The Boy A Floor Below | Noen Eubanks

2

Slowly, I open my eyes, adjusting them to the bright light. The black car pulls up into car park in front of a tall apartment block. When the car comes to a complete stop, I take off my seatbelt and step out. Feeling the light breeze on my face feels better compared to the constant rain back home. No, that was never a home, this is my home now. As he drives away, I smile at him, but he still doesn't respond.
"He's just like a robot, I wouldn't bother," I turn and behind me I see a lady with a small child in a pram.
"Yeah I noticed," we both laugh, and she walks towards the blue car in the far left. At least the neighbours seem nice. For an apartment block, the building is small, with only (what looks like) five floors. "Less neighbours, less people to deal with," I tell myself and walk into the building. In the reception, the furnishing is just like any other, slightly outdated with three or four chairs to sit at. I step in front of the desk and rig the cliché bell and wait for an answer. Whilst I wait, I look around the room and notice a rows of lockers where they put your mail. Then on the other side is two elevators.
"Sorry for the wait," an old man beams down at me. "Oh," he widens his eyes and cleans his glasses, before placing them back on his bald head. "You must be Miss Rea," he continues.
"Please just call me Audra," I correct him.
"My apologies Audra," he emphasises when he says Audra, with a slight chuckle at the end. After a few moments of awkward silence, he sighs and reaches behind him. "Here you are, room 306, third floor, third room on the right." He states still grinning, handing me two keys. One for my room and one for my post box. In appreciation, I nod, then walk away to the the elevators.
Inside the elevator, I press the button for the third floor and watch the room numbers change on the screen as the lift ascends. It doesn't take long for a ding noise to play as the doors open. The corridor is wide and bright, covered in quite extraordinary artwork. On the bottom of each piece of art is the initials N.E. Must be someone's hobby in this building. I can't help but admire it for a moment longer, before entering my new home. Inside the first room I walk into is a living area with a sofa and a tv; the room is also open spaced into the kitchen. Nothing special for the kitchen though, just a small countertop with an average fridge and oven. Above the kitchen sink was a long/wide window looking out over the city. In a separated room is my bedroom, furnished with a dresser and a queens side bed. Nothing out of the ordinary. Looking around at all the decor, I walk into the bedroom. In the corner of my eye, I notice a sliding door and open it. "So this is where they've spent all their money," I whisper to myself as I stare at into the bathroom. The tiles on the walls looked like marble, with an intricate tiling pattern on the floor. In one corner was an average toilet and a shower with a bench to sit down on inside. On the other side was a jetted tub in a triangular shape. "Just like at my old house," I sigh, closing the door behind me. I take my phone out of my back pocket to check the time. 11:57pm it read across the screen. Usually I stay up pretty late, but tonight, I feel exhausted. Opening the bathroom once again, I walk in and change into the bathrobe that comes with the room. For now, this is all I can do. I let a deep breath and brush my teeth. Staring in the mirror I realise the bags under my eyes have only got darker. For the last few nights I hadn't been able to get any sleep. All I dream of is if I was in that car accident alongside my family too. Would I be dead right now or would they still be alive? I shake my head to stop myself thinking any deeper into the matter. Without another word, I run and jump onto my new bed and fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.

My eyes sting and they force themselves open, in response to the loud noise coming from one of the neighbours. It sounds like music but feels like it's making the floor shake beneath me because of the volume. I sit up and place my legs over the side to stand. Grabbing my phone from the side, I check the time.
"5sm!" I yell, quickly covering my mouth with my hand, to keep myself quiet. "Why would someone play music that loud at 5am!" I whisper shout this time round. Placing my phone back on the side, I put my sliders back on and make sure the robe is wrapped around my body tightly. Seeing as I'm a light sleeper and it's too dangerous for any woman to walk out of her room at this time, I walk into the kitchen area and get a glass of water. "Just great," I sit on the sofa and switch the television on to a low volume, so that I don't wake anyone else up. That's if they're not already awoken by that loud music coming from downstairs. The first thing to come on is South Park. Always best thing to laugh at. I leave it on and take small sips from my glass. So this is my life now? Living in a small apartment with noisy neighbours, drinking water from a tap whilst laughing at South Park. Can't say I ever expected this.