her neighbor Suzi

 Ella's POV 
"I loved the food they were delicious..." I said, wiping my lips with tissue paper.

"Thank you," Suzi replied with a smile and stood on her feet.

Suzi truly had cooked the food so well. It looked ordinary but its taste was too good. Rice, vegetables, chips, pickle, pulses..she managed to cook all this even after returning from her work.

In case of me, I feel so exhausted when I return back from my work that I find it difficult to pour myself the water to drink. But Suzi who seems to be in her late twenties was really so energetic.

 "Be ashamed of yourself Ella..." I said underneath my breath.

"Here..." Suzi handed me a paper bag.
"What's this?" I asked in the hesitancy of taking the bag from her hand.

"Told you I have baked extra cookies so those are for you," she answered back and started to pick the plates from the table.
"Actually you don't have to.."

"Uh! it's alright..." she interrupted and walked towards washbasin.

"Let me help you with the dishes," I said keeping the bag on the table and walking towards her.
"It's alright dear. I will do the dishes," she refused my proposal.

"Come on Suzi. Let me help. Please give me a chance to return you your favour. You have done so much for me," I said trying to stand beside her.

"Okay then I will do the dishes you please clean the table. Is that okay?"

I popped my thumbs up and said, "Yeah.. perfect." I walked to the table and started to clean the mess.

Suzi's apartment was slightly big from mine but it was somewhat similar to mine. Her apartment also had a bedroom and kitchen in one room only. But I should admit that her place was cleaner and alive than mine. 

Things were kept in proper places. Clothes were folded neatly and placed on the rage. The floor was clean no sign of dirt or dust.

Comparing to my room where you will see only canvas everywhere floor hardly being swept. And let's not talk about things and clothes. You can picture it yourself. But I was not that before it is just that my past had ruined me.

"Suzi, how do you manage all this?" I asked cleaning the table with a cloth.

"Manage what?" she asked in confusion placing the washed dishes on a basket.

"Your work and your home. mean how do you do it keeping the home clean, coming back from work cooking varieties of items, baking the cookies.." I replied.

"Have you heard 'Where there is will there is the way'?" she asked.

"Yeah..."

"So if there is a will in your heart you can probably do anything. You can make anything possible. Also keeping your home clean automatically eases your heart and makes it peaceful. With a peaceful heart, you can do many things in one minute. And if you do one thing in one minute then..."

"Then you will be able to be another Suzi..." I interrupted her giving mocking smile.

"Yeah, that's my girl," she turned towards me smiling and winked. Suzi is teaching me so many things today.

She again got back to her work. I sat on the chair looked around and said, "Suzi..can I ask you a question?"

"Yeah, sure go for it," she said, wiping her wet hand on the towel. She came and sat beside me.

"Why do you live here?" I asked.

She laughed. "It is my home dear. People live on their home isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I mean...you earn well why do you have to live in this small apartment. You can afford a better apartment having better facilities," I said.

"Um.  Yeah, you are right but the thing is I believe in "Down to earth" proverbs. You see no matter how much you earn but you should never forget where you came from. I can afford a better place than this but instead of wasting my money on the expensive lifestyle, I spend most of my income for needy people. I don't want them living my past life. Also, I just love this place" she said leaning her back comfortably on her chair.

****

I placed the cookies bag on the table beside the bread bag. I plonked on my bed and looked around. Really my room was a mess. Things scattered everywhere. Trashes around dustbin. I bet that dustbin might be empty as all the trashes were surrounding it.

I recalled all the things Suzi said. I don't know why but today her each and every word got straight to my heart. Somehow I now have started to agree with her which I never did before.

I placed my hand on my bed. My hand fall on the canvas. I opened it and still, I couldn't understand it like any other painting, I had no idea what that painting meant.

Only the part I could understand is the stars and this canvas has a moon. And at the bottom line, there are two alphabets.

"LU" what does that mean? Every canvas has an alphabet like this canvas which I really couldn't understand. I feel like burning all the canvas but I am an artist, right? I cannot do that. No matter how furious I am I should never destroy other creation.

I placed the canvas under the bed with the other three canvas. I sat back on my bed and took a look at my room again. I got a deep urge to cleaning the mess. I got up and tied my shoulder-length hair into a ponytail. I grabbed the broom and started my work. This was the first time since I came here and was cleaning my room.

Finally, after two hours, I completed the cleaning. I lied on my bed feeling exhausted. Suzi was right clean home did give a peaceful heart. And plus point for having a delighted heart was I created a place for my Canvas easel by the window. Now I could paint peacefully.

(1,2,3)

"Hm..." I glanced at my watch. "There is no noise in Suzi's apartment today. It's already time to make her nose. Or did her man didn't come tonight?. Well, that's good for me. her shout, after all, drives me crazy back to my past. No noise, no shout..no moan (You know what I am talking about) One step ahead from my thoughts now.

The first night in this apartment I was so scared hearing the noise or you can say her moan. I thought that the apartment was hunted so I had made up my mind to change it in any cost but next morning when I saw a man coming out from her apartment then I got what all that moan and noise was.