The Mulberry Apartments

THE MULBERRY APARTMENTS

The sun rose once again over Moore Gilly Valley. The light stretched across the town of Greendale, a town of nobody's. As dawn continued, The Mulberry Apartments were uncovered from the darkness, and the stains and scuff could be seen clearly against the brick. The Mulberry Apartments fit in perfectly with the rest of the shotty town. Buildings falling apart, streets wore away, and grime covering every inch of the place.

Greendale was a town of losers. Losers like Lenny Smalls in apartment 6B that could see all of Greendale from his black-barred balcony. He watched the sunrise with a crooked grin on his face, as it helped him forget why he was there in the first place. It was these very moments every morning that he cherished most. He dragged himself back inside, feeling his hangover beginning to seep in.

He poured himself a cup of coffee at his cracked counter, still in his boxers and v-neck shirt. Scratching his bare chin, all he could picture was the two cups of coffee he should be filling. However, Vanessa was gone now. His heart ached knowing the unavoidable truth. Lenny's scrawny appearance, buzzed black hair, and lack of social skills weren't enough to keep Vanessa by his side in run-down 6B.

Instead, she ran off with a drug dealer named Tom-Boy from the southside. All because he had money, a six-pack (of abs and beer), and a nicer apartment. It wasn't too much nicer though, it was Greendale after all. I'm sure his nice car and drug-filled lifestyle didn't hurt though, thought Lenny. He slowly walked back to sit in his hole-filled lawn chair. Stains of beer and god knows what else spilled all across the balcony floor from previous tenants.

Seating himself, Lenny sank deep into the lawn chair, nearly touching the filthy ground. He looked next to him at the small sad excuse for a table and reached for his wallet laying upon it. The wallet was old and worn as well, having the black leather hold all his important belongings. Credit cards, coupons, and ID's made up the contents, but one item was especially important. The picture. Lenny pulled the polaroid photograph from behind his license and stared at their smiles. He had just won Vanessa a teddy bear at a festival a few years ago in Chicago. She held the pink fuzzy animal proudly with the largest grin you could imagine while Lenny held her in his arms kissing her head.

"That woman was a cold stoned bitch!" exclaimed a woman above and over him.

"Good morning Loretta..." He grumbled in return. He stroked the image with his index finger before placing it back. With a heavy sigh, he rose to his feet and squinted up at her. Loretta's eyes carried large heavy bags beneath them and her long curly hazelnut hair scattered everywhere. Like it was trying to escape. Her make-up was slightly smeared and a freshly lit cigarette fumed from her dry lips. Loretta was just another in the long line of losers living in the lonely town of Greendale.

Loretta was a young Latina woman around Lenny's age, born and raised here. She knew these slums like the back of her mother's swift backhand. She knew what it was like to be raised poor and to stay poor. Loretta Delgado Vargas was a tough woman that nobody dared mess with. She discovered her place in Greendale long ago: the top of the food chain. Her life may be miserable but she wasn't about to take shit from anyone anymore.

Just because life dealt her a hard blow didn't mean she would have to take them from people too. She wore a black tank top with one of the straps falling at her left shoulder, and green camo cargo pants with a black belt to hold them up. Her skin glistened in the yellow sunlight coming over the horizon into 7C. "I'm not joking, man." She took a long drag from her cigarette. "That puta was crazy. She didn't deserve you, and the fact that she left proved that. What kinda psycho invites her boyfriend to move to Greendale to start a life together, and then up and go like she did?"