The house was old. If you hadn't heard the rumours you'd think it must be abandoned. Near the very centre of town. In the middle of streets of white picket fences and neatly trimmed lawns and lawns alone this house stood out. With overgrown plants and crawling vines wrapped around a blue box with the only word on it visible police.
They said it was massive. The house. Bigger on the inside. I'd never been in there and had never dared to ask but just this once… I walked through the gate.
They said a lonely man lived there. One with a young face and an old soul. For as long as I could remember we'd live next to that house and never once had I seen the man who lived there. My curiosity burned and I had to know. I stepped forward.
Lonely. But he didn't have to be alone. There were plenty of neighbours, plenty of people. Did he choose this? Should I keep walking?
My foot reached forward but didn't touch the ground. As it hovered there I knew this was the edge. If I took another step forward I wouldn't stop walking and one back I'd never return. The air was tense, thick as if it knew too and I felt as if if I hovered there for one more moment, one more second with one foot on the ground and one in the air the thorny vines entangled in the grass would reach out to drag me forward. So I put my foot down. Another. Two steps, three steps, four. Suddenly I was standing on a doorstep and before I could change my mind I reached out and grabbed the knocker.
It swung open almost immediately and out came a man. He looked to be only in his 20s, at least his face did. His black shoes were scuffed and dirty, his jacket torn and only one of his suspenders was on, the other hanging off to the side, scraping across the floor when he walked. I expected him to look angry. That's what everyone expected. From a distance he'd look as if he were bored or perhaps tired. But from here I could see his eyes. I looked into them and they were so, endlessly sad. I couldn't help but stare straight into them as I spoke, willing him to see that I understood.
"I heard that you were lonely."
And for the first time in what must have been a long time, he smiled.
A/N
Hey! If your reading this thanks for reading this fic! Hope you liked it. I've been thinking for a while now about writing and uploading a multi-chapter story (if you've read any of my others you'll know they're all oneshots/poems) What do you think? Should I? What fandoms do you want to see me write for? As always thanks for reading, lots of love from Rosie.