“I’m Eddie, by the way” he tells me as guides us through a maze of hallways.

“Isaiah Bradley,” I reply, “pleasure to meet you.”

He greets a few other guests as we walk and receives more than a few questioning glances, but Eddie doesn’t stop for conversation. Bless him. Instead, he attempts to engage in some very pleasant small talk with me, but unfortunately, I am feeling something beyond overwhelmed and I’m having a hard time following his chatter. He is either unbothered by my poor responsiveness or sees that I’m freaking out and is doing his best not to draw attention to it. Either way, bless him again.

Eddie leads the way to what appears to be the event halls. What little of my brain that has not already shut down takes note that I have already gotten so turned around that I haven’t the faintest idea how we got here or which direction the lobby might be. Eddie thankfully knows exactly where we are heading and I find myself grateful for his outlandish style choices, I won’t be losing sight of him.

“Hey, Liz!” Eddie calls when we enter a small service hall.

I had expected the manager to be another one of the many armed keepers but thankfully this appears to be a beautiful and impeccably dressed woman. She turns in response to my guide’s call and smiles in acknowledgment, quickly turning back to the circle of keepers she was addressing to set a hand on the shoulder of one before leaving the group and approaching us.

“Eddie,” she greets pleasantly, “My name is Elizabeth. what can I do for you?”

“Right, sorry Lizzie!” Eddie unconvincingly apologizes as he pulls the woman into a friendly hug. “So, anyway,” he moves back and waves a hand in my direction, “Lizzie, you gotta meet this guy-” Eddie squints at me, “what did you say your name was?”

“Isaiah Bradley,” I supply, even though I am quite sure I told him only a few minutes ago.

The woman turns her attention to me and smiles. She’s a tiny thing, dressed in a 20s era suit that would have made Coco envious. She’s got a clipboard in her hands and a pen tucked behind her ear next to her perfectly sculpted waves. The name tag pinned to her chest reads:

Halfway Hotel

 Elizabeth

Manager

“Nice to meet you,” she greets, giving me a handshake, “my name is Elizabeth.” Her smile is firmly businesslike but also genuine, like she really is pleased to welcome a new guest to her hotel.

“Yeah so, Isaac here-”

“Isaiah,” she corrects, unruffled.

“Right. Anyway, he can’t find his room! Can you believe that?” Eddie huffs disbelievingly.

 Elizabeth eyes the man like she’s waiting for the punchline. He raises his eyebrows and shrugs in my direction. She turns towards me slowly, “you couldn’t find it?” she echoes, genuinely perplexed.

I smile uncomfortably and give her my best helpless little shrug.

“That is unusual,” she says slowly and then clears her throat, “I’m terribly sorry for the inconvenience, how long ago did you arrive?” she asks, her eyes scanning me like a difficult puzzle.

“Oh just a few-” I start and then frown, “Well, to be perfectly honest with you ma’am, I am not entirely sure. I um, seem to have arrived without my watch.”

She chuckles, “Yes, the hotel can be a bit disorienting when it comes to time, you’ll get a better sense for it the longer you stay. Have you been to your room before?”

“I haven’t had the chance, no,”

She offers a sympathetic smile, “I am so sorry, well let’s head over to the front desk and see if we can sort out the issue!”

“Hey wait!” Eddie calls before she can get a step in, “I uh, brought this poor wandering fella all the way down here, that earns me some reward points, yeah?”

Elizabeth tilts her head, “Well let’s think about this why don’t we Eddie. Do you think you’ve earned reward points?”

Eddie opens his mouth to answer and then slumps, “Nah, I did it for me.”

Elizabeth brightens, “I am so proud of you for recognizing that, Eddie!” clasping his shoulder, “You’ve been doing so well lately.”

“Yeah?” Eddie brightens to match her, “I have been, haven’t I?”

“Don’t let it go to your head,” she warns.

“Good point,” he frowns, “gotta watch out for that.”

“I’ll tell you what,” Elizabeth offers conspiratorially, “You thought about it, and even if your motivations weren’t exactly in the right place, you tried, so I’ll mark you down for two reward points.”

Eddie fist pumps the air, “Awesome!” he bounds forward and wraps his arms around me. I was flirting with shock before he accosted me, so I stand there with what I’m sure is a very good impression of a deer in headlights until it’s over, “It was sweet meeting you Isaac! Catch you later.”

I attempt to offer thanks, but the guy is fast.

“Isaiah!” Elizabeth calls after him as he bounds away. “Sorry about him,” she winces, “He’s a bit self-absorbed. We’re working on it.”

“Ah.” I sputter, perfectly maintaining my image of a confident, well collected person.

Elizabeth doesn’t laugh at me or even appear pitying, she simply offers me a tender smile and gestures for the door, “Now, let’s get downstairs and see if we can’t sort out your reservation issue.”

Back in the lobby, Elizabeth frowns at the ledger, “Everything appears to be in order,” she muses over the pages. “Your room is properly assigned; you’ve got your key.”

“Yes,” I clear my throat and shift on my feet. The Keeper that mans the front desk is hovering behind Elizabeth’s shoulder, every single one of its many eyes boring into me. “I’m sure that if I could just get some clear directions, I’d be more than capable of finding my way.”

“But that’s exactly the problem, Mr. Bradley,” Elizabeth frowns, “There are no directions. The hotel doesn’t have a floor plan. The halls and rooms move and change as needed. Hotel residents have historically found their way around instinctively.”

I swallow the growing lump in my throat and try not to panic. For the first time I wonder if this place is less ‘halfway’ and more my own personal hell. The sense of being lost is one of my most prevalent fears and I seem to have arrived without a sense of direction.

“What do you make of this?” Elizabeth swivels to ask the Keeper.

Its many eyes flick to hers.

“Yes,” Elizabeth begins with practiced patience, “I know he is lost; I am wondering why he is lost.” After a moment she brightens with understanding. “Is that it then? What you’re here for?” she asks me.

“What?” I stutter eloquently. Her responding smile is so kind I almost manage not to feel like a fool.

“The Keeper is insisting that you’re lost, is that what you’re here at the hotel to correct? This sense of being lost?”

The answer is no, not quite, but since I don’t really understand what I am here for, I have no idea how I know that’s not the correct answer. “Let’s back up a moment,” I propose in an effort to get a handle on things, “What are any of us here for?”

“You really don’t know do you?” Elizabeth asks with growing confusion. She takes a breath and gives her head a small shake, “The hotel is here to give our guests a chance to find or discover whatever it is that’s holding them back. Guests normally arrive with at least some sense of what they are here for and spend their time working towards their goal. When they are finally ready, guests check out, leaving us behind for whatever follows.”

Setting aside the fact she did not give a clear image of ‘what follows’ I had thought I was prepared for my passing, after all, it had not come as a surprise.

“Oh, I see,” I breathe a sigh of relief, “My differences must stem from the fact I arrived here in error. I am perfectly prepared to move on.”

“Are you?” she questions, “You’re more than welcome to check out and head for the doors if you are ready to go.” She hands me the pen from behind her ear and sets the ledger on the countertop before me, her perfectly manicured finger pointing to the line where my signature should go.

I will my arm to move and my hand to form the letters of my name, but nothing happens, and I end up struggling with myself as Elizabeth watches on with sympathy.

“I am afraid, Mr. Bradley, that if you cannot write your name, you are not ready to check out.”

With a sigh I pass her back her pen, “What now?” I ask as she tucks it back into its place.

“For now, I’ll take you up to your room. Everyone wants a few days to relax and process. While you work on that, I’ll work on finding an appropriate guide for you until you get your sea legs-”

My eyes instantly flick to the keeper, and I pale at the idea of that creature leading me around all day.

“Oh, no. Not a keeper,” she laughs. I wonder at what I did to inspire that laugh and how I might inspire it again, “It’s best not to try and assign them extra duties,” Elizabeth continues rather ominously.

“Not Eddie,” I accidentally hope aloud.

Elizabeth laughs again and the sound leaves no room for me to feel like a fool for the misspoken words. “Alright, not Eddie.” Elizabeth flips the ledger shut and moves out from behind the counter, “Are you ready?”

Yes and no. Having a clear plan of action has mitigated my anxiety and the prospect of spending a little more time with Elizabeth is not unwelcome. “But I’m sure you have better things to do.” I say anyway. I may be a bit off kilter today, but having the hotel’s manager play tour guide for me doesn’t seem like the most logical use of her time.

“I have lots of other things I could be doing,” she agrees, grinning dangerously, “But certainly nothing better,”