The Off-Season

Whenever one wants to go on a vacation, they obviously must oblige to get a hotel room. A comfortable, homey yet temporary space for anyone planning to reside there. The looks on their faces are always amusing when they get kicked out for staying too long. All of them are so egotistical, arrogant, they think the world revolves around them when they can’t even stay forever. Though, it can’t be helped when it brings good money to the table.

“I can’t believe you’re still the owner of this hotel.” Muun groaned out. Her body slumped over the desk while avoiding the keyboard. She has been working here for about five years now and still has much to learn. Her hair donned a deep black decorated with a ladybug pin and formal clothes. “You don’t even like working here!”

The older lady took a sip of her wine and glared at Muun. “It brings in good money, that’s all I want.” Ms. Von, the grumbly and exhausted owner of the Grandust hotel in the town. Not that much older than Muun, only 7 years older. To all of the young people, though, 7 years is quite a lot.

“Well, clearly not during this time.” Muun retorted, rolling her eyes. “Only about three people checked in today!”

“It’s the slowest time of year for the hotel,” Ms. Von said. “It’ll get better overtime.”

“You’ve been saying that since last week.” The younger lady was in agony at the boring scene. Usually, it’d be bustling and crowded with people waiting to check in. Now, the only people checking in were flies and dust, and for free, no less!

“At least that celebrity of yours is in town.” The elder lady took another sip of her wine. Muun’s eyes widened from excitement at her words.

“Really?! Now?”

“That blonde fencer, correct?”

“Yes! Ezekiel Violo, the best fencer in the entire nation. And he’s really here?” Muun could barely contain her excitement, she was about to explode from how intense she felt.

“I’m not fond of him,” Ms. Von stated. “He’s too prideful for his own good.”

“But that’s the best part about him! He believes he can win because he knows he will win.” Muun explained gleefully.

The owner let out a sigh and lightly pressed her hand against Muun’s head, a small sign of affection before she left to go to her office. Muun couldn’t even voice out a protest.

Despite the owner’s retirement, she still felt quite giddy about the situation. Ezekiel Violo, a man born from a remarkable family and rose up the ranks like it was second nature. Ever since making his mark, he’s defeated every single opponent he’s gone against, even if the odds were not in his favor. Naturally, like any celebrity, he’s gained numerous fans for his matches, most of them being ladies.

Naturally, he must travel around the world to face off in matches in different countries and cities. Italy, Bulgaria, Budapest, and of course, Paris where he first came to be. While he did have a rather rough start, he never backed down no matter the circumstances.

Muun let out a sigh, knowing that he probably wouldn’t come here. It’s a slow season so the chances are unlikely. Her fingers moved across the keyboard to figure out when he'd come. Maybe she could see him before his departure?

Checking on his instagram account, it showed a picture of him exiting a plane and roaming the airport that she frequently visited. Not for flights, but for farewells. He wore the same blue tricorn hat he always fancied. The white feather seemed fresh and clean, accompanied by a shining smile on his face. Ezekiel’s hair tied neatly in a braid on his side and followed by a blue suit with a tailcoat. He certainly looked like a perfect man.

Muun stared at the picture for a moment before a groan escaped her chest. Irritation gnawed at her soul, but not because she was working during the off-season, but because she knew she wouldn’t be able to see the celebrated fencer. She glanced up at the glass doors in the entrance yet her face didn’t change when she saw not a single person entering.

“Ah, there’s hardly anything to do.” The lady murmured, her eyelids feeling heavy. “Surely a.. little nap wouldn’t hurt.” 

And before she knew it, her eyes glued together as her mind drifted off into a deep slumber. At least the hotel was awfully slow during this time.

...

“Excuse me, miss?” A deep and whimsical voice stole her away from dreamland.

Muun’s eyes shot open at the voice, immediately lifting her head from the desk. A bit of drool lingered on the side of her mouth and her hair was slightly messy. It took her a few moments in order to regain her vision, but once she did... her mouth dropped lower than an angel falling from heaven.

Blonde. Blue hat. A mole on his cheek.

It could be nobody else.

“Ezekiel Violo?!” Muun almost shouted his name. Seeing how indecent that’d be, she forced herself to calm down.

“Yes, that’s me.” The blonde man answered in a prideful voice, placing a firm hand on his chest.

She couldn’t believe it, it was like her dreams had come true. The celebrity that she adored for so long and watched since she was a freshman in college was right before her eyes and in her hotel. As if it couldn’t get any better, he gave her a bright smile from all glory.

If she weren’t on the clock, Muun would’ve probably fainted by now.

“Ah! My apologies... are you here to check in?” The lady asked sheepishly while straightening herself.

“It’s quite alright, but yes, I’d like a room with one bed.” Ezekiel, the blonde, the fencer, the master of fights answered with a nod. “You are quite amusing.”

“Oh, thank you. I merely wasn’t expecting the best fencer to check in!” Muun responded as she quickly typed away on her computer. She could barely contain herself, it was like she could explode from all of the emotion.

“It is alright, I’m glad you are so fond of me.” Ezekiel answered with a laugh, roaming a hand over his sidestepped braid.

 After a few moments, her hands wandered down to grab a keycard. Lifting herself up, she gifted him the key slowly.

“Your room is on the second floor, number 214.” She then said, standing up.

“Thank you grandly, miss-”

“Ah! Could I get your autograph? Pardon me.” Muun couldn’t contain herself from blurting out. Who could? It was the grandest fencer in the entire nation.

Ezekiel was stunned by her sudden enthusiasm, he hadn't expected this. He narrowed his blue eyes at her for a moment before giving another smile.

“Why, of course, miss.” He nodded while his hand grabbed a pen from her desk. With gentle and smooth movements, he wrote his signature on her notebook. It was clean, vibrant, a sign that clearly referred to how bold he was.

Once he was finished, Muun had to hold in her squeals as she grabbed back her notebook a little too quickly for her taste.

“Thank you very much, sir!” She exclaimed, leaning over the desk to look at him more clearly. He chuckled quietly before giving her a curt bow and starting to walk towards the elevator. Her eyes wouldn’t unattach themselves to the back of his blonde hair.

Once he was gone from her sight, Muun grabbed the pillow from her chair and squealed her excitement into it. It was so surprising that not even if Ms. Von retired from the hotel could beat this. The best fencer, Ezekiel Violo, came here instead of any other hotel he could find. He was quite lucky it was the off-season, otherwise he’d be bombarded with autographs and paparazzi. 

The young lady slowly calmed down and placed her pillow back down to regain her composure. She made a mental note to check in on the room another day and clean up a bit.

For now, she just let him be.

... 

Surprisingly enough, the man took quite a liking to her despite his earlier suspicion. Seeing how excited, amazed and happy she was to see him, it amused him greatly enough to let her inside of the arena. For the next couple of days, she got to see him up close in all of his sweat and glory fighting off against his opponent flawlessly. His moves were swift as a crow and agile as a jaguar, and his smile never fading. She couldn’t believe her eyes as she watched him fight over and over again, until the final day which he won, of course.

The crowd roared with excitement once the trophy was ultimately placed in his hands, allowing him to bless the people in his grand smile and presence. Muun, of course, also applauded and shouted with glee at his victory. It was truly a beautiful sight to see, and by far the most amazing thing she got the honor of witnessing.

After the match, the two of them reentered the hotel, the trophy in her hands to feel around. It was quite late, but most of the people were already asleep. Nobody would care if some people came back a little later than usual.

“That was splendid, Mr. Violo!” Muun exclaimed, nearly tripping over her own feet. 

“Ha, I’m glad you think so. I trained for months for this fight, just for it to be done in a flash.” Ezekiel responded with a laugh, fixing his tricorn hat. “I expected a better opponent.”

“But Mr. Heath was splendid as well! If anything, he was doing quite well in the beginning.” The lady answered while looking over at Ezekiel. Maybe she was too tired, but she saw the corner of his eye twitch ever so slightly.

“... Indeed he was, but nonetheless, I came out as the victor as always.” He simply fixed his tie to regain any insecurities that might’ve come out.

“Of course, you are the best fencer in the nation after all!” Muun let out a giggle after she spoke, her eyes looking over the trophy. It was a simple one, just two fencing sabres clashing against each other in honor.

“Ah, you flatter me, Muun.” He responded as they entered the elevator together. “But alas, good times must come to an end. I am leaving tomorrow.”

“Really?! Why can’t you stay a bit longer?” She asked with a face full of pain. There’s no way he’d leave now, she only just started getting to know him!

“My apologies, but I have a busy schedule.” Ezekiel said with a sigh, their feet now approaching room 214. In the corner of his eye, he saw how sad she looked. After all, he was her favorite celebrity of all time. To compensate for his departure, he gave her an offer.

“Would you like to come in? I am quite fond of tea.” Muun could barely hold in her excitement at his offer.

“Yes! Of course!”

Once he swiped his card across the reader, he opened the door and allowed her to enter. She wasn’t surprised that he hadn’t fully unraveled the place, but her eyes did drift to two bottles of wine next to a tea bag. For someone so fond of tea, why have it right next to wine? Perhaps she was being too nitpicky about it.

The room wasn’t too big nor too small, just the right size for a man like Ezekiel. It had a faint scent of wood and cologne painted on all of the sheets that were still neatly made, along with his suitcase all packed up in the corner of the area. 

“Give me a moment, make yourself comfortable, please.” Ezekiel murmured with a faint grin. His footsteps then faded into the bathroom for freshening.

Muun thought about just sitting still and waiting for his return, but that was so boring! And she didn’t bring her phone with her to entertain herself, so she thought, why not explore just a little bit? It wouldn’t harm anybody if she snooped for now. After fixing the ladybug pin on her hair, she began her “quest”.

Her eyes roamed through the drawers and desks, finding hardly anything besides a load of tea bags, business cards and self-reflection notes. She almost brushed them off before one note was awfully strange... It stated “Be nicer, grander, or your cover will be burned.” Perhaps that wasn’t anything bad, or maybe he was having a rough day. Muun continued searching through the cabinets of clothes and shoes and eventually finding nothing

She felt not irritated, but somewhat disappointed for not seeing anything too exciting. Though she can’t complain, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to speak with the best fencer ever.

However... there is one place she hasn’t checked yet. The closet. It was too personal, too intruding to check the closet. But one tiny peek wouldn’t hurt, right?

Muun slowly slid open the doors and made her way through the closet. Most of the clothes that used to hang here were all folded and ready to be placed in the bag on the side. That's what she would’ve thought if the bag was empty. Her eyes were glued to the bag, hesitating for a while. “Just a tiny peek” she kept telling herself. Eventually, curiosity won over cautiousness and she knelt down to open the bag.

Like how she expected, there were only clothes inside the bag. She would’ve thought there would be childhood photos or other papers. With a sigh, Muun began to zip up the bag, but then stopped. There was a glare inside, something shiny and glimmering beneath all of the clothes. Quietly, she took out the clothes.

On the very bottom were various pieces of decoration for hair and clothing. Pins, hairclips, earrings, necklaces, etc. She felt awfully confused. Ezekiel Violo wasn’t the type to wear much jewelry nor decorate himself to this extent. At the very most, he would wear a simple pair of earrings with a few rings only for formal occasions.

But then... the dots began to click in her head.

The pins were very familiar, but not just because she’s seen them in stores. They belonged to people, his opponents from the past. Muun reached down and picked up a handful of them.

“Ruby earrings... for Miss Cellia from five months ago. A necklace with ‘N’ from Mr. Nandaka last year. And…” She hesitated on the last one.

It was a black cat pin with bright green eyes full of curiosity and innocence. Inside her mind, there wasn’t any doubt who this belonged to.

“Mr. Hitchington… his first opponent ever.” Muun’s fingers began to shake around the jewelry in her hands. Why would he have these, the most important parts of all of his opponents? There was no way they’d be souvenirs that last a lifetime. Trophies and medals were made for that.

Then, a foul smell breached her nose coming from the bag. Coughs emitted from her mouth as she leaned down to get a better sniff of it. It smelt like copper, or worse, metal. It was so strong it began to make her feel lightheaded.

“Why in god’s name…?” Her voice trailed off as a grand silhouette engulfed her smaller shadow. Though instead of grand, she felt that it was terrifying.

The moment Muun turned around, she saw Ezekiels’ deep blue eyes staring right back at her. Instead of pride and honor, it was full of arrogance and rage. The shadows covered all of his face, leaving only his gaze visible, but also his sabre. It wasn’t like the sabres in his matches, this was sharper, bolder. This was a true sword made from the finest of blacksmiths.

“You weren’t supposed to see.” His voice was husky and ragged. “You were supposed to sit silently.”

Fear ran straight through her body, chains beginning to form around her poor, curious soul that just wanted to look around for entertainment.

“Ezekiel... what is this-”

“Quiet yourself.”

Before Muun could respond to him or even move, he raised his sword and struck down at her neck. Her eyes remained glued to his dark face, but her skin broke. There was no scream, no yell, no voice. Only the smell of copper and metal beginning to fill the room

... 

It was a grand day in the Grandust hotel, more people came in for check ins instead of one or two men each day. Surprisingly enough, there was enough to fill a whole floor.

Ms. Von sat at the front desk while wiping her glasses. Internally, she felt both tired and irritated. Tired from the lack of sleep, irritated from the lack of Muun. She was supposed to be here hours ago, but there was no sight of her.

“God, where is that girl?” Her voice was gravely. Not even a sip of wine could help her now.

From her right side, the sound of an elevator dinging caught her attention. She turned her head to see none other than Ezekiel Violo himself. As he walked, suitcases and bags in hand, he gave the elderly woman a prideful smile. The man placed his keycard on the desk to check out.

“Checking out?” Ms. Von asked.

“Yes, the service is great.” He responded with a smile.

“...That pin is new, is it not?” She asked, gesturing to the ladybug pin on his hat. If she remembered correctly, he hardly wore any pins on himself.

“Ah, yes, it’s a souvenir, if you will.” He let out a quiet laugh.

“Of course, have a nice day, Mr. Violo.”

“You too, ma’am.” Ezekiel said with a curt nod before he slowly began walking away from the desk, the ladybug pin dangling from his feathered hat. The smell of metal still lingered on him ever so slightly.