| 𝙾𝚋𝚜𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚍 | - '𝚈𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝙱𝚘𝚢𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍' 𝟷𝟾+ 𝙵𝚊𝚗𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗

Stranger Danger - Part Two

'If I could stay in here forever, I definitely would.'

I opened my eyes, breathing out another heavy sigh. Reality was forcing itself to outweigh my own intentions. I couldn't take a super long shower, no matter how badly I wanted to. This apartment was expensive enough without racking up the water bill. Get in, get out. That's how it had to be.

'If I wasn't paying for this apartment by my self, then maybe we'd be able to afford it...'

I picked up a bottle of shampoo and began to work it into my hair, lathering up my locks with the soapy suds.

I knew that my roomate was trying to get a job. She had been for a while now. But it seemed that every time she applied, no matter where it may be, they always turned her down. She never explained why, and frankly, I dont think she knew either. Lucy wasn't a horrible person, and I couldn't imagine the kind of stress she was under.. But paying for her half of the rent every month was too much for me. I was barely scraping by as is. If something didn't change soon.. I wouldnt be living here much longer.

That meant no college. No late night shifts with TK, where the diner would be dead and we'd spend the hours just making each other laugh. No Netflix and chill (minus the chill) days with Lucy, staying up into the early AMs watching marvel movies and animated kid's films. No more of the newfound freedom I had while living in my own apartment.

Worst of all.. It meant I'd have to go back home.

Washing out the shampoo, I grabbed some conditioner and repeated the same process. While I gave it time to settle, I started to scrub my skin with a soft purple-ish colored body wash. Nothing better than replacing the smell of greasy restaurant with fresh lavender.

Even though I was trying to focus on something good, my brain just kept going back to the bad. It was stressful; working triple shifts daily and barely having enough time for anything else. My weeks seemed to blur together anymore; forcing me into the same routine every single day. Wake up. Work. Sleep. Rinse and repeat. Most of the time, I even forgot to eat anything during those long weeks. My mind would be so jumbled that I just didnt feel the hunger pains through the stress and tiredness. I'd go a day or two without a single bite of anything, and then randomly remember that, 'hey! I kinda need to eat to survive'. It had gotten to the point were both Lucy and Tk would ask me consistently if I had eaten that day. If it wasnt for them constantly bugging me about it, I would most likely forget.. But, that was just my normal now. Work had to come first, always.

'God, I need a change.'

I turned off the water and stepped out the shower, wrapping a fluffy towel around my body. At least I was clean now, so that was one less thing to worry about. I walked over to mirror, taking a long look at my own reflection. I ran a hand along my face, my brow furrowing at the sight. How long have those dark circles been hiding underneath my eyes? I looked like death reincarnated..

'I really need to start sleeping more.'

I exited the bathroom and walked towards my room, glancing over at Lucy's door as I passed by. It was closed up tight, but I couldn't hear the sound of creaking boxsprings or obnoxious groaning. Either she was asleep, or not here. I shrugged my shoulders, walking into my bedroom and shutting the door behind me. Knowing Lucy, she probably crashed at some guys house again after an evening of bar hopping. That was good news for me, though; it meant a night of peaceful, uninterrupted sleep!

And sure, I may not have liked staying in the apartment all by myself.. but I definitely preferred it over being kept up all night by my noisy roomate. It was extremely hard to fall asleep while listening to people have sex... The walls here were pretty damn thin, you know?

You could hear everything.

After drying off from my shower, I slipped into a white tank top and grey sweat pants; my classic lounging outfit for when I was chilling at home. I sat on the edge of my bed and let my body fall back, collapsing into the matress with a gentle 'squeak'. I hummed out pleasently as my aching figure rested against the thick comforter and fluffy pillows. Nothing made a hard, lumpy matress feel like heaven more than a long day at work. Hell, I could probably lay down on the floor and still be more than comfortable. My body was just too tired to care right now.

I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling fan above. I watched the wooden blades spin around in an endless circle, emitting a soft 'buzzing' noise as they rotated. Laying there in bed, I tried my best to clear my mind of everything that had happened today. The arrogant customers, the sucky tips, and of course, my useless manager. All of that, though, I was use to by now. Moving on from those slight bumps in the road was easy. But the one thing that I couldnt shake, no matter how hard I tried, was that stranger. The way he grinned. The way his eyes shifted. It was like the scene was replaying over and over again in my head.

And my server book.. Sure, it had been a really a long day and all, but I never took it home with me, even by accident. I didnt know why my brain was obsessing over that one little detail, but I couldn't stop. It was bugging the hell out of me.

I turned my attention over to my window, where the curtains had been left open and were gently flowing in the breeze. What little sun there was began to set, casting a dark shadow over my already unlit room. The rain was still coming down, hard, tapping against the glass and trailing down it in streaks. The atmosphere felt.. peaceful. The sound of the storm and distant thunder; even the mechanical 'brrr' of the fan. I closed my eyes again, exhaling a gentle breath.

'Y/n, you sound crazy right now.' My sub conscious screamed, 'It isn't that big of a deal, just forget it and move on already. You accidentally took your server book with you, dropped it outside, and a guy was trying to do the right thing by giving it back. Sure, his expression may have seemed a little odd, but that was probably just how he looked! Since when did you become so judgemental of the way a person was born?'

I sighed, mentally agreeing with the more rational side of my brain. That's all it was. An accident. A mistake. People make them all the time, and I wasn't any different. We were only human, right?

It didn't matter how sure of it I was.

Rolling over on my side, I rested my head against the pillow and peered out my bedroom window. It was left slightly open from the night before, allowing a soft breeze to fill my room with the smell of wet earth and petchicor. Cars occasionally drove by on the street, kicking up puddles of water as they went. Their engines were like an industrial lullaby; oddly satisfying to listen to in the dark.

I closed my eyes, the feeling of exhaustion weighing heavy on my body. It was early still, but the tiredness was more than I could take.

Before I even realized it, I had fallen fast asleep; listening to the sound of the pouring rain from my open window.

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