Nine of Cups

by Michael Monn

  "Do you know the name of the song?" I asked. I needed a distraction from coming up with ways to punish myself.

  "If I remember correctly the artist is 'Sleeping at Last' and the song is called 'Earth'." He didn't look very sure of himself, so I tried looking it up on Spotify. Sure enough, there it was. What a hauntingly beautiful song. Completely my kind of music. Did he know that, when he picked it?

  Jean Pierre looked at me expectantly, as he walked back to our table. He asked the stupidest question, "Did you like it?"

  "Are you mental? I absolutely adored it!" I slapped him hard on the arm as a poor substitute for what I really wanted to do to him.

  Moments later, Mrs. Vilaró came to personally thank them for their performance.

  "T'as une voix incroyable, Jean Pierre." She spoke perfect French. During dinner JP had told me that she ran a luxury empire that spanned most of Europe; hotels, clothes, cosmetics, magazines. She even had her own wine label. She was fluent in a plethora of languages and made a point of speaking to people in their native tongue, if she could.

  "Who is the lucky lady you were singing to?" she asked the people standing around our table. Before Jean Pierre could respond, Natalie whispered in her spouse's ear.

  Erica turned her attention to me, as if she hadn't asked her previous question. "I hope you realise how lucky you are, young man!" she said sternly. Natalie gave me a warm smile, as she gently moved her wife away from our table.

  What an insane night it had been!

  "Can we please escape, so we don't have to talk to any more people. Right now, I just want to be with you." Jean Pierre grabbed my hand and led me through the Back of the House towards the emergency exit.

  Once we were outside we crossed Passeig de Gracia and ended up in the "Jardins del Palau Robert" park. We found a spot on an empty bench and sat for a moment, enjoying the warm summer night.

  "I am sorry I doubted you. Mrs. Vilaró is right, I am a lucky bastard," I said quietly.

  "I desperately wanted to surprise you, but I am terrible at keeping secrets." He looked guilty, which made me feel even worse. What had I done to deserve him? I threw an arm over his shoulders and kissed his forehead.

  "I am working tomorrow, but it's still early. Do you want to go out?" he asked, clearly not in the mood himself. I wondered when he would stop trying to please me and just be.

  "Why don't we go to your place and I will..." I whispered the rest into his ear. His face went crimson, but he nodded with glee.

  Eleven

  Fucking hell. This must be what it feels like when a drug high wears off. I was behind the Front Desk, checking in my fourteenth senior citizen couple. A large group had gotten off their cruise ship for two days of Dan Brown sightseeing. They were so sweet, but had a multitude of questions.

  I tried to direct them to the concierge, but they were convinced that I was better equipped to tell them where they served the best "pa'ela". In their humble opinion, kids were more skilled at looking things up on the gadgets.

  A lady in her mid-seventies, recommended I use "Tinder". According to her the app gave restaurants reliable customer reviews. Lydia burst out into a fit of laughter besides me and quickly ran to the office. Meanwhile, I had to do my best to keep a straight face.

  Once the rush had died down, I checked with Maria if she had signed the authorization form yet. In order to get an employee rate for Uncle Clive and Vanessa's room, I needed approval from the Director of Rooms, HR and the Hotel Manager.

  She handed over the signed document with a wide smile. Everyone was fucking smiling at me after the party. I knew most were kind smiles, but I was also sure plenty of people wanted to see my head on a spike. I would just have to let it go or drive myself crazy.

  I used the last part of my lunch break to go to the Boss's office. His administrative assistant kindly took my form and put it in his inbox. I was just about to leave, when he called through the door.

  "Caleb, can you come in for a moment?" He was still sitting behind his desk. I carefully sat down with my hands in-between my legs.

  "I never got the chance to thank you for agreeing to switch departments. We needed someone dependable at the Reception and I am glad it's you." He seemed genuinely appreciative.

  "Thank you for the opportunity," I replied humbly.

  "What was it that you gave to Nuria?" he asked, wearing his Boss mask once again.

  "Its a room request form, Sir."

  "Family or friends?"

  "My uncle and sister, Sir."

  "Can you give it to me, please?" he held out his hand expectantly.

  Nuria was already in his office with the form at the ready. She winked at me before going back to her desk. He scanned the paper and crossed something out. He added a word on the side of the page and signed it without further issue. He answered his ringing phone, as he handed the form back to me.

  The space where I had filled in "standard twin" had two thick lines through it. He had written "deluxe suite" in his large handwriting in the margin.

  "Thank you!" I mouthed in complete silence, not wanting to interrupt his call. He gave me a quick nod, before swiveling his chair towards the window.

  A suite! In one of the best hotels in Barcelona! Uncle Clive and Vanessa were in for a big surprise. We hadn't invited my parents, so hotel costs couldn't show up on their credit card statements. I could deduct the severely reduced employee rate from my monthly stipend, so nobody would be the wiser.

  Shit! I hadn't even mentioned the visit to HIM yet. He would need some advance notice, if I wanted him to join us.

  "Do you want to meet my sister and favorite uncle?" I messaged together with their dates.

  "Can I ask them embarrassing questions about you?