I'm Not Her

Chapter 34: I'm Not Going Back To America Yet

Chapter 34:

The couple days we stayed at Mum and Dad's finally ended, resulting in heartfelt goodbyes. Kylie and Mum had taken great liking in each other, spending more time with each other rather than me. Carter and Dad settled their few differences and started talking with each other like old friends. The trip was a success.

We drove five hours to London again, but this time I was staying a bit longer. It turned out that our director had gotten quite sick- came down with what he described as 'the plague' but was probably just the flu. Kylie had told me she had gotten enough of being out of the country and she missed being around American people- making the excuse that she preferred being around people with the same accent as her. 

Carter was leaving as well since his grandmother was turning eighty-five tomorrow, and he had to be home or else his mother would, as he quoted, 'chop his balls off'

Frightening mother.

But like Kylie, I wanted to be around people who wouldn't make a comment about my strange and foreign accent. London had plenty of other things to do- although I could just stay back at my parents' house, but who else was going to drive my two friends all the way down to the airport? I wasn't going to drive another five hours back to South Shields either- it was tiring already. I had my two snoring companions to keep me awake throughout the ride, but now I had nothing. 

Not wanting to bother Danielle anymore, I booked a room in a hotel to stay in. I drove there after dropping both Kylie and Carter off in the airport to take their flight back to bright and sunny California. I would meet them soon anyways- in a couple of days.

I drove to the hotel, parking the car in the parking lot. I popped open the drunk and lugged my suitcase out with great difficulty. After closing the trunk and locking the car, I made my way to the hotel. It wasn't one of those extremely fancy hotels with chandeliers hanging down everywhere and where all the fancy popstars hung out. This was just one where I knew I'd be comfortable enough for a few days. It wasn't like I was staying two weeks and needed to be insanely comfortable and at home. 

After checking into the hotel, I went up to the floor I was on, the twenty seventh floor. I had gotten a room with a great view of Big Ben and the Thames River. I could stay here for hours, just enjoying the view, but that would be a great waste of my limited time here. 

I changed out of my comfy sweatshirt and worn in jeans in exchange for a casual chevron printed black and white dress paired with a pair of black flats.

I could really use some Starbucks anyways, and I didn't really have any plans for the rest of the day.

Or tomorrow.

I shut the door behind me and made my way to the lifts. The hallways were confusing. There were too many of them and I knew that I would make some kind of wrong turn somewhere. Because of my great luck (note the obvious sarcasm there) I had landed a room the farthest away from the lifts. This was what I got for not booking a room earlier in advance, but was it my fault that my director decided he was going to be touched by 'the plague?'

I waited patiently until one of the lifts opened, and when one did, I immediately went for the corner. It was awkward being in a lift with a bunch of strangers. In this one, there were four- a mother and her three daughters.

"Safaa," the eldest of the three daughters said, "stop whining. I know we haven't seen him in a long time, but we will today."

"Yeah, he's meeting us in the lobby soon," the middle girl said, probably grinning. I could hear it in her voice. She was excited over this person they were about to see, obviously.