Jen blinked twice to clear her eyes. 11:59. Why the steady pounding? She drank quite a bit last night, but something didnât seem quite right. Her head didnât really hurt that much; where was the noise coming from? Slowly coming out of a sleep induced stupor, Jen realized the pounding wasnât coming from inside her after all, and she bolted to the door, hastily tying on her robe.
âMorning, sunshine!!! Still morning, we can still have breakfast. Come on, letâs go!â Sarah beamed across the threshold at her neighbor, then as if just noticing Jenâs state of undress, âHmm. Letâs get you dressed first.â
Sarah pushed her way into the apartment and straight into Jenniferâs room for the second time in as many days. Rummaging through Jenâs clothes, she came up with a pair of jeans and a plain white babydoll t-shirt.
âHurry up, I need some coffee!â Sarah jokingly whined.
Jennifer jumped into the clothes Sarah had set out and quickly brushed her hair, pulling it into a ponytail. Her favorite way to wear her hair, it was low maintenance and hid the fact that she hadnât taken a shower yet that morning. Ignoring Sarahâs pleas for coffee, Jen took three minutes in the bathroom to freshen up before joining the way too chipper Sarah headed out the door.
âWhere are we going, anyways?â Jen asked.
âDotâs, right down the street,â came the reply.
Even as they exited the building, Jen could see the cafĂ© sign just two doors down. She had noticed the place when she applied for the apartment but hadnât been in yet. The short walk was worth it; walking through the doors, Jennifer and Sarah were bombarded with scents of freshly baked bread and cooking bacon. The two noticed a table full of the women Jen had met the previous evening. They all greeted her warmly and invited Jen and Sarah to sit at their table. Making an order for coffee and breakfast, Jen and Sarah settled into the conversation, learning of plans for a party that night at a girl named Amyâs. Amy, a short, green eyed brunette, loudly lamented the choice of her apartment to anyone within earshot.
âItâs ALWAYS my place, why do I have to be the one to clean?â she whined with a wink to Stacy.
âMaybe itâs because your place is the only one that needs cleaning!â Stacy shot back, laughing.
âIâve seen your apartment, Stacy. Maybe you girls should bug her,â Ben said, walking through the door.
Jen blushed, remembering her actions of last night and praying she could act casual. It wasnât every day she slept with someone she had known less than 48 hours. The thought made her a little nervous, but Ben seemed to think nothing of it. He had seated himself and was laughing and joking with everyone sitting at the table.
âJen?â
âHuh? What? Iâm sorry, I donât think Iâm quite awake yet,â she stammered.
âThatâs okay, we were just wondering if you were coming tonight,â Sarah repeated. âItâs a lot of fun, almost like a block party for the complex. Itâll be the perfect opportunity to meet everyone else that lives here. Come ON, youâll have a lot of fun,â she coaxed, noticing the tiniest look of panic flying across Jenâs face. She had seen that look before and was determined to get Jen into the party spirit.
âOkay, okay, Iâll make an appearance. What should I bring?â Jen groaned loudly, smiling in spite of herself. She really hadnât intended to go, but Sarah had a point - it was a great chance to meet new people.
After breakfast, the group walked back to the apartment, poking fun and joking good naturedly with each other. Jen couldnât help but become part of the fun, and soon found herself having a better time with these people than she could ever remember having had since before high school. Nobody cared about her past here, they all seemed so nonjudgmental. Jen shook her head, amazed again at her good luck. Who would have guessed sheâd find such a great bunch of people and such a great apartment in one place?
After all the tenants dispersed toward their own apartments, Jen asked Sarah where she could find a laundromat where she could wash Sarahâs skirt before returning it.
Laughing, Sarah replied, âI have a washer and dryer in my apartment; itâs one of the perks of living at the end of the hall. I let everyone in this wing use them whenever they want. Ben knows and will let you in if you ever need them and Iâm not home. Anyways, why pay if you can get it for free?â With that, Sarah opened her door and disappeared into her own apartment, neglecting to shut the door behind her.
Jen smiled, wondering if that she was imagining the amusement in Sarahâs voice. Deciding she must have been, she entered her apartment and gathered the few clothes she had managed to dirty since her arrival here and piled them into the basket she had noticed in the hall closet. Still pondering what Sarah had said, she shuffled next door into Sarahâs place. Immediately she understood Sarahâs comment about the perks of living at the end of the hall; the place was enormous! She easily had twice the living space as Jen, whose apartment wasnât small in any way. Jen was still staring, turning around to see all the space, when Sarah walked around the corner that apparently led to the bedroom.
âGot everything? Great, the laundry room is right over here,â Sarah said, leading Jen down a short hallway perpendicular to the one she had just exited. âOn your left is the guest bath, on your right is the laundry room. You can hang out here, too, if youâd like. I was going to go through some of my old clothes and grab anything thatâd fit you. I save things like that to give to the new people instead of the Salvation Army. At least this way I know itâs being put to good use and not gathering dust in some warehouse.â
Shocked, Jen stammered her thanks and retreated to the laundry room to start a load. This place never ceased to amaze her. Between the great price she was paying, an apartment nicer than she had expected to be able to afford, and all the people so willing to accept her, Jen found herself wondering what could be next. There had to be a catch, she knew, but what?
In the living room a few minutes later, Jenâs worries were at the back of her mind as she sat surrounded by a pile of clothes that was steadily growing larger. It seemed that Sarah loved clothes. And giving them away.
âHonestly, Iâd rather get rid of a lot of this. It just gives me an excuse to go shopping and buy more!â Sarah admitted, giggling.
Another five outfits came flying into the pile, with Sarah following and declaring she was finished. Jen laughed at Sarahâs version of being âfinishedâ; it looked like half her closet was now gracing the living room floor. Sarah sat on a footstool and began sorting clothes into tops, bottoms, and outfits. Then she ordered Jen to stand up and hold things up so she could, in her infinite wisdom, decide if the clothes fit the girl.
Jen wasnât entirely surprised an hour and a half later when Sarah declared the final outfit a success. Every single item of clothing had been placed in the âkeepâ pile without Jen deciding on even one of them. Sarahâs exuberant personality had convinced Jen at the start that this was the sort of person she needed to be around to help her start over, and without being told, Sarah had enthusiastically taken the position.
Lugging both the clean laundry and the new clothes into Jenâs apartment, the two girls laughed and talked like old friends. Together, they put it away and organized Jenâs closet, then collapsed on the couch.