Chapter 4

The next day, I went to my condo to organize the stuff I bought yesterday. When I got there, the old woman on the first floor, who was Lily, told me that I had deliveries arrived earlier and they put them in front of my door. Nikki helped me put the boxes inside. I also texted Kieffer to inform him that I am going to stay in my condo today. 

“Nikki, you can go home now. I’ll be staying here for today.” I said after I got out of the kitchen and I am still holding a glass that I washed and now I am drying it. I am wearing a cute pink apron with flowery designs. 

“You don’t need any help, Ma’am?” he asked as he put the boxes aside. 

“I think I can do it by myself. Thank you,” she said. Nikki nodded at her before he decided to leave. “Leave the boxes there. I’ll just throw it away later.” I said when I saw that he was about to bring the boxes with him. After he left, I continued organizing the kitchen. I also put the groceries I bought before we went here in the refrigerator while the cookies and some snacks were in the kitchen cabinet above. I smiled and clapped in satisfaction after I saw how the kitchen looked now. It looked clean and… looked like the real kitchen of someone who likes to cook. 

Next is my room. Since there was already a bed there, I only bought a bedsheet, pillows, and a blanket. I also bought curtains for my room and living room and fluffy mats, one for my room and one for the living room. 

I was almost out of breath when I finished fixing my bed, put on the curtain, and organized my clothes in the cabinet. 

“Should I put the single couch from the living room here?” I asked myself when I should put it on because there is still a lot of space in my room. I can put it near the bookshelves. So, I went out of my room and tried to lift up the cream-colored single couch. Good thing it was not that heavy so I transferred it to my room without scratching the tiles. I put in my slightly pink fluffy mat. After that,  I wiped the sweat on my forehead and neck. When I looked in the full-size mirror that was on the wall, I was dripping with sweat! My pink tank top was now wet because of the sweat dripping from my neck. My hair that I tied in a bun became messy now so some of the strands of my hair were stuck on my nape.

Next, I will be cleaning the bathroom. I have two bathrooms. One was in the main bedroom which is my room and the other was near the kitchen. I put my skincare products in my bathroom. The bathroom is quite big, there’s a bathtub and shower. There’s also a mirror and a wide sink. I hang my bathrobe on the hook on the wall beside the bathtub. I also put the towel in the cabinet of the wide sink. Next, I went to the other bathroom to also put towels, hand sanitizer, soap, and shampoo there. In case I have visitors, 

After I went out, I let out a heavy sigh of tiredness as I looked at how messy my living room was. The plastics and boxes were scattered everywhere as well as the styrofoams. I wiped the sweat on my forehead before nodding and got the plastics that were scattered and put them in the boxes and also, the styrofoams. 

“Ah, I forgot to buy a broom and dustpan,” I uttered when I saw the styrofoam dust scattered on the floor. I wanted to call Nikki to buy it for me but then, I remembered that there are stores near this place. “I can just buy it later,” I said after I put all the trash on one side. Then, I got the white and brown curtains I bought for the living room. The curtain holder was high unlike the ones in my room so I need something to climb into to get the curtain holder rod. I got one of the chairs in the kitchen. 

“I shouldn’t have let Nikki leave,” I uttered while having a hard time getting off the metal rod in the curtain hook. It took almost two hours for me to put up all the curtains because I didn’t expect it to be hard! And it was heavy to put back on the hook! 

Then, I moved the couches in my preferred way. There was still one long couch and one single couch remaining since I put one in my room. I just let the long couch face the television and I placed the single couch near the window where I could see the rooftops of the other houses and small buildings. 

“Finally done!” I shouted in happiness after I finished organizing everything. “I just need to throw the trash and sweep the floor,” I said as I looked at the dust around the living room. I looked at the sun wall clock and I didn’t notice that it was already five in the afternoon. So, it took me seven hours to finish! 

“I’m so tired!” I moaned as I let my body fall on the couch. “I’m hungry,’’ I said as I stood up to throw the boxes outside. I think there was a recycling trash can just outside the building. I moved out all the boxes first and left them beside my door. Then, I went inside again to look in the mirror to see how I look. 

“I’m going to take a bath later so I think I don’t need to change my clothes…” I muttered as I wiped my sweat so I didn’t look like a mess. Just slight maybe. But I’m still beautiful though. 

When I went out, I put the small boxes inside the bigger box so I could carry them at once. I also noticed that the door that was located at the end of the hallway, opened because I heard the pin code door sound. But I am holding the boxes so I didn’t bother to look at who it was. I managed to press the elevator button without letting go of the boxes. There was also one person who entered the elevator but I couldn’t see who it was because the boxes were covering my vision. I could tell that it was a man because of his scent. It was a manly perfume but not strong. He was also the one who pressed the button. 

“Thanks,” I muttered. And he didn’t reply. When we reached the first floor, he got out first. I only saw his black converse shoes because I was looking down so I could not trip. 

“Let me help you, Ma’am!” I was quite embarrassed when the guard came running to me but at the same time, I was thankful. 

“Oh! Thank you!” I said as he got all the boxes on me. I also saw Lily outside the office and she was talking to a tall man who I couldn’t see because he was turning his back on me. Why do I feel like he was familiar? But then, I followed the guard and helped him. 

“You should have folded these, Ma’am so you could carry it easily.” The guard said to me as he folded the boxes and put them beside the recycle bin. 

“We will not put it inside?’’ I asked curiously. 

“The waste collector will get it. These are too big to put inside.” The guard said. I nodded. I think I just learned something today. After that, thanked the guard and went back inside the building. I saw some people staying in the lobby and most of them were looking at me. I shrugged, maybe they were just curious who I was since I am new here in their building so I gave them a small nod before I went inside the elevator.  

When I reached my floor, I got a text from Kieffer that he will visit me later after. I replied to him first before I opened the door. When I was about to enter, I turned to the elevator when it opened. I wanted to greet the person who will come out because I think it is appropriate since we are neighbors. 

When I saw who it was, my eyes widened as I recognized him. “Oh! You!” I pointed my finger at him causing him to stop and looked at me. His face was not sleepy now, maybe he already had a good sleep also, he was just wearing black shorts and a maroon t-shirt instead of a hoodie. 

“You were the guy in the supermarket! The one who took my ramen!” I said. He tilted his head like he was still remembering when he saw me then he slightly nodded. 

“Ah, you’re that shorty in the supermarket,” he said lazily, uninterested before he continued walking. My lips parted as I processed what he said. I felt like my blood suddenly boiled because of what he called me!

“What?! Shorty? Me? Hey!!” I shouted but he still continued walking towards his room. I remained glaring at him as if a look can kill, he should be lying on the floor now. 

“Ah, another thing.” he looked at me after he stopped in front of his room. “You also look like Anger now. The one in the Inside Out movie.”