Chapter Six
Keeley
Footsteps.
So many footsteps.
Two sets of them. Andrew’s heavier thudding tread, and Lisa’s lighter, clicking steps, like she’s donned a pair of heels and is putting on a catwalk show in Andrew’s living room.
The thuds and clicks have been on an endless loop for what feels like hours. And with each step, the sound seems to grow louder, echoing through my mind in a plodding pattern that taunts, “Her and him. Him and her. Them, up there, together.”
A thud, then a bang. A giggle. A tap-tap-tap. Another thud.
Seriously. What are they doing up there, herding elephants? Moving furniture? Dancing the tarantella?
“Ughhhhh,” I grumble as I roll over in bed, shoving the thin sheet off me as I go.
No, Craig never came back to look at my AC, and yes, it’s still a million and one degrees in here.
I check my phone and discover that it’s one o’clock in the morning. So much for crawling into bed early to get some so-called “beauty sleep” after this trainwreck of a day. Sleeping has been an entirely fruitless activity so far. After I went to bed, I spent an hour scouring the Evoke website, reading all the new content I could find, before turning off my light so I could lie awake and listen to the racket upstairs.
“So thoughtful of you both,” I address the ceiling as I remove myself from my sticky-hot bed. I strip out of my oversized pajama shirt and change into a purple tank top, then plod to the bathroom.
Sissy was right, I decide as I look in the mirror. I’m a hot mess right now. Literally.
I scrape my hair into a bun on the top of my head, then root around in the drawer until I find one of those sheet masks that Mae, Ezra’s wife, brought back for me on her last trip to Korea.
I smooth the serum-soaked white sheet over my face, reveling in the cool feeling against my skin. Then, I climb onto my makeshift desk in the living room, open the window, and duck out onto the fire escape.
My apartment doesn’t have a balcony, but The Serendipity has one of those metal fire escapes that runs the length of the building. It’s become one of my favorite places to sit when I can’t sleep.
Tonight, though, it feels like more than just a nice place to sit. It’s a total godsend. A necessary escape from the parade of elephants on my ceiling, taunting me.
I sink to a seat on the metal, pressing my back against the red brick of the building. It’s quiet here and cooler than inside my place.
Below, the streets are calm and dark and quiet. Above, there’s a sprinkling of stars in the velvet black sky.
I smile up at them, silently thanking them for being here with me in this moment.
This morning feels like an eternity ago, and at that point—when I was reeling from the shock of finding Andrew and Lisa together—I didn’t really consider the fact that she’d be here at The Serendipity a lot. I also didn’t consider that I’m living right underneath the brand-new happy couple , so I’d know about it every time she’s here.
Talking to Ezra about it was nice, but he didn’t have much advice for me short of, “You’re better off without that fool.”
My brother never liked my ex. He has also become Handsome Irish Stranger’s number one fan in the five freaking minutes the man has been in town, because he went on to recommend that I try dating him instead because he has “great taste in music.”
A top priority in my choice of a life partner, apparently.
I went on to remind him that his wife, Mae, only listens to K-pop, which he despises—he’s more into melodramatic sad-boy-guitar-clashing type of music, my dear brother.
That shut him up pretty fast.
I was a little nervous to tell him about the conversation I’d had with Freya about the opportunity at Evoke in Boston; that niggling feeling that I shouldn’t leave was brewing in me again.
But Ezra kind of surprised me by being pumped. Immediately said that I should go for it. It’s a dream opportunity.
He said that I’m single now, the world is my oyster, I’m twenty-five years old… I should be going after what I want in life. He reminded me that Boston’s close enough for an easy day trip to Serendipity Springs—just over an hour each way—and that he’ll help me look for a car. I could still easily visit my family. Every week, if I wanted to.
I’m not leaving, I’m growing my career.
Beep!
The sound of a car unlocking on the street below momentarily pulls my attention from my thoughts. I peer down in front of my building just in time to see Andrew walking Lisa to her vehicle.
It compounds everything I’ve been thinking about—my life might be in Serendipity Springs right now, but so is my ex.
It really is the perfect time to grow elsewhere, to focus on my career and escape for a while, knowing that I can— and will —always come back for the people I love when they need me.
And more than that, with the reassurance that the people who love me know this too.
All of a sudden, the little flutter that danced in my stomach earlier is back. Now, it’s tangoing up a storm, Dancing with the Stars style.
I’m going to submit an article that blows Nisha’s socks off, and get myself my dream job!
With something that feels akin to peace, I watch Lisa drive off. Things are looking up. It’s even cooled down since I’ve been out here, and I'm glad I left my window open. Hopefully, some of that cooler air has made its way inside.
I stand, stretch, and pivot around...
The window’s closed.
“Could’ve sworn I left that open,” I mutter with a frown.
I reach for the handle at the bottom of the window and pull… and keep pulling.
“What the?” I try—and fail—to pull it open again.
I swear under my breath as I try a third time…
The window remains firmly stuck.
I take a step back, my heart leaping in my chest.
I’m on the fire escape, in the middle of the night, dressed only in a tank top and pajama shorts. My options are bleak, at best. I could climb down the fire escape to the ground floor, but I don’t have my key to get back into the building. I could also climb up the escape, but that would take me to Andrew’s apartment, and if I know one thing for certain, it’s that I’m not asking him for help.
No way.
Ez and Mae have a spare key to my place, but they also have a toddler, and I know that sleep is a precious commodity. I don’t want to call them unless I absolutely have to.
Which leaves old Mr. Prenchenko from next door. He’s a wonderful neighbor and a fountain of knowledge about different cultures… but he’s also hard of hearing, and wears hearing aids that I’m sure he takes off to sleep. But I guess I could tap on his window and hope that he’ll wake up and let me inside.
And then… well, in all honesty, I don’t have a clue what my next move would be, but one step at a time.
I take a deep breath, crawl over to what I think is Mr. Prenchenko’s living room window, and tap on the glass.