Chapter Text
I stepped off the bus and into the foggy night. Despite being in the “rougher” side of town, the nights here were always so nice and calm. I kept my slow pace, walking and taking my time to enjoy the moment. Personally, I always enjoyed working late nights like this. Means I can quickly get things done. I finally stopped and looked up at my place of work: Pointe Complex. Through the glass doors, I could see the figure of an old man in a nice orange wheelchair. He looked up and his eyes almost shimmered in recognition as I stepped inside.
From what I know, Mr. Clement was a former veteran. Did quite a few tours in Iraq and lost a leg in the process, from what he told me. Now he lives comfortably here. He occasionally comes down here while I’m cleaning to make small talk and it works well. Our conversations vary from how our days have been to his favorite topic: conspiracy theories. Not saying we believed in them, but it was nice to think of the what ifs if these theories were true.
“Biru, my boy,” Mr. Clement calls, giving me his silly crooked smile. “Good to see you again!”
I smiled at him as I walked and talked, heading to the janitor’s closet.
“You too, Mr. Clement! Has today been giving you trouble?”
The older man shrugged as he turned the wheelchair around to properly face me to speak.
“Nothin’ I haven’t dealt with. Doc’s putin’ me on a new medication to help with my back pain,” He muttered. “So, we’ll see what’ll happen.”
I nod, acknowledging what he said as I grab the broom and dustpan.
“But, wha ‘bout you, boy? Anythin’ new goin’ on?”
I think for a moment before shrugging and sweeping around the lobby.
“Well, I got a blind date tomorrow,” I said. “A friend of mine set me up. Apparently it’s one of their friends and we’re supposed to meet up at the bowling alley.”
Mr. Clement grinned as a soft chuckle escaped him. “You think she’s th’ one for you?”
I shook my head as I dumped the contents from the dustpan in the trash can.
“No, I doubt it. I think we’ll just stay friends. As much as I appreciate it, I’m not really into the dating scene.”
“Then why do you let yer friends set up these dates for you?” Mr. Clement questioned.
I couldn’t help but pause and avoid his gaze. He had a point. Why do I constantly let them do this?
“I guess I just have a hard time saying no.”
Our lobby conversations went about through the night until it was time for him to head back to his room. On the way, we got onto the subject of conspiracies. Man, it was funny to see how passionate Mr. Clement was about the topic. It’s as if another person was in that wheelchair instead of him.
“I’m tellin’ you, if we were in a simulation, we’d be down loaded!” He suggested.
I chuckled as I walked beside him. “Eh, I’d like to think we’re an experiment. Who knows? The evil ancient overlords might be watching over us, ready to strike.”
We shared a laugh until we made it to his room. Mr. Clement rolled forward before unlocking the door and opening it.
“You have a good night, Biru. Hopefully that date goes well.”
“Thanks, Mr. Clement. Have a good night!”
I watched as he got in and closed the door, hearing that familiar ‘click’ of the lock. I walked off and grabbed my things to go ahead to finish up the hallways. I did my best to finish cleaning up the halls, bathrooms, and vacant rooms as quickly as possible. Hated waking up people while I cleaned. Especially with that old vacuum that sounded more like a wood chipper. I quickly dusted off the lights and headed to the elevator before checking the time on my watch.
Midnight.
I still had a bunch of time. I headed back to the lobby and grabbed my bag from the closet and sat in one of the spinny chairs at the large desk in the middle of the room. I opened up my bag and rummaged around it. Keys, wallet, before pulling out a thermos with leftovers of vegetable soup. Not my best dish, but hey, it was something.
As I sipped, I pulled out my phone and started playing music. Just to combat the unsettling silence in this old complex. I’ll admit, the people here are kind and sweet. Hell, the pay for this job was pretty decent. But, the place itself always gave me such a terrible vibe. It was like the place was haunted, or somewhere I’ve been before in a past life. I snapped my attention from the rise in my anxiety to my now vibrating phone. On the screen was a message from my buddy, Dennis, or ‘The Denster’, according to the nickname I put into my phone (he always hated that name, so I did it to spite him). I opened the message and placed my soup down, leaning back to read the message.
‘Hey man! Still up for bowling tomorrow?’
I couldn’t help but purse my lips at the message as I hovered my thumbs over the keyboard. I really didn’t want to go to this, but I might as well. He was really sticking his neck out there to get me a date. But, honestly? I don’t mind being single. There’s nothing bad about it, actually. After a bit of an internal mini debate, I typed out my response.
‘Sure. Get ready cuz I’m gonna kick your ass in it’
I set the phone down and sighed before going back to my soup. What could go wrong?