But we get along. Most of the neighbors do, except for that old bat Mrs. Walker. Tabby’s got a part-time job at a car wash, but she’s looking to go back to teaching when the kids are older.
“What’s this mean for the building, though?”
Tabby only shrugs. “Who knows? Rent better not go up, but you know how it is with new ownership.” She shakes her head indisgust. “They’re probably going to jack up prices and bleed us for all we’re worth.”
“Or gentrify the place and hope we move on.” I chew on a nail, spinning out the consequences. “I can’t afford to spend more on rent, and there’s no way in hell I’ll find a place with two bedrooms for what we’re paying now. Which means sharing space with Gem, but she’s in the middle of her senior year, she deserves her own room, so I’ll have to take the couch?—”
“Relax, girl, relax.” Tabby’s eyebrows shoot up, and she offers me her vape. “Take a hit and try not to panic. We don’t know what’s going to happen yet.”
I wave her away. “You’re right. I just can’t help it. I’m on like three hours of sleep over the last two days.”
“You work too hard, you know that?”
“I’m very aware.”
Another door down the hall opens. Brian lumbers on, frowning at us. He’s dressed to go to work in khakis and a black coat. “How’s it going with you two?” he asks.
“Gossiping about the new owner,” Tabby says, hitting her vape. “You excited for rent hikes?”
I groan as they discuss their theories. Brian lives alone at the end of the hall in the smallest unit in the building. He’s a nice guy, but he spends too much time on his video games and not enough on grooming. He helps shovel out the front when it snows, though, which I really like, and Gem says he’s nice and not creepy. That’s a big win.
“I gotta head to work, but if I hear anything, I’ll let you two know. Did either of you talk to Mina yet?”
“That’s on the agenda,” Tabby says. “If anyone knows what’s going down, it’s the mayor.”
Brian nods seriously. “Ask her before you freak out.” He glances at me. “You got a shift today?”
“Dogs won’t clean themselves.”
“Good luck.” He walks off, head down.
Once he’s gone, Tabby sighs. “I’ll ask around some more, but you need to catch some sleep. When do you have to leave?”
I check my phone and stifle a groan. “An hour.”
“Go, get out of here. I’m making lasagna tonight. I’ll bring you some leftovers.”
“No, Tabs, don’t do that, we’re fine.”
“Gem’ll eat it if you don’t. Get some sleep.” Tabby waves, vape in her mouth, and shuts her door behind her.
I step back inside and pause on the threshold.
A new owner. Fuck me straight in the face. This is the last thing I need. My life’s balanced on the edge already, and one small change could send me teetering into straight-up poverty. I pretend like I don’t want Tabby to go to the trouble, but her occasional leftovers seriously keep me and Gem going. If I lose my amazing neighbors and we have to move further away from Gem’s school, now her commute is even worse?—
I’m spiraling. I take a few deep breaths to calm myself. I have fifty-five minutes before I need to leave, which means a solid forty-five-minute nap at best.
Keep it together. Don’t mess this up. Gem will graduate soon, and things will be okay.
Just keep it together.
The rumors are wild,but even Mina doesn’t know anything, and she’s just about the nosiest busybody I’ve ever met in my life. The old owner, Mr. Lambert, won’t return anyone’s calls, which makes the mystery so much worse. Over the next few days, I hear that someone’s going to knock the building down, or they’re going to turn it into a nightclub, or they’re putting in a roof deck and a sauna in the basement. It’s all total speculation, and I do my best to focus on what matters.
Getting Gem to school. Getting my butt to work. Buy groceries, clean up, pay bills, make sure Gem’s doing applications. Get a little sleep. Do it all again.
“You’re twenty-three, Kira,” Mina says one morning in the hall. She’s an older Korean lady with just about the nicest smile I’ve ever seen. But that smile’s deceiving. She’d cut my head off if I so much as showed an ounce of disrespect. I like her a lot. “Ever think about having a little fun?”
“I didn’t know you were aware fun existed.”
