[b]March 18th, 1997[/b]
[hr]
“The boys around here call it ‘The Black Lagoon;’ a paradise. Only they say nobody has ever come back to prove it.” 

A screen flickered white and gray across the dark room, illuminating the cracking plaster walls adorned by peeling paint. In the center sat a bed that barely fit the space and upon it rested a sea of blankets. The dialogue coming from the television was abruptly interrupted by the cries of the alarm clock placed on the bedside table as it wailed for attention. A pair of hands erupted from the pile of fabric with a mess of blonde hair following. Ellie clambered to end the noise, though her eyes remained cemented closed. 

“Shush, shush, shush,” she muttered, violently flinging herself out of the covers and aiming a blind fist at the clock, successfully ending its tyranny. The woman grumbled something fierce as she swiped the back of her hands across her eyes and instinctively shuffled directly to the coffee maker situated next to the sink in the corner of the room. 

A polo shirt and pair of khaki pants completed Ellie’s outfit, as with any work day. She scrambled to tug her hair into an elastic as she turned her doorknob with an elbow, balancing a multitude of objects in her arms. Upon freeing herself, she worked to make it down the long exterior corridor lined with identical doors without dropping anything. Ellie used her chin to balance a thermos as she bounced down a neglected stairwell and to the edge of the green tinged pool at the center of the complex. 

“Mornin’, Sunshine!” she chimed as she headed towards the single pool chair on the patio. A man with a face drenched in hair and whose personal hygiene was clearly suffering rested there, the woman draped across him lacking both clothing and any dignity. “It’s from last night, but I kept it in the fridge,” she spoke essentially to herself, setting a distinguishable box of Chinese food beside them. “Brought Aspirin and some water too.” She continued placing the items she was describing, despite getting no response from either of the unconscious bodies. For a moment, she paused, jutting out her chin and narrowing her eyes at them.

 “Aye, Tony?” At last, both of their chests rose. She considered reaching to find their pulses, but the gamble of scabies was not one she was willing to take. Risk versus benefit. 

Ellie had moved into the motel upon arriving to the city. Her initial search consisted solely of the cheapest place that would allow her to stay the longest. The bad plumbing and fear of bed bugs or being mistaken for a prostitute came free with purchase. She considered moving somewhere nicer when she snagged her job, but Tony waived rent upon the unspoken agreement that she would bring him occasional leftovers and clean up what she could of his bad decisions. 

After draping a towel over the two, Ellie glanced to the watch on her wrist. “Ah, shit.” She frantically reached into her back pocket for her keys, coming up empty. 

“Ah, [i]shit[/i]!”