The Window (A not so short story)

[MalReynolds]

So, Nickadeemus already knows about this because he was witness to a massive brainstorm session of mine. This would still be classified as a short story, but I haven't even gotten to the object the title mentions and I'm several pages in. This is one I'm finishing, though, because I really like the concept. So, deal with part 1, which is slow. This will probably come in three parts, as well.


The grocery store was two miles away. Two city miles. Two city miles in ninety-degree weather. One would think in such a densely populated as New York, crammed to the edge of Manhattan Island with buildings, there would be ample amounts of shade. Unfortunately for Michael, there were not.
Two miles there wasn’t so much a problem as the two miles back. He had adjusted to city life fairly well and gained a great stamina when it came to walking distances to find any useful destination. The only difference was that on the way back, he had several pounds of groceries to carry, including milk and Bran Flakes. Two of the most dense substances known to man.
He walked up the stairs of his complex, beads of sweat running down the front of his nose and falling onto the marble flooring inside the building. It was air-conditioned and the rapid change in temperature made him shiver. The doorman smiled from behind the front desk and Michael wearily nodded. It was too hot. He could barley press the elevator button, his arms too heavy and his finger slick.
The light above the elevator door flared to life and Michael took a step back. The doors began to slide open, revealing what many men have mistaken for a Goddess. She was shorter than Michael by four inches, a white t-shirt that stretched across her lovely shoulders. Not skinny, but well proportioned. Toned.
A white bag dropped from his hand spilling the contents onto the floor. Toilet paper and Vaseline. It had been a pure coincidence that both objects found their way into that bag, but coincidences can and will be embarrassing. If Michael’s face hadn’t been so red, he would have been blushing.
The Vaseline was for his window; it would constantly get stuck and this seemed like a sure fire way to get it open.
“Shit,� he muttered under his breath, setting the bags down and grabbing for the round container as it rolled into the elevator. The woman picked it up, and held it out. Michael stood up straight, acting as nonchalant as possible in this situation.
“That’s for my window,� he blurted out. Smooth.
“Sounds kinky,� she said, smiling.
“No… Uh… It gets stuck sometimes.�
“I know, mine does too.� She was still smiling.
“Isn’t it a pain in the ass? Especially since electricity is so expensive!�
“My air conditioner is broken,� she replied, stepping out of the elevator. The doors dinged close.
“But it’s so hot! How can you stand it?�
“I can’t, really. If you didn’t notice, I was on my way out.�
“But it’s so hot out there, too.�
“You caught me. I wasn’t heading out; I was going to sit in the lobby because my apartment gets so damn hot. I mean, they got that sofa in the corner and that TV near the ceiling. And,� she said glancing at her watch, “CSI comes on in a few minutes. I can’t miss it… It’s so…�
“Addicting,� he said.
“Addicting,� she smiled again.
They stood there for a few seconds, nothing but air passing between them. Michael was working up the nerve, and the woman, well… She was waiting.
“Hey, I was wondering,� he began.
“I would love to.�
“Great! I’ll just take it and be on my way.� He grabbed the Vaseline from her hand and pressed the call button on the elevator. A wave of realization washed over him.
“Hey, wait, would you like to come up to my air conditioned apartment and watch some CSI? I just went grocery shopping, so if you eat… You know, food, I could probably throw something edible together.�
She laughed. It was a good sign.
“I would love to.�
“Right… You already agreed to that. I forgot. Sometimes I just can’t think right. Especially in this heat!�
The doors slid open and Michael stepped inside. The woman was still outside of the elevator… Michael began to worry. Was she yanking his chain? No, she was going to watch it in the lobby.
“You’re forgetting your groceries. I do like to eat edible food, so you should probably bring those up.�
He had cooled off, and was now blushing. He whisked the bags off of the floor and stepped back into the elevator.
“My name is Michael, by the way.�
“Pleased to meet you. Mine’s Stephanie. But people call me Tess for short.�
Michael set the groceries down and pressed the button for floor 10.
“How does that make sense?� He inquired.
“It doesn’t,� she replied, smiling as the doors closed.

The apartment was filled with the smell of burned noodles. Two plates were set out on bar stools, because Michael and his roommate had yet to buy a suitable table. The stools were in front of the sofa, in front of the TV. The food had gone untouched; while Tess liked food, edible food, this food had been far from edible. Instead, they were engrossed in the mystery of CSI.
A shape trundled down the hallway towards apartment 10F, casting a shadow on the pale tan wall… It was dragging its foot, before producing a key from the pocket of its vest. Silently, it slid the key into the lock and turned it.
There was a loud click and a sharp whine as the door swung open. Michael leaned forward to see who was coming in the door. Tess leaned forward as well, obscuring his view. He playfully pushed her back, and she giggled.
It dragged its foot around the corner, limping.
“Matt, what the hell did you do to your foot?� Michael asked, jumping up.
“Yeah, Matt, what did you do!� Tess too jumped up, spilling her plate off of the stool and onto the hardwood floor. It didn’t break, but burned pieces of pasta rolled across the floor.
“I rolled my ankle on the way into the building,� he winced.
“Oh, Matt, this is Tess. Her AC is busted and she came up to watch CSI. Tess, this is Matt, my roommate.�
Tess walked over to Matt and shook his hand. He brought her hand up to his lips and gave a quick kiss.
“Enchanted,� he began, smiling. She quickly pulled her hand away.
“Hm,� he snorted, “I can leave if you two need to be alone.�
Michael stood up defensively.
“No, it’s cool. Stay.�
“Alright. What smells like shit?�
“I cooked so-,� Michael started.
“We both know you don’t cook. Who were you trying to impress?� Matt paused. “Oh, right. Sorry.� He frowned.
Michael sat down on the sofa, turning the volume down. Matt limped into the kitchen an poured himself a bowl of burned pasta and walked off into his room, shutting the door behind him. Tess, who had been standing during his entrance, did an about face.
“Well…� She was searching for words. “He was… Colorful.�
“He’s not normally like that. He’s had a rough week. I mean, yeah. He’s had a rough week.�
“And you and Matt get along?�
“Very well.�
She sat back down on the sofa next to him. The sound of a bullet on screen cut through the air, making Tess jump. Michael smiled as she leaned over, resting her head on his shoulder. He put his arm around her, as the culprit fell in a hail of gunfire.
“If you don’t want to go back to your apartment tonight, you can stay here if you want. I wouldn’t mind.�
“It’s alright. I like sleeping in hot conditions. Besides, where would I sleep?�
“I’ll sleep on the sofa and you can stay in my bed. It’ll be great. I’ll be able to tell all the guys I had the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in my bed.�
“It sounds nice, but I really should stay at my place tonight incase the AC repair man makes his way tomorrow morning.�
“Oh,� he frowned, “What time did he say he would be over?�
“They told me I should be home from 8 A.M to 2 P.M.�
“Ouch.�
They remained silent as the show went into commercials.
“Plus, you don’t have anything to wear. Yeah. It was a bad idea.�
“No, no it wasn’t. I usually don’t wear anything to bed,� she commented conversationally.
“Oh, well, I have plenty of that around.�
She laughed again.
“Maybe I will stay.�
Michael smiled. “My room is down that hall at the very end.�
Tess walked down the hall and opened the door. It was very neat, considering it belonged to a nineteen year old. There were some comic books on his dresser and a game boy on his night stand, but she thought that was more cute than anything else. The bed was made, the comforter a light blue color. She flipped the corner of it up, revealing a red underside. She turned the comforter down and stacked the pillows before turning around. Michael was in the doorway.
“It’s a nice room.�
“Thanks, I try… To make it… Uh… Nice,� Michael said.
“But, really. You don’t have to sleep on the sofa-“
“Yeah, this was a stupid idea. I’m sorry. I’ll call you?�
“Let me finish. You don’t have to sleep on the sofa when there’s plenty of room in the bed.�
Michael froze. Tess climbed into the bed and pulled the comforter up to her chin. He shut the door walked over and slid into the bed, before turning over and clicking his lamp off.

-

I'm all write-ed out for tonight, so that's that. But I should have part 2 or part of part 2 done tomorrow.

Of course, I want candid opinions. Right now, it's pretty much a three page love story, but it evolves.

Mal