Your Answer In Spades

Gerard POV

“South San Francisco, the Industrial City,” read the capital letters on the hillside. We had finally arrived in San Francisco after our long, difficult journey here. I drove deeper into the city, all the way to the Fairmont Hotel. Grace and I had been sleeping in my car for so long, and we had plenty of money, so I decided we would stay in one of the nicest hotels in San Francisco.

I rang the golden bell at the front desk and a man in a crisp white shirt and a black vest hurried over to greet us. “Welcome to the Fairmont, how may I help you?”

“We’d like a room,” I answered him. I heard Grace squeal slightly.

“What sort of room would you like? I highly recommend the balcony suite, especially if you are visiting from out of town. The view of San Francisco is incredible,” he said.

“Okay, I guess we’ll take one of those.” Another squeal from Grace.

“And how long will you be staying, sir?” he asked.

“About a week,” I guessed.

“Alright, thank you very much. Your room number is 405; here are two keys. We have 3 fine restaurants in our hotel as well as 24-hour room service. The balcony suite also comes with a complementary bottle of champagne, which I hope you will enjoy. If you need anything, or have any question, you can dial 0 on the in-room phone to reach guest services.”

“Thank you.” I took the keys and was greeted with a giant hug from Grace.

“I can’t believe we’re staying here! This is one of the nicest places in San Francisco!”

“Yes, and it’s right in the downtown area as well.” I handed her the brochure the attendant had given me.

“Ooh! They have sea lions!” she exclaimed.

“Sea lions? What are those?” I asked.

“You don’t know what sea lions are?” she looked at me incredulously. “They’re like seals, except they’re bigger and louder.”

“Oh-kay.” I didn’t exactly understand the appeal.

“You can bark at them and they bark back!” she explained.

Now I understood. My fair Grace wanted to bark at giant seal-like animals.

“Don’t look at me like that; it’s fun!” she scowled at me.

We entered the elevator and headed to the fourth floor. The room was two down from the elevator. I slid the key in the door and pushed it open to reveal a gigantic room, ornately furnished with gold and cream colored chairs, bed, and curtains.

“Oh my gosh! There’s a balcony!” Grace jumped back and forth excitedly, unsure whether to investigate that first or to attack me with hugs and kisses.

“Yes, Balcony Suites typically have balconies,” I informed her.

This broke the tie; she went straight out onto the balcony, sat in one of the chairs and stared out at the City, the sun setting against the brilliant lights from all the buildings. “Gerard,” she called back to me.

“Yes?”

“I think I love you. This view is amazing!”

“Do you love me or the view more?” I asked jokingly.

“I’d love the view even more if you came out and watched the sun set with me,” she replied.

“It would be an honor,” I bowed, then picked her up out of the chair and set her on my lap.

It was a very beautiful sun set.