I had come for orientation and for my father’s marathon years before. Of course, both times all I had done was read and wander the city looking at old buildings. I hadn’t actually paid attention to anything.
He backed out and drove off, a bit too fast for my liking.
I studied him for a second, “You allowed beards in marine bio, what with the diving?”
He shook his head and stroked the long, scraggly bush, “Nope. Gotta shave in a couple weeks when school starts.” He scratched and ran his hands over it all, “Had a bitch of a time in Bali this summer ‘cause of it. My passport picture has no beard.”
I started to relax. He seemed like a stoner. “What’s your sister’s name?”
He gave me a sideways glance, “Lisa. She’s a total bitch. She’s sixteen and completely running the whole house. I went home for a week and I was ready to murder her.” He chuckled, “Sorry. I’m not… like a serial killer. Ha, wrong thing to say to a random chick.”
I giggled nervously and looked at my watch; I was only going to be a couple minutes later than I expected. My Google map on my iPhone showed us nearly there.
“What’s the address?”
I started to panic, “Oh… it’s in my phone.” I zoomed in on the apartment and picked a close by restaurant, “You know where Cappy’s Pizzas and Subs is, by Hemenway?”
He nodded, “Yeah, for sure.”
“Right near there.”
It wasn’t exactly near there, but it was better than ending up a skin suit.
He chatted and I looked out at the river basin. It was amazing. So much more amazing than Grande Forks, North Dakota.
The ride was over in exactly fourteen minutes. It was faster than the map gave us during regular afternoon traffic.
He pulled up in front of Cappy’s. The red brick buildings everywhere were awesome. The street was old and cool, but with modern touches, somehow blending in. I felt tiny, and yet, somehow powerful amongst it. I would be, an official law student in a couple weeks. That was powerful.
He dragged my bags out and passed them to me, “If you don’t recognize me at school, it’s the missing beard,” he chuckled and slapped me on the arm, “See ya, Erin.”
I grinned, “Thanks again, Mick.”
He shook his head, “Stay away from creepy dudes.” He waved and climbed into the truck and merged.
It was late afternoon, but the traffic wasn’t too bad. I pulled the handle out on the bags and started the short trek to the apartment on Hemenway. The building was white brick and clean. I sighed, seeing it. It looked like the picture on the internet. If the inside was what I had seen in the pictures, I would be in heaven. I fished the key from the bag and hauled everything into the brown, old-fashioned, wooden doorway. The door had to be older than anything I had ever really touched.
I fingered the carved wood and tried to settle the leaping excitement inside of me.
I was sweating and ready to just leave the bags at the bottom of the stairs, when I saw the old staircase.
No elevator.
I grimaced and started the huge walk up the stairs. It was worth the climb. It was my first house, my first stand as an adult. Everything was fitting into the plan too perfectly. Minus the elevator. That made me nervous. Things never went perfectly.
When I got to the fifth floor—the top floor, I took a minute to catch my breath. The bags were too heavy.
I crossed my fingers as I wheeled everything to apartment 521. My hands trembled when I put the key in the hole. Everything was too perfect so far. I prepared for the worst.
I turned the lock, opened the door, and just stared. I expected it to be a disaster, Murphy’s Law said it should have been, but it too, was perfect. White, crisp walls with a light-beige sofa and a white love seat. There were armchairs and beautiful sofa tables. The clean lines and simple colors carried into the kitchen, where white cupboards with glass inlays and a pale, marble counter awaited me. Everything was modern and clean. The only thing I hadn’t noticed was the dishwasher was stainless steel, where the rest of the appliances were white. It was an odd thing to see, it sticking out against all the white. I would have noticed it. It had to be new. New was good.
The floors were dark hardwood and brand new. Everything was