94

two

The hallways are silent. You wouldn't think there is a soul inside any rooms. I walk quickly, looking for my room.

994, 994, 994.

991, 992, 993... 994.

I frantically get my key out and open the door to my new home. Something about this place terrifies me. And I'm not the type to get scared easily. The room is freezing. I drop my bags on the floor right next to the small counter and sigh. Why this place.

Of all buildings, I choose the "haunted" one.

Not that it actually is haunted.

But the boy- his eyes! They were so... strange. They didn't seem real. Even if they were contacts or something. They were captivating.

Why wouldn't he tell me his name?

I decide to just get pajamas out of my bags and get ready to sleep, for I will unpack and run to the store tomorrow. My room is cold and dusty. It makes me wonder if the maids ever come to clean in here. I wipe the dust off the bed and replace the old dirty comforter with my own blue and black one. Still some of home with me. I turn the lights off, lay down on the pillow and close my eyes, excited for sleep.

******

I wake up, sweating. My throat is dry and I feel sick. I check the time on my phone. 4:18am. What the hell? I don't remember having a bad dream or any kind of thing. I try to lay back down, but my body is now fully awake.

Maybe a glass of water will help. I turn the lights on in the living room and make my way slowly to the kitchen. My hands are shaky as one grasps a plastic cup. The other turning on the sink. I sip on the cold water, trying to calm myself down. Even though I don't know why I'm even nervous. I go back to the bed and for the millionth time try to sleep again.

My thoughts are of the boy. He seems odd. Why wouldn't he let me look at him? Why were his eyes so captivating? Why did they draw me in somehow in some way? I try to stop thinking about him and focus on sleep.

******

I walk into the kitchen, the large blanket that was my comforter wrapped around my body. It's freezing. I scan the room for the thermostat. When I see it on the wall right next to the cupboards I basically sprint to it. 43 degrees. I turn it up to at least 70.

I'm starving, but I haven't gone shopping yet. I internally groan at the thought of shopping and unpacking. Not to mention starting to take online college classes in the early morning.

When I walk into my room I notice my still packed bags on the floor. I sigh, putting them away in drawers and the small closet. As I'm opening a drawer, I gasp. Along the inside of the white, there is a red stain. It can't be. Blood? What I find in the back of the drawer makes me drop the collection of cardigans from my hand.

A blade.

Just a small blade. There was nothing attached to it. My heart pounds as I observe it. There's dried blood on the sides, like someone cut them-self. I wonder if the person self-harmed.

I think back to the conversation between me and Logan. The first of each month... murders.... February 1st being the worst time. Was this one of the murder cases? I want to show Logan. He would know what happened, he works here.

I leave the drawer empty, stuffing the cardigans with other shirts and finish unpacking my things. I put on some decent clothing and mascara to make myself look presentable. My chocolate colored hair is pulled into a ponytail so it falls to just above my elbow. The store is only 2 miles away. The time is currently 9:38am. I gather my things and head down to the elevators.

Everything is quiet. I press the down arrow on the elevator and wait patiently. To my surprise, it comes pretty quickly- except from the top, not the bottom.

The door slides open and I recognize my elevator buddy whom I still don't know the name of. His attire is different this time. He's wearing black skinny jeans and a gray sweater. His dark brown hair is in a quiff, curls in random areas of his head. It's really the first time I've seen what he looked like.

But his eyes. They're... Darker. They aren't bright anymore. It almost makes him look like a different person. Maybe it's because it's day time.

I don't realize I'm staring until he speaks.

"Well are you gonna come in or keep admiring me?"

My cheeks flush and I step in the small space hesitantly. My breathing picks up slightly. If there's one thing I'm scared of the most, it's small spaces. I get so claustrophobic. Sometimes it gets so bad where I have panic attacks.

"Something wrong, Adi?" He asks.

"Uh, no. I'm okay." I swallow.

He smiles at me and presses the button to close the door and then number 1. When he smiled, his dimples carved into his cheeks. I couldn't deny that I thought he was attractive.

"How was your sleep, elevator buddy?" He asks breaking the silence.

"Not that great. I woke up at 4 in the morning."

"That's funny. I hope you sleep better tonight," he replies simply. Something about his tone makes me shudder. He said it like he knew something.

"Where are you going?" He asks me.

"Grocery store. You?" I respond.

"Eh, just gonna go for a walk around town."

The door opens at floor one and I step into the lobby, my elevator buddy following. I start toward the exit, but he catches my arm before I can move anywhere.

"See you around, Adi," he whispers into my ear. I nod slightly and he releases me from his grip. Something about how he talks to me like that sends chills down my spine. And his name is still unknown to me. I shake it off and proceed on my mission to the store.

******

My cart is almost overflowing when I finally check out. I stuff the groceries into my car and drive back to the building. When I walk in, I see Logan helping with an angry customer. They seem to be arguing over something. Logan says something and it apparently sets the customer off. The man storms off to the elevators and I think I hear him mutter some cuss words.

I should tell Logan about the blood and the blade. But he seems busy. I don't care, I'm curious to see what he says about it, and I need help with all these groceries. I walk to him and he greets me with a smile.

"Hey. Can you help me take all these groceries to my room?" I ask him.

"Sure, of course." He answers politely.

"There's a shitload, just saying," I say as we walk to my car. He laughs at my comment.

Once we reach the elevator and start heading up, I decide to tell him.

"I also found something when I was unpacking and I was wondering if you would know what it was. It's kind of serious and creepy."

We walk down the hall together and I finally reach my room. He helps me put all the shit away and I thank him.

"Now for the thing?" He asks.

My face pales thinking about it. "Right. Come on. It's in my drawer."

We walk into my room and I open the drawer. I point to the blood on the side.

"There's a blade too. It's back here.."

I feel around for it, but I don't come out successful.

The blade is gone.