Classified ☑

[ chapter 25 ]

Silence filled the car for the next hour or so. I didn't think either of us knew what to talk about. I wanted to ask him some more questions about Angel, but it didn't seem appropriate to keep bringing her up.

Dante pulled into a parking lot with a motel sign. The letter 'o' flickered as we got out of the car. For a motel in the middle of nowhere, there were quite a few cars. The cracked concrete underneath my sneakers fit the rest of dingy looking place. Paint peeled from the walls of the motel and the half the street lamps in the parking lot didn't work.

It hurt to stand on my hip so I leaned against the car, waiting for Dante. He walked around the car and right up to me, a baseball cap in his hands.

Dante's fingers grazed my skin as he moved pieces of random hair out of my face. He stayed focused as he put the hat on my head, leaning closer as he reached for the hoodie of my sweatshirt to pull it up over the hat.

His blue eyes looked me over before he grabbed some more hair, bringing it forward to cover the sides of my face. "There."

We were standing close now, but it didn't seem to bother him as he looked down at me. The front of the cap blocked some of my view from him so I looked up more. "Why the hat and hoodie?"

He tapped the hat down and it covered my eyes. Dante was already turned around and heading to the lobby doors when I pushed it back up. "So people don't see your face."

Oh.

I'd almost forgotten my face probably looked like a cartoon character with how swollen it must be.

I limped after Dante and he held the door open for me. Thanking him, I looked around the dim lobby as I stayed hunched over in the corner. An orange light illuminated the creepy looking room.

A lady with dark purple hair stood behind the counter. She looked tired but perked up when Dante walked up to her, shamelessly checking him out. "What can I do for ya?" she asked in a high pitched voice. For some reason it didn't seem to fit the goth vibe she had going on.

"A room with two beds please," Dante said, exhaustion seeping through his voice.

Purple haired girl looked my way, a smirk turning the corners of her mouth upwards. "We only have rooms with one bed available right now."

I didn't miss the pompous look she gave me, not being able to see my face because of the hat and the hoodie. Truthfully, she probably could've seen my messed up face if she looked hard enough, but she was too busy checking Dante out.

Dante turned around to look at me, as if asking if a room with one bed was alright. I nodded my head in return and he got the keycard from her, heading for the door.

I followed him, but didn't miss the remark from purple haired girl. "Have fun Virgin Mary," she scoffed as I walked out.

If Dante heard her, he didn't show it as he held the door open for me again, leading the way to a staircase. He was already half way up before he stopped to watch me struggle to get onto the first step. After sitting in a car for several hours, my already aching hip was even more stiff.

He jogged back down and stood on the ground, still taller than me even though I stood on the first step. "It's your right hip?"

I gulped, nodding my head. He placed his right arm around my back and reached for me legs with his left arm. "What are you doing?" I blurted out.

He tilted his head at me, looking confused. "I was going to carry you up the stairs."

"Oh."

Before I could think about it any longer, he picked me up and carried me up the stairs bridal style. I didn't dare breath until he set me down.