The Etiquette of Smoking

Help

It happened at 2:30 in the morning. I got back to my apartment a half hour sooner than normal since the club was nearly dead that night. We all made the collective decision to close early and went home. I jammed my key into the door and walked into a sight that will be forever seared into my mind. There was a shriek, a crash, and a slam before I blacked out. I suddenly found myself shuffling down the stairs, trying to get out as quickly as possible without falling and breaking my neck.

"Liv, wait, please!" He called from behind me. I could hear him following me, closing in, so the second my hands touched the door to the outside world I began sprinting. I could hear him calling me but his voice faded so quickly that I don't think he was following. It had been drizzling all night but the drops that hit my face felt fatter.

I kept running down the street, still in my work clothing with my bag on my shoulder and my phone in my pocket as the droplets soaked me. I was dripping by the time I finally stopped for air. I bent over, bracing my hands against my knees while I stood under the orange streetlight and panted. Cold air filled my lungs, burning me from the inside out. I stared at the halo of wet light beneath my feet while I caught my breath. My body was shaking from being wet in this temperature but I didn't really mind. It reminded me of the last time I'd been in a rainstorm.

I laughed.

It wasn't funny, but I found humor in it as the images replayed in my head.

We were both trash.

That thought made me laugh harder.

Thick rain drops continued falling, but instead of being upset, I looked up at the dark sky and thanked whoever it was that was responsible. I had been putting off the inevitable for far too long. I'm ready now. This was a sign, it was time.

Anyone who caught me in that moment would've thought I was insane or on strong drugs by the way I looked; standing in the rain fully clothed and laughing hysterically. I kept walking, ignoring the vibrations in my pocket as I made my way across the neighborhood to my sanctuary.

I hope he didn't mind that I used my new key.

I stepped inside the dark apartment and slid my feet out of my soaked sneakers at the door. I didn't want to track water through the halls so I removed my jacket, my bag and my socks, leaving them in the kitchen sink. My phone was left on the counter before I tip toed quietly towards his room.

It was so dark that I bumped into the walls a couple of times but eventually made contact with his door. I turned the knob quietly, pushing the door open just enough to gauge the activity in the room before I stepped inside. It was dark and quiet except for the tapping of rain against his window. My heart raced and I almost laughed at the irony of what was happening, but I held it back so as to not wake him.

I slid inside, closing the door behind me and lightly stepping towards his sleeping body. I could barely make his face out in the darkness but I touched the curve of his clothed shoulder, hoping to not to scare him with my cool fingers.

He grunted a little and pulled the sheets up higher, covering his shoulder and snuggling further into the warmth of his bed. I smiled but the shiver that overcame me reminded me that I was in dire need of a change of clothing so I shook his shoulder again. If I could have, I would have much preferred to climb into bed with him and let him wake up beside me but that wasn't exactly an option in my state.

"Fuck off Max." He hissed, pushing his face into his pillow and pulling his body further away from mine.

"George." I whispered. His body visibly stiffened before his head rose and he looked over his shoulder at me. I could see the outline of his face as he looked up at me and stared before he registered that I was actually there.