THE DOOR BESIDE ME...

The first thing I noticed about the apartment wasn't the size.

It was the door beside mine.

Dark brown.

Old brass handle.

And a tiny scratch running diagonally across the middle.

For some reason, I stared at it longer than I should have.

"New place, new life," I whispered, shifting the box in my arms.

The hallway was strangely quiet.

Too quiet.

I unlocked my apartment and pushed the door open.

"Finally."

I dropped the box onto the floor and let out a tired sigh.

Moving was exhausting.

I had barely taken three steps inside when—

Click.

I froze.

The door beside mine had opened.

A boy stepped out.

Dark hair. Loose black shirt. Sleeves pushed up to his elbows.

He looked completely ordinary.

His eyes moved from me...

to the boxes...

then back to me.

"New neighbor?"

I nodded.

"Yeah."

He smiled.

Not a huge smile.

Just enough to seem friendly.

"Welcome."

"Thanks."

He started walking toward the stairs.

Then stopped.

"Oh, and..."

I looked at him.

He turned his head slightly.

"If you ever hear strange noises from my apartment..."

He paused.

For a second, there was something strange about his expression.

Almost like he was trying not to laugh.

"...don't worry about it."

I frowned.

"Why?"

His smile returned.

"Old building."

And then he walked downstairs.

I stood there for a few seconds.

Watching him disappear around the corner.

Something about that conversation felt strange.

Not scary.

Just...

strange.

I slowly looked back at his door.

The same dark brown door.

The same scratched surface.

I couldn't explain why, but suddenly I had the weirdest feeling that I'd remember that door for a very long time.

I shook my head.

"Okay, I'm officially tired."

I dragged the box inside and shut my door.

I didn't notice the boy had stopped halfway down the stairs.

I didn't see him look back.

And I definitely didn't see the small smile disappear from his face.

Because if I had...

I might have wondered why he was looking at my door.

And why he seemed so interested in the new girl who had just moved in...........