The walk back to my apartment was uneventful. Half way through the four mile walk I decided to run the rest of the way, which earned myself glares from people who were walking. Obviously they don't appreciate the art of running, or the art of running done on the side walk. I pasted myself diligently, making it home in a decent amount of time. 2:35pm to be exact. A grin finds its way to my face once I realized it only took me about 35 minutes to make it home. Plus I walked half the way. Perfect.
Digging into my pocket I pull out my keys. My cell phone slides from the side of my pocket, taunting me as it seems to slowly fall through the air. My hands flies to catch it but I only manage to fumble it between my fingers before it hits the floor. Darn it.A sigh escapes my lips as I bend down to pick up my 600 dollars iphone. Flipping it over, I located the newly made scratch right across the touch screen. Well that’s just great. Stuffing it angry back inside my pocket I jam my key inside the main entrance lock to my Apartment complex. Twisting the key harder then necessary I yank open the door. I just brought that freakin' iphone. I walk through the lobby angrily, but still manage to quietly respond to the clerk who polity welcomed me back. I stump my way up the stairs, briskly making my way up seven flights with out a drop of sweat or breath wasted. I'm so sure that if anyone saw me they would mistake me as a five year old with a tantrum. I yank open the door leading me out of the stairway and onto my floor just as the elevator doors open. My feet seem to have a mind of there own as they quickly walk past the elevator doors, leading me straight in front of my apartment.
"Nessa?" A high pitch voice calls from the elevator.
My hand starts to fumble with my keys as I rush to get my door open. A faint click is heard and I turn the knob. Surprisingly the door doesn't open and another click is heard as if the door relocked. Brushing it off, I replace the key back in the lock. Come on, come on! What is going on with my luck today? I barely catch my keys from landing on the floor as I reposition them back into the lock for the third time. Why couldn't I have caught my iphone like that, I inwardly growl.
"Nessa?"
Just as my hand turns the key, giving pleasure to my ears as I hear a faint click, a hand lands softly on my shoulder. I close my eyes for a second before turning around with a smile on my face.
"Debbie?" My timid voice replies. I look her up and down taking in her bleach blond hair and blue eyes. Her pink t-shirt has the words SLUT written across it in glitter and her jeans give a new meaning to the words low rider. I am far from being stereotypical but when Debbie comes around she just screams "Was the popular cheerleader in high school, Daddy buys me everything, I can have any guy I want, and yeah you better respect or I'll make you life a living hell". I give it to her though, her grade point average is a perfect 4.0 and she's actually a very nice person once you get to know her.
Debbie, also my next door neighbor, looks me up and down than smiles.
"Just got back from your jog I see." She places her hands on her hip, popping her gum as she gives me the once over again. "I am like so jealous that you are so in shape." She says with a smile. "You're running everyday, not to mention you never take the elevator, you gotta be smoking hot underneath all that clothes." She twists the gum around her finger than proceeds to place it back in her mouth before winking at me. Disgusting.
"You know." She starts "You should totally take me with you one day. It would be awesome."
"Sure, I'm going tomorrow if you'd like to go."
"Oh tomorrow…" She's looks around nervously before facing me again. "Tomorrows no good cutie, I 'm go clubbing tonight. I'm totally gonna have a hangover in the morning. See how that would be no good. You should come clubbing with me and my friends though, seeing how you couldn't make it last Saturday."
I lower my head to the ground, trying to savage my brain for an excuse. Not that I don't want to go, well really I don't, but it's just I stand out so much amongst her blond friends. Very uncomfortable.
I shift my feet from one to another before looking back up at her, finally noticing how tall her 5'9 is to my 5'6.
"So…." She presses on with a smile.
I open my mouth than close it again. Than open it once more.
"I, uh, might have to work, and uh umm… school. Well not school but school work. And..."
She lifts up her hand indicating for me to be quit and almost immediately I do so.
"Look cutie your going. I'll fix you up and everything. You'll be gorgeous. I'm dropping by at 5 and all I want you in is a towel and underwear. I'mma bring the rest. Kay?"
Before I can say another word she presses her cheek against mine making a kiss sound than repeating the process to the other. Lifting two of her finger in a peace sign, she makes her way to her apartment door. My mouth hangs open as I turn the door knob and walk into my own two bedroom apartment.
Sighing heavily I hook my key onto the key holder that is nailed to my wall. Leaning against my door I close my eyes. How I missed the times when I lived at home. My eyes slowly open, my brain willing my body to move, but my body has no intentions of doing so. It seems all of this running finally caught up to me.With no other choice I slide down onto the hard wood floor and survey my apartment. My head rolls to the side where my kitchen is located. Dishes are piled high in the sink. I sigh and advert eyes from the sight. The rest of my apartment is clean, I would know. I'm a neat freak. Plus it isn't really that big. In front of me are two beams that mimics a door way, once through there and a little ways to the right is a hallway that leads to my guest bedroom and about 35 feet left is a hallway that leads to my bed room, which has the only bathroom in the apartment. My living room is what is in the middle. It is really what takes up the most room. It's my sanctuary. Instead of a wall, there is a huge window that reaches from the wall where my guest bed room is to the wall where my bed room is, and the view is to die for.
My eyes start to droop close and before I know it my living room is the last thing I see.
Banging is heard in the distance of my mind but I choose to ignore it as I curl up into a little ball on the floor.
"NESSA!"
My hands fly to my ears as my eyes squeeze shut tighter.
"Nessa! Open, up!" The person stops speaking to bang on the door again. "I know you're in there."
Reality starts to flood back to me as I lift my head off the ground. I look at my watch and the numbers 5:23 stare back at me. Uh, I must have fallen asleep. The person I know now is Debbie, continues to bang on my door. Standing up, I unlock the door, barely getting it open before Debbie bursts through.
"My god, do you have any idea how long I've been banging on your door?"
Before I get to respond she takes my hand and drags me into the living room. Looking me up and down.
"Uh, why on earth are you still in those dirty clothes? Did you not hear me when I said towel and underwear?"
I stand there dazed for a second as my mind tries to process what's going on.
"I fell asleep?" I choke out half heartily.
She shakes her head slightly, she points to where the bathroom is. "Shower, Now!" Is the only words she says as she gives me a shove toward my bedroom.
I sulkily walk into me bedroom. Not that I mind taking a shower cause lord knows I need one, its just the thought of being told what to do irks me, but the fact that I always listen irks me more.
I drop layers of clothing off of my body as I walk through my large bedroom toward my bathroom. My hand grabs the scrunchee' holding my hair up in a tight bun, and yanks it out. My thick black wavy hair tumbles down around me landing softly against my waist. Thanks to my mother's stubbornness my hair has never been cut. Even when I was a child, my mother would argue with anybody who dared to carry a pair of scissors and come two inches in contact with my hair. Every mother in school would let their little girl's hair get trimmed for picture day. Not my mother. She almost bit the photographer hand off when he mentioned trimming the edges of my hair for the picture.
Laughing quietly at the memory I walk into my bathroom. Once my feet hits the white tile floors, a shiver shakes through my naked body. Glancing at my thermostat across the bathroom I notice it's turned down to 40 degrees .Weird I never turn it below 60. Looking at it for a second, I decide to turn it back to where I had it. I walk almost determinedly to my thermostat. Determined to stand up to something, even if its a inanimate object. Just as I'm two feet from it, one of my feet slips on something wet and almost instantly my hand shoots out to grab something to stabilize myself. My shower curtains is that something, they crunch in my hand as I pull on them to prevent me from cracking my head open. But seeing how the pole that holds up my shower curtains is only supported by contraction between two walls, it gives way to my weight and I tumble into my tub, shower curtains and all. Laying there with the curtain blanketed on top of me, one foot high in the air the other crunched into the tub, I mumble a silent "Ow". It is times like this that I really wished I took that offer for the area rug at Lowes.
Pushing my self up right; I look down at the corporate that almost ended my life. Right there in the middle of my floor is a trail of blood. I would have gotten up immediately and ran out of the bathroom but before I could even move the sound of the bathroom door slamming shut fills my ears.
