After Sundown

A taxi cab rolled up to the entrance of a large, run-down house, overlooking the valley below. The chauffeur got out of the driver’s seat, and opened the door for Alice. She sighed as she stepped on the crunching pebbles on the driveway, looking over the hill, the valley, and finally, the house. Sundown Manor. It looked just like she remembered it from the viewing - maybe a little more gloomy now that the sun had already set.

“So, you think you’ll fit in here?” the chauffeur asked her, his voice sounding just a little too concerned. “I think so, and it’s only for a year, until the house is done” Alice replied tentatively, wondering if he was making a point or not. “Will you be putting it back on the market shortly?” the man asked her, observing her two briefcases, and the sour look on her face. “As soon as possible” she said with a joyless chuckle.

“Well, I’ve driving folks around here for over 40 years now, most seem very happy to be here. Perhaps you can be, too.” He raised his eyebrows at her in a fatherly way, that gave her hope for a second or two – before that hope disappeared again. “I hope so” she replied, trying not to sound too pessimistic.

Her eyes flit past the driver, over to the town at the foot of the hill, Badger’s Rest. Sure, it was a beautiful place, it fit right in with the cheesy paintings on her grandmother’s wall. But Alice was born and raised in the city and had spent most of her life in the fast lane, the thought of living in a place like this seemed fine for a short time – but no way she’d stay here any longer than needed.

“I guess we’ll see” she added dismissively, as she took out her wallet to pay. “I only take cash, miss!” the driver said with a grin. “Ain’t to many places that take credit down here.”

After promising the driver she’d pay him if he could point her to an ATM, the chauffeur told her he’d swing by tomorrow so she could settle down for the night first.

She rolled her luggage inside with a pit in her stomach. The old place smelled like mildew and soil, and paint flaked from the door casing.

“So… this will be where I’m staying for the next few months..” she thought, looking out of the window at the withered garden. In the dark it was hardly visible, and she looked away quickly – trying not to think about how rotted it would look in full daylight. She shuffled up the stairs, finding her way into the master bedroom. She took no time to absorb her surroundings – she put fresh linen on the bed and drifted off quickly.

The next morning she felt a little more hopeful about the situation. After a meagre breakfast she took her coffee outside to look at her new project. A large old country house with light-brown bricks, checked windows and light-blue window- and doorframes. It had surely looked like a fairytale home some decades ago, but now the bricks were overgrown with moss and ivy, the paint was chipped and faded, and the porch looked like a lawsuit waiting to happen.

The garden however, was going to make her rich- right now it looked like a warzone, no doubt filled with ticks and rats – but if she could just fix it enough for a wealthy buyer to see the potential of a beautiful rich flower garden…. – this was the major selling point, she and Ryan had decided. She took a sip of coffee and stepped onto the grimy shell-path, when she heard the crunching of feet on the pebbles behind her.

“Morning!” the woman called out. She was about 50 years old, dressed in loose jeans and a flowery zip-up hoody. Alice couldn’t help but notice the bright pink crocs under the jeans, just like her and her friends had joked about. “so, the next time I see you you’ll be in crocs and dungarees?”

Alice vaguely recognized the women from a few months ago, when she and Ryan first visited the place. What was her name again – Donna-something? The woman had walked up to them then as well, mixing herself right into the conversation they were having with the broker.

“Morning!” Alice replied, and she walked up to the woman and extended her hand for a greeting. The woman’s hands were callused and the fine lines were dark from – Alice guessed – lots of yard work. “I’d heard the sale went through! Welcome to Badger’s Rest!”

“Thanks, I was planning on visiting the neighbours around here, but it seems you’ve beaten me to it!”

The woman smiled and looked lovingly at the house and garden. “It’s such a lovely place. Such a shame it’s been withering away for so long” Alice agreed, even though the word ‘lovely’ seemed out of place for the decayed mess it was at this point in time. Alice was trying to remember the name of this woman, but right when she was about to ask the woman said “My name is Rosie if you remember, I live right over there!” and she pointed to a distant cottage, about 300 meters away.

“Oh no I remembered it was something like that!” Alice lied, smiling. Rosie looked around as if she was looking for someone. “Is Ryan around? I’d like to greet him as well!” Alice felt a tiny knot in her stomach and tried to sound aloof. “Oh no, that’s – we’re not a thing anymore I’m afraid. But it was mutual” she heard herself adding that last unnecessary detail, another lie. “Oh no!” Rosie exclaimed, with a pained look on her face. “That’s such a shame to hear dear, how are you doing?”

“fine” Alice replied, hearing how fake that sounded. She tried to smile to make it convincing– she wasn’t looking for pity from someone she didn’t even know. “No, fine, really, it- we just – it wasn’t working out.”

“he was a handsome man I remember..” Rosie said. “but whelp, it’s just a man dear, we got plenty of those around here. I’d say be careful, before you know it you’ll have a line of suiters waiting for you!” Alice tried to smile. Yes, plenty of men I’m sure... but no one like Ryan...