A/N: Well here you go, second chapter. Thank you so much to the people who have followed or favorited and also to those who have reviewed. I should warn here, especially for anyone who has read other works I have written. This is going to have a lot of darkness, especially in the two main characters' pasts. That's why this is rated M. Keep it in mind. Thank you for your interest and ON WITH THE SHOW!
Chapter 2
This small battle of dominance lasted several days. For five days I played Sepia and other bands of similar taste at a volume that, had it been through headphones, would have deafened me. Sometimes the still nameless guy would pound on my door and later my wall when a song by the band he seemed to hate so much came on, but that reaction petered out when it yielded no response.
It was the fifth day since his arrival when a delicate knock far different from the beating the newest resident gave it previously sounded off my door. I knew who it was and cringed in annoyance. Five days of stubborn and slightly pointless media warfare awarded a sense of rebellious confidence though and, still feeling that, if only a little, I opened the door as Melissa began to sigh loudly in impatience. She would show up, clockwork as a cuckoo, to use my computer like it was her God given right every seven days.
Today I blocked the door.
"I was actually going to take a shower," was the oh so clever excuse I gave because, even with my little rebellion going on, I still couldn't just tell the bitch off.
She saw through it. "Like you have someone to look pretty for, just shower later. I bet you don't even shave your legs. Why don't you…" At this point several doors were open with the heads of unnecessarily "concerned" residents popping out and, as luck would have it, the door separating the short punk ass from the rest of society creaked open like it was a horror movie prop.
"If you're going to insult someone at least make factual statements." His voice sounded groggy and half-awake even though it was two in the afternoon. "That being said, her legs are not actually hairy."
"Oh, you're the new guy!" Melissa jumped on him faster than flames on a dry log. "My name is…"
"Don't care; not interested." The new guy's raven haired head poked through the door, a disgruntled look on his face.
Before the queen bee could skip lines in her connect the dots, as she was apt at doing when it suited her, I shot the reply, "You should really knock."
"You should really lock your door if you going to walk around in nothing but a tank top." His nonchalance made me want to punch him.
"Nothing but a tank top?" Melissa crowed excitedly. "Like not even underwear?"
"I thought the underwear was a given." My neighbor said glibly. "However, on the topic of sluts with no underwear, I got an interesting note asking if I wanted a 'good time'. The chick signed it with a p.s that read 'I'm not wearing any panties.'" A couple people up and down the hall snickered and I couldn't stop my eyes from rolling at how ridiculous the people living here were. "Anyway, if anyone is friends with someone named Melissa let her know that while I do enjoy random sex with casual acquaintances I have standards and make a habit of not fucking whores who forget basic hygiene up to and including the use of underwear." The entire time he said this, the man's gaze was fixed directly on the sender of said note like her knew exactly who she was. "Now, can I go back to sleep or will there be more bitching? Because from where I stand, her answer to whatever it is you want in there is no."
That being said he pulled away from the door and snapped it shut, adding a note of finality to his comments. Melissa stood; jaw working in a vain attempt to voice whatever brilliant comeback was surely in her pocket, unable to process not only being rejected but insulted with the thorough skills of an expert. I just nodded politely to the confused princess and closed my own door. After the slightest hesitation I sighed and stomped to my computer. I mean, the guy did me a major solid and to be honest that was genuinely the best comment ever thrown at Melissa, be it to her face or otherwise, and I really felt he deserved a truce. With that in mind, all the while telling myself a truce is not a loss on either side, I turned my music down to a mere whisper, at least compared to the ear shattering volume it was at.
I was planning on reading some fan fiction or perhaps surfing a few manga sites but a knock on my door stopped me from sitting on the hardest seat known to mankind. I thought at first it would be Melissa coming back with a vengeance and, considering that, I have no idea why I actually opened the door anyway, but the guy from next door, you know the one who said he was going to bed? Yeah he walked in, brushing past me like I was a valet or bellhop or something.
"Thought you were going to bed again or something," I managed to spit the words out after the shock of being disregarded in my own room dissipated.
"I thought you were taking a shower." The guy turned giving me a profile of his face like some God damned movie star in a dramatic role and I lost it. I hadn't laughed so hard in weeks. I mean this short little punk ass comes in acting like he owns the place when he's gotta be 5'3 and has the surliest attitude I have ever seen. He keeps his eyes half hooded and I mean I am not one to comment on hairstyle but buzz it or grow it out. "What?" He demanded like he didn't realize how ridiculous he was.
"You realize," I managed to wheeze, "That you live in a mental health apartment program… and your hair…is literally bi polar?"
His response was not what I was expecting. Most people would feel at least ridiculed and therefore slightly insulted but by the time I finished laughing and managed to straighten myself up the guy just had a smirk on his face, like he knew the answers to everything.
"And do you realize that that's not nearly as bad as a shitty woman who can't speak her mind in front of a slutty bully who will never learn how to act or treat people but can throw out any comment she pleases to someone who has seen her and spoken to her twice?" The residual grin left my face in a heartbeat but he still had that smirk that said he was superior and knew it.
After a substantial pause, in which I decided that I acted way too familiar with this guy, I smoothed the shocked expression off my face and replaced it with a docile smile. "I apologize for my crass behavior; I will be sure to…"
I almost finished my sentence when he walked over to me. Without any warning he cuffed the back of my head, his smirk replaced with a deep frown.
"Are you actually stupid or are you choosing to misunderstand?" His voice was deadpanned and his face stoic, but the look in his eyes was fierce and serious. I probably had the most ridiculous look of confusion on my face in the world because he sighed and walked over to plop onto my couch. "Look, you can either take the advice and opinions of people around you, take the advice and opinions of people you trust, or live by your own standards."
"What do you do then?" The question came out more sarcastic than I wanted it to. I really was curious but more than a little annoyed that this guy just came in here with life advice after acting like I was a ficus upon entering my apartment.
He glanced up at me from where he was lying on the couch, titling his head backwards over the arm as he replied. "It doesn't matter what I do. Do you really want to live your life any one way because someone else does it? And anyway just because I do something doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. Far from it, in fact."
"Then why even bring it up?" I felt like my tone required me to cross my arms and pout like a reprimanded child or something.
"Because you're being contradictory. You speak your mind around one person and hide in front of a polite and helpful demeanor to everyone else I have seen or heard you around. The walls are thin, remember? Even that girl you hang out with; you act like your thoughts are a joke with her right? How can you call someone a friend if they don't know who you are?"
My mind felt a bit foggy for a second but then I realized a flaw in his commenting which I jumped at eagerly. "You say it doesn't matter what you do, but earlier you asked if I was choosing to misunderstand when I apologized. Isn't that a contradiction?"
The stoic look on his face remained but his eyes held a certain humor floating around in their steel coloring. "Not at all. I told you what I did was irrelevant. You obviously care what people think of you so I was telling you what I thought of you in the hopes that you would realize something from it that you don't get from your other interactions. Let me put it this way: you don't live by your own standards, nor do you take advice or opinions from people you trust, hell I don't even know if you trust anyone. That means anything anyone says or does to you is something you weigh heavily. As far as I can tell you only change your natural behavior around me. I don't understand it; maybe I piss you off. Point is you're not gaining anything with this act of yours are you?"
He paused and I knew he was waiting for a response, at least a signal that I was following. I was clueless as to what he was trying to say so I just stared at him.
"You really are an idiot, Shitty Woman." He said with a sigh. "I am trying to say to just be yourself around everyone since you do it so easily with me. Though, conversely it would work if you stopped acting so familiar with me, I find your comments and attitude much more bearable without the simpering polite act. At least it makes you seem less mindless."
The words sunk in and I immediately began trying to discredit them mentally. As I tried to tear down the idea that he placed in me it hit me that he was basically a stranger. What was his motivation for all this? "Why bother telling me any of this?" At least I didn't sound like a bitch that time.
"Because you turned that shit down." Came his simple response.
"So it's because you won?"
"Oh, was that a game to you?" Again he tipped his head backwards to look at me; still standing by the door. "It was a retarded and annoying game then. I figured you decided to stop being a shitty stubborn woman who was embarrassed I saw her without any pants on. Anyone who can be stubborn for that long deserves a medal."
"Why do you dislike Sepia so much?" The question was probably the most irrelevant thing I could ask, but I was suddenly incredibly curious.
Instead of answering my question he asked one of his own. "Why do you listen to that shit band?"
"Because I like them." Genius response there Riley. I thought.
"Yes, but why?"
"I'm a fan of good lyrics…" I began but he interrupted me.
"You do realize their lyricist probably slapped random sappy shit together right?"
"Some of it," I admitted fairly. "It's also the vocals…"
Again the interruption, "He's nothing special."
"It isn't in his tone or pitch. It's not what he tries to sound like."
"Then what?" He sounded and looked annoyed.
"At the risk of sounding like a fantasy filled fangirl…"
"This ought to be good." He mumbled.
"He sounds, I don't know…sad…lonely."
"Well I guess everyone does have a reason to live here." He retorted, basically calling me crazy.
"Whatever," was my clever and witty rejoinder. "Listen to the music sometime. He sounds unfulfilled."
"Well some people don't deserve fulfillment. Maybe he's one of them. How you can hear that in someone's voice is something I don't want to wonder about. I'm going to bed now, Shitty Woman. Keep the unfulfilled musician down, would you?"
"Night New Guy." I said as he walked past, an annoyed look still on his face.
"It's Levi." He told me calmly before walking out the door and into his own crazy suite leaving me to realize a few things.
One: I just said goodnight to someone before three in the afternoon.
Two: I just heard the new guy's name.
Three: Levi might be the new most tolerable person here (though I still adored Lily).
