It is very late when Dawn rings the landlord's doorbell.

He answers a minute later with a sleepy yawn and she blushes to the roots of her hair when she tells him that she has managed to get locked out of her apartment within two hours of moving in. He shakes his head, but an amused chuckle escapes him and she swallows her embarrassment and smiles in turn.

When they make their way towards her door she rolls her eyes as she sees that Paul isn't there. He's offhandedly left her TV on the floor and long since gone inside his place. Dawn can make out the muffled sounds of a sports game from his apartment. Typical guy.

After she's thanked the landlord for his help and bid him goodnight, it's time to unpack her things. She's tired beyond belief, but at the same time, she's eager to make this place feel her own as soon as possible. She puts on some music, boy bands that remind her of the carefree high school days, and gets started.

The apartment is coming along nicely. It is homey and comfortable, without any ornate decorations. She arranges her closet with care and stocks the shoe cabinet with the thousand pairs of shoes she's brought. Then, she decorates the walls of her bedroom until they shine with personality. Posters of old movies, pictures of her with her friends back in Twinleaf, her favorite books in neat stacks on shelves.

Dawn glances around when she's finally done and feels a little proud. It isn't much, but it's hers and she's earned it. She knows moving in a strange new city is scary, but the bits and pieces she's brought with her bring her comfort and make the small space feel like home. It is where she'll make new friends and memories, and she loves it, down to the last handpicked detail.

She sings along to one of her favorite songs as she unrolls a colorful plush rug on the floor of her living room, when she is startled by a loud bang. She looks around in alarm.

Another distinct bang resounds from the other side of the wall. She giggles as she realizes that it's her neighbor who's making the noise, undoubtedly annoyed by the loud music blasting from her apartment.

Dawn gets up from the floor and hits the wall with her fist in response. After that, she promptly turns up the volume of the song and blatantly ignores Paul's protests for the rest of the night.

Maybe living in close proximity with Mr. Grouchy Pants as her neighbor will make life interesting. And Dawn insists on an interesting life.


In the morning, Dawn heads down to campus to schedule her classes. The trip on the bus is bearable, though she would have preferred walking if it wasn't so far away.

After that, she purchases all of her required textbooks from the campus bookstore at prices that are simply outrageous and more than ever feels the urgency of finding a job.

As she goes back, she ponders how unfair it is that her scholarship covers her tuition fee, but she still has to pay for things like books and rent. It gets hot outside by the time she stalks inside the apartment building, laden down with the heavy load. As much as she'd love to take an afternoon nap in her new bed, she forces herself to go out in the scorching heat once again. There's still the matter of her money running out, slowly, but surely, and she sets out on a mission to get herself a job by the end of the day.

Dawn makes her way through the streets of Jubilife city and comes to the conclusion that she lives in a good neighborhood, as far as she can tell. It's not as flashy as the places in Center City, but it's still nice, complete with quaint cafés and vintage shops. Without realizing, Dawn fritters away time window shopping and ogling pretty clothes (she even buys a few pieces that she simply can't pass up) and before she knows it, the sun is low in the sky, gradually disappearing below the horizon in beautiful shades of red and purple.

Realizing she's wasted the whole day in mindless browsing around, Dawn straightens and sets her jaw with determination. She won't go home until she's found a job and that's that. She is sorely lacking when it comes to self-discipline, but as college is starting maybe it's high time that changes.

As luck has it, her job hunt doesn't last long. She passes by a restaurant that has a Now Hiring sign posted outside and decides to check it out.

It takes a total of ten minutes before she is hired as the new waitress at Brock's 24-Hour Diner. The guy who interviews her is a bit more flirtatious than she'd normally tolerate, but she is sold when he tells her they can work out her schedule around her classes. What's more, the diner's only three blocks away from her place, so it's as close to perfect as it can get.

She starts in a week and she is excited; in the span of two days she's found herself both a kickass apartment and a way to sustain herself financially. Things really are looking up on the 'responsible adult' front.

There's a bounce in her step as she heads back home, before her stomach suddenly growls; she hasn't even noticed how hungry she is until now. Dawn spots a market right across the street from her building and steps inside, pondering what to get.

As she browses the aisles, her resolution to eat healthy slowly withers away when her eyes sweep over cheap savory junk food that she can make in under half an hour.

This must be the curse of the college student, Dawn muses as she picks up frozen yogurt and a whole crate of energy drinks for the semester to come. It never hurts to be prepared, as her mother always says. Suddenly, a strong craving for waffle fries hits her and she wheels her cart back and forth in search of the familiar packaging. She already imagines the crispy, salty taste she'll enjoy while sprawled on her couch and her mouth drools.

When she finally spots it, her face falls when she sees there's only one box left on the shelf. She gasps in horror as she notices a hand reaching for it. She outright snarls when she sees who aforementioned hand belongs to.

"You!" she yells in accusation. A purple head snaps in her direction, seemingly alarmed, and dark eyes widen in surprise when they see her charging towards him with her cart in full force.

"Are you crazy?" Paul shouts as he stretches out his arms to meet her attack. He grips her cart with his hands and it comes to a stop before it has the chance to hit him. "What the hell, woman?"

"You and I are going to have serious problems living in the same building, it seems," she bits out, her eyes glued on the box in his hands.

Oblivious to the object of her desire, he narrows his eyes at her. "We are, if you keep yelling at me for no apparent reason. I've been told not to judge people too quickly, but on the second day of our acquaintance I can already say that you're certifiably insane."

"Oh, I don't care what you say. In order to insult me, I must first value your opinion," Dawn retaliates. Her eyebrow twitches as his hand mechanically moves to put the box in his cart. "Relinquish the waffle fries," she demands. She's hungry well beyond reason at this point.

"I- what?" He follows her line of gaze in bewilderment and blinks uncomprehendingly. "This is why you lunged yourself at me?"

"I know you were here first and whatever, but I'm willing to fight you for them." Dawn isn't even kidding. She will have those waffle fries, even if they come at the price of her dignity. "And if you refuse, I'm going to blast obnoxious girly music all night long."

Paul stares at her for a few seconds at a loss for words. And when he finally speaks, he does the unspeakable. "Must be that time of the month, then."

Dawn's blood boils. "Excuse me?!"

Paul rolls his eyes at her. "Excuse me for trying to think of a logical reason why you are acting like a madwoman. Maybe I'm wrong and it's just the way you are. Whatever." He sighs and puts the box of waffle fries in her cart. "Here. Now you can go stuff your face in peace."

Dawn gapes at him, the success of having won over the waffle fries fading away as she registers what he's just said to her. "Are you calling me fat?"

He's already walking away from her and towards the cash register. "Please stop talking. You're being loud," he says with his back to her and misses the murderous glare she's giving him.

Oh, I will END you for that, you smarmy rat bastard! Dawn seethes as she watches him go, but wills herself to calm down.

Whatever. Revenge is a dish best served cold and I WILL have my revenge. I'll lull him into a false sense of security and then BAM! He won't even know what hit him.


Later on in the night, as Dawn munches on her favorite unhealthy snack with vigor, she recalls Paul's lewd comment about her being on her period. She scoffs contemptuously.

How typical of a man to be so ignorant when it comes to understanding the inner workings of a woman. How arrogant of the male gender to degrade the delicate complexity of females and their bodies. How condescending of them to attribute everything to hormones and blood-shedding egg cells and-

In the middle of her mental tirade about men and their inborn ignorance, she suddenly feels a peculiar pain tug at her lower belly. A decidedly feminine kind of pain.

Oh, for the love of God. She trudges her feet to the bathroom in mortification. Why must you admit me to the stereotype in such a humiliating way, she scolds her body and silently curses Paul's accurate assumption to high hell and back.

Whatever. This doesn't mean that she's less mad at him for what he's said. He had no right.

But maybe… Maybe it wasn't totally okay of her to attack him like that out of the blue. After all, he did let her have the last box of her favorite snack.

Dawn sighs in irritation as she goes back to the living room, guilt nagging at the back of her mind. She regards the half-empty box of waffle fries with a look of contemplation and sighs again. Damn you, conscience.

After a brief battle with her pride, she quietly makes her way out in the hall on her tip-toes. She places the box on the doorstep of her neighbor, rings the doorbell and goes back inside her apartment as quickly as possible.

A second later she hears his door flinging open, but no other sound to indicate his reaction. She wonders if he deems her even crazier now. Well, at least she'll fall asleep with a clear conscience tonight.

Dawn thinks they may be at a sort of truce for now. Somewhere in the distant future, they may be able to coexist in the same building peacefully.

Until she inevitably murders him, of course.

Because you don't imply, suggest or hint in any way that a girl is fat without a sincere death wish. Killing him for that is still on the agenda.


A/N: Hey guys, it's me again! A big thank you to all those who reviewed! You're awesome. Btw, if anyone has any prompts or suggestions for comical situations they'd like to see in this story, I encourage you to tell me in the reviews! I'm pretty much making this up as I go, so feel free to lend me some imagination. Have a great day!

xoxo Ella :)