These Wicked Games

Chapter 3

The happiness of having a full belly was short lived as I lay on my bed reading the final eviction notice I found taped to my front door when I got home.

I have 7 days to get my things out of here. There isn't even an option to pay and stay, they're just done with me.

I can't be mad though, with 5 months of missed rent, they've been doing me a favor letting me even stay this long.

Fuck, why can't I catch a fucking break? I think to myself as I rub my hands across my face in frustration.

I have no family and no friends so there is no other option of places I can go. I got to get a job in the next couple of days and I'll have to just ask for an advance so I can grab a room in some shitty ass motel until I find somewhere else to stay.

I'm really banking on this job right now, but after seeing the amount of people in line today, it looks doubtful.

Ugh, I need some air. I grab my coat and head up to the roof.

It's been an unusually warm December day today, so it's not too cold up here. It's been my go to lately whenever I need some peace and quiet. Not that it's loud in my apartment, but there's just something about being so high up here and seeing the city lights go on one by one as the sun sets, that calms me.

Ever since my parents passed away when I was seventeen, I felt like I've been hit with round after round of bad luck.

Plane crash, I was told.

They were putting off some trip for years and my mother finally convinced my father and they both went off together and just, never came back. And that was it, my life changed forever after that day.

I fiddle with the locket around my neck that holds a picture of both of them inside. I can't help but feel like a disappointment.

I'm 28 and still haven't amounted to anything. I would've thought that at this point in my life, I would've finished college, started my career, maybe even found someone to settle down and start a family with.

I never thought I'd be on the verge of homelessness living in a city full of opportunities. Fucking waste of space, my parents would be so disappointed in how my life turned out.

I close my eyes, take a deep breath and exhale slowly, trying to center myself.

I don't want to be some sob story, I'm stronger than that. I just want to... live.

I want adventure, I want love and passion, I want to not want for money all the time. I don't want my life governed on how much is in my bank account, I just want to be happy.

"I'll figure it out." I tell myself. I always figure it out.

The last of the sun's rays left awhile ago and I'm still here, sitting on the ledge and staring down at the city of lights below me. I throw my leg back over to make my way down and get startled when I notice someone moving through the shadows near the exit.

"Oh shit! You fucking scared me." I tell the voice as I jump down and brush my pants off.

"My fault, I thought saying hi would be worse and you'd actually fall off." A deep and soothing voice says from the dark. I hear a rustle of fabric, a flick of a lighter and catch sight of his face as he lights up a joint.

He doesn't look familiar, and I definitely would've remembered a face like his. But this is the city, people come and go all the time.

"You want a hit?" He asks and walks towards me, my heart racing as he does. He seems close to my age, tall and lean, thin rimmed glasses with a short beard surrounding full lips. Dressed in a fitted coat that's way too expensive to ever be seen in my closet. He tied his long wavy brown hair up haphazardly. Dude makes man buns sexy for sure.