Page 10 of Sixty Meters Under
One week later, Ayame and Ryosuke found themselves in front of, what seemed like, an abandoned building. At first glance.
In front of the huge metal gate was an older man, dressed in a dark gray coat, and black trousers. His snowy hair was brushed to the side, a detail they noticed when he removed his hat to greet them.
“Good morning.” The man gave them a little bow.
“Good morning, Mr. Hansson, pleasure to meet you.” Ayame bowed too and extended her hand.
They shook hands, and Ryosuke repeated the gesture. He didn’t remember the man’s last name like Ayame, but the name, Hugo, was etched in his memory. Ryosuke looked at him closely; the way Hugo was dressed, and his professional approach gave out the vibes of someone trustworthy. At least for the start.
“Pleasure to meet you too. So, where are you from?”
“We’re from Japan,” Ayame said, a smile grazing her lips.
“That’s what I thought, but I didn’t want to draw conclusions. And your English is great,” Hugo said, reciprocating a smile. “So, tell me, you came all this way just to see this place?”
“Yes, of course! We have serious interest in a room in your bunker. Or better to say–rooms,” Ayame hurriedly added.
Hugo froze, and his smile faded. “You didn’t mention that you were interested in taking a few rooms.”
“Well, we wanted to see what this place looks like first, you know, before making a decision,” Ayame explained.
Hugo adjusted his glasses with a fingertip. “Of course, of course. But the thing is that there are not many rooms left.”
“Oh–” Ayame uttered, taken aback by his declaration. “But we’ll need three rooms.”
“Three?” Hugo repeated, and shook his head slightly. “One way or another, if that’s your requirement, you’ll need to send us a completed questionnaire within the next twenty-four hours. The demand is great. We will let you know in a couple of days if you have been selected; it’s not up to me to decide.”
“Yeah. I saw that we need to apply first. But I thought that if we offered to pay more than you ask, there would be a chance to reserve the rooms right away,” Ayame suggested.
Hugo sighed. “Believe me, young lady, you are neither the first nor the last to offer us this, but rules are rules, and they apply equally to everyone.”
“I see. So, there is no way to purchase the rooms today?”
“We have very affordable prices, that’s true, but the application criteria is set high for a reason. And it’s the only way to buy a room. There is no circumventing the process.”
“I understand,” Ayame said, still remaining bubbly even after receiving such information.
“Well, we’re glad to have people from all over the world interested in our bunker. I have to admit that the majority registered are local people, but we also have a few foreigners. Now, let me show you why so many people are interested. Since the price is not the only reason.”
Ayame and Ryosuke shared a look while Hugo entered the code to open the double door. They followed the man inside, and waited for him to open another door while the front gate closed behind them.
Hugo stepped in first, and the lights automatically illuminated the hallway. When they passed the threshold, Hugo closed the door and knocked on the metal surface on their right. A tall man, in the dark-blue uniform, stepped out and greeted them.
The couple were initially confused and a bit startled, but Hugo apologized and explained it was a requirement to look them over before they went further.
The man checked them one by one with a hand scanner. When he was done, Hugo led them to the elevator door, and pressed the button.
The door slid open and the trio stepped inside. Hugo pressed the number eight, and the door closed behind them. As they descended, Hugo spoke again, “I’ll show you one of the available rooms first.”
“Okay,” Ayame said and smiled, looking both excited and nervous at the same time. She glanced at her fiancé. Ryosukedidn’t say anything, just looked around the small space. When the elevator stopped, the door opened onto a dark hallway.
The moment they stepped out, the hall became lit by a warm bright light. Both young people blinked in astonishment; the hallway looked as if they were in a fancy hotel, not a hideout.
The side walls were painted a warm creamy beige with a white ceiling. Corner trim lined the bottom and the top of the walls, the floor carpeted in a rich shade of brown. Framed classical oil paintings completed the picture. Ryosuke wondered if those were just prints, or original pieces since it was hard to distinguish it from afar.
“Oh, wow…” Ryosuke heard Ayame sigh in delight.
They both followed Hugo, until the man stopped in front of one of the doors. He placed a card on the small box that was attached to the wall, and they heard a soft click. They had no idea what the doors were made of, until they heard a heavy sound of metal echoing through the air. And once again, when they stepped inside, the light automatically turned on. It didn’t look artificial at all. What was more, the room resembled an ordinary hotel room in broad daylight. There were even two windows.
