I slot my key into the keyhole and twist it to the right. When it clicks, I nudge the door with my shoulder and walk inside. I place the boxes I’m carrying beside the door and smile into the empty room.
“New apartment, new place, new me,” I say to no-one in particular whilst rolling down my cardigan sleeves which were bunched up around my elbows.
I stroll over to the nearest window and open it, breathing in the fresh air and allowing the wind to attack my hair and clothes. The view in front of me is beautiful and is one of the reasons why this apartment grabbed my attention so quickly. I have a direct view of the beach a few hundred metres ahead of me and quick and easy access to any shops nearby. The sun is beginning to set now, it’s 5:32pm, and the sun’s dimming rays paint the sky a mixture of purples, pink and oranges which illuminate the room behind me in the most beautiful manner. I close the window halfway and turn around just in time to watch Brianna stumble through the door with a few more boxes in her arms. She sets them down at her feet.
“I swear those the stairs are gonna be the death of me!” she pants, doubling over and resting on her knees. “How many flights of stairs did we just go up?”
“Ten.”
“Ten?!” Brianna gasps, wiping the slight sheen of sweat from her forehead. “Jesus.”
She straightens up and strides over to me.
“So this is the apartment that you were telling me about?” She says, “The one you ‘fell in love’ with.”
I nod, “Yep. Just look at the view; it’s stunning.”
She does as I say and walks over to the window. Her eyes light up when she notices the scenery and her mouth falls open slightly in shock. “Woah. This is so much better than mine!”
“Told you it was perfect,” I beam.
“Yeah, yeah. No need to get cocky,” Brianna chuckles. She gestures to the door with her thumb. “The delivery guys just pulled up a few minutes ago with your furniture, do need some help bringing it up?”
“Yes please.”
We make our way back down the staircase and out onto the main road where the van is waiting for us. One of the men leads us round the back of the vehicle and opens it up, then begins pulling out some of the boxes. More men step out of the van and start picking up some of the boxes filled with the heavier furniture such as my bed and sofas, whilst Brianna and I pick up the slightly lighter things like my TV. The two of us begin making our way up the stairs, me walking backwards and holding one end of the box and Brianna walking forwards and holding the other end.
“Halfway there,” Brianna says after a few minutes. Then her eyes suddenly widen. “Aaliyah st-”
But before she can finish, my back’s collided with someone’s chest and an iPhone falls down the steps beside me. A deep voice curses behind me and then a tall figure appears at my side.
“Watch it,” he grumbles, readjusting the green beanie on his head; his curls jutting out wildly at the bottom. He re-adjusts his jacket and sighs exasperatedly.
“Sorry, I couldn’t see where I was going,” I reply, a hint of annoyance in my voice. He snaps his head towards me and his piercing green eyes instantly burn into my skin, making me cower beneath his gaze.
He picks up his phone from the floor and glares down at the smashed screen. His gaze instantly lands back on me and his eyes darken.
“I...I am so sorry,” I say, suddenly considering how much he’d paid for that; £300? £400? More?
