My eyes are opening to what seems to be a hotel room. It's almost completely dark. My head pounds, my mouth is dry. The light from the moon bounces off beer bottles collected on a desk across the room. It's humid. I haven't anything on but a pair of unfamiliar boxer shorts that are much too big for me. My feet are caught up in the sheets and suffocating. I kick the sheets away and swing my feet off the bed onto the cold, tile floor. It feels good as a little cold shiver runs up my spine. I hold my position for a while with my eyes closed, enjoying the cool on the scorching souls of my feet. After a few seconds, the tile itself is too warm from the heat of my feet. I decide to stand up and wander around so no one spot is ever any warmer than the other.

The hotel room seems to have a bit of an Asian décor, Thai perhaps. The intricate tapestries on the wall are stunning, depicting majestic, noble-looking elephants bathing themsleves. It's definitely very typical of Thailand, but I have no idea what city, island or town I'm in. As I pass a chair, I grab a t-shirt that's been thrown carelessly over the mahogany armrest and slip it on. I stand by the window, cross my arms and look out, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the moonlit outdoors. The beach comes into focus. Rocks jutting out like a jetty and small, bamboo umbrellas dot the beach. It is Koh Samui. I stand there for a while, taking in the beauty that is any tropical locale at night. The silhouettes of palms, slighty swaying in a breeze that would feel so wonderful on my hot, bare skin. The sound of the backwater washing away the footprints of the day before. The replacement of human life with the haunting, mystic sound of crickets and cockroaches scurrying and clicking. Alas, my dry, urgent thirst gets the better of me and I turn for the bathroom.

Halfway across the room I realize there's light seeping out from under the bathroom door and the faint sound of running water is kept behind it. Startled, I grab a beer bottle from the desk and creep towards the bathroom door. As quietly as possible, I give the door a nudge. It slowly swings open and the shadow of a man is cast on the shower curtain. I try to call out, but my throat is too dry. My heart pounds. I reach, hesitating, for the shower curtain. In one split second, I tear the shower curtain open and jump into the defensive.

"Woah, woah, pretty girl. What's gotten into you?" The man in the shower asked as he turned off the water with one hand and held me off with the other. He was tall and muscular with golden brown skin. He had some foreign lettering tattooed along his arm. His head was shaved, his face was not. He did not seem at all familiar to me. I asked him who the fuck he was and why he was in my hotel room.

"Well, you sure knew who I was earlier, hon." He replied with a sickening grin and a twitch of his eyebrow.

"Do you have a name?"

"Raphael, baby... ", He seemed disheartened. The name triggered a tiny response in my memory, enough to feel some relief.

"Well, Raphael, I'm going back to bed." I turned slowly and headed back towards the bed. He followed me, mumbling something about having to get some sleep as well. I climbed under the covers and lay on my side. I felt his strong arm slide around me and pull me close. "You're beautiful", he whispered. I let him get away with it... for the time being.

I opened my eyes this time to Raphael, propped up on an elbow, watching me groggily.

"Hey, sweetie, remember who I am?", He asked, sarcastically.

"Yeah, you're Raphael.". I rolled my eyes. "Listen, I need a shower, Raphael. You stay put." I smiled the fakest smile and darted into the bathroom.

Once inside, I closed the door behind me. I turned the hot water in the shower on and slipped off my t-shirt and what must be Raphael's boxers. I slowly unzipped my overnight bag, overcome with a rush of adrenaline. I located a scalpel and slid it under my watch band. I turned and opened the bathroom door again.

Raphael looked up at me and said, "couldn't get enough, huh?". Smiling the same fake smile and nodding, I sat upon his naked, brown body. I leaned down and began brushing his neck with my lips, nibbling lightly on his ears. He began breathing heavily as I slid my hand down his chest and stomach and below. He was excited, hard. I wrapped my hand tightly around him and he squirmed. "That's a little rough hon, you think you could loosen your grip?" he asked carefully. I didn't. With my other hand, I slid the scalpel out from under my watch band slowly. I raised it to his neck.

"You're beautiful" I whispered. He grinned with his ego, a goofy grin. The pillow slowly changed from blinding white to blood red and his grin migrated to my face.

***

Two days later, my eyes are opening to what seems to be a hotel room. It's almost completely dark. My head pounds, my mouth is dry. I have no idea what city I'm in...