02:19 ●━━━━━━━━──── 03:47
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"𝘉𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘻𝘦𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘴" - alt-J
━━☽【♡】☾━━
You open your eyes. The first thing you see is an extremely unfamiliar ceiling. Then you remember: From today this is your new home.
You are a college student of (Y/A) years old and yesterday you finally separated from life with your parents. You breathe deeply as you stretch. As soon as you sit down, you take note of your surroundings. You fell asleep while tidying up your things. You sigh, because you realize how many boxes you still have to empty.
You find your phone in a remote place on the sofa on which you fell asleep and looking forward you notice that it's early in the morning -6.07 am to be precise- and your battery is at 28%. You decide to call your mom before your phone shuts down to let her know you're okay.
"Hello, sweetheart?"
"Hello mom."
"Are you okay? How was the move? How's the place?"
"Yes, Mom, I'm fine. The move went perfectly and the apartment is better than I expected." You look at the room you are in - the living room -, the walls are covered with a yellow wallpaper with a pattern that you haven't framed yet, the sofa you're sitting on and a small bedside table are the only things that give a little of vitality to the environment.
"I'm glad, (Y/N)! Let me know if something's wrong and your dad and I will always be happy to have you back! Are the tenants friendly?"
"Don't worry, mom. I'm old enough to take care of myself and I haven't met any of the tenants yet."
"Anyway, be careful, sweetheart. Have you unpacked yet?"
"Um, no. I fell asleep while doing it."
"Oh sweetheart, I forgot how careless you are! What will I do if something happens to my little girl?!"
"Mooom!" you say almost reproachfully.
"What, sweetheart?"
"I'm about to hang up. Say hello to dad. Love you."
"We love you too. Have fun in college, sweetheart."
With this you close the call, put your cellphone on charge and continue unpacking your things.
You manage to fix your room when you realize you're hungry. You look at the time on your phone - it's past 8 now - and you don't have much food on hand other than water and some snacks but it's too little for you. You decide to go shopping quickly to have something to eat for at least two days.
You've been wearing your favorite pajamas so far and tucked your hair into a bun so it doesn't go over your face. So you decide to change into a simple sweatshirt (color of your choice) and leggings, leaving your hair as it is. You take your wallet and keys and head to the elevator as your apartment, 203, is on the second floor.
You're in the lobby when you see a woman by the mailbox. When you're a few meters from her she notices you.
"Hi dear, you must be the new tenant." She is a woman in her fifties with long brown hair. She has a very kind expression on her face.
"Yes ma'am. My name is (Y/N) (Y/S)."
"Nice to meet you, honey. I'm Lisa Fisher, you can call me Lisa. When did you move in?"
"The pleasure is mine, Lisa. I moved in yesterday."
"Can I ask you why?"
The strange question has left you a little off guard, so you don't answer right away.
"I didn't mean to sound rude, dear. Excuse me. I think you've heard the rumors about Addison's Apartments." You don't know anything about it.
"To tell the truth, I haven't heard any rumors about this place..."
"Oh god. You don't have to worry about it anymore, dear. Nothing has happened for quite some time, anyway. How old are you, (Y/N)? You're a young woman and you came to live in a place like this."
"Um, I'm (Y/A) years old. To be honest I picked this place because it's close to the college."
"You're almost the same age as my boys. What a coincidence! You should try to make friends with them, they could help you orient yourself if you're not familiar with Nockfell. You find my Larry in the basement. Here, here." Lisa hands you a key card. "Usually he's in his room. Come and see him or me and my husband in 402. Have a nice day, (Y/N)!"
"I'd like to meet them. Have a nice day you too."
You put the key card in your pocket and continue your morning walk to the supermarket.
Getting to the supermarket took about thirty minutes and you didn't even cross a bus along the way. Which you expected though, as Nockfell is a small rural town. But it was not so bad to take an early morning walk, amidst the noise of the city and the smell of freshly baked bread and, occasionally, even freshly brewed coffee. Tomorrow, after you dedicate all of today to put your things in order, you will visit the campus. Despite the small location in which it's located, you've read that it's quite spacious and well laid out. You hope it is as the reviews say.
Back in the lobby of the Addison Apartments you feel a slight shiver seeing it empty. You let yourself be influenced by Lisa's words even though she didn't really tell you what happened in this place. Maybe there was a murder. This would explain the low cost.
Still immersed in your thoughts you unconsciously start walking faster and you don't realize the person in front of you until you bump into them.
"Everything's ok?" You have to look up to see the face of the stranger you bumped into. He's a guy maybe the same age as you, quite muscular and you notice that he looks a lot like Lisa. Maybe it's one of her sons.
"Sorry, I was a little distracted... I didn't hurt you in any way, did I?"
"Who? Me? I'm made of metal, girl. Are you the new tenant? Room 203? Did I guess?"
"Yes, exactly. Are you Larry by any chance?" The boy opens his mouth, amazed.
"I'm really amazed. How did you do it? Are you a fortune teller or shit like that?"
You giggle. "Nothing like that. I met your mom before and she talked to me about how I could make friends with her sons, according to her."
"Cool. Wanna do that?"
"What?"
"Hang out."
"Sure. I don't really have any friends here and you seem like a funny guy."
"Give me the envelopes, I'll help you take them to your apartment. Then, if you want, I'll show you mine."
You look at the two envelopes and you remember how much they weigh. Eventually you bought more than you planned, mostly snacks. "Alright." You hand them to him. Gentlemen are very rare nowadays and if you find one you have to take advantage of them.
"Lead the way." He says.
"Don't you know where my apartment is?"
"Actually, I do know. It's the same floor where Todd's parents live, who's a friend of mine who doesn't live here anymore."
"Where is he now?"
"He went to live with his boyfriend and my step-brother."
"So we're the only young adult of this place?"
Larry pauses to think. "Chug and Maple are there too but they're married. They're planning on having a baby."
"Damn."
"Right? They're crazy. But they're my friends too, and I love them anyway."
"Aw. I would like to meet them."
"Maybe I'll introduce them to you sometime but for now just open the door of your apartment, these envelopes weigh like hell. Girl, what did you put in these? Rocks? What a strange hobby you have."
"Collecting rocks is actually a good way to pass time. No hobby-shaming in my presence, thank you." You say as you unlock the door and make room for him to enter.
"Put them on the ground as well, wherever you happen to be. Thanks."
He's looking around. "I never really went into this apartment. It's quite normal."
You raise an eyebrow. "Why shouldn't it be?"
He doesn't speak immediately. "What? Did I say something?"
"Listen. I know something happened here. Your mom mentioned it too. Why don't you want to let it be known? Is it that bad?"
He sits down on the sofa and gestures for you to do the same.
"Just... don't freak out."
"I won't."
"There may have been murders."
"Murders? More than one?!"
"Yeah. I think this place is cursed or something."
"Oh my god..."
"Relax! The killers are in jail now!"
"More than one?!"
"A creep obsessed with ponies and an ex-high school teacher."
"That's why it's so cheap..."
"Did you move here because it's cheap?"
"Yeah. I did it to go to college here and I've always lived with my parents. I also found a cheap job that should help me with my expenses. Do you think I can do it? Like... without my parents?"
"Well, you haven't tried yet. Also you said you were going to college? Todd goes there too! Make sure you make friends with him too, if you learn to hold him he will give you all the essays you ask him."
"You must have tormented him during his high school years..."
"We're friends! It's the least a friend can do."
"As my friend I ask you to help me get the groceries on. Get your favorite snacks, I've bought too many, anyway."
"You could become my new best friend after this. Let's go to my place." He has a pack of chips and a drink in his arms.
You look around, remembering that you've planned to put it on as soon as possible.
"Yeah. Let's go." You smile at him, promising to be responsible another day.
You grab a couple of snacks and follow Larry to his apartment.
"Someone could have told me earlier that there is a snack machine..."
Larry shrugs. "We don't have just that. We also have ghosts."
You stop to look at him with wide eyes.
"I'm kidding, dude." You resume breathing.
Larry enters his apartment and heads to his room.
"Wait. So do you and your parents live here?"
"No. Only I live here. My parents live on the fourth floor."
Suddenly you remember that Lisa told you that when you spoke and, although you are slightly embarrassed, you keep talking trying not to let him notice it. "Why don't you live with them? Don't you feel lonely?"
"Nah, Sal comes to see me very often." You and Larry have arrived in his room, he motions for you to sit on his bed while he sits down on a bean bag.
"Who's Sal?" You ask, looking at his room. The walls and floor are the same as your apartment but his room is more alive, with personal items to enrich it such as posters, a stereo, CD, and even a canvas on an easel.
"My brother. We've known each other since we were fifteen. He's my best friend."
"That's so sweet. I want to meet all of your friends now. They seem really nice."
"Don't you have friends?"
"Not in Nockfell, sadly. My parents fear I might be all alone here, so showing them that I've already made some friends would hearten them."
"They seem like good parents. You're lucky."
"Eh, I don't think so exactly. They're sticky. But I can't really complain about them. Do you like to draw?" You point to the canvas.
"It's a hobby of mine. I used to draw with Ash but she's not in town anymore. She goes to the academy and I was thinking of joining too."
"You have a lot of friends. Do you also have any drawings to show me?"
"Of course." He puts some chips in his mouth, then gets up and looks for the canvases in a drawer. He hands you two small ones.
"These are the only ones I can show you."
"Are you embarassed to show them?"
"Kinda..."
"Why? They're nice. Definitely better than what I could do."
"Do you want to draw something? You have the best of the field in front of you." He indicates himself by inflating the chest.
"I'd like to."
"Cool. C'me here." He takes a stool and places it in front of the canvas and you sit on it.
"What would you like to start with?" Larry's standing behind you.
"Maybe... a still life?" You think it might be simple compared to the pieces of art you're used to see.
"Actually I thought it was better to start with something abstract but if you want to start with a still life..."
"So why did you ask me? You're just trying to embarrass me, aren't you?" Larry chuckles.
"Sorry, sorry. Let's start with a still life?"
"Let's start with what the expert suggests."
"Follow my directions. Close your eyes and start thinking about something. Something that makes you happy, maybe a nostalgic, colorful place, a place that when you think you feel like fireworks explode in your stomach." Larry emphasizes the last part of the description. "Done?"
"Yeah, I think I know what I want to draw." You open your eyes.
"Well, do it. Don't worry about the result, go with your feeling. It's normal that the first attempt doesn't turn out as you wanted or you don't like it."
You spend perhaps half an hour 'painting', unsure that what you are doing is actually painting. When you're done you look at Larry's alarm clock and you notice it's past 12am now.
"Larry?" He's no longer in your field of vision.
"Mh?" You turn around, and you see that he's on the bean bag in a state of semi-sleep.
You look at the canvas you just painted. It should be (your favorite place as a child) but you know that if someone else were to look at it they would probably only see formless colors. "I have to go. I enjoyed it, though. You can do whatever you want with the canvas, I don't like it, anyway. See you tomorrow?" You turn to your new friend again.
"Yeah, sure. Take care." You think he's still asleep so you don't bother to say more and leave his apartment without expecting to be escorted out.
You go back to your apartment and prepare yourself a light lunch because you've already taken too much time away from rearranging your new apartment.
The rest of the afternoon passes smoothly and you almost completely finish emptying the boxes: you only have to settle the kitchen when you hear your phone alarm. You look at the screen and notice with astonishment that it's time to go to work. You decide to take a quick shower.
The place where you will be working in is a diner and your contract is fixed-term but the pay is decent and it's not too far from home so you don't have to take the bus to get there. You hope your colleagues are good people as the employer didn't make a good impression on you during the interview. You wanted to be optimistic, thinking that at best you won't have to deal with him too much, so you took the job anyway. Your role is that of the waitress and, occasionally, you will have to be at the cashier. Nothing complicated.
You put on the same clothes you've been wearing all day, as you'll still need to change into the uniform they'll give you at the diner. You put on some very light makeup, tie your hair into a ponytail and you're ready to go out. You arrive half an hour early for the opening time –6:30 pm–.
"Hi, you must be (Y/N). Nice to meet you, I'm (Name1). The boss has put you under my command."
"The pleasure is mine (Name1)."
"Follow me, I'll give you a quick tour of the place and then you can change."
The five hours of work seemed endless to you. It was hard enough to keep up with the new pace but (Name1) helped ease the fatigue with his random jokes. The only thing you regret is not being able to make friends with the other employees as well. You came home destroyed. You couldn't even put on your pajamas that you collapsed on the bed. Tomorrow'll be even worse, and it's only the beginning of the week. You decide not to think too much about these depressive things and you finally lose consciousness.
━━☽【✎】☾━━
𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡: 𝘶𝘯𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳, 𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘴.
The fic is still a Sal x reader, if you are wondering. You can imagine (Name1) as whoever you want him to be as I don't really like to put OCs in fanfiction. Also English isn't my first language so if there's any grammatical error please let me know. I do have a beta reader who helps me with grammar and etc. but you're never too sure. Thanks for reading!
𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝟎𝟏/𝟎𝟓/𝟐𝟑.