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“Hello, Mrs Lounds” Will yelled as he entered the building. He hated the lady but he was in a good mood and felt like he could hug her right then. The woman frowned but replied politely. Will was grinning and that felt somehow new, especially to himself. The heavy bags in his arms made him change his habit of walking up the stairs. He hurried towards an elevator which was already closing but a strong, solid hand kept it from shutting in the nick of time.
“Thank you.” Will said before he even got the chance to notice who the thoughtful person was. “Oh, great, Lecter,” Will thought as he realised his saviour was Hannibal – Will’s neighbour, who lived exactly under Will’s apartment. Sometimes Will wondered if Hannibal could hear him walking around the room or taking a shower. It felt creepy and inappropriate but the thought would turn Will on.
The doors to the elevator closed and the two men were destined to be in each other’s presence at least for the next ten seconds, till they reach Hannibal’s floor. Will didn’t feel like small talking so he glanced at his watch and sighed.
“In a hurry?” Hannibal asked in a smug and gentle tone. Will wasn’t sure if he should share his plans for the evening with his neighbour so he replied with only a quick “Kind of” and watched the number of the floor change and flash with a red light.
Suddenly, the lights went off and the elevator stopped. Will groaned at his bad luck. That day was supposed to be important and he just knew that everything was not going according to plan on such days.
“I’m sure it’s just a break in providing the electricity. The power will be back before I finish this sentence.” Hannibal said, slowing down at the end of his utterance, but the content didn’t turn out to be true. It was still dark and Will was getting angry at his inability to see anything. They were in a very small space. What if the oxygen run out? No, no, no. The power would be back before he would have to worry about that.
Then, a small source of light reflected in the elevator’s mirror. Will had to blink and squint.
“I have exactly… eighty percent battery in my phone. It should keep the flashlight going for the time we’re here.” Lecter said and Will began wondering how long exactly they could be stuck in that unfortunate elevator.
“First time I decide not to take the stairs and this is what happens. Is this day cursed or am I?”
Hannibal chuckled at Will’s words and then extended his hand. “I don’t think we were introduced properly. I’m Hannibal Lecter.”
Then, Will laughed but managed to shook the other man’s hand, even with the heavy shopping bags in his arms. “Will. Graham. I live right above you.”
“I regret these are the circumstances we meet in but nevertheless, it’s very nice to meet you.”
“Yeah, you too.” Still awkward. Will finally decided to put the bags on the floor because God only knew how long they would be there. He sat next to the bags, legs curled in front of him and hands casually around his knees. Hannibal followed suit.
“I usually avoid elevators as well. Guess we both have a bad day.” Hannibal confessed and Will looked at him.
“Or we’re both cursed.” The tone of his voice was low and ominous but the remark was meant as a joke. Lecter turned away and threw his head back against the steel wall. The faint beam of light made the atmosphere resemble a thriller movie and a shiver went down Will’s spine at the thought. Graham tried to remain reasonable and hopeful. The electricity would be back in a moment and he would still have a nice rest of the evening.
“I believe it would be good to be distracted. If we talk, it would create an illusion that the time passes faster.” Hannibal suggested and Will nodded.
“What do you want to talk about?”
“I once saw you in a uniform so I presume you’re a police officer?”
“Yeah. But please don’t ask me why I became a cop.”
Hannibal chuckled at the request and respected it. He glanced at his phone and Will spotted a few missed calls but the screen almost screamed ‘no signal’. Will knocked at the wall of the elevator but heard nothing in return, just an echo. He could swear the small space was filled with his own breathing and heartbeat and for a moment he wondered if he wasn’t just imagining all that. Maybe Hannibal wasn’t even there, maybe this was only a dream and he would wake up in a moment to his annoying alarm clock.
“Would you rather not talk about your job or about you at all?” Lecter’s voice made Will come back to reality and remember he was still in the elevator, destined to spend some time with the man he had a crush on.
“Why don’t you tell me about your job?”
“I’m a psychiatrist. My office is not very far from here. I don’t see patients at home.”
“So you’re a therapist. I mean, you don’t work at a mental hospital?”
“No. The personnel of such hospitals often seem to have more problems than the inmates.”
Will smiled faintly but Hannibal noticed the reaction.
“So, why a psychiatrist?”
“I applied for medical school to be a surgeon but I quickly realised the human mind is much more fascinating than body.”
“Huh. And I guess the mind is more difficult to fix?”
Hannibal nodded in reply and smiled. Will took it as a gesture of admiration of his process of thinking. Obviously, there were still diseases that were left without a cure and people died every day but mental illnesses were causing just as many damages. And the terrible thing was that one couldn’t see a mental illness.
“Were you trained what to do in situations like this?” Lecter asked and Will’s face went immediately pale. He was angry. He was annoyed at his own incapability and slight fear. He shook his head gently as a reply and bit his tongue not to say something rude. They taught him many things, some of them completely useless, but never what to do when an elevator stops. It’s not a cop’s responsibility to make it work again, nor to get the people out of it in case of emergency. He was just a policeman. He could handcuff Hannibal, not help him.
“Neither was I. Two grown up men with proper education trapped in an elevator.” Hannibal chuckled at the irony. Will smiled, too. He was grateful that Hannibal remained calm and wanted to lower the tension.
The next fifteen seconds passed in utter silence and it seemed to take a toll on Graham. His mind began suggesting him images and he focused on everything around him: the slightly faster beating of his heart, the faint light from Hannibal’s phone, Lecter’s breathing.
It was getting uncomfortably warm so Hannibal took off his jacket and laid it on his stretched legs. Will watched the other man and smelt his perfume. There was something about men’s scents that made Will calm and aroused at the same time. No woman’s perfume could affect Graham as much as a man’s fragrant. Spicy, faint smell of sweat or aftershave that would too easily awake Will’s senses.
“It’s Dior Homme.” Hannibal said before Will even opened his mouth. “Quite expensive but once I smelt it, I knew I would never wear anything else.”
“It is really nice. But most probably too expensive for me.”
“That’s a shame. You are a police officer. You fight crimes. And yet you can’t afford simple luxuries.”
“Every cent I don’t spend on the most necessary things, I save to buy a house one day. Expensive perfumes don’t include in the indispensable items in my everyday life.”
“I see. That’s very reasonable and mature.”
“I guess I was raised that way.” Will said with a nostalgic sigh and closed his eyes for a longer moment.
“Are you willing to tell me more? We may sit here for another few minutes.”
“We may sit here for hours. I only hope they know what’s the problem and began working on it.” Will rubbed his neck and then continued. “Look, if I tell you, don’t turn it into a therapy session, alright?”
“Absolutely. This is just neighbours hanging out in an elevator.” Lecter answered with a wide smile. Will nodded and started speaking.
“I never knew my mother. I lived with my dad and he would accept any job just to keep us on the surface. We were poor, we moved a lot. I was always a new guy in school. I never had fancy toys like other kids. Now I provide for myself and I can’t complain. It’s just that I don’t need expensive clothes or perfumes. I never had a taste.”
“I see. Well, I know poverty as well. I had to work while I was at the university to pay my tuition. It wasn’t always Dior and tailored suits.”
“Are they some form of compensating the bad times in your life?”
“Maybe. Probably.” Hannibal admitted and then chuckled. “Who’s turning it into a therapy session?”
“Sorry. I guess as a cop I also have a tendency to analyse everything.”
“That’s what makes a good cop.” Lecter commented.
“That’s what makes a good detective.”
“Have you ever sat an exam to be a detective?”
“I have. I failed. The committee concluded that I think out of the box instead of focusing on the plain evidence.” Will spoke as if he was reciting a poem; he seemed to have memorized the committee’s decision. There was indifference in his voice and a void in his eyes as he was spitting the words.
Hannibal smiled warmly and tilted his head. “It appears to me you are suited for a different institution. The police department will keep rejecting you and the resentment growing inside you will make you miserable and bitter.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.”
“Why don’t you stay in law enforcement but change the sole institution? I know a guy and-”
“Are going to recommend me?”
“I would if you asked me.” Hannibal said simply and then continued after assessing Will’s face expression. “Are you familiar with the behavioural sciences?”
“I read a few things.”
“I am a friend of the FBI’s head of the Behavioural Unit. He told me they were looking for smart people thinking out of the box. If you were willing to apply and then educate yourself, I’m sure you’d do a great profiler.” Every sentence was weighed, well-paced and careful as Hannibal watched for Will’s reaction. They were closed in a small space and if Lecter offended Will or made him angry or annoyed, their stay in the elevator would be much less pleasant.
“I’m willing to try but it’s probably not so easy. It’s not like anyone from the street can apply for a position there.”
“No. But seeing as you are worth it, I may talk to Jack and ask if he would agree only for a seat for you. So that you had at least a chance in the competition. If you are not suited for the job, they’ll see it immediately. And so will you.”
Will’s face changed. There was a grimace that almost yelled ‘I hate pity’ but Will knew Hannibal was only trying to be helpful. Why exactly?
“Look, I don’t want pity.”
“I’m not offering you that.”
“If I get the job, I want it to be because I deserve it.”
“I only want to help you get a pass inside the building. What you do there is entirely up to you.”
Will nodded gently and looked at his watch. In the dim light he read that they had spent almost an hour in the elevator. So his plans had gone to hell and he would have to expect an angry call the next day.
“Are you expected somewhere? You seemed to be in a hurry and you keep checking the time.” Hannibal spoke and Will only murmured something, like it wasn’t important. Then, his stomach started to rumble. Graham sighed, curled in embarrassment and said softly ‘sorry’. Hannibal shook his head, indicating that he didn’t mind and then glanced suggestively at the bags on the floor.
“I’m alright. I’ll eat when we get out and I can finally go home.”
Hannibal offered a warm smile and then started laughing, at which Will had to frown.
“I’ve seen a movie where people were stuck in an elevator. It felt differently when I was on the other side.”
“Yeah. It never occurred to me that one day I would be in this position.” Will remarked and shifted slightly to face his interlocutor. “So what do people usually talk to you about? I mean, what issues do they carry on their shoulders?”
Hannibal smiled and relaxed as well. He couldn’t give any names or too specific details but could enumerate a few problems people had these days. “Most of them are simply paranoid. Once explained that there is nothing wrong with them, they either realise it’s true or go to see another poor psychiatrist. Some, of course, are in a genuine need of help. They are struggling with depression or other forms of mild distortions. Nothing I cannot deal with.”
“Have you ever had a patient you had to refer to someone else because you couldn’t help?”
“A few. One was particularly interested in me, rather than in his own therapy.”
“A stalker? You should have let him know your neighbour is a cop.” Will laughed. The atmosphere became less tense and Hannibal chuckled, too. Shame they hadn’t met before or had a chance to talk. It might have been too late now for any advances.
“Are you single, Will?”
“Yeah. Why?” Graham’s face went slightly pale and the man got somewhat angry and annoyed.
“I just never hear any noise from the floor above. But I have an undeserved opportunity to listen to hard rock bands that my other neighbour seems to be very fond of.” The remark made Will smile widely but then he realised Hannibal had paid attention to what was happening around him, especially in the flat above him. Or maybe it was just Will’s tendency to read too much into simple things?
“I never had to complain about the noise from under my apartment. So I guess we’re both exemplary units of the society.”
“I believe I am rarely at home. But when it happens, I do my utmost not to disturb anyone.”
“I guess I was asking, in my odd and indirect way, if you were single as well.”
“Oh. Yes. I’m single.”
“Cool. I mean… I don’t know what I mean. How long has it been?” Will asked and glanced at his watch again, partly to forget about the awkwardness and partly to check the time. An hour and a half. Now Will was getting nervous. His mind started putting forth the most ridiculous questions. How much oxygen do they have? What if there is a zombie apocalypse out there and they are stuck in an elevator with no weapon? Will the food in his bags be enough to survive for who knows how much longer? Will it be necessary to resort to an act of cannibalism?
“Will?”
Graham realised he was shaking his head and rubbing his temples probably for too long and with too much force. Lecter touched his wrists and settled them by Will’s hips.
“I’m sorry. I never behave like this.”
“It’s alright, Will. You may have a mild panic attack. Please, talk to me. Don’t go inside. Don’t close yourself in your head.”
“This is what I’m used to.”
“I know. And it may appear easier than sharing but you need to stay calm and focused. Maybe you would eat something after all?”
Graham blinked but then nodded and opened the bags. He found a packet of cookies and raised his eyebrows questioningly at Hannibal.
“Maybe something more nourishing?”
“Unless you have a compact cooker with you, I don’t think we can prepare a two-dish meal in here.”
Lecter chuckled and dived his hand into the bag. There was a jar with Nutella, jar with jam, a few bananas and oranges and a loaf of bread. Lecter frowned and began searching the other bag. Pasta, a bottle of wine, some carrots and already melting bar of butter. Hannibal took one banana and handed it to Will without any words.
“Do you want one, too? I have eating alone.” Graham asked and Lecter nodded his thanks. They ate the fruit and continued sitting in the dim room. Hannibal’s phone warned him the battery would die in thirty minutes but the man only shrugged and leant against the steel wall.
“Maybe we could scream and hit the walls. Someone will have to hear.”
“They’ll think someone is having sex. Besides, until the electricity is back, we’re stuck here.”
“So we’re going to just sit here and do nothing?” Hannibal’s voice was coloured with anger. Will frowned but then rose and started battering the wall. He hit it with a lot of force and yelled ‘help’. After a minute there was still silence around them and Will took his place on the floor, next to Hannibal, resigned.
“Not rescued by a cop, would be the headline.” Graham said bitterly.
“Forgive me. I was too harsh. It’s not your fault we’re here.”
The next few minutes the men spent in utter silence but then Will got tired of hearing only his own heartbeat. It carried on to his ears and nerves and he wanted to punch something just to get rid of this feeling.
“Would you like some wine?”
“We don’t have any glasses.”
Will shrugged and took the bottle out of the bag. Luckily, there was no cork so Graham opened the bottle easily and took a sip. Hannibal watched the man have two more gulps before he cleared his throat and extended his palm to reach for the bottle. “I’ve changed my mind. May I?”
Graham handed him the bottle and wiped his mouth.
“I was going to have a date tonight.” Graham confessed. “After years of miserable relationships and failed dates I found a nice guy and I blew it. All because of some problems with electricity and me being generally unlucky. I could have taken the stairs. I would have carried those bags, they’re not so heavy I would be crushed under them.”
Hannibal remained silent for a moment. He didn’t want to sound patronizing, nor did he want to meddle in someone else’s life. All he wanted was to reassure Will.
“Maybe not everything is lost. You can explain what happened and I can vouch for you.”
“It’s not that. It’s… I think I realised this is not what I want. Nice is not the adjective I want to use to describe my boyfriend.”
“What is?”
Will took another sip of wine and spotted the bottle was nearly half-empty already. The light in Hannibal’s phone got even dimmer as the battery was about to die and leave the two men in complete darkness. Graham smiled at the thought that after all this time he was finally talking to Hannibal and in a moment he would be alone with the man in the small space, unable to see anything. He could touch Lecter and have a very good excuse for that.
“Perfect.”
Hannibal chuckled at the reply. “There are no perfect people, Will. I think you need to manage your expectations.”
“Imperfect, then.”
At that moment the light went off and the two men were no longer able to see each other. Will gulped the wine and closed his eyes. With that, he wondered if he was sleeping. Maybe it was night and he was sitting in his room drinking wine, dreaming about his neighbour. Perhaps this was all in his head.
A warm palm enclosed his own and Hannibal took the bottle from Will. This must have been a dream. This wasn’t happening. The hand disappeared and Graham heard the man next to him swallow the burning liquid. The sound in the darkness was arousing and Will had to remind himself this may not, in fact, be a dream.
The next sound Will heard was a clunk when the bottle was put down on the floor. Then, the warm hand grasped Will’s knee and his arm hanging loosely. The skin on skin contact made Will shiver and withdraw slightly. He curled up even more as the hand was wandering higher up his arm.
Graham swallowed and waited for whatever was coming next. The palm reached his neck and then face. His cheeks heated up when he felt warm breath coming from inches away.
“Here you are.” Hannibal spoke softly. Will was still convinced he was dreaming. Or that this was just an unfortunate misunderstanding. Yet, he didn’t want this dream to shatter. He wanted to keep it as long as he could.
“Now we won’t be able to tell how much time has passed.”
“We’re stuck here forever.” The last word hit Will right in the stomach. This must have been a dream. A weird one. Probably a wet dream in a second.
Graham extended his arms to touch Hannibal as well. They were two blind people who seemed to have found each other. Will traced his fingers on Lecter’s face and felt a smile spreading from ear to ear. The sharp teeth bit him playfully and Will chuckled.
“You should never stick your fingers where they don’t belong.” Hannibal explained.
Then, Will felt a pair of warm dry lips against his own. He made a quiet noise of appreciation and surprise before he surrendered. The kiss was gently and affectionate. Both men tasted of wine and something sweet, probably the bananas they ate. Will grabbed Hannibal’s hair at the back of his head and hoped this would not end soon. He’d kill anyone who would pinch him then.
~~~~ Alternative Ending ~~~~
The next thing Graham knew, the lights were on again and he had to squint. Opening his eyes widely hurt but he forced himself to look and when he realised where he was, he was about to faint. Hannibal was sitting opposite him, facing him and stroking his face. They had just shared a lovely kiss and now the elevator moved again. There was an opened bottle of wine on the floor and two shopping bags. Graham blinked while Hannibal cleared his throat. They composed themselves before the elevator reached Lecter’s floor but then the man hesitated.
“The evening is not yet over. Maybe you can still have your date.”
Will smiled at Hannibal and blushed. The doors to the elevator closed and Hannibal’s eyes were left with a sight of the wall. When Lecter was turning the key in the lock to his door, he heard thumping, as if someone was running on the stairs. In a second Will was standing next to Lecter, with his bags in his arms and a wide warm smile on his face. His breath was short and shallow.
“I bought the food for the date. Let’s have a date.”
Hannibal opened the door and ushered Will inside.