Be that way, I thought. Was he always like this? I understand from what Mina told me, but being around him was stressful. Maybe he just needed a good night's sleep. One thing for sure, I knew I did. I was really tired.

I finally reached the coffee shop and took a quick shower. I had a cup of tea and a few cookies, I was still thin considering I had been gobbling up cookies within the last week. I hurried and went to bed, I fell asleep thinking of having my own place. I knew it would happen someday, but this cot was slightly uncomfortable and the room was so small, I was a little scared being here alone.

The next morning I woke up feeling refreshed. I had a slight headache, thinking about how wrong last night went. I sighed. I had to leave for work shortly, but I wanted to just sleep.

I grabbed some coffee at work, I arrived early and the coffee was fresh. It was almost as good as the coffee I made. I took a deep breath and stood up, I spun around and slammed into someone's chest, then fell on top of them. "Why do you make a habit of this?" I heard a familiar voice say. "What?" I was confused and dazed by what happened. Who is underneath me? I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turn around..."Mr.Park?" Wait- I looked down at a strange man and jumped up. "I'm so sorry", I apologized. I curtsied to make the apology more legit. "Do you enjoy seducing strange men?" My boss asked glaring at me. "It's okay Zayne, I didn't mind." the man told him. My cheeks felt hot, I knew I was blushing. I wasn't sure who the man was, but out of complete humiliation, I ran off to go do my work.

Who was that? I was curious. He called him by name, maybe family? I went back to work.

Work ended and I walked out of the hotel. I got to the coffee shop and took a nap.

The next day I had off. I drank some coffee and did some cleaning. Beth stopped by and brought me leftovers, we both did some cleaning and she left.

It was 8 pm and it was Saturday, business was good so far. My phone rang, it was Mr.Park. He wanted me over there to clean his room. This late? I thought. It wasn't late, but I was about to read a book and that meant I had to close up. I decided to box up some more cookies, coffee, and muffins. I hurried and headed over there. Luckily there was no rain or storms today. I was a little nervous about cleaning his room. Hopefully, I could hurry and get it done fast. I was in a good mood today, so I didn't mind working any extra hours, considering today was my day off. I might get extra pay. I called Beth to confirm that it was okay for me to leave. Her husband wasn't doing much better, she told me to run the coffee shop the best I could. This means if I need to go to the hotel to work, it would be alright if I closed up early. I was trying to figure out if I should ignore my boss a little, that way I wouldn't make myself look dumb. I didn't like making him angry. I arrived at the hotel and saw Rose outside talking to Mr.Park.

"You should give us a chance," she begged. A cab pulled up and Mr.Park helped her into the cab. The taxi drove away and I walked up to him quietly. "I'm here," I told him and proceeded to go inside. I cleaned his room, I didn't say a word. For a moment I thought I caught him staring at me. His room wasn't dirty at all. I didn't understand why he wanted me to clean it. I did my job quickly and tried to leave peacefully. "Camille?" he spoke in a soft tone. "Huh?" I turned around and nearly ran into him, he was so close. "Do my laundry, I'm going to go rest." He gave me a big basket of clothes to wash. "Lock the door when you leave." I sighed in relief. He went to his room.I was in the middle of doing his laundry when there was a knock at the door.