Sweet & Easy

Part 2

THUMP THUMP THUMP.

Wade awoke with a start.

"What the-?"

The ruffled ex-merc lifted his head from his position on the sofa, peering around blearily despite his eyes not even being open.

Pressing a hand to his cheek he felt the remnants of a Dorito stuck to the left side of his face, having made an indentation where he had been sleeping on it.

THUMP THUMP THUMP.

Wade peeled his eyes open groggily at the sound.

He had fallen asleep not two hours earlier on the couch, mid-way through the latest episode of Selling Sunset. And was half way through a wonderful dream where he and Crishell had just gotten married and were ready to run, slow motion on a beach, hand in hand with one another, when he had been so rudely awoken.

THUMP THUMP THUMP.

The banging came again. And for the first time in a long time, Wade was surprised to realise that this was not someone trying to break down his own door. But, instead, another door nearby.

Giving his head a slight shake and waking himself fully from his daze. Wade gave a frown as he got to his feet and headed for the door.

Normally Wade would have ignored any trouble out there in the hallway which didn't involve him. But after meeting the new arrivals out there this evening, he felt a small pang of concern rear its head, far down inside his chest where a heart should probably be.

THUMP THUMP THUMP.

Hauling open his front door, with his frown now sitting deep between his eyebrows. His gaze landed on a woman with tangled red hair tied up in a harsh ponytail, and a cigarette hanging out of her mouth.

He recognised her of course as Karen, the resident busybody from the next floor down, who was in her sixties and seemed to be permanently chain smoking.

Even now he could smell the scent of stale cigarettes wafting over from where she stood.

"Y'hear that?" Karen barked, eyeing him. "Kid's been crying for hours. How the fuck am I gonna get any sleep, huh?"

And for the first time Wade noticed the high pitched wails that punctuated the silence of the hallway, coming, of course, from the doorway opposite his.

Wade pressed his lips together in a line.

"You know, you're gonna kill yourself with those little sticks of death, Karen," muttered Wade in a taunting voice, trying to ease the tension.

But it didn't work, as Karen merely ignored him and hammered on the door of his new neighbour's apartment with the heel of her hand.

Not even a second later, the door was tugged open a couple of inches, and the blonde woman from earlier peered her face through the gap.

Even from here, half obscured, it was obvious from her red eyes and tear-streaked cheeks that she had been crying.

Though in all honesty, now that the door was open, Wade was certain that the sounds of the baby's cries were piercing enough to force even the strongest mercanary to tears.

He watched as the blonde's eyes flicked from Karen to him, before looking back to Karen again, as the red-haired woman approached the door, jabbing a finger at the blonde.

"Some of us are tryin' to sleep, an' that fuckin' baby of yours is screamin' the goddamn place down," Karen said, baring her yellow teeth.

Her tone of voice raised Wade's hackles ever so slightly, and he subconsciously found himself clenching his jaw.

The blonde was silent for a second before speaking in a quiet voice.

"I'm trying my best..I-"

But Karen cut her off.

"Sounds like you've got the windows open up here with the racket it's makin'. You know in my day, kids were supposed to be seen an' not heard-"

"That's because in your day, folks were scared that a sabretooth fucking tiger would snatch kids straight out their caves if they made a noise," uttered Wade with contemp in his voice. "Tell me, was it hard hunting woolly mammoths for sport?"

Karen turned to him.

"Fuck you, Wilson," she snapped. "Go slink back under whatever whore-house you crawled out of."

But Wade merely took a step forward, narrowing his eyes, a simpering smirk still lingering on his lips.

"Now now, Karen, my sweet. Some people might think you don't like me."

Karen huffed pointing a stained finger at Wade. "Don' like you? Course' I don' like you. Leavin' bloody footprints up that staircase. An' don't even try to deny it. I know it was you, Wilson."

Before she quickly rounded once more on the young woman, still stood behind the ajar door.

"An' you. Shut that fuckin' baby up," snarled Karen. "Or I'll be calling Child Protective Services an' tellin' them you're neglecting' it. You hear me?"

And with that, the red-headed busybody turned on her heel and headed back off down the stairs, rounding the corner and disappearing from sight.

Wade turned at once to his new neighbour, just as yet another high pitched baby's cry floated across the silent hallway towards him.

But he saw the woman eye him quickly and whisper a hurried "sorry" before closing the door shut with a quiet snap.

Leaving Wade alone out in the hallway for the second time tonight. A strange sort of feeling aching at his chest.

"Fuck..." he breathed, to no one but himself.