Mauer

Chapter 1: Moving In

Date: June 28th, 1949

Carolyn set down the small box of clothing she had, hearing Bing Crosby singing on the player. His new song, Some Enchanted Evening, had become rather popular rather fast, thanks to the new movie "South Pacific". She hadn't seen the movie herself, but she had become a fast fan of Bing. Who couldn't fall in love with such a deep, sultry voice? She let out a soft, happy huff, looking at the boxes of her things that seemed to lounge in the room of her new place. A place she had saved up for herself, and moved by herself. And at the age of eighteen!

Like any father, her's was worried with her living out on her own, but when she had insisted on being by herself, that she didn't want to have her parents care for her all the time, he relented, but insisted on letting her borrow his dark green Chevrolet truck to move her things. It had enough space that she had loaded all of her possessions into the bed, and hauled it all to her new home.

The thing about her new home, though, was it used to be a motel. Now it was more like a single's pad. It had just about everything important needed like a bathroom, kitchen, and living room. There wasn't enough room for laundry equipment, but that had been provided by the landlord. Down the hall, there was a door with a sign marked "Laundry", full of washers, dryers, and if one didn't trust the dryers, there was a door that lead outside to a few clothes lines. Everything had been remodeled to try and make the old motel rooms livable, and everything was a success. Or, at least, in her eyes it was.

It was perfect size for her and her single living. Some of her new neighbors seemed nice enough, even if she hadn't really met all of them. And there were more living behind her! Odd room placement, she had to admit. If she went out her door, there was the hallway. If she went all the way down the right of the hall, it would turn right once more, go a little ways, then another right turn for more homes. Or rooms. But, she didn't design it, and she wasn't going to say anything about it. She was lucky enough to be living here on her own!

Brushing her bangs out of her face, she looked to the boxes of items, thinking of her next plan of action. She pursed her lips, then decided to take a short walk to see the neighborhood. It was a nice day out! Why not?

Stopping by the door, she checked her hair, a usual habit that her mother got her doing, and opened her door, key and purse in hand. Immediately, the smell of the fresh lacquer caught her nose, making her cough from just how strong it was. The floors were all hardwood, which would make it easier to clean in the end, which was nice as well, but the lacquer was strong enough that even if it hadn't been freshly cleaned, she could still smell it. Shaking her head, she turned, locked her door for the time being, and made her way down the hall.

A few doors down, while she was looking for a good spot in her purse to put her key, she bumped right into someone! A neighbor!

He was only five foot nine, taller than her by at least two inches, and had raven black hair. His facial hair was coming into a full beard, but for the moment it was a light fuzz. His eyes were sunken and sort of brown to dark grey in color. His outfit seemed odd to her, as nobody she ever knew, or even seen before now, wore so much red! Immediately after taking in the man, she frantically spoke. 

"I'm so sorry! I beg your pardon! I should have paid attention to where I was going!" Her voice, though young, held maturity. Her eyes, though young as well, were wide with fright, the blue hues shining in the light.

The man took a moment to straighten his clothes with a soft grimace before looking up at the young woman, taking her in a moment as well. He cleared his throat after a moment then nodded, looking down at her.

"Don't worry," he started, making her wonder where his accent was from. It certainly wasn't British, as she'd met a few of the British in school after the war had ended. "I should have watched where I was going as well. Pleasure to meet you, young miss."

A soft sigh of relief left her lips before curving into a smile, simply being friendly. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well! I'm Carolyn. I just moved in down the hall."

The man nodded and looked around a moment before speaking to her once more, clearing his throat. "Welcome to the single homes. I'm... Charlie." He said after a moment, as if he needed to have a moment to figure out what his name was. Which was, again, odd to her. Maybe he was just hesitant with new people!

"Again, it's nice to meet you Charlie. I suppose I should leave you alone for now." She let out a soft, playful laugh before waving to go and walk around the neighborhood. She watched as he waved back, acting a bit more friendly, then went back into his home. Shrugging, she walked out the door in the hall, which too was weird since there were many in this hallway alone leading outside. She really had just been so distracted with her purse and key that she had kept on walking.

Sunlight was the first thing that greeted her as she stepped out the door, closing her eyes as the warmth and the light caressed her skin. She truly loved being outside. She took a moment to simply just enjoy the sunlight before opening the blue eyes her father loved so dearly to take a look around. The first thing she noticed was the fenced area, knowing right away that it housed the electrical boxes, and the water valves. Good to know! 

The only other noticeable thing was the rather spaceous courtyard. It was empty, but still peaceful. She could only wonder if the landlord was going to do something about it. If not... She may just ask to start to plant in a little area! It was rather nice! She hoped, perhaps, with a new change in her life, she may have some more to look forward to.