[of our own device]

Who: Charlie and Jai
When: Mid-morning
Where: Their apartment

Jai had been a little more stressed out than usual as of late, even in this place. Since coming to the hotel there was always a bit of tension lingering in the back of his mind. The encounter with Christine and Finley only brought it all to the surface. Today was his first day off since it had all gone down, and aside from Nan's walks, he was spending it by being as lazy as possible. At that moment he was sprawled out on the living room couch, half-heartedly strumming on his guitar. He'd plunked down in that spot after Nan's last walk and dozed a little, and hadn't budged much since waking up. Oh yeah, he'd definitely needed this.

It eventually occurred to him that he could hear Charlie moving around in another room. "Oi," he called. "Aren't you off tomorrow? I'd've thought you'd be out half-drunk by now." Sometimes it still bugged Jai that he couldn't unwind with a couple of beers like everybody else, but he'd tried it in the past. His meds, not to mention mental state, had not thanked him for it at all.

WHO. Finley, Christine, Jai, and Charlie
WHERE. Main Lobby/Front Desk
WHEN. Early Evening

( She was thrilled to know that she was so close to shelter; she wasn't even paying attention to where she was stepping. )

Who: Nisha and Jai
When: Afternoon
Where: Outside, near one of the pools

When Jai had come to the hotel, he had not come alone. He had brought his dog, Nan, with him, and she was perhaps a saving grace. The copper colored husky had adjusted quickly to their new life, and had adjusted to the heat with her summer coat coming in even lighter than usual. She didn't much like being left at the apartment on his shifts (in New York, she'd always gone to the park with him), but she got by, and Jai was good with her. First thing before and after every shift, he always took her out for a long walk so she could get her exercise. Jai was happy to say he no longer felt like he'd been punched in the face whenever he walked outside into the heat, but it was still a bit much for his liking. How Nan would cope with it had been one of his biggest concerns, and he saw now that it had been completely unnecessary. She was thriving.

He had left Nan a long lead on her leash as they started, but now as they began to skirt one of the pools he reigned her in slightly. Nan, as it turned out, enjoyed swimming, and she had not been even a little bit hesitant about jumping right into the water on one of their first days here. This wasn't so much a problem for Jai, but it seemed like the sort of thing certain members of staff would take issue with. Nan eyed the water and tugged slightly, bouncing in place as she barked up at Jai. It was as if she was saying, Come on, buddy, I won't tell if you don't.

Who: Jai and open to staff
When: Noonish
Where: Security offices, basement level
Eventual language behind a cut.

Today was supposed to be Jai's day off, and he'd been enjoying it by sleeping in, until his phone started ringing an hour ago. Apparently they'd had a morning runner, and she'd broken a security guard's nose. Said security guard was now insisting he was in too much pain to finish the rest of his shift. Fantastic. Jai had dutifully risen to fill in, and he hadn't said a word of complaint. Oh, sure, he was thinking it rather loudly, but he knew the guy. He wasn't really a bad guy, and if it had been the other way around he probably would have done the same for Jai. Maybe.

Unfortunately, the guy was also the sort who would have forgotten his own head if it weren't attached. Jai headed to the infirmary to grab his walkie, and discovered the batteries were almost dead. Jai didn't complain here either, though he could have reminded him that these were supposed to be checked at the start of every shift. He just took it, wished him well, and headed back to the hotel to change them out.

He took the elevator down to the basement, not running into anyone as he headed into the empty security office. There was always the rumble of the washers and dryers in housekeeping, but Jai barely even noticed that anymore. He opened the storage locker at the end of the row, and pulled out the box of batteries. Empty. Frowning, he began rooting in the locker for another one. Nothing. "Well they've got to be somewhere, we need them," he thought aloud. Then he headed over to the small office fridge because, again, the guy he was relieving was kind of a flake and he'd found much stranger things in there in the past. He did find a book (...the hell?) and a half-eaten candy bar, but nothing else. Then he stood, turned, and found a softie standing not three feet in front of him. ( do not want do not want ever... )