Lana woke up in a foul mood for the fourth morning in a row; she brewed some coffee and lit a cigarette. She had barely slept through the night, thanks to the new, noisy neighbor and his loud screaming bimbo. For the entire past week, the new neighbor—who remained a faceless presence to Lana—was drilling holes on the walls and hammering furniture together in the morning and fucking the last remnants of his girlfriend's brain off in the night.
She took a sip of her black, fresh coffee, lit another cigarette; her mouth was flooded with the bad taste of sleeplessness and no amount of cold water could wash it away; she wished they—her husband and she—could go on a long trip, away from the noisy neighbor, who, in less than a week, had turned their peaceful and idyllic apartment into an infernal nightmare, but, her husband, Fred, was too busy at work.
She finished her first cup of coffee, refilled it, and sat heavily on the couch, to watch television; there was nothing else to do, after all. She had tried, quite hard, to find a job—even a bad-paying one would have sufficed as long as it allowed her to kill some time—but, a recession job market is not very kind to a 38-year old unqualified woman, who got pregnant as a high-school senior and devoted her youth in raising her child.
It was only when Trish, her daughter, left home she was forced to face the idleness of the daily routine, which up until then had been rewarding. Moping around the house alone all day long—and often during entire weekends, when Fred was off to some business trip—was becoming tedious and mundane; she had no way, however, to escape it; no matter how hard she tried she was stuck and, hence, she was doing all she could best to embrace her situation.
The whole apartment shook, as if under an earthquake, when the drilling commenced next door; it was too loud and close. The neighbor was working on the wall separating the two apartments.
"Jesus," she whispered, rubbed her throbbing forehead. "How many paintings does this guy have?" She wondered loudly, secretly hoping he'd hear her and stop.
He didn't; whether he ignored her, or just didn't hear her, she couldn't tell. What she, on the other hand, could tell was that it was turning unbearable; the first couple of days she was understanding; moving in a new place can be rough. But, she could not comprehend why he was not yet finished. Five days is too long a time for setting up a new apartment, it seemed to her.
When she got up and threw a bathrobe over her short satin nightgown, it was both frustration and curiosity that drove her. She was ready to get into a fight with the neighbor, but, she couldn't help but wonder about both his apartment and its set-up, as well as for seeing the perpetrators of those long fucking sessions that had haunted her nightly thoughts—by both disturbing and exciting her.
She rang the bell and only afterwards did she feel bad for not carrying a welcoming gift, or at least having an excuse for the abrupt visit; despite the anger boiling her blood, she could not overcome her natural disposition towards proper manners.
"Yeah?" The door was opened roughly by an angry, tall man; Lana was rendered speechless, her eyes observing the robust, muscular naked upper body of her noisy neighbor. She moved her glare rapidly along his exposed veins, the upper arms that seemed to be of the same size as her thin-framed torso. "Can I help you?" He asked with irritation.
"Huh?" She muttered, then slowly began regaining her composure. "Yes, I'm...your neighbor, actually. Lana," she extended her hand hesitantly.
"Eric," his hand swallowed hers in a gentle, yet stern, shake.
"I've just realized we haven't met yet, and, given we're next-door neighbors..."
"Ah-hum," he nodded. "I was planning on coming by to introduce myself, but, got caught with work and setting the place up...I was gonna come by, though," he smiled, clearly having eased up. "By the way, I'm sorry for any disturbance, I..." he cleared his throat. "It's taking far too long and...had a lot of things, too, so..."
"It's alright, it's perfectly understandable," she fired quickly, her glance dropping momentarily southwards, to his short boxers. "I guess, I better let you go back to work, huh?" She took a step backwards, her eyes still fixed on him.
"No, it's..." he said hastily. "If you want, you can come inside for a cup of coffee, or something...could use the break. If you're not busy, that is."
"Sure, I'd like that," she nodded and a bright smile appeared on her face.
It was only, when she had stepped inside the apartment and the door was closed behind her, she realized the way she was dressed. What will he think, if I suddenly leave, to change? she thought worrisomely, then took a seat at the small wooden kitchen table.
He boiled some water and poured them both a cup of instant coffee; he lit a cigarette and she took his offer for one. He lit his, then hers; she leaned back on the chair, crossed her legs, suddenly causing the robe to be lifted, revealing the whole length of her leg.
She gave him a reassuring, warm smile, when his eyes momentarily popped open at the sight, then he quickly averted his gaze seemingly embarrassed.
"So, what do you do?" She asked with a wide smile and fire burning in her heart; she readjusted her robe, covering up her thigh, but, it slowly slid back down.
"I'm a gym teacher," he replied, instinctively stealing glimpses of her naked leg. "I used to work at a school out in the country, but...got a great offer for a private school around here. So..." he shrugged.
"Better pay, huh?" She winked at him.
"Yeah, and..." he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, had a drag from his cigarette. "Well, I've missed the big city; not much to do in a small village."
"Must have been nice, though; living out in the countryside."
"Sure, it was," he agreed. "Peaceful, calm, fresh air, nature all around you; but, it gets boring, especially, when you're young and restless," his smile widened, became more meaningful.
"How old are you?"
"Twenty six," he said.
"You live alone?" She looked around, trying to discern signs of a woman's presence in the apartment; there was none, and none has emerged from the other rooms, either.
"Yes," he said. "I'm single at the moment."
"Oh," she exclaimed, taken aback.
"What?"
"Nothing, it's just..."
