Todos os capítulos de I Let Her Stay, She Changed My Locks: Capítulo 1 - Capítulo 9

“Besides, you don’t even live here. We’re just giving the place a little life.”“You’re single anyway. Who are you trying to impress by keeping everything so spotless? Then why don’t you get married and have kids yourself?”“I’m staying in your apartment because I’m doing you a favor, so don’t stand there pretending to be generous when you’re actually being petty. Who exactly are you trying to fool?”My cousin, Zoe Parker, stood there with her arms crossed, leaning against the doorframe of my apartment as she tossed those words at me.Her dyed-blonde hair looked almost painfully bright beneath the hallway lights. Paired with the smug, entitled expression on her face, it was enough to make me wonder, for one brief second, whether I was the one hallucinating.A month earlier, she held my hand and told me the college entrance exam was entering its final stretch. Her house was way too noisy. She wanted to borrow my apartment for three months so she could study in peace. She promised s

I rushed back to the apartment complex as fast as I could.Downstairs, I was met by the young couple who lived in Unit 1202.The husband pointed furiously at the ceiling of their balcony.“Ms. Bennett, just look at this! What the hell is going on?“Water’s pouring down like it’s raining indoors! It even ruined the dryer I just bought. What on earth is happening in your apartment?”I followed his finger and saw a huge patch of water stains spreading across their balcony ceiling. Water was still dripping steadily from above.I immediately apologized, “I’m so sorry. I’ll go upstairs and check it right now. I’ll cover whatever damage was caused.”After calming the neighbors down, I headed straight to the property management office.Mr. Walls, the property manager, was a man in his forties. The moment he saw me, his expression turned apologetic.“Ms. Bennett, it’s not just the water leak.“We’ve received several complaints about your apartment recently. Most of them are about nois

The chaos came to an abrupt halt the moment Officer Lane snapped the handcuffs around Alex’s wrists.The metallic click of the cuffs silenced every sob and scream in the room.My aunt collapsed onto the floor, staring at her restrained son. Her lips trembled, but she could not get a single word out.Zoe looked as though every ounce of strength had been drained from her. She leaned against the wall, staring blankly into space.“Take them all back to the station,” Officer Lane told Officer Sanders.“Officer, please, you can’t!” My aunt finally snapped out of her daze. She grabbed Officer Lane’s leg and burst into tears.“My son just lost his temper! He didn’t mean it! Please, please let him go!”“Let him go? When he tried to attack someone just now, who was going to show the victim any mercy?” “Furthermore, he threatened a police officer. Why should anyone make an exception for him?” His voice was cold and firm.“This is a society governed by law, not your family’s backyard. Be

In the mediation room at the police station, the atmosphere was as heavy as the sky before a storm.My uncle’s family and I sat on opposite sides of a long table, with Officers Lane and Sanders overseeing the mediation.Alex had already been sentenced to seven days of administrative detention, so he was not there.The news had left my aunt’s eyes swollen from crying, and the look she gave me was filled with pure resentment.I placed a printed document on the table and slid it toward them.“This is the property damage assessment, prepared by an independent professional appraisal firm,” I said calmly. “Take a look.”The report was more than a dozen pages long. Every item came with high-resolution photographs and a detailed valuation.‘Wall repairs: matching the original brand of decorative paint, including labor and materials — 8,000 dollars.‘Handmade Turkish wool rug: replacement cost — 12,000 dollars.’‘White-oak dining table: sanding, restoration and mold removal — 3,000 dol

The first weekend after life finally settled back into peace, I invited a few real friends over for a small housewarming party.We curled up on the couch and watched movies, played board games on the floor, and cooked all kinds of good food in the open kitchen.Laughter filled the apartment. This was what I called having people around.When my friends heard what had happened, they were furious.“Family like that? Why keep them around?”“You did the right thing! People like that don’t deserve an ounce of sympathy.”“Good for you! Here’s to getting your single-girl life back!”We raised our glasses, champagne bubbles sparkling beneath the lights and reflecting in everyone’s smiling faces.Later that night, after my friends had left, I cleaned up the apartment and climbed into bed.Just as I was about to fall asleep, my phone buzzed.A friend request.I opened it.The sender’s name was ‘The Rest of My Life.’ The profile picture was a selfie of Alex, with the car he had already