Page 26A small betrayal

I wanted a shower.

When I awoke, still mostly dressed, the first thought, before any other, was wanting a shower. I wasn't sure why, perhaps because of the throwing up of yesterday that still lingered slightly oin my mind. But would they have showers here or would I be forced to find accomidating water elsewhere.

No, I wasn't going to swim in the ocean.

Although...

Nah, perhaps another time. It wasn't as much fun in the dark anyway.

I finished getting dressed, which basically meant putting the backpack and my shoes back on, and opened the door. Esmeralda came up to me almost immediately. She hadn't been waiting in front of it, but not far away either. She looked cheerful though and with some other clothes today. A slightly odd summers dress that looked gypsie-ish somehow. Perhaps it was the colors. I wasn't sure.

"Amy! You finally woke up. Are you a vampire or something that you only come out at night?" She giggled as she said it.

It was an obvious joke, I hoped. But I wasn't sure how to respond. "Well, I've just got sensitive skin and eyes." Which was technically true.

"You know, there is such a thing as sunblock. But I suppose once you're used to this lifestyle. I slept most of the day as well. Bit of a headache at first. But nothing that a lot of water couldn't dissolve."

I giggled. "A physics joke?"

"Hey, aren't I allowed to be smart?"

I laughed. "Yes, anyway. Do you shower here?"

She almost looked affronted. "Of course, what do you think we are, dirty?" She giggled. "Don't answer that, sorry. Squatters have a very bad reputation generally speaking. But yeah, there's showers here. Need a towel?"

I nodded.

"Follow me then."

She took me to the ground floor, beyond a room that looked like a jungle with all kinds of ropes, ladders and other things to climb or swing on. It didn't all look equally solid though. And it was definitely not the original purpose of the room. But, for some reason, there was a whole sanitary room behind it, with large basins, tiled floors and walls and, thank god, closed off shower cabins.

While I don't really care for nudity as such, it's a whole different matter when showering for some reason. I was thankful that Esmeralda didn't ask to join me. She could be very polite at times. Of course she offset it with other naughty things but that was okey. She was very likable.

"I hope you don't mind beach towels." She giggled as she gave me a neatly folded towel.

Out of curiousity I unfolded it and held it up. "It's huge!"

She still giggled. "Look at the other side."

And of course, there was a naked lady on it, upside down at the moment, made to look like she was laying on the towel herself. On her stomach. It was not as untasteful as it could have been, but I still blushed, slightly. Esmeralda only giggled more when she noticed but she held open the door to one of the cabins and grinned.

"The boiler here is very large, you can shower as long as you want. If you want I'll guard the door so you can undress and keep your clothes dry."

"Thanks."

She shrugged. "Most people shower in the morning anyway, after a night of drinking rather than before it."

I didn't comment that this was my morning. "Can you guard the door now, I'd like to change."

She nodded and dutifully went to the door. She turned her back to me but stayed on this side. For just a moment I wondered if I wanted to ask her to leave the room, but that was silly. This place was huge and I could easily cover myself with the towel as I headed into and out of the shower cabin.

I didn't fold my clothes fully when I undressed but just layed them next to each other, the backpack next to them. Then it was time to feel the glorious warm drops falling on my body. I wrapped the towel around me, knowing it wasn't really needed but it felt nice anyway. (No, not because I was wrapping a naked lady around me.)

The shower cabin was alright. Not too large, but sufficient to take a nice shower, sit down or move around a little. It was almost like an old school, with the panels not reaching all the way up to the ceiling or the floor. Someone tall enough or strong enough could take a peek over them to the immediate neighbours. Fortunately there was no one else here.

The water was so good.

This was my first shower in Mareana, and the water felt different. Tasted different. It wasn't salty, as I sneakily wondered, but it felt a lot softer than what I was used to. My mind tried to figure it out while I washed myself everywhere. It felt so good.

In fact I tried something that I hadn't done before.

Though my skin could get hurt by fire, nobody said anything about hot water. And, little by little, I used less cold water compared to the hot water. Soon it was a temperature which I knew I would never have stood under before I was this, but it was really good as well. It warmed me deep inside and the slight hurt it caused was very interesting. It was a little like someone biting in your neck. If they did it right, it didn't exactly hurt, but just feel nice.

This was like that.

I did find out that it was very uncomfortable when I put it any hotter though. Steam rose all around me and time just flowed by without me caring. I didn't have any soap with me to wash anything, but it didn't feel needed. My skin or hair wasn't greasy at all. When the water had cleaned it, I felt really clean.

After I turned the water off, I dried myself. Beach towels weren't ideal for that as they were slightly rougher, but it was okay. It still functioned and my skin felt a little more sensitive because of the heat before. In a nice way though. When I was done drying myself, I took a moment to enjoy the cooler air against my skin.

When I got out of the shower, I had the feeling something was slightly wrong. Putting my clothes on was slightly more important though. They still felt nice, even after all that adventuring. But, as was told to me, vampires don't sweat and as long as we stay out of dirt, we can keep fairly clean for a long time. I suppose it was convenient with our immortality.

Esmeralda came back when I put my shoes on. "I'm sorry."

I blinked. "What for."

"I read in your diary."

If you've ever kept a diary you know that, someone else reading it without your permission is one of the worst things they can do.