Christoph Waltz One Shot series :)

Dusan Mirkovic-One shot

Your backpack full of books glued in your back with its all weight and yet you still felt in a good mood from the day you just had. You just arrived in your building and it was now 5 pm, the day already darkened at that time of the year, in half the end of November. You walked over through the carpeted corridor, until landing in front of the elevator. Clicking the button to go down on the first floor where you are, you cross your hands over your chest. Soon enough the familiar sound of arriving rang in the empty calm surrounding the place. The door opened fluently in front of you and you stepped in. Your fingers pressed against the cool metal button and after a few seconds the door closed again slowly.

Wondering to your thoughts you found yourself thinking about your closest neighbor, Dusan Mirkovic. Well, closest, just because he is the door right next to yours actually. You didn't know if he knew you, but you knew him. Either for the loud parties he threw almost every nights or because you saw him pass from times to times. He always had a silk blue bathrobe around his figure and a cigar in one hand, his other rubbing at his forehead from the probably impossible headache due to the alcohol. It's been a long time since you admitted to yourself you found the older man attractive. Not specially something about his lifestyle but simply him. You've spent many nights wondering how it would go to knock at his door, when the parties weren't with the man. Mainly because everything was just superficial around him. Too superficial. You couldn't believe that's how such a man could be, and yet it tended to prove otherwise. But you never did, what a shame to be an introvert sometimes. And even with being is closest neighbor you hardly thought he ever acknowledged you. You had a routine that could only be described as usual, or usually annoying. Stepping out of here every morning at 7 am and coming back around 5 or 6 pm. You hardly ever saw him the evening though, more the mornings. But again, with the visible headache this man has, it seems hard to believe he'd focus on his neighbor going to school with dark circles under her eyes and almost passing out from fatigue in the elevator. Frowning at even the thought of it, you stepped out of the metal cage that transported you to your floor and began walking to your place.

You inevitably have to walk in front of his door everytime, but for once. For the very first time, just as soon as the heel of your foot made contact with the dark carpet on the floor before his door, it opened. Dusan opened his door so suddenly that you couldn't even see the door handle maneuvering. Half startled you were cut on your track, one of your hands gripping a little tighter around the straps of your backpack and your feet stuttering in your walk. Half tripping on absolutely nothing you rapidly stood back straighter than you would have wanted to. Dusan just lifted his head and had already closed his door behind him. Luckily for you he didn't saw you embarassing yourself just like that, for what could be, probably the first time he sees you. Relaxing yourself upon thinking that, your position softens and you seem more natural, at least you hope.

'Hello.' You awkwardly muttered, an inevitable reflexe, looking at the man before you. And, as if this man only had this in his wardrobe, he wore a silk blue dressing gown adoring his figure.
'Oh, hi.' He answered looking directly at you as soon as your legs went to move again, but now stangely they wouldn't cooperate anymore. Quickly his brows furrowed and he studied your face. Not fully understanding you stepped back, uncounciously intimidated.
'Ah ! But you are my cute neighbor, aren't you ?' He asked after few seconds his expression softening and one of his hands motioning to the door of your apartment. So he did notice you before.
'Me ?' You asked in disbelief, "his cute neighbor" ?? Your face quickly heated up at the compliment. Now that your eyes layed on his hand you, only now, notice that his other is full of a bag. The bag clinked at the movement of his arm and you figured it was full of emptied bottles. You had to surpress a smile at the realization.
'Well, you have to be, I see you often but you are either in a hurry or you look completely drained out of your energy. We didn't have a chance to know each other yet I'm afraid.' He explained and his hands gestured along with his words, as if he was explaining deep thoughts. But he was right though, the mornings you're in a hurry since you're always late and the evenings feels like hell in your head from passive headache. So much fatigue that you didn't even notice him this whole time, it seems. But he noticed you. And he also said he wants you to know each other. Before you could even form an answer he continued,