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

were smaller. Some smelled like mildew. Some had windows that faced brick walls. Some had landlords who seemed irritated by my questions.

I went to eight showings that felt like disappointments wrapped in fluorescent lighting.

I’d walk into a unit and try to imagine my life there, try to picture my plants on the windowsill, my books on the shelves, my continue reading …