Just Strangers

"Jenna, hey Jenna." A voice calls at me through the door.

Dylan sits behind the desk, playing on the Switch I sometimes played during the slower hours. I was going to I planned on setting I recognize the voice and push myself up out of my chair and walk over to the door.

"Shawn?"

"Yeah."

"What's wrong?"

"Can I have a key to a floor 1 room? Are there any available?"

"Yeah, there's one, why what's up?"

"Lawrence is hurt, bad."

"Shh, shh." I open the door and squeeze through it. "Dylan's here. She'd freak out if she heard that."

"Dylan? Is that the name of the kid who was hanging around earlier?"

"Yeah. My niece. Lawrence actually beat her dad up earlier today."

"Wait, really? Why?"

"He was slapping her."

"Ah."

"Yeah. Now she adores him. Thinks he's a superhero."

"Not too far from the truth. Did you bring her in on the knowledge about what's happening?"

"No? Do you know how crazy I thought he was when he brought me in on the whole ordeal? I didn't really believe him until you showed up, and carried that...rat thing with you to prove it. Where is he, by the way?"

Shawn motions to a shadow on the grass, covered by a blanket.

"Oh hell, is he okay?"

"No." Shawn answers. "Pretty bad, actually. They're sending some people to come look at him."

"They? The military?"

"Yeah."

"That bad?"

"You ever see someone struck by lightning?"

I shake my head.

"Well, it's not pretty."

"Hold up." I push open the door and glance at Dylan, still sat in the gray cushioned wicker chair with the switch in her lap, and her eyes still glued to it.

I walk in and slide open the drawer in the top and draw one of the card keys. The last one on floor 1. People had been coming in at an increasing rate over the last couple of days. Some have had questions about Lawrence and Shawn, but I just answer with a lie about them being a couple of eccentrics. That seems to put to ease the case with most of them. I hand over the keys.

"Thank you, Jenna. Distract Dylan for a bit, yeah?"

I nod, and close the door, and move to stand in front of the window.

"So, what are you playing?"

"You only have pokemon, so that's what I'm playing."

"Do you like it?"

"It's okayy, do you have Zelda?"

"No, I sold that last month."

I glance out the window. Shawn hoists Lawrence off the ground effortlessly, and walks across the grass towards room 105 without even slowing down. Maybe the superhero analogy wasn't that bad. I run my hand through my hair and sigh.

"Are you okay, aunt Jenna? You look worried."

I lower my hand. Worried? Was I worried?

"I'm okay, just tired today."

Why would I be worried? Lawrence was practically a stranger to me. He wasn't a bad guy, in fact he was probably a good guy. At the very least he treated me with respect, and that's more than could be said about my usual clientele. He and Shawn were practically gentlemen. Gentlemen, yes, but strangers still. I've been through too much in my life to be concerned with the fate of strangers.

I glance back at the door of 105, and watch as it slams shut.