Chapter 1
It is a rather dark, gloomy, and stormy night today. Quite unusual for this time of year, I should say, but nothing particularly weird. Things like that happen. The clouds were gathering and blocking out the stars. The sky was this deep, dark shade of grey, almost black but not quite, as if it were about to unleash its fury at any moment. The rain was pummeling the ground, as though trying to crack it, causing the streets to become slick and shiny. There were flashes of lightning that were illuminating the city far better than the glowing billboards and the streetlights, which were followed by the deep and echoing rumble of thunder in the distance. But the rumbling wasn’t the only noise present. The wind was howling and whistling through the trees. The force of the wind was swaying and cracking the trees and their branches. The rain was beating against the roof and the window, creating a noise so loud that, even though I find this sound rather calming, I had to turn up my music louder than usual.
I made the mistake of keeping my window open, which meant that when the storm hit some of the rain went inside my tiny studio apartment. Luckily though, I managed to close the window before any damage to my schoolwork or devices was done. But oh, the smell was something else. The dampness of the Earth was very easily distinguishable from the normal, urban dry air. It was also very heavy and oppressive and charged with electricity, which I absolutely loved.
Due to the size of my studio, or rather the lack of it, and my reasonably, in my opinion, picky taste when it comes to interior design, I positioned my desk right next to the window. Unfortunately, since I had left the window open during the storm, some of the items on my desk got slightly wet. But the damage wasn’t great and was very easily fixable. The water that got onto my textbooks and the table could easily be wiped off as my textbooks are laminated and the table is... Well... A table. But at least my plant got watered!
I love storms. Especially when exams are near. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the white noise that is created by the sound of the rain helps me focus on studying, meaning I perform better during exams. Secondly, if the storm is serious enough the exams get postponed, which means more studying time.
I do not like the exams themselves, though. I just don’t like studying in general. It’s way too tedious and it makes me way too anxious and overwhelmed. Due to this I always procrastinate until the last minute and when I eventually end up studying my stomach ties itself into a knot. Also, I hate disorder and mess, but that’s exactly how my studio apartment is whenever I’m preparing for exams.
Just as I closed the window and was wiping the little puddles that formed on my desk, I heard a knock. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest because the closet is right next to the door to my studio and in my sleep-deprived state, I thought the knock came from inside the closet. So I came up to the door and opened it. On another note, why would anyone come to my studio so late in the evening? The fact that anyone was knocking on my door past 11 pm was slightly frightening to me. The worst part is that I don’t even have a peeping hole to check who it was.
“Hello?” I asked.
"Merci Dieu! You aren’t sleeping yet,” a familiar voice said. “May I come in?”
“Uhh, yea sure,” I replied as I reached for the door handle. I should probably get it replaced because I absolutely despise it; however, I do not have the time or the money to waste on simple aesthetic things like that.
“Kaitlyn! Surprised to see me?”
“Why wouldn’t I be? You live all the way in Boston!” It was my old friend from high school, Sara. “I’m so happy to see you! It’s been what, a year?”
“Almost.” She was completely drenched.
“Jesus Sara, you look like you took a bath!”
“I can assure you that I did not. It’s just drizzlin’ a bit outside.”
“Yeah, I noticed. Good to know your sense of humour hasn’t gone anywhere!”
“Good to know that your blatancy hasn’t gone anywhere!”
“Excuse me?” I tried to give my best offended expression. I don’t think it turned out that great though.
“Why are you up so late anyway?” She asked me. “I mean I’m glad because otherwise, I wouldn’t’ve been able to get in, but why?”
“Oh, it’s because I’m studying for exams.”
“Past midnight?”
“Yes.”
“Jesus, you’re that dedicated to studyin’, huh.”
“Oh shut up.”
Sara laughed. She loves taunting me, I don’t know why. And I love it when she taunts me. I’m glad that Sara is here. I missed her sense of humour.
I smiled and shook my head. “I’m just trying to get a head start on studying for exams. They’re coming up next week and I’m a little behind, you know how it is.”
“Unfortunately I do. Just finished mine, which is why I have a break now. Mince, they were bad!” Not only were her words filled with frustration, but her French side also added to the intensity of her emotions through exaggerated facial expressions and gestures.
“You think you failed?” I asked.
“I failed most of them most likely,” she replied, weirdly enthusiastically, “but honestly, I’m not that worried.”
“Yeah, I got that from your tone. Why not though?”
“I won’t reveal much, but I will say that I have gotten an opportunity to do something else in life. I will probably drop out soon and pursue that instead.”
I found this quite unusual of her since she is usually quite hardworking and stubborn. “Well, that’s quite captivating. Will you ever tell me what it is?” I questioned.
"Peut-être,” she replied, in French as she usually does for small things like that when she talks to me or other close friends. “It’s gettin’ quite late, and if my assumptions are correct your exam is tomorrow correct?”
“Well yes-” I began but Sara cut me off.
“Havin’ a good amount of sleep is going to be more valuable for you than studyin’ until 4 o’clock”
“And why’s that?”
“Because then your brain will be dysfunctional goo.”
“Understandable.” I feel like I need to study more, but Sara has a point. Being high on a lack of sleep isn’t going to benefit me on the exam in any way. Plus, I am quite sleepy and probably won’t remember much anyway if I keep studying. Also, Sara is here, and it wouldn’t be exactly polite of me to ignore her and go back to what I was doing before, nor would it be fun for either of us.
“I’m assuming you’d like to stay with me for the night?” I said, to break the silence.
“I mean, I’d like to, but I’m not goin’ to intrude on your personal space if you don’t want me to.”
“No, it’s fine. There is one issue, however.”
“Go on.”
“My spare mattress isn’t exactly comfortable and you will probably feel cramped, because, well, my studio is tiny if you haven’t noticed.”
“Oh no, that’s fine. I’ve slept in worse situations.” She smirked.
“Oh, don’t you do Henry like that!” Henry is Sara’s ex, who lived in a trailer and the conditions were less than acceptable.
“Never did him and never will.” Sara has an amazing power of laughing at her own jokes, regardless of how shit they are.
But that being said, I had to fish the inflatable mattress out of my closet for Sara to sleep on and inflate it. I tugged on the heavy closet door, and it creaked open with a sound that always gave me goosebumps. I reached inside and felt around until my hand brushed against the plastic of the mattress. I dragged it out, feeling the weight of it in my arms, and laid it out on the floor. Thankfully, this mattress has an inbuilt electrical pump that plugs straight into the wall, so I didn’t have to bother with that. I just had to flip the switch, and the motor whirred to life, inflating the mattress in a matter of minutes.
After I inflated the mattress, Sara went into the bathroom to get changed. I heard the sound of the tap running and the rustle of clothes as she changed. I lay on my bed, feeling a little anxious. I had never had anyone stay for the night at my place before, and I haven’t seen Sara in a year. But then again, it was Sara, and we had been friends since the beginning of high school.
"Bonne nuit,” Sara has emerged from the bathroom, looking fresh and comfortable in her pyjamas.
“Good night,” I said back, feeling a smile spread across my face. I closed my eyes and tried to push my worries aside, knowing that I had a long day of studying ahead of me. But at least I wouldn’t be alone.
