Incognito

Dark Was The Night

Urban Cone // Urban Photograph

I know you, you'll be coming back for more

You'll be coming back for more

We can fight anything that we can use, All I do is just for you

Sometimes it feels like I've been trapped for years, All I ever feel is fear

~

As the days rolled by, I put streaks on my calendar, only one day until Homecoming and two days until Halloween. How exciting. The leaves blow anxiously, waiting for the day they'll fall to the ground. I stuff my hands into my sweatshirt, hoping they'll avoid the frostbite. It may not be winter quite yet, but with the steady temperature of low seventies declining to steady fifties and forties, my body is not used to it yet. You'd think so though, since I've lived here all my life. "Lorena!" A male's voice shouts from far away, it's obviously Alex and Julie since I don't know any other couples that would invest in matching sweatshirts that say 'my girl' / 'his girl' on them. I approach them quickly, my boots making crunching sounds as I enter the park. Piled upon the dew covered grass the crusty brown leaves whirled around in a circle like a small tornado sweeping the park, the smell of the ocean breeze bitterly blew over my shoulders and neck, which gave me that tingling sensation everyone gets at this godforsaken time of the year. Though I did not intend to stop, since I am on a tight schedule, but nonetheless greeting my friends should also be a priority of mine. Every time I see them, I feel like it's been ages.

"You look ridiculously cute." Julie notes quietly, piercing her lips when studying me. Besides the pink tint that colors my pale skin in the bitterness, blood rushes to my cheeks. She knows something is going on, or else I would have been a lot less attractive right now. Today, I plan on helping Daniel with his new apartment.

"Thank you. It's nice seeing you two together, but I've got to run, Daniel's waiting for me." The mention of his name makes me smile. No, it's not that I like-like him. More as if I'm happy that he asked me to help him and nobody else that I know of. It sort of makes it seem more special and personal, as if I'm important. They wave me off and I am back to walking towards the Alpha Apartments that are only one block away. I pass the school and the gas station, obviously the park, and finally I arrive at the apartments that all look the same. Taking out my phone, I look at the message he had sent me earlier. Letter C, First Floor, Apt. #13.

"Here goes nothing." I suck in my breath when knocking on the door. All the apartments are off-white with navy blue shutters and red doors. It takes a few moments before I hear the unlocking from inside. As soon as it opens, Daniel is revealed in a black v-neck and ripped jeans with black vans. This is the guy I met playing football, not my AP Chemistry teacher. He smiles but falters as if he is out of breath. Has he been working without me?

"Hello, Lori, come on in!" He frets, taking some things and placing them elsewhere. The living room is a nice size for a one bedroom apartment and the kitchen is right next to it, most of it uncovered because of the counters. The bathroom, I discover, is directly across the kitchen and the bedroom is connected to both. Again, perfect sizing for one or two people. However, there's still boxes scattered everywhere with things very unknown. I'm surprised that he has so much, considering he's lived with his parents and he's only nineteen.

"I know I apologized in advance over the phone on the mess I have but again, I'm sorry." He speaks from the bedroom. I follow his voice to find his bedroom is equally as large as the living room and am shocked to see a walk-in closet already filled with his work clothing. His bed is not made, so I decide that that will be the first job I'll do. Making his bed is the easiest of all things anyway. There's a window to the right of his bed and a TV across from it. The drawers that hold the TV contain his boxers, socks and I'm not sure what the last one is since it's closed shut. I come across two boxes near the window and decide to open them, but am roughly halted by Daniel. He looks agitated, with his thin lips and furrowed brows, from my curiosity, but isn't that why I came here, to help him unpack? Confused, I drop the topic and go over the living room in annoyance. What could possibly be wrong with him to be so exacerbated? It's not like he's hiding something. Or otherwise, what could be in the boxes to make him flustered? It doesn't take long to move the couch adjacent to the other, but larger, television and have a leather bing-bag in the corner with his large bookcase. I adjust the coffee table to the middle of the room and set down a few books, noting that he has taste in classic books such as Gone with the Wind, and his small vase of several cacti. By now I've calmed down and so has he. The tension between us wasn't strong enough at the time to make me uncomfortable to leave, but if anything else is to happen, surely I will.