Smoke Break /Georgenotfound/

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Feeling a surge of determination, I set my book aside and made my way back into the apartment. I've had enough, and I'm not going to wait any longer.

I quickly glanced in the mirror, running my fingers through my hair to tame the disheveled strands. There was no need for a full-on makeover; I just needed to look presentable enough not to give anyone a new image of a sleep paralysis demon.

I quickly slipped on the first pair of shoes that caught my attention, grabbed my phone for whatever reason, and put my hand on the doorknob.

And with every step towards their door, the bass thumping grew louder and louder. The closer I got, the clearer the lyrics of their music became, obnoxiously loud and vulgar.

As I stood in front of their door and raised my hand to knock, I already knew what was coming. They weren't going to hear the knocking. It takes more than just a knock to overpower whatever is going on there.

And that's why I went with obnoxiously loud bangs that hurt my knuckles.

The noises from inside momentarily subsided and got replaced by a muffled silence.

Seconds ticked by, stretching into what felt like an eternity, until the door swung open, revealing a guy in shorts, a hoodie and a snapback, clearly looking taken aback by my visit.

"Hey, uhm," I awkwardly smiled.

"Oh, hi," he returned the gesture, "can I help you?"

I really didn't think it was gonna be this uncomfortable. Should've rehearsed something before knocking.

"Yeah, uhm, I actually live next door, and your music is really loud so.. would you mind turning it down a little bit?" I blurted it all out in one breath, trying my best not to sound annoying.

The realization washed over his face as he pressed his lips together to form a line.

"Oh.. I'm so sorry, we just moved here. I didn't know the walls were that thin-"

"It's okay! I wouldn't mind it any other day, I'm just preparing for my exams, and it's kinda distracting, that's all," I hurriedly followed his sentence, relieved that he was so nice about it yet embarrassed at the same time that I actually had to do this.

He smiled again, nodding reassuringly, "Ah, sorry about that. We'll keep it down, don't worry."

"Thank you," I nod, taking a step back awkwardly, ready to leave, "sorry for the inconvenience."

As he did the same and almost closed the door, I expected the conversation to be over, but surprisingly, I heard his voice one last time.

"Good luck on your exams!"

And with a final thank you and a smile, we both disappear into the walls of our own apartments.

And the smile stays permanent on my face for the rest of the evening as I peacefully read page after page, pleasantly surprised with my progress.

It wasn't that bad. I stepped out of my comfort zone and got what I have now - some well-deserved peace and silence which helps me to concentrate and r-

why is there a british person yelling and cursing so loudly?

I looked up from my book, trying to pick up where the noise was coming from. And I think that's a stupid question. It's coming from the apartment next door.

Again.

And it's not just the british guy turns out, a few more of them start screaming and laughing, loud enough for me to hear that they were arguing about who should go to the store.

And I thought that an argument like that would normally be resolved in 5-10 minutes, cause c'mon, it's not that serious of a topic.

Wrong.

It went on for an hour. Or more. All I know is that by the time they were finished yelling at each other, it was midnight, and seemingly no one went to the store at the end of the day.

I had a bad headache, bad enough to force me to give up studying and just sleep. My day's wasted already, I don't think there's a point in torturing myself.