i just want you to be happy

Part 3

Maurice spent the whole morning looking for his lease. He could not find it anywhere and figured he must have misplaced it when moving into the apartment. It had just been a year ago, he recalled. He thought the lease must be running out soon. The paint was not in the cupboard and his sitting room did not match, and while a fire roared in the fireplace, he ate an orange while staring into the palette of mustard yellow. He stood up to look at the painting of a barn on his wall. The red was so rich, contrasting with the yellow, that it startled him. He crept over to his French door facing the street and looked for his driver. He knew he was coming today, the fridge had said so, but he was not sure why. Any chance to be with the driver was enough for him, he was a good ol' boy and was always a guaranteed laugh from their conversation.

Maurice noticed his driver was more quiet today. No brownstones, they were exiting the city, somewhere new for him. Upon entering the building, Maurice noticed the smell first. It was institutional, a vague staleness in the air that made him uneasy. He imagined the roar of his fire from his favorite chair. He was happy to be back in the car, the countryside turned into busy streets and soon the brownstones were cycling through his eyes on an aggressive rotation. He reached into his pocket and there was nothing there. He was confused, patting both sides of his pants, and decided he must have not transferred his belongs from his trousers from the previous day. The driver parked in front of Maurice's building, and Maurice paused. For some reason, he reached towards the driver's arm and grabbed it tightly. He did not know why, but he started to cry. Gentle sobs came from Maurice while hot tears stream down his face onto his wool sweater. They stayed like this and decided it would be best to stay like that, just for a little while.