Annie had never seen the Riverside Apartments after dark, or at least not at this early an hour. It was quiet, still, and pitch black from the lobby up. There were no drunks passed out on the benches, no "entrepreneurs" peddling questionable products out their cars; nothing remotely reminiscent of the night life surrounding her old place. For once she wished there was. It would certainly make matters easier now.
It seemed to Annie that every typical sound; the slight creak of the front doors, the clack of her flats against the linoleum, the ding of the elevator, was amplified a hundredfold with no one else around to hear it. That was what bothered her the most. Despite the fact that Annie knew she was completely alone, she swore she could still feel eyes on her.
She chalked it up to the paranoia that came with guilt, but still couldn't shake the feeling. Her stomach was twisted in knots of bad decisions and apprehension of the new experience. Annie Edison wasn't exactly one to make a habit of sneaking in at three in the morning. Then again, Annie Edison wasn't one to engage in a one night stand with someone she was supposedly over. But she had done that without a second thought.
Not thinking was what had started all this, she decided. Annie had been told not to over think things most her life. "Go with the flow," had been the sage advice of many she considered much wise than herself. But the moment she had let go, everything had gone south. It was like the Caroline Decker ordeal all over again; only there was no alcohol to blame this time.
There was no one but herself to blame for the painfully sluggish pace at which she tiptoed into apartment 303. Annie half expected to see her roommates sitting living room with the lights off, waiting for her. She was relieved when she found the room abandoned, and further reassured when she could hear snoring from the blanket fort.
Annie quickened her stride, desperate to get to finally get to sleep. Once she was finally inside her room she didn't even bother to change into the fuzzy pajamas she had laid out that morning, and instead just stripped down to her cardigan and underthings before plopping into bed. She felt to drained bother with buttons and the bright pink floral print seemed childish now; the very last thing she wanted to be feeling.
Annie pulled the similarly designed covers over her and willed for sleep to come. All the while trying her very best not to think of the two people who had recently reemerged in her chaotic life.
So, yeah… I've been wanting to write this for a while. Actually, I planned on doing this as a sort of Hanukkah themed piece. But it would really work any time of year. I mention the timeline since, in this, Troy still shares a room with Abed.
This first part is so short because it's just the introduction (teaser?) I only posted this now because I figured if I didn't I would likely lose confidence and stop writing it. Proper chapters will only be two or three in number (after this) but will be considerably longer. So a long-ish one shot/short story.
Many thanks to my RP group who have really helped me get a better sense of these characters and are just generally the best. :)
