At exactly our dismissal time, Roxanne and I head towards the Clock Hotel. Even the name sounds romantic and alarming upon hearing it for our first time. It feels like we are going inside some fantasy, concealing itself as a lodge where we will face many clocks dangling on the walls.
But that never happens in our life. There is no fantasy living in this world.
"Are you sure we are in the right place? This place does not seem to be a diner to me, Yuki." Roxanne's voice trembles in fear as she gapes upon the extravagant looking hotel inside the busy road. As the name shows, the two of us come face to face to the gigantic wall clock at the peak of the hotel.
The two of us peer through the nearby bushes and see the busy staff at the ingress. I know well that we look like buffoons trying to rob the adjacent building since we have chosen a spot beside the main street. One passenger already has thought of that and dials 119 upon witnessing us, motionless, in the distance. Fortunately, I have arrived just in time to stop him from his tracks and apologise for our conduct.
The Clock Hotel even has multiple gates to separate the streets and paths for the cars to enter their borders, making them such a remarkable place to stay inside. The building has everything that everyone needs, be it private or luxurious sceneries that the hotel owns. I have not mentioned this before, but they have their own swimming pool at about eight feet tall inside!
"Yeah, I am pretty sure that is the place. The text message and the man told us to meet them at that restaurant." I mark my finger at the glass door, wondering the location of the restaurant inside.
We neither see someone waiting for us or calling for our attention despite arriving on time at the site. We think that this get-up may be a scam to trick us into giving out our money. But the man who I have hit with the alarm clock earlier has mentioned this place before. Assuming that he is working part time as a server, our ideal option is to go inside and pay a visit.
"Wait. Did you hit someone with an alarm clock?" Roxanne shuffles through her orbs after listening to my story. Afterwards, she bursts into tears, laughing her arse out while rolling to the close by grass, saying, "I cannot believe you did that, Yuki!"
Roxy is one annoying best friend that embarrasses me in public. Without restraining her choice of words, Roxanne repeats the sentence, letting the passing people know what has happened a while back. Some crowd chuckles upon hearing it once and steals some glance in our direction, particularly looking at me with confusing eyes.
"Quit it, Roxy." I tug her down and cover her mouth. Despite my hand wrapping around her lips, Roxy keeps prattling things about the topic. She does not know when to stop this madness of insulting me.
"I hit him with an alarm clock in the head. I was trying to get up, okay? Happy now, Roxanne?" I let out a sigh while shaking my head in discomfort. My brain makes it hard for me to forget as the scene flashes in front of me, recurring the same memories from the past.
The pinkish bump on the man's head still scares the skin out of me.
Amidst our ridiculous storytelling, my eyes spot a familiar man going out from the side doors, throwing a garbage bag into the trash bin. He is wearing the usual uniform of the hotel staff and looks completely the same as his peers.
"I have my eyes on the target." I gingerly tap Roxanne's shoulders and notify her about the man with whom I hit with an alarm clock. However, instead of the habitual noise coming from my best friend, I have heard silence from her part.
As I turn around, I see strange mists with an angelic choir singing for a chorus from far away.
"Oh my gosh, Roxanne! You have never told he is that handsome!" I discern crimson hearts popping out from her eyes, identical to the one I have seen when she meets Nickson. Those heart-shaped stickers pop out from under her lids while locking her eyes solely at the man.
"Are you going to fall over at a man above your age?" I wave my hands and snap Roxy from her delusions. However, the force is too strong and takes three strikes to revert her to normal.
"Do you not want older boys than our age? Don't you think they are mature to handle us, women?" Roxanne retorts and waves her hands back, telling me that her thoughts are the correct assumption to think.
My eyes instinctively roll to the side once I hear her statement. Some ladies would prefer that, but I am not one of them. I do not even know what type of guy I would prefer dating soon. All I could think of are two-dimensional characters inside an enormous screen, if people would give me choices for me to choose from.
Going back to the man before us, I invite Roxanne to close the gap and enter the establishment. To my disbelief, she is the first one who pulls me closer to the hotel and enters the building.
"We are pleased to see you here, dear customers." The staff welcomes us with extended arms for our arrival. Each has distinct smiling expressions, but none of them questions our identities as high school students. They use Nihongo as their language to greet us both.
"Can you show us the restaurant, please?" I am not confident enough to use Japanese, but it is necessary since I need to learn right now, and this is the perfect time to use it. Thankfully, the staff notices my struggles as they gesture us inside.
The three of us walk towards a narrow hall and pass by multiple people. All of them wear tuxedos, gowns, suits and ties, and dresses that suit them best. These crowds are all busy with their phones, talking about business matters unrelated to my life. They pay no attention to the two guest-Roxanne and I, as we stride inside the room.
Everywhere our eyes look, we see the scarlet tables and chairs in front of us. The people taking their meal have their table filled with exquisite dishes that you could only see on televisions. The menu comprises lobsters, clams, and wagyu beef, the most expensive dish in Japan, on their plates. I have only heard this meat from kitchen shows on the internet, so seeing them now fills my heart with joy.
"A table for the two young ladies?" A girl approaches us and bows, welcoming the two visitors to their hotel. Not wanting to be rude to the server, we return her bow and nod to her question.
"You pair are in for some luck!" The giddy woman motions her hand for us to have a seat near the entrance. I could not retort to the server since another person goes to our place and hands out the menu.
"What do you want for today, ladies?" The gentleman gives us the tall booklet with illustrations of the dishes they serve for today. According to this Clock Hotel, they make their meals every day to ensure the consumers have chosen the best lodge in the town.
The girl we have met earlier leaves our vicinity and places her trust to tend our needs to the man in front of us. I ask the server what they recommend for us newcomers to the hotel. He confidently marks his finger at the pinkish, exorbitant meat and flashes us with a smile.
"I do not want to ruin your parade, but, Yuki, let's not waste your earnings for a-," Roxanne fidgets her fingers as she looks around nervously.
"We will take two wagyu beef, please." I know what she wants to say, but I cut her sentences off by placing my order to the man in front of us. My elbows find their way to Roxanne and call out for her attention.
Roxanne's eyes broaden with realisation as she glances at the man collecting the brochettes from the two of us.
The man turns around and steals a look from my face. His eyes also enlarge upon witnessing the person he has met not too long ago.
"Are you the girl from before?" The server asks, striking us with a conversation.
I gingerly nod my head in embarrassment and try to avoid the topic. The butler, the homeless man from before, notices my facial expression and refuses to linger further from the subject.
"I am really sorry for what happened back then-," Similar to what I have done before to my best friend, I break his sentence and motion my hand, telling him he needs not to worry about a single thing about that event.
"I know this is a bit late, but can I ask for your name?" The server smiles as he looks around the room, checking if there is a client that he needs to attend to.
"I am Leigh Yuki. But you can just call me Yuki, for short. I know that you're Japanese, but I am half American and half Japanese, so you can use my first name as you like," I give incline my head for respect and present my best friend on my side. "This is Fischbach Roxanne. She is also an American."
The waiter acknowledges my statement and giggles to himself. He moves closer between Roxanne and my seat and introduces himself.
"It's nice to meet you both! My name is-,"
"Hey, waiter! Over here! I want to order right now!"
The roaring voice of the clientele raises his hand and grabs the attention of the man, wanting to speak.