Astro-Zombies

It started with a tug on the brass handle. The cold very locked knob sitting stubbornly into the palm of his hand. He tried not to grimace but the aggravation was starting to sink in. The way his eyebrows furrowed and the grip on the rounded piece of entry only seemed to become more of a burden in his hands.

He chewed the silver jewelry hugging his lip, his crooked teeth pressing hard onto the small metal hoop that kept the puncture wound open. Turning around defeated, his back pressing against the wall as he slid down; his legs now sprayed out in front of him like his new neighbor had hers.
"We're fucked." he told her kindly. A small frown displaying across his face yet a smile seemed to be creeping it's way to his innocent face.

"You mean I'm fucked." Shae corrected and sighed. The thought of blowing a couple hundred dollars on a locksmith seemed scary; for all Shae knew, the locksmith was the same guy waiting to tow her car and the police officer to ticket her car. That nagging voice in the back of her head kept scratching at her skull. Don't break. You're better off without them. She sighed again, pressing her palms into her eyes. Her neighbor patted her shoulder innocently.

"Don't worry, I think my roommate knows how to pick locks." Her neighbor told her. Shae rolled her eyes shaking her head, he just smiled. "A squatter is better than a hooker." he added quickly.

Shae rolled her eyes before reaching over and dumping her bags contents out on the dirty cement ground.

"I am not a squatter." she told him firmly, sorting through the loose sheets of paper, gum wrappers, spare change and her wallet. A silent prayer went out to the mighty Apartment Gods praying her key was just lodged into an extra pocket. It just fell off the ring and into the abyss of her bag; if it did Shae would be okay with that. The ring with her car key on it and other place of residence key was linked together, the third key, poof!

"I just don't have many things." she added quietly a moment after. He laughed. Laughed. This round of chuckles only made Shae more upset, her cheeks beginning to turn red, her nose starting to flare. He crossed his arms over his chest before shaking his head.

"You're right, I'm sorry. You're too clean and pretty to be a squatter." he shrugged before standing up. Brushing the dirt from his black jeans, he reached into his pocket pulling his own keys out.

Shae gave up searching in her bag. She collected all the items, shoving them back into the pit of darkness. She almost felt delirious, like a dog locked out of the house in the blistering cold or a heavy down pour. She was starting to get a little sleepy and the clock on her phone was starting to inch itself closer to the nine-thirty mark but despite all that, maybe Shae was just a little prone to hyperbole. Perhaps she always wanted to be a damsel in distress and now that she is, she'd like to be anything but.

"Thirsty?" He asked her, unlocking the door to his own place, the air condition blowing temporarily on her. Shae shook her head before pulling her knees to her chest.

Two more hours had passed now and the man across the hall still sat next to her. He never explained why, nor told her his name. Shae just wanted into her apartment. She wanted to sit under the shower faucet with scalding temperatures where she didn't have to think.
"You don't have to sit out here with me." She told him quietly. The black phone opening and closing in her hand; the clap of the plastic echoing in the halls.

"I asked if you wanted to come inside mine, you refused. I can't let you sit out here alone." he told her crossing his arms, that same childlike smile tugging on his lips. "This is New Jersey." he whispered secretly. Shae rolled her stubborn brown eyes before narrowing them down at his tattooed frame. The thin silver hoop wrapped around his nostril catching a glimpse in an overhead light.

In a weird way, Shae thought he was sweet, not bad looking just reeked of pot. Shae couldn't even think about men, not after everything and especially not after she managed to make a complete ass of herself. At least he was kind.
"I'm Frank." he smiled sticking out his hand. Shae offered up her own mumbling her own name afterwards.

He grinned again, situating himself more on the solid ground and crossed his arms once more. Shae already wanted to spoon her eyes out. She wasn't in the mood for small talk, she just wanted morning to hit and muster up the courage to call the locksmith. The Apartment Gods were definitely fucking with her now. It was going to be a very long night.

"So-" he started, turning himself more to face her. "If you aren't a squatter or a hooker, what are you?"

Shae looked at him. Her focus now on him rather than the piece of shit black mobile. Shae had many answers to this question. She shrugged, "A drug dealer." she responded, never cracking a smile or showing any emotion. Frank snorted, shaking his head. The black beanie sliding down exposing the short dreads contributing to his stench. Those dreads probably just contributed to the noise he'd made in previous night’s past, or so she thought. It was a real shame he thought she was joking.

"Since you aren't going to ask-" he started, dropping his hands from his chest to his lap interlocking his calloused fingers. "I'm a musician ." Shae rolled her eyes. The way musician rolled off his tongue made her seem monotonous as if every time he'd told an interest of opposite sex his career path, it would spark a fire in their twisted heart. If only Shae had the ability to care. Her murky brown eyes narrowed at him before turning her attention back to her phone.

"That's nice." She tried, politely. The opening and closing of the screen taking her mind away from the scenarios in her head of the journey to unlock the door.

Frank nodded excitedly, the black beanie falling off of his head into the hood of his jacket. His hands clumsily reaching for the piece of black elasticated cotton pulling it back over his unwashed hair.

He began to speak a mile a minute, the sleeves of his thermal pushed up every time he'd use his hands to express his passion. Shae only tuned him out, nodding occasionally as her mind wandered elsewhere.

&&

The rising sun began to peak above the dirty city. The bright orange rays casting light into the empty cemented corridor. Shae had curled up on the ground, her bag as a pillow and her sweater as a blanket. Frank stayed in his seated position, his back resting against her door and his legs sprawled out. The black beanie off and hiding at the nape of his neck. A deep indent of the door frame imprinted his right cheek like a battle scar.

The morning sun meant a new day. An ending to a well shitty day and a start to a better one. Shae stirred, and pulled herself up from her uncomfortable position. She tried to shake the lack of sleep from her body as she stretched. Frank's own hazel eyes peered open and he yawned blinking away the sleep eagerly. They both stood up, rubbing the stray rocks from their hands and dust from their bottoms that may have collected. Frank smiled at her, before walking towards his own place of living.
"Be right back" he had said before disappearing. A moment later, he returned, a key in hand. Frank reached out towards Shae, grabbing her hand and placing it into her palm. Confusion kicked in first, followed by anger. Her cheek started turning red before she could say anything, he cut her off.
"The people before you used to lock themselves out a lot." he told her nonchalantly before spinning around on his heel and taking the four steps to his own place. The click of the door shutting filling the once silent hallway.

Motherfucker.