You Will Be Found

Chapter Eleven

I was officially moving. Yup. Had my new tenancy contract, paid my bond (the money came in this morning – Yeah!), had the new house keys and was moving. Holy heck!

OK, so let's backtrack a bit. These last two days I spent the last of my freelance money (after buying multiple packets of noodles) and wrote out the bulk of two of my other... less risqué web novels, uploaded twenty chapters each under my new pen names on the two other web novel platforms. Then sent two books of fifty chapters each off to the editors with my counter-offer under the same contract conditions that they had offered me for Sweet Misunderstanding. We'd have to wait and see if they liked them.

Just as I was finishing up, Joan rang me asking to catch up about the apartment and I said I was currently free and where to meet me. She came alone, showed me the double copies of the tenancy contract, highlighting the chattels in the apartment (fully furnished!) and their expected care of house plants, animals and general upkeep for the place. It was surprisingly relaxed. Clean once a week (expected), feed and care for cats daily (doubly expected), water the plants (didn't give schedule, will have to research this) and that was that.

I came home, the new owner of three web novel series, two cats, one apartment and a plethora of plants (number unstated). Then I looked at the dank, squalid, airless basement room, and cried a little.

Joan had showed (and emailed) me twenty or so photos of the apartment that her Great Aunt had just moved out of. The place was almost fully furnished, as she said. Some of the personal touches, knick-knacks, and bits-and-bobs were still about the place. Her so-called empty place was more homely and alive than this horrible room I'd spent a lifetime in. I looked at the photos again, smiling at the plants lined up along her kitchen window sills and dining table. I found it strange though, that there was very little on her rather large open air balcony. Maybe Great Aunt didn't like being outdoors? Maybe birds ate her prized flora. Maybe a neighbour played bagpipes and kept entertaining anyone who went outdoors??? I laughed at my own silly thoughts.

In any case, I just knew I would be very happy there. I squeezed the keys in my hands again.

Packing up wouldn't take much time at all, and I decided to leave this place and move in tomorrow. I didn't need to take the mattress bed or broken table or any number of boxes stuffed into the room as a make-shift bench to store my pitiful amount of stuff on. There was maybe one small box worth of keep-sakes that I'd like to take with me, things I'd collected during my childhood here. All of my clothing consisted of a few pairs of old pants and t-shirts that were too small and threadbare. There was also my school uniform, which I decided I was going to leave here. I didn't need any of them any more.

There were a few books from school that I no longer needed – they could stay as well – and a photo book that was given out during middle school as a book-for-schools charity run. It showed famous landmarks of various cities around where I lived. I had always wanted to go visit some of these. That was during my walk-through-the-park-and-pretend-I-was-joining-my-family phase... I decided to keep it and bring it with me.

New pyjamas, new-to-me jeans and hoodie jumper, slippers, and the few toiletries I'd scrounged up over the years. They all fitted into one bag. Anything else I need I could now buy. I'd wait to see what was in the apartment before going on a shopping spree.

It took a long time to get to sleep that night, thinking and dreaming about my future. It was already vastly different from the one I experienced before. Comparing the two lifetimes, it was like dust verses star light. It echoed like a nightmare from a memory that was no longer worth remembering.

The next morning I skipped eating breakfast and decided to find an eatery or breakfast shop on my way to my new home. Bag on my back, box in my hand (I had to bring the noodles and phone charger with me), I didn't look back as I left the door open and walked out into the sunrise.

Thankfully I missed the morning commute crowd as I'd got up early enough. Carrying the box was getting heavy and if I'd had to stand up on the bus the whole way, I wasn't sure what I'd have done. Leave it behind somewhere or something? Don't know. As it was, I found a seat on both the buses that I had to take. It got really crowded as I finally stepped off and into my new neighbourhood. I checked my phone for the address again, and following directions I found myself in front of a really lovely modern building with large windows framed in charcoal-coloured bricks that contrasted with wide creamy-coloured balconies.

I check the address again. This was it. I looked around the neighbourhood, just to check that I was in the right place. I was too timid to ask Joan or Grant if they had made a mistake. This place was almost brand new. And no matter what they said about it being a retirement village, I saw families and younger people strolling all over the place. Yes, there were grey-haired people as well, but not as much as they had made it out to be. A teenaged boy, a little younger than me, rode past on a bike, nearly hitting me.

"Sorry! So, sorry!" he yelled without looking back. He zoomed right up to a storefront on the next building over from mine, shoved his bicycle into a bike rack and ran up into the coffee shop with his arms all over the place. It looked very comical. I stepped closer to the storefront, as I remembered that I'd wanted treat myself to breakfast before I moved into my new place.

"Brewed Awakening" was the name of the shop. I smiled. I liked that. A nice play on the words 'rude awakening' and suitable for a breakfast coffee shop. I walked in to an interior of warm natural wooden counters and table tops, and white floors, chairs and accents. The walls were a slate green with large black-on-white prints framed and slotted against each other like a giant jigsaw puzzle. It was very busy all along one wall, but the artwork displayed were really unique and drew the eyes almost instantly. The place was bustling, almost full of people, with the barrister and serving staff politely and kindly serving those ordering their morning coffee and breakfast eats.

The guy on the bike rushed out of the side entrance to the kitchen, wrapping a black-and-white apron around his waist, apologising to an older guy who looked like the manager of the coffee shop. Having been given a warning, he apologised again for being late and went back to the kitchen again.

I didn't bother with buying a drink, as I had tea in my bag that I could brew at home. What I was looking for was something yummy to eat, a breakfast pastry, bread bun, or muffin. I found a savoury breakfast muffin that was loaded with colourful tomato, greens, and ham, with heaps of melted cheese on top. Then I spotted a cheese-and-bacon pinwheel that looked too pretty, and got stuck for choice.

"Hi there, welcome to Brewed Awakening. Is this your first time here? What would you like to order?" It was the manager who spoke. I smiled and pointed to the closest pinwheel that looked really appetizing, and held up one finger to indicate the number I'd like to buy.

"One pin wheel?" He asked in confirmation. When I nodded, he pulled out the tray and placed the pinwheel into a paper bag. "Would you like it heated?" he asked with a smile. When I shook my head, he then proceeded to the payment counter.

One yummy pinwheel later and I was back to moving into my new place.