My Parents Doubled My Rent So My Unemployed Sister Could Move In, So I Moved Out and Took Everything

of relief. For once, I had slept without grinding my teeth.

The knocking came again, louder. Not neighborly. Not tentative. Whoever it was expected to be answered.

My heart beat faster as I pushed myself up. Bare feet met cold floor. I pulled on the nearest sweatshirt and shoved my arms through it with clumsy urgency. My apartment was quiet except for the faint hum of the refrigerator, a sound I usually found comforting. Now it felt like background noise in a scene that was about to change.

I padded down the narrow hall, blinking, mind scrolling through possibilities. A package? An emergency? A maintenance issue? A wrong door?

The knocking turned into a rattle, like the person outside had decided continue reading …